Chicago Bears - Green Bay Packers | Saturday Night Football / Holiday Party

Summary

Dan Bernstein Unfiltered

Episode: Chicago Bears - Green Bay Packers | Saturday Night Football / Holiday Party

Date: December 16, 2025

Host: Dan Bernstein | Producer: Matt Abbatacola

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Episode Overview

This high-energy episode captures Chicago on the brink of a big Bears moment. Dan and Matt riff on the culture shift as Chicago’s casual fans flock to the Bears “playoff bubble,” examine how sports events influence civic traditions and holiday plans, share plenty of classic Chicago sports banter, and dig into stories about the city’s teams. There’s sharp insight on fandom, fun personal asides, debate about fan etiquette (and party rules), a reflection on the viral Caleb Williams–to–DJ Moore touchdown, and emotion about the recent passing of Rob Reiner. The episode is packed with humor, nostalgia, and serious sports commentary—hallmarks of Dan’s “unfiltered” style.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Civic Bears Engagement: From Die-hards to Casuals

• [00:01–05:35]
  • Dan describes Chicago’s “Bears bubble,” where hard-core fans obsess over gap integrity and route combinations, while casual interest is beginning to surge with the Bears push for the playoffs.
  • Explains playoff permutations: “The Bears beat Green Bay and Detroit loses or ties Pittsburgh, the Bears are in the playoffs.”
    “It’s time to welcome the casual fan to the party...You saw them peeking out of their holes...‘I hear this Bears thing is interesting or exciting.’” — Dan, [01:41]
  • Observes when civic pride starts manifesting: jerseys at grocery stores, Lions at the Art Institute with helmets, building lights changing colors—these are all “on watch now.”
  • Light-hearted speculation about when the Art Institute’s iconic lion helmets emerge from storage.
    “I guarantee you someone has been asked to make sure the lion helmets are accounted for.” — Dan, [03:43]

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2. No Gatekeeping: Fandom Etiquette and the Big Tent

• [05:01–08:40]
  • Dan and Matt advocate for a “no gatekeeping” Bears fandom:
    “You can’t tell people you haven’t been here, so you’re not welcome...The Bears are at every team for everybody.” — Dan, [05:38]
  • Contrasts Bears inclusivity with the historically tight-knit/bandwagon-averse culture of Blackhawks fans.
  • Dan stresses, “Football is so ubiquitous…gatherings and parties, it’s a Saturday night. This is the perfect storm for the city to unite around the Bears.”
  • Predictions for neighborhood “holiday-party Bears creep,” where every gathering turns into a watch party.

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3. Holiday Parties: Chicago-Style Bears-Packers Dilemma

• [08:46–17:18]
  • Discussion about the collision between holiday gatherings and must-see Bears-Packers Saturday night football.
  • Matt imagines fans plotting ways to escape parties or bring the game to dinner:
    “Now there’s some poor bastard who has to go to a relative’s house...where there won’t be TVs, and now he’s faking an illness.” — Matt, [10:05]
  • Comedy about people Googling “how to fake the flu” or downloading streaming apps last-minute.
  • Dan proposes tongue-in-cheek “Bears Hall Pass” forms for listeners to print and present to party hosts, excusing them from non-football activities.
  • Party etiquette:
    • Matt: No Packers gear allowed at his house. “Take it off or don’t come in.” [16:29]
    • Dan: “I wouldn’t care...I’d make it a Bears-Packers holiday party. More for everybody.” [16:44]

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4. Managing the Mixed-Fan Gathering

• [17:18–18:40]
  • Matt asks for listener feedback about cross-fan holiday parties (“Bears/Packers and holiday booze, what could go wrong?”).
  • Predicts postgame fights from the mingling of rival fans plus alcohol:
    “Holiday booze kicks up an extra level—it’s Festivus for the rest of us.” — Matt, [17:41]
  • Invites stories from the audience about party drama post-Bears-Packers.

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5. Football Analysis: Caleb Williams & Bears Highlights

• [22:57–27:32]
  • Dan discusses the “viral” Caleb Williams-to-DJ Moore touchdown, drawing comparison to Montana-to-Clark (“The Catch”):
    “There are some really cool comps...the second touchdown pass Caleb threw to DJ Moore with Joe Montana finding Dwight Clark…when you see it, it’s cool.” — Dan, [21:28]
  • Explains the historical context and significance of “The Catch,” why “context matters.”
  • Analysis of Williams’ throw:
    “Generally, it's a pass one shouldn't make, while also understanding that Caleb Williams has different rules that apply…” — Dan, [26:40]
    • Emphasizes celebrating genius when it happens, but not teaching risky plays as standard.

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6. Chicago Sports Family: Blackhawks & Broadcasting Nostalgia

• [37:43–41:56]
  • Concern over Blackhawks' transparency on Connor Bedard’s upper-body injury.
    • “Do you think the Blackhawks are lying about the severity of Connor Bedard’s upper body injury?” — Dan, [37:56]
    • 48% of all Blackhawks goals this year have Bedard’s hand in them.
  • Strong nostalgia for Blackhawks radio—Pat Foley’s voice as “the sound of Blackhawks hockey.”
  • Reflections on how sports traditions, voices, and settings shape the fan experience.

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7. Banter, Bits & Basketball

• [47:42–53:46]
  • A tangent about Cirque du Soleil and Chicago comedy acts.
  • Discussion on the NBA Cup Final:
    • “Victor Wembanyama is playing like the rest of us play on an eight-foot hoop.” — Dan
    • Dan recounts beating NBA player Marty Conlon at Nerf hoop in his Rockford apartment.
  • Riffs about the “6-7” bit and its (over)saturation in sports media.

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8. Rob Reiner Tribute

• [58:02–63:53]
  • Emotional and heartfelt segment on the passing of Rob Reiner.
    • Walks through Reiner’s pivotal movies: Spinal Tap, The Sure Thing, Stand By Me, Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally, Misery, A Few Good Men
    • Highlights Reiner’s skill at directing scripts by great writers (Stephen King, William Goldman, Nora Ephron, Aaron Sorkin).
    • "Want to see a dead body? … You can’t handle the truth! It’s all him.” — Dan, [62:02]
    • Reiner’s impact across both film and politics, and expressions of cross-aisle grief.

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Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• On Chicago Bears Playoff Hype:
  • “It’s time to welcome the casual fan to the party...they’re starting. You saw them peeking out of their holes...” — Dan Bernstein, [01:41]
• On Fandom Gatekeeping:
  • “We’re not going to be punk rock about this…No, the Bears are at every team for everybody.” — Dan, [05:38]
• On Party Rules:
  • “No questions. Just enjoy the game for the moment. I’m not ready to take questions during a Bears-Packers game.” — Matt, [15:31]
  • “No Packers gear. Take it off or don’t come in.” — Matt, [16:29]
• On Caleb Williams’s Touchdown:
  • “That generally is a pass one shouldn’t make, while also understanding that Caleb Williams has different rules that apply to him because of how he sees the field.” — Dan, [26:40]
• On Blackhawks Nostalgia:
  • “It doesn't sound like Blackhawks to me…Pat Foley on the radio or Pat and Eddie together, that was what Blackhawks hockey sounded to me.” — Dan, [41:01]
• On Rob Reiner:
  • “I was raised on his dad’s stuff…then of course, Spinal Tap, what we now know as the mockumentary genre, he helped usher in.” — Dan, [58:27]
  • “So many little cultural things: Inconceivable! This goes to 11. I’m your number one fan. You want to see a dead body? … You can’t handle the truth. It’s all him.” — Dan, [62:02]

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Important Timestamps

• Bears Playoff Bubble / Culture Watch: [00:01–05:35]
• Fandom Inclusivity & Gatekeeping: [05:01–08:40]
• Holiday Party Dilemmas & Etiquette: [08:46–17:18]
• Caleb Williams Touchdown/‘The Catch’ Comparison: [21:28–27:32]
• Listener Anecdotes—Stanley Cup Mystery Goal: [28:05–30:00]
• Blackhawks & Pat Foley Nostalgia: [37:43–41:56]
• NBA Cup, 6-7 Bit, Nerf Battles: [47:42–53:46]
• Rob Reiner Tribute: [58:02–63:53]

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Tone and Style

The episode—true to its "unfiltered" promise—mixes caustic wit, Chicago references, and sharp sports analysis. Dan’s voice is sardonic and analytical; Matt brings droll, practical humor. Banter and nostalgia are balanced by honest explorations of what sports mean to Chicago’s community.

