378: Bruce Bruce | The HoneyDew with Ryan Sickler #378 | Full Episode

Summary

The HoneyDew with Ryan Sickler

Episode 378: Bruce Bruce | March 23, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode of The HoneyDew features beloved comedian Bruce Bruce, in a candid, hilarious, and moving conversation with host Ryan Sickler. True to the podcast’s mission, they dive into Bruce's life’s “lowlights”—from growing up in Atlanta’s hood, parental loss and reconnection, and hard-earned career lessons, to the journey through day jobs and finding comedy. Bruce shares stories that swing between gut-busting laughter and striking vulnerability, all set in his unmistakable Southern charm. If you ever wondered how Bruce Bruce became a comedy legend, this is a must-listen.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Early Life and Family (04:36 – 16:06)

• Growing up in Atlanta’s Hood:
  • Bruce recounts childhood exploits: climbing trees, pelting passersby with stones, and his mother’s fierce discipline.
  • “I grew up around drugs and everything, but my mother said, you touch it, I kill you.” (Bruce Bruce, 04:47)
  • Only child, not spoiled—just wanted attention.
• Displacement by Martin Luther King Jr.:
  • Story of being forced to relocate as Dr. King’s family bought their rented house.
  • “Martin Luther King kicked us out of our house.” (Bruce Bruce, 08:17)
  • The house later becomes historic, and the experience is retold humorously but with gravity.
• Neighborhood Life:
  • Unique “hood names”—e.g., Big Face, Monster.
  • “Did you have a nickname?” — “Lil Bruce.” (10:48)

Parental Relationships (11:07 – 19:02)

• Mother’s Strength:
  • Bruce’s mother as disciplinary force and sole parent for years.
  • “My mother put me in the figure four one time. … She is a monster.” (11:09)
• Father’s Absence and Reunion:
  • Father, an Air Force medic then anesthesiologist, left when Bruce was five; Bruce tracks him down at age 40.
  • Emotional reunion at Gladys Knight’s Chicken and Waffles.
  • “He was ready for anything I had to throw at him. … I broke it down so quick. I said, hey, man, I just want—” (12:06)
  • Despite the absence, his uncle steps in as a major father figure.
  • “You ain’t gotta worry about your dad. You got old, Unc.” (13:17)
• Father and Grandkids:
  • Dad never met Bruce’s children due to life and distance.

Coming of Age and Career Choices (17:28 – 22:34)

• Scholarship Opportunity:
  • Bruce considered but declined a military school scholarship to care for his mom.
  • Chance meeting with his Colonel years later as a state trooper:
    • “Why didn’t you take that scholarship?” (18:56)
• Working Life:
  • Early bakery and BBQ jobs.
  • BBQ skills still stand: “I could have you crying in here, really.” (20:57)
• Comedy Spark:
  • Talents recognized at the BBQ place by waitress and "Reverend Mule," a former comedian who writes Bruce’s first set.
  • “He said, you need to go on stage. Don’t waste your time here. … He wrote my first set.” (22:45)

Breaking In and Becoming Bruce Bruce (24:12 – 32:12)

• First Steps in Comedy:
  • Early encouragement, balancing day work, and first marriage.
  • Parallel parking a Frito Lay truck outside the comedy club.
  • “Who’s driving that potato chip truck out there?” (35:18)
• Leaving Day Jobs:
  • Eventually pursues comedy full time after divorce.
  • Serendipitous job offer after quitting:
    • “As soon as I left, it was on a Friday… my beeper went off… been having fun ever since.” (37:08)
• Full Circle Moments:
  • Jay Leno’s early words: “Just do it. … Two things happen. You fall, get back up.” (38:14)
  • Meets Leno decades later, who remembers their interaction.

Family, Loss, and Reflection (42:36 – 47:57)

• Mother’s Passing:
  • Her ovarian cancer and final days.
  • Poignant moment: “She said, I talked to Jeannie… been dead for 20 years.” (43:36)
  • Reaction to her death and funeral:
    • “I sat on this ottoman for like four hours before I realized I was sitting there.” (45:13)
  • Regret: never took her to New York to shop.
• Father’s Passing:
  • Found out after his funeral via an aunt; he had also died of cancer.

Health, Healing & Humor (49:19 – 55:12)

• Health Scares:
  • Story of blood clot; comedic take on serious medical episodes.
• Healthcare Realities:
  • “You do not get rest in the hospital!” (53:52)
  • Importance of regular check-ups: “If I can go spend money on sushi dinners or my weed or whatever, I can go see my doctor.” (51:21)
• Advice to His 16-Year-Old Self:
  • “No matter what you wanna do, do it. If you fall, get back up. … You have to have tunnel vision. You got to see straight ahead and see what you want to do.” (54:40)

Comedy, Travel, & Legacy (39:40 – End)

• Worldwide Tours:
  • On performing around the world, notably for the military in Japan.
  • Observations about cultural health: “Japan is clean... everybody’s working out… and they smoke more than anybody in the world.” (40:29)
• Philosophy on Comedy:
  • “The only way to do this is to do it... There are no shortcuts.” (39:19)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Surviving and Thriving:
  "You know, I’m kind of like a pimp, preacher, and a player. So I got three, four jobs that I got to do. And you know, it's not the PPP loan. It's pimp, playin' preacher!" (03:33)
• On Reconnecting with His Father:
  “He knew exactly who I was right away. Like when he said, I knew that was you on TV when I first saw.” (12:51)
• On Life Advice:
  “No matter what you wanna do, do it. If you fall, get back up... you have to have tunnel vision.” (54:40)
• On the Value of Home Training:
  “You can be from the hood, but you gotta have home training.” (04:36)
• On a Historic Move:
  “Martin Luther King kicked us out of our house.” (08:35)
• On Parenting and Comedy:
  “When I saw that little girl, man, she got me. That little girl got me.” (34:43)
• On the Comedy Grind: “I used to drive the truck to the club. … My car broke down. I gotta get to the club!” (35:18)

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Timestamps for Major Segments

• Guest Intro & Comedy Special Plug – [03:01]
• Bruce’s Childhood in Atlanta, Displacement by MLK – [04:36 – 10:04]
• Family Dynamics and Reunion with Father – [11:07 – 16:06]
• Turning Down Military for Family, Scholarship Story – [17:28 – 19:55]
• Early Jobs, Discovery of Comedy – [20:24 – 24:12]
• First Comedy Sets & The Frito Lay Years – [24:12 – 36:15]
• Going All In on Comedy – [36:15 – 39:19]
• Jay Leno Encounter, On Stage Philosophy – [38:14 – 39:38]
• Global Comedy, Culture Observations – [39:40 – 42:21]
• Losing His Mother & Reflections on Family – [42:36 – 46:06]
• Health Scares & The Hospital Experience – [49:19 – 53:52]
• Advice to Young Self, Wrap-Up – [54:40 – 55:29]

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Summary & Final Thought

This episode captures Bruce Bruce’s signature blend of resilience and humor, as he recounts major moments in his life: bootstrapping his way through adversity, turning day-to-day struggles into laughs, and developing an unbreakable spirit. For comedy fans, or anyone needing proof that perseverance and authenticity can change your life, Bruce Bruce’s journey is pure inspiration, wrapped in that irresistible comedic style.

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For More Bruce Bruce

• Website: www.brucebruce.com
• Netflix Special: "Ain't Playing" (out now—03:19)

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Ryan Sickler: "As always, we highlight the lowlights—and find the laughter in them."

Transcript

[Ryan Sickler]

I have created the most advanced AI soldier. The wait is over. Tron Ares now streaming on Disney plus.

[Bruce Bruce]

We are looking for something, Something you've discovered. Give me something to believe in and some of us will stop at nothing to get it ready.

[Ryan Sickler]

The countdown is complete.

[Bruce Bruce]

There's no going back. Our directive is clear. Hang on.

[Ryan Sickler]

Tron Ares now streaming on Disney Plus.

[Athletic Brewing Company Sponsor]

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[Ryan Sickler]

Dallas, Texas. I'm headed your way. March 27th and 28th. Spokane, Washington. I'll see you guys April 3rd and 4th. Buffalo, New York. I'm headed your way. I'll see you guys Friday, April 24th and Saturday, April 25th. Get your tickets now at Ryan Sickler.com

[State Farm Sponsor]

the Honeydew with Ryan Sickler.

[Bruce Bruce]

Foreign.

