#4414 Bell Shocked

Summary

Podcast Summary: TBTL Episode #4414 - "Bell Shocked"

Podcast Information:

• Title: TBTL: Too Beautiful To Live
• Host/Author: TBTL
• Description: TBTL is a daily show hosted by two longtime friends goofing their way through the world the best they can.
• Episode: #4414 Bell Shocked
• Release Date: March 3, 2025

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I. Opening Banter and Lighthearted Discussions (00:00 - 02:32)

The episode begins with Andrew Walsh and Luke Burbank engaging in their signature playful banter. Andrew humorously critiques a boy's excessive use of YouTube, highlighting his lack of traditional academic knowledge. The conversation flows through various humorous takes on random topics, including medications like Trulicity and Skyrizi, product descriptions, and historical figures.

Notable Quotes:

• Andrew Walsh (00:00): "The boy's on YouTube so much he knows more about YouTube ads than his own schoolwork."
• Andrew Walsh (00:47): "My point is you should pay more attention in school than you do on YouTube."
• Luke Burbank (00:48): "No, you don't."

This segment sets a lighthearted tone, showcasing the hosts' chemistry and ability to navigate through a myriad of unrelated topics with humor.

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II. Introduction of Tom Campbell and Initial Show Segments (02:32 - 04:01)

Tom Campbell joins Luke Burbank to co-host the episode, introducing himself with a whimsical remark about his lack of shame before others. The trio briefly discusses a simulated earthquake scenario and the nature of producing a daily show amidst unexpected events.

Notable Quotes:

• Tom Campbell (02:18): "I did not notice any effects from the earthquake. I think I'm bad at sensing earthquakes."
• Tom Campbell (04:01): "You're innocent. First of all, the oftentimes the thief returns to the scene of the crime."

This segment emphasizes the show's adaptability and the hosts' ability to handle spontaneous topics with ease.

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III. Oscars Recap and Critique (04:01 - 43:07)

The hosts delve into a comprehensive discussion about the recent Academy Awards, critiquing Conan O'Brien's hosting performance. Tom expresses mixed feelings, appreciating Conan's "loopy style" and creative segments but feeling disconnected from the overall ceremony's lack of substantive political statements. They recount specific moments, such as the over-the-top praise for costume designers and the unusual behavior of surprise guests like Adrien Brody.

Notable Quotes:

• Tom Campbell (05:09): "A lot of coffee. I've been doing my weightlifting, so I cannot lift my arms, but I can move my mouth, and I'm going to do so rapidly."
• Tom Campbell (11:08): "He goes like, how do you costume 160 cardinals... It was such revelatory in this way over something that I just couldn't make myself believe the fantasy that this matters this much."
• Tom Campbell (15:04): "I don't have any problem having a second helping of lunch. They were just so forgiving."

The hosts analyze the Oscars' attempt to balance entertainment with meaningful content, ultimately expressing a desire for more impactful statements reflecting the world's current state.

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IV. Dazzling Donors and Listener Shoutouts (43:07 - 48:55)

Transitioning to their segment on donors, Luke and Tom humorously acknowledge their supporters, Julie in France and Ryan Hoenick from Alexandria. They highlight Julie's enthusiasm by mentioning her dedication despite listening to over 40 podcasts regularly. Ryan receives a heartfelt shoutout for his advocacy work in building equitable workplaces, with Tom promoting Ryan's website ryanhoenick.com.

Notable Quotes:

• Tom Campbell (43:06): "A huge thanks to Olivia, my longtime college friend and the reason I'm still listening to this pod all these years later."
• Tom Campbell (47:01): "I'm a disability advocate and speaker partnering with organizations to build more equitable workplaces."

This segment underscores the community aspect of the podcast, emphasizing the importance of listener support and engagement.

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V. Main Story: Theft of the Liberty Bell Replica (48:55 - 82:18)

The core of the episode revolves around the audacious theft of a replica Liberty Bell from the Evergreen Washelli Cemetery in Seattle. Luke introduces the story with a blend of intrigue and humor, setting the stage for a detailed examination of the crime.

Key Points:

• Incident Details: A 2,000-pound replica Liberty Bell valued over $100,000 was stolen on a Saturday morning. Cemetery employees left briefly to get gas, returning to find the lock cut, the alarm tripped, and the bell missing.

  Notable Quote:

  • Luke Burbank (49:33): "Seattle police are investigating Andrew Walsh, a popular and then his striker. Popular."

• Replica Information: Tom refers to a website, tomlovesthelibertybell.com, which tracks 57 U.S. Treasury Liberty Bell replicas commissioned in 1950 for a savings bond drive. The stolen bell was likely the one located at 1717 Pacific Avenue in Tacoma, Washington.

  Notable Quote:

  • Tom Campbell (56:07): "In 1950, the U.S. department of the treasury commissioned at least 57 Liberty Bell replicas as promotional tools for a savings bond drive."

• Speculations on Motive: The hosts speculate whether the theft was motivated by scrap metal value, given the current bronze market price. They humorously discuss the improbability of selling such a large and identifiable artifact.

  Notable Quote:

  • Tom Campbell (53:08): "This is not something you just put in your pocket and run out of tarps. Target."

• Community Impact: The theft has garnered local attention, with residents surprised by the audacity of the heist. The hosts emphasize the uniqueness of the bell and the challenge in fencing such an item.

  Notable Quote:

  • Tom Campbell (54:09): "Andrew? What are. Let's play a little game. What are the chances that we will hear the Liberty Bell dong one more time before the story is over?"

• News Broadcast Integration: The hosts incorporate an audio clip from King 5's Bridget Chavez, detailing the theft. They add their humorous commentary on the news production quality and missed opportunities for wordplay.

  Notable Quotes:

  • Bridget Chavez (61:06): "It's believed this bell is worth More than 100 King 5's Bridget Chavez has the latest on the investigation."
  • Luke Burbank (62:07): "If you've got eyes on that bell, call the tip line. Mystery solvers, mount up. Find the bell. But be safe."

• Humorous Elements: Throughout the segment, Luke and Tom intersperse jokes and playful remarks about the plausibility of the theft, the nature of the stolen item, and the community's reaction.

  Notable Quotes:

  • Tom Campbell (59:08): "I'm telling you, their silence on this is deafening."
  • Luke Burbank (65:22): "Do you know what a Bob's Big Boy is?"

• Final Remarks: The segment concludes with a light-hearted call to action for listeners to help locate the stolen bell, blending humor with genuine concern for the loss.

  Notable Quotes:

  • Tom Campbell (80:04): "This is our most honesty, honestly, our most important mission ever, I think, as a hive mind."
  • Luke Burbank (80:19): "That's right. Power out."

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VI. Additional Discussions: Voice Pitching and Podcast Games (71:35 - 80:19)

Interwoven with the main story are side conversations about audio editing, specifically pitching up voices to mimic the "Alvin and the Chipmunks" effect. The hosts reminisce about past moments, share anecdotes about childhood games like Go, and discuss modern puzzle games such as Wordle and Strands.

Notable Quotes:

• Luke Burbank (75:00): "The voicemail line used to be way more chock a block with drunk listeners."
• Tom Campbell (76:24): "If you would have told me that was, you know, whoever was behind Alvin and the Chipmunks, I would have believed it."

This segment highlights the hosts' versatility and ability to transition smoothly between serious topics and nostalgic, lighthearted discussions.

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Conclusion

Episode #4414 of TBTL: Too Beautiful To Live masterfully balances humor, community engagement, and an intriguing local news story. Luke Burbank and Tom Campbell demonstrate their dynamic chemistry, providing listeners with both entertainment and insightful commentary. The theft of the Liberty Bell replica serves as a compelling centerpiece, enriched by the hosts' playful analysis and genuine concern for the community's heritage.

Key Takeaways:

• The audacious theft of a Liberty Bell replica raises questions about motives and the challenges of recovering such a unique artifact.
• The hosts' ability to interlace humor with serious discussions keeps the content engaging and relatable.
• Listener interactions and shoutouts reinforce the podcast's strong community ties.

Final Notable Quote:

• Tom Campbell (82:18): "We are the podcast that will be here five days a week, whether you like it or not."

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This comprehensive summary encapsulates the essence of Episode #4414, providing both schedule followers and new listeners with a thorough understanding of the episode's content and the hosts' engaging dialogue.

Transcript

[Andrew Walsh]

The boy's on YouTube so much he knows more about YouTube ads than his own schoolwork. Okay, that's not true.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah?

[Andrew Walsh]

What's five times five? I have no idea. What's trulicity? Trulicity is not insulin. See what I mean? Trulicity is a once week injectable medication to improve blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes. What can you tell me about George Washington? Not a single thing. What can you tell me about Gold Bond men's lotion? You're talking about Gold Bond men's lotion with skin strengthening protein and seven intensive moisturizers to make dry skin look healthy. Tell me about Benjamin Franklin. I can't. Tell me about Wayfair. They offer free two day shipping on thousands of products. Recite the beginning of the Declaration of Independence. You know I can't do that. Recite the beginning of a Sky Rizzi ad. I have mock moderate to severe Crohn's disease. But now they're Skyrizi and you're just. Significant symptom relief with Skyrizi, including less abdominal pain and fewer bowel movements at four weeks. I don't get your point. You don't get my point? My point is you should pay more attention in school than you do on YouTube. I pay attention in school.

[Luke Burbank]

No, you don't.

[Andrew Walsh]

And I barely watch YouTube. Okay, when is Independence Day okay? Nobody knows that. And when shouldn't you take Cialis? How would I know that? Okay, still, you get my point. I'm kidding. Do not take Cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain because it could cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure.

[Luke Burbank]

Tbtl. I don't know what this is, but Jay says it's a big sea turtle. For one thing.

[Tom Campbell]

I have no shame before another mortal. All my shame's between myself and Christ. I never drop my eyes to another human being.

[Luke Burbank]

You're drunk. I'm not.

[Tom Campbell]

You are too. Prove it.

[Bridget Chavez]

Name all the states in America in alphabetical order.

[Tom Campbell]

Alabama, Alaska.

[Luke Burbank]

Arizona.

[Tom Campbell]

Reverse order.

[Luke Burbank]

Wyoming. Would.

[Tom Campbell]

Wisconsin.

[Bridget Chavez]

Australian accent. West Virginia in the style of Anthony Hopkins in Legends of the Fall.

[Luke Burbank]

Virginia.

[Tom Campbell]

Virg, whistle. That's the voice of the youth of America.

[Luke Burbank]

We have all the facts on this we need. We don't need any more facts.

[Tom Campbell]

In the land of truth, my friend, the man with one fact is the king. Let's blow some tiny minds. All right. Hello, good morning and welcome, everyone, to a Monday edition of dbtl, the show. It just might be too beautiful to live. Spock, sabotage the system. My name is Luke Burbank. I'm your host. Oh, wow. Coming to you from the Madrona Hill studio, perched high above the mighty Columbia, where everything is a.

[Luke Burbank]

Okay.

[Tom Campbell]

After what was reported to be some kind of an earthquake here in the state of Washington. I was shaking, my tummy was shaking, my head was shaking, my arms were.

[Luke Burbank]

Shaken, my legs, my feet too.

[Tom Campbell]

I did not notice any effects from the earthquake. I think I'm bad at sensing earthquakes. I believe I was doing the show with Andrew. I was in Los Angeles, I don't know, a year ago, and there was an earthquake that I didn't notice while we were doing the show. I feel like that's happened a couple of times. Also, we might just be doing too much show. It might be the case that if there is an earthquake, there's like a 60% chance we're doing the show because there's so much DVD every week. Speaking of which, here we are, episode 4414 in a collector's Let the fun begin. The Oscars were last night. I guess the Academy Awards is probably what.

[Luke Burbank]

So who needs a movie?

