TCB Replay: Danny Ricker

Summary

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The Commercial Break – TCB Replay: Danny Ricker

Original Release: September 24, 2025
Hosts: Bryan Green & Krissy Hoadley
Guest: Danny Ricker (Co-Executive Producer and Head Writer, Jimmy Kimmel Live!)
Episode Focus: Parenting, Comedy Writing, Late Night TV, Danny’s Book “Wow, You Look Terrible”

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Episode Overview

This TCB Replay features Bryan and Krissy’s lively, irreverent interview with Danny Ricker, the co-executive producer and head writer of Jimmy Kimmel Live! Danny discusses the daily chaos of making late-night comedy, the evolution of political humor, the importance of free speech, and his debut book on parenting, Wow, You Look Terrible. Blending twisted humor with parental wisdom, the conversation moves from inside-the-show anecdotes to a frank, funny perspective on raising kids in the digital age.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Inside the Jimmy Kimmel Show: Organized Chaos

[17:29 - 20:48]

• Daily Routine & Decision-Making:
  • The show starts at 6 AM; by 4:30 PM, whatever chaos or creativity that’s happened gets assembled into that night’s program.
  • There’s no set formula: “We’re kind of putting the menu together for Jimmy every day” (Danny, [19:49]).
  • Jimmy Kimmel is deeply hands-on, serving as both showrunner and key writer:

    “He’s probably a little too involved… up all night going through scripts. But that’s what makes the product good.” (Danny, [19:14])

• How Comedy is Selected:
  • A blend of hot-topic ideas and evergreen bits, with a “menu” of segments and sketches for Jimmy to curate daily.
  • Writers keep a stockpile of ideas for whenever the day's news is slow.

2. Late Night TV’s Role & Political Humor

[21:17 - 26:49]

• Approach to Politics:
  • No single pivot to “getting political”—the show mirrors the zeitgeist and what the country is actually talking about.
  • Kimmel’s team views their mission as “a mirror to what’s going on;” they reflect, riff, and offer catharsis.

  “Jimmy always says, I want to talk about what people are talking about.” (Danny, [23:10])

• Societal Function:
  • Bryan praises late night’s role as a place for public processing and laughing through pain.
  • Danny says their goal is to make viewers feel “seen,” offer perspective, and find humor even in hard news cycles.

3. Danny’s Origin: From TV Watcher to Head Writer

[26:49 - 31:37]

• Started at Jimmy Kimmel Live! as a college intern and “TV watcher” (think: a real job monitoring TV for usable clips).
• The experience taught him not just comedy instincts but also the technical, editorial side of writing for TV.

  “It was so… like a clockwork orange. You just sat there with your eyes open… consuming every piece of media.” (Danny, [29:36])

• The show promotes from within, nurturing young talent into creative roles.

4. Parenting in the Age of Chaos (and Screens)

[33:13 - 58:27]

• About the Book:
  • “Wow, You Look Terrible” blends practical advice with comic essays about surviving parenthood, inspired by real parental chaos.
  • The book’s faux premise: “how to parent less and get your life back”—find shortcuts that actually work and relinquish unrealistic expectations.

  “Generally speaking, the book is humor, but my hope is that parents will read it and feel seen… and go, oh, yeah, I go through this on a daily basis too.” (Danny, [35:48])

• Cutting Corners in Parenting:
  • Don’t feel pressure to sew costumes by hand—buy them! (Danny: “$12 on Amazon, they will survive!” [39:41])
  • Reduce “self-imposed ridiculousness” and comparison with other parents.
  • “Ultimately they don’t need much other than just… to know you love them and take them to get ice cream once in a while.” (Danny, [40:10])
• Parenting Then vs. Now:
  • Bryan and Danny reflect on less “hovering” childhoods and how current parents overcomplicate things with expectations set by social media and parenting books.
  • Giving kids independence matters (“Let them fail. That’s how we learned.” – Bryan [43:58]).
  • Danny: “I think one of the metaphors [from ‘The Anxious Generation’] I love is, there’s these trees in Hawaii… strong because they’re constantly blown by wind. That’s a good metaphor for kids.” [41:43]

5. Lies Parents Tell & Holiday Myths

[47:43 - 52:40]

• Danny loves tactical parenting fibs, like telling his kids "the car doesn’t play kid music."

  “It just doesn’t… It’s not wired to play kid music in the car.” (Danny, [48:23])

• He’s pro-magic but not precious—thinks the Santa/Easter Bunny myths are more fun for the parent’s amusement.
• On kids unraveling the truth:
  • When his daughter cracked the Santa code, Danny quipped, “You got me. Now you’re part of the Illuminati who knows about this.” ([52:02])

6. The Screen Time Dilemma

[54:47 - 58:27]

• Both Bryan and Danny wrestle with how, when, and if to introduce screens and phones.
• Danny’s household: an old iPhone on Wi-Fi as a “family phone” with tightly restricted usage (texting, FaceTime, Netflix for travel).

  “We say, you can have this if you agree to the following terms… and that's it.” (Danny, [55:12])

• When screens are restricted, kids stop asking for them—but access proves addictive fast:

  “It just became so clear to me this is addictive. The more they have it, the more they want it.” (Bryan, [57:27])

• Both hosts and guest reflect on their own digital dependence and how hard it is to model restraint for their kids.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the late night grind:

  “It’s chaotic. It’s crazy. It’s weird. … But because we have such a great group of people, it gets done every day by hook or by crook.”
  — Danny ([18:17])

• On political comedy:

  “We didn’t have a meeting where we all sat down and went, okay, now our show is political. We just get up and look at what's happening and decide how we feel about it, and then talk about it.”
  — Danny ([22:13])

• On TV-watching as a job:

  “It was a clockwork orange. You just sat there with your eyes open… consuming every piece of media that came across your TV.”
  — Danny ([29:36])

• On practical parenting:

  “I'm like my kid’s service animal basically… I’m just trying to look for corners you can cut that won’t affect your kids negatively.”
  — Danny ([35:51], [38:35])

• On the pressure to perform as a parent:

  “I never remember a time where my dad sat on the floor and played with me for two hours… and he was a fantastic father.”
  — Danny ([41:43])

• On lying to kids:

  “I think it’s totally fine to lie to kids. They lie to us about everything… just wedge a couple in.”
  — Danny ([48:23])

• On screen time addiction:

  “It feels like a drug. It’s like giving them cigarettes or something… I can’t imagine how difficult it would be for a kid.”
  — Danny ([58:25])

• On holiday myths:

  “When she figured it out, I said, now you get to be part of the Illuminati who knows about this.”
  — Danny ([52:32])

• On letting kids fail:

  “Let them run into some sharp objects… what doesn’t kill them will make them stronger.”
  — Bryan ([59:27])

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• [17:29] Danny joins – Late night chaos & team process
• [22:13] Political content: “Did you decide to get political?”
• [26:49] Danny as “TV watcher” – clip-finding origins
• [33:13] Parenting & book origins
• [35:51] The book’s faux self-help premise
• [38:35] Embracing parental chaos
• [41:43] Independence and letting kids fail
• [48:23] Lies parents tell — music in the car
• [52:02] Santa Claus revealed — “The Illuminati”
• [54:47] The cell phone conversation; screen time discipline
• [57:27] Screen time as addiction
• [59:27] Digital dependency for kids & parents
• [61:14] Closing remarks; book details

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Final Thoughts & Closing

The episode hilariously and candidly explores the intersection of comedy writing, the grinding unpredictability of late night TV, and the everyday absurdities of raising kids in 2025. Danny Ricker shines as both an everyman dad and a sharp industry wit, offering listeners both laughs and unexpectedly practical parenting wisdom.