[Ryan Sickler]

We're over here doing it in the night Pan Studios. I'm Ryan Sickler. Ryancickler.com Ryan Sickler, on all your social media, you know, I'm going to thank you guys for not only supporting this show, but for supporting anything I do. Come see me on the road. Tickets are on my [e-mail] and if you got to have more of this show, then you gotta have our Patreon. It's the Honeydew with y'.

[Bruce Bruce]

All.

[Ryan Sickler]

It is this show with you guys and it's the wildest thing on Patreon. It's five bucks a month and I promise you it's hundreds of episodes. It's worth the cup of coffee. All right? And if you or someone you know has a story that has to be heard, please submit it to honeydew podcastmail.com if you sent one in before, send it again. We get a bunch. Bump it up to the top. We would love to do your story. All right, that's the biz. You guys know what we do here? We highlight the low lights. I always say these are the stories behind the storytellers. And I am very excited to have this guest here. First time on the Honeydew, ladies and gentlemen, Bruce.

[Bruce Bruce]

Bruce. Welcome to the Honey dude. How you doing, brother? What's happening, man? What's happening?

[Ryan Sickler]

I told you I'm tired here, but I got it. I'm a fan. I'm so stoked to see you in here today.

[Bruce Bruce]

You. Thank you.

[Ryan Sickler]

I was stoked when she said, what about Bruce? Bruce. My response was, fuck, yeah. So I couldn't wait, man. Great to meet you. Thank you for being here. Before we get into your story right there, promote everything and anything you would like.

[Bruce Bruce]

I'm Bruce. Bruce. If you want to talk to me or see me, go to www.bruce bruce.com. and I got a Netflix special out now. Look at it, See it. Trust me, it's really good. I put my foot in this and I had did one in 15 years, and I decided I'm gonna do another one in 2027. So check your boy, Bruce.

[Ryan Sickler]

What's it called?

[Bruce Bruce]

Ain't playing.

[Ryan Sickler]

All right. You haven't done a special in 15 years.

[Bruce Bruce]

15 years, is that right? That's right.

[Ryan Sickler]

Why?

[Bruce Bruce]

Just. Just didn't want to do it, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

I know you've been out there working.

[Bruce Bruce]

Oh, my God.

[Ryan Sickler]

You just to hour decide now.

[Bruce Bruce]

But you know, I'm kind of like a pimp preacher and a player. So I got three, four jobs that I got to do. And you know, it's not the PPP long. It's pimp playing preacher. It's been really good, man. So, you know, I just decided now, since I did this one and it's doing so well, I'm gonna do another one in 2027. I'm working on it.

[Ryan Sickler]

Right, okay. So you're going from 15 years and not one every two years? Every two, every two. See, that's what Carlin used to do.

[Bruce Bruce]

Bad dude, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

About two and a half. Two. That's what I say. He used to be considered, you know, our prolific writer and all this. You're like, damn, two, two and a half years. These are turning them out every six months now. Every year there's a special a day. Do you know that?

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah, but are they good, though? That's the key thing. Are they good?

[Ryan Sickler]

There's quantity. Yeah, but you see the difference in the quality.

[Bruce Bruce]

Absolutely, absolutely.

[Ryan Sickler]

All right, man, so you got the Netflix special, you're out on the road, you're sitting here with me now tell me, let's get into it. Where are you originally from?

[Bruce Bruce]

Originally from Atlanta, Georgia. You are okay, ATL from the hood now, you know, with home training, you know, it's a difference. You can be from the hood, but you gotta have home training.

[Ryan Sickler]

Explain.

[Bruce Bruce]

I'm not gonna explain it to You. I grew up around drugs and everything, but my mother said, you touch it, I kill you. So I was more scared of my MOT dudes on the street. So they be like, bruce, you want to sell some of this? I knew my mother would kill me and you for letting me do it. So, no, man, I didn't do it, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

Do you have siblings?

[Bruce Bruce]

None whatsoever.

[Ryan Sickler]

So you're an only child?

[Bruce Bruce]

Only child. Everybody thought I was spoiled. I wasn't spoiled. I just like attention, all right?

[Ryan Sickler]

And mom is like, that's not my son.

[Bruce Bruce]

Now, you know, my mother told me, I don't know if she lied to me, but she say, I answer why. I didn't have any sisters or brothers. She said she didn't want nobody but me. Now, that can be one of the biggest lies ever heard, but it sound good, you know? But she said she didn't want anybody but me. And I was the kid in the neighborhood that messed with everybody. If the guys on the corner singing, three or four guys singing, I'll run between and slap all of them. It'd be like. It'd be four singing. I just. Cause I want them to run at me. I want to play with them. And I would. I'd be like 12. They'd be like 16. They be singing, hoo, hoo, cra, crow, crow. I slap off for them and just run. So that was me. That was me as a kid, Okay? I was a cool kid. But I just stayed and stuff. I can climb.

[Ryan Sickler]

So you got in trouble, but you're not dealing. You're not running with the drugs and all that.

[Bruce Bruce]

I stayed in good trouble. I used to climb a tree like a squirrel, Buddy, I'm trying. I get to a tree, go up the tree. But before I climb the tree, I fill my pockets up with flat rocks. You remember the flat rocks? Yeah, you can curve real good. Yeah, man. I will pop. Everybody to walk by. They didn't know what a rock was.

[Ryan Sickler]

You're just up there in the street, people with rocks.

[Bruce Bruce]

I'm on a tree branch. Somebody said, somebody throw it right now. I definitely hit the drunk guys. You know, guys come out, oh, yeah, somebody throwing rocks out of here and almost shoot the out of them, you know? And they be me. I'd be up in a tree, and then I come down, and then I got. I got caught a couple of times they beat me up, but I didn't care. And I was quick. Oh, I was quick. You couldn't catch me. You could not catch me, man. But, you know, kids don't have fun like that no more, man. They like this.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yep.

[Bruce Bruce]

Hand phone, everything.

[Ryan Sickler]

How old are you now?

[Bruce Bruce]

Ah, man, I just turned 64. You look great.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. Really?

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah. Black soap, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

You know, I thought you were gonna say you were in your 50s.

[Bruce Bruce]

Oh, all the way from Africa. Black soap, you know, you got growing

[Ryan Sickler]

up in the 80s. You're growing up really in the 70s then.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

And yeah, we really did have the golden era. Like, no Internet. No, no.

[Bruce Bruce]

Like get the.

[Ryan Sickler]

Get outside.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah, my mother said you're gonna stay in the House of Coin outside.

[Ryan Sickler]

What's your lady doing? This thing with her kids. Online call. We're pretending it's the 90s today and she's got her little like 7 and 8 year old, like out back. They're not. There's. They don't have to run the neighborhood. But she's like, nope, you're gonna stay out here today. No phones, no nothing. Like, when can we come in? She's like, when it's dark.

[Bruce Bruce]

I bet they were miserable. That's what we did, man. My wife, matter of fact, my nephew's sister, man, she don't. She's what, 14? She hadn't left her head in 30 days on that phone. Just walking through the house and just bust out laughing. Something to make her laugh. But you take that phone, she is in.

[Ryan Sickler]

They don't know what to do.

[Bruce Bruce]

La La Land. She don't know what to do. She be like, she's miserable, she's mean, mugging. Her mother walked by. What you looking at? You know. But you take that phone, they ain't got nothing. But as long as she had that phone, she's good.

[Ryan Sickler]

So I want to ask you. Mom's trying to put you on the straight and narrow why she did. Is it because she had come up a certain way or she knows, look, financially we're stuck here. But I'll be damn if you're going to run the streets.

[Bruce Bruce]

But she knew the neighborhood we was living in as well, you know what I'm saying? It was a dude.

[Ryan Sickler]

Is she from the area? Like she grew up.

[Bruce Bruce]

My mother. We moved over there after Martin Luther King kicked us out of our house. You know, we. It was renting this house on Sunset Avenue and my aunt, yeah, they couldn't afford to buy and then got the guy said, I gotta buy her. And it was Martin Luther King get the out. And Martin Luther King kicked us out of our house.

[Ryan Sickler]

Hey, you're on the way to this dream. It sounds like I have a dream.

[Bruce Bruce]

I have a dream. Y' all gotta get the. Out of the way. You know what I'm saying?

[Ryan Sickler]

Is that real?

[Bruce Bruce]

That's real, man. He became the property. Crazy. It was crazy. Said something to Martin's son about it, right? He said, I can remember that. He said, I can remember. Wild.