[Tom Campbell]

Real name is hosted by our favorite Conan O'Brien. You want showmanship, you got it. I love, love me the Conan O'Brien. And I'm so glad that he was hosting the Oscars. I did at some point, though, kind of find myself a little bored. I found myself poking around for other content to watch. So we'll get into that. And also, apparently something has gone missing from Andrew's neighborhood. Everybody be cool. This is a robbery and he's gonna tell us about it coming up. Speaking of Andrew Walsh, the longest running cobro of the show, maybe best known for his depictions of the tall ships.

[Andrew Walsh]

Two bros bro in it up.

[Tom Campbell]

He's joining me right now. Good morning, my friend.

[Luke Burbank]

I didn't take it. I'm just going to say the thing that was stolen from the neighborhood. We'll get into it later. But I am innocent.

[Tom Campbell]

Well, I'm innocent. First of all, the oftentimes the thief returns to the scene of the crime. So the very fact that you're the one reporting this on TBTL immediately cast you in a suspicious light, if I'm being honest. And I watch a lot of true crime Andrew, including something I watched yesterday, the most random thing to watch in lieu of the Academy Awards, which was a Netflix show about the unfortunate demise of one time Tennessee titan and Alcorn State player Steve Air McNair. Yeah.

[Luke Burbank]

Is this a new. Is this a new production?

[Tom Campbell]

Well, it actually is this great show on Netflix and I believe it is called Untold.

[Luke Burbank]

Oh, okay. I think I heard it.

[Tom Campbell]

And it's made. The executive producers are those guys McClain and Chapman way, who made the Battered Bastards of Baseball, which I really love. And then that Wild, Wild country, that docu series about the Bhagwan Shri Rajneesh in Antelope, Oregon. So they've got a real good eye for storytelling. I'll just. If I can. I'm sorry. I'm coming in hot today.

[Luke Burbank]

No, do it.

[Tom Campbell]

A lot of coffee. I've been doing my weightlifting, so I cannot lift my arms, but I can move my mouth, and I'm going to do so rapidly.

[Luke Burbank]

I'm gonna tell you. At some point, though, I am gonna have to take a break to rehydrate. I have. I think I'm gonna have to give blood later today. And so I want to stay very hydrated. And sometimes, honestly sometimes I don't even touch this water bottle next to me. You see, we're starting the show and I'm down to like an 8th or a 16th of my water. So.

[Tom Campbell]

Okay.

[Luke Burbank]

I will be rehydrating during the show, possibly during your Oscars recap.

[Tom Campbell]

I was going to say if I can motor mouth this, if you need me to. I could. I can tap dance if I can buy you five minutes.

[Luke Burbank]

Great.

[Tom Campbell]

Great with nail polish.

[Luke Burbank]

Okay, sweet.

[Tom Campbell]

So I. I was. Spent the weekend with Becca, had a lovely time, and got back here to the Madrona Hill studio by about the time that the Oscars were starting. And in fact, I had kind of forgotten that was yesterday and realized, oh, this might be the first year that I had not seen any of the films nominated for best picture. Not on one of them, because I didn't see the Brutalist yet.

[Luke Burbank]

You saw Dune 2, did you not?

[Tom Campbell]

Oh, was Dune 2 okay? I mean, I've seen one.

[Luke Burbank]

I think Dune 2 was one of the even dunier. Even dunier.

[Tom Campbell]

What are you doing here? We've already done this whole thing, and I'm not gonna do it. I'm not gonna do this again, buddy. Okay. If Dune 2 was on the list and I had seen one of them.

[Luke Burbank]

Let me double check that. I thought it was.

[Tom Campbell]

I felt so out of the loop and so sort of disconnected from all of the films that were in the best picture category. My main connection to the whole thing was the fact that I. In a stunning development for the. The one and only time I chose life over work in the work life balance was when I declined to do a profile of Kieran Culkin, which ensured he would then win An Oscar, which he did. So I can't put, I can't put Oscar with her. I can't put daytime Emmy award winner and one time Oscar nominee interviewer on my resume.

[Luke Burbank]

You're not the victim there. Becca is the victim there because you will never ever put life before work again after missing out on that.

[Tom Campbell]

Actually, I honestly don't think she minds it somewhere else.

[Luke Burbank]

That's a good point.

[Tom Campbell]

No, she was like, you know what, hon? Go ahead and, go ahead and pursue your passion. I'll be getting a good night's sleep without a snore monster.

[Luke Burbank]

My passion is doing wordle alone, quietly.

[Tom Campbell]

Becca really princessed and the peed me this weekend, which is this has nothing to do with the Oscars. But I was staying over at her place and she had gotten a new kind of mattress top thing for the bed so that it would be a little less jostly when there's two of us and one person's maybe moving around. But she didn't tell me because she did not want to impact. She didn't tell me until the next morning. She's like, how'd you sleep? I was like, actually, really well. She goes, I put a new thing.

[Luke Burbank]

On the bed because if you had had it in your head, maybe you'd be in your head about it.

[Tom Campbell]

Schrodinger's mattress. Burp Dinger's mattress. I thought that was very clever and it worked because I didn't go in with any preconceived ideas about how my sleep was going to be affected. So anyway, I get home, I realize the Oscars are about to start. I've been. I was thinking about you a lot yesterday, Andrew, because the arc, the arc of my life with the Oscars and the arc of this show with the Oscars, if you remember in the Academy awards is it used to be a big part of this show. We used to make entire fanciful meals around the pictures that had been nominated and the themes that were raised in those films. This was because of course, the producer emeritus of the show, Jen Flash Andrews, really, really loves the Academy awards and was really, you know, sort of vital and pivotal in creating a lot of fun bits around the Oscars. And I really enjoyed doing those bits. What I found over time and I don't know if this is just you putting your evil inside me, but it's like every year that goes on, I'm just like, I used to watch the red carpet. I you couldn't pay me enough to watch the Oscars. Red carpet. Now, like in Fact, I got home and I looked and I was under the impression that the Oscar started at 5pm West Coast. Right. So it's like 4:30, I'm in my house and I'm like, there's no way I'm turning this on if they're still on the red carpet. Something about that conversation would be just like a dagger to my heart for some reason. I don't know, it just makes me, I used to be able to watch that and now I cannot watch it. I realized the Oscars were already underway because the New York Times pinged my phone to tell me Kieran Culkin had just won Best Supporting Actor. And so I was like, oh, I guess it's happening now. So then I turned it on and I watched some of it and I, you know, again, I love Conan O'Brien. I'm really glad that, that he was tapped to host it and he's getting great reviews. Everybody thinks it was a really good show.

[Luke Burbank]

Seems like a good fit.

[Tom Campbell]

Yeah, I mean I think that the, the general. I've kind of been rotten tomatoing the reviews. That is to say I've been surveying the reviews because I didn't get all the way through the program. So I feel like I'm a little under informed. And the general thought was he brought kind of a loopy style to it that was welcomed in these turbulent times and that it had a lot of silliness for silliness sake, including things where he, he said he sang an entire song about how he's not going to waste everyone's time. But of course the song was very long and he brought out like a dancing version of the character Deadpool, who. It's not nominated for anything. Just doing like, it's like capoeira out there or something and had one of the sandworms from Dune playing Chopsticks on the piano. It was real masturbating bear territory, if you remember, from the old Conan days. So like I'm thumbs up on all of that. The problem for me was I, I basically I turned it on at about the time that they were doing best outfit or I'm sorry, best costume you should call it, you know, so. Which is a very hard job and something that's very impressive that what folks are able to create. But there was something about the way that this whole thing went down. So they brought one actor out from each of the nominated films.

[Luke Burbank]

Right.

[Tom Campbell]

And I don't think I'm not going to try to do this. I am going to try to do this off Top of my head, it was like Lily Rose Depp, who was in, I think maybe Gladiator or something. And then it was like Elle Fanning. It was one of the Fannings. And then it was Bowen Yang from Wicked, who was representing Wicked. And then John Lithgow was representing Conclave. And this bit of these four folks coming out who all seem. Or five, whatever it was, they all seem like very lovely people. But the writing was so unbelievably. First of all, it was so trickily. It was like each person was honoring the costume designer from their film. So it'd be like one of them would just be like. Words do not begin to describe the magic that is Terry O'Reilly. That's actually the name of an actor. Why did I pick.

[Luke Burbank]

No.

[Tom Campbell]

Is that Terry O'Quinn? Why did I pick the name of a real person from Patriot? Such a bad fake name.

[Luke Burbank]

So Terry. Terry O'Quinn is a real person.

[Tom Campbell]

Yes, but even O'Reilly's too close to that. I don't know the names of any of these costume designers. I just was trying to grab. Basically you had, like, a person from the film go up there and just in the most. I don't know, it just felt like they were talking about this like this was the cure for cancer. And it was like they were like, queen and goddess does not even begin to describe the majesty that is fill in the blank. And then they cut to the person, and the person's, you know, sitting there kind of excited and having their moment again. It's great they're having their moment. But it was such. It was so reverential in this way over something that I just couldn't. I couldn't make myself believe the fantasy that this matters this much. Maybe it's what's going on in the world. It just. It just felt like so. So much sound and excitement signifying so little of importance in the, I guess, the world that it just kind of was a turn off. Also, the jokes they were writing were so tame. At one point, John Lithgow is celebrating the person who did the outfits for Conclave. He says, and again, we love John Lithgow. He's a. He's a national hero. Harry and the Hendersons.

[Luke Burbank]

He was kind of.

[Tom Campbell]

For cryptozoology.

[Luke Burbank]

He was kind of rude to the Sasquatch. Near the end of that. I didn't see the full end end, but I just remember him, like, being very rude. Very rude.

[Tom Campbell]

I mean, raising Cain.

[Luke Burbank]

Oh, I haven't.

[Tom Campbell]

Scary, scary guy in railing scene.

[Luke Burbank]

That's why book's still out on him.

[Tom Campbell]

Yeah. So he goes like, he's up there for conclave. And literally, like, the line they've written now think about this.

[Luke Burbank]

These are.

[Tom Campbell]

These people are. Are writing the Academy Awards, which. And they're writing for Conan O'Brien. So presumably they're like some of the funniest writers in Hollywood, you would assume. And maybe they are, but, like, for, like, Lithgow, they write this like, he's setting up the costume thing for conclave. And he goes like, how do you costume 160 cardinals? And everyone's kind of laughing. Goes, that's not just the setup for a joke. That's the real challenge that Terry O'Quinn had to do with costuming.

[Luke Burbank]

And there are no there. That there was no joke.

[Tom Campbell]

That was just like, it's not just the setup for a joke. I'm like, first of all, most people don't know what a cardinal is as it relates to the Catholic Church, so that's not a joke. If I went down to the past time in Rayner, Oregon, I swear, no one's at the end of the bar going, how do you costume 160 cardinals? It's not a joke. It's not even a setup for a joke. It's not a thing you're saying. Also, people also. Don't they wear the same thing? Pretty much, except maybe different colors. These popey guys, I feel like they're all in a version of a kind of a cassock. I learned it was called. Here's how I learned it was called a cassock.

[Luke Burbank]

Oh, yeah, you have to wear a cassock.

[Tom Campbell]

So then Lithgow goes, and I also have to thank.

[Luke Burbank]

As an altar boy, by the way, not as a creepy.

[Tom Campbell]

I don't know. I could have seen you have the casting phase. College pre meeting Genevieve.

[Luke Burbank]

I literally did. Used to. We wore it underneath. And then we had to put. Put like the white thing on over top of the cat. The casket was the long black robe that snapped down the front. And then you would put on the white thing on top of that. And then you have your altar boy outfit complete.