Where to Find More:

• Danny Ricker’s book: Wow, You Look Terrible ([61:14])
• Jimmy Kimmel Live! weeknights (with Danny behind the scenes)
• TCB Podcast Website, @thecommercialbreak on Instagram, and YouTube channel for more episodes

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Transcript

[A]

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Maybe you're craving something crisp like watermelon that tastes like summer. Or maybe you're in the mood for a smoothie inspired strawberry banana. And if you like your caffeine with a tangy kick, Sour Apple is my favorite. It's tart, sweet and seriously tasty. Each shot of five hour energy has about the same caffeine as a 12 ounce premium cup of coffee, but with zero sugar and none of the sugar crash. And because they're so portable, you can keep one in your bag, car or desk drawer. So you're ready whenever you need a boost. Give your caffeine a flavor upgrade with 5 Hour Energy Shots. Get it in store and online at Fiveourenergy.com or have it delivered by Amazon today. Thanks 5 Hour Energy for being a sponsor of the commercial break. On this episode of the Commercial Break. If you're awake, alive and paying attention, then you'll realize that I'm rerunning an old episode, a TCB infomercial with executive producer and head writer of the Jimmy Kimmel Show, Danny Ricker. Why, pray tell, Brian, would you be running an old episode with the executive producer and head writer of the Jimmy Kimmel Show? Is anything happening with Jimmy Kimmel or his show? No. It's just another day in a dumpster fire here in 2025. Now, I know you like your TCB without a side of political commentary, so I'll take the politics out of this little diatribe. You will be hard pressed to find anywhere on this show or off the show where I have encouraged or celebrated the squashing of somebody else's free speech. And that's for one simple reason. I think anytime you silence anybody for any reason, it's a slippery slope into obliv. And that's especially true when it's being directed by our own government. Let's put aside for one second the actual comments that were made by Jimmy, because that is 100% not the fucking point. Whether they were warranted or not, whether they were inflammatory or not, or whether or not they were even true doesn't matter. Jimmy was not inciting violence. He was not telling people to take to the streets and set shit on fire. Jimmy did what Jimmy does. He was making commentary and also trying to make people laugh. But when the chairman of the FCC pub publicly steps out and threatens hugely damaging consequences unless ABC pulled Jimmy off air, well, that's a cracker with a different kind of bite. Now, this is nothing new. This has been going on forever. It's happened under administrations on both sides of the aisle. The difference here is how publicly and unabashedly the FCC and the administration made it clear you don't take Jimmy off air, you don't get to play ball. No tiki, no talkie or whatever the saying is. I believe that we have to defend free speech anywhere and everywhere we can. Even if, especially if we don't agree with what's being said. Because that's when it really matters. We can get all knee deep in the minutiae of the ratings and the money that ABC is making or losing with late night tv, you go ahead and do that so you're blue in the face. But you will completely be ignoring what a lot of people on both sides of the aisle see as a clear signal to everybody, including guys like me that if you don't tote the line and say the right thing, we'll find you and we'll shut you up. Or worse again, taking the politics out of it. You have to be careful because when you let the tiger out of the cage hungry enough, the tiger even turns on the handler. So while you may be cheering for Jimmy's cancellation today, you may be crying when it's you tomorrow. So in honor of Disney's capitulation and then additional capitulation and the return of Jimmy Kimmel live to television, I thought it was a good idea to remind everybody what a kind and nice guy Danny Ricker is. And just one more note. Charlie Kirk was not on my Christmas card list, but I did agree with one point that he always championed and that was the absolutism of free speech. Unless you're yelling fire in a crowded theater or ordering someone to violence, then us as Americans have the right to say what we want because that is the differentiator in a free society or a fearful society. So let's now get to the shits and giggles. Danny Ricker, great guy, works on the Jimmy Kimmel show. Has a book about parenting. It's really freaking hilarious. Still on sale to my knowledge. Links in the show notes. Here's our conversation with Danny from earlier this year.

[B]

The next episode of the commercial break starts now.

[A]

Yeah, cows and kittens. Welcome back to the commercial break break. I'm Brian Green. This is my dear friend and the co host of this show, Chris Joy Hoadley. Best you, Chris.

[C]

Best you, Brian.

[A]

Best you out there in the podcast universe. Thanks for joining us on the TCB infomercial Tuesday with Jimmy Kimmel. Executive producer, Oscar, writer and now writer of books. A book writer. What do they call those authors? Chrissy. There you go. Wow, you look terrible. Danny Ricker. Danny will be joining us in just a few minutes here. But he's, he's got the bonafides. He's an executive producer. Co executive producer at Jimmy Kimmel.

[C]

I know that's big.

[A]

And when asked if he could do our show, I said sure, why not? Co executive producer of Jimmy Kimmel. I'm not going to shy away from saying It. I said, yeah, okay, sure. And then I started to read his book. They gave us a copy, an advanced copy. It's on sale today, but I got an advanced copy. And as a father, as a parent, this book will leave you probably stitches, probably crying, and with a little bit of good advice along the way. Because kids are a pain in the ass, and anyone that has them knows it's a pain in the ass. And he gives us a few. He gives his tips and tricks on how to, like, you know, declutter the mind, the soul, and maybe your house and make life a little bit easier. Some cheat codes, if you will. As a father himself, it's a really well written book, and I'm glad that we're bringing him in today so that we have an opportunity to chat with him about all those things about Jimmy Kimmel and about the book and, and life, love, and the pursuit of happiness. If you don't mind, Chrissy, that's what this show is all about. Life, love, and pursuit of happiness. Speaking of children, they are dreams. Pursue your dreams. Live, laugh, love. My breasts. Ah, the Instagram. The Instagram never fails to surprise me. And. And having children, I am so terrified. I'm glad. Here's the thing. There's a lot of pushback right now, and I'm. I'm digging this on children and cell phones, adults and cell phones, social media in general. I'm not saying throw the baby out with the bathwater. I do think social media is entertaining. I spend a lot of time on it, mainly for the show, but I spend a lot of time on it, and I think it's entertaining. But I also think that at least most of the time, I have my head on my shoulders and I know that it's just entertainment that I'm just. And if you would see my algorithm, you would know I'm not getting caught up in, you know, who's got the nice car and who's got the nice house and who's on the next vacation. I'm really looking at, like, the dregs of the earth. I mean, people who are not well on the Internet. So when I watch this, I'm like, this is entertainment. This is just entertainment. And everyone thinks they are an entertainer. And there are some people that are just having, like, a constant conversation going on with that Instagram, and it's surprising to me. They need a friend desperately.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

But I'm raising these children and it scares the shit out of me because I know that there's. The next thing is coming. What is the next thing, probably some AI combination of reality and unreality and all that. And they're like. Some of them were on Easter vacation last week and into this week. And why we have so many vacations, I don't know. Can't we just do it like we used to do it, where it's one long vacation every couple of months instead of these like four or five day vacations every month? It's driving me crazy. Anyway, they're on vacation and all they want because I have to work and Astrid has to work. All they want is to be on that iPad, to be watching the television, to be, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. It is a fight to the death to keep them off those screens. But then I think for just like one half a second with my actual brain and I go, that's what they see you doing, Brian.

[B]

True.

[A]

How can you tell them that you can't be on the telephone or you can't be on the cell phone, you can't be on the tv, you can't be on the screen if all I'm doing for a living is being on the screen. Do you know what I'm saying?

[C]

I do.

[A]

So I bought them all cell phones and gave them the cheap. Gave them the passcodes to my chatterbait. And there you go. It's all just go ahead and give.

[C]

Us all at once.

[A]

I'm just gonna fuck them. They're gonna go to therapy for something. It might as well be for cell phone usage. I saw a video the other day. I'm gonna ask Danny about this because he's got some good opinions on this. I saw this cell phone video this other. The other day, and I don't know if this is real, staged, fake, I'm not really sure, but it's been going around the Internet for a while, for a couple months. A kid from the other side of the world, it looks like, because there's a different language being spoken and you can just see a different part of the world. And he's got a cell phone in his hand. Maybe he's like a year and a half old. And they take the cell phone away from him and he throws a holy shit fit that goes on like it's a. It's a time lapse video. It goes on for like an hour and a half. And I mean, it's as if you have taken his heroin away from him. It is insane and it scares the shit out of me. So I say, just let him have it all the time, okay? You know, just let him have it all the time. Just give him the cell phone and let him suck on the teat of social media. Why not? Why not set their expectations super high right now so they could never meet them and be miserable for the rest of their lives, you know what I'm saying?

[C]

That's one way to do it.

