The Brothers Ortiz — Episode 2: "Larry Rising"

Release Date: December 17, 2025
Host: Campside Media & iHeart Podcasts
Writer/Host: Sean Flynn

Episode Overview

This episode of The Brothers Ortiz peels back the layers of Larry Ortiz’s adolescence and the family dynamics that set him on a path vastly different from his older brother Gabe. Through interviews with family and childhood friends, the episode explores Larry’s evolution from a charismatic, mischievous teen into an aspiring gang leader and drug dealer in small-town Texas. By tracing the family’s struggles, personal choices, generational trauma, and unavoidable circumstances, the podcast reveals how environment, community, and lost connections shape the destinies of the Ortiz brothers.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Sibling Dynamic and Family Void

• Leaving Home: Gabe leaves for Air Force basic training in 1992, creating a physical and emotional void for Larry (03:53).
• Larry’s New Role: Larry becomes the “idol” and mentor to their younger sister Alicia, stepping into Gabe’s shoes (04:56).
  • Alicia on Larry:

    “I was always kind of just following in his footsteps. If Larry was on top of the roof at my grandma’s, hey, I was gonna go climb the roof too.” (04:56, Alicia Ortiz)

• Impact of Distance: In the era before cheap communication, the siblings’ relationships are strained by long periods apart (03:53-04:44).

2. The Origin of Larry’s Gang Involvement

• Pop Culture Influence: Inspired by the movie South Central, Larry forms a fantasy gang, “Deuce,” with neighborhood friends (05:18-05:39).
  • Alicia explains:

    “We’re going to start a gang called Deuce. Him and his friends, Scooter, Manny... blood in, blood out.” (05:39, Alicia Ortiz)

• Play Turns Real: The gang begins as adolescent imitation, but quickly edges into real mischief and escalation, including fighting and shoplifting (13:46, 14:05).
  • Scooter:

    “It was a stupid game we started playing at school and it just spilled over, that’s all.” (13:57, Scooter)

3. Early Signs: Charisma, Popularity, and Trouble

• Larry’s Magnetism: Friends recall Larry as popular, charming, and “cool,” able to move between groups and attract admiration (10:05-10:18).
  • Wade (pseudonym):

    “His demeanor, his personality, his energy... if it was hot and he came around, it just — it felt like it just got a little cooler.” (10:18, Wade)

• Home Environment: Despite neighborhood dangers, Larry’s home life was stable, with caring parents—unusual compared to his friend group (11:31-11:58).

4. Family Fractures and Rebellion

• Father-Son Conflict: Larry clashes with his strict father, especially after Gabe leaves; his father becomes the focus of Larry’s rebellion (12:21-12:47).
  • Gloria (mother):

    “His dad was just so strict with him... Now Gabe wasn’t around. So who was going to take the fault for anything...? It wasn’t Larry... I think Larry would do things on purpose just to get back at his dad.” (12:47, Gloria Ortiz)

• Rule-Breaking: Larry deliberately flouts household and social rules as a way to assert independence (12:47-13:35).

5. Descent into the Street Life

• Trouble Escalates: What begins as mischief (shoplifting, skipping school) snowballs into dropping out and deeper involvement in crime (15:10, 15:29).
• Drug Dealing as “Work”: Larry and Scooter transition from petty theft to dealing drugs, first marijuana, later harder substances (26:33-27:07).
  • Scooter:

    “It’s just same thing. Growing up in it, seeing family members doing it... wanting to help out, trying to be a man before it’s time to be a man.” (26:56, Scooter)

6. The Impact of Divorce and Addiction

• Family Crisis: The Ortiz family collapses when Gloria leaves after years of marital strife and her husband’s hidden addiction to pain pills and alcohol (21:24–23:54).
  • Gabe recounts his father's breakdown:

    “Dad is crying hysterically... I hear him manipulating what sounds like a gun... He said that he found out mom was having an affair and he had nothing else to live for, and I'm halfway across the world, and I felt helpless.” (21:24, Gabe Ortiz)

  • Gloria:

    “He started looking for more pain medicines from whoever and at work. And I started seeing a change of him. The slur... the eyes and all that. Then after that, if he would mix it with beer... that would hit him even more.” (23:22, Gloria Ortiz)