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Summary

This episode of Dan Bernstein Unfiltered is a must-listen (or -read!) for Chicago sports fans heading into Bears playoff fever, holiday gathering chaos, and anyone nostalgic for the city’s unique sports rituals. With sharp analysis, memorable stories, and genuine emotion for lost legends, Dan and Matt capture both the absurdity and the magic of a city uniting around its teams.

Transcript

[A]

Dan Bernstein, unfiltered unfiltered on 312 Sports, I'm Dan Bernstein. This is Dan Bernstein, Unfiltered. He is Matt Abaticola. We are brought to you in partnership with my bookie and we thank protein bar and kitchen. Delicious, nutritious and protein packed food and drink. Check out the [e-mail] I realized today what is happening at the moment. We have to just be conscious of this as this is going on because we live in kind of a Bears bubble. We're big fans and we follow everything and remember a lot of stuff and keep silly notes and we're talking about blocking schemes and route combinations and gap integrity and depth charts. Most people aren't. Most people don't. And yet now that they've got 10 wins and now that we're talking playoff permutations, and they are, apparently the Bears have sent out officially the fact that the Bears beat Green Bay and Detroit loses to or ties Pittsburgh. The Bears are in the playoffs. If the Bears tie Green Bay and Detroit loses to Pittsburgh, the Bears are in the playoffs. So all of that communication is starting to begin. And just think about this now. Bears just had a huge home win with a lot of highlights in it and fun things and spectacular plays. Bears, Packers. This isn't a Sunday night game. This isn't a Monday night game. This isn't a Sunday afternoon primary window game. This is a Saturday night game. So if it hasn't happened yet or if you've been noticing a little bit of Bears creep, we're moving up to that next level of sort of civic Bears engagement here. It's time to welcome the casual fan to the party because they're, they're, they're kind of starting. You saw them peeking out of their, of their, of their holes, of their individual bubbles and they're kind of, what's, what's going on? I hear this Bears thing is interesting or exciting. There's a couple stages. There's at your grocery store, are cashiers wearing Bears jerseys or is that only happening on Sundays because Jewel is an official partner. So some years they were doing that more often than not those terribly sad, trubisky jerseys for too long where people are like, oh, gotta do our Bears spirit day.

[B]

And then eventually they're like on sale.

[A]

For $10 at the checkout or at Marshall's next door.

[B]

No, at Jules.

[A]

At the Juuls.

[B]

At the Juuls.

[A]

Hey, throwing a turbid. They sewed up the bottom. They're using them for bags. Just stuffing Your boxes of Wheat Thins in there, but this. I'm starting to think that we're getting to that point now where every. It's not just Wiener Circle that's gonna have bears and messages on the marquee. We're not quite at the boards. The traffic safety boards along the interstate.

[B]

Oh, it's bears.

[A]

Messages are not bears messaging yet.

[B]

Or the lights on. Like, buildings downtown changing colors just yet.

[A]

And the lions outside the Art Institute don't have the helmets on yet. But we're on watch for that. Somebody has. I guarantee you someone has been asked to make sure the lion helmets are accounted for.

[B]

Like, where are they?

[A]

In storage? Yes. Someone has actually called the storage facility or done a site check.

[B]

Because if they had them out, it would have been 2018. Yeah. Would have been the last time.

[A]

Right?

[B]

Well, so let's find those.

[A]

I'm just thinking, wherever they keep the Art Institute lion helmets, somebody.

[B]

No, some poor bastard just got the requisition, and he's like, no, they have them.

[A]

They don't make new ones.

[B]

Doesn't know where they are. The requisition to find them in the basement.

[A]

You know what? It's.

[B]

Seriously, where are they?

[A]

It's like, what, every year where we are with the Hanukkah menorah and stuff, and after eight days, I'm not gonna clean it out. Not gonna dig the candle wax out of there. So, of course, two days ago. No, it's nice. It was a wedding present. And then Beth is like, you know where the menorah is. You will clean it out. Didn't I do that last year? You said. No, you did what you did every year when you said you would clean it out.

[B]

Now, wait, when did Hanukkah. Was it two days ago?

[A]

Two nights ago was night one.

[B]

Was I supposed to say happy Hanukkah or anything?

[A]

Doesn't matter.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

It's not really not a big deal. It's not a big holiday.

[B]

Okay. Oh, it's not.

[A]

It's an overrated holiday because it's in the winter and because it happens to coincide with Christmas. It's a minor military victory. I mean, it's not a big holiday.

[B]

Okay. Gotcha.

[A]

It's gotten conflated into something.

[B]

I take it back more.

[A]

Yes, you can. You know, thank you, though. I'm just starting to think, what other little moments. What other little things that whoever is in charge of dragging the Art Institute lion helmets out of storage has at least gotten an email to say, check out where those are. So that's A thing. And here's my take on be welcoming. It's our job to not gatekeep. There's no gatekeeping the Bears.

[B]

You can't tell people you haven't been here, so you're not welcome.

[A]

Now, we're not going to be punk rock about this. We're not going to be like all indie music. I knew the band when they were playing in little clubs in Austin. I knew the band. They're playing in Athens, Georgia. Now they're out here, you know, selling out arenas. No, no, no. The Bears are. The Bears are at every team for everybody. If I think Ben Johnson has established that he's a man of the people. He wants to feed people hot dogs. He'll run down the street without pants if it means getting an order of fries somewhere. He's taking care of you. He's. He's. He's helping you. The Bears are all things to all people at the moment.

[B]

Now, the only issue I have is the jewels or the Mariano's in my case, because I'm so far north.

[A]

Oh, you have the Packer stuff.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Well, there's packers stuff. Okay.

[B]

And packers jersey.

[A]

Cool.

[B]

Packers hoodies. Yeah.

[A]

You're close to the border up there.

[B]

Yeah. It's not good.

[A]

It's all right. No, who cares?

[B]

It's a. It's a mix of. It's actually a really good mix of Bears and Packers fans.

[A]

Well, I also think Mariano's may still have a little bit of Roundy's DNA in there, which was Milwaukee based or is Milwaukee based, if I. If I remember correctly?

[B]

Yeah. I don't know.

[A]

Before they sold to Kroger, they were roundies.

[B]

Yeah. Yeah. There's no more Roundy stuff. It's all Kroger.

[A]

Right. But I do. I still think that there's somewhere in.

[B]

There still left in the DNA.

[A]

Yeah, there's somewhere in there some latent Packer stuff in there, but. All right, bring it for everybody. But this is that time when I think there's also some Bears Packer stuff that was saved for the second game because it's here. And I've been noticing it, like anecdotally, you notice that maybe you. You hear from someone or maybe it's a relative. It was like, boy, you. You in Chicago must be enjoying all the Bears stuff there right now. And. Yeah, we are. Well, who's that? That. That young quarterback seems to be like a very charismatic and well spok. Yes, yes, he is. He's great. And he'll be getting. Keep your tolerance level high.

[B]

You know, I get what you're. What you're saying here too. And I think it's probably more prevalent with other teams when they do well. Are there a lot of casual Bears fans that like that clump that like jump onto the bandwagon? Not.

[A]

I not like there are. For Blackhawks.

[B]

Like, Blackhawks is probably the biggest.

[A]

Blackhawks has the biggest differential between the size of their like the core of their real fan base that actually understands the sport and the everybody else.

[B]

I wouldn't even go that far.

[A]

Yeah. I would say the Venn diagram is larger intersection for the Bears that there are fewer, very casual. What is this? Football? Because football is so ubiquitous and American, where hockey is not. Hockey is arcane and Canadian and they make it difficult to understand on purpose. And that's your punk rock mentality. That's your. You don't know. Stay away. I don't like having you here. This is ours. But you don't do it with football.

[B]

Right.

[A]

You don't do it with football. And it's also the gatherings and the parties. It's Saturday night. Yeah. I just think this is Saturday night game.

[B]

This Saturday night game is gonna have a huge impact on bringing out that casual fan.

[A]

Everybody in this city. And have you seen.

[B]

Because now people like their holiday parties are now going to be themed Bears.

[A]

Holiday parties and watch parties will be commingled with these. It doesn't even. Whether it's a theme or not, a gathering of people for whatever reason is going to have the game on. Yeah. You know, I felt the creep a couple nights ago. Feeling the creep could be a bad thing if he's there. The. The Hanukkah party we had. And I'm feeling the packers game and the Rams game. Part of your meatball parlay.

