TCB Infomercial Special: Liza Treyger

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Commercial Break — TCB Infomercial Special: Liza Treyger

Date: October 31, 2025
Hosts: Bryan Green, Kristin Joy Hoadley
Guest: Liza Treyger — Stand-up comedian, host of “That’s Messed Up: An SVU Podcast”

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Episode Overview

This lively episode of The Commercial Break features comedian and podcaster Liza Treyger. The conversation covers Liza’s Ukrainian-Jewish background, her comedy tour adventures, compulsive hoarding, international travel, rowdy audiences, podcasting about “dark” crimes, and the unique culture of her fanbase. The hosts embrace their signature unfiltered, irreverent, lighthearted banter even as the discussion veers into heavy topics such as identity, law enforcement failings, and true crime. Expect plenty of candid anecdotes, traveler’s gripes, and razor-sharp observations.

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Key Topics & Insights

1. Liza's Background and Identity Struggles

Timestamps: 10:17–13:52

• Born in Odessa (now Ukraine), raised in Chicago, Liza discusses her complex identity as a Russian-speaking Jew from the former USSR.
• Quote:
  “I always said I was Russian. We speak Russian. We’re Russian-speaking Jews. It was the Soviet Union… but I don’t speak Ukrainian and I’m not really connected to that culture. I’m pretty American… And then the war happened and it made me think a little more into it. But I feel weird saying I’m Ukrainian…” — Liza Treyger (10:39)
• Navigating identity post-war can be fraught:
  “If I talk about Russian stuff, I’ll get people reaching out: ‘You are complicit in the agenda!’…It’s the language I speak. I wish it was something simple.” — Liza (11:47)
• Living in a Ukrainian neighborhood in New York brings further complexities: she avoids speaking Russian post-invasion.

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2. Family, Hoarding, and The Comedian’s Upbringing

Timestamps: 13:52–17:54

• Liza shares insights on her parents (Holocaust survivors, party-throwers) and a shared family tendency toward hoarding.
• Quote:
  “My dad’s hoarding. My mom’s cleaning. And is your dad really hoarding? Yeah. And so am I… We all have unhealthy attachments to stuff, even if it’s garbage and it’s ruining our day to day life.” — Liza (14:18)
• The constant travel lifestyle exacerbates the struggle to keep tidy or declutter. Liza overpays her cleaning lady, Tony, and always tries to donate unused items.
• Packing for tour: her goal for Europe is a single carry-on bag:
  “If I have to suffer by having less stuff than I need, then that’ll be a new way of suffering.” — Liza (17:58)

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3. Tour Life: Cities, Audience Behavior, and Comedy Shows

Timestamps: 18:11–24:35

• Liza is heading to Amsterdam, Paris, Dublin, and London for a week-long tour, and plans to soak up as much local experience as possible—especially food.
• Nervous about Paris fashion expectations:
  “I just don’t want to look like shit… You have to look the worst dressed person in France. Pants.” — Liza (20:07)
• Discusses favorite cities and aspirations: would buy homes in New York, Chicago, Palm Springs, and Ireland if rich enough.
• Avoids music/comedy festivals unless performing VIP:
  “Absolutely not would I be caught dead at a festival unless I’m cool enough to be golf-carted around.” — Liza (22:53)
• Explains why walkability is key when gigging in new towns, and shares a horror story about fetching an iced coffee in Nashville.

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4. Rowdy Audiences and Memorable Gigs

Timestamps: 27:09–29:40

• Notorious story: Her fans in New Orleans were so rowdy on espresso martinis, the venue had to change the drink menu.
  “These people are puking, they’re screaming. The venue had to change their frozen espresso martini recipe—cuz my audience got so crazy!” — Liza (27:13)
• Generally, most fans are “good girls with jobs that help people”, but sometimes even the best podcast communities get wild, especially when events coincide with local sports victories.

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5. Parasocial Podcast Life & Approach to True Crime

Timestamps: 29:41–36:05

• “That’s Messed Up: An SVU Podcast” details:
  • Co-hosted with Kara Klenk, each week they recap an SVU episode, explore the real crime behind it, and interview actors from the show.
  • True crime deep dives can be emotionally draining:
    “It is pretty quite dark… Nice to have a week where you’re not fully mood-ruined by a horrible [case].” — Liza (31:40)
• The parasocial nature of podcasting means listeners sometimes treat Liza and Kara as real-life friends—yelling back at the speakers, responding as if in the room.

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6. On-Stage Pranks and Disappointments

Timestamps: 32:01–33:48

• Liza recounts a negative encounter with David Cross, who pulled a prank during a high-stakes celebrity meeting. She felt sabotaged and upset at her own reaction.
  • “Just don’t like the spirit of someone that, like, sees someone’s excitement and decides to shit on it and make it bad.” — Liza (32:34)
• The hosts urge David Cross to come on and explain himself.

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7. Darkest True Crime Stories and Systemic Failures

Timestamps: 35:38–43:29

• The most disturbing cases? Long-term kidnappings and basement/bunker imprisonments, especially involving children and police failures.
  • “What those fears are made of: held for a decade… What’s extra fucked, he would make them watch the news with their families looking for them.” (36:05)
• Liza is blunt about poor investigative work, police/justice failures, domestic violence within policing, and how marginalized victims (e.g., sex workers, disabled women) are often ignored.
• The community built around the podcast extends to real-life professionals:
  “My most prideful thing is lawyers listen to our podcast. That means we’re doing a good job if people within the system listen.” — Liza (48:19)
• Law and Order: SVU directly helped a survivor recognize abusive events in her own life.

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8. Self-Protection and Living with High Alert

Timestamps: 43:30–47:53

• Researching dark crimes brings constant vigilance:
  “I’m high alert. I don’t always turn on/off my lights at the same time so no one knows my pattern.” — Liza (43:29)
• Liza laments the red tape around protective orders and the irony that women’s most effective self-defense tools are often illegal to carry (e.g., pepper spray, tasers).
• Adapting a “Debbie Downer” reputation in groups—her knowledge can ruin a light mood, but she feels compelled to spread awareness, especially around victims recognizing their own trauma.

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9. Nature, Orcas & Lighthearted Closer

Timestamps: 51:21–54:38

• Liza’s not all darkness: she shares her wish to do a nature documentary with orcas (clarifies wild orcas don’t attack humans).
• Hosts riff on otters, aquariums, and the psychedelic experience of observing aquatic animals.

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10. Memorable Quotes

• “If I can’t get an iced coffee within minutes, like, fuck you.” — Liza (25:49)
• “Sometimes you get too drunk. Disruption depends on your spirit. If your spirit is to ruin my night, I want you out.” — Liza (28:15)
• “I can go to sleep to any horrendous thing. But sometimes I start talking about details, and you just see people’s faces… I’m sorry, I’m ruining the mood.” — Liza (46:22)
• “Watching SVU made one of my friends realize she was being abused as a kid… She didn’t know without the show.” — Liza (47:53)

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Notable Moments with Timestamps

• 10:39 — Liza’s reflections on post-Soviet identity and language
• 14:18 — Hilarious family hoarding anecdotes
• 17:58 — “That’ll be a new way of suffering” (packing light for tour)
• 27:13 — “My audience got so crazy [the venue] had to change their recipe.”
• 32:34 — Candid frustration over being the butt of a celebrity prank
• 35:54 — “What those fears are made of…” — on being trapped and tortured
• 43:29 — Hyper-vigilance habits due to researching dark crimes
• 48:19 — Lawyers and practitioners as proud listeners
• 51:41 — Love letter to orcas and dream of a nature show

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Conclusion & Guest Plugs

• Liza is on a never-ending stand-up tour, including stops in Europe (Amsterdam, Paris, Dublin, London).
• Watch her Netflix special Night Owl and listen to That’s Messed Up: An SVU Podcast.
• Final cheerful note: “God bless Cher… and Dolly Parton… If you don’t like Dolly or dogs, something’s wrong with you.” (56:05)
• [Links to Liza’s work, shows, podcast, and socials are in the show notes.]

