Podcast Summary: The Big Suey – “A Kitten With a Toy” (feat. Hank Azaria)

Overview

In this episode of The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz (aired December 8, 2025), Dan, Stugotz, Chris Cody, Pablo Torre, and guest Hank Azaria deliver a wide-ranging, humorous, and occasionally heartfelt conversation. They cover Hank’s obsessive hobbies (including his Springsteen tribute band), stories from The Simpsons and other showbiz adventures, the peculiarities of streaming in today’s media landscape, and bring in plenty of sports talk with Hank’s trademark voices and New York sports misery. Throughout, the panel explores the intersections of fandom, personal passion, and career with quick wit and memorable stories.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Hank Azaria on Comic Con, The Simpsons, and His Many Voices

• Comic Con Experiences: Hank shares how attending Comic Con as himself helps raise considerable funds for his foundation and connects with diverse fans. He brings memorabilia representing the vast array of voices he’s done ([04:31]–[04:57]).
• The Birth of Moe on The Simpsons:
  • Origin Story: Hank explains that Moe Szyslak’s voice was born from a hybrid of young Al Pacino and Bruce Springsteen, adapted after a theater role ([06:32]–[07:11]).
    • “Fun fact: halfway between Bruce Springsteen and young Al Pacino, you got Moe the Bartender.” – Hank Azaria [07:11]
• Voiceover Beginnings: His initial professional voice work was as "Hollywood Dog" in a failed Fox pilot, which (somewhat accidentally) led to his Simpsons casting ([05:20]–[05:49]).

2. Sports Talk – NY Pain, Hate-Watching, and Character Reactions

• Hank’s Jets Obsession: Despite 15 playoff-less years, Hank describes the masochism of NY Jets fandom: “Very early on in the season, you are going to switch from rooting for the team to win to analyzing exactly how it's gone horrible…” ([07:34]–[08:04]).
• Football Analysis – in Character:
  • Moe the Bartender on Bills-Bengals: “Bills is them…them peoples is annoying.” [08:48]
  • Chief Wiggum on Daniel Jones’s Injury: Delivers a rambling, clueless police call, riffing on police euphemisms for “fat” and stadium perks ([09:35]–[10:58]).
• Spoiler Avoidance Rituals: Obsessed with preserving the “magic” of live sports, Hank describes elaborate efforts to avoid spoilers and how he watches games while exercising, sometimes hate-watching the Jets and savoring the ritual ([30:25]–[41:13]).
  • “I find every bit of news so disturbing these days that I'm quite good at avoiding [spoilers].” – Hank [31:44]

3. Hank’s Springsteen Cover Band: A New Passion

• Personal Obsession and Family Impact: Singing as Bruce Springsteen has become a genuine obsession for Hank, much to his wife’s complicated feelings ([11:52]–[12:39]).
  • “I'm like a kitten with a toy with the mic.” – Hank [12:39]
  • He discusses the emotional and therapeutic impact of performing Springsteen songs (“primal, teenage anger and sadness” unlocked through rock screams) ([44:27]–[45:42]).
    • “It was almost like I unlocked sadness and anger I didn’t know I had going back from age 15.” – Hank [44:36]
• On Stage and On Tour: Hank relishes giving himself a late-life creative challenge, secretly forming the band for his 60th birthday and continuing because of the joy and charitable impact ([13:47]–[14:36]).
  • He describes funding and running the band himself, making all creative decisions, and finding fulfillment outside big corporate projects ([46:09]–[46:17]).
  • Performances are listed at EasyStreetBan.com, with upcoming gigs in New York and Colorado ([46:17]).