[Ryan Sickler]

The people who lived in your home after you were Martin Luther King, Coretta

[Bruce Bruce]

Scott King was like, put them out. No, she didn't say that. But we could afford it. My aunt, my mother and two sisters, her brother, they were just renting the house, and they just couldn't afford it. And the guy said, I really want you all to get it, but I got a buyer, and it was Martin Luther King.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's crazy.

[Bruce Bruce]

Is that crazy? Yeah. He kicked us out.

[Ryan Sickler]

I mean, is that house now, like, still there? But is it a historic. You know what I mean? Like, is. The state stepped in at this point over the years. That is crazy.

[Bruce Bruce]

And over the years, they have added on to the house. You know how these. And room. And room is huge. You know, it wasn't that big at first.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, I see.

[Bruce Bruce]

And they have added on. Just going back.

[Ryan Sickler]

And it's a museum now, too.

[Bruce Bruce]

Somebody might still be. You know, it might be some dudes that's in the hood living in. You never know now because it's the hood now.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's wild.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

So where do you go from there, then?

[Bruce Bruce]

We go across. It was a street called Simpson Road. We had to go across Now. Simpson Road was the hood, you know, and once you cross, it was the hood. But what Martin Luther King house was. Was really nice. But when we had to go in the hood, so, you know, I had to meet all the crazy guys, you know, because everybody got hood names. I don't know if you grew up like that, but everybody had a hood.

[Ryan Sickler]

I'm from Baltimore originally, but I know what you're talking about, because it'll be this. This side of the street's really nice.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yes.

[Ryan Sickler]

Everything's clean over here. The churches are nice this side of the street.

[Bruce Bruce]

Oh, my goodness.

[Ryan Sickler]

Man. Yeah. And it's literally the other side of the street. It is not a block down. It's like that.

[Bruce Bruce]

And there was people in my neighborhood, you. They had nicknames according to how they look.

[Ryan Sickler]

Okay.

[Bruce Bruce]

Like, Big Face. He had a real big face, you know, because he was kind of slow. Big Face. Tell him. Yeah, that's what happened. Had a dude named Monster because he was ugly.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, that's what I.

[Bruce Bruce]

One dude named Superbug. Cause he likes Superman.

[Ryan Sickler]

Okay.

[Bruce Bruce]

One dude, like an Indian. So we call him Lil E. Chin had a real big chin, like Tom Slick. You remember the cartoon Chomp Chin? You know, Tiptoe, because he was born. You know, hand like this. He walked, like. Call him Tiptoe.

[Ryan Sickler]

Did you have a nickname? They call you something.

[Bruce Bruce]

Lil Bruce. That's gone. I'm gonna take you down to Lil. Bruce is gone.

[Ryan Sickler]

When do you become Bruce Bruce?

[Bruce Bruce]

Well, I thought of a good name. Cause my mother used to have to call me twice. And she'd say, if I had to say it the third time, it's gonna be a problem. So I never wanted to be called. That's where it's from. Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Two times. And that is it.

[Bruce Bruce]

Cause that woman, I didn't know. She can wrestle your mom. Yeah, my mother put me in the figure four one time. I'm like, what the fuck?

[Ryan Sickler]

Ric Flair.

[Bruce Bruce]

Ric Flair. And then she looked at me and said, you didn't think I knew that, did you? The figure 4 and was. And was trying to break my leg. I'm like, this is a. She is a monster. Well, my mother didn't play, man. My dad was in Air Force, you know, she ran him off. She definitely ran him off.

[Ryan Sickler]

What do you mean, ran him off?

[Bruce Bruce]

Just. Just wouldn't cooperate with it.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Bruce Bruce]

You know what I'm saying? And she, you know, on a deathbed, she, you know, as she got. When she passed, she told me. She said, I really ran him off. You know, she admitted it, you know, but he was a cool dude. What I. I can remember he was cool. He was a medic in the Air Force.

[Ryan Sickler]

So did he. Was he, like. He stayed in the Air Force. He served. So he was gone?

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah, yeah, he was gone all the time. And he flew choppers? He flew. No, he did, too. And he flew jets. And then when he. When he retired, he was an anesthesiologist. He was a doctor.

[Ryan Sickler]

When do you. When does he come back in your life?

[Bruce Bruce]

Never. He never came back. If I found him, I had a private detective to find him.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh.

[Bruce Bruce]

And we met up, and he. And, man, we. When we met up, he, like, you know, he was ready for anything I had to throw at him. You can see the. The sternness in his face. And I broke it down so quick. I said, hey, man, I just want.

[Ryan Sickler]

How old are you when this happened?

[Bruce Bruce]

I was 40.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, you're a grown ass.

[Bruce Bruce]

And I say, man, I just want to let you know, I got three kids, you got three grandkids.

[Ryan Sickler]

What made you want to do this?

[Bruce Bruce]

I just wanted to see him. My Mother said, what you want to find him for? I said, I just want to have a little closure and come to find out he was still the same dude that I can remember.

[Ryan Sickler]

Okay, so I was going to ask you, what's the last time you remember seeing him? How old before this? 40 year old.

[Bruce Bruce]

I was five. 35. 35 years.

[Ryan Sickler]

You're both completely.

[Bruce Bruce]

It was crazy. He knew exactly who I was right away. Like when he said, I knew that was you on TV when I first saw.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, not when he saw you. He knew you knew.

[Bruce Bruce]

He knew exactly what I was. And he was cool, man. He was.

[Ryan Sickler]

He never tried to reach out or message you on social media.

[Bruce Bruce]

Never, never sent any money or nothing. But I didn't. I didn't really care because my uncle stepped in. My mother's sister married this guy that thought I was the coolest kid in the world. And he told me, so. You ain't got to worry about your dad. You got old, Unc.

[Ryan Sickler]

All right, so you had a father figure.

[Bruce Bruce]

So he was my CO. He was about 5ft tall, you know, about a 93 in the waist.

[Ryan Sickler]

You gotta worry about a lot of shit. It sounds like. It sound like he needed help, but

[Bruce Bruce]

he looked like an egg with a belt on. So little shit, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

Like, you're my protector.

[Bruce Bruce]

But that was my dude, though, man. He taught me things. Taught me about life. He taught me about how to treat women. He taught me how to cook, everything. He was a chef. He was a baker. He used to always say, I'm gonna teach you something. I'm gonna stick with you for the rest of your life. So that's how he would explain it to you. And then he never believed in whooping you. That wasn't his thing. He didn't believe in that. I think his dad used to abuse him and he didn't. He didn't believe in that. So he'll say, I'm gonna give you the good, the bad and ugly. He said, so you got sense enough to pick the good, the bad and ugly, right? I said, yes, sir, he's all right. And that's the way he laid it out to me like that. That was my dude, man. He passed away because he died in 93. He'd been gone for 20, 33 years now.

[Ryan Sickler]

Can we go back to meeting your dad?

[Bruce Bruce]

My dad? No.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yes.

[Bruce Bruce]

He's passed.

[Ryan Sickler]

No, I'm saying the story of you.

[Bruce Bruce]

Oh, yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

So five years old's the last time you see them.

[Bruce Bruce]

Then I found him. I was 40. I met him at a restaurant because

[Ryan Sickler]

You've hired a detective. You don't find them. You don't. Do you find them without that? Like, is there. Are you looking on Facebook or.

[Bruce Bruce]

No.

[Ryan Sickler]

Are your children looking for Grant? You know what I mean? None of that. 23 and me at the time or any of that, right?

[Bruce Bruce]

And the detective said, what's his name? What's his first name? What's his last name? He said, what was he raised up and he found him. He said, how long did it take him? About two days. He said, damn. He said, I think I found your dad. He said, I called him. He hung the phone up, right? And he said, when he hung the phone up, I called and said, hey, I'm calling on behalf of your son Bruce. He said he picked the phone up. He said when he heard the message, he called him.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, in the old days, when you could start talking on the machine, you can pick it up, interrupt that like, I'm here.

[Bruce Bruce]

He said, yeah, what's going on with my son? He said, he just want to see you. And he set up a meeting place. And we met at Gladys Church Chicken and Waffle in Atlanta. And I met with him, and we was cool.

[Ryan Sickler]

What was that like?

[Bruce Bruce]

Of course, you're Bruce.

[Ryan Sickler]

Bruce at that point, too.

[Bruce Bruce]

People know who the he was on the defense. He was on the he.

[Ryan Sickler]

But I mean, also, are you trying to sit in this public place? And people are like, bruce, Bruce.

[Bruce Bruce]

All the time. Can I get a picture?

[Ryan Sickler]

But why? They don't even know what's going on in this.