7. The Cycle of Generational Struggles

• Inherited Issues: Addiction and emotional avoidance (“the sins of the father”) are revealed to be intergenerational; a moment of family realization (24:24-25:01).
  • Sean Flynn (narrator):

    “Maybe that's what he meant. Maybe that was the devil crawling through the generations.” (24:24, Sean Flynn)

• Alicia:

  “Yes, we were going to church, but I would find hidden beer bottles here and there... So I knew dad was doing extra stuff outside of mom and his relationship...” (25:09, Alicia Ortiz)

8. “The Game” and Larry’s Rise

• Street Success: Post-divorce, Larry finds belonging, purpose, and recognition within the local drug scene, especially via his relationship with Kissy and ties to Scooter’s family (27:40-29:40).
• Remarkable Adaptability: Just as Gabe excels in the military, Larry becomes a natural at the illicit economy—ambitious, hardworking, and respected (35:02-35:31).
  • Gloria:

    “After a while, as years started going by, he started being the head of the, of the gang.” (38:10, Gloria Ortiz)

  • Gabe:

    “I heard from a lot of people, they're like, hey, your brother's a badass. Like, nobody wants to fuck with that guy...” (38:18, Gabe Ortiz)

9. The Two Paths Diverged

• Two Brothers, Two Worlds: Gabe witnesses with shock as Larry conducts a drug deal in front of him, realizing how different their worlds have become (36:18-37:42).
  • Gabe:

    “He basically just did a drug deal from my vehicle with me in it. I flipped a lid. I mean, I got in his ass and I chewed his ass right then and there... It was at that point that I realized that things had changed over the last few years.” (36:18–37:22, Gabe Ortiz)

• Larry’s Reputation: Larry is known and feared, having risen quickly within the local gang hierarchy (38:03-38:18).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Gloria Ortiz, on divorce and responsibility:

  “I just went ahead and let them blame me for the divorce.” (23:02, Gloria Ortiz)

• Wade, on Larry’s presence:

  “If it was hot and he came around, it just felt like it got a little cooler.” (10:18, Wade)

• Gabe Ortiz, on family realization:

  “Addiction runs in families... maybe that was the devil crawling through the generations.” (24:24, Sean Flynn paraphrasing)

• Scooter, on inevitability of the street life:

  “Once he started coming around me… the whole street world opened up to him through me. I was pretty much his pipeline… He didn't plan to go over there and do none of that. He just over there visited my cousin, hanging out with the family. Things happened.” (27:08–28:37, Scooter)

• Alicia Ortiz, on Larry’s protectiveness:

  “Larry was always going in there and checking on me, making sure I was good. Hey, you need anything, at least you got what you need?” (29:01, Alicia Ortiz)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Gabe leaves for Air Force; Larry’s idol gap – 03:53-04:56
• Formation of Deuce (“movie gang”) – 05:18-06:33
• Larry’s early charisma and adventures – 08:08-10:18
• Family home and father’s role – 11:42-12:21
• Larry’s rebellion against father – 12:21-13:35
• Mischief turns real; minor arrest – 14:31-15:10
• Decline in school and first signs of gang colors – 15:29-16:17
• Gabe’s perspective, tension about gang colors – 16:30-17:03
• Divorce, addiction exposed – 21:24-24:24
• Larry’s slide into dealing, post-divorce survival – 26:33-29:52
• Gabe witnesses drug deal by Larry – 36:18-37:42
• Larry’s ascension, local respect and fear – 38:03-38:52

Tone and Storytelling Style

The episode’s tone is frank and authentic—by turns nostalgic, mournful, and darkly humorous. The storytelling remains intimate, delivered through the candid recollections of family and friends, with hard-hitting asides from Sean Flynn. The show masterfully blends firsthand voices with reflective narration, giving listeners an up-close look at Larry’s transformation and its ripple effects through the Ortiz family.

Summary Takeaway

Episode 2 of The Brothers Ortiz is a richly human portrait of a family rocked by absence, addiction, and divergent paths. Larry’s life, marked by restlessness and rebellion, echoes the turbulence beneath the Ortiz family’s surface—and the unresolved pain that shaped both his rise and his fall. The episode ends with both brothers, now entrenched in their separate spheres—one in the military, one in the streets—heading toward destinies neither could have predicted growing up side by side.

End of summary.