[A]

I probably need to be a little bit more like you and just ignore social media altogether. Don't worry about it. But I can't. I don't know. I got. We got to talk about something. And so social media is it. Plus I do those damn clips at the beginning of the show and I find all those clips from the Internet. If you want to know just how fucked up my algorithm is, just check out the, you know, WSHIT clips at the beginning of every episode and you'll know just how fucked up my Internet is. Anyway, Danny Ricker, co executive of Jimmy Kimmel's very popular late night television show. One of the few remaining. One of the better ones if you ask me. Probably the best one if you ask me. He's written a book. It's called wow, you look terrible. It is available now in many different places. I'll put a link to a few of those in the show notes. Danny is a noted comedian and writer and I can't wait to talk to him about this new book and maybe we'll get a few. Maybe we'll dig in a few questions about the Jimmy Kimmel show and how they get that all done every night of the week, 300 nights a year. They're like us. They're constantly on that wheel.

[C]

You got to constantly turn it out.

[A]

Yeah. Only there's no Danny Ricker here. Like I don't have a Danny Ricker to help me out. Maybe I'll ask him if he needs a second job. I'm sure he does it. You think he gets paid?

[C]

Well, I would say so, yeah.

[A]

Network television. I hope so too. Maybe we'll ask him how much he gets paid. Is that rude? Is it rude to go, how much do you make? Or is it rude to say, do you need someone? You need another co executive producer of the Jimmy Kimmel show. Anyway, why don't we do this? Let's take a break. And then through the magic of telepodcasting, we're going to have Danny Ricker right here on this screen talking to us. Little old us, Chrissy. Little old us. What do you think?

[C]

I feel special.

[A]

I always feel special. I am special in many ways, big and small. All right, what do you think? Should we take a break.

[C]

I think we should do it.

[A]

Okay. I'm just looking for your approval.

[C]

Yes, yes, I stamp it.

[A]

All right, Danny, when we come back, you make this rather snappy, won't you? I have some very heavy thinking to do before 10 o'. Clock.

[C]

Hi, cats and kittens. Rachel here. Do you ever get the urge to speak endlessly into the void like Brian? Well, I've got just the place for you to do that. 212-433. TCB. That's 212-433. 38, 22. Feel free to call and yell all you want. Tell Brian I need a raise. Compliment Chrissy's innate ability to put up with all his shenanigans, or tell us a little story. The juicier the better. By the way, we'd love to hear your voice because Lord knows we're done listening to ourselves. Also, give us a follow on your favorite socials. Hecommercial break on Insta, TCB podcast on TikTok. And for those of you who like to watch. Oh, that came out wrong. We put all the episodes out on video, YouTube.com thecommercial break and tcbpodcast.com for all the info on the show, your free sticker, or just to see how pretty we look. Okay, I gotta go now. I've got a date with my dog. No, seriously, Axel needs food. Today is pork chop day.

[A]

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[A]

Danny's here with us now. Danny, thank you so much for joining us today. We really appreciate it.

[B]

Thanks for having me guys. This is an honor to be on, so thank you.

[A]

Well, it's an honor to have you your co executive producer of my favorite late night television show. I think the one that is doing the best at carrying on that late night tradition, which is Jimmy Kimmel, of course. And I've been a big fan of Jimmy's for a long time. I like Colbert too, but I think Kimmel is my favorite because I just, I think I resonate most with his comedy style and his voice and you are one of the voices of that comedy styling. So question what? It's got to be an absolute like Chaotic, hot mess. To put a show on every single night of the week, starting from scratch.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, it's a lot. We have a great team at our show. I mean, from the writers to our producers to our props department. I mean, everybody is really, really good at their job, which makes it a lot of fun. So it is chaotic. It's crazy. It's weird. So, you know, we started about 6am and we're doing, doing a show at 4:30 and we don't know what's going to be in the show that night. But because we have such a great group of people, it gets done every day by hooker, by crook.

[A]

Do you have like a, like so here. You know, largely blossoms from our brains. We write notes down. We also do four, four days a week. So. But we don't have production elements. We don't have 25 cameras. We don't have props. We don't have all that. It's just us in a chair. So it's whatever we can use our voices for is about as. As much as we're going to get out of the show. Do you have ideas that carry over from day to day? Like evergreen ideas? You put it on a list and you say, okay, Jimmy didn't pick that one. I'm assuming Jimmy has the last say in what goes on the show.

[B]

He does. He, he's very, you know, I'm, I'm one of the head writers. I'm one of four head writers at our show. But Jimmy is really our showrunner and he's the final say on everything. And he's, you know, he does a ton of writing, he does a ton of producing. We, I often say for his own good, I think he's probably a little too involved just because, I mean, he's up all night going through scripts and stuff. But I think that's what makes the product good, to have a host that cares that much. But yes, he's always the final say.

[A]

And so you have ideas like evergreen ideas that you can carry over from one day to the next. He didn't pick it yesterday, but I'll throw it in there next week and we'll see if it works on this day or.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. I mean, part of my job is one of the, you know, one of the heads of the writing department is to sort of have like a little mix of everything. Right. Like sometimes we have that of kind great idea that can only go that day. It's based on kind of the big story of the day. We love to have one of those. And Then if the news is such. Where we're like, yeah, to me, today wasn't one of those days where there's, like, the, you know, the Pete Hegseth, like, signal story. We didn't have, like, you know, like, we have a couple of good things we're going to cover. So I always try to plan and have, like, a couple things in our holster. Be like, oh, you know what? We shot that bit last week, but that'll work tonight. And then we have some stuff that's not remotely related to the news that we can always mix in. So we always kind of feel like we're, you know, we're kind of putting the menu together for Jimmy every day. And we'd be like, all right, here's all. Here's all the items, and you can kind of pick. And then he kind of sees how he feels that day and what's going on, and he assembles what feels like the best collection of stuff. So we have another head writer named Josh who sits with him all day and looks at all that stuff and pieces it all together. So we just try to prepare for all possible scenarios.

[A]

Very interesting. I bet that that kind of chaos becomes a little bit addictive after a while. I'm sure it's not great for your health, but I'm sure it's like, it becomes. I'm sure this is not good for my health either, but there's something about it that, like, I'm much like you, I'm sure, and like Jimmy, like, it's, you know, midnight. I'm just about to fall asleep. Something comes to my brain. I'm writing it down. I'm fleshing it out. I'm, you know, researching it or whatever. I have a question, and then I'd like to, you know, obviously discuss you and your. And the book.

[B]

Yeah, yeah.

[A]

Which, by the way, I thought was very funny and useful, like. And it's hard to put those two things together when you're talking about children, but when you have such an interest, when you're living in such an interesting time and you've got Jimmy who and the show, which are so mainstream and visible, how do you collectively, as a writing team and a production team, make the decision about how far you're going to dig your heels in or poke at the bear, so to speak. And, you know, without getting into kind of the politics of it, obviously you've got an administration now who's not afraid to. To wield a sword. Right. And do a lot of talking and that talking. Sometimes now it seems like, can come with action. That's biting. How do you make a decision about how far you're going to take it? Because I believe Jimmy is one of those really not shied away from taking a swing at the king, so to speak.

[B]

Yeah, you know, there's not as much thought into it as you might think. You know, like, I had. Someone asked me the other day, you know, they went like, you know, well, when did you all decide to get political? And I was like, you know, we didn't have, like, a meeting where we all sat down and went, okay, now our show is political. We feel like our goal every day is to get up and look at what's happening and decide how we feel about it and then talk about it. And, you know, for many years, like, when I started as a writer, you know, every day, like, our main story was, like, who got voted off American Idol? And that's not because we were particularly interested in American Idol, but it's like, that's what our country was talking about. I mean, that was. I mean, literally, like that season Sanjaya was on American Idol, whatever year that was, like, CNN CNN would cover that. Like, a story on CNN was Sanjaya didn't get eliminated from American Idol.

[A]

So we long for the times.

[B]

I know.

[A]

Bring me back.

[B]

I know. So we just. We try to be a mirror to what's going on. Jimmy always says, I want to talk about what people are talking about. And so I think over the course of, you know, the last, you know, 10, 15 years, our country has started talking about different things, and we've just kind of gone along with it. So, you know, I. I feel like just the very small cog that I am in this process, I just look at what's going on, and I go, what is my reaction to that? Do I feel that's hypocritical? Do I feel like that's a good idea, a good thing? You know, and then I just try to word that as humorously as I can. And. And sometimes the news is sad, and we still gotta do a show that night. And so we try to find our little angle that maybe we can add a little levity to it and help other people digest it too. And so one of the biggest compliments we can get is we do a monologue on kind of a big news day, even if it's something that's kind of serious, and people will text me the next day and go, you know what? That helped me kind of think through what was going on. And it made me laugh, too. When we go, okay, well, then I think we're doing our job, if that's going on.

