← The HoneyDew with Ryan Sickler
The HoneyDew with Ryan Sickler
371: Nic Novicki | The HoneyDew with Ryan Sickler #371 | Full Episode
01:13:48
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- [00:00]
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- [01:00]
Rocket Money Host
Podcast is sponsored by Talkspace.
- [01:02]
Nick Novicki
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- [01:27]
Nick Novicki
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Nick Novicki
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Nick Novicki
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- [03:06]
Ryan Sickler
I'm headed back your way. Valentine's Weekend. That's right, Valentine's weekend. I'll be there February 13th and the 14th, Connecticut. Come see me at Comics Roadhouse March 13th and 14th. Get your tickets now at ryancickler.com.
- [03:25]
Nick Novicki
The Honeydew with Ryan Sickler.
- [03:38]
Ryan Sickler
Welcome back to the Honeydew, y'.
- [03:40]
Nick Novicki
All.
- [03:40]
Ryan Sickler
We're over here doing it in the Night Pants Studios. I'm Ryan Sickler. Ryan Sickler on all your social media. Ryancicler.com thank you for watching this show. If you're watching this far, just hit subscribe. If you're not subscribed, drop a comment, help the show out. You know, I was gonna drop an F bomb there, but you can't this early in the episode. So, you know, engage with the sponsors, you know, all that stuff to help the show. Look, you guys know what we do here? We highlight the low lights and I always say that these are the stories behind the storytellers. I'm very excited to have this guest on TODAY with me. First time here on the Honeydew. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Nick Novicki. Welcome to the Honeydew.
- [04:20]
Nick Novicki
Nick. He man, good to see you, brother. Great to see you.
- [04:25]
Ryan Sickler
Thank you for doing this. Before we get into your story, please plug everything you'd like.
- [04:31]
Nick Novicki
Yeah. First of all, you can find me at Nick Novicki on all social media. My name is Nic. There's no K, which is frustrating to a lot of people when they're searching. But Nick, no Vicki. I got a movie coming out. Father's Day Bittersweet. It'll be out on hopefully bunch of different areas but in select theaters and also very excited to be on Bad Thoughts.
- [04:55]
Ryan Sickler
Yeah, brother. That was nice. That was a nice surprise when I saw you at the premiere and then none of us know what we're doing, so I was like, oh, I can't wait to see what his episode is. Yeah. Yeah.
- [05:04]
Nick Novicki
So it was an exciting thing. So check it out on Netflix. Also, see me do comedy, all my dates, and everything else coming out at Nick Novicki.
- [05:15]
Ryan Sickler
All right, brother, so we're going to get right into your story here. And before we started talking, my first question. Excuse me, before we started recording to you was, you're 42, you said. And I wanted to know, you know, back then, did they know you were going. Were your parents aware you were going to be born a little person?
- [05:33]
Nick Novicki
So this is the wild thing. I have pseudo achondroplasia dwarfism. So it is a really rare kind of dwarfism. It is also the only kind of dwarfism where they have no idea that you're little. So I'm the mystery. I am the mystery.
- [05:48]
Ryan Sickler
Even after you're born? After you're born, you are born to what they seem.
- [05:53]
Nick Novicki
Statistically is statistically. I have two brothers.
- [05:57]
Ryan Sickler
Okay?
- [05:57]
Nick Novicki
I was taller, and I was heavier than both of my brothers at birth. At birth.
- [06:02]
Ryan Sickler
Are your parents one little people?
- [06:04]
Nick Novicki
No one in my family. There's no. I grew up in New Haven, Connecticut.
- [06:08]
Ryan Sickler
There's not one chromosome from somebody way to hell back there.
- [06:11]
Nick Novicki
We don't know anybody. I am, like, the only little person that anyone in my family's ever even seen. I mean, this is not. Now we're everywhere. In movies and tv. It's like, nobody has any. Like, what is a little person? So we're going through different doctor checkups. My mom's bringing me in.
- [06:33]
Ryan Sickler
At what point. What point do they start worrying, like, hey, he's not growing or what? When is that?
- [06:38]
Nick Novicki
We're just going in regular checkups. Okay? This is the height, the weight, normal. Height, the weight, normal. All of a sudden, they're doing something, and they're like, he shrank. What do you mean, he shrank? They're trying to do numbers. They're like, how is this possible? He shrank? Well, my spine started to curve because of my scoliosis. So I'm now literally shorter than I was, somewhere around two. So really between, like, three, you know, two to four is where people find out, sometimes even five, that my kind of dwarfism is pseudo achondroplasia.
- [07:16]
Ryan Sickler
Do you have any memory of. Of this back then?
- [07:20]
Nick Novicki
No, no. No memory of that. But my parents were, like, freaking out. They're like, what is going on with them? They were doing all kinds of different tests. They thought I had a kidney problem.
- [07:30]
Ryan Sickler
Well, then also, it turns out that not only you're a little person, but you're this rare version of it. So you Got to go back to this. And it's like, all this. And then you're like, wait. But then there's this other thing, too.
- [07:40]
Nick Novicki
And this is like, before Google. So you guys, you know, I'm saying you're 42. They have no idea. My parents are just staring at a phone book, like, what do we do? What is he. You know, they're trying to, like, yeah. Figure out Internet. My mom is watching the Donahue show. Talk show.
- [07:58]
Ryan Sickler
Can we pause right there for a second? Shout out to Phil Donahue. Is he still alive? If he's not, I hope you are Phil Donahue. Phil Donahue is the OG Donahue, whether you're here, Petey, he's the OG And I'm telling you, that guy before Montel Williams, all of them, it was Phil Donahue. And you know who used to do the best impression of Legit Rest in Peace is Phil Hartman.
- [08:20]
Nick Novicki
Ah.
- [08:21]
Ryan Sickler
Phil Hartman used to do him. And he would do the thing where he'd run up into the crowd and he'd put the mic in their face, and he'd drop his head like this, and he'd stand there with the attitude. Phil Hartman did a great Phil dog.
- [08:32]
Nick Novicki
Yeah.
- [08:33]
Ryan Sickler
I'm sorry to pause your story. You're watching the legendary Phil Donahue.
- [08:36]
Nick Novicki
Speaking of Phil Hartman doing all the.
- [08:38]
Ryan Sickler
Phil's bro. Both Phil.
- [08:40]
Nick Novicki
So my parents, though, they're just randomly watching Phil Donahue. In the afternoon, a group of little people come on, because at this point, they're like, you know, maybe it's a kidney problem. Maybe I'm this. We don't know what's wrong with me. And they just go, maybe he's a little person. So they find out about a special, like, little person doctor. And, you know, my mom just randomly calls. This is Johns Hopkins.
- [09:06]
Ryan Sickler
That's where we're from.
- [09:08]
Nick Novicki
That's the. That is.
- [09:09]
Ryan Sickler
That's, like, the place you go. That's why everybody's like, we'll call them.
- [09:12]
Nick Novicki
Yeah, exactly. So they call, and I go in and they find out I'm a little person.
- [09:16]
Ryan Sickler
So what sort of test do they do on you? Just blood or.
- [09:19]
Nick Novicki
You know, I don't even think so. I just think that they were able to, like, with X rays, figure out because I was like. I was sort of, like at my. My. I was starting to, like, curve in my spine. But they thought, you know, they didn't know what to think. They didn't know, you know, there's no little people. Like now where you can watch 53 seasons of Little People. Big World and like, no, you watch.
- [09:43]
Ryan Sickler
You can watch them a bunch of people and everything these days. You watch them do all kinds of.
- [09:48]
Nick Novicki
So I mean, but at that time, it's. That's it. You know, maybe it's a kidney problem. This is, you know, it's Gary Coleman. He's kind of.
- [09:57]
Ryan Sickler
My generation was Gary Coleman and Webster Emmanuel Lewis.
- [10:01]
Nick Novicki
Yeah. But they literally thought it was more like kidney related. That's. Our local doctor was like, just, there's no little people there. So we go in there and find out that a little person. And then it's like, boom, you're in this world. And we go to a little people convention all within like the first six months. And I'm now like going into like, as a little kid, all of a sudden there's 2,000 little people. I meet Billy Barty, who was this famous little person that kind of created little people America. He was in Masters the Universe and Willow, all these movies.