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For New Listeners

This episode is a great mix of biting humor and real talk on trauma, identity, fan culture, and the realities behind true crime. Liza Treyger delivers raw honesty and comic relief in equal measure—a must-listen for fans of dark comedy, weird road stories, and genuinely offbeat conversation.

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See Also

• That’s Messed Up: An SVU Podcast
• Liza’s Netflix special: Night Owl
• Lisa’s Tour Dates & Tickets

Transcript

[Brian Greene]

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[Lisa Traeger]

I mean the, the audience in New Orleans gives me trouble every time. These people are puking, they're screaming. They had to change this venue, had to change their frozen espresso martini recipe. Cuz my audience got so crazy.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Oh my God.

[Lisa Traeger]

These went.

[Brian Greene]

No.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yes. Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

So you, so you had a show in New Orleans and people New Orleans doubt like they do when they go to New Orleans. Yeah, like they had never ever had a alcoholic beverage before and they get so fucking twisted that the place says we cannot Have Lisa here again with the same drink menu. Yeah, you're gaining a reputation in the.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Industry as far as an espresso. Martinis are good.

[Brian Greene]

The next episode of the commercial break starts now. Oh, yeah. Cats and kittens, welcome back to the commercial break. I'm Brian Greene. This is my dear friend and the co host of this show, Kristin Joy Hoadley. Best to you, Chris.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Best to you, Brian.

[Brian Greene]

Best you out there on the podcast in the universe. Interview.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Interview universe. It's the interview universe.

[Brian Greene]

It's the interview universe. And thanks for joining us on a TCP infomercial Tuesday with comedian and podcaster Lisa Traeger. This one's a couple times in the making. Sometimes they are, but we're glad to have her in. As as mentioned, she is a stand up comedian. She also does a very popular podcast called that's Messed Up.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

That's Messed Up. SVU Investigations.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah. So she, they like take true crime and SVU episodes and they kind of mix it all in and talk about.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

The actors if they can try and get the actors from the show.

[Brian Greene]

Oh, interesting.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

The episode.

[Brian Greene]

And they focus on the lighter side of life. Murders, rapes, robberies, investigations, Special victims Unit, svu. That's what that means. Lisa is currently on tour. There are links, as a lot of these comedians are, they're forever on tour. So go see her if she's in your part of town. She's very funny. She's unfiltered. She does not mind talking about the dark side of life. Obviously she's got a podcast about murder and all that other stuff. She's also very self deprecating. She is, was born in Odessa, Ukraine.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

I know I have to ask her about that.

[Brian Greene]

She moved to Chicago when she was 3 years old. So, you know, Ukraine was different 20, 30 years ago than it is today. I, I believe still under the USSR flag. So I'm super interested to hear her thoughts on that. I'm sure she's super happy to talk about that. I'm sure that's not the first question that everybody asks her when they find out she's Ukrainian. But we'll ask her anyway. Never one to shy away from a controversial question or one that's been asked a million times. Chrissy, we'll ask it all.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Embrace those.

[Brian Greene]

We embrace the questions everybody else asks. Some podcasters go, we ask the questions no one else asks. We ask the questions everyone else asks. That's our motto here at the commercial break.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Well, you heard it here last. Yeah, it goes. It ties right in.

[Brian Greene]

In the case of the infomercials. You heard it, Heard it here again. How's that? You heard it here again. Again, just like you did on the other podcast. That's the thing. Sometimes these comedians, They' on like 30 different podcasts and we all rip it out the same week. And it's like, you know, who are you going to listen to? Dax Shepard or the commercial break I know you're going to listen to. And it's not Dax Shepard because it's a commercial break. Because here we are. All right, so links are down in the show notes. Lisa's very generous to come. Here's a little thing. Remember when Blue, a couple of weeks ago, month ago, months ago, whenever. It was when Blue just her legs went out and she couldn't walk. Actually, I think that was right before you went out of town. So many of you don't know this, actually, that Blue had an incident. She came home, we had had her in the puppy play place so that we could go off, I think, to my dad's house. And when we came back, we noticed that she was limping around a little bit. Not unusual for Blue. Sometimes she's had problems with her legs. Usually works itself out over a couple of days. And then one day I found her on the floor in her own shit, like kind of dragging herself along. Her back legs were not working and yelping and so I had to put her in the shower. And then Chrissy came over and she. We were supposed to record and then I left her here for a second while I went and got changed. And Blue, that was terrible. That was scary. But anyway, she's feeling a little bit better. So that's the good news. Blue is still here with us. And you're probably here in this episode like you do every other. Yeah, she still barks. She barks.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

She's jumping like she used to.

[Brian Greene]

No, she's learning that there are limitations to being old, just like I am. She's got the same problem. So anyway, so le Liza, which is spelled Liza, L I Z A but said Lisa, she has been rescheduled. And so we're so grateful that she has decided to give us a second chance. So why don't we do this? Let's take a break and when we get back through the magic of tele podcasting, we'll put Lisa right up there on the TV and we can have a chat with her about. What do you think?

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

I think we should do it.

[Brian Greene]

We'll be back.

[Rachel]

Let me do something Brian has never done. Be brief. Follow us on Instagram at the commercial break. Text or call us 212-4333, tcb. That's 212-433-3822. Visit our website tcbpodcast.com for all the audio, video and your free sticker. Then watch all the [e-mail] thecommercial break and finally share the show. It's the best gift you could give a podcasters see. Brian, that really wasn't that difficult now was it? You're welcome.

[Brian Greene]

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[Lisa Traeger]

What's up guys? It's Candice Dillard Bassett, former Real Housewife of Potomac.

[Brian Greene]

And I'm Michael Arsenault, author of the New York Times bestseller I Can't Date Jesus. And this is Undomesticated, the podcast where we aren't just saying the quiet parts out loud.

[Lisa Traeger]

We're putting it all on the kitchen table and inviting you to the function. If you're ready for some bold takes and a little bit of chaos. Welcome to Undomesticated. Follow and listen to Undomesticated, available wherever you get your podcasts.

[Brian Greene]

And Liza is here with us now. Thank you very much for your time today. We certainly appreciate it.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yes, welcome.

[Lisa Traeger]

Thank you.

[Brian Greene]

I think that's a very interesting note in your bio is that you were born in Odessa, in Ukraine. Is that right? Born Odessa.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

And then moved to Chicago, Skokie, Illinois, when you were just a little bit old thing. And so your parents obviously Ukrainian. How's everyone doing? How's everyone holding up?

[Lisa Traeger]

So strange because I always, like, as a kid, I always said I was Russian. Like, we speak Russian, We're Russian. We're like Russian speaking Jews. It was the Soviet Union and then, you know, it is geographically Ukraine. But I don't speak Ukrainian and I'm not really connected to that culture. I'm like, pretty American. And it's tough. I didn't really have to question my identity.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

And then the war happened and it kind of complicated things and made me think a little more into it. But I feel weird saying I'm Ukrainian, even though that's geographic. And I live in a Ukrainian neighborhood in New York.

[Brian Greene]

Okay.

[Lisa Traeger]

And like, I wouldn't speak Russian to them.

[Brian Greene]

Oh, very interesting.

[Lisa Traeger]

So especially post the war, like, they don't want to really speak Russian, which is fine. But I don't, I don't know how to speak Ukraine. And we're Jewish, so everyone hated us anyways, too.

[Brian Greene]

I know, it's. It's terrible. It's. It's terrible the way that Jewish people are treated throughout the world, quite frankly. But that's a whole different serious conversation that we will try.