[A]

Yeah, yeah. I think for time immemorial, or at least around as long as the late night television, as long as I've been alive, late night TV is a place where you go, where you have an opportunity to see that there are other people that are laughing through the pain. And there's kind of a voice, this being Jimmy, maybe Letterman or Carson, which, however far you want to go back where you would tune in. And there was. I don't know. I don't know. This might be a weird thing to say, but this is how I feel. Like it was almost a grounding event. Okay. We're laughing at it, it's real, it's sad, it's tough, it's scary, whatever it is. But we're here, we're laughing at it, and there's someone on the other side of that screen that understands. It's big, it's scary, it's interesting, whatever. But they're giving me some catharsis through this really tough day or this tough news cycle or whatever it happens to be. You know, maybe not so much now because of the advent of the Internet and short form content and dumb podcasts like ours, but, you know, I still see those late night talk show hosts as kind of a beacon of like an outlet. An outlet where we can look on the other side of the screen and say things are gonna be okay. There is someone who's got a level head but also finds a way to laugh. And I think that's an important role that you play you as. It's an important role that you're giving voice to that.

[B]

Yeah. And, you know, I mean, we're under no illusions that it's like, you know, we're still just a comedy show. But, you know, I do feel like, you know, if we can make people feel seen, you know, like, you know, we always feel like if people watch our show and they go, yes, exactly like that. Maybe I didn't have that particular thought, but like, you're so right in the way you're thinking of that. And I think one of the. One of the great things about Jimmy is he's just a, you know, even with all his success and everything, he's just a real kind of everyman, kind of regular guy. And I think that's how we try to approach even complicated stories, whether they be political or, you know, whatever it is. And, you know, we just try to point out, like, what seems weird about it or, you Know, hypocritical or, you know, whatever it is. And, you know, we don't get too academic about it, you know, unless we need to. And I. We have that ability to do it if we need to. But I think, like, we just try to make everything digestible. And, you know, we know some people get their news from us, which we don't necessarily recommend, you know, but. But advocating for that not, you know, you should, like, you know, you should read some, like, real newspapers and stuff. But, you know, but I think if you are coming to us, we try to, you know, kind of explain what's going on and then also just kind of break it down in a way where you. You can, you know, understand it and then also hopefully find a little humor in it, whatever it may be, you.

[A]

Know, true story or not. You. You used to have the profession of watching TV on behalf of Jimmy. We saw that, you know, we were watching another interview that you did, and we saw that you were like a TV watcher trying to find clips. Now, I only know this position actually exists because I was a listener of the Howard Stern show.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And I know that J.D. one of the people that works on that show, that's what he does. He sits around watching endless hours of tv, trying to find clips that Howard can play. I guess you're. You started as the JD of the Jimmy Kimmel Show.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, I. I was. I was a college intern there for like, three months. And then right when I actually graduated college early, like, I didn't pick up a minor so I could graduate early and go work at Jimmy Kimmel Live when I was like, it was 22 years old. Yeah. And so. Yeah, but this job exists there, and we still have it to this day. I think we were kind of one of the first shows to really do it. But, you know, again, like, when I started, I was watching, you know, I'd watch the View, I'd watch the Bachelor, I'd watch Tila Tequila. Had a dating show that I watch all those shows. And so, yeah, I would sit in this, like, disgusting little office with three other people, and we just watch tv. And it's funny. Cause, like, it sounds like, so chill, you know, like. Like, ah, you're just sitting around. But it's like, you know, it's like a professional workplace we work in, and you have to deliver clips every day and you got to get stuff on the show. So it's. It was weirdly kind of like a sales job where it's like every day you, you know, at like, 11 o', clock, you'd show up and be like, okay, here's all the things I found. And hopefully Jimmy likes some of them and they get on the show. But it was a really great, like, kind of entry level creative job for me. Like, I knew I wanted to be a writer someday. And so with this, I got to kind of look for funny things. I could go on the monologue. I would work with the writers at that time, a bunch where they might have an idea for a bit that involved footage, and I'd actually sit with one of them and find all the stuff. So it was really good training for me. And I kind of got to know the writers through that too. Yeah. So I did it for two years. I think that my last day was the day Barack Obama got elected. So I had a full election cycle. I did, which was crazy. But I. I think I'm really glad I had that job too, because I. I think it made me a good, like, kind of mental editor. Like, when I'm writing, I can go, oh, yeah, I sort of know, like, what's a reasonable piece of footage to ask someone for, you know, and how things will fit together and. But, yeah, no, that. That was a. That was a crazy job. Weirdly that the amount of. I did that for, like 18 months. That time feels longer than the, like, 15 years I've been a writer. Somehow. It was. It was just like a. It was so. It was like a clockwork orange. You just sat there with your eyes open your eyes, consuming every piece of media that came across your tv.

[A]

And, like, not like, good media. This isn't like, you know, 60 Minutes and, you know, Nova.

[B]

Yeah, yeah.

[A]

Watching Tila Tequila and Jerry Springer for endless hours. But I can see how that would lead into you understanding how to edit, how to get a comedic voice. You would say, you know, okay, you're looking for things and you're finding kind of your own rhythm, your own style, and at the same time working with the people who are giving voice to Jimmy. And so I can see how if you're smart and sharp and have that keen sense, then you kind of work your way up. And I think it's great that you started there and then you work your way up into co executive producer. That's gotta be a dream come true.

[B]

I would imagine it is. And I'm very lucky that I work at a place with a group of people who promote from within and, you know, and can foster people and, you know, I mean, there's a lot of places you could work that would just, you know, kind of keep you where you're at. But. Oh, yeah, you know, I, you know, I just. When I was a TV watcher, I'd said to the head writer at the time, this guy Steve o', Donnell, who's a late night legend, he was Letterman's head writer for many years, and he was our head writer at the time. And I just told him, you know, I went like, hey, I'm like, interested in learning about writing. And he's like, great. And he, you know, gave me some great advice. And then the two head writers who came in after him named Molly McNerney and Gary Greenberg, they hired me as a writer's assistant. And so they taught me so much. And now they're two of the other head writers at the show with me, which is like, that's a really special thing for me. So. But, you know, again, at that time, they could have just been like, all right, well, you're our assistant, you order the lunch and whatever. But they knew that on top of doing that stuff, I was also really interested in learning how to write. And so they taught me so much. And, you know, for me, it's like, that was kind of like my comedy writing, like college or whatever, where it's like, oh, I get to work with the writers and I can, you know, write some material and have professional writers, like, really look at it and give me notes. So I just, I feel I'm forever grateful that Jimmy and the team there were able to go, yeah, hey, like, we see that you have a goal and we're gonna help you get there.

[A]

Do mom and dad. Do you call mom and dad and say, hey, mom and Dad, I got a job as a TV watcher? Do they go, oh, I'm sure as shit glad we paid for all that? College kid.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

What do your parents think about, you know, just kind of. Did you have more of a straight laced childhood or were your parents a little like, eh, I don't know about all this, kid.

[B]

My parents are wonderful and very supportive and always have been. So they, they were really excited for me. I mean, I was literally. I mean, I got a psychology degree in college and I literally was like, I was like wrapping that up so quickly so I could go watch Dr. Phil for a living, you know, but they were excited. And, you know, we're from Southern California. California. You know, I've lived here my whole life. And so, you know, I, you know, Jimmy was on the radio out here. There was a morning duo called Kevin and Bean. Legendary morning duo out Here. And Jimmy was on their show, he was their sports guy, but you know, he wrote a ton of their sketches and their Christmas albums. And so I, I had been a fan of Jimmy since I was like really young and my parents knew that too. And my parents were a fan of, you know, him too, from being from Southern California. So like, they just thought it was the coolest thing that Jimmy Kimmel had a late night show and I was going to go work on it. And so they, they've just been nothing but supportive. They're still like really, really big fans. And that's always been great for me.

[A]

What it must be like to have parents that are proud of you.

[C]

You guys are going to be.

