Pablo Torre Finds Out

Episode: "A Share & Tell About Nothing with Mina Kimes, Dan Le Batard & Pablo"
Date: May 3, 2024
Host: Pablo Torre
Guests: Mina Kimes, Dan Le Batard (Le Batard & Friends)

Episode Overview

This episode is a classic "Share & Tell" hang-out between Pablo Torre, Mina Kimes, and Dan Le Batard. The trio riff on everyday habits (hoarding pens and snacks), the nostalgia and culture wars around comedy—specifically sparked by Jerry Seinfeld's recent comments—and take a data-driven detour into the modern book publishing industry. The show moves fluidly from cultural critiques and personal confessions to sports media legends, all anchored by their signature humor and chemistry.

Major themes:

• Hoarding/collecting habits as cultural traits
• The state and future of comedy (with focus on Jerry Seinfeld’s views)
• The economics and realities of book publishing
• Charles Barkley’s unique place in sports media
• The value of hobbies and pleasures done purely for oneself

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Share & Tell: Hoarding, Habits, and Cultural Stereotypes

[00:06–02:57]

• Snack/Beverage Hoarding:
  • Mina on flights: “...if you're coming at me with that snack basket, I'm taking at least three things and I'm putting in my backpack, like a squirrel storing their nuts for the winter...” (00:16, Mina Kimes)
  • Pablo compares this to his napkin-hoarding; Mina declares: “That’s Asian. That’s just our culture, you know.” (00:48)
  • Mina never throws away spare earbud tips—“even though the giant ones I have tiny ears, I'll never use. But what if I'm desperate...?” (00:51, Mina)
• Habits as cultural identity:
  • Pablo admits to “stealing” pens from restaurants.
  • Dan: “You just said the verb stealing...you confessed to kleptomania!” (01:24, Dan)
  • Dan is pressed about Cuban-specific household hoarding, with Pablo jokingly suggesting "machetes."
  • Dan pushes back, poking fun at cultural stereotypes and Pablo’s “blind spot” about racism. (02:27)

2. Jerry Seinfeld, Comedy, and ‘PC Culture Wars’

[04:11–13:13]

• Trigger: Seinfeld’s comments blaming “PC crap” and “the extreme left” for the decline in TV comedy:
  • “This is the result of the extreme left and PC crap and people worrying so much about offending...” (04:11, Seinfeld via audio)
• Panel’s Reaction:
  • Pablo’s summary: “It's the thing that's so unsurprising... where like 70-year-old guy... who made one of the most successful TV shows in history... feels like actually he's not laughing anymore. It just feels convenient...” (06:12, Pablo)
  • Mina zeroes in on economics: “...the far bigger driver behind the absence of the kind of shows he's bemoaning...is the fact that we don't have 40-episode sitcoms anymore... for technological, business reasons, not because of cultural reasons.” (06:37, Mina)
  • Dan: “There has never been a time...where he's ever made any kind of joke that was so edgy... He's always been PG.” (11:38, Dan)
• Notables:
  • Mina attended Seinfeld’s recent live show and found it “a little dated,” more focused on familiar topics (“wives, am I right?”), and compared Seinfeld with newer comics she saw at the same event.
  • Pablo and Mina agree much of the debate is market-driven, not a product of “woke” censorship.

Quote Highlight

“...the sitcom thing, it's much more about economic forces and the industry than it is about the actual underlying nature of the comedy, which seems to be his point.”
—Mina Kimes (13:30)

3. Edgy Comedy: Standards, Offense, and Market Reality

[13:13–19:54]

• The group discuss “edginess” in comedy.
  • Mina: “I watched the Shane Gillis special on Netflix, which is very edgy and very offensive, I imagine, to a lot of people and much funnier to me than anything I saw from Seinfeld.” (13:44)
  • Pablo admits Gillis is very funny despite past controversies involving offensive Asian caricatures, underscoring the difference between truly funny “edgy” material and merely offensive ones.
  • The panel compare Netflix's tolerance for controversial comics (Matt Rife), suggesting the streaming giant is driven more by profit and audience size than fear or “PC” influence.
• Content vs. Economics:
  • Mina: “...for me, it seems to be that these companies are just motivated by...the bottom line.” (17:47)
  • Dan: “Once you get into the corporation of funny, you're finding a lot of content makers are running scared. I believe that that is true...” (15:30)
• Corporate Fear & Creativity:
  • Dan notes how “fear” among executives shapes what gets made.
  • Mina: Netflix seems motivated by business—not by braveness or risk aversion.

4. Mina’s Big Reveal: She’s Never Watched ‘Seinfeld’ (Except the Finale)

[20:27–22:56]

• After much teasing:
  • “I've only seen one episode of Seinfeld and it was the last one.” (20:27, Mina)
  • Laughter and disbelief ensue.
  • Mina confesses to “faking” references to Seinfeld over the years.
  • Fun segment: the group quizzes Mina on Seinfeld lore (e.g., "Soup Nazi" catchphrase, Kramer character traits).
  • Dan jokes: “I think she's got to know what she's saying there instead of just giving the double thumbs up. In agreement. There's some dangers here.” (21:29, Dan)

5. Book Industry—Why (Almost) No One Buys Books

[23:21–36:49]

