Hey Riddle Riddle #382: The Jewel Heist

Release Date: November 12, 2025
Hosts: Adal Rifai, Erin Keif, John Patrick Coan

Episode Overview

This episode centers around a real-life jewel heist at the Louvre that tickled the hosts' imaginations, sparking a freewheeling blend of riffing, improv, personal banter, and—eventually!—a hearty serving of audience-submitted riddles. While the gang gets existential about the nature of their work, deal with Erin’s sleep deprivation, and dabble in skunk-related mysteries, the hosts return repeatedly to the central themes of inspiration, memory, and what connects their on-mic antics to real life.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Real-Life Louvre Jewel Heist and Its HRR Parallels

[03:00 - 08:00]

• Erin excitedly shares a news story: "There was a jewel heist at the Louvre."
• The gang riffs on how this could’ve been inspired by their previous podcast scenes ("...were we?"), and imagines the culprits are HRR listeners.
• Joke connections to various pop culture jewel heists (Ocean’s 8, The Great Muppet Caper).
• Discussion of the odd detail—"they dropped the most expensive thing they got on the sidewalk... a $10 billion crown"—which they see as a sign it was their “influence.”
• Quote (Erin, [04:02]): "On their way out, they did it. They managed to get away, but they dropped the most expensive thing... a $10 billion crown..."

2. Improvised Scenes Inspired by the Heist

[07:13 - 09:59]

• The hosts jump straight into playful improv:
  • Adal as a getaway driver and JPC as the bumbling thief who dropped the crown.
  • Extended riffing on whether or not their characters are French ("Are we French or no?").
  • French language jokes and intentionally bad translations (“Merd, merd!”).
  • Quick tangent into a scene with "French Bugs Bunny," Daffy Duck, Donald Duck stealing necklaces from the Louvre.

3. Language, Affectation, and Speech Patterns

[10:06 - 12:29]

• They contemplate the phrase "How you say..." and discuss cultural speech quirks.
• Jokes about Italian hand gestures contrasting with French verbal “stalls.”
• Erin relays advice from a French-speaking friend: "Luxuriate in the Frenchness of the sounds—makes the language easier to communicate in.”

4. The HRR Persona: Are the Hosts Frozen in Time?

[13:39 - 16:54]

• Erin comments on her exhaustion, noting it's the "first HRR episode on no sleep in four or five years."
• Reflection: Do long-running podcasters freeze at the age when the show started?
• "Sometimes I feel like I have to put my 25-year-old Erin mask on today." (Erin, [15:01])
• Mixed responses: Adal doesn’t connect strongly to the notion, JPC always feels his age.

5. Agony Aunt Erin: Solving Personal Problems

[17:12 - 20:56]

• Erin offers to untangle co-hosts’ personal dilemmas instead of riddles in her sleep-deprived state.
• Adal asks: How do I let go of physical stuff?
  • Erin gives compassionate but practical advice about sentimentality and attachment.
  • Exchange about Adal’s painting: “My soul is in that painting. So if it burns, I burn.” (Adal, [19:14])
• JPC’s real-world admin struggle: How to send a fax in 2025?
  • Erin: "You can do it at your local UPS or FedEx. Or maybe a local library."

6. Corporate Frustrations and Life Riffs

[21:48 - 23:18]

• JPC rants about telecom companies’ contradictory behavior (AT&T offering discounts only when threatened with cancellation).
• Further banter about therapy appointment reminders and companies’ sneaky policies.

7. Riddles from Listeners: Warmup Round and Flag Designs

[30:01 - 33:39]

• Will Parsons (listener) sends several riddles; the hosts solve them and riff on “flag” designs for the show.
• Memorable moment: Imagining a "Neon Green" Hey Riddle Riddle flag ("The flag’s two thirds neon green so far").

8. Child Winery Scene & Parenting Banter

[26:29 - 29:56]

• Improv scene: Adal as a child who owns a winery, Erin as a hapless visitor (“We are the number one child winery in Napa Valley!”).
• Transition to family life: JPC’s anecdotes about his toddler making “coffee” at bedtime, further riffing on the realism of little kids’ logic.

9. Riddles Continue: Wordplay and Game Mechanics

[34:09 - 35:01]

• Riddles involving “waves” at sports stadiums, leading to an extended scene about awkwardly trying to start the wave at a Yankees game.