[B]

Oh, yeah.

[A]

You know, we get there, the, you know, the Bears game's over. You're like, hey, how the. Is there tv?

[B]

Is there a TV around that works?

[A]

Yeah. Is there. Is there a tv? Yeah. Because I mean, sometimes you can find one. But like my Cousin's place, the TV's all like come down out of the ceiling. It's like. It's like a James Bond at the table.

[B]

This individual who knows 12 inch viewers.

[A]

You don't know everything is. You wouldn't. It is.

[B]

The wall opens. The Bears packers game was flexed like two weeks ago. Right. So people knew people would have already had their. The 20th designated as a night for a holiday party or get together or din. Now there's some poor bastard who has to go to a relative's house or have a holiday dinner out at a restaurant where there won't be TVs because it's been planned already. And now he's either faking an illness.

[A]

Didn't have to be here.

[B]

Or starting the beginning. It's the beginning stages of a fight with his wife so he doesn't have to go.

[A]

Or the other way around.

[B]

Or the wife.

[A]

Yeah, I. Feeling ill. Well, there could be data, right? Couldn't there be data and, like, what apps have been downloaded or gotten? Whatever word we're supposed to use.

[B]

Like Google searches.

[A]

Oh, Google searches.

[B]

How to fake the flu.

[A]

I was thinking more like Sling tv or people getting, like a free trial of something just to allow them.

[B]

Yeah, because I went a little darker. You were trying to be. I was like, how to get the flu in a day. How to pretend like you're sick. How to make yourself throw up without being sick.

[A]

I've had a run on syrup of ipecac. Everyone buying emetics so they can throw. No, I was just thinking more like, what's going on in the App store? People are like, how do I get the Bears game to my phone so I can surreptitiously? Or it's just overt. Or it's like, I'm not going. I'm watching bears. You just put your foot down and.

[B]

Say, honey, I can't do it. I can't go to Aunt Judy's house on Saturday. It's not happening.

[A]

We're not doing this.

[B]

All right? So if you're dealing with this and you're listening to us now, we're a.

[A]

Support place for you.

[B]

Let us know, send a message. You can email us. You can send a Message in the 312 sports app. Want to know what you're doing? Like, what's the. What's the dilemma?

[A]

You have the conference for Saturday night.

[B]

What are you doing for Saturday night? To either get out of it or suffer through it?

[A]

I think Dan Bernstein Unfiltered is going. We're going to have to type up a hall pass, a form letter.

[B]

Oh, yeah.

[A]

Official. And provide it to you. Make it available to your. Right.

[B]

Whoever it is.

[A]

And just. You'll be able to fill in your personal information. And then we sign you out. Essentially, we go to the school office and we write down on the thing, and then we, we wait, you come down, sign it. They. They hit the intercom. They, they. Then we sign you out.

[B]

So what if, like, what if you're the guy hosting the party, though? Like, what if you have it now Lean in.

[A]

Lean in. And now it's just, go, Bears.

[B]

Now you're talking to your wife or your husband and you're saying, hey, I want to have the game on. That's got to be the focal point.

[A]

Of the party, I would say. Unless it's like a memorial service or a shiva or a wake. Well, but, you know, wakes can be a shiva, can be a beat. You can watch it actually that. You know. What?

[B]

Well, you're not really planning those ahead of time. That's kind of happening for the moment. Sorry.

[A]

When my uncle died. When Uncle Dick died, it was a Super bowl party in Omaha. Oh, yeah, it was awesome. It was the Broncos.

[B]

You guys had a lot of stakes, too.

[A]

It was the. Well, it was. It was a great part. It was the Broncos and the Panthers. That was the Von Miller, Peyton Manning.

[B]

Is that. Is that when you kept making eye contact with your sister? Because they kept talking about Dick?

[A]

Yeah, that was. That was the funeral.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

It was that day. And now it's time for a moment of silent, reflective prayer so you can be alone with your thoughts of Dick.

[B]

Yep. There you go.

[A]

And then I made eye contact with Jill. And then that was it. And then things were not great because I should never have looked at her. The moment the rabbi said that. The moment she said the moment.

[B]

Did you guys laugh out loud?

[A]

I. Well, I turned purple, essentially. I bit my mouth until it bled.

[B]

How old were you?

[A]

This was. It was the Peyton Manning Super Bowl. I wasn't that old. I mean, was it Bears?

[B]

Bears.

[A]

What?

[B]

Super Bowl?

[A]

No, no, no. It was. It was the Manning. Broncos.

[B]

Broncos. Oh, so. Yeah. Oh, yeah. So you're a full grown.

[A]

Eight years ago, whatever. Something like that. When he died. Yeah, yeah. So it was that, and it was. It was a Super Bowl.

[B]

So you got two adults in their 40s laughing over the rabbi saying your thoughts of Dick.

[A]

Because the room's packed. There's probably 500 people in the room. We're sitting down in the lower level. There's like a. Like an upper deck. And we're down in the. In the lower part. There's a. Like a balcony. And so everybody could see where the family was seated in the middle of the third row. And I'm sitting next to my sister, which was a mistake.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And now this moment of silent, reflective prayer.

[B]

Yeah, you had an upper deck for Uncle Dick.

[A]

Wow. Did you guys sell tickets so you can be alone?

[B]

Do you make money off this deal.

[A]

With your thoughts of Dick? You know, you can't. You can't. Trust me. In a situation.

[B]

Well, I don't. You shouldn't trust any man in that situation.

[A]

Or my sister, because then it was.

[B]

You know.

[A]

But, yes. So that turned into a Super bowl party, and you can do the same thing. Is the point that this is. We're at a threshold. We're at an inflection point of big tent, big tent, Bears. Everybody's welcome. If you need an explanation as to the difference between zone defense and man defense, that should be provided. You can. You can explain that. You don't have to get into blocking schemes. You can. And nobody knows the rules of NFL football. We know that. No one knows the rules. Yeah. So we all figured that out as we go every week. No matter how much football you watch, it takes a while to actually learn the rules.

[B]

All right, so now if I'm in that situation and I'm hosting a holiday party Saturday night, now it's turned into a Bears packers game event.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

I set a couple ground rules. If this is my house.

[A]

All right, I'm taking.

[B]

My ground rules are this. Okay, first of all, I don't allow questions. Like, if you don't know something, just enjoy the game for the moment. Like, I'm not. I'm not ready to take questions on during a Bears packers game with the implications of what this game.

[A]

This is. This is Beth's rule for when I half watch one of her TV shows.

[B]

I'm not allowed questions.

[A]

Who's that guy?

[B]

Oh, I asked.

[A]

Yeah, I know. Oh, no, no. She'll throw a fork.

[B]

Oh, I know. Like, if she's watching a Real Housewife show that I don't watch, I'll ask, who's that woman again?

[A]

What does she do? Nope, not allowed.

[B]

Oh, yeah, I get to ask. Okay, well, yeah, I get it.

[A]

She knows she gets. Because I'll have some things I half watch. Yeah. And she'll say, you're allowed to half watch. Just shut up.

[B]

Okay, that's fair, though. I mean, I have watched Beverly Hills. I'm all in on Salt Lake City, though. That's. That's one of the best TV shows out there right now.

[A]

I trust you. All right, so what's your other role? So no questions.

[B]

No questions. And if I'm hosting and this is my house.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

And it's a holiday party now turned into Bears watch party. No packers gear. I'm telling you, like, someone shows up with a Packers jersey on or like a Packers Santa's hat, take it off or don't come in.

[A]

Wow.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

See, I wouldn't care.

[B]

I would no, I'm not. I'm not looking at that shit at my house during a holiday party. Now turned football watch. Not happening.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Sorry.

[A]

All right, it's. But go ahead and do it. I would just don't try to fight it. Make it a Bears packers holiday party. And you can have, I think more for everybody.

[B]

Bears opponent, holiday party.

[A]

But if everybody's there, everybody's. It's, it's fine as long as people. Because everyone's going to ignore the rules once they're into the eggnog. All right.

[B]

If so, yeah. And there's, there's my next point, too. If you're part of this and there's a commingling of Bears and Packers fans at your holiday party, I want to hear. So let us know either in the live postgame show chat or email us or message us on the app on Sunday or Monday. The fights that broke out due to alcohol because there's going to be arguments that take place because of Bears packers game. Holiday booze. Holiday booze kicks up an extra level that goes from like a casual Saturday into it's, you know, the Festivus for the rest of us type. Drinking games.