[Bruce Bruce]

Don't know that he seen this dude in 35 years.

[Ryan Sickler]

God forbid. You're like, please, could I just have a moment? Then it's like, Bruce. Bruce is an.

[Bruce Bruce]

Did he got. Got real comfortable. He did, yeah. He's just like, man, you know? So I started telling him stuff I can remember because when he used to come home on leave, he either be a police, like, he'd come over for 60 days or he'd be a driver bus for the city. And I said, you remember he used to drive the bus and I used to ride with you? Cause he didn't allow anybody to keep me. So I ride with him on the bus all through the route, through his whole shift. He said, you remember that? I said, yeah, I remember everything, you know? And I remember he was just cool, man. He was funny, man. He was really funny. He'd get off work and then he'll get to the house, he'll walk all the way down the street. Then when he see me at, like, he can't walk. He said, bruce, I can't walk. He'll. He'll fall on the ground, you know, and I have to try to help him up. He was just a cool dude like that man. And only thing I can remember is good things about him. He never sent none, but I didn't care. My uncle was dead. My uncle was my dude, man. Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

And then after that, did you continue to stay in touch?

[Bruce Bruce]

You stayed in touch with him?

[Ryan Sickler]

And was he a grandfather to his grandkids, too?

[Bruce Bruce]

Never met them.

[Ryan Sickler]

Why?

[Bruce Bruce]

Never met them.

[Ryan Sickler]

And what's crazy, was that on purpose or did he pass? No, no, no.

[Bruce Bruce]

At the time, my grandkids was living in another state. But my baby boy looks just like him and acts just like him. It's crazy because they look alike. He's like 6 4. My baby boy's 6 4, close to 6 5. He's my road manager as well. And when I see him, I said, well, he look like my dad and. Cause I don't. I look like the postman or the mechanic. No, I'm joking. But my mother, she just. She said, yeah, I did. I did. I just. I was so hard on him. But my mother was listening to other women that are not married telling her how to treat her husband. And you don't have a husband. And that's what happened.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, okay. And so you grow up in Atlanta, in that area there. And then when do you head out?

[Bruce Bruce]

Oh, when I graduated high school. But I always helped my mother. I had to stay, man. I graduated with scholarships and everything. Military. Military. Oh, man, I was a military fanatic. I didn't go, though. I had a. Colonel said, listen, you wanted to go. Yeah, but I had to help my mother. We was gonna. He said. Colonel said, look, I'm getting you five years to make up your mind. He said, because I could have went to. What's the military school in West Point?

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, upstate New York. New York.

[Bruce Bruce]

I could have went there. And he said, I'm gonna give you five years to make up your mind. And he said after five years, he said, they're gonna dismiss it. He said, but between those five years, if you want to go into military school, you can. And I worked and helped my mother and I started doing comedy. And when I hosted BET Comic View in New Orleans, I was coming from New Orleans. We had did 40 days in New Orleans taping this show.

[Ryan Sickler]

Damn.

[Bruce Bruce]

We had a van. So we got pulled over by the State Patrol in Alabama. He said, what are you guys doing, your van or something? He looked in the Car. And I looked, I said, oh, my God, that's Colonel Newton. This was the Colonel that was teaching in my high school in Atlanta. And I can remember him saying he was from Alabama. And I can remember him saying he was gonna move back to Alabama. And he said, I need to see your driver's license. And I pulled out a driver's license. He looked at him, he said, why you didn't never take that scholarship? He knew exactly who I was.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, that's his first question.

[Bruce Bruce]

I said, well, sir, Colonel, I see.

[Ryan Sickler]

Is everybody in the van like, what

[Bruce Bruce]

the fuck's going on? I got my hairstylist, my nail tech. They're like, what the fuck going on? A couple of comedians and everything. I said, well, I'm a professional comedian. He did like this. He said, I can see that. Cause he can remember being in school. He said, I'll tell you what. I said. I just got through doing a TV show in New Orleans. It's called BET Comic View. I said, check it out. And I said. He said, oh, I ain't got to check it out. He said, I know you're funny. And he gave me the license back. He shook my hand, he said, you take care of yourself.

[Ryan Sickler]

Just like, oh, you gave me goosebumps, man.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah, he was. He was cool, though.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's crazy. That loop gets closed.

[Bruce Bruce]

What's crazy, man? When he looked at my license, he said, why didn't you take a scholarship? He knew when he saw my name, he knew exactly who I was.

[Ryan Sickler]

He'd been thinking about you, too. Yeah, but he wonder why he really cared about. Yeah, he did.

[Bruce Bruce]

Everybody thought he was a good old boy, you know? He wasn't, man. He was. He was just cool white dude. You know what I'm saying? Just a cool white dude.

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[Bruce Bruce]

And he was a state patrol in. We was in Alabama. Montgomery. Montgomery, Alabama.

[Ryan Sickler]

No shit.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yep.

[Ryan Sickler]

And what sort of jobs are you working to help mom before comedy. Like, are you working in high school, too? What are you doing?

[Bruce Bruce]

I worked in sixth, seventh grade. You know, my uncle worked in a bakery. I worked in a bakery with My uncle baking cakes and pies. And then I started working at a barbecue restaurant and then I ended up managing it and I was a manager, 18 years old.

[Ryan Sickler]

You really did do.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Were you. Are you good? You still make barbecue?

[Bruce Bruce]

Oh, yes.

[Ryan Sickler]

Is that like a thing you do?

[Bruce Bruce]

Absolutely. Man, I could have you crying in here, really, you know. And I had a waitress one time, her name was Cindy. She said, I saw this comedian and he was at the comedy club. Me and Lord went to see her boyfriend, name was Lord. And I'm gonna tell you, so crazy about women. That's smart. I said, do you love Lord? She said, no, his parents are rich. She already knew she would have married him and everything because, I mean, his dad had 100 million, so he. He's probably 115 years old. He's getting ready to croak any day now, but. And she said, no, I don't really love him, but his parents are filthy rich. And she told me, I went to this comic club the other night, this is around 85, 86. And I say, was the comedian funny? She said, he was really funny. She said, but I told Lloyd, Bruce is just as funny as he is like that. And she said, we be in the kitchen and he's just. He's so funny. And I said, what was his name? She said, steve Harvey. I never forget that. And I say, she said, I said, how he looks? She says, he's a light skinned guy, real funny. And I started keeping up with Steve. And that's how I really, really knew who Steve was. He was doing the Comedy Cafe. It was up in Marietta, in Atlanta, and I didn't know anything. And then I hired this guy, this what made me go on stage. I hired this guy. He's an older guy, he used to work for the company years ago, but he went in the Navy. So I hired him. And I'm in the kitchen acting crazy. He used to stare at me. He was a black guy. He said, you ever been on stage? I said, no. He said, you need to go on stage. He said, don't waste your time here. He said, you got it. I said, how you know that? He said, I'm gonna bring you something tomorrow. He brought me an album. It was him. He was a comedian.

[Ryan Sickler]

Is that right? What's his name?

[Bruce Bruce]

His name was. His real name was Willie Dismuke, but his stage name was Reverend Mule. And he was a duet with a guy named Dr. Arrowhead. It was called Reverend Mew and Dr. Arrowhead.

[Ryan Sickler]

I've heard of Reverend Mule.

[Bruce Bruce]

They was on stage together. Right.

[Ryan Sickler]

And he had an album.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah. And he was in it the way the album was made. He was dressed just like Fred Flintstone. He had on a dress like Fred Flintstone. He had a tree in his hand like a baseball bat. And Dr. Arrowhead was at the catcher's plate. And the name of the album was called so youo Wanna Know Baseball. And it was funny. He said, take it home and listen to it. I think you'd like it. Only problem, he was an alcoholic. Ex Navy and all that. He said, you need to go on stage. And he made me go on stage. He said, you need to go on stage. And he wrote my first set. Did he? Yes, he did. He did. And I really didn't take it serious. Then I left the restaurant business and started working for Frito Lay. Potato chip. Did you? Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Doing what? You driving.

[Bruce Bruce]

Driving. Driving the truck, delivering chips, selling the bag.

[Ryan Sickler]

What's your favorite chip? To this day, you still like them.

[Bruce Bruce]

I used to sell a bag and eat three bags. I'm telling you, I was coming up short every month. I said, somebody is stealing from me.

[Ryan Sickler]

First person book say that.

[Bruce Bruce]

You know, it just so 1e3 but what's. But what was crazy. He stayed in touch with me. Like, he stayed in. I was young.