[A]

My dad's still wondering when it's all going to work out for me, but, you know, that's, that's my cross. That's my cross. You, you, how did you decide that? You're. First of all, tell me about how many kids you have.

[B]

I have two kids. I have an 11 year old and a seven and a half year old.

[A]

Oh, so you're right in the thick of it, just like I am. Your kid's a little bit older than my children, most of them. So you have a 7 and 11 year old. When did you decide? Obviously you have a great comedic voice and this is probably, I would imagine, since you're writing every single day, this is kind of an easy transition for you. Right? Let me put some of these thoughts down, collect them, organize them and write a book. But I think you struck a balance between good advice and funny shit. Like how did you decide you're gonna write a book and how did that come together?

[B]

Thanks. You know, it actually, it was Jimmy's idea for me to write it actually and.

[A]

Oh, no way. Yeah.

[B]

Yeah. So like we at our show every day, you know, on top of all of our topical material, Jimmy for many years asked that we submit just one little observational non topical thought. And we didn't even really have like a set way we were going to use them, but he goes, I kind of like having these. And every once we'd have a bit where we need some observational humor. He's like, oh, let's go back and look in that big document of observations. But so, you know, I was doing this for years and mostly, you know, I'd be sitting right here going like, okay, what, what do I observe? And I had two little kids, so like every day my non topical observation was something about my kids. And, and he always really liked them. And eventually after Doing this for years. He was like, we have no use for this on our show. Like, obviously he's not going to do material about my kids on our talk show, whatever, but he goes, you should try writing a book. And kind of the initial thought was a page a day, kind of one observation per day kind of thing. But then we went like, well, maybe I can also kind of make that a bigger thing. I don't know. So I just, I printed all these things out and I laid them on floor, the floor and I went like, okay, what's like my, what's the general theme of these? Like 200 thoughts I, I have here. And I think the general theme. Yeah, chaos.

[A]

Yeah, the general theme is don't do it. Don't have kids.

[B]

But I, I think what I realized was like I, generally speaking, I'm a very practical person and parenting is the most impractical process like ever. And so I went, okay, like, so what? You know, if I'm going to write book, a book like about parenting, what is the idea? And you know, kind of the structure I got to was I read a lot of self help books. You know, that's, that's mostly what I read.

[A]

Join the club. Yeah, yeah, join the club.

[B]

And you know, and I feel like, you know, with every self help book it's like, okay, here's the problem that's ruining your life and I'm going to solve it in three steps basically. And then, and then everything will be perfect for you.

[A]

And then I'm going to create an additional problem that my next book will solve.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, exactly, yeah, that's the phase I'm in now. But, but yeah, so, so then I went like, okay, so what's the problem? And I think I just realized, I go, yeah, I am, I'm no longer like a person. I used, I used to be a person who I had hobbies and friends I saw and all these things. And now I'm just, I'm like my kids service animal basically. And, and so kind of the faux premise of my faux self help book is how to parent less and then kind of get your, your life back so you can go back to living your life. And you know, again, it's a, it's a comedy book. It's a collection of comedy essays. But I will say as I, as I've read through it again as now that it's like print it up in a real book, I go, you know, not everything is bullshit in here. There are kind of like some decent ideas and they're all based on real things I've observed as a parent. So, you know, generally speaking, the book is humor, but my hope is that parents will read it and feel seen a little bit and go, oh, yeah. Actually, I go through this on a daily basis too. And, you know, I think that's a.

[A]

Good way to put it. I think that I. I think that, you know, the excerpts that I had a chance to read. I feel like you truly understand what it's like to spend a day with my wife or I. Specifically me. You talk about bath time and you say, I don't understand why we have to give bath. Kids. Kids. Baths every single day, even though it's obligatory. And you have to do it because they are disgusting little creatures that mess up your house. You're right. It's 90 minutes later. We've done nothing but fight, argue, fuss. Everyone's wet. Soaps everywhere. Tile is. You got gangrene or something growing on the corner because they splash everywhere. And it really is just like this super frustrating part of the day. And you go, maybe they weren't all that dirty. Maybe I really didn't need to give them a bath every day. Or you say, like, something about the purgatory for toys, which we do here. Like, literally, we say, okay, kids, it's whatever. Second quarter, you gotta pick 10 things that you want to give away to children that are less fortunate. You put them in this box, you say goodbye, and in a couple days, they're gone. So you say things that actually, they're. They're good. It's good advice. Like, it's good advice that I found I've either will take or have taken before. And there is so much chaos in raising children that as they're running down the hall, as they're running up and down the hall here in the house, you can hear them screaming. Actually, they just got home from school. But there's so much chaos in raising children that if you're like me, I like things a little bit organized. There comes a point when you have to just throw your hands up in the air and say, fuck it. It's not gonna happen anymore. At least not in this stage of my life. I have to embrace the chaos and understand that life is truly messy. And with children, it's extra messy. Is that a hard thing for you to do?

[B]

Like, it is for me, yes, by my nature. I'm also a very organized person. And, you know, it's. It's hard for me just to, like, let things go sometimes. But, you know, I do enjoy it. Too. I enjoy being a parent and that was one thing. When I started writing the book, I was like, I don't want this to be like a anti kid book. I actually like really enjoy being a dad. It's just that like I'm at constant odds with like, okay, like, am I going to engage in this ridiculous thing I'm being sucked into here or am I just going to like exercise a little? A little just stoicism and you know, put something at arm's length and I, you know, really what I'm trying to look for in the book is like corners you can cut that won't affect your kids negatively. Right. You know, it's like sometimes like you, you really, you do things because like you said, you feel like you're supposed to like, like, you know, you're like, oh, you know, you're supposed to sew your kids Halloween costume by hand. It's like, like what? Why like are you, you're not being graded or whatever. And it's like, you know what?

[A]

$12 on Amazon.

[B]

Exactly will survive. They're going to be just as happy. So I, you know, it was trying to like take the self imposed ridiculousness that I feel like we're doing either for show for other parents or you know, generationally we feel like we're supposed to do or our kids will grow up to be serial killers, you know, if we don't do X, Y and Z. And you know, I think ultimately they don't need much other than just like, you know, they need to know you love them and you gotta take them to get ice cream every once in a while and you know, that's about it.

[A]

Yeah, I agree 100%. I think that there is like this and especially in 2025, over the last 10 or 15 years when we were kids, and I don't know how young you are, but I would imagine you were in the similar age range. When we were kids, there was a much less complicated parenting philosophy and that was keep them fed, keep them clean and keep them safe and the rest will take care of itself. And every 10 years we've gotten more involved and there's more obligations and it's more hovering and it's more babying and it's more, you know, but they grow up faster anyway now. And so there. I think we could all use a little bit of this kind of advice that you got its own. You got to bring like, you got to be a whole person yourself before you can parent another human being, number one. But number two is you don't have to live up to every expectation that's put there out there on the Internet or in the books or in whatever it is, wherever it is you choose to find out about parenting because you really over complicate a situation that is going to be. Was going to be complicated from the beginning, no matter how you chose to parent them. And that they need to, they're their own human being. They need to be given the space to grow in that way. And you humorously, I think, kind of pull back that those covers a little bit and I think that's good. I think it's a good thing.

[B]

Thank you. Yeah. You know, like, I, you know, I never remember a time where like my dad like sat on the floor and like played with me for two hours. And I will say neither. And I will say I, my, I have a fantastic father. I love my dad so much. And it was, but it was just a, just a difference in generational stuff. And so, you know, and I don't. I think it's good that we sit and play with our kids now too, but I think we can go a little too far sometimes too, because we just, we feel like we've been, you know, nowadays it's like, well, the kid's in charge and whatever the kid says, they need you, you can give them. And so, you know, I think like, with all things, it's balanced. And I don't know if you guys have read the anxious generation that I have. Yeah, I like that book. Kind of hit me like a ton of bricks too, you know, And I think a lot of people would say maybe, you know, he recommends things that are too far. But I think there were so many things in there that kind of speak to this too, where it's like, yeah, like, you know, kids can have a little independence. Like one of the metaphors he talks about in that book I love is like, you know, these, like there's these trees in Hawaii and they're so strong and it's because like, they're. They're blown by wind like constantly and that makes them strong and then they're kind of in destruction. And I do think that is a good metaphor for kids. And there are safe ways in which you can, you know, give them a little independence. And you know, my, my 11 year old, like in the last like six months, we were at the grocery store, the Gro, you know, the Ralph's we go to every week and, and we, I had a little list and I tore it in half and I go, you're Gonna get this half of the list. And I'm gonna get this half, half of the list. And she looked at me like I was insane. She's like, what? Like, what do you mean? And, and I'm thinking like, yeah, and I really, all she's gotta do is go go over like three aisles and grab some bananas or whatever. And she did that and she came back to me and she just had the biggest smile on her face and she just like couldn't believe she had done it. And it was such a simple thing. But I do think that's important. And you know, obviously you got to weigh a lot of factors in that. Not everyone's comfortable with that. And you know, no shame if people aren't. But I, you know, I do think we social media, I think in the Internet, we see so much now of how much people parent and how much everyone can comment on how you're parenting. And you know, and all these things that I do think you can kind of make some personal choices to dial some things back in the appropriate way and give your kids a little independence.