[A]

Yeah. Night game.

[B]

Yeah. So it's gonna get. There's gonna be arguments that happen.

[A]

If you want a great personal gift, don't wait. You know that there's people in your family or friends or people with whom you've experienced something really cool of which you have pictures, send an aura frame. It's a digital picture frame that allows you to send it preloaded with awesome digital photos that you can add a message. You can personalize it before it arrives. And there's a gift box included. Every frame packaged in a premium gift box with no price tag. It's really cool. It's. It's super nice. And I've got the one. I'm going to set it up, I think this weekend. Or I might, I might re gift it to my parents. But don't say anything. So if they're listening. I don't know. I was thinking about it.

[B]

So they're not listening.

[A]

I don't know. I don't know. When my dad does his mall walking, he listens.

[B]

All right, maybe, maybe H bruise. But your mom's not listening. She's got better things to do with her day.

[A]

I hope so.

[B]

Got caramels and heaters so you can.

[A]

Save on the perfect gift by visiting auraframes.com youm'll get $35 off Aura's best selling Carver mat frames. Those were named Number one by wirecutter. And we have the promo code for you right here. DBU. Use that at checkout for Dan Bernstein Unfiltered. It's DBU. That's a U R A frames.com promo code DBU. This deal is exclusive to you for listening. These frames sell out fast. Order now and you'll get it in time for the holidays. And your gift will arrive in time for the holidays. And you can mention this at checkout. That helps the show to terms and conditions apply. Once again, $35 off with the code DBU. It's a U R A frames.com DBU December doesn't have to be the most expensive month of the year if you're betting with my bookie. 12 Days of Christmas is here Daily offers dropping back to back across sports and casino means if you go to my bookie, you'll get bet and gets. You'll get profit boosts, you'll get free spins, even surprise drops for social and telegram users. Let the record show last night winners across the board. The DBU picks that you get Monday and Friday here for you to use at my bookie. I said last night I gave you the parlay of Aaron Rodgers over 1.5 touchdowns, easy. Darren Waller I think was over 27 and a half receiving yards. He had over 60 and was key to their late, weird disjointed comeback effort. But those both hit and I had.

[B]

Steelers -3, which is an easy one to pick.

[A]

You did so. We had all those wins for you last night on my bookie. December is packed. There's NFL, there's bowl season, there's college hoops. There's opportunities to cash everywhere. Go to my bookie right now. Punch in dbu. Just those three letters are going to do it for you. When you register and make your deposit, you'll get your first bet covered up to $500. If you go big and miss on the first bet, use your bet back bonus token and run it back. Bet on anything, anywhere, anytime. Only with my bookie. There's some really cool comps that are making their way around social media video side by sides juxtapositions of the second touchdown pass that Caleb threw to D.J. moore with Joe Montana finding Dwight Clark in the back of the end zone in double coverage for the catch in 1981. When you see it, it's cool. It's cool. It really is. It's whoever it reminds me of. The brilliant man behind art. But make it sports. I don't know if you follow who is Just one who somehow has this eidetic memory that allows him to see a still photo and immediately recall a very specific work of art going back ancient, pre Renaissance triptych altarpieces all the way to recent modern art. It's an incredible thing. I'm happy that somebody's able to find a way to make a buck off of that ability. It's one kind of cool thing about our modern times. But it really does look similar when you squint at those two plays and you see the quarterback rolling right against pressure, falling back and throwing sort of a soft back spinning across the body toss to that same spot on the end zone where a receiver arrives in the same direction seemingly to the goal line camera out of nowhere to grab the ball away from two waiting defenders for the score. Very cool. Really, really cool. I do think it's important to remember the difference as to what was at stake and why we remember the 1981 catch the way that we do. When you say, oh yeah, those aren't just two plays. First of all, to give Caleb Williams some credit, he was 15 yards farther back. Like that was on the six yard line. Yeah. When Joe Montana did it, I think people don't realize there was only a six yard touchdown pass.

[B]

Yeah. And you know who Joe Montana is? Not out running if he's being chased?

[A]

Miles Garrett.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

He's not running. Miles Garrett's parents.

[B]

I haven't seen that replay in a while. Barely could move.

[A]

Yeah, he was not a. Not fleet of foot. Yeah, he was not. That's why he's a third round pick.

[B]

Yeah. Also wasn't a very good conversationalist either.

[A]

No. Still isn't another. No. That never got.

[B]

We'll leave that alone.

[A]

Yeah. It never got much better. That was one season on NBC and no more. But the. The play does look similar. But the catch. Capital T, capital C. 1981 NFC Championship Game. And there was under a minute left. It was third and three and they were losing. That allowed them to. After they kicked the point, that allowed them to win the game by one. Like that's what you don't realize. He had to throw it. They had to get a touchdown. And it was a 14 play drive. And not only did it win them that game, it was a symbolic victory. That was the play that vanquished the Cowboys dynasty of the 70s. When Roger Staubach retired, when Danny White was elevated to replace him, there was a belief that it was just going to keep rolling. Like, keep in mind what we're seeing with the Chiefs this Year, it's not quite the same, but this idea of the end of there used to be. You had the Steelers and you had the Cowboys and this is. But that pass that was in. People knew it at the time too. People understood what that might have meant. But it was even reinforced with every year that went by in the aftermath that that was the passing of the torch, that that was it. That was for the Niners. It became their turn. So we remember it because of its significance. And I just want that to be very, very clear, to do just a little bit of what I think is a necessary history lesson just because of what it meant, because the NFC had only begun in 1970. So it really was. It was like only. Only 11 years removed from the start of conference play as we know it. And that was the idea of a, you know, a conference dynasty. We didn't even know what that meant. We didn't know what conferences were until the post merger and the beginning of the Super bowl in 67. And then it wasn't AFL NFL anymore. You get to what they call the conferences and the domination of the Cowboys was considered to have ended at that moment. But yeah, it did look a lot like it. And it doesn't really change the way I feel about it that even though I want all things to be true, I want Caleb Williams to say, I can make any throw and I want him to be able to make any throw. It still doesn't mean you make that throw. Then if there's 58 seconds left and you're on the six and you're losing and it's third and three, well, think about it. We'll reevaluate at that point. But up 14, three on the 15 or on the 20, whoever he was 21, just. It's a little different. And it's okay to understand that that generally is a pass one shouldn't make, while also understanding that Caleb Williams has different rules that apply to him because of how he sees the field. I don't know how he saw him open. I would love to be a fly on the wall as they're in film session and Ben Johnson. Caleb, what did you see here? I mean, there's no possible way he's going to be able to say as he's falling out of bounds and running toward the sidelines saying, I saw that he would come free and I knew that he was going to make that catch in double coverage as I was throwing across my body.

[B]

Yeah, I think. I think Ben would know better than to try to analyze that play. But just congratulate him and say, hell of a throw.

[A]

Good throw, kid.

[B]

Yeah. And just move along from there and really just watch it and highlight it and celebrate it and that's it.

[A]

Because that away.

[B]

You're not duplicating that. You're not teaching that to someone. You're not using that as game film for teaching down the road.

[A]

Here's how you do it.

[B]

Right. There's nothing you do with that film except celebrate it.

[A]

Just say, good. Good job, man.

[B]

Again, there was. There were two plays in the same game where we just didn't know the outcome of the throw for the first couple seconds. That just doesn't happen.

[A]

It does. Well, we heard from a listener who sent us a voice Message through the 312 Sports app who said the only thing close to the DJ Moore catch where you didn't know what happened was the game winning goal for the Hawks first Stanley cup when Patrick Kane slipped.

[B]

Oh, yeah, that was good. I heard you.

[A]

Listen, Patrick Kane slipped it by Michael Layton. Yeah. And I think. Weren't you hosting the post game show?

[B]

Yeah, me and Jay Z were doing post game shows and we were in the conference room watching and we didn't know what happened for a few seconds. Like, we didn't know the game was over, that the Blackhawks had won the Stanley Cup. We were just. We looked at each other and we're like, what? And then we like, we had to run to the studio because the game had ended. We didn't even realize it. But that was a really good comp.

[A]

That it was. It was obviously much more significant. But I remember I just remembered seeing Cain throwing his gloves down.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Like, what. What is he doing? Yeah. He looked like he was being attacked by bees or something.

[B]

They were inside his gloves.