- [10:36]
Ryan Sickler
But when do you find out that what specifically you have and how rare that is?
- [10:42]
Nick Novicki
Yeah, I mean, all in that, you know. Hey, what'd you have for breakfast, by the way? Your son is a little person. It's pseudo achondroplasia. Try to spell that, you know, and then like, we just, you know, come, come figure it all out. But, you know, so for my parents, I think it was, you know, a surprise a little bit, you know.
- [11:05]
Ryan Sickler
And so how do they raise you? Like, how are you brought up? Are they telling you from the get go? Like, listen, man, kids are cruel. Elementary school, every, all of it, you.
- [11:15]
Nick Novicki
Know, I mean, I think I grew up in the blessing of growing up on the east coast, which you did too. So growing up in Maryland, you know, it's like Baltimore. You're walking around. If New Haven is also like, you know, you know, so I. Luckily my parents were kind of just like, we're going to treat him the same. So my brothers, you know, would we play football together, you know, just I would always like, learn how to, like, just make sure I wasn't going to, you know, get beat up by my brother. It's going to be the, the diplomat, you know, so when I went to school, it was all about that, you know, I was going to learn right away, hey, you're little. You taught, you know, what's going on? I'm like, well, what's going on with you? What's. What's that shirt? You know, like, just coming back with other things and, you know, that that was what my life was all about. My parents were kind of you know, this is who you are. Embrace it. And I think, honestly, that's where comedy came from, because, you know, as a little kid, it was. It's like a turtle instinct. You know, you're gonna walk in and the east coast, everybody's gonna be like, hey, why you look so crazy? He's so tall. I'm like, yeah, I am tall. Look at this. And, you know, you start. You start kind of reverting things, like, hey, just like a, you know, a karate, you know, moving a jiu jitsu. You're gonna roll at me. I'm gonna. I'm gonna, you know, dodge it.
- [12:37]
Ryan Sickler
What. At what age do you stop growing completely?
- [12:42]
Nick Novicki
I mean, as a lit. See, that's what's so wild about my dwarfism. I was the same height as everybody else when I was 2. Sure. Even when I was in elementary school, I was shorter.
- [12:59]
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- [13:59]
Nick Novicki
Then once I get to, like, junior high, it starts getting crazy where everybody is just like, kaboom. You know, they're just, like, so much taller than me, you know, So I think that's like a point where. Where things do get a little. They change a little bit.
- [14:14]
Ryan Sickler
I have so many questions.
- [14:15]
Nick Novicki
Okay, so luckily, at the time when you. You're like, hey, let's. Let's go through junior high, or everybody's feeling crazy and you're like Huberty and everything else.
- [14:24]
Ryan Sickler
I mean, you already got so much more going on.
- [14:27]
Nick Novicki
Yeah.
- [14:27]
Ryan Sickler
So let me ask you this. As far as just basic humanity goes, percentage of people who had your back versus bullies and stuff, Would you say the good far outweighed the bad? Or 50? 50 or. Or the other way?
- [14:43]
Nick Novicki
I mean, I've always kind of. My philosophy has always. Since I was a little kid, if people are going to say something crazy to me, they want to, hey, I want to meet you now. Still, you know, people always. People have, like, wanted to take pictures with me. I've always kind of even just envisioned it. Like, hey, man, you know, this is part of the business. You know, even as a little kid, where I'm like, this is just me. They don't know who I am. A lot of times I want to take a picture because I'm little, but I'm kind of looking at it.
- [15:09]
Ryan Sickler
Strangers will do that.
- [15:10]
Nick Novicki
Yeah, strangers will go up, bro. Let me take a picture.
- [15:13]
Ryan Sickler
No.
- [15:13]
Nick Novicki
And I'll be like, you know, you're.
- [15:15]
Ryan Sickler
Walking through your regular Wednesday day to day, when some person would come up to you.
- [15:20]
Nick Novicki
And I had. I was just in France up till yesterday, you know, I was at the conference festival. Yeah, Yeah. I had a random French guy come up to me, like, in French.
- [15:28]
Ryan Sickler
That had nothing to do with the film or anything.
- [15:32]
Nick Novicki
I don't need them. I need a photo. I need a photo. He said he's kind of drunk. He's like. And now I'm like, I'm waiting for the second part. Like, you know me from comedy. You know me for. We're at a film fest. We know. And then I'm like, okay, well, I'm feeling good. And he's like. Then he starts doing, like, a sign. Like, I like little people. I'm like, all right, now we're in this shot. And I'm just like. But look, for me, I'm like, I'm gonna. My philosophy, you know, since I was little was always just like, look, I'm not gonna let that person get me down. You know what I mean? I gotta just roll with it. Because especially growing up in the East Coast, I also grew up with people that wanted to fight all the time, and they would bring me into fights.
- [16:15]
Ryan Sickler
Yeah, tell me about fights. You're growing up in East Coast. I know you're fighting.
- [16:21]
Nick Novicki
Yeah. But the interesting thing with me is I literally, as a kid, would always. I was strategic. I would make friends, like, as a little kid with, like, the biggest and the toughest, like, the crazy kids. The people were like, we're not going to go to the regular school because we're fighting on the bus, like, from the. And I would. We would Bond a lot, you know, just with like, outsiders or people that were different would always have an attraction and like an affiliation with me. And so, you know, growing up to, like, other minorities, the same thing. There's like a certain thing, like, like a hidden code where people just kind of end up being like, there's like a hidden bond where people, like, ended up honestly having my back. A lot of times that's what I'm. When there were bullies coming at me, like, a lot of times I would. I wouldn't even really have to say.
- [17:12]
Ryan Sickler
Hold everybody's beer, you know.
- [17:14]
Nick Novicki
Yeah. You know, Steve, hey, man, have you met Steve? And then you just come in, like in fourth grade with a tattoo, you know. Yeah. And so there was a little bit of that kind of like, I would just be like, you know, again, just kind of be reverting, you know, in that spot. So I never really got in, picked on. In fact, I mean, I think there were times where I was in a position where other neighbors would ask me to like, hey, this is what's going on. I'm in. Because. Not that I would defend them because I couldn't, but they kind of knew that if I was on their side, it would be trouble for that other person if they attacked me. Because I always had other people that would kind of, you know, defend me. Because my philosophy was always, I'm going to win in this fight. I'm going to come in, you know, if you come at me kind of alpha, I'll come back at you like that. And then try to be like, what's up, man? I'm friend, you know, we're cool, it's all good. But then I knew that, you know, I would just, you know, it's like the people in the nightclub that will.
- [18:19]
Ryan Sickler
Steve ain't happy about this. I'm good with it. But you got tall to Steve.
- [18:24]
Nick Novicki
I mean, that's the way that now even you see, like modern day Instagram fights, people will try to go, what'd you say to me? What'd you say to me? Like that in a crowd, because they just feel like it's going to get broke up. Was a little person. Generally, people will. Will always want to get involved. Unless, you know, you're, you know, I mean, who knows if you're not.
- [18:45]
Ryan Sickler
There's ever a time where somebody's like, no, no, I want to see this. And you had to fight. Have you ever actually had to fight?
- [18:51]
Nick Novicki
Well, crazily enough, I did just get jumped, like recent. Yeah.
- [18:57]
Ryan Sickler
When?
- [18:58]
Nick Novicki
Yeah, it was a couple of years ago, I was living in Hollywood. I just moved to Culver City.
- [19:02]
Ryan Sickler
Fucking Hollywood. Good. And I mean, that's better for sure.
- [19:05]
Nick Novicki
I'm riding my bike home late at night. What time this is? I don't know, one, two in the morning. The fuck are you from?
- [19:13]
Ryan Sickler
Where? The store?