[Tom Campbell]

So at one point, they have written for John Lithgow. And also. Thank you to again fill in the blank of the person who did the costuming for. For this movie. And I. And I want to thank you because those cassocks were so forgiving. I didn't have any problem having a second helping of lunch. They were just so forgiving. And applause. Break. The room falls apart over that joke. The joke was thank you for making these outfits kind of flowy so that I could have a second helping of lunch. And I swear to God, it was like literally he had to wait for the, the laughter and applause to die down. And that was when I just said what's on Netflix? And I switched over to Untold that it was Air McNair, which is a crazy story of Steve McNair's life which came to a very violent and tragic end unfortunately, but who lived a pretty fascinating life leading up to that. And my takeaway from that is Jeff Fisher, the one time coach of the Tennessee Titans, who I always just thought was kind of a, kind of a goofball with the mullet, is a very emotionally empathetic and touch. A very emotionally connected guy for being an NFL coach. The way he talked about his former player Steve McNair was truly touching. And it really made me like this guy, Jeff Fisher. So that's all unfolding as over on like abc they're apparently Adrian Brody is giving a speech that's so long that Hulu ran out of bandwidth, couldn't show the end of the Oscars. Like so that's kind of.

[Luke Burbank]

Oh yeah, I heard about that. It just stopped on people before they got the best picture. I think they were back going again. Was it a glitch or did just end?

[Tom Campbell]

I've only read about it briefly like in headlines. And my sense of it is that they didn't. They missed like the last two awards. Like then there was other people that were mad because they had. They were DVRing it in some form or fashion. And the DVR is cut off because Adrian Brody speech was so long that the DVRs of America didn't understand that the Oscars wasn't over yet.

[Luke Burbank]

Wow. I wasn't paying attention to any of this as it was happening live. But I did sort of scroll through. It's kind of a fun thing. I scrolled through blue sky afterwards. Maybe it was this morning. At some point I would just scroll through blue sky just to see everybody's kind of live reactions after the fact. And boy, the worm has turned on Adrien Brody, huh? With him like, I guess like kind of filibustering and being like, hey, listen, I've been here before, I can ignore the music. And then all of a sudden like all of the skeletons came out of the closet. Everybody's like bashing him for other things. Did you pick up on any of.

[Tom Campbell]

No. Well, I, All I saw, I didn't see the speech. All I saw was like you said People being like, get over yourself, Adrian Brody. But I didn't know there was like specific skeletons being raised, etc.

[Luke Burbank]

Do you. So I'm going to look this up on the fly here. Andy Richter posted.

[Tom Campbell]

Okay, let's talk about that.

[Luke Burbank]

Okay, so you know what I'm talking about here because he wasn't the only one who was posting this. That Rasta imitation.

[Tom Campbell]

No, no, no, no. I saw a different Andy Richter post and I thought it was. It was interesting because it was something that was. First of all, Andy Richter has never showed up in my blue sky before yesterday. And suddenly I'm seeing him a bunch. And I wonder if it's because Conan was hosting the Oscars and they're very associated, but Andy Richter wrote something like, you must kiss these people's asses. Otherwise they just. They don't get complimented enough. He was basically kind of like negging the Oscars. And I thought, ooh, that's a little close to. Close to homey. Like, yeah, you've got Conan hosting the Oscars. And one of the things everyone was saying was the reviews of Conan's performance were that he genuinely loves movies. He was excited to be there. It wasn't the sort of Jimmy Kimmel bustery.

[Luke Burbank]

You cleaned it up. His actual.

[Tom Campbell]

Yeah. What do you say?

[Luke Burbank]

Was this. Blowing smoke up every nominated ass is so necessary. These poor people never get flattered. I love it. He's over there. He's bitter.

[Tom Campbell]

I know. Except like, imagine, imagine you're hosting the Oscars and I'm over here negging the Oscars. Wouldn't you feel a little. Wouldn't you be like, wouldn't you feel slightly criticized by. I guess, is Conan being sub blue Skied there.

[Luke Burbank]

And then he posted this. He said, talking about Adrien Brody. He just wrote. He went on a little long here, too. Did you see this? This is Adrien Brody in. I don't. I mean, definitely dreads. And it seems like his skin is a little bronze. I don't know for sure. And no, this is from snl. He's introducing Sean Paul.

[Jackie Mason]

Yama Yama. Yama. Yama Yama Yamaka. I'm on, you know, you know, rush stuff around. You know, you got the old family in the house, you know, you know, we got Sean Peter, you know, I got shot.

[Luke Burbank]

I want to be very clear here. This is Adrian Brody and he's like very.

[Tom Campbell]

And this is in the. From the Pianist, right?

[Luke Burbank]

Yes, exactly. This is him on snl.

[Tom Campbell]

This is two time Holocaust survivor Adrian Brody.

[Luke Burbank]

And this is him just Introducing the musical artist. I just want everybody to know this.

[Tom Campbell]

Is not a listening catch even. This is like they're coming back from the commercial where the host is about to say, ladies and gentlemen, Dido.

[Luke Burbank]

Right? Exactly. And he's the. But he's wearing. Gentlemen Terry O'Quinn, but he's wearing a long Rastafarian wig. He's wearing like a. A sleeveless kind of dirty looking T shirt. He's going full Rasta and like gesticulating all over the place. He's introducing Sean Paul, who he introduces as Sean John. Spoiler there.

[Jackie Mason]

Yamah Yama Jamaica. I'm on, you know, you know, rush stuff around, you know, you got the old family in the house, you know, you know, we got. We got Sean Peter, you know, you got Sean Paul, you got Sean Mary, you got Sean John. You know, we all in Arsenal, man. You know, respect all aspect. You know me respect me next Spec Mini. Expect my uncle Spec. You know, got a great show, you know, like Kingston Massive. Yeah, we got the whole. Cool now, you know, I want to give a big up enough respect and dance. All players, you know, like Sean John.

[Luke Burbank]

Andy Richard has tweeted that out or whatever, posted that and said he went on a little long here too. And then I don't know.

[Tom Campbell]

That was Entertainment Weekly. Adrien Brody says he wasn't banned from SNL after Notorious Jamaican accent did.

[Luke Burbank]

Somebody was involved here. Somebody was playing the air horn, unless that was the band. And like somebody helped him dress up like this. Somebody helped him with the costuming. I don't know, man. Anyway, it was just sort of funny. I sort of felt like he get again. It's so funny, me trying to weigh in on this. I didn't watch any of this. I'm just seeing everybody react and it just sort of seems like we went into this thinking, oh yeah, the Brutalist was an interesting film. Not, not perfect, but an interesting film. He's a serious actor and an actor of our age and everybody's just like done with this guy.

[Tom Campbell]

Yeah. And that, that is a very. You know, what's interesting about it to me is that I didn't watch the thing live. And I like. I don't like to think of myself as somebody who is just a total sheeple, but now I just have a worse. Well, really, it's the SNL thing. I'll be honest with you. I didn't have strong feelings one way or the other about the. His speech, if he went too long because I didn't know it was on there. But Adrian Brody is now forever tainted from the thing you just played me, which I would have. I just had no idea that had ever happened.

[Luke Burbank]

Me neither.

[Tom Campbell]

That is. That is like. That should be a kind of a career ender. Maybe a. You don't get another Oscar or something.

[Luke Burbank]

I don't know. Yeah, I don't know. And I don't. Did you say you had a date on that, on that article? I don't know if you still have it in front of you. I don't know.

[Tom Campbell]

It was January of 2025, the Entertainment Weekly article saying that Adrian Brody was clarifying he's in fact not banned from snl.

[Luke Burbank]

I see. So it's a new article, but I'm curious as to. Yeah. When he actually went on stage and did that whole thing. But anyway, yeah, that's.

[Tom Campbell]

That's crazy. I've never. Yeah, I've. There is a kind of a fun little. Like, I'm not going to be able to give you any specific examples so that. That's where this entertainment ends. If in fact we were being entertaining. But like there was this kind of thing going around the Internet, particularly TikTok for a while, which was just like people that you ForGot ever hosted SNL, introducing bands you forgot were ever on SNL.

[Luke Burbank]

That's pretty great.

[Tom Campbell]

And it's just like kind of such a fun, like trip down memory lane. I'm totally making this up, but it'd just be like Billy Bob Thornton being like, ladies and gentlemen, Toad the Wet Sprocket. Yeah, like just, just a kind of a collision of two folks that you probably haven't.

[Luke Burbank]

Ladies and gentlemen, the Archies.

[Tom Campbell]

Alvin and the Chipmunks. Anyway, so, yeah, that's. I don't, I don't have a particular overarching take on the Oscars other than I'm very glad that Conan is getting good reviews. I'm glad people liked. Felt a little tame to me or I don't know, a little something or other such that I ended up watching. Well, I did go watch Anora, though, afterwards, after I saw that it won a bunch of awards. I was like, all right, let me. Because I really like the Florida Project, which was the other movie that this filmmaker made. And I, I was watching Anora for like the first 30 minutes. I was like, why did this get any Oscars? What is even going on with this? And then I thought it actually kind of came together. Ended up being a pretty interesting film. Although it's billed as a comedy, which is. I think they. I think that that was low keyed. If I was to like, wake you up out of a sleep two weeks ago and go, that movie Anora, about the, you know, the, The Exotic Dancer. Would you have thought it was a comedy?

[Luke Burbank]

Are you asking me? I didn't even. I never heard of it until yesterday.

[Tom Campbell]

Oh. Oh. I was getting a lot.

[Luke Burbank]

I've never heard of the Florida Project either. No, I was embarrassed. I kind of didn't want to admit that because, dude, the Florida Project is so great.

[Tom Campbell]

It's Willem Dafoe.

[Luke Burbank]

Oh, I love him.

[Tom Campbell]

And it's this. It's this young mom who's living in this motel in Florida. I'm fascinated with the. In the making of that movie because they had no money for the movie. So, like, next to the hotel, there was a helicopter company that wouldn't stop flying the helicopter. So they had to just kind of make it part of the thing that these helicopters are flying through the whole.

[Luke Burbank]

Film, you know, I said I had never heard of that. I did. I saw the trailer for that a couple of times. I don't know the year that would have come out. I feel like it was like, maybe. Were we just coming out of the pandemic or going into it? I don't know. But I remember being in the theater and seeing the trailer for the Florida Project, and it was exactly my style of cinematography. Like, the colors, the angle.

[Tom Campbell]

2017.

[Luke Burbank]

Okay. 20. Okay. So still ways before the Pandemic. I don't know why I brought that into it, but it's how I measure everything these days. But, yes, I remember seeing that and being like, that looks bleak as hell, but holy shit, that looks up my alley. And then I totally whiffed out the window of my mind.

[Tom Campbell]

I think if you're, you know, some night, if you're, if you're, if you're clicking around, it might be worth checking out.

[Luke Burbank]

It's not boxed right and put.

[Tom Campbell]

Not a perfect film, but certainly an interesting one. And, and yeah, Anora. I, I, I, I, I, I enjoyed it. I definitely. I. It had. If, if it was a half or it was a marathon, I would say it had reverse splits, which, when you're running and you run the second half of the race faster than the first half. It had a reverse split. It got better for me as the movie went on.

[Luke Burbank]

It also had a 710 split.

[Tom Campbell]

So much sex and dude. And I'm not, I'm not a prude, like, but I was. I haven't watched a movie that depicts that much sex in a long time. And in fact, I, you know, my take on sex in films, generally speaking is, I know. I know about the drugs and the clubs, Andrew. I know about the sex. I understand it to some degree. Whatever you've heard, whatever mixed reviews we've heard about my understanding of sex, those are lies. Those are dirty, dirty lies. I understand how it all works and I generally don't need to see it in a film because there's. To me, there's more interesting things than two people pretending to have sex in a movie. You know, so generally speaking, it's got to really serve the plot. I would say I think it does serve the plot in this movie because it kind of. It sort of. It helps explain the dynamic of one particular relationship in the film. But boy, I swear, every time you turn around, there's people have it very, very graphic. So anyway, that's just a heads up. If you're somebody who's sensitive about that kind of stuff or put off by it and you think I'm recommending Anora to you, it's definitely a pretty racy movie.