[Lisa Traeger]

That's just like what my mom said because, like, all this happened, she goes, I don't know Russian, Ukraine, because, like, she has a doctor and like, they all speak Russian and the, this doctor is getting patients that refuse. And she goes, well, then we'll have to speak English. Like, right. You can't expect the people that left in the, in the 90s to know. But I also understand their sentiment. But it's like, I'm not aligning. Like, if I talk about Russian stuff, I will get people reaching out, being like, you are complicit in the agenda and you are, you're like, you know, showing off that culture. And it's like, okay, I'm clearly not for Putin or what is happening. It's the language I speak. So it's like, I wish it was something simple.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

That's where you were born. And I'm like, I can't even. I don't know. I don't know anymore.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, it is a complicated topic. It's a complicated subject, and I think that people miss, like, the. The nuances of. Of what's going on. I'm not pro Putin either. I'm very much not pro Putin, but there is. There are nuances there. And the former ussr, so it's like, you know, you go back, just not even a lifetime ago, and there are people who were, you know, born under the Russian flag, so. Or the. The. The. The Russian Federation. So it's really interesting. It's very interesting. But growing up in Skokie, Illinois, I feel that I'm there. It's a certain kind of upbringing. It's very interesting. If your family was anything like mine, it's kind of like this, like, working class. Very much like comedy is. It's low key. It's loud. It's low key. And it's loud in the sense that we make fun of anything. Like, the way of getting through the most. The worst parts of life are to laugh at them. So in some sense, it feels like a very dark kind of comedy. And Chicago in general, at least the people that I knew, that's the way we kind of muddled through. Right. And so did you experience that same kind of upbringing where it was this, you know, Midwestern us against the world kind of laugh at anything?

[Lisa Traeger]

I don't know. They were laughing. My parents used to have parties. People were drinking. I don't think they're funny to me, though. Like, when we play dominoes, I don't know. They're in their 80s. They're, like, straight from the Holocaust. You know what I mean? They're, like, tortured. My dad's. My dad's hoarding. My mom's cleaning. And is your dad really hoarding?

[Brian Greene]

Is your dad hoarding?

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah. And so am I. I mean, we both. We all have a really unhealthy attachment to stuff. Putting it away. Like, I wouldn't be able to show you my room, but his was in the basement for a while, and then he ended his car and then the kitchen. But my mom is such a clean, organized girl, and her hoarding manifests more in, like, greeting cards, memories.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Oh, right.

[Lisa Traeger]

So it's more internal. But me and my sister both have unhealthy. We all have very unhealthy attachments to stuff and not being able to get rid of stuff, even if it's garbage and it's ruining Our day to day life. Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

I read this interesting article about being a parent and it said that part of what with your head are these junk boxes, the junk corners, the junk closets, the things where you have to spend time figuring out where they go and how they go there. It's like a time suck and you get attached to these things. And so parents sometimes become like hoarders by default. Right. There's the junk thing and we just keep it there because eventually someday we might need that Lego head that no one's touched in 60 years. Right?

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Well, sometimes you do need it.

[Brian Greene]

Well, sometimes you do need it. But do I really need it? I mean, is the question do I really need it? So I kind of feel that like hoarder thing as a, as a parent. I feel like I'm not hoarding on purpose but by hoarding by default I guess is the, is the word I would use.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

I would say you're a hoard hoarder at this point.

[Brian Greene]

I'm a cord hoarder. Yeah. But anybody with a podcast is a cord hoarder.

[Lisa Traeger]

That is the dark future. I didn't realize how many cord I'd have to deal with on a day to day. I just lost my headphones, I lost my charging to my wireless. I'm like, it's a nightmare. It's a nightmare of these core. I am, I'm really technology averse and I am being drowned. I feel like I'm drowning.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, I feel you on that one. It's tough to keep up with everything that's going on and I don't really understand. So I just kind of plug and play until I figure it out. And when I'm in the studio, I just, I just buy more wires. That's what I just buy more. I figure more wires are going to solve the problem, but they end up just sitting in a bundle on the, on the, on the floor over there. Do you, is it hard when you like you're traveling constant. I mean this is. Any comedian we talked to and there's, we talked to hundreds. There's a love hate relationship with the, with the road, with the nature of being in and out. But I feel like it's hard to keep house too when you're like always out on the fucking road.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

It is hard because you're changing, you're coming back, you're unpacking, you're packing again. You've, you know.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Pulling stuff here and there.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah. I have a woman named Tony and she comes in when I'm out of Town so I can come back to a clean apartment. And she's. She sometimes will text me. She doesn't love coming to my apartment.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

You're not the favorite client.

[Lisa Traeger]

But I overpay her. She gave me a rate and I go, I'll give you more than that because you're. You're not gonna like what you said.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Ok. Money helps. Money helps. Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

And I'm always trying to get rid of. So there's always bags for them. Like take these outfits, give them to your daughter. Like have fun. And then there's more. I don't know. I don't know. It's sick. It's sick. And then like the drawers are filled with things I don't use. So then everything I use is everywhere. And you're right, the suitcases are always filled depending on what trip. You're not always unpacking. Yeah, the packing. Unpack. It. It is, it is a thing. But I'm going to Europe for a week on tour and my goal is carry on only. Oh, I have to. I cannot.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Ambitious.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, that's ambitious.

[Lisa Traeger]

I cannot lug around a thing on a train. I can't live that life.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

It is. It's hard to get off the trains.

[Lisa Traeger]

I always suffer in that way. So if I have to suffer by having less stuff than I need, then that'll be a new way of suffering. And I can assess later. But I, I can't bring my big suitcase.

[Brian Greene]

And you're going to Europe. It's not like you're going to Antarctica, right? If you need something, you will be able to find it out. I mean, I imagine I don't know where you're going in Europe, but it's got to be. You're going to industrialized countries where they'll have shit you need.

[Lisa Traeger]

True, that's true. That's true.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I always think about that like we, we take my kids to my dad's house. It's a two hour drive. And when we had our first kid, everything in the house went with us every.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Because you might need it.

[Brian Greene]

You might need it, right? But then I forget that he lives in Clemson, South Carolina. It's not like I'm to fucking, you know, the middle of nowhere. I'm not going to the back of the Congo. I'm just, I'm just going to my dad's house. And so even it's still hard to just not pack that stuff. But when we've been to Europe and we've been a lot, we really try and consolidate, but we have at least one suitcase per person with us, and that is tough to. Are you going from, like, are you going to multiple cities inside of that week?

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah, so I'm doing four shows. So I'll get one. Yeah. Amsterdam, Paris, Dublin, London.

[Brian Greene]

Oh, that's like a dream vacation. You're on your way. You're gonna have so much fun.

[Lisa Traeger]

Well, I'm doing shows. Yeah. And I've never been to Paris, so I'll have, like, you know, 10 hours there, I think, outside the show, so I'll make the most of it. And then in London, I have a really good friend that I'm excited to see, so.

[Brian Greene]

So I want to. I want to hear a little bit about this. Is there, like, an agenda for Paris? Do you have, like, one, if 10 hours? That's not a lot. Is there, like, one or two things?

[Lisa Traeger]

It's. Yeah. Baguette, croissant, Eiffel Tower. Walk around. There's really no nothing else.

[Brian Greene]

That's a perfect day in Paris you're gonna have. And now I understand my show.

[Lisa Traeger]

I'm down to, like, go have champagne or, like, have a steak, I guess, if there's anything. Yeah. Paris. But maybe some muscles. Yeah, I guess it's food in the Eiffel Tower. I really can't plan further than that.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

And I just don't want to look like shit. Like, I just, you know, I hear so much about Paris, and I just.

[Brian Greene]

What are you worried about?

[Lisa Traeger]

You have to look worst dressed person in France. Pants.

[Brian Greene]

But I promise you, you will not be the worst dress. Throw a scarf on. Get a beret.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah. Get a nice pair of walking shoes.

[Brian Greene]

Do you have any New Balance? Because, you know, New Balance is cool out there. So just get some New Balance. Throw on a beret and a scarf.

[Lisa Traeger]

And you're gonna be. I'm an Adidas girl. I got the campus. Actually, you know, I have to wear my new sneakers today, so they get worn in. Okay. I'm glad we're talking.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah. We're all on the same page, Elf.

[Lisa Traeger]

Okay. Okay.