[A]

You know, I agree with you. I saw a real the other day and I don't know which book she was referring to, but there was a woman, and I'm not bashing this, I'm just sharing. This wouldn't be my personal choice. But along these same lines, she said, I read this book and they said we should give our children one age appropriate task to do all on their own every single week. And as they grow older, they get more age appropriate tasks. So she was having her 4 year old girl go into a gas station to buy like some potato chips by herself. And I'm thinking to myself, that girl's 4 years old, she's not gonna know. She don't even know where the potato chips is. But I agreed with the premise. The premise was, you know, have them do something where they fee, they take ownership over their own lives and their own actions and they understand how to get things done. We've all seen this father in Japan who puts ropes and rocks and dirt in front of his child on the way to school every day. And he doesn't help him. He says, you have to figure out how to get over the ropes, how to get around the rocks, how to get through the mud and every day and he's teaching his kid resilience, how to use his brain and his in, how to be himself and independent. And that's how I was raised. I don't remember my dad playing with me. And my dad was also a good dad in his own tough love kind of way. I appreciate him now. Maybe not then, but I learned a lot on my own because my father let me fail and he didn't. He wasn't there to save me. Every time he told me he wasn't going to be there to save me. And now I appreciate that so much. But that feels scary to me as a parent. It feels scary to let my kid fail because I don't want them to hurt and I don't want them to be hurt and all that other stuff. But you know, it's an interesting reminder and your book shares this is that we did okay. We survived and we became human beings that, you know, live and breathe on this earth.

[C]

Book.

[A]

Yeah. That read self help books and have lots of therapy and suffer from all kind of pee and they should go through the same shit. Pain begets pain, kid. Hurt people. Hurt people. I'm sorry, you're two. You're gonna go to the motel and check in and stay the night by yourself. That's your task for today. Well, I think it's, I think it's a good reminder. It is.

[B]

You know, it's funny, I, I, I, when I went to college, I remember my first week I lived in a dorm and I, all my clothes were dirty and I went, oh, I don't know how to do laundry. And, and I go, and the reason I didn't is because my mom loves me and you know, was trying to help me out in high school and all these things, but I just went, oh. And I remember in my dorm popping the lid of the washing machine open and reading the instructions on the bottom of the lid. Who has ever done that but you know, besides like me? And I was like, oh, okay, I need like detergent. I had no idea. And that just came from my mom, like wanting to take care of me like out of the kindness of her heart. But I've remembered that stuff and I've gone like, okay, so now like my 11 year old, like knows how to use the washing machine and like if she gets to like Monday morning she's going to school and she goes, oh, none of my, my pants are clean. I go, well, I guess you should have done your laundry this weekend. And, and that happened like one time. And like now she's on top of it, you know, and so I, I think it's more of like a mindset, you know, it's like we, there's these dramatic examples of like, yeah, I sent my toddler, you know, into the gas station by herself or whatever. But then there's two just going like, yeah, you can, like, take care of yourself. Like, you can. You can make yourself a bowl of cereal if I'm not awake yet and you're hungry and all that, these things. And I. I think it's like, you can start small, and once they start to get those feelings of confidence and independence, I. It's infectious for them, I think. And. And now. Now my daughter, she'll ask for, like, a little too much, you know, she'll be like, can I? You know, like, she'll. And we'll go, maybe when you're a little bit older and, you know, whatever.

[A]

But, hey, dad, can I buy a pack of cigarettes?

[B]

Exactly.

[A]

Yeah. Okay. So in. In your book, I think one of the funniest parts of the book is, like, you're. You're talking about these lies. Lies that won't harm your children irreparably, but you can talk to them. You can tell them to, like, save you time and effort and energy and. One of my favorites. And, man, I wish I could implore that I could install this rule in our house right away or say this lie immediately. But they already know how the car works. I wish I could tell them that the car no longer plays music, because if I hear Frozen or Apata one more time, I think I'm going to jump out of a window. It's. It's crazy. They're like. They always want to listen to it on repeat, too. It's driving me up the fucking wall.

[B]

Yeah, you have to start early with that one. You know, it's like once. Once the cat's out of the bag, you can't put it back in. But, yeah, it just occurred to me, like. Yeah, like, I'm always listening to, like, you know, like, punk music in the car or whatever. And. And the first time the kids were like, yeah, can we put on, you know, encanto? I'd be like, ah, it just. It doesn't play in the car, you know, like, kid. Kid music just. It doesn't. It's not wired to play, you know, kid music and the car. And they go, all right, you know, like, they don't. They don't know how stuff works, and they can't Google. So, like, you're kind of the. You know, you're their de facto expert on everything. And I. I think it's totally fine to lie to kids. And you know what? Like, they. I feel like they lie to us about everything, and I feel like it's okay Just to wedge a couple in. Yeah. Yeah. A little white line. Yeah.

[A]

I had a friend who took it, like, to the nth degree, and they wouldn't tell their kids about Santa Claus, Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, because they believed that that would irrepl. That would cause damage that they would not be able to recover from. When they found out that Santa Claus was a lie or that Tooth Fairy was a lie or that Easter Bunny was a lie, I almost bought into that. And I was like, am I gonna actually exclude that magic from my child's life? I feel okay telling them that Santa Claus exists and they will go to therapy just like I did, and everything will be fine. You know what I'm saying? It's like, yeah, figure it out, and everything will be okay.

[B]

You know what? I. You know, I think, like, I'm. I'm totally fine doing that. I mean, I have a whole chapter in the book where I recommend we just get rid of all of them. Not for. Because we're lying to the kids or just because they're a huge pain in the ass for parents. But. Yeah, but I do feel like you can. It's kind of the first time they get to, like, solve a mystery, you know, because, like, I think rarely is a kid told about those. And they go, what? You know, and it's like the end of the Sixth Sense. Like, I feel like they. They kind of know, you know, like, yeah, even my. My son right now is. He keeps going things like, well, you know, the Easter Bunny, if he's real, will bring me whatever. I go, all right. The fact that you're saying that is, like, you. You know, and they've put the pieces together and, like, you know, we're not particularly good at, like, hiding the. You know, the. The evidence either.

[A]

Yeah, yeah.

[B]

My. I remember, like, I think three Easters ago because, you know, you want to, like, ideally all the eggs are in the backyard or whatever before the kids wake up, but kids wake up at, like, 5:30 in the morning, so. So you're like, all right, what am I supposed to do?

[A]

Is to wake up at 4?

[B]

And then I'm like, we could do it at night, but we have, you know, with, like, raccoons and stuff in our backyard. And so I'm like, they're gonna eat. So. So I remember the kids woke up and they looked in the backyard, and they go like, oh, the Easter money didn't come. And I had to go. I go, he hasn't come yet. You know, he's got to go to all the houses. So he just hasn't. You know, he's like the Amazon guy. He's got it. You know, he's gonna make his way here.

[A]

You know, why don't you go hide in a closet? Yeah. We'll see if he comes in the next hour or so. Daddy needs a shot of whiskey.

[B]

I'll be right back. Yeah. And so, you know, it's like, kids aren't stupid. You know, they put that together eventually.

[A]

Okay, so mine is. Mine is. One of my kids is around your son's age. Seven, right?

[B]

Yep.