- [19:14]
Nick Novicki
Where are you coming from? I'm doing a show like East Hollywood. I'm like, I'm an idiot, you know, I'm from the east coast. Again, East Hollywood. Just like. Yeah, exactly. And you're riding all the way into Hollywood. Into my mind, you see, into my mind. It doesn't make sense. I just feel I've always kind of dodged my way out of trouble just having this, like, if I'm friendly and I just kind of act street smart and I know how to find that Steve, you know, the guy with the tattoo or something else, and kind of lock eyes with him. So I'm riding my bike home late at night and as I'm riding, I just do a show and it's like, you know, it's not like a big show either. You know, it's one of these shows where you're like, I rode my bike there and I did a set and you know, it's like a set where you're like, ah, there's like not that big of a crowd kind of bike you ride, bro. It's, it's a, it's a little bike, but I got custom.
- [20:05]
Ryan Sickler
Is it like BM style or 10 speed style or.
- [20:08]
Nick Novicki
I took the speeds off because I bring it around the world with me.
- [20:12]
Ryan Sickler
Oh, okay.
- [20:13]
Nick Novicki
Yeah, Because I bring it anywhere I go because it's, it makes me get around faster.
- [20:17]
Ryan Sickler
Gotcha.
- [20:18]
Nick Novicki
So I have the bike kind of, you know, tricked out a little bit. I took the gears off. We had a custom made with the handlebars up like that. So it's like you're driving.
- [20:35]
Ryan Sickler
You couldn't pay me to do that.
- [20:37]
Nick Novicki
I'm riding on.
- [20:38]
Ryan Sickler
You'd be like, sickler drive. I'd be like, no. How much? $2,000. No, no.
- [20:43]
Nick Novicki
And so I'm. Now I'm riding home and I'm going by this, this girl and like this guy. And as I ride by, she goes, oh, look at that. And I turn around, I go, it's little person. And then I could hear the guy, he goes, imma knock that off his bike. I go, oh, it's a bad time for lessons, you know. And I get off the bike and I'm like, look, I'm just gonna act hard, you know, you got all the same. Well, I could feel them.
- [21:14]
Ryan Sickler
Oh, they were that close. They're right.
- [21:16]
Nick Novicki
You could, you know, that. That. That, like, you could kind of feel like a earthquake is coming or that danger. Like, I could hear steps on Hollywood Boulevard. Like, this guy is. And, like, my philosophy usually of, like, alpha back, you know, again, all that kind of thing, just kind of, you know, it wasn't a good idea. So I. I now get off my bike. And he's right here. And I was like, whoa, man, relax, dude. I'm Nick, man. What's. What's up? He's like, I'm a punch you in the face. I was like, whoa, man. Chill. Chill, man. I'm Nick. I'm like, I'm just trying to go home with him. He hit me. He hit you? But in fairness, he did just tell me he was about to hit me. And I swear to God. I swear to God. So now I'm so mad. The girl, like, you know, they. They. She's, like, upset about the whole situation because, you know, she was just trying to be like, oh, cute or whatever. And, like, he's like, you know, it wasn't even that crazy. He gets. So now I'm just mad, and I'm kind of like. I wait till he's far enough away, and I'm just kind of yelling back at him, and I swear to God, this happens. Homeless guy approaches me. The guy's got, like, a sign, a whole thing. He's like, hey, man, I saw what happened, man. He's like, you know, I was gonna get involved, you know, but you don't look disabled, you know, so I didn't know. I go, what? Like, what the heck? He's like, what's your disability? I'm like, all right, dude, I'm. I'm out.
- [22:48]
Ryan Sickler
Oh, he's out.
- [22:49]
Nick Novicki
I'm out.
- [22:50]
Ryan Sickler
This motherfucker looked at you and said, what's your dis.
- [22:55]
Nick Novicki
So now I'm getting on my bike and I'm riding home, and I'm like, I'm so pissed. First of all, my wife doesn't want me out riding my bike. My face is all swole, and all I'm thinking about is this homeless guy, like, the whole way back. And I'm like, this is crazy.
- [23:13]
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- [24:13]
Nick Novicki
So that's the only time, honestly, like, that I've ever been, like. Have I ever been, like, 40 years?
- [24:18]
Ryan Sickler
It took 40 years for that.
- [24:20]
Nick Novicki
Growing up in the East Coast, I lived in North Philly. I lived in New York. Always, like, poor. Like, when I went from Philly, I was right. I was sleeping in Penn Station, back and forth. I started doing comedy shows when I was in college, so I didn't have enough money.
- [24:38]
Ryan Sickler
Where were you in college?
- [24:39]
Nick Novicki
I went to college in Philly.
- [24:40]
Ryan Sickler
Yeah.
- [24:41]
Nick Novicki
Temple University.
- [24:42]
Ryan Sickler
You say it like it. College.
- [24:43]
Nick Novicki
College.
- [24:44]
Ryan Sickler
Yeah.
- [24:44]
Nick Novicki
So I went there. Temple U. Yeah, I went to Temple, started doing comedy. Literally the first week of college, which was its own whole crazy thing. I. I found out about a comedy show. I brought a little person. We go in to the show.
- [24:58]
Ryan Sickler
Brought one.
- [24:59]
Nick Novicki
I brought a little person with me.
- [25:01]
Ryan Sickler
Okay.
- [25:01]
Nick Novicki
Like, I just started dating. It's the first week of college. Okay.
- [25:04]
Ryan Sickler
Okay. Not like a buddy to do a routine or something.
- [25:06]
Nick Novicki
No, no, that would be awesome.
- [25:08]
Ryan Sickler
That's what I thought you meant.
- [25:09]
Nick Novicki
At first, team wrestling, we're going to this open mic and taking over. So. So I bring her. We get seated in the front row. And this is North Philly, like, you know, in intense. I mean, the club was. Was actually South Philly, but everything at that time. This is early 2000s Def Jam. You're an open mic. It's all about. Just. Let's. Let's. Let's just get you. You know, So I have no idea. I'm the first time I ever in a comedy club. And they're like, oh, it's Willow, Willow's wife. All this stuff. And. And I'm just like, you know, look, she was, like, mortified, you know, but I was just like, like, you're like.
- [25:48]
Ryan Sickler
I'm gonna make a life out of.
- [25:49]
Nick Novicki
This right now, right here.
- [25:55]
Ryan Sickler
What a moment.
- [25:57]
Nick Novicki
People were like, you know, because I was out, you know, he was like, why don't you go and tell your story then? You know? Because I was like, you know, all right, I will. And he goes, come back next week. So I did. And meanwhile, the whole life of me with this little person girl was like. She ended up leaving me for some other guy in my dorm. It was a whole nightmare. So basically, like, I come back the next week, but it was just telling the story about her and just like, you know, what happened? And I get, you know, she ends up leaving me and all this stuff. But, you know, like, comedy, it always, like, it sucks you in. So from that time, I started doing comedy was like, this is what I want to do. I was going to school for business. I was like, this is not really what I want. I want comedy. This is awesome when you're out on stage. So I started, like, riding back and forth to New York. I was sleeping Penn Station. I would do random shows in New York, sleep at Penn Station, go back. I mean, I'd be next to homeless people. I got, like, a random, like, books. A book bag that's like half the size of me with heavy books. I'm, like, sleeping next to, like, crackheads. Never get jumped. Never anything. I grew up in New Haven. I lived in Philly, Hollywood. I would do comedy shows in North Philly where people would throw Heineken bottles at your head, you know, and just the random. I'm 40 years old, riding my bike.
- [27:21]
Ryan Sickler
Home, and I get also, you're insulted. You turn around and correct it. He insults the correction, then jumps you.
- [27:32]
Nick Novicki
But the funniest thing, too, is, like, I don't. I mean, it was a little bit of me being hard, but I think I was kind of. There was a little bit of me just being like, just throwing it out there, little person, you know, I wasn't kind of like, hey, you idiot. Yeah, you know, wasn't like, hey, you don't know what you're talking about. I was just like, little person. You know, I tried throwing out like that, but it was just that wrong time, you know, you get somebody. And there was, like, my whole philosophy of everything else, like, it always working out was like, a little. Not always.
- [28:02]
Ryan Sickler
Okay, so let's talk about this.