10. Tangents: The Nature of Sleep, Larry the Cable Guy’s Emotional Story, Skunks

[47:18 - 55:52]

• Extended, tangential digression on Larry the Cable Guy: how he wept with joy upon getting the "Cars" role ("I used to make fun of... Larry the Cable Guy in Cars. Then I found out he cried—and now I'm going to ease up on him." —Adal, [48:06])
• Skunk stories: Erin encounters “two skunks patrolling my front lawn,” suspects Adal and JPC are "behind the skunks."
• Scene: Skunks at a party, JPC as a skunk trying to flirt.

11. Final Riddle Set: Themed Around ‘Review Crew’ Foods

[61:49 - 65:20]

• Listener Chris from Atlanta submits food-themed riddles inspired by past episodes.
• Answers include “maple syrup,” “cake,” “Outback,” “grapes,” “orange soda”—all referencing iconic taste tests on HRR’s Patreon show.
• Brief nostalgic riff about “Bloomin’ Onion” vs. “Awesome Blossom.”

12. Wrap-up, Reviews, Tour Plugs

[65:24 - End]

• Audience review read: Listener has listened since age 14, now 20.
• Erin and Adal remind listeners about tour stops and Patreon bonus episodes.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Louvre Heist:
  • "On their way out, they did it. They managed to get away, but they dropped the most expensive thing... a $10 billion crown." — Erin, [04:02]
• Improv, French-ness:
  • "Are we French or no?" — Adal, [07:30]
  • "Are we human, or are we French?" — JPC, [07:50]
• On Podcast Time Freeze:
  • "Do you feel, you know, how celebrities get frozen at the age that they become famous?... Like, when you show up and we're doing Hey Riddle Riddle, that you are the age that we started this podcast?" — Erin, [14:45]
• Advice on Letting Go:
  • "The emotion you’re attaching to that thing is not actually in there. Like, it’s in your body. It’s in your physical being." — Erin, [18:34]
• AT&T Rant:
  • "AT&T sent me a little email: 'Hey, in two months, we're going to up your price by $5...' I say: 'No, you won't.' They're like: 'You're actually right and we're gonna charge you less.'" — JPC, [22:59]
• On Stereotypes and Language:
  • "The affectation that you put on it... luxuriate in the Frenchness of the sounds and that makes the language easier to communicate in." — Erin, [10:28]
• Child Winery Scene:
  • "Welcome to Napa Time Wineries. We are the number one child winery in Napa Valley!" — Adal as Chance, the child vintner, [27:13]
• Skunk Patrol:
  • "Two skunks were patrolling our front lawn, going back and forth... you guys, and I know I'm acting a little paranoid... but it felt like... you [Adal, JPC] are behind those skunks." — Erin, [54:40]
• Meta-Podcast Reflection:
  • "The ratio of riddles in this episode ends up being pretty good." — Erin, [45:53]

Important Timestamps

• [03:00] – The Louvre jewel heist news sparks the episode’s central theme.
• [07:13] – Improvised scene: The getaway driver & the dropped crown.
• [14:45] – Deep dive: Are the hosts frozen at the age they started?
• [18:34] – Erin’s advice about holding onto sentimental items.
• [22:59] – JPC’s story of strong-arming AT&T into a lower price.
• [26:29] – Child winery improv scene (“Napa Time Wineries”).
• [33:39] – Imagining a Hey Riddle Riddle “flag” design.
• [47:18] – Larry the Cable Guy’s emotional response to getting his Pixar role.
• [54:40] – Erin’s skunk story, birthing improvised skunk party scene ([57:02]).
• [61:49] – Review Crew-themed riddles.
• [65:53] – Listener review, plugs, episode sign-off.

Episode Tone & Takeaways

As always, “Hey Riddle Riddle” is more an improv and friendship show than a focused puzzle podcast. Jokes are frequent, the riddles serve as launchpads for imaginative bits, and the conversation glides fluidly from slapstick roleplay to heartfelt vulnerability (especially from Erin this week). The energy is particularly loopy thanks to Erin’s exhaustion, leading to more raw, tangential, sometimes surreal exchanges.

For newcomers:
This episode is an excellent example of the show’s meandering, joke-first style—riffing, personal stories, then riddles acting as a mere scaffolding for the humor and camaraderie. The Louvre heist motif supplies delightful connective tissue for a characteristically chaotic, clever, and cozy installment.