[A]

Is around seven years old. And he is also starting to say things like, is the tooth fairy real? And I said, do you believe the tooth fairy is real? That's my response. Right. I throw it back on him. Yeah. And he says, I think so. And I go, well, if you believe, then it's real, because I haven't seen him either. I haven't seen her either, or whatever. And so that's kind of my, like, default response. I feel like he's already starting to unravel the mystery a little bit. Why do some presents come from Santa, but some come from mom and dad?

[C]

But the other thing.

[A]

The why, why, the why, why, why?

[C]

And I like the answer, which was, I'm just an idiot. I don't know.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[B]

Yeah. I know. It's the keeping up of, like, the backstories is a lot for us. And, you know, one thing that I think when my daughter figured out Santa Claus, I think, like, kind of the best thing you can do when they figure out is go, okay, you got me. But now you get to kind of be part of, like, the Illuminati who knows about this. Right? You know, and so. Because then you don't want them to go to school and go, hey, dude, guess what I found out. So you're. You're like, hey, so you're kind of part of the, like, Santa crew now, or you're part, you know, whatever.

[A]

That's good.

[B]

And then it's. And you can. And this makes people happy, and you can help, you know, keep the myth going. And so then. Then they feel like they've got a secret, which kids love, you know?

[A]

When did you. When did she. When did she discover. When was her, like, the uncover age?

[B]

Well, we had a very. It was. It was a little dramatic with my daughter because she's, you know, she's like a trial lawyer, and always and always has been. So she. When she was, I think, like, five years old, she really wanted this gift for Christmas. That was ridiculous. Right? And so she. It was a big. It's a big plastic horse. And from like the second Frozen movie, there was like, it's like an ice horse, right? And this thing was like $150 and does nothing. It's just a big fucking piece of plastic, right? So, you know, and so she's asking for it, and my wife and I are going, like, are we gonna buy this thing? Like, this is like, we do not want to buy this thing. And yeah, it's crazy.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And the place we were living at the time was like, small. I go, this is going to take up like 2% of our total square footage in our house. This stupid horse, right? So, you know, so she's asking for it, asking for it. My wife and I are like, we're not, we're not going to buy this, but we're like, we're going to get her a bike, right? Bike. Great. Classic Christmas gift, you know, perfect gift. So then Christmas morning comes and there's no plastic horse and there is a bike. And all the gifts are open. And this, like, my daughter's face just goes like, blank. And she goes, I know you're Santa. And we're like, like, whoa. Like, you know, and she, she had put it all together and she's like, you didn't get me the water knock. You got me the bike. Because the bike, the bike is cheaper, you know? Like, I mean, it was like. I mean, she was like, had us dead to rights. We're like, oh, boy. So. So she had figured it out. And then, so then we start going, like, do we rush out and get. I mean, it's, it's like Christmas morning. Is. Is Walmart open? Like, can we go get this thing? And so we. Eventually, so we, we didn't get it for her. And then, but she ended. She had some money, like she had saved up from birthdays and stuff, and she bought it and it's still in our house to this day. She never, I mean, you know, now she's like 11. Like, she doesn't need a big horse, but she is like, she's very stubborn. She's digging her heels in. She goes, I love that thing. I go, oh, do you, do you really love it or are you just driving me insane?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Oh, have you guys started the cell phone conversation yet?

[B]

Yeah. Oh, yes, yes. I'd say my daughter has started the cell phone conversation. Exactly.

[A]

Right?

[B]

Yeah, yeah. No, we're, we're.

[A]

So is my 3 year old, by the way. It's like, this is ridiculous. You're never. They had started asking the other day at dinner, you know, what age can we get a phone? And I said, that will be a decision that me and your mother will make. When we get tired of giving you our own cell phone, we'll make that decision.

[B]

Yeah, I mean, look, there's, like, definitely some good uses for it. Like, you know, we have, you know, my wife, like, got a new iPhone, and then so. But we kept her old one, so there's no cell service, but if they're on WI fi, you know, they can use it. And so, you know, we've had some good stuff, like if they're staying with their grandparents, and we're like, hey, you could, like, you could text us or you can FaceTime. Like, that's great. But so, like, we. That old iPhone, we say, is, like, the family, like, phone or whatever. And my daughter will. She'll go, like. She's like, oh, have you seen my phone? I go, you don't have a phone. You know, like, anytime she tries to claim it, I go, it's not yours. She goes, yes, it is. Like, no, it's not. But, you know, we just. We didn't have an iPad forever, and we just got an iPad, and before we slid it across the table, we go, like, you guys can have this if you agree to the following terms. They're like, there are no. There are no games on this. You know, this is for, like. Like, if we're going on a flight, you can watch Netflix on it or you can FaceTime your friends, and that's it. So I. I think as long as you're really paying attention, I think that stuff is fine. But again, that book, Ancient Anxious Generation, really lays out some, like, crazy data and how damaging it can be to kids. And, you know, I mean, you know, our daughter's 11. She feels young right now, but I know she's going to middle school next year. I know that's going to, like, speed up real quick. And so as long as we can, we're just trying to keep them off the Internet.

[A]

Yeah, I don't. I don't disagree with you. We have two iPads, and we started. We gave one to my firstborn when he was, like, three, but only for, like, you know, 15 minutes. If we were, you know, on a flight, on a long drive or whatever, and we just put whatever, you know, baby first or whatever it was that they were watching, just to kind of keep them occupied and quiet and whatever. But we learned very quickly that that is. It has a snowball effect so now absolute, they're, they're not even in sight on weekdays when there's school involved, and on the weekends we only allow them, you know, they can play Spotify, they can listen to music, you know, their own playlists or whatever. Or we have certain, like they can go on Netflix and watch, you know, whatever the rated G things, whatever it is. But what we have noticed is since we took the iPads away, for 99% of the time they don't ask for it.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Which is kind of strange. Only on occasion will they ask to play Spotify. And most of the times we can play it on those Sonos or whatever we have, but they don't really ask for it. But when they had access to it for like the six months that we would say, okay, you can watch it for 15 minutes or whatever, the more that they had it, the more that they asked for it. And it became so blatantly clear to me that this is addictive. And the more that they have it, the more that they want it. Something is feeding that dopamine channel. And so we snap back real quick and it was a lesson that we learned. And for like a week there was a lot of complaining about it. And then just eventually they forgot it. They went and played with their toys or listened to the music or whatever. So that's the most dangerous thing. And I think we're all about to learn a lesson about screens, that those screens are no good for us. I think a lot of people have learned this lesson. I think more waking up to it. Those screens are tethers that just suck us all in and make us less aware of the world around us, less attached, less connected and feel more lonely.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And I just don't want my children to go through that.

[B]

Yeah. I mean, I'm terrible with it. I mean like I, I have a really hard time. I go and I'm like a 40 year old man. I go, you know, these like, these kids like have no self control. They're just, they're so young, you know, So I, it does, it feels like a drug. I mean, it, it's, it's like giving them cigarettes or something, you know, where you just need to be like, okay, like, I mean it's, it's like dangerous, you know, so I totally agree. And I think like, and again, you know, no judgment on anybody. It's like whatever you got to do, you got to do. But I think similarly to the car radio thing, it's like if you can not let the cat out of the bag, and make these devices as, like. I mean, even for me, you know, I have to, like, I've taken Twitter, like, off my phone because I was just like, I can't. Like, if I'm filling up a glass of water at my fridge, the 10 seconds that takes I'm reaching for my phone to check Twitter, I go, I. I hate that. It's like just that monkey brain thing. And I'm. I'm having a hard time breaking myself of it. I can't imagine how difficult it would be for a kid.

[A]

So, yeah, yeah, I think I kicked myself in the ass about two years ago during. When we're all just kind of, you know, two or three years ago, we were all locked down and I went to the bathroom one night to pee, like, at 3 o' clock in the morning, and I realized that I took my phone with me. Like, I woke up to this fact. I was like, wait, I just took my phone with me so I could check Instagram. It's three in the fucking morning. I have 12 followers. What in the world could I be checking on? Like, what in the world is that important? Nothing's happening. It doesn't matter. We just got. I got so stuck in that kind of that feedback loop. Especially when, during, you know, the pandemic, when we were all just kind of here watching, waiting for the next shoe to drop and all that. It's amazing. I think that more of us could use kind of this pragmatic approach to parenting. You know, lay off the kids a little bit. Let them. Let them run into. Let them run into some sharp objects on occasion. Let them, you know, fall on some scissors or whatever. Because at the end of the day, what doesn't kill them will make them stronger. We know this from our own, own adult lives. It's the things that we go through make us more resilient, not less. And I also think that there's. We can get caught up with. What about the Joneses? Right? We get up with. We get caught up in that and it becomes a game you just can't win. You can never win it, because if you're not keeping up with the Joneses, you become the Joneses. And everyone's trying to keep up with you. And either way, it's a terrible cycle. I think you give some great advice in this book. It's really fucking funny.