[Brian Greene]

No, you got to wear the new sneakers, but you do have to break them in. You don't want blisters in that 10 hours that you're going there.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Surprise. Blisters.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah. You hear a lot about Paris. Like, you hear that it's so fashion forward and that everyone there looks like a million dollars and everyone's beautiful. But the truth is, it's like any other big city. You know, they're sure. I'm sure there's somewhere where all the models are Congregating. But I didn't see it when I went there. And I had dinner at That. I had lunch at that. That restaurant in the Eiffel Tower, and that was. That was quite amazing. But don't do that. Just go to a regular restaurant and. And eat some mussels.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah, I'm gonna eat in, like, My neighborhood. Where I'm staying is not near. I'm gonna, like. I'm gonna. I don't know.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, you're gonna. You're gonna. You're gonna stay away from that part of town.

[Lisa Traeger]

No, I'm just not. I don't want to get in tricked by a tourist trap. I'd like to just, like, eat a meal at a casual spot. Verse kind of. I mean, there's one food. Yeah. It's a day, so I can't really do anything else.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah. And then Dublin is lovely too. So you're gonna love.

[Lisa Traeger]

I've been to Dublin a lot. I actually love Ireland and. A lot. It's one. If I could have. Well, if I could have a second. If I was so rich, I'd have a place in New York, Chicago. Palm Springs in Ireland.

[Brian Greene]

Interesting.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah. Those are my four.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah. Chrissy and I often say there's two places on earth where all the people go. It's Palm Springs and the Hamptons. So if I could have a place, I'd have Palm Springs or the Hamptons. Those two. Those two places. We always play that game if we were rich, which.

[Lisa Traeger]

But I've never been to the Hamptons, and I don't care. And I love Palm Springs. I've been there probably 10 times. It is my. It's like, one of my favorite places.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

It is very nice. Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

Do you have.

[Lisa Traeger]

The mountains are powerful. The desert is nice. The heat, the pool, the chill. I love the architecture, the steakhouses.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

I love low humidity. Y.

[Brian Greene]

Have you. Do you go to the festivals out there? Have you been to. What are they calling that now? Coachella? Is Coachella out in Palm Springs?

[Lisa Traeger]

No, it's in Indio.

[Brian Greene]

Oh, it's in Indio. Okay.

[Lisa Traeger]

We'll stay and go there, but no, that's definitely not for me.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, no, no, no. Not for us either.

[Lisa Traeger]

We don't do that unless I'm cool enough to be, like, golf carted around and VIP in badges, like, because I've performed at festivals. And then you get treated, like, as the general public person. Absolutely not. Would I be caught dead at a festival?

[Brian Greene]

Which festivals are you performing at? Like a comedy festival or. Have you ever performed at a music Festival, slash comedy festival. You know how Bonnaroo used to do that? They used to have the comedians up there and.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah, I did Bumber Shoot in Seattle and that was really fun. I saw Ludacris and Blondie Sza, Lil Wayne, maybe somewhere else. That's the only one that's coming to mind, but I feel like I've done more.

[Brian Greene]

Do you feel a certain kinship to a certain part? Like, when you're touring around the country, do you feel like. Do you feel pulled to a certain part of the country that feels like your audience? Like, these people get me. I'm always interested. The comedians who travel around, most of them say yes. This part of the country seems to be receptive to my brand of comedy. Or this city is my city. Do you feel that way?

[Lisa Traeger]

No, because it depends. Like, if I'm going to a comedy club, but I'm not, like, selling well and they have to give away free tickets and it's like random people from Ohio. Yeah. That's not going to be my people, unfortunately. But if I'm going to Ohio and it's my audience, it doesn't matter where they are. Like, they'll come find me or they'll drive to whatever. So I don't. I'll go anywhere because the people that like me that are there are going to be there and it'll be good. There might just be less of them. And if there are random people, they might leave, like in North Carolina or like, whatever.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Or there may be a brand new fan.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah. Or they'll enjoy it. So I don't know about that. Like, I'm. The people that like me, I like, and they're hopefully everywhere. But where there's more people that are into me are probably cities. So.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah, that is where it is. You know, D.C. likes me, Portland, San Diego. But I'm happy to go everywhere. And then personally, as for me, I prefer performing at places where I can walk around.

[Brian Greene]

Fuck, yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

Or it's at least like, I can get to a fun thing. Yeah, easy.

[Brian Greene]

You're trying to say not Atlanta, Georgia is what you're trying to say.

[Lisa Traeger]

Or like Nashville, you know, I was in Nashville and it's like I just wanted a cup of ice. Like, I just wanted an ice coffee. And it took forever. Like, I had to do three separate crosswalks across one street to go to a Starbucks in a hotel. You're not a city. Like, this is a nightmare. And obviously people live there and there's better, like, neighborhoods. And I. I'm at the will of wherever they put me. Or I end up being close to the venue. So not judging Old City, but like, yeah. If I can't get an iced coffee within minutes, like, fuck you.

[Brian Greene]

I don't.

[Lisa Traeger]

It drives me crazy. I like. Like, Philly is fine. I can walk somewhere. I can go eat somewhere cool. I can see art. Or if I'm going to a place where I know I'm gonna have a great meal or an aquarium or something, I can't wait. But sometimes you're just in a hotel at a red roof eating, you know, Jimmy John's, which I love. That's like, that'll be great. And I love watching TV doing nothing. So that's also fine.

[Brian Greene]

I feel like that would be my life on the road would be.

[Lisa Traeger]

It's a lot of that. Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah. I mean, I'm sure that a lot of. A lot of people who travel for a living do. That is like, I would pick a place. And we do pick places to stay based on its proximity to the local Starbucks or the coffee shop where I can get coffee every morning because it's so important to me. So when we're picking a place to stay, I'm like, is there like a Starbucks I can walk to or at least get to, you know, within a couple of minutes? And I know that hotel in Nashville with that Starbucks. And I feel for you because it's. It is a pain in the ass.

[Lisa Traeger]

It really is just like walking in circles. Like, what the. I just want to be able to see the people have a nice breakfast sandwich. Like, yeah, New Orleans is a fun place to perform. There's, like, a lot to do. But, yeah, I need a nap before the show. So. It's day drink in New Orleans.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

I know you have to, though. It's part of it.

[Lisa Traeger]

I love it.

[Brian Greene]

I feel like if I day drink before I got.

[Lisa Traeger]

Is too drunk there. I mean, the. The audience in New Orleans gives me trouble every time. These people are puking, they're screaming. They had to ch. This venue had to change their frozen espresso martini recipe because my audience got so crazy.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Oh, my God.

[Lisa Traeger]

These went wild.

[Brian Greene]

No.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yes. Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

So you. So you had a show in New Orleans, and people New Orleans doubt like they do when they go to New Orleans.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

Like they had never ever had a alcoholic beverage before. And they get so fucking twisted that the place says, we cannot have Lisa here again with the same drink menu. You're gaining a reputation in the industry.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Frozen espresso martinis are good.

[Brian Greene]

Listen, I haven't had one. I Mean, I've tasted one. I think they're, they're fine. But that's pretty funny story. Do you have, do you feel like your audiences are rowdy? Like, do they. They follow you down the rabbit hole. They come, they get drunk, they have fun.

[Lisa Traeger]

It depends. Sometimes people get too drunk. As I. To me, disruption is like, depends on your heart and spirit. If you're good natured and I could tell you're like just making a wrong choice right now, I can deal with it. But if your spirits like to ruin my night or you're a dick, like, I want you out of there.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

So they're rowdy in a fun way. And if they're just, you know, I'll calm them down. But also with the podcast fans, you know, they're. You're with them all the time in their day to day life and they forget and so they will yell at, like they're responding.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yeah, sure.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

And that's sweet. So. But it could be disruptive. But that's sometimes what it is. Where they're like, wait, but I listen to hours and hours and hours of my life, you know?

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yeah, we're friends.

[Brian Greene]

We're friends.

[Lisa Traeger]

But they're not, they're not overall disruptive. It's like really good girls with jobs that help people. Like a lot of women that work at animal shelters. We got a lot of defense, defense attorneys. Just girls that like to read and their cats and witchcraft, I would say. And then I get some hot gay dudes and then a couple tables of like, like three straight white guys that like me from a podcast or something. Yeah, it's actually really good girls. Yeah. But sometimes, you know, if you're in Buffalo and the Bills won, they might be wasted.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Oh, yeah, we just had Bills fans down here.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, we just had our Bills fans down. That's right. I just had coffee with a guy who was a Bills fan, but he lives here in Atlanta, and he said some of these Bills fans are such shithead. And he said that they had like, they had. They were in a section. He was in a section. And there was a lot of drama going on between the Falcons fans and the Bills fans. And he's like, some of these Bills fans are such shit that they just love their team. That's it.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

They do. I think it's a Buffalo thing.