[Luke Burbank]

One thing you don't need to see is Larry David pretending to have sex with Cheryl Hines in season five. Of what? Of Curb youb Enthusiasm yesterday. We also didn't watch the Oscars. I didn't really have any interest in it. I was really, I was thinking like, oh, this is a big stage and this is like, you know, famously lefty Hollywood. At least somebody will take advantage of this large stage to say something just very, maybe devastating or powerful about the state of the world. And it sounds like nobody took advantage of the one.

[Tom Campbell]

The one, I mean, joke that I saw from Conan that was even just vaguely related to the events of the world. So Anora, the plot is that this. This girl who's a, you know, like a stripper in Long island ends up marrying this Russian oligarch who comes into the strip club. And then a bunch of stuff happens after that, right. And involves her and his family and all these things. Conan's joke was after an. Or had won two Oscars. He said people just love to see someone finally stand up to a Russian or something like that. Something to that effect. That was about one of the only. Then there was a couple of folks who won awards who, who said, you know, basically they did Ukraine.

[Luke Burbank]

Some. Okay, Ukraine specific.

[Tom Campbell]

But at least I think Daryl Hannah actually was presenting and. And said something about standing with Ukraine. And then there were some filmmakers who I believe had. Their film was about something going on with the Palestinian.

[Luke Burbank]

Oh, yeah, the documentary, yes, sure, yes.

[Tom Campbell]

And. And they, you know, made A very strong political statement. But it wasn't like Conan didn't come out, you know, of the gate and. And like, make a bunch of jokes like Kimmel. Let me put it this way. Kimmel would have been a Trump evisceration. That was not what Conan was doing.

[Luke Burbank]

I wouldn't. I was gonna say, like, just to make my comments clear. I wasn't even expecting it to be the role of the person hosting, because that is, you're, like, hired to do that job, but the people accepted, as you know. I said this to Genevieve a few days ago. I'm like, I hope somebody will say something. She's like, yeah, where's. Oh, geez, now I'm blanking on his name. Why would I start this sentence if I. Terry O'Quinn. Terry O'Quinn is exactly what I was.

[Tom Campbell]

Thinking of there from Lost. And then later on, Patriot.

[Luke Burbank]

I think first credit, first line of the obituary will be Patriot. Marlon Brando is the name I was looking for. Yes. Jenny was like, yeah, like, I hate to say it, but, like, where's Marlon Brando?

[Tom Campbell]

Where's Sasheen Littlefeather?

[Luke Burbank]

Right. Yes, exactly.

[Tom Campbell]

I believe turned out to not be native.

[Luke Burbank]

Oh, is that true? Okay, bad example on my part. But either way, I just expect, like, the people who are accepting the awards to say what we're seeing in our country and what we're seeing in the world is beyond words. We must stand together. We must fight oppression. Like, just. I just can't believe nobody is. And again, I don't know what the hell I'm doing. So I always want to caveat it with that, but Jesus Christ, Hollywood, live up to your leftist name. Everybody's scared. Everybody is so goddamn scared of their funding.

[Tom Campbell]

I think you're right because I was. I mean, yeah, that was. That was where. Yeah, I was like, we turn to you for being a little bit unhinged and left. And like, this is the one thing we have anymore. We don't have any of the levers of power in the government. I mean, this is, of course, the. The thing that's one of the things that's alleged to make, you know, ultra right wing people so insane is that no matter how much power they get, they still have to watch Jim Caviezel movies if they want to see their. There's something with.

[Luke Burbank]

Did he say anything when he accepted his awards? His many, many awards?

[Tom Campbell]

Exactly. Like, they're forced to watch Kevin Sorbo TV's Hercules in whatever shit he's in now. Like, and so, you know, the Big thing is, like, they don't get the cool pop culture and. And they're mad about it. And it makes. It gives them a confused sense of their lack of power in the world. They have a ton of power. They have too much power, in my opinion. But because they're not seeing themselves portrayed on the silver screen, they. That's supposed to be the whole thing that goes on, but, boy, I'll tell you. Yeah. Last night, it. Not many political statements. There was one other thing that I thought was kind of funny, which was kind of like a fake commercial where Conan was trying to sell people on the idea of something called Cinema Streams, which was a place where they take, like, 4,000 cell phones and put them all together on a screen, and you sit in a darkened room and watch the streaming. This is basically a movie theater ad. But it was like. But the person was like, you know, they're in the theater. They're like, well, how do I hold it? And he's like, you don't have to. We hold it for you. This is kind of like. It was a pretty funny, kind of subtle, you know, what would you say, sort of like advertisement for people going back to the. To the movies. I mean, that's another thing about this that's. That's interesting is, you know, Netflix really does seem to want to. If they can run the movie theater business out of business, you know, that would be good for their. That would be good for their business model if they would have even less competition from theaters. And yet they're nominated in certain categories. I know that they've hired Netflix, hired Harvey Weinstein's Oscar, you know, strategist person, because Miramax was so famous for, like, these very effective Oscar campaigns, you know, and that's like a whole division of, like, a studio is the. For your consideration part of it, you know, so they had. They had hired that person. Netflix has. So they really want to win these Oscars, and they really want to put movie theaters out of business. But they're also paying. They're also some of the only people that are like, you know, funding films right now. So, like, what do you do? If you're a filmmaker, you're kind of, you know, you're sort of. If you go make a movie for Netflix and it does well, you've just put one more small nail in the coffin of movie theater.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah, it's a good point. I mean, did we talk about this on the show? The old. The theater that's been AMC for a now, but it was the old Sundance Theater on 45th near the U District, or kind of in the U District, I would say.

[Tom Campbell]

Yeah, that was the Metro in my youth. Yeah.

[Luke Burbank]

That's closing again.

[Tom Campbell]

What a bummer.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah. I don't know if anybody will buy it. I mean, I don't know what you do with that space other than tear it down, unless you can put another theater there. But. Yeah, I hope. Yeah. I don't know.

[Tom Campbell]

I've gone there and eaten more lasagna while watching films. They tried that. Had they tried that business model yet or was it still pretty much a standard movie?

[Luke Burbank]

No, no, they. I think because they were Sundance. They were pretty early on in the, like, serving wine or what? I don't know. Like. Yeah, no, they would have, like, kind of almost like plated meals. I think they'd like this lounge.

[Tom Campbell]

You're happy, Andrew?

[Luke Burbank]

Well, I used to go there all the time because we lived in Wallingford and we would walk there quite a bit, actually. So we were. We were supporters of it. And actually, I think when we lived in Roosevelt, too, we had two apartments where that was sort of in the center of it. So we did our part. Maybe that's the thing. We stopped going. Yeah. We moved out of that neighborhood.

[Tom Campbell]

And now waylaid by the Seattle GO center there, by the Blue Moon Tavern.

[Luke Burbank]

The GO Center. What is that? I must have.

[Tom Campbell]

Did you ever play that game GO when you were a kid?

[Luke Burbank]

No. The little black and white tiles.

[Tom Campbell]

Yeah, the little black and white tiles that you turn over. It's kind of check. I used to know how to play this back when I had brain cells, which was a long time ago. The listeners will tell you. But yeah, I've always been fascinated. As you're on. You know that. That the Blue Moon Tavern.

[Luke Burbank]

Oh, yeah.

[Tom Campbell]

That you go past on the way to that movie theater you're describing, or movie plex. Right before the Blue Moon Tavern, there's always. I don't know if it's still there, but there was always this, like, little upstairs apartment thing that was like the Seattle GO Center. Like, it's like for the most hardcore Go players.

[Luke Burbank]

So you're talking. Let's just do this because people love it when we do this.

[Tom Campbell]

They do.

[Luke Burbank]

You're traveling west to east. You're heading towards the u district on 45th. So therefore blue Moon's gonna be on your left. Now, what I think is right on that corner is a brewery.

[Tom Campbell]

Oh, good.

[Luke Burbank]

So it might. I don't think it's a. I don't think it's a place to actually Drink beer. I think it's literally just a brewery. But I could be wrong about that.

[Tom Campbell]

But I'm really happy to see. Oh, they've moved. The Seattle Ghost center is now looks like it's on Finney.

[Luke Burbank]

That makes sense. But they.

[Tom Campbell]

But they look like are still in business.

[Luke Burbank]

Okay.

[Tom Campbell]

The learn to play the ancient game of glow of Go. Lessons are free.

[Luke Burbank]

That is a game that I probably should know, isn't it? Like, that's a. That's a game of high intelligence, right? Isn't it like, that and chess are the two kind of standard bearers for if you're.

[Tom Campbell]

I definitely think it's. It's a. It's. Yeah, I think it is. Yeah. Something that you. That people at a very, very high level of intellect tend to do well at somehow. I was playing it as a kid. There was somebody at, like, my church, something who was into go. And you know, when you're a kid, at least this is how I was. Any adult that would play any kind of, like, board game, card game, I was always just like, yeah, okay, I'm in. Like, yeah, you're gonna. You're gonna take an hour out of your day and play Go Fish with me? Hell, yeah.

[Luke Burbank]

I spent my childhood begging people to play. That's why I like my grandma so much. The only reason I like my grandma, honestly, awful person. But she would play games with me. Just kidding. Obviously, she was awesome.

[Tom Campbell]

Okay. I don't know.

[Luke Burbank]

No, no, no, no.

[Tom Campbell]

I don't know.

[Luke Burbank]

You're like, no, no, she was great. But. But, no, she would. But she would also play games with me. I love when grandma would come over. She would always play games. I'm like, why wouldn't my parents play games with me Now? I know. Like, I. I don't know. If I had kids, I think I'd play games. But the thing is, like, I also assume the appetite for games when you're a kid, especially like in the pre digital era.

[Tom Campbell]

It's.

[Luke Burbank]

You're insatiable, you know, it's a bottomless pit of want.

[Tom Campbell]

I mean, I think you've just described children.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah.

[Tom Campbell]

And. And, yeah, it's like you got to be careful. You've got to manage.

[Luke Burbank]

Genevieve has described me as a bottomless bit of a wand before you've already.

[Tom Campbell]

Got one of those people living in the house. You don't need another one.

[Luke Burbank]

Right? Yeah. Take away it.

[Tom Campbell]

We was hoping for some razzle dazzle. Razzle dazzle. That's right, man. Razzle dazzle. On your mark.

[Jackie Mason]

On your mark.

[Tom Campbell]

Get set.

[Luke Burbank]

Get set now. Ready? Ready.

[Tom Campbell]

Go. Everybody. Razzle dazzle. All right, let's thank some dazzling donors. These incredibly generous, supportive, wonderful people are voluntarily donating a dazzling amount of dough to keep TBTL happening. We're talking about folks like Julie Bellon, who's in Vermont. France.

[Luke Burbank]

Which makes me wonder, are we saying the last name properly?

[Tom Campbell]

Bion, maybe. Julie Bion.

[Luke Burbank]

Bed Bath in Bion. I feel like I've made that joke before, so I don't know if we've already. I don't know if this is a well worn, well worn pattern. Thinking of Julie, I mean, the way.

[Tom Campbell]

That women can be in that store forever, that's beyond me.

[Luke Burbank]

Is that a Yakov smear? Is it literally Yakov? I don't know how I knew that. Maybe you've played it for me. I used to.

[Tom Campbell]

Yeah. That's why I think they call those places Bad Bath and Beyond, because how a woman can spend so much money on bed and bath is beyond any man.

[Luke Burbank]

Oh, my God.

