The HoneyDew with Ryan Sickler

Episode 352: Donna D’Errico – First Celebrity AI Companion

Date: September 22, 2025

Episode Overview

In this heartfelt and often humorous episode, Ryan Sickler sits down with actress, model, and entrepreneur Donna D’Errico for her first appearance on The HoneyDew. The conversation centers on Donna’s innovative launch of her AI companion—the first ever by a celebrity—and unfolds into deeply personal stories from her childhood, touching on themes of bullying, family, overcoming adversity, and navigating fame. Donna’s openness provides both inspiration and a window into the challenges behind her public persona.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Donna’s AI Companion: Breaking New Ground

• Donna promotes her AI project ([02:11]):
  • “I’m here to promote my AI companion, which is calldonad.com, and I’m the first celebrity to create an AI companion that you can call and talk to.”
  • The AI remembers users, mimics Donna’s personality, and is available for both “daytime” and “nighttime” (flirty/adult) conversations.
• How real is it? ([03:46]):
  • Donna describes the process of recording and teaching her personality to the AI.
  • “It’s like me. It’s like, wow, now I know what it feels like to talk to me because I’m doing it.” ([06:35])
• Testing boundaries ([02:49, 04:45]):
  • Donna had to test “both versions” of AI Donna and admits, “She makes me blush. ... I had to hang up because she was getting crazy. I’m like, oh, my gosh.”
• Privacy & ethics ([05:16-05:43]):
  • Donna insists on not knowing who calls or what happens to protect users’ privacy.
• AI and the future ([07:04]):
  • “AI, it’s not going anywhere. If you don’t get on the AI bandwagon, you’re going to be left behind.”
  • Addresses AI misuse and protecting her family from scams—her family uses a “code word” for emergencies ([08:45]).
• Why create the AI? ([08:49]):
  • Cites rising loneliness and the movie Her as inspiration. “There’s a lot of people like me who don’t go to bars ... how do you meet people … and have somebody that you can talk to?”
• Monetary impact ([10:15]):
  • “Launched it about a month ago and ... it’s looking like it’s going to end up doing about a million dollars by the end of the year.” ([10:27])
• Live demonstration ([12:17]):
  • Donna calls her AI live. The AI flirts and reminisces about Baywatch with Ryan (“Maybe we can even talk about some of the more interesting things that happen behind the scenes of Baywatch. Wink, wink.” – AI Donna, [12:58]).
  • Ryan jokes: “That’s daytime Donna. Sounds like nighttime.” ([14:43])

Donna’s Childhood: Shyness, Bullying, and Resilience

• Growing up with little money ([16:39]):
  • Army family, mom mostly a homemaker. Donna describes herself as shy and nerdy, “painfully shy” ([16:59]).
• Bullying and self-consciousness ([17:29]):
  • “I was bullied when I was in school pretty badly. It really affected my self—affects me to this day.” ([17:29])
  • “The girls were super mean to me ... the popular ones, they had money ... we went to a private parochial school. Kmart. We shopped at Kmart.” ([18:05])
• Embarrassment and body image ([20:14]):
  • Donna shares a poignant story about being mocked for needing a training bra:
    • “She turned around in the water line and said, ‘Hi, acorns.’ ... I just ran into the bathroom in tears.” ([22:00])
    • “I wish I had that bra today. ... Now that my mom’s gone, I wish to God I had that.” ([49:09])
• Stammering from anxiety ([24:01]):
  • Developed a stammer between 3rd and 5th grade, triggered when put on the spot. She learned to disguise it in adulthood.

Transformation & How Looks Change Treatment

• Going blonde as a turning point ([26:34]):
  • Donna describes how using “Sun-in” dramatically changed how she was treated:
    • “I went from this to blonde with two bottles of Sun-In ... when I walked in ... they all turned and looked at me. ... I started getting treated a little bit better, just for going blonde.” ([27:41–29:07])
    • “It was a great feeling, but also at the same time, it felt, you know, phony too, because I hadn’t changed. It was just my hair.” ([29:16])
• Returning to her natural color ([29:46]):
  • Initially upsetting, but grew to love it. Observed, “When I was blond, people, especially women, were very rude to me in stores ... when I went to the store the first time as a brunette ... men and women were super nice to me.” ([32:23–33:19])