- [28:03]
Nick Novicki
Yeah.
- [28:04]
Ryan Sickler
Something I was asking you outside, like, you know, I'm born in 73, man. I grew up in the 80s. Was in the vernacular. I said outside, you Know, it was like. There was football thing like that. Midget wrestling. There was no, like, football. You know what I mean? Like, that was a word that was used to.
- [28:23]
Nick Novicki
Yeah.
- [28:23]
Ryan Sickler
You know, on somebody.
- [28:25]
Nick Novicki
Yeah.
- [28:25]
Ryan Sickler
But midget wasn't meant. And when I was trying to explain to her, I was like, it just means. This one means little.
- [28:32]
Nick Novicki
Yeah.
- [28:32]
Rocket Money Host
Little League.
- [28:33]
Ryan Sickler
You know what I mean? Like, it doesn't. And she's like, you can't say that anymore. So then we talked about dwarf.
- [28:38]
Nick Novicki
Yeah.
- [28:38]
Ryan Sickler
And we talked about little person. And I don't know.
- [28:41]
Nick Novicki
Yeah.
- [28:41]
Ryan Sickler
What is 100% correct today?
- [28:44]
Nick Novicki
So, I mean, that's the kind of crazy thing about language in general. It changes little persons. The correct term, Little people of America. It's where I met my wife. My wife's a little person.
- [28:54]
Ryan Sickler
She is. Okay.
- [28:55]
Nick Novicki
And, you know, I'm part of this culture, this community, and little people. I always argue. I know a little person everywhere we go. I say that all the time. People like, no, you don't. I'm in New York with a group of people. I go, I argue. I know every little person in the world. And they're like, shut up, Nick. Stop being like that. Within two minutes, we're walking on Fifth Avenue. A little person walks up like clockwork, goes, what's up, Nick? I thought, you see, you see? I mean, it was like central casting. I could have never liked, like, timed this from a conversation to a little person who's also dressed in, like, a business suit as a briefcase. It looked like it was like a movie. But little person is like. So originally, like, it was midgets of America. Little people of America. Midgets of America.
- [29:45]
Ryan Sickler
Okay?
- [29:45]
Nick Novicki
So that was the word that people knew back in the day. Now, the word, though, it derives from the word midge, which is an insect. So it literally was a circus term. P.T. barnum. They would use that to be like. And they actually separated it. So there was midgets, which be midge, which is an insect. It wasn't even a real person. If you were all proportionate or you would be like, you're the dwarf. If you have you, like, more features of dwarfism. So, like, there is a lot of history behind it now, again, a lot of that too is, I believe, also it's intention. You meet somebody, you know, Sometimes people don't know. I'm like, regardless. To me, that's just not my world. Certainly not now. You know, and really, as a kid, I mean, of course, you're a teenager. You're in that weird age. Everything's like, hard you know, but it is what it. What it is. You know, I don't care what. What somebody calls me. And then ultimately, I don't care if I end up correcting them, though, and saying, look, I'm not a mix.
- [30:45]
Ryan Sickler
Obviously, you did it. You got jumped on.
- [30:51]
Nick Novicki
Am I correcting people after midnight now? I'm like, no. What's your Instagram, man? I want to talk to you about this tomorrow morning.
- [31:00]
Ryan Sickler
So I will follow up with your ass from the safety of my home. God damn it.
- [31:04]
Nick Novicki
But the funny thing, too, about words and terminology, too, is no one's gonna challenge, like, no one's gonna challenge me on what I'm want to be called. If you're confident about it. Yeah, I want to be called the chicken now. You know, I want to be called this. All right, we're going to call him a chicken. Whatever. Like, I. You know, I like being called a little person, but if somebody else wants to be called, you know, a dwarf, little. Just by their name, person of short stature, I'm kind of like, ultimately, like, let whatever they want to be called be that. That they're called. And one step further about that, too, of, like, the word. I have a hard time saying the word dwarf. I. The word dwarf. It's dwarf.
- [31:49]
Ryan Sickler
Yeah, it's the dw. It's dwarf. Dwarf. Yeah.
- [31:52]
Nick Novicki
I have a hard time saying that. So this. I swear to God, this happened. I did an episode of Private Practice. It's. It's a show. It's like Grey's Anatomy, you know, I got to talk about, you know, dwarfism. So I just say. And I'm going through the moments, I'm talking about everything, and it's like, me as, like, a father, and I want to have my child. We're trying to make sure the child has dwarfism. I just keep saying, look, I'm proud to be a dwarf. I keep saying dwarf. No one's going to correct me.
- [32:24]
Ryan Sickler
Listen, bro, that's all I want to say.
- [32:26]
Nick Novicki
No one's going to be like, no one's.
- [32:27]
Ryan Sickler
Who's going to correct a little no. Instead of saying dwarf?
- [32:32]
Nick Novicki
Nobody did. So go through everything.
- [32:34]
Ryan Sickler
You could have put a tail on the end of that.
- [32:36]
Nick Novicki
I'm filming it. Everything happens. So then all of a sudden, you know, my agent calls me, goes, all right, Nick, we gotta do some. Some ADR lines now. ADR is after you. You know, film. Sometimes there's sound things. An airplane comes, so I go in there, and they're like, okay, we gotta. You know, there was a weird glitch or where you said clock. And they go, okay.
- [32:55]
Ryan Sickler
And now 47 times you said, we.
- [32:59]
Nick Novicki
Got about 30 takes of you saying dwarf, so we're gonna need you to say dwarf. And now they're going, okay. So I say. I go, dwarf. And they go, no, no, it's dwarf. So I got somebody else standing in front of me trying to tell me how to say. And we're both saying it together, right? Dwarf. And I. I just, like. Honestly, the way I say it is the way that I say it because no one corrected me. Yeah.
- [33:28]
Ryan Sickler
Oh, I would just tell my audio guy, just scrub a W N. We're not having him back in. God damn it.
- [33:35]
Rocket Money Host
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- [34:34]
Nick Novicki
And you're gonna. You're gonna think I'm lying. It happened again.
- [34:38]
Ryan Sickler
What do you mean?
- [34:39]
Nick Novicki
I was on another TV show.
- [34:41]
Ryan Sickler
I swear to God, you just can't say it right.
- [34:44]
Nick Novicki
And again, it just. I forget because the first time it just happened in a way. And, like, you know, sometimes when just things happen, you don't even think about it.
- [34:53]
Ryan Sickler
Yeah.
- [34:54]
Nick Novicki
And I'm back doing ADR again, and this time, the only thing they want me to say. They don't have any other lines where there's an airplane. I come in there, I'm on the show Trapped in Tifa. And they go, we. I don't know how to ask you this, but we think you're mispronouncing the word dwarf. And, like, there was, like, A weird moment where they were, like, they didn't know how. Like, I was in, like, hr.
- [35:22]
Ryan Sickler
Do you think that, like, fuck with them a little bit?
- [35:25]
Nick Novicki
No. I mean, did you just say it just to me?
- [35:28]
Ryan Sickler
Oh, man. I would. Oh, come on, bro.
- [35:30]
Nick Novicki
I wish I did.
- [35:31]
Ryan Sickler
That person would melt inside.
- [35:33]
Nick Novicki
Like, I just. It was the opposite. Like, to me. I just couldn't stop laughing. It was almost like I was peeing myself.
- [35:39]
Ryan Sickler
Did you tell them this? This isn't the first time.
- [35:41]
Nick Novicki
And I'm. I'm like. So now I'm like. Because there's, like. It's not, like, just.
- [35:45]
Ryan Sickler
By the way, this is gonna count as another session.
- [35:47]
Nick Novicki
It's. I mean, I'm getting paid for this. First of all.
- [35:49]
Ryan Sickler
I would risk you're on to it. We should cut this out for you.
- [35:54]
Nick Novicki
But I'm now, like. Like, it. When. When it happened, I realized this happened on the second time. And it's not just like, we have a recording engineer. There's a microphone. There's somebody else. There's a grown person standing above me saying, no, no, it's door. And I'm like, this has already happened. So now I'm like. I am, like, living in a Larry David, like, curb your enthusiasm. There's like, this is the second grown adult that has told me how to say dwarf. I'm like, I went to college, you know, Like, I got a scholarship. This. You know. But it. It. So, I mean, look.