[Tom Campbell]

I wonder how it's going for Jakob Smirnov, because he's from Ukraine, but he plays Branson, where I'm sure it's like a heavy duty MAGA contingent.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah. Also is. Does he have a cabinet position?

[Tom Campbell]

Well, no, because he's from Ukraine.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah. None of these are Ukraine. Yeah.

[Tom Campbell]

You know.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah.

[Tom Campbell]

All right, back to Julie, who is supporting us from all the way over in France. Incredible. By the way, become a big, big. Trying a new thing where. I'm a big France guy now. Andrew.

[Luke Burbank]

Oh, good.

[Tom Campbell]

I had.

[Luke Burbank]

I look forward to this.

[Tom Campbell]

I had so much. How dare you, sir? How dare you? I had such a fun time in Paris last summer, which again, I kind of tacked on. We, you know, we're flying home and we were able to do a thing where we. We landed. You know, we basically had a layover in Paris that we extended for multiple days. So it didn't really, like, increase the price of the airplane ticket very much. And it was kind of just because, you know, I thought Becca would really enjoy it, but I just freaking loved Paris. Like, it was my second time there, but I just had such a great time. So.

[Luke Burbank]

Anyway, can I interrupt for one second? And this does not have to be said at all, but I want you to know something that's going on in my life right now, which maybe you can just see the tip of her ears, but our poor Professor Bananas has been going through some health stuff recently.

[Tom Campbell]

I'm sorry.

[Luke Burbank]

We took her to the vet. We were concerned. She stopped eating again last week. We had to take her to the vet. It's always very upsetting. And so we have this medicine we give her now, and we put it in her ear. You rub it in the little tip of her ear, if you can believe it, and it makes her hungry. We took her to the vet, got the medicine, gave it to her once.

[Tom Campbell]

Putting that in my ear.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah, I know. And we gave her the medicine to her once, and she regained her appetite immediately and has been great for the past four or five days. And then yesterday, stopped eating again. And so we've been very, very concerned about her.

[Tom Campbell]

Sorry, man.

[Luke Burbank]

But she just did something that has really raised my hopes, which is she must have.

[Tom Campbell]

I left, turned off the music.

[Luke Burbank]

She said, I don't want Luke talking about France anymore. No. She just pushed my door open and is in here sort of nosing about, which makes me think she might be. She might be hungry. I might even give her a churu.

[Tom Campbell]

Do you want to go? Do you want to go? Food and water. Give her some food and you get some water.

[Luke Burbank]

I'll tell you what, after the dazzling donors before top stories, I'm going to run and get a churu. You ever mess around with these things? They're like little tubes of, like, little tubes of food paste.

[Tom Campbell]

I've seen them. I've seen them before.

[Luke Burbank]

I have not.

[Tom Campbell]

I've not deployed one on Bubbles or Holly, but. But I've definitely seen them out in the world.

[Luke Burbank]

Cats love them so much. It's the one thing they always eat. So, yeah, if you don't mind, I'm gonna take a little break and give her some food, and I'll let you know how she does.

[Tom Campbell]

Okay, but not before we thank Julie in France, who says, honestly, I don't understand why, out of the more than 40 podcasts that I regularly listen to, whoa, TBTL is such a big place in my heart.

[Luke Burbank]

How do you have time?

[Tom Campbell]

Let's face it, it's not really what you talk about. I guess it must be the way you seem to genuinely love each other's company and the way you are honest about your quirks and occasional pettiness.

[Luke Burbank]

I wouldn't call it pettiness, Julie. How do you like that? How you like that?

[Tom Campbell]

It's great. It's so endearing. If I am a dazzling donor, it's because truly, truly, what you do is so important. Thanks. Signed, Julie. Wow, Julie. That is 40 podcasts.

[Luke Burbank]

That's a lot.

[Tom Campbell]

But that's a healthy amount of podcasts.

[Luke Burbank]

Over there in France, certainly putting us in the mix. I don't know if Julie's a daily listener. I mean, she's a dazzling donor, so it indicate that she's well invested both with her time and finances here. But. Hello, Bananas and Franks and Frank's. But, yeah, I mean, one thing that you and I have been talking about is maybe our pitch for people to listen to us is like, hey, we might not be your favorite podcast, but we're the podcast that is produced every day in between episodes of your favorite.

[Tom Campbell]

Podcast and features a cat.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah.

[Tom Campbell]

Can you see Bananas wandering through the shot? No, you're absolutely right. That's our. That's. That's our, you know, that's our entire sort of pitch is, you know, if you can't be with the podcast you love, love the one you're with. Exactly. We're here, my friends. We are here five days a week, whether you like it or not. And when all those other podcasts are, what, producing compelling content, having editorial meetings, doing. Doing all the things that. That take weeks and weeks and weeks to complete. We're just over here petting our cat and talking down the line five days a week.

[Luke Burbank]

Look at this little girl.

[Tom Campbell]

Tbtl. Thank you, Julie. Maestro, on your mark.

[Jackie Mason]

On your mark.

[Luke Burbank]

Get set, get set now.

[Tom Campbell]

Ready, ready, go, everybody. Hey, look who it is. It's our dear friend, longtime TBTL supporterer, Ryan Hoenick.

[Luke Burbank]

Now, have you ever met Ryan in person?

[Tom Campbell]

I believe I have.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah. Because he.

[Tom Campbell]

You.

[Luke Burbank]

Ryan lives out in D.C. or I see, the D.C. area.

[Tom Campbell]

Although we've also. We've also Skyped with Ryan a bunch.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah. Yes.

[Tom Campbell]

So I could be confusing and conflating our virtual screen time with Ryan with irl.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah, yeah, I know Ryan's in Alexandria.

[Tom Campbell]

Because we haven't done. We haven't done a. We haven't done an official TBTL event in dc, have we?

[Luke Burbank]

No. And I'm sorry to put you on the spot there, because I know that you can't remember every interaction ever, but I just wasn't sure because I feel like you are in the greater D.C. area from time to time for your other stuff, whether it was a live wire thing or something like that.

[Tom Campbell]

That's why Ryan's out there in Alexandria and says, hi, fellow tens. A huge thanks to Olivia, my longtime college friend and the reason I'm still listening to this pod all these years later.

[Luke Burbank]

Oh, Olivia, thank you.

[Tom Campbell]

Sounds like Olivia turned Ryan onto the show. Thanks, Olivia.

[Luke Burbank]

Thanks.

[Tom Campbell]

Thanks, Ryan, for sticking with us. Shout out to Steve, Jen, and Kelly for being perpetually awesome. Y'all make this community something Special. Now, here's the thing. If this is. If Ryan is shouting out the Steve and Jen and Kelly, I think Those are some D.C. area 10.

[Luke Burbank]

Exactly. Or erstwhile D.C. 10s. I believe Kelly's up in erstwhile. Thank you. I love to pull that one out.

[Tom Campbell]

God. Did this whole thing a setup for you to use the word erstwhile?

[Luke Burbank]

That's why I picked this dazzling donor today.

[Tom Campbell]

Smart. Very smart. Yeah. Steve and Jen were the ones who famously crashed a Livewire party bus.

[Luke Burbank]

Yes, right.

[Tom Campbell]

Which again, you know, game recognized game. Ryan says now I'm not making any super bowl predictions this year. I've learned my lesson. But good luck to Luke on whatever bets may be brewing. Ryan, you probably know if you're. If you're up to speed on your tbtl, that I did in fact bet the Eagles. I hammered that Eagles bet during my, like, one hour of being on terra firma on that Sunday. And I was very happy about it. I do think that sports betting is my healthiest betting relationship, Andrew, because you don't get obsessed.

[Luke Burbank]

You have fun.

[Tom Campbell]

And I also can't even do it here. It's not legal in the state of Washington, so I. That's why, you know, it's legal in New York. Apparently it's legal in Oregon, but, like, I can't. Unless I were to go down to the local casino and lay a bet, which I wouldn't do for sports. I can't get on my phone and sports bet here. So it's just. It's like a treat. It's like birthday cake. It's like if I'm somewhere where I'm able to do it and there's a game that I'm interested in, I'll do it. But then there's long stretches where I literally can't even access it. It's actually kind of the perfect relationship.

[Luke Burbank]

So it's like, it's the only thing that's not problematic for you because it's not legally problematic for you or legally, it can't be problematic.

[Tom Campbell]

Oh, no, it has nothing to do with my willpower, any kind of good decision making. No, it's. This is, honestly, this is the tyrannical rule of the state.

[Luke Burbank]

Great.

[Tom Campbell]

Modifying a behavior of mine.

[Luke Burbank]

Hey, honestly, no joke. Like, I came around on smoking laws. Like, yeah, you would have met me. Like, yeah, maybe 20 years before you met me or 10 when I was a college age or post college smoker in coffee shops. It's like, what in the world? You're not gonna let me smoke and drink Coffee at the same time in a coffee shop. What kind of tyrannical world is this? And like, now I look back, I'm just like, like, man, that got me to cut back big time, which then helped me quit. When it became time for me to quit and I'm like, oh, yeah, sometimes these laws really do look out for us.

[Tom Campbell]

Yeah. Even as a non smoker, because I was regrettably, probably a self identified libertarian at the time. When I was, you know, in my early 20s or whatever, I was like, well, if people don't want to go in a restaurant where they're smoking, that just won't go in there.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah, right.

[Tom Campbell]

And they were like, what about the people that work there? Well, they'll just have to work somewhere else. The market will fix this.

[Luke Burbank]

That's exactly what I.

[Tom Campbell]

And it's. It has been tremendously effective at helping a bunch of people not do something that just absolutely terrorizes your body. In fact, the other day I was walking somewhere. I was walking near Becca's place and I saw what I thought was a cigarette butt on the ground. It wasn't Andrew. It was a broken pencil. It was the only other thing as anachronistic as a cigarette butt in the ground. It was like a broken, like number two pencil kind of thing. But when I thought it was a cigarette, but I thought to myself, when's the last time I just saw a cigarette butt on the ground? You know, like, it's amazing how effective that's been as a, you know, as a way of helping modify behavior. And I would say for the good.

[Luke Burbank]

There's a time when I would have tried to smoke that pencil too, by the way. But let's not give.

[Tom Campbell]

There's a time when I would try to pencil fight you with that pencil. But I was. Did that, did that make its way out to Ohio? Pencil fighting.

[Luke Burbank]

Oh, we've talked about it before. Yeah. Yeah, that's right. Kind of. I don't. I think I remember seeing it. It's not something I partook in. Like, I remember, like, good at it at all. I remember paper football contests, thumb wrestling. I think there was a couple others in there. I don't think I really partook in the. Couldn't afford a lot of pencils, Luke. I didn't grow up all rich.

[Tom Campbell]

Yeah, you didn't grow up with Ticonderoga money. Sure. Wasn't that written on some of the pencils? I know that's a fort, but wasn't there also a pencil that was called a Ticonderoga?

[Luke Burbank]

I'M pretty sure that's where they go at the end of Shawshank Redemption.

[Tom Campbell]

Yes, they do. Truly was a Shawshank Redemption. Ryan says I'm about three weeks behind on episodes, so if I'm missing any big developments, I'll catch up soon. Before I go, a rare moment of self promotion. I'm a disability advocate and speaker partnering with organizations to build more equitable workplaces. If this sounds interesting, check out ryanhoenick.com I'm going to spell Ryan's name. It's R Y A N last name H O n I c k.com ryanhoenick.com if you would like Ryan to help your business or organization work for a more equitable workplace. What a cool idea.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah.

[Tom Campbell]

Thanks again to everyone who keeps this ship afloat. You're all dazzling. Power out. That's from listener Ryan out there in Alexandria. Thanks.