[Ryan Sickler]

You had to care about somebody back then to stay in touch.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah, man, he stayed in touch.

[Ryan Sickler]

You know what I mean? You got to know if they're home and call and.

[Bruce Bruce]

And man, I. I was married. I was young, dude. Married. I was young. And. And he always called. He said, you went on stage yet? I said, no. He said, you need to go on stage. He's telling me all the time. And when I went on stage, he was there.

[Ryan Sickler]

He was.

[Bruce Bruce]

He was there. Damn.

[Ryan Sickler]

He really did.

[Bruce Bruce]

He said, I got it. He said, you got it? He said, I see it. You got it. He said, I see you being on and off a plane all the time. He used to tell me that. He said, but I don't see your wife. And he's right. She's gone.

[Ryan Sickler]

You did get divorced.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah. Yeah. Best thing ever happened to me.

[Ryan Sickler]

Why? Well, how old were you when you got married? You're a young man. 20.

[Bruce Bruce]

20. 20.

[Ryan Sickler]

20.

[Bruce Bruce]

Woo.

[Ryan Sickler]

You didn't even drink yet. You're a baby.

[Bruce Bruce]

Hey, man. Didn't have no hair on my face a night.

[Ryan Sickler]

How old was she? Young as well.

[Bruce Bruce]

She was 21.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, I mean.

[Bruce Bruce]

And I go in the liquor store and get a six pack of beer. He said, all right, all right. Look here, kid. Don't come here playing games. Let me see your id. You know, I'm looking. I got the baby face, and I show him the id. He said, you sure this you? You know, this old dude, he already drunk because he's working his thing.

[Ryan Sickler]

I'm looking, is this you?

[Bruce Bruce]

I said, this me? I said, I'll be back tomorrow. All right? Then he'd sell it to him. But. And then I end up getting divorced. What made me really pursue comedy?

[Ryan Sickler]

How long. Wait, real quick. How long were you married?

[Bruce Bruce]

10.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, wow. Okay. You have children from Three kids from all from that marriage.

[Bruce Bruce]

Okay. And when she said, you'll never make it as a comedian. Oh, when I heard that, I'm like, really? That put fuel on the fire.

[Ryan Sickler]

How long into the relationship was that?

[Bruce Bruce]

Oh, it was at the end, like, last three years. You know, the first two years we married, you had thought that it was made by God. You know what I'm saying? You thought it was the best thing in the world. And then she just got crazy, jealous,

[Ryan Sickler]

insecure, you know, and said those words to your face. You'll never make it.

[Bruce Bruce]

You're never. And I'm working three jobs at a time. I used to work all the time.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. What else are you doing with comedy? You're doing comedy at night. You're doing free to lay during the day.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah. And, you know, my supervisor, black guy, he always tried to make fun of me, you know. You tell any jokes? Last year, I talked about supervisors that are stupid on your job, and they always give me a hard time. And everybody bust out laughing. They know I'm talking to him, but it's indirectly, you know what I mean? And. Oh, okay. Okay, whatever. Let's see how your sale is gonna look this week. Because they all want sales. Sales, sales, sales. That's all they want.

[Ryan Sickler]

Is that how it worked? Do you get a salary?

[Bruce Bruce]

You get a. Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Salary and commission on Frito lace.

[Bruce Bruce]

They get 10, and they don't change it now.

[Ryan Sickler]

I mean, I was gonna say, doesn't it kind of sell itself these days?

[Bruce Bruce]

It does, man, but they want more.

[Ryan Sickler]

But where are you. Are you going to stores and vending machines?

[Bruce Bruce]

No vending machines. I just did convenience stores.

[Ryan Sickler]

Okay.

[Bruce Bruce]

And then they had another team that did all grocery stores, like the one,

[Ryan Sickler]

but you're in charge of going into the store and be like, you guys want Frito Lay chips here? I can sell them to you.

[Bruce Bruce]

Well, no, it's already set up.

[Ryan Sickler]

Okay.

[Bruce Bruce]

It's already set up. You just keeping the shelves full.

[Ryan Sickler]

All right?

[Bruce Bruce]

And then you got some stores where I want to stay full every day. Some stores you have to go in every day. Every day. Okay? You got one of the managers just, you know, he want to be super manager, and he's gonna give you a hard time every time you come in there. So it's one dude had a Walmart that I used to service, and I thought he was like the worst dude in the world. He was really cool, but I didn't realize it at first. And the madder he get, the lower he talks. So you had to be like, what? He like, look when I tell you to do something, and that's what he's missed if you're leading it. What did you say? You heard what I said. When I tell you, I'm like, what the. He's always getting to with the Pepsi, man. The man that deliver Pepsi and the Pepsi gotta be mad. That son of a. You know. And I say, he's cool, just talk to him. And I end up seeing this guy years later. He ended up being a district manager for Walmart, like the big boys, you know. And he was in Dallas airport, and I walked behind him and he had two guys with him. And this is a white dude, right? Two guys said. Told him to be quiet. And I put my hands. I said, just give me all your money. I said, give it all to me.

[Ryan Sickler]

In an airport?

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah. Now they went through baggage. And when he got down, I said, give me all your money. I said, don't blink it. And I. I said, trust me when I tell you. He turned around real slow. He said, man, what do you. He started laughing. Yeah. And he said, what are you doing? I said, I'm a comedian. He said, I can see that. And he, he shook my hand, he hugged me. He was cool guy, but something he said. He said he was in Columbia, South Carolina. He said he decided to go to this comedy club, right? Medicine Hat was there. You remember Medicine Hat? The hypnotist? He say he didn't believe in hypnotist. He say he went up there.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, he got called up, he say,

[Bruce Bruce]

and the volunteer, he said, I'm gonna go up there. He said, the guy's real, man. He said, man, he said if he wouldn't have showed me the tape, he said, I wouldn't have believed this stuff he had me do.

[Ryan Sickler]

I've never been. Have you ever been hypnotized?

[Bruce Bruce]

No, I've never been hypnotized. Well, he had. This is a salt and pepper, you

[Ryan Sickler]

know, white man, no way. He's in on it.

[Bruce Bruce]

Right? Right.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Bruce Bruce]

And he had him walking around like he was a brother. They told him that, like he was a brother. He was like, what's going on? He said, if I wouldn't have saw this tape.

[Ryan Sickler]

He said.

[Bruce Bruce]

I never believed it. He said. He said, man, he had me doing all kind of crazy stuff. He had me doing security at the kitchen door, like, you know, when they bring the food. And I. He said, don't let anybody out that door. And every time they trail food, you can't come through here. He's stopping everybody.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, man. He said.

[Bruce Bruce]

He said he could not believe it. And his name was James Pike. I never forget him. He was. He was a good dude though, man. I have a lot of good people in my.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, it sounds like you had a lot. And then they come full circle too. You gotta see him again and pay that off.

[Bruce Bruce]

Absolutely.

[Ryan Sickler]

Nice. That also like this investment, this belief that they had in this person. You didn't waste it.

[Bruce Bruce]

That's right. You didn't waste it.

[Ryan Sickler]

You didn't take that five year scholarship or whatever it was, man, but you didn't go off either. You did want another way, a success, successful way. So I. It's really nice that they get to see that.

[Bruce Bruce]

You know, other guys I went to school with, you know, other guys I went to school, they went in the military. One dude, he was a. He was a sniper. And he did 28 years in the military. And let me tell you, man, this dude is nothing to play with. But if we here, you, you and I, are we here, we can laugh all day, but something can trigger him. He messed with his kids. He messed with his kids or his wife. He like who you can see a totally different person step in. And to this day, I think he

[Ryan Sickler]

was kill you from a mile away. That motherfucker.

[Bruce Bruce]

He told me he shot somebody two miles away. Two, two miles. And it was five people accurately. He said he had been watching them for seven days. He watched them for seven days, he said. But he had to get them all at the same time. He said he was in Kuwait. He said when he got. When he came out, he said. He said he just put the rifle. He knew all of them was dead. He say, some fall.

[Ryan Sickler]

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[Bruce Bruce]

And he still had to go to counseling today for that, I'm sure. And he teach sniper class and. And. And down in Port Jackson. Yeah. In Columbia.

[Ryan Sickler]

Like that. The fact that the distance and the wind and everything, it's not just a straight aim you gotta adjust for.