- [36:29]
Ryan Sickler
Well, you could have pulled the Shatner sabotage. Sabotage. And just be like, that's how I say, guys, I'm not gonna give you another take.
- [36:37]
Nick Novicki
Yeah. Nah. I mean, I'm like, you know, I wanted that extra session.
- [36:42]
Ryan Sickler
So let me ask you this. Going back to childhood, outside of, like, you said you would go to, was it conventions or meetings? Outside of that, were you the little person in the neighborhood and in your school?
- [36:55]
Nick Novicki
I was the only little person ever.
- [36:57]
Ryan Sickler
So ever in the history of the town.
- [37:00]
Nick Novicki
In, like. I feel like I was like, this was a time when you were like, I just didn't meet anybody else. Little. You didn't see anything. I saw Willow when I was a kid. I was like, oh, this is beautiful. It's. Wow.
- [37:10]
Ryan Sickler
I gotta go into the woods.
- [37:11]
Nick Novicki
Yeah. I'm like, I'm just preparing a spear. My mom's like, what are you doing?
- [37:14]
Ryan Sickler
I'm gonna meet my people.
- [37:17]
Nick Novicki
She's like, what are you. Where are you going? It's dinner time. I'm like, I gotta prepare for battle.
- [37:21]
Ryan Sickler
Raccoon pelt, man.
- [37:22]
Nick Novicki
But it was like, literally, I'D never met anybody, you know, so, you know, was that weird thing where. Yeah. I was. I was the only little person. I was the only little person that ever did sports, that did this, that wanted to play Little league. I used to. I had a lot of surgery when I was a kid, too. I had complete reconstructive surgery. Hips, ankles, knees. A body cast.
- [37:42]
Ryan Sickler
Whoa.
- [37:42]
Nick Novicki
When I was 11.
- [37:44]
Ryan Sickler
For how long?
- [37:46]
Nick Novicki
Surgery? You're in the hospital in. In Baltimore, randomly. The connecting Hopkins. Well, it started at Hopkins and this doctor that was like the greatest doctor of, like, surgeon for little people, they gave him his own wing. Damn. At St. Joe's that's where my brother just went. And. And, you know, so. So that was.
- [38:07]
Ryan Sickler
That's a good hospital.
- [38:08]
Nick Novicki
Yeah, it was a great hospital in Towson. So I spent a lot of my childhood there. It was When I was 11, I went in there. Complete reconstructive surgery. Hips, ankles, knees. Every week you're doing another set of surgeries.
- [38:21]
Ryan Sickler
And how are they doing it? Is it rods? Is it like, are they putting ext bitters in or straighten? Like, what do they do to your bones?
- [38:28]
Nick Novicki
They were literally breaking it. Oh. So my, my, my. I used to walk like this. My legs would be, like, on a crazy angle, so I couldn't stand for, like, longer than 20 seconds of being pain. So I end up having all these sets of surgeries. But I was 11. I had no idea what I was getting into. So I kind of, you know, it was sort of a blessing. My parents were just like, hey, we're going to a movie. I'm like, what? What's happening? And boom, I'm in like, like, you know, I'm in the hospital now on morphine in a, you know, room after a 16 hour surgery. And I'm in a body cast up to here.
- [39:02]
Ryan Sickler
Oh, my God, dude.
- [39:03]
Nick Novicki
And then it's like, okay, we're gonna do. Now. Now that was your ankles. Now we're gonna do your knees.
- [39:08]
Ryan Sickler
That was just the ankles.
- [39:09]
Nick Novicki
Yeah. And then we got to do your hips.
- [39:12]
Ryan Sickler
Didn't do all at once.
- [39:13]
Nick Novicki
You can't. These were. You're talking about 16. That. One of my surgeries was 17 hours. God. So they had to wait a week in between each of these. So, you know, I'm in the hospital now. And at the time, too, was like, this is like the 90s. Like, this is like a time, too. I was a huge sports fan. People find out about it. I'm getting random stuff. I was a Notre Dame fan. I've got, like, a lou Holtz hat. Like a Rudy story. I'm in the body. I'm gonna play for Notre Dame. You know, when I get out of here, I'm gonna play, you know, I'm convincing myself all these crazy things, and then I'm just, like, in this body cast. And I'm in that for, you know, for when I was 11. Have to go back home now in a body cast. So I'm living homeschooling in this homeschooled, you know, and that's it. I'm in this body cast for six months. You know, I went out to a movie. You know, we would have, like, a movie day to see Patch Adams when I was in the hospital. And I'm like, I'm in the hospital. I'm. Yeah. Where is he? Yeah. Why? Why isn't he hanging out where I am? But it was like a. A cool thing because it was like a community, too, because there was little people from around the world that did get together. And because they just all had surgery from this doctor, they would. There would be somebody from India coming in. Wow. Somebody else from California, Oregon. All different dwarfisms. You know, there's like 300 different kinds of dwarfism, and 86% have achondroplasia, which is Brad Williams. That's Peter Dinklage. You know, the majority of little people have achondroplasia. And then the rest of us, we're the. Just like. We're coming out with kind of wild cards. Like, you don't know everything. You got to pull out a textbook and figure out what. What we have, and you know, what it is.
- [41:09]
Ryan Sickler
So thank God for that. Sergio, you've never been able to ride that bike through Hollywood. Never been able to ride that bike, bro.
- [41:16]
Nick Novicki
It was. You know, I. I kind of talk about it, too, because a lot of times people are like, man, that must have been so hard. You know, first of all, when I was 11, you just don't even know. I went into it with such innocence and stupidity. Just kind of, like, blanket. You're like, oh, boom, now I'm in it. You know, this is what. You know. And it ended up kind of being a cool community of, like, people that I met, I gotta be honest, like, to, like. Like, I was, you know, there definitely, I think, was a little depression in my life, too, in between. Like, that was the one time in between the first set of surgery when I was 11. And then when I was 16, I had to have everything happen again.
- [41:58]
Ryan Sickler
No.
- [41:58]
Nick Novicki
So all my legs got. You know, we're talking about this is like, you know, surgery style of the 90s. This is like, you're in, like, the Soviet Union. They got guys coming out with, like, sledgehammers. Like, your legs are like that.
- [42:11]
Ryan Sickler
We're gonna fix them back.
- [42:13]
Nick Novicki
Boom, boom, boom. I mean, they literally took them, and it's called osteotomies. They break them and make them straight and all these different things. Well, when you go through puberty, it happens again, so everything breaks out. But the doctor was like, look, we. We need to do this because we're afraid if we don't do it at this time, it's gonna, you know, things are gonna deteriorate, and it's just quality life and pain. You're not gonna be able to do the kind of things that you. He knew I love sports. Doing Little League. I mean, I would, you know, play baseball and just sit halfway through trying to go to first. And, you know, this is. You know, I make my own base. People like, you can't do that. I'm like, yeah, I'm just here. He's like, he's out. I'm like, nah, I think I'm not. You know, but I was in that spot, though, in. In, like, junior high. That was, like, the one time where, you know, honestly, like, that was like, everything was hard. All of a sudden, my friends that I was playing sports with that I loved because I finally healed after the body cast and got to learn how to walk again, all that.
- [43:14]
Ryan Sickler
Sure. Yeah.