[Luke Burbank]

Wow, it's a nice looking website. I didn't know that Ryan had sort of kind of professionalized this, for lack of a better word. And I'm looking. He's got a whole bunch of press clippings here, presumably that he is quoted in or appears in in some way. This is. Yeah, please check this out. Ryan is doing good work out there.

[Tom Campbell]

Yeah. What a cool resume here. Also, you know, Ryan's dog is the absolute best, giving me powerful Rudy memories. Although thank goodness Ryan got the dog that Ryan got and not Rudy, because that would be Rudy would be no help.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah, I think of Rudy the other day.

[Tom Campbell]

By the way, for those who are scoring at home, Rudy's doing great, pushing, I don't know, 11 or 12 now, but still getting around and doing fine. But man, that would, that would have been a hopeless, hopeless service dog. So I'm glad Ryan got the dog that he got. And Ryan, we're glad we got you. Thanks, buddy. Hello and welcome to Top Story. All right, the top story today comes from your neighborhood. Andrew and I know very little about other than at the top of the show before we were recording, you said to me, hey, a Liberty Bell has been stolen from my neighborhood.

[Luke Burbank]

Liberty Bell has been stolen.

[Tom Campbell]

I mean, I'm, I'm intrigued. What the heck is going on?

[Luke Burbank]

I mean, you might even be surprised by the term a Liberty Bell that implies the existence of more than one Liberty Bell.

[Tom Campbell]

Well, right. And I'm familiar with the one in Philadelphia. Famously. I did not know that there was one in the sort of north Seattle area where you are.

[Luke Burbank]

I consider the one in Philadelphia to be a lesser Liberty Bell. In fact, I think most people think of north Seattle when they think of the Liberty Bell. I could be wrong about that. And the cool thing is, I know we don't have any listeners from that neck of the woods who would take offense.

[Tom Campbell]

I believe Paul Revere took the E. Line.

[Luke Burbank]

You believe so?

[Tom Campbell]

On his famous ride.

[Luke Burbank]

I believe he did.

[Tom Campbell]

There is a person on the e. Line who thinks they're Paul Revere.

[Luke Burbank]

I think so. The person who asked me if I was a bounty hunter. The bounty hunters are coming. The bounty hunters are coming.

[Tom Campbell]

That's right.

[Luke Burbank]

So I live near a very large interurban cemetery. And you know this well, Right. Evergreen Waselli, it's called. It's been there for a really long time.

[Tom Campbell]

48 years old. I still don't know how to say the name of it.

[Luke Burbank]

I think I got it there, although. But it's a really big swath of land that is up here in north Seattle. And it's interesting because, like, we actually have. Seattle's pretty good about having green spaces and parks, and we have a couple of parks around us. But honestly, this cemetery is one of the biggest pieces of green space. And I think I even mentioned to you the other day that I kind of took this thing called the interurban trail for a long walk that sort of skirts along the east side or the west side of it and whatever. So, like, sometimes people will stroll through it, take their dogs on a walk, walk, stuff like that. And when we moved into this neighborhood, I was doing things exactly like that, Although no dog in tow for me. But I noticed that there was this area where it's kind of fenced off and there's a bunch of, like, kind of equipment that they need to, you know, maybe there were some sort of tractors and trucks and various things just for upkeep and maintenance of this huge cemetery. Right. That kind of area. I don't know what you call that, an operations area or something like that.

[Tom Campbell]

Yeah.

[Luke Burbank]

And one of the things I noticed was, I'm trying to think of, maybe even Genevieve tipped me off to this was there's a replica of the Liberty Bell. I mean, it looks like the Liberty Bell. I don't think it has the crack in it, but other than that, it might even be a full size. I said, I'm looking at a photo.

[Tom Campbell]

Of it right now. It has an inscription on it. It says. I believe it says Pennsylvania on it. I mean, this is like a life size replica.

[Luke Burbank]

I was so curious about this thing, Luke, that I did something very unusual for me, which is I just. And I called the cemetery Like, I gotta. I got a.

[Tom Campbell]

After you walked by this Liberty Bell.

[Luke Burbank]

The other day, what the hell? And then I saw it a couple of times or something. This is like years ago when we first moved in. And I was like, you know what, I'm gonna call. So I call and then I get like an automated voicemail system and it's kind of like, who do you want to talk to? Press this for this person. This for this person. I'm like, I don't know. I was waiting for somebody to say, if you have questions about the Liberty Bell, press 9. But that never came up. So I think I just like chose whoever's title was closest to like ground maintenance or something like that. And I left him a voicemail like, hey, new to the neighborhood, Just curious, what's with the Liberty Bell? I never heard back anything.

[Tom Campbell]

You're definitely on a watch list now.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah, exactly.

[Tom Campbell]

We got a call about the Liberty Bell and now it's gone.

[Luke Burbank]

Mrs. Now it's gone. Luckily that was a few years ago now. Okay, now the, the headline that I woke up to this morning on King 5, the TV station around here, ABC affiliate, I believe.

[Tom Campbell]

NBC.

[Luke Burbank]

Oh, King 5 is NBC, right? Priceless Liberty Bell replica stolen from Seattle cemetery. Seattle police are investigating Andrew Walsh, a popular and then his striker. Popular.

[Tom Campbell]

Asking a lot of questions about the value of a Liberty Bell.

[Luke Burbank]

Just asking questions. And so I'm going to read you a pretty relatively short story from King 5. A massive piece of history has been stolen from a Seattle cemetery. The police department said a replica of the iconic Liberty Bell weighing more than 2,000 pounds, valued over $100,000. Luke was stolen on Saturday morning. Now, listen, I talk about the neighborhood I live in as being a somewhat high crime area, at least compared to the rest of Seattle. That is true. Like North Aurora sort of has a reputation. But this is not the kind of crime that you think about. Like, this is a heist. This is a heist.

[Tom Campbell]

You know, like, yeah, no, this is this. By the way, shout out to Bridget Chavez, who was writing about [e-mail] a little local reporting there, but yeah, this is. Oh, you have to be organized. This thing weighs 2,000 pounds. That's a ton.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah, this isn't somebody who's like just looking to get some extra scratch so they can take care of addiction or something like that.

[Tom Campbell]

No, this is. Yeah, this is not pulling the copper out of a construction site wall. This is you. You had to. You. If you asked me, Andrew, like, if we were legally allowed to move something that weighed 2,000 pounds. I wouldn't know where to start.

[Luke Burbank]

I wouldn't know where to. Although that may be something we should think about for this year.

[Tom Campbell]

Backup plan.

[Luke Burbank]

TV telethon. Yeah. Can we steal? Too beautiful.

[Tom Campbell]

To bell.

[Luke Burbank]

Oh, I love it. Okay, so Seattle police say the cemetery employees briefly left to get gas. So in this area where I'm picturing, like, they have these, you know, not.

[Tom Campbell]

Maintenance shed, essentially, kind of a maintenance.

[Luke Burbank]

Area with that chain link kind of fencing. I thought, oh, did they leave it unlocked? It says no. When they returned. When the employees returned, they found the locks cut, but the alarm tripped and the bell missing. So that answers my question, too. Is there an alarm? And it turns out there is. I'm glad I didn't test.

[Tom Campbell]

Unfortunately, it is the bell. Someone's robbing the cemetery. You have to run and ring the Liberty Bell. They hadn't thought of what happens when the bell is stolen, by the way.

[Luke Burbank]

I'm pretty sure, and I'm not sure if this story will get into this or not. It doesn't get into the history of the bell or I think, or why it is, why it is at Washelli, but I think it is used. This particular cemetery has a really, really big chunk of land dedicated to people who served in wars.

[Tom Campbell]

Yes.

[Luke Burbank]

And going back a long ways. And so it's kind of got. I've taken a lot of photos of it as probably anybody who's walked by with a camera. But it's one of those really iconic looking like sort of military cemetery areas with a bunch, you know, just very, very perfectly lined up white, rounded stones for those who served and in war specifically. And so I think the bell was brought out during Memor. Memorial Day services, I want to say, or maybe other things along those lines. And yeah, and it looks like somebody broke in. And then apparently. Did you see this? There's a guy who runs a website called Tom Loves the Liberty Bell, dedicated to tracking Liberty Bell replicas across.

[Tom Campbell]

I'm at the website.

[Luke Burbank]

Tell me what do you know? Because I have not been on that website yet.

[Tom Campbell]

Well, okay, in the King 5 story, it said something like that. It's one of 20 replica Liberty Bells. But on tomlovesthelibertybell.com there's one of the links you can click on says the 57 US Treasury Liberty Bells. So it looks like. And then he's got all of the locations of. So apparently, let's see here. The 57 U.S. treasury Liberty Bell replicas. In 1950, the U.S. department of the treasury commissioned at least 57 Liberty Bell replicas as promotional tools for a savings bond drive. This is their story. And Andrew, I'm looking at the map of where all 57 are, and I'm guessing the one, there's a pin in Seattle, Washington, which was probably the Liberty Bell in question. There's one down in Portland. There's one in San Francisco. Looks like you've got one in Arizona. They're kind of spread out all around the country. So that I'm guessing, would that be the origin of this Liberty Bell? Maybe.

[Luke Burbank]

That sounds as right to me as anything else. It says another Liberty Bell replica was lost during a Washington D.C. construction project.

[Tom Campbell]

No, you know what, I'm sorry, when I click on the link in the Northwest, it actually goes to Tacoma. Tacoma, Washington, Liberty Bell replica located at 1717 Pacific Avenue. So that's maybe not the story of this one that somebody stole.

[Luke Burbank]

Well, the weird thing about this, I don't know how far down the story you got, is this person who reached out to Tom. This is the Tom of Tom. Lovestelibertybell.com.

[Tom Campbell]

Yes.

[Luke Burbank]

I can't say dot com sometimes without thinking. I'm Oscar.com. do you remember that from arrested development? I'm Oscar.com. okay, we don't have to get into it now. But all of that is to say, like, people are speculating that this might have to do with scrap metal because this tipster called Tom. Not the authorities apparently, but called Tom or pinged him on his website.

[Tom Campbell]

Honestly, Tom's the guy for this job.

[Luke Burbank]

That's right.

[Tom Campbell]

You know, not just. Not some, you know, beat cop who doesn't know a Liberty Bell from a blue Bell Ice cream. You gotta get Tom, who loves Liberty Bells on the case.

[Luke Burbank]

And this person was not like, hey, I was driving by the cemetery and I noticed it was missing. Instead they wrote, hey, do you know of any missing Liberty Bells? Because I saw one on a trailer in my neighborhood. And I guess this person like woke up, took a walk in the morning. It was like 7:45 in the morning. And they noticed a trailer with mostly junk and construction debris and a blue tarp. Tarp. But behind the blue tarp, they saw what looked like a Liberty Bell. So then the police get involved and of course, I'm sure with Shelley Evergreen, with Shelley reports it or whatever. And so the cops are looking for this. But like, if it's just like on the back of a, of a trailer somewhere with a bunch of other junk, I mean, I guess maybe somebody is looking to just like turn this into scrap metal. I have no idea. Maybe that's conjecture. But, like, this is bananas. This is a. Like you say, this is not something you just put in your pocket and run out of tariffs. Target.

[Tom Campbell]

No. You had to, like, bring bolt cutters.

[Luke Burbank]

Yes.

[Tom Campbell]

You know, you had to, like, wait until the maintenance folks went to get.

[Luke Burbank]

Gas, have a trailer, and either something large enough to pick this thing up off its current trailer or enough people to lift it. But wait, wait, no. How much was it again?

[Tom Campbell]

That's not a £2,000.

[Luke Burbank]

No, no, no, that's not happening.

[Tom Campbell]

But then also, we have a forklift. Is there, like, what's the. Like, what's the illicit Liberty Bell market? How do you read?

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah.