[Bruce Bruce]

And the breathing. Yeah, and the breathing, too.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Bruce Bruce]

And. And the thing is, he, like, he'll call me sometimes. He said, hey, Bruce, I said, what? I got some of the guys here in the class, man, they don't believe I know you, you know. And he said, just say hello to him. And he had me on speaker. Hey, how you doing? They're in the military, and he's teaching them sniper class. He's real positive. But, man, if you trigger him. And he's not a big dude, he's about five, three, like a tree stump. I mean, but he can shoot, brother. He can shoot, man. I had the guys, I say. I said, lester, he said, yeah. I said, show the guys some of your guns, man. He got like 50 guns.

[Ryan Sickler]

Really?

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah. Chest.

[Ryan Sickler]

Just an arsenal.

[Bruce Bruce]

Just everything. And I'm gonna tell you, he's got a. You tell he's in the military, he'll give you the gun before you get to you. Check it, make sure it ain't loaded. Give it to you when you get back. You check it again.

[Ryan Sickler]

Make sure you didn't put something.

[Bruce Bruce]

That's right. That's right, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

There's another one in the. Nervous.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah, yeah, that's right, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

Make sure you didn't slide one in there.

[Bruce Bruce]

But he's really cool, man. But I was at a comedy club in Greenville, and. And it's called the Comedy Zone. And in Greenville, the stage is round. It's round, oval shape. But it's. It's a bar. So people are sitting at the bar. Then it's tables, right? So right here, my feature, my host and my feet say, man, these three ladies just keep talking at the bar part right there. And they told him to shut up. So I go up, I do about 45 minutes. I gotta do like 50 minutes. And after I do the 45, I say, you know, y' all been talking the whole show. You know, I say, y' all be interrupting the whole show. And everybody, like, yeah, yeah, they start clapping. Cause they want them to shut up, you know? And then I say, why don't y' all just be quiet? And the lady said, did you call me a And I say, no. But if I did, let me be the first to say thank you. Like that, right?

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Bruce Bruce]

And she said, my husband ain't never called me no bitch, you ain't gonna come. I said, ma', am, I didn't call you a bitch. I just wanted you to be quiet. She said. She said. She threatened me. She said, oh, we'll do you when you get out this club. And I heard somebody say, no, you won't. And it was a Lester.

[Ryan Sickler]

Nuh.

[Bruce Bruce]

He was in the club.

[Ryan Sickler]

You didn't know?

[Bruce Bruce]

I didn't know he was there. He was surprised me, him and his wife. And he said, no, you won't. And I said, lester, I'm terrified.

[Ryan Sickler]

It was dark.

[Bruce Bruce]

I said, lester. He said, I got her. He said, I promise you I got her. And I said, no, you ain't got to do it. He said, she move. I got her.

[Ryan Sickler]

And you need to tell that lady

[Bruce Bruce]

like this lady, I just saved you.

[Ryan Sickler]

You ain't safe if you live two miles home. Here, you can still shoot your.

[Bruce Bruce]

That dude can shoot, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

No, you won't. Out of the dark is why.

[Bruce Bruce]

Absolutely. And that dude is really good, man, but he's. He's a good friend of mine. We talk. He called me all the time and just. He say, man, I've been jumping out of planes. I gotta get a hip replacement, you know? He say, I done miss my hip up. He's like, I got a hip replacement. He said, but they gonna pay for it 100%. But he's. He's cool.

[Ryan Sickler]

Dude, man, can we talk about the first time you become a dad? How old are you when you're.

[Bruce Bruce]

Man, let me tell you. I think I was 20. 21. 20? Yeah. 20.

[Ryan Sickler]

20.

[Bruce Bruce]

19. I was 19.

[Ryan Sickler]

Damn. And you're doing comedy then?

[Bruce Bruce]

I was trying to. I wasn't doing it full time.

[Ryan Sickler]

Okay.

[Bruce Bruce]

You know, And I was scared to death. The worst thing, it scared me to death. But when I saw this child, man, I'm like, wow, this child came from me, you know? But when I saw the little girl. I got two boys and a girl. When I saw that little girl, man, she got me. That little girl got me.

[Ryan Sickler]

I've got an 11 year old now. She got me.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah, she got you. They can just look at you and just. You melt like butter. Yeah, yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

So the whole time you're grinding, you have now two kids. You're doing comedy more. When are you, like, when are you. What. At what point do you say, no more day jobs? And this. It's comedy.

[Bruce Bruce]

Full Time when I start going through a divorce. When I would, she, you know, she filed for divorce.

[Ryan Sickler]

So for 10 some years, while we all know you as Bruce Bruce, you're also doing a day job.

[Bruce Bruce]

Doing a day job.

[Ryan Sickler]

And is it the Frito Lay job? Get the fuck out here. I'm seeing you on TV and you're working Frito Lay.

[Bruce Bruce]

I used to drive the truck to the club. My car broke down. My car broke down. I'm serious. I gotta get to the club. And you know Dunn, D.C. carey, the comedian? He said, look here, I don't know who driving that potato chip truck out there. They gonna fight you. If you don't have that, you don't get that truck. I had them up parallel park in front of the club up. It was crazy. It was super clean. I kept the truck clean. I took it to the truck stop, let him fish and wash it. Armor all, the tires and everything, the whole Frito logo. Who's driving the truck. And I just stand there like I didn't know. I'm there with them. I wait everybody leave. Then I leave in the truck.

[Ryan Sickler]

No. Yeah, I like hearing that. Because I had a writing gig for a long time before I went all the way in. Because I've got, got, you know, kid, everything, you know? No. So when do you say, all right it now. I'm going all in.

[Bruce Bruce]

I was going through divorce. Yeah, I was going through it. And I told my supervisor, hey, man, I need a 30 day leave absent to get my head together. And I knew I wasn't coming back. You know what I'm saying? And that's the same supervisor used to pick on me all the time. And he got it approved. And then we was inventory in the truck. I was transferring it to him. He said, you coming back? I said, I want you to look at me real good. Next time you see me, I'll be on tv. Never came back. As soon as I left, it was on a Friday I never forget. Had my buddy to pick me up. I had $20 in my pocket. And I say, man, I got 20 bucks. He'd pick me up and take me home. And he said, okay. He came and got me. I gave him the money. As soon as I gave him the money, my beeper went off. You remember beepers, right? I said, pull over, man. Let me use the payphone. I called. I called this guy named Gary. He had a company club in Atlanta. He said, what you doing this weekend? I said, working for you and ain't never looked back.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's it, huh?

[Bruce Bruce]

That's it. And I've been having fun. I've been having fun, man. Yeah, I have fun.

[Ryan Sickler]

How long now?

[Bruce Bruce]

38 years. 36 years? Yep.

[Ryan Sickler]

A full time.

[Bruce Bruce]

Full time.

[Ryan Sickler]

Well, you go back to even messing around, it's another 10.

[Bruce Bruce]

Oh, man. Let me tell you something. If I had to get a job today, I'd be in trouble.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. All of us.

[Bruce Bruce]

I can work at Elwood's Pie Company tasting pies, but that's it. I can't do anything else. You could be.

[Ryan Sickler]

You could definitely be like a head of the Frito Lay company or something.

[Bruce Bruce]

Absolutely.

[Ryan Sickler]

You could absolutely be in charge.

[Bruce Bruce]

I want to do a commercial for him, too. I did. I want to do one.

[Ryan Sickler]

How have you not?

[Bruce Bruce]

But let me tell you this real quick. Jay Leno did a commercial for Frito Lay back in the day, 30 some years ago, Doritos. And he came to Atlanta and he talked about Doritos. And we had this big corporate meeting, and Jay was there. And I said, sir, I'm expiring. I want to be a comic. And he said, what are you waiting on? That's exactly what he said to me. And I said, well, I want to be a comedian. He said, well, just do it. He says, two things happen. You fall, get back up. He said, but just do it. I said, okay. And he shook my hand and everything. 25 years later, my manager take me to the Magic Comedy Club in Hermosa

[Ryan Sickler]

beach on a Sunday night.

[Bruce Bruce]

He said, jay Leno's gonna be in the room. I said, okay. Went in, Jay Newman is Bruce. Bruce. And he walked. I said, bruce Willis. He said, bruce, what's going on? Shook his hand. I say, hey, man, I'm a big fan. We talked and everything. I said, you remember you did that commercial with Frito Lay with the Doritos, and you came to Atlanta and you did his corporate meeting? He said, yeah, yeah, I remember that. Well, I said, you remember this guy came up to you? He said, bruce, you're not that guy, are you? I said, yep. He remember who I was, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

You got some great fucking full circle stories.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah, Jay was cool, man. He was cool, man. Yeah. I said, I am that guy. He said, what did I tell you? I told you to go ahead and do it. And I did it.