[A]

Yeah. And like, oh, he. I guess he scored and no one really knew. And then there was the controversy of the referee, Steve Miller. Maybe they thought he took the puck.

[B]

Oh, yeah.

[A]

They didn't know where the puck was.

[B]

Yeah. No, that was a. That was a good call.

[A]

And then it was on the ice.

[B]

Right. And I think that's when they may have, you know, the little. The like the hard rubber anchor that holds the net pegs. Yeah. I think that's when Peg. When Spiegel stole one.

[A]

And then you took it from.

[B]

And I took it from him because he left it in the studio about how it was price possession took it home.

[A]

Right.

[B]

I had it for years.

[A]

Yes, I know.

[B]

I thought about cutting a little piece of it off and sending it as like a Rant with a ransom finger.

[A]

With a ring on it. Yep.

[B]

I eventually returned.

[A]

Escape from New York.

[B]

Yeah, I returned it eventually, but I had it for years. His prized possession. He was so proud of me.

[A]

No, he loved his and he left it.

[B]

I walked in the studio because we were hosting right after.

[A]

I know.

[B]

And I was like, oh, what is this?

[A]

Oh, all right. But. But of all people too. It's like when you get to mess with his feelings. You played the long game for years. I would just say something to make him mad. It would just be fun.

[B]

No, he eventually returned. I have returned it. He got it back.

[A]

Yeah, I know, I know. We learned all about the history of marsh pegs and what they were and the guy named Marsh who invented them and how they made goals safer or something. I do have a hockey thought, by the way, which it's a perfect segue to that. If you are a last minute holiday shopper, you know that feeling. You put it off. You put it off and then you go in and then shelves are empty and you click around and the sizes of everything that you want are all gone and ideas are running low. I got something for you. Aura Frames is the solution. It is a gift that feels personal and can handle your last minute shopping needs. Especially if it's somebody for whom you struggle to shop. The Aura Frame is a digital photographic frame to which you can upload unlimited photos and video. You download a very simple app, you connect to WI fi and then you have this beautiful frame that is constantly showing whatever pictures you want in perfect digital clarity. You can preload photos before it ships and keep adding from anywhere, anytime. You can personalize it with a message before it arrives. And you can share photos and videos straight from your phone all year long. It includes a gift box. Every frame comes packaged in a premium gift box with no price tag. And obviously this idea of family and togetherness, you can't wrap it, but you can frame it for a limited time. You can save on this perfect gift by visiting Aura Frames. It's a U R A frames.com to get $35 off Aura's best selling Carver mat frames named number one by Wirecutter by using the promo code DBU at checkout. That's a U R A Frames promo code dbu. This deal is exclusive to you, the listener. And frames sell out fast, so order yours now to get it in time for the holidays. Support the show by mentioning us at checkout after I let you know about all the good stuff going on right now that you cannot miss at Protein Bar and Kitchen. We've talked about them all the time because we love them and they have great, great, great stuff. And I always think about it this time of year because of how I recog that I'm just eating a lot of things I don't otherwise eat. Like the other night, my wife got a bunch of cookies from Summer House. You know Summer House Santa Monica? It's a restaurant here in Chicago.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

No. And they do cookies and they now they've got an offshoot where it's only their cookies.

[B]

They're that good.

[A]

Dude, they're incredible. Each one weighs like a pound. They're. Look up. Seriously, look up Summerhouse cookies. And I just couldn't stop eating them. And then I'm like, I don't want to eat for a week after this. Well, see, that's why a place like the Protein Bar comes in. Because you know you are getting nutritious food that fills you up and gives you energy with all kinds of healthy swaps. And you can feel good about yourself and actually feel good at physical and mental because they're packing everything with more protein right now instead of extra carbs. And if you're a DBU listener, you go to Protein Bar and Kitchen. You can score an exclusive 50% off when you order through the PBK app or at any of the digital kiosks in their Chicagoland locations. That functions like a giant app. You can tap on major protein upgrades if you wanna stay full, energized and on track. A couple examples, the Cobb salad that I like is now the power. Cobb now has a huge 70 grams of protein. Their buffalo bowl, the power version, 50 grams. The spinach and pesto powered up to 53 grams. And they're taking the eggnog shake, the almond milk, holiday nog, apples, maple syrup, vanilla whey protein, nutmeg and cinnamon for $8.99. That's 15 grams of protein, just 240 calories. And right now, as a DBU listener, once again, 50% off your next Protein Bar and kitchen Visit. Up to 25 bucks off one use per person when ordering in the app or at a digital kiosk. Not valid on delivery or catering orders and not available at their airport locations. But go check it out. Take advantage of this wonderful opportunity with our friends at Protein Bar and Kitchen all day Power.

[B]

I think we're gonna stop, but we're actually, we're coming down Saturday for a show down here at the Chicago theater.

[A]

What are you seeing?

[B]

The Cirque du Soleil Christmas thing.

[A]

Cool. I've never seen Cirque du Soleil.

[B]

Yeah, I saw one years ago when we were. When we were actually were in Vegas for. For work. I saw one. It was great. It was really entertaining.

[A]

I've never seen it. And we're looking at tickets. I want to see if I can find him. We might go see Jim Gaffigan.

[B]

Oh, yeah. He's always entertaining.

[A]

He's expensive.

[B]

Well, he should be.

[A]

It's like 300 bucks just to get in the building.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

And does he ever work a little blue? I would.

[B]

No, I don't think he ever does. I don't think he ever does. I think he is.

[A]

He's only.

[B]

He's clean. He's like. Who's that other guy that's out right now?

[A]

Nate or Gatsby?

[B]

Yeah, he's clean, too.

[A]

Yeah, like him.

[B]

He's funny. And then Sebastian.

[A]

Is he. He's.

[B]

Is he clean or is he dirty?

[A]

Clean and bad.

[B]

Oh, I don't think he's bad.

[A]

I do. It's not funny. And I'd be clean. It's just not funny.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Not to me. I don't know. I don't get it.

[B]

You know, also perform clean. Len Casper always remember he was. He was clean at the. At the. At the roast.

[A]

That's true.

[B]

He chastised us for being so vulgar.

[A]

I know. Well, it was. But you know, he. That's part of the multi layered bit that he was doing. Boy, that roast was fun, wasn't it? Who were the guys that were in the band? There are a bunch of musicians that were hanging out.

[B]

Wasn't that for the road? That was my buddies.

[A]

Those your boys?

[B]

Yeah. There was modern day Romeo.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

They're in our show.

[A]

They were great. They were really fun. Yeah.

[B]

So anyway, we're going to be down here at the Chicago theaters, I think afterwards. Because we're going to eat before. I think afterwards. I need a. I need that eggnog shake.

[A]

Yeah. Just to kind of, you know, get you for the. For your ride back to Wisconsin.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

On a Stoga wagon.

[B]

Horse and wagon. Right.

[A]

Make sure you don't. The Oregon Trail die of malnutrition.

[B]

Attacked on the way.

[A]

Right. I worry about you heading back out to the frontier.

[B]

Well. And we take the train back home. They got the steam engine now.

[A]

No steampunk kind of thing. There'd be with the big goggles.

[B]

Tracks don't even go the whole way to Libertyville.

[A]

Where we're going, we don't need roads.

[B]

Gotta get off and get on a horse. And ride home.

[A]

It's back to Wayne.

[B]

Gonna go to the Jewel.

[A]

Yep. I got a thought on him on forward progress, by the way. We're gonna get incredibly hardcore bearsy as we usually do.

[B]

I got a lot of very hardcore thought you have.

[A]

Well, now, here's my hockey thought. So first of all.

[B]

Hang on a second. Let me mark the time. Hang on.

[A]

Okay. Mark the time. Dan's hock thought hockey. Here it is.

[B]

Thoughts?

[A]

Do you think the Blackhawks are lying about the severity of Connor Bedard's upper body injury? I can't tell. When they say he'll be reevaluated in January, surgery isn't needed yet. Do they have to see how it heals on its own before deciding on surgery?

[B]

Yeah, that's what I would take from that. I would take from that. That he could have surgery right now and get it taken care of or it's one of those situations where you can see how it develops and heals and then we'll reevaluate it and. Yep, it's not going to get any better. Or they come back and say he's doing great and expect him back in March.

[A]

Yeah, I don't. I don't like it. You know what else I don't like? Do you know what percentage of all of the Blackhawks goals this year I do have either been scored or set up by Connor Bedard?

[B]

It's got to be close to 60%.