[Tom Campbell]

How do you fence this thing? That's what also makes it just, you know, like, maybe it's just the metal, but then what? I mean. Yeah, I mean, I guess. What do you then cut it up into pieces and, like, melt it down? Because you also just can't bring this bell to, like, a scrap yard, right? No, but they, they're. They're going to know that, you know, that there's something you can't do. What I did at Play It Again Sports in Alderwood once when I had nicked a basketball, like a very fancy indoor leather basketball from somewhere that I'd been playing and it had the name of the school written on it. And Peter Williams and I were desperate for Pizza Hut money, and we took this basketball up to. To see if they would buy it. Guy said, this nice ball. Yeah, I'll give you 30 bucks for it. Except why does it say the name of this school on it? And I said, because I was the MVP of the tournament. And they gave me this as a reward. Said, all right, checks out. And then box of basketball.

[Luke Burbank]

He looked you up and down like.

[Tom Campbell]

It was like, I don't know, but I don't feel like arguing with this weird kid mvp.

[Luke Burbank]

Do you mind? Oh, I'm sorry. Go ahead, please.

[Tom Campbell]

I'm just saying you can't. I don't think that would work with this Liberty Bell rolling up to a scrapyard going, I found this somewhere.

[Luke Burbank]

Now, my understanding of how the Internet works and how these news stories on the Internet works is we've told you all the information that's going to be in this piece, but I would like to hear the audio of this. Let's take a Listen to this King 5 news story.

[Tom Campbell]

A valuable piece of history gone from a local cemetery. Tonight, Seattle police want to find out.

[Luke Burbank]

Who stole a replica of the iconic Liberty Bell.

[Tom Campbell]

It's believed this bell is worth More than 100 King 5's Bridget Chavez has the latest on the investigation.

[Luke Burbank]

They're really leaning into the bell sound, by the way, and I am here for it.

[Tom Campbell]

It feels like an AC DC song.

[Luke Burbank]

Is about to start. For those about to steal, we salute you. Okay, here we go.

[Tom Campbell]

Show title gone.

[Bridget Chavez]

Leaving many wondering, how does something this big just disappear?

[F]

You know, it's not unlike stealing a public sculpture.

[Luke Burbank]

Sure.

[Tom Campbell]

It's not even possible.

[F]

It's clearly not impossible.

[Bridget Chavez]

Seattle police say the replica bell was stolen from the Evergreen Washelli Cemetery Saturday morning. Employees told police they left to get gas, and when they came back, the lock on the doors were cut, the alarm had been tripped, and the bell was missing.

[F]

I got a comment on the website yesterday morning that said, hey, do you know of any missing Liberty Bells?

[Luke Burbank]

Can I imagine. By the way, when I said, this is Tom before, I just assumed because I read the story so far in the video. This. He has not been identified yet. He's just a guy in his home office with glasses saying that he got a comment on the website. Are we going to identify Tom?

[F]

I saw one on a trailer in my neighborhood.

[Bridget Chavez]

Tom Campbell runs a website tracking Liberty Bell replicas across the country. He says the tip seemed unusual at first.

[Tom Campbell]

Andrew?

[Luke Burbank]

Yes.

[Tom Campbell]

What are. Let's play a little game. What are the chances that we will hear the Liberty Bell dong one more time before the story is over?

[Luke Burbank]

One more time. Definitely one more time.

[Tom Campbell]

You think? Because, I mean, it makes sense to kind of establish at the top of the piece. I feel like if we get one on the way out, it's just gratuitous.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah.

[Tom Campbell]

I love it.

[Luke Burbank]

I love it, too. I think you need one. I need you one more to just kind of like at the end.

[Tom Campbell]

Okay. All right.

[Luke Burbank]

What are you. Are you saying.

[Tom Campbell]

Yes, I think. I think, you know, it's. It's like you could say, it's like you like to say, give a mouse a cookie.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah, I don't give a.

[Tom Campbell]

Give a news producer a bell that's tolling. I think we're going to hear it again. Again.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah. I don't want to speak ill of this reporter. I love this, but it's a good story. But I will say this any. And I will say this for myself, too. During my time of writing news stories in commercial radio, restraint is not the lead.

[Tom Campbell]

It's not rewarded by the marketplace.

[Bridget Chavez]

Usual.

[F]

At first, it took a little bit of digging, but I connected it. Connected it to a comment from, I believe, 22 February about someone who noticed the bell in a storage area outside of the the cemetery.

[Bridget Chavez]

Campbell says the tipster shared these photos of the trailer and what they believed was the missing bell.

[F]

They went out for a walk in their neighborhood about 7:45. Notice this trailer with mostly junk like construction debris and a blue tarp. Behind the blue tarp, they saw it looked like a Liberty Bell.

[Bridget Chavez]

SPD said says that person called to report the stolen bell, but the trailer was gone within a couple of hours. Campbell says another replica was lost during a construction project in Washington, D.C. back in 1976.

[F]

My strong suspicion is that it was. That it was scrapped. I think the current scrap weight for a ton of bronze is probably about $3,000. So it's, you know, it's kind of a mother look.

[Luke Burbank]

Okay, I want to say we got about 30 seconds left in the story. We haven't heard the bell yet, but it will be near the end.

[Tom Campbell]

Yes.

[Luke Burbank]

Okay, here we go.

[Bridget Chavez]

Bull hopes that Seattle's replica bell is found before meeting a similar fate.

[F]

Hopefully, getting the word out a bit will make them a little gun shy about trying to try to unload it, and that might give police some more opportunity to find it.

[Bridget Chavez]

In Seattle, Bridget Chavez, Team 5 News.

[Tom Campbell]

Missed opportunity not just for a final donging of the bell, but also for some regrettable kind of wordplay at the end of the story. Something like, you know, and for, you know, people are hoping for this to be returned. People who have loved ones buried in Evergreen was. Shelly, who are veterans, would like this spell to be returned for their. The loved ones for whom it tolls or something. Like, there's just a lot of. How about.

[Luke Burbank]

And it's got a lot of. Of. It's got the. It's got a lot of people in North Seattle asking what the bell is going on. No.

[Tom Campbell]

Spit on my. You made me spit on my good computer. The one that we just thought each other. It was a crazy story, though.

[Luke Burbank]

Like, I'm kind of bummed about this, I got to say.

[Tom Campbell]

Really bummed if it got scrapped. I'm really, really bummed about that.

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah. Because. Yeah, like, that's irreplaceable. And actually, at first I was like, I mean, again, it's still. Still. It's still a hell of a heist. I still would use the word heist for this, but I was thinking, like.

[Tom Campbell]

I'd call it more of a hoist.

[Luke Burbank]

Kind of a prank hoist. Like, I'm not a prank, but, you know, how, like, do you know? I don't know. I'm all over the place. Do you know what a Bob's Big Boy is?

[Tom Campbell]

Yes.

[Luke Burbank]

Okay. They had those out here.

[Tom Campbell]

No, but I'm aware of them in the culture. They've got that kind of like iconic kind of cartoon guy, right?

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah, exactly.

[Tom Campbell]

Something restaurants.

[Luke Burbank]

I mean, I knew of them in the Midwest growing up in the lot.

[Tom Campbell]

They made their way into various know over the years. Sure.

[Luke Burbank]

And they, they weren't. I mean they were Bob's Big Boy when we were growing up with them. I think they originally started with somebody else's big boy. And then today I don't think they're called Bob's Big Boy anymore either. I think like the naming rights sort of change or whatever. But it's a chain of restaurants and they have this iconic kind of cartoon character of this 50s looking like kind of boy holding up like a, I believe, a tray of hamburgers. I think it's been a long time.

[Tom Campbell]

You're describing it correctly.

[Luke Burbank]

And sometimes these things, as you'd expect, get stolen. You have these suburban kids up to no good on a Friday night. Their friends got. Got a. Their friend's cousin has a pickup. He just got out of the clink. Like, let's go steal a big boy. Right. And so I thought it maybe at first would be like that, but then having talked this through with you and getting the more details of this story and also really seeing this on this bed or like supposedly seeing this on this like truck bed with a bunch of other shit on there, it really does make me seem like it. Maybe it is just like a cash grab somehow with somebody with some heavy machinery. That sucks, man. I thought for sure this thing was going to come back. Now I, I don't know.

[Tom Campbell]

Also, I, I wonder how this works. Like if you walked into a bank and stole a hundred thousand dollars, you would be in a lot of trouble like that. They'd be looking for you. They'd have pictures of you, you know, and I guess maybe the argument would be that this, there was less violence associated with this. But I mean, still, if you stole something that's worth a hundred thousand dollars, that's a pretty big deal. Like the, the fact that the cops were like, someone saw it on a trailer, but then the trailer was gone within two hours. It's like, okay, well maybe go over there within two hours. Yeah, somebody. Hey, I just saw this Liberty Bell on a trailer. It seems like it probably shouldn't be there. I don't know, maybe Swangle through beat cop, whoever you are. Second use of beat cop on the show today, which is very odd. But anyway, you know what I mean? Like, I really would like them to get this thing before it gets cut up into pieces and scrapped. Because. Because, yeah, it's. It's. It's not one of a kind, but it's certainly fairly rare and has a cool backstory. And what a bummer if it was just turned in. It was just turned into melted bronze.

[Luke Burbank]

And where is the Seattle time on this? There's no reporting yet from the Seattle Times. Maybe they're doing a more in depth sort of investigative.

[Tom Campbell]

I'm telling you, their silence on this is deafening. Andrew, exactly how I get Eric Lucidis on the case or one of my other favorite longtime reporters over there, I don't know that.

[Luke Burbank]

I don't know that byline. Is that still a we.

[Tom Campbell]

This comes up on the show semi regularly.

[Luke Burbank]

Probably say the same thing.

[Tom Campbell]

He. Eric Lucidis writes a lot of the kind of like, profiles of of just very Northwest things and people. And I think maybe even once when. Maybe when like something about Dave. I think the last time I interacted with him might have been, oh, he. He. I was maybe something about Dave Ross leaving. No, that wasn't that. Sorry. That was. Somebody else wrote that piece. But over the years, when I've seen a really great, very kind of. What's the word? I'm looking for a real Northwest piece, a piece that's really very like, about.

[Luke Burbank]

The character of the.

[Tom Campbell]

About the character of the Northwest and the people and the kind of like, interesting things that make this kind of part of the world interesting. They're very often written by the writer Eric Lis in the Seattle just seems right up his alley.

[Luke Burbank]

I see. Well, then, yeah, maybe Eric is working on this now. And. And I. And I hope so, because, yeah, that is a. That's a. That is a real bummer. It's funny. Like, you. You just heard about this thing for the first time 10 minutes ago. Now you will die for it. As you.

[Tom Campbell]

Oh, my.

[Luke Burbank]

Are you kidding me?

[Tom Campbell]

This is my Talk of the Town pitch.

[Luke Burbank]

That's right. Right. Here I go once again with the email. Every week. I hope that it's from a female. Oh, man.

[Tom Campbell]

It's not from a female. All right. Emails or vmails?

[Luke Burbank]

Yeah, I got a email. Actually, I got an email from friend of the show who will remain nameless here.

[Tom Campbell]

Oh, okay.

[Luke Burbank]

And I'm down. It's got a piece of audio attached to it, and I'm going to drag this audio into my.

[Tom Campbell]

Have you previewed this audio? Do you Know what this audio is?

[Luke Burbank]

I previewed it, just the first couple of seconds of it when it came in over the weekend. And I'll tell you what, it's relevant to our conversations recently. Do you recall that recently on the show we've brought up Alvin and the Chipmunks? That glance, it was a. It was a. Rings a bell. It was a glancing reference. They could have done that. They could have done that.

[Tom Campbell]

If.