4. The Reality of Today's Streaming and Project Discovery

• Brockmire’s Journey: Hank details how his IFC series Brockmire struggled with visibility after shifting from a Netflix to Hulu deal, lamenting the “buried” nature of many quality shows in today’s fragmented media ([21:30]–[24:50]).
  • Production was grueling: “Eight episodes shot in three weeks” [23:08].
• The Gilded Age ‘The Artist’ – Another Hidden Gem: Hank unveils his new, ultra-niche dark comedy, where he plays Thomas Edison (using Superintendent Chalmers’s voice), available on the near-invisible “the network dot stream” service ([26:22]–[29:28]).
• Meta-Commentary on The Modern Media World:
  • Pablo notes the irony that their own podcast/studio exists on similarly “outsider,” indie principles ([28:48]–[29:56]).
  • Hank shrugs off struggles with visibility: “What do I care? They gave me donuts at the craft.” – Hank [30:06]

5. Family, Fandom, and Catharsis

• Sports Rage and Family Reactions: Hank describes scaring his family with outbursts at the TV (“Screaming is at the top of their lungs…It took some getting used to—like, what? They come running, what's the matter? The Jets is what’s the matter.” [41:32]).
• Springsteen as Therapy: Beyond the lark of fandom, performing becomes deep emotional work—joy and catharsis rolled into one.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On Fandom & Voice Acting

• “I descend from exiles who lived on an island. I cannot tell you how much I hate the cold. But I am made to feel warmer by my New York friends arriving in Mass…” – Chris Cody [02:49]
• “Technically, ever since I can't fit into the largest size of the police uniform that they make, so I could go on disability if I so chose.” – Hank as Chief Wiggum [09:57]
• “He seems to have hurt his lower…what do you call…The leg. Right, the leg.” – Hank as Wiggum improvising football injury [11:24]

On Cover Bands and Passion

• “My wife was sort of traumatized by it at first…She spent a lot of her 20s dating guys in rock bands…I can't believe you're going to do this now.” – Hank [12:13]
• “No screaming like Bruce in the house before 7am…Now I have to run concert dates by her.” – Hank [14:47]
• “It's like a kitten with a toy.” – Hank on his Springsteen musical obsession [12:39]

On the Pain of Jets Fandom

• “Pavlovian trained to scream the F word at the Jets. Such ridiculations occur with their penalties and their quarterbacks who miss throws…You cannot help but scream the F word.” – Hank [40:25]

On The Art and Therapy of Singing

• “I started to actually cry. It was just real joy for me…like introducing [the band] to the music…It’s like a family. All the parts of show business I like, without all the parts I hate.” – Hank [45:42]
• “Singing this is scientifically proven…very healthy for your vagus nerve. It’s very calming and energizing at the same time.” – Hank [44:22]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [04:31] Hank on Comic Con, fan interactions, and The Simpsons
• [06:32] Birth of Moe Szyslak’s voice (Pacino x Springsteen)
• [07:34-08:04] The fate of Jets fans and “hate-watching”
• [08:43-10:58] Football analysis and Simpsons voices riffing
• [11:52-12:39] Hank’s Bruce Springsteen band and family reactions
• [13:47-14:36] Secret birthday band formation; finding purpose in passion
• [21:30-24:50] The Brockmire tale: “Buried on Hulu,” now on Netflix
• [26:22-29:28] New project: The Artist, streaming woes, and Chalmers-Edison voice
• [30:25-41:13] Hank’s spoiler-avoidance rituals; watching sports for catharsis
• [44:27-46:17] Singing Springsteen as therapy, music’s personal meaning

Final Thoughts

This episode balances goofiness with sharp insights into show business, creative passion, sports pain and devotion, and the strange new world of streaming media. Hank Azaria’s humor and honesty shine, whether he’s dissecting Jets trauma, mocking streaming entropy, or explaining the healing magic of belting Springsteen songs. For anyone navigating middle age with persistent obsessions—or just curious about what makes one of TV’s classic voice actors tick—this episode is a can’t-miss.

To find Easy Street Band tour dates: easystreetban.com

Memorable Closing Exchange

“I've learned to ask for what I want. And if you ask, you receive.”
– Hank Azaria [47:58]