[A]

48%.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

Which I thought. I know. You're exaggerating for a fact to ruin my bit much prey.

[B]

You were.

[A]

Don't. Don't. Don't pretend.

[B]

No, I'm up on Blackhawks. I know that he accounts for most of their points. I knew that.

[A]

I thought 48% was a lot for one guy who.

[B]

It is a lot.

[A]

In 30 second shifts. So it's like if he's on the ice, they score.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

And if he's not, they don't really as often.

[B]

I mean, half of his shifts, they score. That's insane.

[A]

Well, it's not half his shifts. It's that half of their goals come because of him in some way and.

[B]

He'S on the ice.

[A]

Correct.

[B]

Because you can't score a point if you're on the bench. Does it work? Okay.

[A]

Yeah. But you're inverting the move.

[B]

I'll let you have your hockey, though.

[A]

Go ahead. The hockey thought is I could hang the I'm not interested sign on him for a while.

[B]

When did you have it on?

[A]

Because I.

[B]

You were interested.

[A]

Because I was you know, Bedard was here and there. They started to win a couple of games. I was watching a little bit. I just. To be honest, though, it doesn't sound like Blackhawks to me. It doesn't. That's part of the problem, and that's my fault because I'm old, but. Yeah, but I know they didn't like Pat Foley and Ed Ol Check, and they don't.

[B]

It's funny. It's funny you say that, because the.

[A]

Game that we were at, it doesn't sound like Blackhawks.

[B]

We left with some, like, several minutes to go in the third, and we got in the car and I turned it on, and that's the first thing I'm like, this just doesn't sound. It's good. Not taking away from anything that they do on the broadcast now, but.

[A]

Well, it's John Wideman. He's still there, right? Yeah, it just.

[B]

It doesn't sound. Yeah. You know, great.

[A]

But it's a tv.

[B]

Yeah. I mean, well, you saw. You had Pat on the radio.

[A]

No. You had Wideman on the radio?

[B]

Not always. No.

[A]

Yeah. For the last however many 15 years, whatever. It's been Wideman.

[B]

Yeah. And so when I would listen on the radio.

[A]

It's been that long? Yes. Oh, okay. Yeah. Well, Wideman's great because it was always Pat Foley. But Foley's been doing tv.

[B]

When I was a kid, I had Pat Foley sign my ticket stub one time. And I remember seeing Pat Foley, that was like. That was like.

[A]

I know I used to listen to Pat Foley while playing floor hockey in the basement, and I would put the game on and listen to their descriptions of Tom Lysiak and Terry Raskowski.

[B]

But Pat on the radio or Pat and Eddie together, that was like. Like that was what Blackhawks hockey sounded to me.

[A]

You flip on the tv and here's the draw.

[B]

And he was the best.

[A]

And. Well, it just.

[B]

The best.

[A]

It just. It's weird. Like, the whole. What's the word I'm looking for? The gestalt, the milieu, like, the feeling of it. The environment doesn't feel the same to me. You'd hear the Frank Pellico playing his organ, and it just. I don't know. I mean, I would have to get used to it. But my desire to do so is lessened by them not having their best player for a while, and.

[B]

And I'm sure they're waiting, and he probably could have surgery now on whatever is the situation that he's dealing with, and then, yeah, they'll come back in January say he's doing great or they're going to say we're going to have surgery and shut him down.

[A]

Yeah, just shut it down. Shut it down. Shut it down now. Lose the grid or lose your job. Now there's a Christmas movie for you. You can name that one.

[B]

Yeah, that is. That's. It's Bruce. It's Bruce Willis. It's the non Christmas movie. The movie that takes place during Christmas.

[A]

Time that's full of Christmas music.

[B]

Yeah, but it's. It's because it's Christmas time. It's not a Christmas movie, though.

[A]

Lose the grid.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Or lose your job. Die Hard there.

[B]

Yeah, it was coming, but. Yeah. Not a Christmas movie.

[A]

Agent Johnson and Agent Johnson. Yeah. No relation. That's Robert Davi, the actor who was also one of the Fratelli brothers in Goonies.

[B]

Correct. And then his cop friend.

[A]

And to bring it fully around, the Fratellis. Who were the brothers? The family and the Goonies.

[B]

Yeah. Make good sandwiches.

[A]

The Fratelli's, which I believe is Italian for brother. Right.

[B]

Sounds right.

[A]

And they. That's the name of the band that does Chelsea Dagger, which is the Blackhawks Goal song. Wow.

[B]

Still not a hockey Christmas movie.

[A]

Yes, it is.

[B]

It's not. It just. It happens during Christmas time. It's not a Christmas movie.

[A]

They combine Beethoven's Fifth Ode to Joy with Jingle Bells. They have run DMC's Christmas Song in there.

[B]

It's because it's Christmas time. It's not a Christmas movie.

[A]

Yes, it is.

[B]

It's not.

[A]

It's all about him getting back to his family for Christmas.

[B]

But it's not a Christmas movie.

[A]

I'm not doing this.

[B]

Well, it doesn't matter. You don't have to do it. I'm right and you're wrong.

[A]

Fine. If you say whatever you want, I'm not doing this.

[B]

This is beneath me.

[A]

It is. It's stupid.

[B]

Debate and argue with you.

[A]

Embrace ramping. Embrace stupid.

[B]

Well, that's your social media. Good grief.

[A]

Well, I texted you last night, speaking of that, when I saw Ryan Clark. Did you see this?

[B]

I responded.

[A]

You. Ryan Clark said it's Bo Nix's fault that Micah Parsons is hurt because he.

[B]

Had to chase him.

[A]

Because he had to chase him. What? Like what?

[B]

Man, your social media is something.

[A]

What do you mean, my social media? The fact that that found its way in there or the people that respond to me? Oh, those. Oh, yeah. There's some special, special folks out there.

[B]

My favorite was the. The dude that went after you and then you're like, hey, thanks for the email. And he's like, you bet, brother. That guy was the best.

[A]

So I've been doing this lately when I. When I've been getting this really, like, the really vile hate mail, like, stuff, even though I'm allowed to repeat it, it's like, so.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

So awful that I don't even want to say it. And I've been sending back thank you for listening to our little podcast, and I'm glad we could elicit such strong feelings from you. Best regards. And it's really nasty stuff. And only one person replied. And this guy who had just unleashed a torrent of anti Semitic invective and all of the horrible things he wanted to happen to me.

[B]

Yeah, bad stuff.

[A]

Yeah. Should have been thrown in an oven and all this stuff. And the response then to my thank you note was like, sure thing, brother. Can't wait till we're talking cubbies. Yeah.

[B]

It was bizarre. Man, oh, man, what are we doing here? But, hey, man, anywho, so engagement Blackhawks.

[A]

It's all engagement.

[B]

That's it. Hockey talk.

[A]

Yeah, just stop talking hockey.

[B]

Let me close it out here. Okay, got it. I got it.

[A]

There you go. Okay, I want to make sure you got your paperwork there in order.

[B]

We had our nine minute segment on Blackhawks.

[A]

All right, don't. Yeah, let the record show, don't do. What most people do when it comes to gift giving. Make sure you don't fall into your typical holiday pattern, is you decide, I'm going to do something thoughtful, I'm gonna do something that really raises some eyebrows and that people are gonna remember. And then you forget, and all of your good intentions end up by the wayside and you buy a gift card. So instead of doing that, here's something easy, and it's a sure thing. It's an Aura frame, a digital picture frame that you can load with these perfect digital photos, these crystal clear photos. And that way, whether it's an experience, whether it's somebody's kids or your kids for the grandkids, or a pet or just something you shared together, you can load it right onto this terrific frame. And all you have to do is go to auraframes.com and use the promo code DBU. Because for now, for the holiday season, when you visit auraframes.com and use the code DBU, you get $35 off Aura's best selling Carver Matte frames named Number One by Wirecutter. As I mentioned, you can preload the photos before it ships. You can keep adding from anywhere, anytime you can add a message to personalize it before it arrives. Every frame comes packaged in a premium gift box with no price tag. And it's not. If you want to get one for yourself and forgot I wouldn't know how to use it, you just download the Aura app, you connect it to wifi and everything walks you right through it. So limited time. Aura frames $35 off promo code DBU this is the number one digital frame named so by Wirecutter. That's a U R A frames.com promo code DBU. The deal is exclusive to listeners. Frames sell out fast. Order yours now to get it in time for the holidays. And you can mention the show at checkout as well. Terms and conditions App A u r aura frames.com promo code dbu Tonight is the NBA cup final. It's the Cup. It is. This is it. This is the final. We'll see who is the NBA cup winner. After the Lakers took it last year. I believe LeBron James was the the semifinals and finals MVP. In Vegas, it's the spurs and Victor Wembanyama against the New York Knicks.