- [43:15]
Nick Novicki
Then I'm like, I'm playing baseball and I'm back, and I'm like, oh, this is so fun. You know, I'm like, you know, going from 11 to 12 and playing with all my friends. All of a sudden, everyone now is like, just gets so much taller than me. Now they're all playing sports. Everyone's like, you know, the girls are coming in. Everyone's in that awkward phase. And that was, like, the awkward time for me because I also knew that I was going to have to do the surgery again, too. So that was always, like, in my mind a little bit. And I was like, look, this is. You're going to end up having to do this again. And it wasn't like, when I was a kid, I had no idea. We're just going to a movie, candy and ice cream. We're going to go in here for a minute, and then you're like, like, boom. So that was, like, on my mind, you know, and made me kind of, you know, that was like a. That was. I would say my philosophy has always been generally I'm gonna just enjoy life. I'm gonna have fun. If people are laughing at me, I'm gonna be like, yeah, you know, like, I don't care, because I'm a. Reframe it. Because for me, I'm like, I'm not gonna let that guy in France that wants a photo of me bother me. I'm having fun. I'm in France. When am I gonna feel bad? This. This dude better buy my flight, you know?
- [44:33]
Ryan Sickler
Yeah.
- [44:34]
Nick Novicki
For real, because I. I'm having fun. I'm not letting this guy bother me. And I'm also not gonna let my friends get into a fight over it because. Because things escalate quick that way, too.
- [44:44]
Ryan Sickler
They do.
- [44:44]
Nick Novicki
Like, I would have friends, too. They would just jump in and fight, like, for me, no matter what.
- [44:49]
Ryan Sickler
Yeah. Yeah.
- [44:51]
Nick Novicki
And then it just started getting the point where it. They wouldn't even be looking at drunks.
- [44:55]
Ryan Sickler
Try to pick you up and, like.
- [44:56]
Nick Novicki
That dude, that's happened. But I'm good at just kind of going like that.
- [45:01]
Ryan Sickler
But I didn't know. I didn't know you picked me up. Not you, bro.
- [45:05]
Nick Novicki
It was you. Were you the guy in a bar?
- [45:09]
Ryan Sickler
And I was like, oh, my God. They were like, you just picked up a. A man. I was like, oh, my God. And I was like, they're like, why would a kid be in a bar, Ryan? I was like, I'm up. I think I should go home, guys. Yeah, but he high fived me.
- [45:20]
Nick Novicki
Yeah. No, but my friends were again, you know, going back to the, you know, just the crazy one with the tattoos and all that stuff. So I always gravitated from a little kid to people like that, tough people, you know, kind of just outsiders, really. Everybody. I think I have always been friendly, but in that junior high, you know, time, that was when everything kind of changed. And I was like, hey, you know, I got. That was the one time where it was hard for me to kind of focus on that world and, and coming to terms with being little and, you know, all that time.
- [45:51]
Ryan Sickler
So at what point in regular life, regular world, do you finally run into another little person? I mean, because you were the dude forever, only one in your town stuff. When do you. The college. Do you.
- [46:03]
Nick Novicki
No, I mean, so that's kind of beauty of it. No, no, no. I, I, I grew up with little people, so not in my town, but my parents, we went to a, you know, doctor, and they were like, hey, it was.
- [46:15]
Ryan Sickler
No, but that's. I mean, separate from that.
- [46:17]
Nick Novicki
Like, that was the only time organically that Was. Was randomly there would be like, I remember one time and I never to.
- [46:23]
Ryan Sickler
Party in college and be like, see another little person like this stealing my.
- [46:28]
Nick Novicki
I'm like, I still to this. My wife is like, you got to stop this. And I see a little person, I try to chase them down. Like, hey, what's up? I'm Nick. You know, I want to meet people. I'm like, this is my buddy. Deal's like, the guy's in the bank. What are you doing? You don't know, but I want to. Like, I feel like a connection. But I remember actually once I was, you know, a little kid, and I did see, like, a little person and, you know, a grocery store. And I was like, so excited. I told my mom. I was like, it's a little person. And I go up to him, I was like, hey. He was like. He, like, kind of went like that to me, but. And I was like, I was sort of like, shaken and, like, sad and, like, was like, why would he do that? You know, because he kind of, like, sort of like, scared me away. But then I'm like, okay, first of all, I'm like, he could be on a date. He's on, like, a business meeting. I'm just a little kid that's like, I got questions. Like, he's doing his life, and, you know, sometimes it's the wrong place, wrong time, but, you know, I've always enjoyed that. I. I love that. I love meeting people in, you know, other areas too. I've had, you know, a cool experience as, you know, being a little person, just getting a tour all over the world as a comedian, you know, we're blessed, man. It's like, I've got to do USO tours all over in the Middle east, you know, I'm like, I'm gonna find a little person. I want to try to go to their house. I want to go, honestly, like, let's come over. Like, like, I want to go. Let's have tea. Let's hang out, you know, but that was like, you know, I would say too, because also at that time, this is again, this is before Google, before cell phones. I met little people at these conventions. I would hand write them letters to, like, a little person. Dude, I'm like, hey, I like playing ping pong with you. We should play it again. You know, you're handwriting letters, but you wouldn't find people. It wasn't like that.
- [48:18]
Ryan Sickler
You know, you said your wife is a little person. Have you only ever dated little people?
- [48:23]
Nick Novicki
No. No. So I've Dated little people. I dated tall women.
- [48:28]
Ryan Sickler
What's the tallest lady you've ever dated?
- [48:31]
Nick Novicki
I dated a pretty tall. Yeah, pretty tall girl that. She was almost. I mean, she was five, ten and a half.
- [48:37]
Ryan Sickler
That's tall.
- [48:38]
Nick Novicki
She was tall. She was tall. But, you know, and I've dated little people and, you know, my wife, I've been with her for 15 years.
- [48:45]
Ryan Sickler
Oh, wow. Okay.
- [48:46]
Nick Novicki
So we've been together long time.
- [48:48]
Ryan Sickler
When you meet these ladies, prior to your wife, are you on sites? Are you meeting them in person?
- [48:55]
Nick Novicki
I'm so old. There were no sites. Yeah, I mean, I've been with her 15 years. I'm like. Like, his sites were just like, I'm gonna go up to, like. It was like Craigslist. I'd have to go on Craigslist. Like, hey, I'm a little person and I'm not crazy. Or, you know, like, there was no, like, thing.
- [49:11]
Ryan Sickler
Like, did you ever worry that these ladies didn't really like you and that you could be a fetish? Do you ever worry about that?
- [49:18]
Nick Novicki
Yeah, I'm like, you gotta roll the dice, you know, we gotta do. We gotta do. What am I doing wearing this clue out outfit?
- [49:27]
Ryan Sickler
What about check it off for you?
- [49:29]
Nick Novicki
No, I mean, I, you know, look, first of all, you gotta. Sometimes you gotta take the wins for the wins. No, I. I didn't. It was hard, man. Like, dating was really hard for me. And that was like, all part of, like, the junior high thing. Like, I was always good at just talking to people, you know, like, deflecting talking to people. Hey, what's up? Making friends with people. Being like a politician, mostly to keep me from getting beat up, but also just like, it's a part of who I am. I'm friendly and I'm just gonna talk and. And talk too much sometimes and all that stuff. And so I'd be able to talk to everybody. But at that time, too, like, in junior high, that was the time when I was like. I just wasn't comfortable being little too. That was the only time.
- [50:10]
Ryan Sickler
Well, also problems physically. You're also.
- [50:14]
Nick Novicki
Yeah, I was in all this stuff also.
- [50:17]
Ryan Sickler
I hadn't even considered that. Yeah, puberty is up enough on your body, but also adding pain to it, and you got to have another. I mean, basically a full body surgery.
- [50:26]
Nick Novicki
Yeah.
- [50:27]
Ryan Sickler
I mean, Jesus Christ.
- [50:28]
Nick Novicki
It was not even. Basically.
- [50:30]
Ryan Sickler
No wonder you hated that.
- [50:31]
Nick Novicki
Reconstructive all the time, you know?
- [50:33]
Ryan Sickler
How old were you when you lost your virginity?
- [50:37]
Nick Novicki
18, 19.
- [50:38]
Ryan Sickler
I was gonna say. I'm wondering because you're in. You're in cast and stuff, too. A lot of time. Yeah.
- [50:43]
Nick Novicki
Yeah. So I was, you know. Yeah. I. I didn't. I had a hard time so. Dating also. I would be friends with all these girls and that, and all of a sudden they'd be like, hey, I'm making. You know, I'm bringing everyone together and I know where the party is. I. You know, I. I threw this crazy party when I was in high school, so I had a second set of surgeries, and I threw, like, the biggest party anybody had ever seen.