[Ryan Sickler]

Well, that's the thing. Like, I still have younger guys. It's funny to me like, that people still start doing stand up comedy. You know what I mean? I'm like, y' all are still starting this, huh? That's not dying off, huh? That's right. But you sound like an asshole when they ask you for advice. But the truth is, the only way to do this is to do it, is to do it, is to do it. There's no here's an eight year course. You do these things, you become a doctor. There is no. You do this, you become a comedian,

[Bruce Bruce]

it is do it.

[Ryan Sickler]

And then also you gotta learn who the you are.

[Bruce Bruce]

That's right.

[Ryan Sickler]

Your comedy like Robin Williams. If he teaches a comedy class, we don't get a Chris Rock or a Dave Chappelle. That's a totally different person comedian style. Like you got to get up there and do it. There is no. That's the thing about. There are no shortcuts.

[Bruce Bruce]

You can't stop.

[Ryan Sickler]

Nope, there are no shortcuts.

[Bruce Bruce]

And I love it, man. Like you, you know, I travel all the time. I, I love going on the road, I love coming back. So it kind of balance itself. When I leave, I'm glad I'm leaving. But then when it's time to come home, it's time to come home. And I like to like that. I don't been able. I've been places I never thought I'd been. Japan, China.

[Ryan Sickler]

Is that for comedy?

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah, I've been Dubai, been in Russia. We didn't do comedy in Russia, but we passed through Russia and it was, it was no different in the States. I don't know why people like where I'm from. It's different. It's no different. The same thing. Yeah, but it was, it was fun. It's a fun journey. Japan was cool.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. What's that like? Are you doing shows for like expats

[Bruce Bruce]

or what in Japan? Military bases. And I met a lot of guys that was just super cool. But Japan is clean.

[Ryan Sickler]

It's all haters.

[Bruce Bruce]

I saw a couple 85 years old speed walking. I'm like, what in the world? And we was walking down the sidewalk and I happened to turn around and see him and old man did me like this and I'm like, what's that? He said just let him pass. And when they pass, he, he gave me the nod. Speed walking, 85 years old, everybody's working out everybody's health yard, breathing. And they smoke more than anybody in the world.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yes, they do.

[Bruce Bruce]

Asians in the world smoke like, like a chimney. Am I right?

[Ryan Sickler]

And especially when you go to Vegas and too, man. It's like the Asians love those cigarettes.

[Bruce Bruce]

They love them, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

They love them.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

They don't care.

[Bruce Bruce]

Oh yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

I say this all the time too. You know, the United States, we start as this country where people are, like, throwing their people away, like, send them to the Americas, get them the out of here. And we're like, yeah, give us your tired, you're broke, you're poor, you're weak. Give us all your. So we're this country of renegades and yahoos and.

[Bruce Bruce]

Right.

[Ryan Sickler]

But we're still. When you look at the global aspect of all this, when it comes to the United States, I feel like we're the teenagers of the planet, and we act like it. We're all in everybody's business. We're young, dumb, full of. Come. You can't tell us. We'll beat your ass. We know better than everybody.

[Bruce Bruce]

Right?

[Ryan Sickler]

But I always think we should just be pausing and listening to the grandparents of the planet, who I believe are, you know, the Asian cultures and, like you said, are over there. They're ahead of us. They're talking clean. They got their. Together. They're taking better care of themselves. You know, they've got that big family where they Extended family, where they still believe in helping, you know, things like that.

[Bruce Bruce]

And it's 15, 16 brothers and sisters.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Bruce Bruce]

I went to England one time, and it was just so different, man. The women was so different. They. They look at you, but they wouldn't come to you. They just. You got to go to them, and they'll talk to you, but you got to approach them. But it's different. It was different.

[Ryan Sickler]

Are you comfortable talking about your mom passing? And were you there with her? Did you know it was something that was coming?

[Bruce Bruce]

I knew it was coming. Let me tell you when I knew it was coming. My mother died of ovarian cancer. Right. And it's the type of cancer that hides in the body, so it's hard to detect. And they did the CAT scan and everything, and they didn't see anything. Right. And when she found out she was in the fourth stage age.

[Ryan Sickler]

How old was she?

[Bruce Bruce]

She was 68.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, man.

[Bruce Bruce]

And let me tell you, man, this one, I knew she was gonna pass. She was in hospice, and she was laying in the bed, and I'm sitting just like I am beside her, and she told me. We're sitting there talking, and I had some potato chips, some sour cream and onion. Yeah. From Frito Lay. It was actually Frito Lay. So she said. She said, let me have one of those potato chips. Chips. And she ate one. And then she said. She said, I talked to Jeannie, and I said, you did? Now, Jeanne was her best friend. Been dead for 20 years.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, shit.

[Bruce Bruce]

I say, what did y' all talk about? I'm looking at her and she said, well, she told me I can come up there with her. She's fine where she's at. I said, what did you tell us? She said, I told her I'd think about it. And I say, well, if you decide to go there, I said, just let me know. She said, you'll be the first I let know.

[Ryan Sickler]

And how old are you at the time?

[Bruce Bruce]

You're 48. 48. 48. And about 1:45 that morning, she passed.

[Ryan Sickler]

Were you still there with her?

[Bruce Bruce]

No, no, I was gone. And the guy called me from hospice, and he said, I want to talk to you about your mother. Her health has changed drastically. And I said, what's going on? And he wouldn't tell me. He wouldn't tell. I kept asking. I said, what's going on? He said. He said, just come in. He said, take your time, you know, get ready. Come in. Because she was like, like 40 minutes from my house. And I said, well, just tell him what's going on. And then he said. He took a deep breath. He said, your mother passed about 1:43 this morning. And I said, well, thank you for letting me know. And I'm going to tell you, Ryan. I sat on this ottoman for like four hours before I realized I was sitting there. I was like, I was in a complete shock. It was 1:45 in the morning. I think I got up like 6 o', clock, just sitting there. Did not realize what my mind was just like, I can't believe my mother's passed. And I went up there and saw her, and she was good. And I know everybody in Atlanta, so, you know, I know all the funeral directors, and we'll be right up there to pick her up, you know, it's not a problem, you know. And they took care of her, you know. But that was my girl, man. And I didn't want to go to the funeral until my aunt said, you got to go, and.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, you didn't want to go?

[Bruce Bruce]

I didn't. I didn't want to see her like that.

[Ryan Sickler]

Were they doing an open cast, like the viewing and all that?

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah. And when I. I had to view it first. So when they finished her, they say, you, she's finished. You want to see her? And this guy had asked me earlier, he said, you got a picture of your mother? I said, yeah. And this dude made her look just like this picture. I'm like, whoa. And she was smiling, so she looked good. She had a Smile on her face when I saw him, like, okay, I'm good. So I was good then. And then at the funeral, I couldn't do all the hollering. I couldn't. Because I took care of my mother thoroughly. I had no regrets. No, I should have did the only thing I wish I'd have did. My mother wanted to go to New York. She never went to New York. And I wish I'd have took her to New York. She just wanted to go shopping. That's all she wanted to do in New York. But other than that, she get to

[Ryan Sickler]

see you perform live? Oh, yeah. Okay.

[Bruce Bruce]

And she had a late reaction laugh, like I told a joke. She,

[Ryan Sickler]

all right, that.

[Bruce Bruce]

That's funny. You know, I'm like, everybody's laughing but you. She just kind of look, yeah, that's. That's funny. That's funny. That's terrifying for a comedian.

[Ryan Sickler]

Like, you ain't liking that right away.

[Bruce Bruce]

Oh, yeah, but that was my. That was my heart, man. That's my heart, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

Do you go visit the grave?

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah, dude. And then you. I went to visit the grave. She had been. I. I didn't go for five years. For. For real. I get out there and I see this young girl. She's like 13. She said, hey, Bruce. Bruce. I'm like, hey, how you doing? It was Mother's Day. And this guy walks up to me and he said, hey, man, I know you're out here, you know, spending time with your family and everything. He said, I just want to tell you I'm proud of you and I love you. And he said, I'm Larry. And I looked at him, he said, bruce, Larry. And I kept looking at him. I couldn't recognize because I was so. Because I put my mother in the mausoleum. So she was up high. And he say. He said, louise is right over there. And Louise was a girl I used to go with. Larry took her from me.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, no way.