[B]

I'm going to take the spurs and Victor.

[A]

I haven't seen what the number is.

[B]

I don't need to.

[A]

You're going to take them to win outright?

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Well, I want to watch.

[B]

That dude's crazy, man.

[A]

He's. He's. It's pretty special what he's doing out there. I mentioned before that when there has been a mathematical and geometric deep dive that essentially says he's playing on a 60 foot court with eight foot rims. When you normalize everything for averages, that's the difference. That's the game that it feels like. It probably feels to us like playing Nerf hoop on seven foot rims. Like playing dorm room Nerf hoop.

[B]

Yeah. Like on your door. Like one of those door.

[A]

Yeah, that's what I mean.

[B]

Yeah. For sure.

[A]

But like two on two after you've had a couple of beers and you're punching each other. Love those games.

[B]

Unless you're college. Your dorm room door was 7ft tall.

[A]

I have defeated NBA players at Nerf hoop.

[B]

Have you really?

[A]

Yes. Yes. Who? Marty Conlon. Played for five NBA teams. I beat him in one on one in Nerf hoop because his hands kept hitting the ceiling.

[B]

That'll do it. Yep.

[A]

Yeah, he like bloodied his knuckles because he was.

[B]

Oh, it's like a hotel room. Traveling.

[A]

No, this is my apartment in Rockford. Oh. On East Ridge Drive.

[B]

Came over for some Manson. Okay.

[A]

Hung out all the time. I'm Telling you, back in the day when the game went in, the other team, our team, I remember we were playing the Yakima Sun Kings, and Scott Mintz got kicked out before the opening tap. I've told you this story.

[B]

No. He was at your apartment when you got home.

[A]

No, he and the GM of our team were friends.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

And Mintz went to Illinois Maniac. Dude was a total maniac. Hilarious, fun maniac. And he got kicked out at the opening tip. So I'm on the air, I'm doing the broadcast. We go to commercial. The general manager taps me on the shoulder. He's like, hey, I just talked to Scott. We're going out after, but we need someplace to go meet. I'm like. I'm like, meet at my place. Well, I'll meet there. We'll pre game and then we'll go out. And he's like, well, he might get there a little early. Like, what do you mean? I'm not home yet. I'm not gonna let some. The opposing center, like, I don't care. Sure you are. Ye. He's like, no, we'll figure it out. It'll be fine. Yeah, that was. That was minor league pro basketball was fun. I think he played in the NBA briefly. I think he was on the Sonics. I want to say. M E E N T S. He had a little issue.

[B]

Sonic's S O N I.

[A]

No. But, yeah, Scott had a little. Little run in with the old long arm of the law. At some point, I forgot exactly what it was, but those are the people I was always hanging out with. I had a. I tended to gravitate to some of the shadier characters. I just. I found them more interesting than others. But, yeah, I'm in. That's a long way of saying I want to watch this game and I hope they play hard and that we don't. We tune in and find out before the game that each team is arresting a bunch of people. I'm sure Adam Silver is making sure that's not the case.

[B]

Oh, yeah, no, he was on the Supersonics. Yeah.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Before his Rockford Lightning. Bakersfield jammers. Yakima Sun.

[A]

Yakima Sun Kings is when.

[B]

Rochester Renegade Chicago Rockers.

[A]

He was a rocker later.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I must have been gone by then.

[B]

Yeah. 94.

[A]

I wasn't there then. That I was.

[B]

No, I'm sorry.

[A]

90.

[B]

95. 96.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Rockers.

[A]

Trying to remember. Yeah, I think.

[B]

Well, he was on the 1993 All CBA second team, too.

[A]

Good player. Yeah, good player, but, yeah, born in Kankakee.

[B]

610, 225.

[A]

Went to U of I. Right? Yep. And then didn't. Didn't he spend some time in the pokey?

[B]

Picked by the bulls in the fourth pick in the fourth round of the 86 draft.

[A]

The old fourth round of the NBA draft. Remember that? I remember when it was 10, they had guys you never even heard of, guys you never employed. Now you're talking about two rounds and the second round. I know, but think about it. It was 10 rounds. Like anybody, anybody, anybody who could say the word basketball would end up getting drafted. Yeah, sure.

[B]

You're over six, two. You got picked.

[A]

I'll go play. And you wonder why the game's better or not.

[B]

Ever been to a game before?

[A]

Yep. You're drafted. Congratulations. You've just been drafted by the Lakers. Okay, cool. Yeah, I think if you keep scrolling, you might find some other things that went on there. Joe Buck made a six, seven joke. Six, seven. Last night. And I've been trying, trying, trying to tell my kid it's over. Stop. It's over. You're going to be 21 in a week.

[B]

It's not over.

[A]

It's over.

[B]

It's not.

[A]

It's over.

[B]

Joe Buck saying it. Ben Johnson saying it.

[A]

Six, seven. No, but Joe Buck made a joke. He said it's like the Dolphins are six and seven, six, seven.

[B]

There you go. See?

[A]

He said it like. He almost did it again later when he described a player as being six. And then there's a pause and I guarantee you he and Aikman looked at each other and he didn't say anything. But that's a sign it's over. That's a sign that your. Your bit is done when Joe Buck is doing it. When I. I did a crossword puzzle the other day and the theme answer was six, seven. And all of the themers were enumerated as a six letter word and a seven letter word. And it built up. So it's like, look, I showed him the crossword puzzle. I said, your bit is done. It's in a crossword puzzle that I'm doing. It's over. Stop doing it.

[B]

That means it's growing.

[A]

No.

[B]

Getting bigger, better.

[A]

This is. This is like when the Great Gazoo showed up on the Flintstones. When Joe Buck is using saying that.

[B]

6, 7 is jump the shark.

[A]

Yeah, yeah. Well, that's. I mean, Fonzie or Cousin Oliver showing up in the Brady Bunch.

[B]

Oh, yeah, that's right.

[A]

Robbie Wriste. Yeah. I didn't get a little Guy look like John Denver. He's like a shrunken down John Denver.

[B]

Yes, for sure. Yeah.

[A]

And don't forget the little cracker ass on Different Strokes.

[B]

Oh, yeah. Who was that?

[A]

What's his name? Blow it into a jug. What the hell?

[B]

Part of a hillbilly family band.

[A]

Get him out here. Get him.

[B]

Mama plays the washboard.

[A]

Get him up.

[B]

Out.

[A]

What's that guy doing here? Wow. It was a hillbilly jamboree band. My name Forrest. Forrest Gump.

[B]

He went on later to perform with the Animatronic band at Chuck E. Cheese.

[A]

Do you see? One of them got arrested. There's video of it. One of the animatronic or like one of the Chuck E. Cheese guys. One of the mascots or something.

[B]

Seriously?

[A]

Yeah, I was selling weed at the Chuck E. Cheese. They busted him in costume, dragged him out.

[B]

Seriously?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

It's a good place to sell it, though.

[A]

Not bad. And wasn't it. Wasn't there a Bulls mascot double?

[B]

Oh, yeah. He had. He had some issues.

[A]

He was. He was.

[B]

But I bet you the Chuck E. Cheese guy was doing a service for the parents.

[A]

Hell, yes. I only had to go to one.

[B]

That's how you get Chucky Cheese. We can eat that pizza.

[A]

Just. I went to be hide your mind and that. That's when. That's when I knew that you order.

[B]

A large pie, they give you a big bag of weed. There you go.

[A]

That's the only way to enjoy it.

[B]

It's your appetizer.

[A]

That's when it was this birthday party. And once Jason, he'd never seen Papa shot before. Oh, it was over.

[B]

Yeah, that was it. Love affair started.

[A]

Not engaged with the party. All I had to do was just keep feeding him Papa Shots.

[B]

Great.

[A]

He must have shot 700 shots in that next 45 minutes. He just stood at that machine and just kept shooting.

[B]

We haven't been to Dave and Buster's in a while, but they have one. It's Connect four, but it's basketball, so you shoot. They have like a big connect for board, and you shoot baskets. And wherever your ball goes down, that's where your little piece goes.