[Brian Greene]

They love their team and now they're getting a new stadium that no one can afford to go to. So all of the working class Bills fans are out. So that's like their last year of hanging Out. Anyway, I don't want to get into all that bullshit. I. Let's talk about the podcast for a second. And we do understand that, like, I think sometimes there's a bit of a. They're not a bit of. There's a parasocial relationship that builds between a podcast listener and the podcast host. And when you do it, let's say as frequently as we do, people really are listening to you a lot. And we've had people tell us they like, talk into. They talk back at the speaker. When we can't remember a name correctly or we say something wrong, they'll like yell at the. It's a car speaker or whatever, you know, oh, my God, Brian, you got it wrong. And so there is this parasocial relationship that builds. It's different than any other media forms. Intimate in that way. You're all kind of always on or always can be on. Tell us about the podcast because I think it's fascinating.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah. So it's my friend and I, Kara Klank, and it's called that's Messed up an SVU Podcast. And we recap an episode of svu. We deep dive into the true crime that it's based on, and then we interview an actor from the show from that episode.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

And we used to be more strict. And then the strike kind of. We saw we didn't have guests for the strike.

[Brian Greene]

Okay.

[Lisa Traeger]

And then now if we, like, can't get a guest or we just really want to do an episode, we'll do it. But I would say we have like 90%. We'll talk to the people from the show.

[Brian Greene]

And how frequently do you publish?

[Lisa Traeger]

Every week.

[Brian Greene]

Every week. That's what you need to do. You have to be. Have to be religious about it. Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

And we try to like, bank some of the crime episodes because it is pretty quite dark, I would say. And so it's nice to have a week where you're not like fully mood ruined by a horrible.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

What's some of the darkest stuff? I mean, I know. I think I heard you talking on another podcast with David Cross about, oh.

[Lisa Traeger]

My God, he fucking bullied me this week. And I kind of hate him. I'm in a full war with him. And next time I see him, it's on site.

[Brian Greene]

Why on site? She said, gee, she is popping. Look at this. All right, we're breaking news.

[Lisa Traeger]

Never been in a physical fight. It's not. I like, went off. We recorded yesterday too. He base. I was like, really excited to meet someone that was coming to this event. That was. That's like a celebrity. But I was, like, so excited. And I planned on what I was going to say to this person. I was just like, someone I've been a fan of for probably like 30 years.

[Brian Greene]

Okay, child.

[Lisa Traeger]

And he went over and I could tell something was going on. And a prank was pulled on me and kind of sullied this moment. And I recovered in whatever way. But just don't like the spirit of someone that, like, sees someone's excitement and decides to, like, shit on it. To shit on it and make it bad. And to the point where the prank, like, eventually this person had to be like, oh, I don't want to do this anymore. He put me up to it because he's like, looking at your face was heartbreaking.

[Brian Greene]

Oh.

[Lisa Traeger]

And so to me, I was just like, bro, I'm like decades younger than you. I'm a fan of your shit. And I don't know why you're, like, rude to someone that's like, so excited.

[Brian Greene]

So, so. Okay.

[Lisa Traeger]

I'm like, tearing up thinking about. Honest, I shouldn't be her in the moment. But also it's this thing of, like, you know, I'm also mad at myself for, like, a bit because I'm pretty confrontational. And so I also. When I don't act in grounded in the moment as myself and kind of hold back and I'm like, allowing a situation to occur, I also. That makes me upset. Sure, I should have been like, what are you trying to do, bro? Like, you suck. But I didn't really do it in the moment. And I think that's what adds to the upsetness is that, like, I didn't handle myself in the way that I wish I did.

[Brian Greene]

Okay, so just to recap here. So I. So I understand 100% you and David know each other. You.

[Lisa Traeger]

I just for that pod. But, like, I. We were at an event where I knew nobody else except for David and. Exactly. So I was kind of like, wandering the cement and then I see him. So I beine. And I was like, you're the only person I know.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

And then you tell him that I'm really excited to meet this third person.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

And he goes over to the third person and said, hey, let's pull a joke story.

[Lisa Traeger]

I was like, oh, I really want to, like, do this. And then I saw him whispering. I go, he's going to ruin this for me. And the other people that were around, they're like, he wouldn't do that. I'm like, yeah, he is. I'm like, he's doing something. He's warning him. Like, he's saying something about me to this person. And so when I walk over to introduce myself, it goes awry. It is awful. I'm get like. And then the. The person was like. He put me up to it. I don't want to do this. Of course you can, like, show me the way you wanted to show me, but it just, like, made it just, like, totally ruined the moment.

[Brian Greene]

All right, David, explain yourself.

[Lisa Traeger]

My family really loves this person. Like, when I told my mom I met him, my mom was like, oh, my God, and I wish I had a photo. But he already had this idea that it was probably, like, a crazy. I mean, I brought him, like, a present in my pocket. Like, maybe I am nuts, but I could have been personable and good. And then I ended up getting blacked out, and then whatever.

[Brian Greene]

Okay, David Cross on tcb. Explain.

[Lisa Traeger]

What did I say? Yeah, what did I say on his podcast?

[Brian Greene]

Well, well, I was.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yeah, I was just listening, you know.

[Brian Greene]

And did it sound like David was fussy?

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

No, he didn't sound too fussy. He was a little, you know, dry, but that's kind of the way he is. Yeah. So you guys were just talking about the podcast. About the. About your podcast and some of, like, your favorite, you know, true crime things. And, you know, that you talked about how your nightmare would be to be in a basement, you know, trapped in a basement.

[Lisa Traeger]

I think those are the most horrific is the ones where, like, people are trapped, just held for a decade, maybe.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

More, and, like, torture.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah, that's what those. That's what fears are made of.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

Are those kinds of cases in the. They happen a lot, and it's terrifying. And the investigation, like, the one in the case in Cleveland.

[Brian Greene]

Oh, the girls who broke through, like, the window, and the neighbor saw them and he wanted a cheeseburger or something. They wanted Burger King or something.

[Lisa Traeger]

Around the block from her house, one of the women was, like, from the neighborhood, you know, like, because you're also putting all of your survival into the authorities. And with my research of over, like, 200 something crimes, I will tell you, you. They are terrible at investigation, and they do. They fuck up a lot. And so knowing all of this and knowing I'm trapped and, like, knowing they might not be looking or looking the right way or missed a detail, or I'm just a cold case or, like, you just don't know. And in that Cleveland case, what was extra fun? He would make them watch the news interviews with their family, looking for them. And he would go, you're never going to see that.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Oh, my God. And the fact the thing that those types of people are, like, walking amongst us, say, at the Starbucks that you're at next to us, is that, to me, is just mind blowing.

[Lisa Traeger]

You don't know what clicks for these people that they want you. Yes. You could just look like someone they were obsessed with when they were like, you don't. There's no rhyme or reason. You don't know who's stalking, like. Or the snatching. Like, it could happen quickly or. You know, I always. Mostly women. Like, men would never ask a woman for help. So if a man asks you for help, like in Silence of the Lamb, you say, no, a man would never ask a woman for help. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So if a man is.

[Brian Greene]

I mean, unless I was, like, in an emergency, like, bleeding out, can you help me? Can you put pressure on the wound or, like, something obvious.

[Lisa Traeger]

I would call 911 from a distance. I would never touch a wound. I. I would never. So, yeah, that's one of the things. If any man asks me any. Oh, can you help? I would never hold a door for a man. Nothing.

[Brian Greene]

That's how Bund got all of his. Got a lot of his. He had a fake cast, and he would put it on, like, a fake arm cast. He would put it on. He would walk through the parking lot or through the college campus, and he would say, I'm trying to move this box or I need to get this thing in there. And they knock somebody out and put him in the back. Whatever Bundy was. Yeah. Okay, but let me. But let me ask you this. Does. Do you feel child.