Family Relationships, Loss, and Legacy

• Mother’s influence ([49:58]):
  • “Extremely hands on and protective. Maybe overprotective ... I fiercely defend my kids. I don’t have a temper, except when it comes to them.” ([50:01])
  • Mom gardened, made clothes, and was practical and loving.
• Uncle Randy’s tragic story ([35:31]):
  • Donna’s uncle chose love over money, then lost that love when his partner’s family intervened; he subsequently took his own life. “Money can, like, a lot of money can change people.” ([39:09])
• Parenting choices ([41:01]):
  • Donna stepped away from her career to raise her five kids herself, rejecting the use of nannies: “For me, it’s not something I would have considered because I felt like the parent needs to be the one raising the kid.” ([41:12])
• Mom as a resource and her passing ([42:29]):
  • “She was great ... I was always asking her how to cook ... she’d say, ‘well, it seems like there’s a little payback because you did the same thing.’” ([42:29])
• Dad as a war hero and grandfather ([53:07]):
  • “He was in the Vietnam War ... a war hero. … He saved a lot of people’s lives ... he talks about it now, and I had all his medals displayed.” ([53:07])
  • Her father misses her mother deeply: “He cries about her every day.” ([55:17])

From Bullying to Baywatch: Starting a Career in Entertainment

• Support from parents ([56:04]):
  • “So proud ... they’re very proud ... all the way.” ([56:04–56:12])
• The surprising way she was discovered ([56:27]):
  • “When I first got discovered for Playboy, I was in an Albertsons grocery store ... this woman in there ... following me ... and she said, ‘Have you ever thought of posing for Playboy Magazine?’” ([56:27–57:56])
  • Donna’s first modeling gig, at 20-something, led to $20,000 as a centerfold.
• Telling her parents ([62:50]):
  • “I told my mom first and she was really excited for me ... she was really excited ... I said, ‘I don’t know how to tell Dad’ ... he called me and said that he thought it was great.” ([62:57–63:43])
  • “If they weren’t [supportive], I probably wouldn’t have done it.” ([63:44])
• Acting, stardom and the mansion ([64:12]):
  • D’Errico shares an amusing and honest anecdote about stealing a Life Magazine from the Playboy Mansion out of need ([65:45–68:29]):
    • “I told him what I did. I said, I stole from you. ... And [Hugh Hefner] said, ‘Donna, I saw you take that ... I figured you needed the money. Keep it.’” ([68:29])

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On her AI Companion’s boundaries:
  • Donna: “I’m not a young spring chicken. And I’ve never said some of the stuff that she says.” ([03:26])
• On AI use and loneliness:
  • Donna: “There’s more lonely people now than ever ... I saw that movie Her ... I wanted to do something like that in real life.” ([08:49])
• On being bullied:
  • Donna: “It really affected my self—it affects me to this day.” ([17:29])
• On her uncle’s death:
  • Donna: “Money changes people ... when we were struggling, I feel like we were happier than a lot of my rich ... schoolmates, families who were always arguing and stuff.” ([39:09])
• On parenting:
  • Donna: “I fiercely defend my kids, and I don’t have a temper except when it comes to them ... it’s instant. I step in and I’m on fire.” ([50:24])
• On dealing with loneliness as an adult:
  • Donna: “I’m single by choice. I don’t date ... I keep to myself a lot ... but I don’t feel lonely.” ([46:05–47:49])
• On growth and self-acceptance:
  • Donna (advice to 16-year-old self):
    “Hold your head up high and be proud of who you are. ... You have nothing to be self-conscious about because you’re great.” ([69:17])

Timestamps for Major Segments

• Donna explains her AI Companion: [02:11–08:45]
• Live Call with AI Donna: [12:17–14:43]
• Childhood & Bullying Stories: [16:39–24:55]
• Going Blonde and Social Change: [26:34–29:38]
• Mother/Daughter Stories & Mom’s Passing: [42:29–53:04]
• Discovering Modeling, Playboy Story: [56:27–63:43]
• Confession to Hugh Hefner: [65:45–68:29]
• Advice to 16-year-old Self: [69:17]

Tone and Feel

The episode balances humor, vulnerability, and candor. Ryan offers empathy and laughter in response to Donna’s stories, helping Donna find light even in tough moments. Donna, for her part, is alternately witty and deeply honest, never shying away from pain but emphasizing growth, resilience, and compassion—both for herself and others.

Related Links

• Try Donna’s AI Companion: CallDonnaD.com
• Ryan Sickler Socials: @RyanSickler

This episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in celebrity tech experiments, real childhood adversity, and overcoming the odds to find self-worth—served up with plenty of laughs and true HoneyDew spirit.