[A]

It's awesome. Oh, that's great.

[B]

It's really good.

[A]

Yeah, but it gives away your strategy. But it's because people can see.

[B]

Super easy, though, to get it in.

[A]

It's not like, are you playing against an opponent?

[B]

Oh, yeah.

[A]

But your opponent can know where you're going.

[B]

That's a whole, like. Well, it's like Regular Connect 4. They know where you're Going. It's not like.

[A]

No, but they don't know until you do it. They don't know you're trying, but you can tip them off. If you're setting something up, your opponent can see what you're trying to do and block that off before you even do it. That's a different level, man.

[B]

Yeah, but the Connect Four basketball one, you just.

[A]

You.

[B]

The. All the way to the farthest. Like, to your left or farthest right. So your opponent has the farthest shot to make. That's where you go.

[A]

I get it. Yeah.

[B]

It's not super easy to get in. Ball bounces around. And those basketballs are all shitty, too.

[A]

Oh, I know.

[B]

It's not like they're good basketball.

[A]

No, you want the bad ones.

[B]

Why?

[A]

Because they're less inflated?

[B]

No, they're. No, it's the ones that have, like. No. No feel or grip to them. They're like the rubber has, like, a.

[A]

Tumor growing out of it.

[B]

Yes, the tumor ball.

[A]

Yeah. I hate those. They were great in dodgeball, though.

[B]

Oh, because. Would you hold on to it?

[A]

Well, you could. Yeah. You could get an extra grip on it. Yeah. Because you could spin it. You could throw a slider with it. Because you can. You could get that little nod.

[B]

When did they start? In grade school. Using, like, the soft balls for a long time ago. Like, the rubber ones are what we.

[A]

You.

[B]

You'd walk home with a big thing on your face. A big. Well, because you got hit in the head.

[A]

I wouldn't. I was a. I was a. I was a really good dodgeball player.

[B]

Oh, yeah, You. Hiding behind kids.

[A]

I was the body shield. Perfect combination. Not big, good arm. Could catch.

[B]

That worked.

[A]

That's all. It's all you had to be. Because a big. A big guy, no matter. You were just. It was too easy to hit you in the leg.

[B]

Well, the big guy was good to stand behind to start.

[A]

Yeah, that's true. And pop out from behind the tree and fire at people. I love dodgeball.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

It was good when they used to do rubber gym balls.

[A]

Last point here before we close up for the day. I just wanted to mention that Rob Reiner dying sucks. I also never really appreciated his cultural effect on me or people our age and what he met as a touchstone. Truth be told, I was raised on his dad's stuff.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

I was raised on Mel Brooks, 2000-year-old man. The box set of vinyl, the 2013, all the stuff that Carl Reiner and Mel Brooks did. So all I knew about Rob Reiner As a kid was. It was the guy with the mustache who yelled at the old guy on all in the Family.

[B]

Right. Meathead.

[A]

And I understood that, and it would be on every once in a while, but I didn't really get the whole thing until, of course, Spinal Tap, what we now know as the mockumentary genre, he helped usher in as the. As the director of Spinal Tap and his run of movies after that. Do you know what his. What his next seven movies were? Do you know what this looked like?

[B]

Like, I don't. I won't have an order for you, but.

[A]

All right, yeah, go ahead.

[B]

Because I know. Yeah, I mean, I. I know his movies.

[A]

This is him out of the box as a Hollywood director. He started with this is Spinal Tap.

[B]

Then when Harry did Sally, was that the next one?

[A]

The next one was the sure Thing.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Which, again, for people of a certain age, is much more important than I think a lot of people remember. And that was the first time we ever saw Nicolette Sheridan, who took a place alongside Janet Jones as, like, the sex symbol. Sex symbol for young junior high and high school kids in the early to mid-80s. Then it was Stand By Me.

[B]

Yep, great movie.

[A]

Then it was the Princess Bride.

[B]

Very good.

[A]

Then When Harry Met Sally.

[B]

Harry did Sally.

[A]

Then Misery.

[B]

You know, when he harried it. Sally. That's when he met his wife Michelle, because he was married to penny Marshall for 10 years. He met Michelle while making When Harry Did Sally. And then he changed the ending.

[A]

Yes. Because.

[B]

Because of her. Yep, Yep. Because of meeting her and meeting the.

[A]

Love of his life.

[B]

Yep.

[A]

Yeah. Misery was the next one.

[B]

God, that's a terrifying movie.

[A]

Awesome.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And after that, A Few Good Men. Yep. So what I think is really notable about his directorial career, much as we celebrate auteurs who write, edit, produce, direct their own films, we talk about Scorsese and Tarantino and the guys, what he was able to do as a director for scripts written by Stephen King. Those are two of the best Stephen King adaptations in Stand By Me and Misery, I would say the other two, in no particular order, are the Shining and Shawshank Redemption. That's the top of the pantheon. Brian De Palma with Carrie. Very good. But I think those are the top Stephen King, Aaron Sorkin, William Goldman wrote the Princess Bride. Nora Ephron wrote When Harry Met Sally. His ability to direct other people's work and bring out the best of these. And we don't even start naming all of the actors involved here, but that job of just being a director.

[B]

Oh, just the actors. Alone in a Few Good Men, I mean, is just insane.

[A]

Getting the best work out of all of these people, all of these. It's just too bad it sucks. And realizing so many little cultural things. The inconceivable.

[B]

Oh, yeah.

[A]

Or this goes to 11. I'm your number one fan. There's. You want to see a dead body? You can't handle the truth. It's all him.

[B]

Yeah. Yeah. And I mean, to say that it sucks doesn't even come close to what it is because it's an absolutely horrible story.

[A]

Well, even beyond just the fact that he's gone sucks because he was just so energetic, and it's just amazing to hear what the outpouring has been. Did you hear even James Woods? Even James woods came out and said, this is my dear friend. Forget about everything else. He said, I'm devastated by this, and I'm devastated to hear anybody who wouldn't understand what a cultural force he was and what a fabulous, wonderful friend like that blew my mind.

[B]

Yeah. Because you have individuals on both sides of the political arena that are coming out with his outpouring of sadness and grief over his loss.

[A]

And he was a political figure.

[B]

He was. Let his thoughts known.

[A]

Not just that, the defeat of Prop 8 in California, that was him. You talk about the money behind that, how that was engineered and how that entire. He did that. He was. He was a political operative and a huge helping move money around.

[B]

Yeah, but I mean, the. I mean, films in America, I mean, there aren't many people that don't enjoy going to the movies, watching movies. Films are such an integral part of our life, and it doesn't matter what side of the political aisle you fell on. You loved a Rob Reiner movie and you enjoyed a Rob Reiner movie. Yeah. And it's great. No, and to see the outpouring of affection and sadness, regardless of what your political affiliation is, is really incredible and a testament to who he was as a person.

[A]

It is. And I would also hope that a lot of the messages in his movies, which are consistent with a lot of his beliefs, are understood in that way about the way he wanted to treat people and how he thought people should be treated. That comes out through a lot of. It came out through a lot of his art and even his character. And all in the Family. That was pretty thinly disguised as a foil to Archie Bunker's more atavistic thoughts. Yes. So too bad. And if there's anybody in your family who has a mental health issue of any kind, make sure that you get that person help. And sometimes people close to you, sometimes you can because you're around them a lot. Or you can maybe not have an objective perspective on their health, ask questions. And there are, there are support systems, groups, places out there if you, if you want to help somebody you love, seek help. December doesn't have to be the most expensive month of the year if you're betting with my bookie. 12 Days of Christmas coming soon. Daily offers dropping back to back across sports and casino. That's profit boosts, that's bet and gets that's free spins surprise drops for social and telegram users. I don't have to list everything going on in December between all of the bowls and NFL games Saturday night, Bears, packers, college hoops, all serving up these opportunities to cash. And you say, well, what do you mean? I say, well, when you go on Saturday night to some kind of party, what you want right there on your phone? You want my bookie. Because now you can punch in the promo code DBU and get that first bet covered up to $500. And that way, if you go big and miss on the first bet, use your bet back bonus token and run it back. So DBU when you register and then you make your deposit and you want that bet back bonus Token up to $500, use the code DBU for Dan Bernstein, unfiltered Bet on anything, anywhere, anytime, only with my bookie. DBU brought to you in partnership with mybookie. On three one, two sports.

[B]

Dan Bernstein, unfiltered.

[A]

Unfiltered on three one two sports.