[Lisa Traeger]

Like, honestly? And like any time when a child dies because of just, you know, the people they trust the most, putting them in awful situations, committing crimes against them, just the lot of life, and then they go on to commit crimes. It's like. It is a really heavy situation. That's why we love talking to the actors after. And we have fun with the SVU show and, like, our intro. But, yeah, the crime stuff, we are not.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

That is heavy.

[Lisa Traeger]

We take it serious. Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

Is there one? One? Well, I think it's interesting. Let me back up just a little bit. I think it's interesting that in today's day and age, there are a ton of Internet slash podcast sleuths, right, that are going out there and digging up new information about cold cases or current cases and that there's like, these home investigative journalists, right? These podcasters, vodcasters, all these people who are out there, and they're acting as the second, third set of eyes. Now, I also understand that comes with some drama sometimes, too. Like, you know, people. People quickly making accusations about people who had nothing to do with the crime or whatever. But you're right. Like, maybe sometimes just having the. The police involved isn't enough. It takes, like, kind of an army of people to look at this from different ways.

[Lisa Traeger]

The Long Island Killer, we covered the crime before he was caught. But, like, it. There was a corrupt police department.

[Brian Greene]

Yes.

[Lisa Traeger]

There were naked women disappearing. They were being found. They were put as accidents that. Like, accidental deaths, natural caught, like they were not being investigated. And it was like one mom pushed through. One was like, I'm gonna find who did this to my daughter. And then a new police chief came in, and it was solved in six months. But for years, women were disappearing. Years. And because they were sex workers or young or wherever, or because of his relationship with the officer, I don't know. And so, like, yeah, it's unfortunate, but some. But, like, there's a case in Philly. It's nicknamed the House of Horrors, and it's one of the crimes that the Silence of the Lambs was based on because he had this tunnel. But basically he was taking, torturing and keeping captive mostly black handicapped women with disabilities. And so that's like, a very forgotten group, but to the point where a mother of a missing woman sold the police, like, I think it's the sky. Can you please investigate? They didn't. The center where a lot of these women used to go to, they called the authorities and were like, something is going on. We think it's the sky. Our people are disappearing. They did nothing. Neighbors of this guy called the police multiple times going, we hear chainsaws. We smell smells. It smells bad. No one investigated. And finally one woman, like, was able to build trust with him, and he. Because a lot of these freaks, it's like, the power, obviously. And so they get off on being able to release you a little bit and know that you'll come back because your survival's tied or you've lied and said you'll kill their family or whatever it is. It's like they really get off on finally getting someone out of the home, behaving. And this woman was so smart and got his trust, and when she was out, like, was able to.

[Brian Greene]

She was gone. Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

But, like, two of the women did die out of the six that he had. And, like, the police were told multiple times and didn't do it. And so there was another case that I'm forgetting like the details but like, like a woman, this guy would just torture and let them go. But because they were drug addicts or sex workers. Workers, the cops never believe them. So the women even came and were like, I just escaped this thing and they didn't do anything. So that's what adds to the horror. Or even like just the way certain judges act. Certain people like police captains and the way they talk about victims and how you need to wear this or you shouldn't have done that. Like the people in charge of it misunderstand crimes and who's really responsible and how to solve it. Like, the people in charge are so misinformed. Care and you know, police officers are the top job that. With the highest rates of domestic violence in the home. So it's like, it's so. It's like not only can a horrible thing happen to you, but then the people that are supposed to like, protect.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

Help. Yeah. Aren't doing it either. So. Yeah, it's like really scary. And it's scary the more vulnerable you are. And like I said with children too, like with protective services and the money we put. Put into stuff and how we listen to people and like signs of abuse. It's just like, it's so dark. It's so huge and it goes so high in terms of. It's in our government. It's. I mean right now human trafficking is happening like it is. It's really, it's really.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, I can see why you need to take a week break.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Something funny?

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, I don't, I don't have anything funny to say. Sorry. I'm sorry. I don't have anything funny to say.

[Lisa Traeger]

David Cross told me I need to get help, but it's like these are the crazy things of the world. So it's like I do go to my bodega and I'm like, yeah. If anyone asks, remember you saw me. Right. I am very high alert stuff. I'm high alert. I. I don't always turn on and off my lights at the same time. So no one knows my pattern.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

Oh, wow.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

I would be thinking about those things too after delving deep into this.

[Brian Greene]

And I think that is part of the reason too, why officers, you know, officers, people in military, like, they see things, they see the world in a way. They're so entrenched that, you know, there's only so much the human psyche can take at the end of the day. And so it starts to, it starts to fit around that Perspective. And it's understandable if you spend all of your time, or most a lot of your time investigating these crimes and looking into them and make. And then trying to help other people. There's. There's no doubt that your psyche would start to fit around that vision of the world by doing things like turning off your. On and off your. Your lights at different times. That's. That's wild. And. And I also unders. I think it's. It's become such a popular.

[Lisa Traeger]

Well, because if someone's really hard to get protective orders. Yes.

[Rachel]

Right.

[Lisa Traeger]

It's hard to prove. It's like, it is so overwhelming. And you don't want to live in this paranoid state. Obviously, I'm not encouraging that behavior.

[Brian Greene]

I had a girl one time who sent me over a thousand text messages in like two hours. I mean, it was like this insane level of not well. And I went to the police and it was like, that wasn't even enough to do that.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

They probably laughed.

[Brian Greene]

They didn't laugh, but they were like, here's the 17 steps you need to take in order to maybe think about getting a protective order. And it was like, this girl is clearly unhinged. She's coming to my house. She's texting me. You were there. She was coming to my house. She was unhinged. And it just like the red tape involved the. Clearly. I don't care that clearly. We've seen this 20 times today. So sorry. Sorry, my friend. And even the protective order is a joke. What is that going to do? You have to put a piece of paper in your window. I mean, what are they going to do someone. It means you harm. They're going to mean you harm.

[Lisa Traeger]

And I just saw this online, not an original thought, but it made me think that, like, you know, second amendment, yada, yada, weapons. But any weapon that women use to protect themselves is illegal. Like, you're not allowed to have a taser or like, carry around peppers for all these things are, like, not legal. What, you can't fly with them? Like, you can't have a fly with them. It was, it was something to think about of, like, oh, all the things that we can use to protect ourselves are. Are like, we're not allowed to have.

[Brian Greene]

Me.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

I have pepper spray.

[Lisa Traeger]

Sure. Yeah, I have it. I have to be better about carrying it.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yeah, me too.

[Lisa Traeger]

Grabs you from the back.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

You can light their elbow with a lighter.

[Brian Greene]

Wow, that's interesting.

[Lisa Traeger]

Oh, you need to find your lighter. I'm like, I'm such a pothead. But it's kind of like what you said earlier with. When you. From, like, tougher lives, you're. You're more willing to laugh at stuff.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

And I think. Not that I'm desensitized, because I'm not. I'm really sensitive and I think about this stuff deeply.

[Brian Greene]

Sure.

[Lisa Traeger]

But I do talk about it and will ruin a mood in public. Like, I forget that I'm so used to it and I have it on the background. I can go to sleep to fudgeing any, like, any horrible thing. But I'll be with people, and then I'll start talking about the details of something I researched that day. And you just see people's faces. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. And I don't let people have fun. Like, someone was just talking about, like, Beauty and the Beast. Oh, Stockholm Syndrome. And I'm like, no, that's actually, like, a sexist guy. It's not a real thing. It's a survival tactic. They're not, like, actually falling in love.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

Like, we're just gonna have fun. So. I'm aware.

[Brian Greene]

Made a joke about a Disney movie. Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

I'm like a Debbie Downer, but.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

I can see well.

[Lisa Traeger]

But you just start to really. I've always cared about this. I used to volunteer. It's just something I've always been passionate about and the unfairness of the justice system, especially with sex crimes. So it's like. Yeah, I just. Even if someone's kidding, I, like, I want them to know the real thing.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Right.