[B]

Thank you. You know, it's funny like, my. My intention was not to have good advice in the book. I'm like, I'm going to write a comedy book, but. But I do Feel like, like you mentioned the purgatory cabinet. I was like, that's a real thing. I do. And I actually do think it's a good idea, you know, even though I wrote it for humor. So, yeah, I think I accidentally put some good advice in the book.

[A]

I, I think it's great. It's called wow, you look terrible. It's available today. I will put links in the show notes. Danny Ricker, you can follow him on social media, of course. Watch Jimmy Kimmel, the Best of the Late Night Talk show. Late night Talk show survives with Jimmy Kimmel. The, in the great tradition of Letterman and, and Carson and all the other kind of you.

[B]

Thank you.

[A]

No, I think that it, it's a true statement if we're watching a late night talk show around here. If I'm watching it, it's Kimmel and I've got my wife addicted to Kimmel. So he's great. And now we know one of the voice, one of the people that gives voice to Kimmel. And so you're welcome back anytime.

[B]

I would love to come back. Yeah. Thank you. I really appreciate you guys having me on and you guys do a great show. Thanks for having me.

[A]

If Pete Davidson or Ariana Grande ever, you know, can't make the Jimmy's, just call us up and we'll be happy to pipe ourselves in.

[B]

Done.

[A]

We've got a lot to talk about and I promise I'll, I'll tone down the cussing if I'm on national tv.

[B]

You know what? We don't ask that of our guests. You can, you can say whatever the fuck you want.

[A]

Do you guys have. Are you Safe harbor at 11:30 and you.

[B]

We, you know, we have to bleep it out, you know, but yeah, you know, Jimmy is always, I think because he is, you know, he's kind of a traditional broadcaster. He often does not swear on the show. It's very rare. He does like we have tons of swearing in our like comedy bits. And you know, he's, he's not opposed to it, but I think he feels like as like the host, he's supposed like the host of a party. He's like, he needs to have a certain decorum about him, which I always appreciate. He swears like a sailor off the air, you know, which is, which is fun.

[A]

But yeah, yeah, it's funny to watch the transition from Jimmy kind of like, you know, second fiddle radio guy to man show to, you know, really kind of esteemed late night talk show host. He's, he did it. He, he did it and now I, I don't know. I respect him as a comedian and as a, as a talk show host. I think he's one of the, one of the better ones. So congratulations on all the success with Jimmy Kimmel. May you guys do it for another 50, 15 years and please come back. You're welcome anytime. Danny Ricker everybody. I'll put all the links in the show notes. Thank you Danny.

[B]

Thanks guys.

[C]

Thank you. Let me do something Brian has never done.

[A]

Be brief.

[C]

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] thecommercialbreak and finally share the show. It's the best gift you could give a few aging podcasters. See Brian, that really wasn't that difficult now was it? You're welcome. Meet Natural Cycles, the only FDA cleared and CE marked birth control app that's 100% natural hormone free and side effect free. Here's how it works. The app analyzes daily changes in your body temperature to find your fertile window so you can plan or prevent pregnancy naturally. Natural Cycles is a clinically proven non hormonal birth control option that's 93% effective with typical use and 98% effective with perfect use. No synthetic hormones, just science. And if you're ready to start family planning, switching from preventing to planning a pregnancy is as easy as tapping a button. Plus, the Natural Cycles app makes tracking fertility easy. You can measure your temperature trends using an Oura Ring, Apple Watch or our Bluetooth thermometer, which is free when you sign up for an annual subscription. Join over 4 million registered users who are taking control of their fertility naturally. Save 15% when you sign up with code [e-mail] that's radio15 for 15% off today.

[B]

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[C]

Thanks for selling your car to Carvana. Here's your check.

[A]

Whoa. When did I get here?

[C]

What do you mean?

[A]

I swear it was just moments ago.

[B]

That I accepted a great offer from Carvana online. I must have time traveled to the future.

[C]

It was just moments ago. We do same day pickup. Here's your check for that great offer.

[A]

It is the future.

[C]

It's, it's the present and just the convenience of Carvana. Sorry to blow your mind.

[A]

It's all good.

[B]

Happens all the time.

[C]

Sell your car the convenient way to Carvana. Pickup times may vary and fees may apply.

[A]

Danny Ricker, nine time Emmy nominee. I don't know if he ever did he win one? I don't know. We didn't ask him. But nine time Emmy nominee, head writer, co executive producer of the Jimmy Kimmel show and his brand new book. Wow, you look terrible. Now available at the links in the show notes. We'll remind you throughout the week, but it's available, it's out today. So if you're a parent or if you're interested in parenting, if you're not a parent and you're thinking about being a parent, read this book because I think it'll probably dissuade you from being a parent.

[C]

I know it reinforced me.

[A]

Yeah. It reinforced your life choices. Yeah. Okay. All right. Don't rub it in our faces, Chrissy. Don't rub it in our faces. Anyway, Danny was lovely to talk to. I'm fascinated by how the machinery works over there at the Jimmy Kimmel show.

[C]

It really was a pleasure.

[A]

I think what's interesting is to hear him talk about the Jimmy Kimmel show. It's not all that much different from the commercial break. You put some stuff on a spreadsheet, you put some ideas on the spreadsheet and then they get worked out very quickly. Only we put some stuff on the spreadsheet and then we never end up getting to it. That's how it works here at the commercial. Well, we're trying. We're getting better. Yeah, we are. We're getting better. Danny Ricker.com all the links down in the show notes. Thank you very much, Danny for coming in. I imagine he'll be back. I imagine we'll talk to Danny again.

[C]

I would love to.

[A]

Yeah, absolutely. And I've seen him on, like a lot of other podcasts and shows. He's, you know, he's doing the PR things. So maybe we'll have him back in a couple months and see how the book went. If it goes well, I'm sure he'll write another one. And he told us that Jimmy helped him with the book. Jimmy said, hey, go take these ideas and put them together and we'll figure it all out together. Forward written by Jimmy Kimmel. That's got to be a feather in your cap on the forward to your first book is written by Jimmy Kimmel. Yes. 12 hours of TCB coming May 31st. That's a Saturday, so you have a chance of keeping up with it. 12 hours of TCB. Celebrities are coming by. They're going to talk about mental health. We're going to talk about mental health awareness. We're going to check on our own mental health. By the end of the day, it's all going to be for a good cause. And celebrating. Five years of the commercial break. Five years of the commercial break. Unbelievable. 750 episodes. Five years. It's crazy. And we're gonna what, add another 30 episodes that one day? Yeah, okay. Yeah, we're gonna go straight to 800 by the end of the day. Also, don't forget America's what? No, never mind. Never mind. I can't say that yet. I'll let that out of the bag later on this week. Big news coming later on this week. Stay tuned. I also wanted to tell you that 212-4333 TCB. That's 212-433-3822. We take questions, comments, concerns, content, ideas. All right. There one location at that phone number. You can also leave us a voicemail if you want to be heard on the commercial break. Tcbpodcast.com all the audio, all the video and your free TCB podcast schwag. Go to the contact us button. Give us your address and the the team behind us will send you something very shortly. The Danny Ricker of the commercial break will send you some swag very quickly. Add the commercial break on Instagram, TCB podcast on tick tock and YouTube.com the commercial break for all the episodes on video the same day. They air here on the audio. And while we're speaking about the video, thank you to our video production team. We plash if you need video production services, reach out and we'll send you their information or look them up Weplash. Okay Chrissy, that's all I can do for today. I'll tell you that I love you. Best to you and best to you out there in the podcast universe. Until next time Chrissy and I will say we do say and we must say goodbye.

[C]

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[A]

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[A]

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