[Luke Burbank]

At the end of the news story, if. If anybody sees anything or if this story rings a bell, call the tip line. I don't know. It needs some work. But anyway, it turns out you have actually dabbled in the, I guess, chipmunk verse yourself, because I think this is an uncovered recording of you recording with the band maybe some years back.

[Tom Campbell]

This is me singing.

[Luke Burbank]

It is.

[Tom Campbell]

Wow. It's very emotional.

[Luke Burbank]

Wow. It's an emotional dismount there.

[Tom Campbell]

What? Who. Is there any context offered? Was this a bit we did on the show?

[Luke Burbank]

Let's see. I'm attaching a copy of Luke singing Wind Beneath My Wings that has. Has had the audio pitched up by 15 semitones. You probably noticed. 15 semitones?

[Tom Campbell]

I thought it might have been 16, but. Okay, I'll take Lynn's word for it.

[Luke Burbank]

I heard like 14.5, but, you know, whatever. Yeah. So anyway, that was you singing, but it looks like way back in 2009, this was on the radio. Now I have a question for you.

[Tom Campbell]

So it's just. So I understand this, it's me singing from a long time ago. But then Lynn, chipmunk it up a bit.

[Luke Burbank]

Okay.

[Tom Campbell]

Okay. I just didn't know if we had done a whole bit where we chipmunked our voice back in the day.

[Luke Burbank]

No, I introduced that in probably the most confusing way possible. But what I wanted to see here is you and I got into a knockout drag out fight one time. And I don't know if you remember this, so I got my busted lip. I'm looking for this here. There was a time where I was building. I was building an intro for the show. Right. A little audio montage. And I think this is around the time that we started working from American public media. So this is about 10 years ago. And I was officially like full time with. With TBTL now. So I was taking over various production responsibilities, kind of taking some things off of your plate. And you gave me the password to the. What you'll always regret. You gave me the password to the TBTL phone line. And I was like, holy crap, There are voicemails going back years and years. And years, all the way back to 2009, I think. And I was excited. I was kind of just randomly clicking on some of these, and I think I found a piece of tape of somebody singing that on a voicemail line. Like it was. It sounded like phone tape of somebody singing. I thought it was Wind Beneath My Wings. And I played it for you on the show and you said, this was on the show. You said, why are you playing me singing Wind Beneath My Wings? And I said, said, no, that's not you. That was from the voicemail line. You're like, I know my voice. That's me. I'm like, I really don't think it's you. And then we went back and we played it again, and sure as hell, it was you. And I still don't know if we ever had an answer for why you were calling the voicemail line and singing Wind Beneath My Wings. But I think that might.

[Tom Campbell]

Might be the tape maybe I'm looking for. Sounds like something I would do when very drunk. But it's hard for me to analyze how drunk I am in that tape because it's been checked. Yep, it's entered the monk verse, I believe you said the other day, which I still has been living with me all weekend. But, yeah, that's a very weird thing.

[Luke Burbank]

Here it is. Okay, good. Finally I found out I was filibustering there. I'm sorry. This is. I can stop this. I'll tell you what's our safe word. It's 31 seconds. I don't have to play the whole thing. I'm going to play a little bit of this. But the safe word, though, Luke, is bell. When you scream bell, it means you can't take any more.

[Tom Campbell]

A message from. From King County Jail.

[Luke Burbank]

This is a message from.

[Tom Campbell]

Did you ever know that you're my hero?

[Jackie Mason]

You're everything I wish I could be.

[Luke Burbank]

I could fly higher than an eagle.

[Tom Campbell]

You are the wind underneath my wings. And the end is what always gets me about that song.

[Luke Burbank]

Okay, you know how you know to be drunk? No. You know what it is? I'll bet you a million bucks I.

[Tom Campbell]

Have to have been inebriated.

[Luke Burbank]

I'll bet you that was on the show, not through a phone. I'll bet you some drunk listener we.

[Tom Campbell]

Know that intoxication played a role in some part of this event. And I gotta say, on mine or.

[Luke Burbank]

The listeners part, the voicemail line used to be way more chock a block with drunk listeners.

[Tom Campbell]

A lot of drunk people for many.

[Luke Burbank]

Years, out of drunk people, a lot of meta people. Yeah, but I'll bet you you sang that on the show for maybe a bit or for whatever reason, way back on the radio days, as you. Just as you described it earlier, when the show was still fun and had life and a good producer named Jen. I think that's how you said it.

[Tom Campbell]

Before I say it, but I'm glad you picked up on the subtext.

[Luke Burbank]

No, but anyway, anyway, I'll bet you some listener then took this and then played the radio, you know, like played the podcast back onto the. The voicemail line or something like that, so. And then years later I get it. And then years later, Lynn Pham probably uses the original audio to.

[Tom Campbell]

I like it better as a. I like it better monkified, honestly, because my, my concern, the reason that makes me cringe so much is because I don't know, I don't know where the joke starts and where reality starts and the joke ends. Does that make sense? I feel like I don't, I don't like me being that committed to something because am I in my drunk brain? Am I halfway thinking I'm nailing that song there? I don't like that kind of vulnerability. I only like to do things in a self aware way where I'm making fun of myself versus trying to flex. And I'm worried that that was an attempt at a flex. It makes me feel deeply uncomfortable.

[Luke Burbank]

Well, I'll just say one more time, if my theory is right, and you did that actually during the broadcast, you were only like half drunk.

[Tom Campbell]

Depending on if it was the 8 to 9 o'clock hour or the 9 to 10, it could have been really something.

[Luke Burbank]

Well, anyway, Lynn, thanks for sending that.

[Tom Campbell]

Thanks, Lynn. That was fun, actually. And, and I mean, it's amazing. Like I guess whatever one's voice sounds like when you speed it up. I mean that you. If you would have told me that was, you know, whoever was behind Alvin and the Chipmunks, I would have believed it. You know what I mean? Like, it seems to have a way of making everyone's voice sound kind of the same, right?

[Luke Burbank]

Oh yeah. And not to be pedantic there, but this reminds me of something else I do want to be pedantic about. Lyn even mentioned, like he didn't speed it up, he just pitched it up, which is kind of interesting.

[Tom Campbell]

Oh, okay.

[Luke Burbank]

That's kind of cool. So it's not like it's not faster, it's not just pitched up, but that reminds me of some pedency. Is that the right word? Is that a word that really close.

[Tom Campbell]

To another word that we're trying to not be associated with on this show.

[Luke Burbank]

That I jumped on this weekend thanks to tbtl. Luke, you know that I play the game wordle. We've talked about wordle. We've talked about the game connections on the show before. Another New York Times puzzle. I don't, I don't really mess around with that one anymore.

[Tom Campbell]

I don't had some trouble on connections.

[Luke Burbank]

This weekend, but generally had some trouble on connections. But I, I don't mess around that. I, I think those people are disingenuous. The people or the person who writes that. I, I really dislike connections. I don't mind it. I don't mind a mental challenge, but I just think that they're not, they're not playing fair on that one. So I don't play that one too often. But there's another one that is just like pure brain candy. It's very, very simple. It's just something to do when I'm done with wordle and I'm still eating my sandwich at lunchtime. And it's called Strands. And essentially it's just, it's just a grid of letters and it's a word find game. It's sort of an updated version of like a word finder like you would play as a kid, where you circle a word, only it doesn't tell you what the words are. It just gives you a theme. And then you got to kind of figure out what the words are. And then there's one that kind of. They call it a span gram, that kind of crosses. Crosses all the way through. So anyway, you're just like looking for words. And this weekend, one of the themes was fasteners. So you're looking around, you're like, oh, there's zipper. Okay. Yeah, there's, there's snap. And then you're looking for these words. And, oh, the theme is they're all going to be like fasteners on clothes. And one of them, Luke Velcro. Now, it's my understanding that these New York Times puzzle games all play by the rules of Scrabble, which is no proper nouns and Velcro Loop technology. Hook and loop technology, which we learned from that video of them saying, hey, we're going to lose our copyright if you guys keep calling everything Velcro. Please call it hook and loop technology and just call the brand name Velcro. Otherwise we're going to lose. Not our copyright, our trademark, I think.

[Tom Campbell]

Yeah.

[Luke Burbank]

So anyway, I was that New York Times. I was, I was wagging my fingers. New York Times puzzle makers this weekend, Luke.

[Tom Campbell]

And. And so I thought the end of that story was going to be that. Then you researched it and, like, it had fallen into the public domain or something. No, they just messed up.

[Luke Burbank]

They just. Straight up, as far as I know, they messed up. I went. I looked to see if the New York Times strands had a subreddit, and they did.

[Tom Campbell]

And I wanted to see anybody else bring this up.

[Luke Burbank]

And I wanted to see, is it because they'll have like a day by day a thread for each puzzle. Right. With people reacting to it or sharing their scores. And I scanned it and I saw somebody say, I believe Velcro is a proper noun. And I came here to say that.

[Tom Campbell]

Very satisfying.

[Luke Burbank]

Yes.

[Tom Campbell]

There are dozens of us.

[Luke Burbank]

Dozens, dozens of us. Let's find that bell, everybody.

[Tom Campbell]

Yes.

[Luke Burbank]

Mystery solvers, mount up. Find the bell. But be safe.

[Tom Campbell]

This is our most honesty, honestly, our most important mission ever, I think, as a hive mind. But yeah, like, get out. If you get eyes on that bell, just call the police immediately.

[Luke Burbank]

That's right.

[Tom Campbell]

Don't try to be a hero. Don't try to get in there and extricate it yourself. Also, if you run a scrap yard and someone brings a Liberty Bell in, probably the one that we're looking for.

[Luke Burbank]

Yes.

[Tom Campbell]

So I would say. I would. What I would do is I would accept it. Like, I would stall them. You know, pretend that you're, like, going to take it, but then, like, trip the silent alarm or something.

[Luke Burbank]

Like Steve Martin when that car is trying to steal gas in the Jerk. I don't think you have the jerk memorized.

[Tom Campbell]

I mean, I remember this guy hates cans happening at that gas station.

[Luke Burbank]

The same gas station somebody comes in with, I think, a stolen car, certainly a bunch of stolen credit cards. And so then he. He's like, okay, he's filling. He's filling up their tank with gas. But then he thinks he's being clever by attaching their car via a big, big hook and rope to a church next door, like hooked into a pipe or something. And then they're like, let's get out of here. We're sick of waiting for this free gift this doofus says he's gonna give us. He's like, trying to slow walk some free gift, and they drive away, pulling the entire church behind him. And then he calls the cops and gives a description of the car and then says, but also, it's pulling a small church. So I would say any.

[Tom Campbell]

Do you remember who his. Do you remember who pulled plays Mr. Hartunian.

[Luke Burbank]

Oh my gosh. This was something I didn't even know. I watched this so much as a kid and I didn't know who he was. And then you told me he's a famous old timey.

[Tom Campbell]

Yeah.

[Luke Burbank]

Comedian.

[Tom Campbell]

Yeah.

[Luke Burbank]

Almost borscht belt here.

[Tom Campbell]

Very borsch belt. Yeah.

[Luke Burbank]

Who is it?

[Tom Campbell]

Jackie Mason.

[Luke Burbank]

Jackie Mason, right.

[Tom Campbell]

Mr. Hartunian, I just think that just cracks me up as a last name.

[Luke Burbank]

Yes. Great.

[Tom Campbell]

All right, great. Thank you everyone for listening. We will be back here tomorrow. As we've said, we are the podcast that will be here whenever you need us. When you're done listening to your other good podcasts, we will be here. We're like podcast spackle. We will fill in any unsightly cracks and we hope that you will utilize the show for that and other things. We'll be back here tomorrow. In the meantime, have a great Monday. Take care of yourselves and please remember, no mountain too tall.

[Luke Burbank]

And good luck to all. Power out.