[Lisa Traeger]

In case. Yeah. Well, I actually know. I appreciate that I'm ruining the mood again, but I know someone that was. Didn't realize what was happening to them until they watched svu.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Really.

[Lisa Traeger]

Because they were. They were young. They were a kid, so they didn't realize it was wrong. Like, what was. They were being abused. They didn't realize. And then they watched Law and Order. Special Victims Unit realized what was happening to them was wrong. And this person is incarcerated now for, like, 25 years. But she didn't know without the show. Or maybe she would have figured it out, but it was this tool. Yeah.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Brian Greene]

Well, I think this is also why you probably this. Watching these shows, listening to these things, you know, is such a popular form of media consumption. This category is so popular, especially the podcast is so popular popular that it's easy to see why you have gotten a community of people who are attached to this podcast because you're actually knowledgeable about it too. Like, you're not just try.

[Lisa Traeger]

My most prideful things or. What I'm most proud of is lawyers listen to our podcast. Like people within it.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

And so that means we're doing a pretty good job if, like, people that are within the system listen.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yes.

[Lisa Traeger]

But we also ask them. Them for help. So sometimes we don't know things or we are confused about like, spousal privilege or this or how does that work or. And so we get people that write in and help us understand as well. That's awesome.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Wow.

[Lisa Traeger]

It is complicated. I didn't. I'm like, I'm a sociology major pothead, and I'm reading like full on court transcripts. It's a nightmare. I try. I don't know how lawyers do it. I'm like, trying to read this, the court documents. Because sometimes. Yeah, then sometimes with the news, that's hard too. You need to like, go to the. You need to go to the source.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, you do need to go to the source. It's, you know, and there's a. And there's a lot of great podcasts and, and YouTube channels that'll break it down for you. But news gives you a digestible bite, you know, if it bleeds, it leads kind of thing. And so they tell you the, the palace intrigue part of the story, usually.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yes, that's the problem. It'll tell you like, arrested, arrested, arrested. And then I'm like, well, what was the sentence?

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

What was the indictment? What are the charges? Like, where are they now?

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

Were they on parole? Are they on the registry? And so it's like. Or if something's retracted, it's like, wait, but what ended up happening? Or who. Like, sometimes you're right. They like write about the sensational aspect of it.

[Brian Greene]

They always do.

[Lisa Traeger]

Then they forget about the case. That does keep going.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, they always do. And that's why podcasts like yours have filled this niche where people want. They're thirsty for the additional information, the circumstances surrounding it, the people involved.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Not just the act, not just the.

[Brian Greene]

Act itself or the drama around. Around it. The most sensational, sensationalized.

[Lisa Traeger]

Or this is something that actually a crime I just covered that was in Atlanta, or it didn't air up. But this happened with a different crime in the past. But I couldn't. I wasn't getting the, the information I wanted. And I was confused because there was episodes of Dateline and scripted movies, TV movies based on this crime. And I'm like, where is the news? And it's because the Olympic bombing happened within days of this man's murder.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Right? Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

And so people were busy. So then that makes me think of like what, you know, there was another case where it didn't get attention because the Scott Peterson case was in the news.

[Brian Greene]

Oh, very interesting.

[Lisa Traeger]

You also, not only is it like what people are interested in not and how the news dictates what people see, but also on top of it, if something happens to you and then, you know, it's 9 11.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yeah. There was something else more you could get.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, you could get swallowed up. Yeah, yeah, there's something. Well, the news cycle.

[Lisa Traeger]

Something I never thought about.

[Brian Greene]

Like something that I never thought about that's very interesting. Okay. Lisa Traeger is on tour on the constant never ending tour.

[Lisa Traeger]

Fun girl.

[Brian Greene]

She is funny. She's got a Comedy Central special. There's her new special, night Owl on Netflix. You, yes, you are a stand up comedian and this is like another project that she works on. And obviously it's very nature. Yeah.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yes.

[Brian Greene]

You're not just one note nose a.

[Lisa Traeger]

Little bit about a lot. And I'm interested and curious about a lot of different things and so I'm lucky I get to do it. I hope someone gets me to do an like a ocean. An ocean show with the orcas.

[Brian Greene]

Do.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah, I want. Yeah. If any marine biologists are watching or nature photographers and want to go on a date and take me on a boat, I can kayak next to an orca. I would really love that.

[Brian Greene]

Love is in the. Yeah, but those orcas, they kill people, so be careful.

[Lisa Traeger]

They don't. They don't. Only in captivity. They've never on record in nature ever attacked a person.

[Brian Greene]

I don't know if they attack actual people, but they have been attacking boats in Spain, so. And they think they might just be playing with it. Yeah, I agree.

[Lisa Traeger]

Full on revenge. They like killed a whale, so they're like, we will kill. Like also with orcas, each community is different with different.

[Brian Greene]

The pods.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah, the pods are all different. So like the billionaire hating orcas up there are different. They're all different. No, the boat stuff's the best. No, I would be scared. My heart would be racing. Like, it's not like I'd be calm next to an orca because I know they don't kill people. But I would want to face my. I would want. I want to be. I want to be next to them.

[Brian Greene]

So they're such beautiful creatures and obviously the only time I've ever seen one is in captivity. Long before I knew that it was wrong that they were in captivity. But now I know and you know, and there's a whole different. Whole different. Whole different animal. No pun intended.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah. Now I'm just gonna bring up like. Well, I'm gonna bring up another horrible topic. Exotic animal trade.

[Brian Greene]

Oh, no, no, no. Oh, I hate.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

I will say the Atlanta Aquarium does allow you to swim. Not with orcas.

[Brian Greene]

Orcas. But with the belugas.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yeah, yeah.

[Brian Greene]

And those belugas were already in captivity. So they. And one was born. They had one. That was one or two that were born, but they came from a Chinese bo. Mall is where those belugas were. And that's how they got here. I think the first one has so old. Like, it's the Graham has been around for.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

I've communicated with those things before.

[Brian Greene]

Everybody, it's. Everybody has some kind of experience. If you go there and you watch those creatures and they happen to come up to you, and they often do. They will. Something's going on there. I can't explain it. I won't explain. It's probably the lsd, probably the mushrooms, probably all the bad cocaine I was snorting. But listen, that's a story for a different time.

[Lisa Traeger]

Cocaine. You got to do mushrooms at the aquarium.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

That's what I do.

[Brian Greene]

No, I'm kidding. Of course I do mushrooms at the aquarium. I. Ayahuasca. That's what I'm into.

[Lisa Traeger]

Me and a seahorse. I'll always remember we had like. I stood at the seahorse tank for like 45 minutes.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, they're beautiful creatures, my mind. Yeah, they really are. Those and the otters, the.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Something about those for communicating with them.

[Brian Greene]

We gotta be. They are aliens. High higher forms of intelligence in life. And they are here. They're. What's that? No, no, no, no, no, no. The dolphins in the whales. Oh, yeah, the dolphins and the whales. No, the otters are like little.

[Lisa Traeger]

They're pretty smart.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, they're like Cabbage Patch Dolls that came to life. You know what I'm saying? Those things.

[Lisa Traeger]

Well, it depends. I'm going to ruin the sea otters and river otters are different. I'm not going to ruin the mood. But some are committing crimes.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, well, that's what my dad says about the otters living at his dock up in South Carolina. So that's messed up. An SVU podcast is available weekly. Night Owl is on Netflix and her never ending tour. Go see her. She's going to be in Paris and Dublin and London and Amsterdam and all those exciting places. Go do some mushrooms in Amsterdam and go see Lisa. Don't disrupt her in a disrespectful. Way.

[Lisa Traeger]

Because, Martin, that part of the world's not really chatting.

[Brian Greene]

No, no, no, no.

[Lisa Traeger]

It's really weird. The world is wild. Like, I saw Sharon Belgium and like everyone was sitting down.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

I'm like, oh my God.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah. They only stood up at the end. Everyone's just politely clapping. No one's rowdy at all. No one even wanted to talk smart. And I was like, wow, different.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah. You know, Cher is like imprinted in my mind as the first woman that I ever found to be attractive. Oh my gosh. She is just.