[Bruce Bruce]

So he said, louie. I said, larry, I said, oh. I said, you took Louise from me. And he bust out laugh. He said, I did. And they got three kids together.

[Ryan Sickler]

He took them from me.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah, man. But he was cool. He said, I'm so proud of you, man. I love you. But he took it from me. He took Louise from me, man. And I.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's where you run into them at the graveyard.

[Bruce Bruce]

You know what I'm saying?

[Ryan Sickler]

Crazy.

[Bruce Bruce]

But my mother. I put. My mother always say, don't put me in the ground. And I want to be up high and I want to be on the end. So I had to put her high on the end of a mausoleum, that that's what she wanted to be. So that's what I did.

[Ryan Sickler]

Okay.

[Bruce Bruce]

And she said, don't have them having me looking crazy in the casket, you know. So I gave her a little ring and another ring and a diamond bracelet watch. It was, you know, costume jury. And she was cool. She looked really good. Good.

[Ryan Sickler]

What about your dad? When he passed, were you able.

[Bruce Bruce]

I didn't know that. I didn't find out until after they buried him.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh really? How'd you find that out?

[Bruce Bruce]

My aunt told me, say, you know, your, your dad, why y' all didn't tell me? You know, she said, well, I just didn't think I would tell you. Well, how'd he pass cancer as well? And he told me that when I met him, I was going to say,

[Ryan Sickler]

he said, cuz I say this on this show all the time. A lot of people sit in that chair, they don't talk to their family, whatever. And I understand.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah, yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

However, the thing I say myself as well, well find out what the fuck they have. That's right, because their genes and genetics are in your body and that's got cancer, diabetes or whatever. You better fucking find out.

[Bruce Bruce]

And I can remember he said, he said, they found cancer in my body. And I said, you gonna be all right? He did like this, he shook his head.

[Ryan Sickler]

So when you were talking to him, he already knew?

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah. And he, he died like three years before mother. So. Yeah, he did. He just said. I said, oh, you gonna be our ace? He knew it. And he was a doctor, so he knows. Yeah, he knew. And my daughter checked me for everything. I hate going to the doctor, but they check you. Oh my God. I got a female doctor. She bends me over every time I come to that office. You hear me? We don't even go together and look, we don't go together. We hadn't went out on a date or nothing. And she bends me over this little twin size bed.

[Ryan Sickler]

I went to a doc, the doctor yesterday for a melanoma check. Okay, I didn't know we're supposed to get one once a year or nothing. And my brother's brother in law, it's very sad and unfortunate, but he was, I think he was late 30s, early 40s. He just passed from melanoma. I said, what? How do you even. He said he was driving on the freeway, all of a sudden lost all motor control, pulls over, sits for about 10 minutes. I guess his body sort of reset thought, okay, I'm okay. Starts driving again, almost immediately again. Boom. Pulls over this time, can't do anything. Calls 91 1. They take him from the. Basically the shoulder of the highway to the hospital. And they're like, sir, you have melanoma. It's in your brain and your kidneys. And in two months later, he was gone.

[Bruce Bruce]

Geez.

[Ryan Sickler]

And I said, let me go ahead and make a melanoma appointment.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

I went into that lady yesterday, and, you know, you got to get naked.

[Bruce Bruce]

Oh, yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

And I'm naked in this little, like, you know, know, paper towels over the front of me. And we start hearing, pop, pop, pop. And she looked at me and I said, what was that? I said, I'll be damned if I need to be running out of this office butt ass naked right fucking now. She's like, no, that was a machine next door. I was like, it didn't sound. She looked too, for a second, like, is that what I think it is? You know, because guns. People think they sound like the movies. They sound like fireworks.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yes.

[Ryan Sickler]

Firecrackers. And then she says that we humans, we get melanoma in our. In our. And I was like, what? She goes. Even though she said, melanoma is 50, 50, genetic and environmental, not just sun smoking, that kind of. And I said, I didn't know that. And she said, you know, parts of your body that have never hit the sun will still get melanoma. So she's like, I need you to roll over, and you kind of got to spread them and let me look.

[Bruce Bruce]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

I was like, are we for real right now? Like, I. And she's like, I know you didn't think that was coming today. I was like, I did not. But you know what? Go ahead, look.

[State Farm Sponsor]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

She's like, you're good. And I was like, great. Thank you very much. No idea.

[Bruce Bruce]

My doctor asked me, how many times do you go to the dentist? I said, twice. She said, you coming to me twice? So I had to go twice a year.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's what I do. I do twice a year. I pay for one full. I say it all the time, man. If I can go spend money on sushi dinners or my weed or whatever, I can go see my doctor. Yeah. Like, you gotta make a trade off.

[Bruce Bruce]

I'm gonna tell you what happened to me. One time I'm. Let it go. I got. Something happened. And I was. I caught a blood clock in my leg. Never experienced it before. And it was going up and I couldn't hardly breathe. I'm like. So my doctor says two things. Going to Happen you going to the doctor or you going to the doctor? No. She said, hospital. You're going to hospital. So I went. When I went to office, she had an ambulance to come get me. And I'm in the hospital snapping, you know, and the doctor, they put me in the CAT scan. He said, it's right there. We see it. He said, we got it. It, you know. He said, good. So when they put this. I don't know if you ever had this done before, but when they run that dye in your body, because when they give you iv, the guy said, look, Bruce, he says, go. When we do this, it's gonna feel like you got this. He said, okay. He said, you're not going to. So it's gonna feel like he got. That's okay. So I'm in the machine, my head is sticking out, and I'm looking at the guy and I say, hey, man. He said, well, I. Something this. He said, no. I said, I'm getting to splatter this table right now. He said, you know, I said, I'm good at this play. He said, I can't do the exam if you making me laugh. He said, quit making me laugh. I said, I'm telling you like that. And he got through with it and everything. And then we get to the. They. They put me in the room and everything. Doctor came up and saw me and everything, told me they caught it and everything's good. Yeah, everything's in great shape. But this. It was the African doctor, and he said, man, you're in great shape to be the size that you are, you know, and. But when they saw the insurance, this was the funny part. It was a white doctor came in. He was very nice, very peaceful. He said, look, you know, we want to watch you for about three more days, you know, like, when they saw the insurance that I had, it was. My wife had. She was working for Coca Cola, and she had 100% still left. And north at Southern Railroad, 100%. You know, they're going to build both companies, right? He would like to watch you. He whispered, you gonna be fine. I said, oh, no. Y' all see this insurance? That's why you guys keeping me here. And I was in there clowning with the people that cooked the food. I said, who cooked this food? I said, this is absolutely terrible.

[Ryan Sickler]

The worst. I was in seat of Sinai for three weeks. The worst fucking food I've ever had.

[Bruce Bruce]

Craft singles, you do not get rest in the hospital.

[Ryan Sickler]

I was talking about in my new

[Bruce Bruce]

special, they wake you up every two

[Ryan Sickler]

hours, every three hours for vitals, every four for pain meds. They're coming in to take your breakfast, lunch, dinner order. They're bringing that food, clean it up. They want to change the sheets, they want to clean the bathroom you don't ever get. And then when you do, here comes the surgeon or the doctor. Five in the morning, kicking. You telling you all kinds of about these new pills. You're like, what? You're talking a different language to me. It's doped up on morphine. D Whatever it is, man, it is, it's terrible. Stay the out of the hospital. Say it all the time. Do not go to the hospital. Do everything you can not to be in that hospital.

[Bruce Bruce]

Absolutely.

[Ryan Sickler]

Thank you. I know we gotta get you outta here.

[Bruce Bruce]

Okay, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

Before we do, last question for you, advice you're giving to 16 year old Bruce.

[Bruce Bruce]

Bruce. Hey man, no matter what you wanna do, do it. If you fall, get back up. But don't take or steal anything from anybody. Just go forward with it. Sometime when you, when you, when you're dealing with your life, you have to have tunnel vision. You got to see straight ahead and see what you want to do. And keep your eyes on your mark and keep going, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

That is great advice. Don't look left and right. No blinders on. Straight ahead. That's your thing. Absolutely great advice. One more time, promote everything you'd like, please.

[Bruce Bruce]

Www.brucebruce.com Check me out. Send me what you like and your dislikes. But check the Netflix special now it's on showing right now. You're gonna love it. It's me, it's Bruce. Bruce. I ain't playing.

[Ryan Sickler]

There it is. Thank you, man. Great to have you on here. I appreciate it as always. Ryan Sickler on all your social media. We'll talk to y' all next week.

[Bruce Bruce]

Sam,