- [51:08]
Ryan Sickler
At your house?
- [51:09]
Nick Novicki
Yeah, it was like, you know, just a rager. It was just all outside, everything. I. You know, we had like a basement. We had outside area. Just street thing. I just locked the doors, everything. And where are your parents? They were. I don't know, somewhere. Vermont or something. They're like, here's 20 bucks for pizza. And I'm like, okay, I'll see you later. And I'm like a nightclub manager. I got kegs coming in, there's bouncers. I'm literally. I'm on crutches right now. I'm on crutches and I've got, you know, I'm trying to. I've refused to let any. Any girls into the house because I was like, once I let people in the house, house, then everything's gonna be torn. So I was like, I gotta go pee. We got woods right here. You know, there's a little bit, you know, on the other side. You get out there, you know, girlfriends only. Girlfriends only, like, you know, riding around. I'm on. I'm on crutches. But that was always the thing. Like, I. I would always kind of connect. People have all these people at the party. So I always knew the girls, but I never. I would always be in that friend zone, you know, So I was like, that thing where I didn't. That was a weird thing where my, you know, teenage years into that and, you know, it. It made me kind of in that down period. But I think, honestly, like, that second set of surgeries, though, actually changed everything for me because I was like. I sort of was on a path to going nowhere from that. Like, you're in that down period where somebody. I born optimist, like, friendly, all that stuff. I was just having a hard time being, like, who I am, you know? So at that time, though, I went and had surgery, and so I'm back in the body cast again. I'm back in the surgery again. And I'm so mad. And everything was about, like, I don't want to do this again and you know, all the stupid things of like and girls don't like me stuff where now you're like, who cares? It's not going to work out. But at that time, everything felt so hard. But that experience kind of changed my life because my mom wasn't there that time. It was me at 16. All right, you're not a kid anymore. You're in the hospital. You're a grown man. You're going to work. Your work is just sitting in this cast and then you're, you're seeing other kids in the hospital. Kids missing their arms. There's things, you know, they got surgeries, kids got. Half of his head is being, you know, seeing that, seeing that stuff. And so I'm like, you know, I'm wheeling around.
- [53:46]
Ryan Sickler
Start thinking to yourself, I'm gonna take my.
- [53:50]
Nick Novicki
And run with it. Yeah. So it's like shifts your focus.
- [53:54]
Ryan Sickler
Perspective.
- [53:55]
Nick Novicki
It has a perspective where you're like, look, when I come out of this hospital, I'm going out to do something. You know, I'm getting out. I don't want to be with my.
- [54:03]
Ryan Sickler
I got my whole head. I'm getting out here and doing way.
- [54:10]
Nick Novicki
And little do I know I'mma get hit in that.
- [54:12]
Ryan Sickler
Yeah, yeah. It's little person helmet on.
- [54:16]
Nick Novicki
No, I don't. Come on, man, I hear you. I'm a little, I try to act hard. I'm. It's a bicycle. I don't care if you're close to.
- [54:23]
Ryan Sickler
The ground, you hit your head, it's still going to knock you out, bro.
- [54:26]
Nick Novicki
I, I brought this bike with me and the guy that wanted to take a picture with me in France. I had my bike.
- [54:31]
Ryan Sickler
You were on the bike.
- [54:32]
Nick Novicki
I had to get off the bike to take a photo with a random person and I'm waiting for him to go, I liked you, you know. Bad thoughts.
- [54:40]
Ryan Sickler
Just a little person.
- [54:41]
Nick Novicki
I like little people.
- [54:46]
Ryan Sickler
Just a friendly out here, buddy. I'm just a friendly. Yeah, yeah. Okay. So you talked about being a dad. We talked outside.
- [54:55]
Nick Novicki
Yeah.
- [54:56]
Ryan Sickler
You have a four year old and a brand new baby, is that right?
- [54:58]
Nick Novicki
Four year old and a brand new baby.
- [55:00]
Ryan Sickler
How old?
- [55:01]
Nick Novicki
Old. So three month old baby, dude. So you know, being.
- [55:05]
Ryan Sickler
And you're just being a dad. I'm France and coming here and everything, man.
- [55:08]
Nick Novicki
Holy hell hike. To my wife. I'm like, hey, we, you know, we gotta do it. Look, it's work. I'm working. She's like, you're in the French Riviera.
- [55:15]
Ryan Sickler
You're riding a bike in the French River.
- [55:17]
Nick Novicki
Nah.
- [55:18]
Ryan Sickler
Taking pictures with drunks. Wait, so you're a little person, your wife is a little person. Are your children.
- [55:22]
Nick Novicki
So here's the interesting thing about, Tell me about that. Because like, so, so the. So my wife has achondroplasia. Again. That's what Peter Dinklage is, you know, Brad Williams.
- [55:32]
Ryan Sickler
What?
- [55:33]
Nick Novicki
Again, we have every little person that you could think of has achondroplasia. At least, you know, 80% I have pseudo achondroplasia, which means that we are kind of a mystery. So we have no idea. So we don't know until the wild card genes. So with our four year old, you know, we still don't know. I think she has my kind of dwarfism. But we don't want to do your kind genetic testing. So we knew right off the bat she doesn't have my wife's kind because that shows in, you know, ultrasound.
- [56:10]
Ryan Sickler
I was going to ask you. These days, with the advancements in technology.
- [56:13]
Nick Novicki
Not even these days, you knew that in the 80s then, you know, the 90s. So when my, when I, when I was born, if I had been born with my wife's dwarfism, they'd have known. They would have known before I was born.
- [56:25]
Ryan Sickler
That's why they didn't know you. So.
- [56:27]
Nick Novicki
Yeah, they didn't. Now they don't know me.
- [56:29]
Ryan Sickler
Is that right?
- [56:30]
Nick Novicki
We're talking about the only way, you know, even with my children is if you take like genetic testing and you, you know, go through all these steps. Now I don't want to do that. And you know, now here's where I start getting a little crazy. But there's like a whole thing where these pharmaceutical companies have located the gene of dwarfism and they're trying to make little people tall. And they, they haven't fully even gone through the 20, 30 years to see what the side effects are of these drugs. They just FDA goes, oh, wait a minute, it makes somebody tall, it's good enough for us, but you're gonna die. Throw everybody on there. No idea, Right?
- [57:15]
Ryan Sickler
Right.
- [57:15]
Nick Novicki
And they no idea if they're gonna make people tall or little. And you know, even at just the baseline that says to me like that I'm not okay because I'm 3 foot 10. I'm like, look that I'm so far past removed. This like, I want to be tall. And you know, any of those not my height, I'm not my height. This is who I am. I mean, it's like saying, I don't want to be Polish or Italian or, you know, Irish Or New York Giants fan or, you know, all these things like it. Things within your identity. I don't know why I said Giants side, but I'm like all these other, you know, elements. And so we. We, you know, we don't know, but it's. The cool thing about it is we're part of this community with little people. You know, we have. We go to conventions. We get to go.
- [58:02]
Ryan Sickler
We get to see you all both have hindsight to all of this coming up, and you can really help. Is your newborn going to be a little person?
- [58:12]
Nick Novicki
No. So even the other thing with this too. So because my wife and I have different doors, there was a 25% chance it's her kind of dwarfism, you know, right away. 25 chance it'd be my kind of dwarfism. We don't know. 25 chance it would be her kind and my kind, which, again, we would know because her kind would be in there. Or 25 chance tall.
- [58:41]
Ryan Sickler
That's what I want to ask.
- [58:42]
Nick Novicki
So we're in this.
- [58:43]
Ryan Sickler
So even though you're both little people, because you've got this wild card thing, there is a chance your children could be tall.
- [58:50]
Nick Novicki
I mean, now it's a significant change.
- [58:52]
Ryan Sickler
That's 25, you said. That's.
- [58:54]
Nick Novicki
But that's a lot. But when they're born right away and they're not her kind, that's not 25% anymore. That becomes like, whatever the. You know, 50.