[Lisa Traeger]

A movie. Was it her show.

[Brian Greene]

Sunny and Cher? And I remember the. I don't know, it was Sunny and Cher.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Not just Cher.

[Brian Greene]

No, it wasn't just Cher. It was Sunny and Cher. They were together. I remember them walking out on the stage and just that hair and the sparkly outfit or whatever she was, is wearing. What's that?

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Bob Mackie was the designer.

[Brian Greene]

She was just like. To me that I, I was like, wow, she's beautiful. She's gorgeous. Cher's gorgeous. And you know, she continues and fashion forward.

[Lisa Traeger]

It's not a safe hot, it's a cool hot.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah. She's always been edgy and cool and dating 20 year old Italian models and I think that, I think the world needs a little bit more of that. Like, God bless her. God bless Cher. Lisa, thank you very much. We had a great time.

[Lisa Traeger]

Great way to end. God bless Cher.

[Brian Greene]

God bless. Oh, yeah. Dolly Part. Yes.

[Lisa Traeger]

Another of our heroes.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, she's awesome too. Dolly. Oh, God, I love Dolly Parton.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

No, who doesn't?

[Brian Greene]

If you don't like Dolly Parton, it's like you don't like. If you don't like Dolly Parton or dogs, you're just not a human being. Something's wrong with you. Or music. I had one guy. Oh, I'm not into music. You're not into music? What are you? Where were you born? What planet? Lisa Trigger. All the links are in the show notes.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Come back anytime. And we'd love to see you on the road too.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah. If you come to Atlanta, let us know. We will. We will have you in.

[Lisa Traeger]

Last time I was in Atlanta, it was like fake Atlanta. You know, they, they book you in Atlanta, but then you're 45 minutes away in a strip mall. Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

Oh, you were at the. You were. I know where you were. I. Were you really in a strip mall?

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah, but a nice one.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, well, I know where you were.

[Lisa Traeger]

What was it? What's the town called?

[Brian Greene]

It's Norcross. Was It Norcross? Or was it Alpharetta?

[Lisa Traeger]

Alpharetta.

[Brian Greene]

Alpharetta. Okay. I thought you were in the not nice strip mall in Norcross.

[Lisa Traeger]

That was a nice one.

[Brian Greene]

When I saw Pete dav, and it was the oddest comedy show ever, but Pete brought down the house. I gotta give it to him. I didn't know what to expect, but he was really fucking funny. All right. But so is Lisa. Go check her out. Thank you so much. You're welcome back. Bye.

[Lisa Traeger]

Bye, guys. Bye.

[Rachel]

Okay, you're probably wondering why I, Rachel, have taken over the voice duties at tcb. It's pretty simple. Astrid asked me to shut Brian up, even for a minute. Well, lovely Astrid, your wish is my. My command. Do you want to help Astrid, too? You know you do. Leave a message for her or me or Chrissy at 212-4333 TCB. That's 212-433-3822. You can be on the show, too. Just call and say something, anything. Or text us and we'll text you right back. Promise. Then head over to tcbpodcast.com and get your free sticker. It's your constitutional right to a sticker, and we must abide. You get the point. Follow us on Instagram at the commercial break and watch all the episodes on [e-mail] TheCommercialBreak Best to you and Astrid. Especially Astrid.

[Experian Announcer]

It's okay not to be perfect with finances. Experian is your big financial friend and here to help. Did you know you can get matched with credit cards on the app? Some cards are labeled no Ding decline, which means if you're not approved, they won't hurt your credit scores. Download the Experian app for free today. Applying for no Ding Decline cards won't hurt your credit scores. If you aren't initially approved. Initial approval will result in a hard inquiry which may impact your credit scores experience.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Now, our son's new girlfriend is a former student.

[Experian Announcer]

Don't miss Anniversary.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

You know, I used to be afraid of you. I don't think I am anymore.

[Experian Announcer]

Starring Diane Lane and Kyle Chandler.

[Lisa Traeger]

We need to be careful. She's trying to obliterate us.

[Experian Announcer]

Anniversary.

[Lisa Traeger]

Rated R.

[Brian Greene]

Well, that was a good post Halloween episode right there. There you go. Keeping it trucking. We've been talking about Ed Gein and all the murder mysteries. And here, here comes Lisa right in with all of the information that we need to protect ourselves and that we need to know. She is really deep in that. That universe.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yeah, like I said, too, I like the duality. I mean, I think you have to. You have to have the humor you do along with. If you're gonna go that deep into horrible things that are happening, I think.

[Brian Greene]

You gotta have an outlet. Right. And like a lot of people do, as I mentioned on the show, like a lot of people do, you know, they see dark things and they poke fun at it because that's how they know to cope, and that's how I know how to cope. That's how you know how to cope. There we go. There it is. Okay, so. And also, David Cross, come on and explain yourself.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Yes. We need answers, David Cross.

[Brian Greene]

I'm gonna go on the commercial break. And do what? They need an explanation from me.

[Lisa Traeger]

Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

Yes, David, we do. Yeah. I don't know what to make of that. I will leave it up to conjecture until we hear the second side of the story. Maybe David was trying to angle for something he thought would be funny and wasn't funny and enduring, and it didn't end up being funny. And obviously, Lisa's feelings very hurt, and I want to know who it was.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

I know. Me too.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah. I should have asked her, but, you know, again. You hear again. We'll figure it out. We'll do a little Googling and we'll figure it out. All right, so all of Lisa's links are down in the show notes. All of the. I'll give her a link so you can buy tickets to her tour. She's all over the place, including Europe, as you heard. So if she comes to a town near, you, go see her. She is very funny. I've watched some of her stuff. She's got Comedy Central special. I'll put a link there. She's got the new Netflix special, Night Owl.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Night Owl.

[Brian Greene]

Night Owl. So you can go watch that. I'll put the links down there. All the good gravy right down there in the show notes, as I always try to do for you, my friends, to make life easier on you so you don't have to turn your lights on and off at certain distance different times, you can just click the link, hide under your covers, pray to God you're not one of the people that Lisa was just talking about. By the way, it's probably more likely that you get struck by lightning than you get kidnapped and held somewhere for years. But if you're the one that gets struck by lightning, that's cold comfort. Do you know what I'm saying?

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

That's true.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah. So common sense. Use common sense. When traveling, when out there in the world. It's good reminder it's good Reminder. And now I'm speaking.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Be alert.

[Brian Greene]

Be alert. Be aware.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Arrive unhurt.

[Brian Greene]

Stranger danger. GCBpodcast.com that's where you can find all of the episodes, audio and video, all of our guests, all of the show notes, all of the everything. You know, we're approaching 900 episodes here on the commercial.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Crap.

[Brian Greene]

Holy crap is right. We're also. We're also approaching one camera angle.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Black for the blackout.

[Brian Greene]

That's right. So tcbpodcast.com YouTube.com the commercial break and 212-4333 TCB. Questions, comments, concerns, content, ideas. Oh, and you can hit us up on Instagram at the commercial break. Okay, Chrissy, that's all I can do for now.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

I think so.

[Brian Greene]

I'll tell you that I love you.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

I love you.

[Brian Greene]

Best to you.

[Kristin Joy Hoadley]

Best to you.

[Brian Greene]

Best to you out there in the podcast universe. Until next time, Chrissy and I will say we do say and. And we must say goodbye.

[Lisa Traeger]

This is a real good story about Bronx and his dad, Ryan, real United Airlines customers.

[Brian Greene]

We were returning home, and one of the flight attendants asked Bronx if he wanted to see the flight deck and meet Captain Andrew.

[Lisa Traeger]

I got to sit in the driver's seat.

[Brian Greene]

I grew up in an aviation family, and seeing Bronx kind of reminded me of myself when I was that age.

[Lisa Traeger]

That's Andrew, a real United pilot.

[Brian Greene]

These small interactions can shape a kid's future.

[Lisa Traeger]

It felt like I was the captain. Allowing my son to see the flight.

[Brian Greene]

Deck will stick with us forever. That's how good leads the way. Sam.