• Mina’s reading finds:
  • Cites a viral Substack/Slate piece about the book industry’s economics.
  • Key stats:
    • “Over 90% of books sell fewer than 1,000 copies. Half, according to this, sell fewer than 12.” (24:54, Mina)
    • The top 4% drive 60% profitability.
    • Even huge celebrity books often flop (e.g., Billie Eilish, Justin Timberlake).
  • “Most of these big houses spend most of their money on celebrity books…most of these books are not profitable.”
• Publishing realities:
  • “Books are a handful of very successful things funding seemingly a lot of failure, economically speaking.” (25:14, Pablo)
  • Pablo and Mina discuss how big advances and “platform” authors are now a risk-avoidant necessity for publishers.
  • Industry’s existential dread: subscription models, Amazon’s power as both distributor and publisher.
  • But: “reading doesn’t actually seem to be down. Like this isn’t happening because people aren’t reading.” (31:04, Mina)
• Dan’s perspective:
  • Reminisces how old career paths used to feed into book writing for journalists—and how that’s evaporated.
  • “The hardest and the most fulfilling of these arts… of course that would die too, at the altar of Kindle or just not reading...” (29:08, Dan)

Quote Highlight

“It's happening because of the technological aspects and the economics of it and, you know, but people still read books...”
—Mina Kimes (31:04)

6. Books & Hobbies: What Do We Do ‘Just for Ourselves’?

[36:49–38:29]

• The crew admit to reading habits—or lack thereof:
  • Mina cherishes reading fiction “just for me and not for social capital.”
  • Pablo confesses he reads mostly for podcast prep.
  • Dan's wife gave him Stephen King’s On Writing to nudge him into writing a book, but he's daunted by the undertaking.
• Mina: “That is one of the very rare things in my life I do that has zero professional utility. It is not something that I do for even something like, I don't know, like, I run every day... there's nothing like that with reading for me...” (34:35)
• Pablo cares for houseplants: “...I live in this state of constantly gardening in my home and it gives me joy. It’s only for me and Liz and Violet...” (38:02)
• Dan ultimately admits his “just for me” pursuit is still... Royal Match, a mobile game.

7. Charles Barkley—Unicorn of Sports Media

[38:59–48:22]

• Barkley’s unparalleled status:
  • Dan: "Outside of Howard Cosell, Charles Barkley has been the greatest broadcaster in the history of all of sports."
  • Barkley's contract complexities: will he stay with TNT/NBA if rights are lost?
  • Panel praises Barkley's unique charisma, likability, ability to thrive without encyclopedic knowledge, and how he escapes cancelation for statements that would destroy others.
• Barkley’s real-world warmth:
  • Dan: “He carries himself with a great deal of gratitude…He’s the best at being kind to people…” (45:30, Dan)
• **If Barkley leaves TNT: “If Barkley leaves, that show's over. ... there is one star, one person who is not like any person who's ever been before him.” (46:39, Dan)
• Mina on emulation:
  • “It’s debatable how much can be learned from [Inside the NBA]… the lesson is obvious ... but how much that can be copied is really, really difficult.” (43:09, Mina)
• Barkley anecdote:
  • Barkley missed Dan’s wedding due to an invitation mix-up; delivers classic “Marriage is a walk in the park… Jurassic Park” punchline.
  • Mina roasts: “Take that one from Jerry Seinfeld.” (47:54, Mina)

8. Final Reflections: The Value of ‘Private’ Pleasures

[48:32–49:22]

• What did each person “find out today”?
  • Mina to Dan: “I found out that Dan doesn't have enough things that he does just for himself. Aside from Royal Match.” (48:34, Mina)
  • Dan nearly closes with a “master of my own domain” joke, referencing Seinfeld—but thinks better of it.
  • Pablo: “It does feel also appropriately masturbatory that you told us that. So thank you...” (49:13, Pablo)
  • Mina: “So is Jerry the master of his domain?” (49:22)
• Self-referential humor closes the show.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

Pen Theft as a Writer’s Instinct

"No, I confessed to being a writer at heart who just always wants to have the ability."
—Pablo Torre on hoarding pens, [01:38]

On Seinfeld’s Outdated Complaints

“It just feels convenient at this point. And lazy on that level.”
—Pablo Torre, [06:12]

On Book Publishing Economics

"Over 90% of books sell fewer than a thousand copies. Half ... fewer than 12. Again, that's pretty stunning."
—Mina Kimes, [24:54]

Mina’s Seinfeld Confession

"I've only seen one episode of Seinfeld and it was the last one."
—Mina Kimes, [20:27]

On Barkley’s Uniqueness

"There is one star, one person who is not like any person who's ever been before him."
—Dan Le Batard, [46:39]

Ultimate Life Lesson

"Most things that are most fulfilling, it's because they're the hardest."
—Dan Le Batard, [32:33]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Share & Tell (Hoarding habits): 00:06–02:57
• Seinfeld/comedy culture wars: 04:11–13:13
• Comedy, offense, Netflix: 13:13–19:54
• Mina’s Seinfeld confession: 20:27–22:56
• Book industry economics: 23:21–36:49
• Hobbies for personal pleasure: 36:49–38:29
• Charles Barkley as sports media legend: 38:59–48:22
• Final reflections: 48:32–49:22

Tone & Style

Highly conversational, irreverent, candid, and intellectually playful. The hosts and guests puncture big ideas with personal anecdotes and sharp wit, shifting from cultural critique to self-roasting with ease.

For Listeners Who Haven’t Tuned In

This episode is a quintessential example of why “Pablo Torre Finds Out" is a must-listen: funny, digressive, insight-rich, and more focused on how we live and think than “just sports.” Whether dissecting Jerry Seinfeld’s complaints, exposing book industry realities, or debating who’s the “Barkley of your field,” you’ll find yourself both thinking and laughing.

Skip the ads, and buckle up for a smart, thoroughly modern conversation about comedy, media, and the stuff that still brings us joy.