- [59:03]
Ryan Sickler
50 could be your kind or none at all.
- [59:07]
Nick Novicki
So I kind of love this corn flip, you know?
- [59:10]
Ryan Sickler
Okay, can we talk about that for a second?
- [59:12]
Nick Novicki
Yeah.
- [59:12]
Ryan Sickler
How. How are both of you going to handle a dog? A teenage daughter who's taller than both of you. Actually, all three.
- [59:19]
Nick Novicki
I mean, we're gonna need somebody. Her.
- [59:21]
Ryan Sickler
She's gonna be the outsider.
- [59:22]
Nick Novicki
She's gonna be lifting things, right? I mean, we're gonna start training her. Like, you know, come get this soup down. Why do I need to move this luggage again? Because I wanna travel everybody in the family.
- [59:39]
Ryan Sickler
I'm grabbing everything.
- [59:41]
Nick Novicki
Her dad's a comedian. He's God. He's always getting in and out of an Uber.
- [59:44]
Ryan Sickler
It would suck.
- [59:46]
Nick Novicki
Stop. With this suitcase.
- [59:47]
Ryan Sickler
Be difficult. And it would also be difficult. The empathizer. Like, what are you bitching about right now? Just get the jelly down and sit down.
- [59:58]
Nick Novicki
But it is like. It is like we have our world so like, just kind of modified where I'm like, look, you know, I do okay, you know, But I'm also not like, killing it to where I've like, you Know, completely customized the house so we're going part ways. There's stools so we can have somebody tall. It's like we haven't fully committed to. Like, we're all 3 foot 10 for company.
- [60:23]
Ryan Sickler
Let me ask you this. If, If. If you had unlimited funds.
- [60:28]
Nick Novicki
Yeah.
- [60:28]
Ryan Sickler
What's the one thing or one of the things I don't like to always say? The. What's one of the things that you would fucking pay that, you know, you'd be like, this would make my fucking life or my day so much easier. Something that we maybe take for granted. What would you pay? Unlimited funnel care if it's $10 million. You said the house tricked out.
- [60:47]
Nick Novicki
I mean, like, what after yesterday and flying into lax? I would like to have them change this stupid system where you have to take a shuttle bus to get an Uber where I have to walk like 10 miles. I'm getting a wheelchair to it, and it looks like I'm walking into like a. You know what. Where am I going? So just these stupid things where you're like, you know, so it's like more things like how. What would I do? I would limit my crazy. Like, I need to just walk a mile for no reason. Now, if it's unlimited funds, maybe I have some kind of weird like, helicopter that's like, that could take me from here to where I have to go to take a lift.
- [61:33]
Ryan Sickler
Tiny chop.
- [61:34]
Nick Novicki
Because I'm too cheap to take the regular.
- [61:36]
Ryan Sickler
Be the only one out there.
- [61:38]
Nick Novicki
He spending $10 million to take a 30. A 35 lift. But he's got that money that he has.
- [61:46]
Ryan Sickler
So you don't. Well, I'm guess I'm just trying to think in my head of the. The scooters and like that you. They're. I don't. They're none made for smaller people.
- [61:56]
Nick Novicki
A lot of little people that you will take like a razor scooter.
- [61:59]
Ryan Sickler
But I mean, I'm sorry, I mean, like the lime ones that you could.
- [62:03]
Nick Novicki
Rent and run around. No, I did a gig actually for Uber, like the headquarters of Uber we're talking about, like, because I do a lot of stuff for disability representation. That's a huge part of what, you know, my world is. I created something called the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge. We're in our 12th year of it. 850 Films created by people with disabilities. You have to make a film that has somebody with a disability in front of or behind the camera. The films aren't about disability. It's just showing what's your disability. Yeah.
- [62:33]
Rocket Money Host
Yeah.
- [62:33]
Nick Novicki
What's your disability? Let that guy be the guy.
- [62:36]
Ryan Sickler
Nah, he could be the guy that decides whether you get it or not.
- [62:45]
Nick Novicki
Oh, and the best thing about you, man, I was going to get involved. I was, I was.
- [62:52]
Ryan Sickler
But then I thought, man, he's fine.
- [62:55]
Nick Novicki
So all.
- [62:56]
Ryan Sickler
I thought you were just a kid.
- [62:58]
Nick Novicki
Exactly. He goes up, he goes, you don't have anything, man. But again, I'm like, it's not like I presented my guy like, you know, handicap sticker to him, too, and said, I have a disability. And you didn't get involved. He goes, but what is your disability? What just came out of nowhere. Yeah, no, but it was like, you know, so I. I'm all into that world. Little people and just disability representation. I forget what. Even when I was talking about where.
- [63:23]
Ryan Sickler
That we were talking about making your life easier and unlimited funds and what you would do.
- [63:28]
Nick Novicki
But, but. But this is the way I am, though. So at a certain point, you're just like, saying to, like, you know, it's getting a nose job. Do you need the nose job? Is your. How much does it. Your life change? That much. You know, it's like, this is the way it is. And also, it just changes everything. It's that weird, like, Matrix where if you take that blue pill, it changes everything else. Now all of a sudden, I don't end up going to the hospital. I don't end up going to do this. I don't, you know, meet my wife. I don't, you know, even my wife. I met her at a little people convention. She was walking out the door. She wasn't having a good time at the convention, and literally is. Is about to leave and never come back, and she ends up talking to my friend, who's a little person. She's like, yeah, I'm not having a good time. I don't think this is for me. He goes, wow, what's up? She's like, well, you know, I'm an actor. I wanted to meet little people actors. And so I come here and. And I didn't meet anybody. And he goes, this is my boy Nick. You know, he's an actor, you know, and boom. If I had not been in the lobby of this little people convention, if she had not been like, I'm fed up with this, and I want to leave, and tried to exit the lobby of this hotel at the same time, we never would have met. So that's, like, the beauty of it. And I would have made her life so much easier.
- [64:54]
Ryan Sickler
Dude, thank you for doing this episode. This has been great.
- [64:57]
Nick Novicki
Man, oh, man. Thank you for having me.
- [64:59]
Ryan Sickler
Before we wrap it up, I want to know advice you'd give to 16 year old Nick.
- [65:04]
Nick Novicki
16 year old?
- [65:05]
Ryan Sickler
Yeah. Because after everything you're saying, I'm saying that that age seems to be really pivotal for so many people.
- [65:10]
Nick Novicki
It really was. It really wasn't. In fact, it. That was the age that everything I was talking about, because I was in junior high, I was in that. The dark years. The surgery's common. 16 was the surgery. Okay, so the 16 year old, Nick, look, it's all going to work out. And also these girls that don't want to talk to, who cares, you know, like, it's going to work out. You will find girls, you'll find your rhythm. Tall women that like little guys. You're gonna find little women. You're gonna do it. But there is all these other things. So there was that moment where it just felt like you're like an outsider. It's not going to work. But. But it does. And also I would just tell myself to just like to go with that dark spot, you know? And luckily, that dark spot was what ultimately changed everything because I was in that crowd with people that were, you know, having their own dark times and getting into trouble and all that stuff. And that was my crowd. And I wasn't caring about school, but it was like I go into the hospital and I end up hooking up with a girl in the hospital. Did you? So I did better in the hospital than I did out of the hospital.
- [66:32]
Ryan Sickler
Oh, man. One more time, please. Promote anything you'd like. Man, this was great. Thank you.
- [66:38]
Nick Novicki
So follow me at Nicknovicki, you can learn about my comedy. You can also learn about the Easter Seals disability film challenge. Go to Isability Film Challenge. Check out Bittersweet. It's going to be in select movie theaters starting Father's Day. Hopefully it stays Bad thoughts. You know, Netflix. I got some other projects coming out. I'm gonna be touring and doing shows in LA and all over the place. So, you know, follow me. And thank you so much for having me on the show.
- [67:11]
Ryan Sickler
You got it, brother. Thank you for doing it. And as always, Ryan Sickler on all your social media. We'll talk to y' all next week.
- [67:41]
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