The John Clay Wolfe Show — Episode #187 (Aired: February 16, 2026)

Episode Overview

Theme:
A classic installment of The John Clay Wolfe Show, blending unfiltered humor, car talk, rock & roll stories, and real listener moments. John and his crew riff on everything from office antics to Kiss concerts, seamlessly weaving in car-buying expertise and offbeat interviews, with their signature irreverence.

Style:
The show is unscripted, fast-paced, loud, occasionally crude, and loaded with pop culture references, office banter, and call-in comedy.

Key Discussion Points & Segments

1. Satirical News & Traffic Antics

• The show kicks off with a mock "breaking news" segment lampooning the confusion of statistics in political polling, setting a purposely chaotic tone.

  • Notable quote:
    "63% of the 84% of people surveyed say 39% of people believe. 57% of percentage surveys are confusing."
    (A, 00:01)

• Mock traffic report blends real updates with absurdist humor (zoo animals in potholes, Blair Witch sightings).

  • Quote:
    "A zoo animal fell into a pothole on the Beltway last night, apparently."
    (C, 02:44)

2. The GiveMeTheVIN.com Car-Buying Process

• John explains how his company operates nationwide, comparing the service to Pawn Stars (but "we pay what it’s really worth").
• Listeners are encouraged to call with their car details for live, no-nonsense appraisals.

Example Lightning Car Appraisal Segment

• A caller considers selling a 2015 GMC Acadia. John runs through a lightning negotiation, demonstrating his rapid-fire bidding style.
  • Quote:
    "Just 20 grand. Buy with 15 with 42. SLT with leather base. 17 grand. 17, 18 grand."
    (B, 34:01)

3. Staff Antics & Honest Office Dynamics

• The team jokingly exposes their ragtag office, including ex-strippers, ex-cons, alcoholics, and more.

  • Memorable banter:
    "Think of them. Joe, you couldn’t even cast these characters … ex DJs, radio people, ... extrippers ... what else?"
    (B & C, 27:29)

• A running theme is office drama, with mentions of criminal background checks, wild hires, real workplace sagas, and prepping for a "reality radio/TV" sign-off.

4. Listener Call-Ins: Real and Off-the-Wall

• Variety of calls: visually impaired fans, sellers wanting car advice, stories about living at home, and wild local culture questions (donut shop pyramids).

• Notable moment (visually impaired caller needs accessibility help):

  • Quote:
    "How do you move around a website blind ...?"
    (B, 08:46)

• Personal stories, e.g., a caller shares his experience going blind at age 35 and fan interactions about gifts and T-shirts.

5. Rock & Roll: The Enduring Kiss (and More)

• John raves about taking his kids to a Kiss concert, marvelling at the band’s eternal stamina despite their age.

  • Multiple impersonations of Paul Stanley and band banter pepper the segment.
  • Quotes:
    "They keep doing this until August. J.D. around the world."
    (B, 15:53)
    "Gene will wind up in one of his own Kiss caskets before it's all over."
    (B, 15:02)

• Discussion turns to possible tour replacements, referencing Journey and the Beastie Boys.

6. Rock Star Guests & Parody Appearances

• Satirical phone-ins: "Bill Cosby" asks Reverend Charles to pray for him from prison (40:00), "Satan" discusses deals with rock stars (43:00), and "Rush Limbaugh," "Keith Richards," "Robert Kraft," etc. all make parody appearances.

7. Topical Events: Pop Culture, Politics & Scandals

• The crew lampoons everything from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez nixing Amazon’s NY HQ, to Robert Kraft’s spa scandal, to Jussie Smollett’s faked hate crime, all within the show's unfiltered tone.
  • Relevant Quote:
    "Amazon wanted was 3 billion in tax and stuff, incentives. Then Alexandra Cortez said, wait a minute, you filthy capitalist greedy scum billionaires."
    (D, 22:00)

8. Racial & Social Satire

• Recurring bit: “White, Black, Latino, or Other?” guessing the ethnicity of Florida’s wildest newsmakers.
• Satire intertwined with honest takes on "accidental racism," political correctness, and American diversity.

9. Office Bets and Future Antics

• Upcoming: a one-legged footrace between Lieutenant Dan (auction staffer with a prosthetic) and “Big Aaron,” played up as a parody of office hijinks meets reality show.

10. Regular Car Call-Ins & Expert Appraisals

• Listeners from all over (Texas, D.C., Arkansas, etc.) call in with cars, often in hopes of scoring big, but met with John’s unsparing but fair market takes.

  • Quote:
    "If you've had three or more DUIs, I want to talk to you. 8008-0072-3480-0800 radio."
    (B, 48:47)

  • Honesty about value-shock:
    "You're gonna be mad. The damn. The turbos, they break and they leak. ... that's not enough. That's not enough."
    (B, 106:04)

11. Pop Culture, Classic Cars and Music History

• The crew jumps from car talk to lamenting the deaths of musical icons (The Monkees, Beastie Boys), recounting music history lessons and on-tour stories.

12. The PC Police, Comedy Backlash, and Self-Awareness

• John discusses receiving hate mail over ad copy deemed sexist, playing a real recording of Bobbo’s attempt to explain it to the angry caller.

  • Quote:
    "Flexible, good attitude is what we're saying ... She's not being flexible. She doesn't have a good attitude."
    (B, 171:52)

• Show's stance: not out to offend, but "we talk like normal people. We're just real ... you got a radio knob, change the dadgum channel."
  (D, 168:09)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)

• Satirical 'Breaking News':
  "63% of the 84% of people surveyed say 39% of people believe. 57% of percentage surveys are confusing." (A, 00:01)

• On Kiss's Endurance:
  "Gene will wind up in one of his own Kiss caskets before it's all over. ... they're touring so hard. It's like one. This, this one's for the great grandchildren." (B, 15:02)

• Paul Stanley Impersonation:
  "I'm four foot seven and I've got a two inch little thing. But don't forget my voice because I'm a singing machine." (B, 16:14)

• "Pawn Stars" Car Buying Analogy:
  "If the guitar is worth 10,000, we'll pay 10,000. And the cars, anything with a VIN number. That's why the company's called Give Me the VIN." (B, 06:23)

• Office Dysfunction:
  "We have teachers and preachers and ex DJs and radio people and non radio people and car people and non car people ... extra extras." (C, 27:39)

• Listener Real Talk:
  "This is the first time I can actually listen to talk radio and laugh my butt off." (D, 100:04)

• Feminist Caller Backlash (about the 'flexible woman' ad):
  "Is that for me as a customer, that comes across as ... a sexual joke." (D, 170:53)
  "She's not being flexible. She doesn't have a good attitude." (B, 171:52)

Segment Timestamps for Important Topics

Satirical News/Traffic

• 00:01–03:08

Car-Buying Process & 'Pawn Stars' Comparison

• 04:58–07:11

Call-In: Blind Listener Web Accessibility

• 08:25–09:56

Office Antics

• 27:29–30:44

Listener Car Appraisal Lightning Round

• 33:09–35:17

Kiss Concert Review & Rock Satire

• 14:32–17:27
• 78:59–81:51

Musical History/Monkees

• 62:06–64:40

Racial Satire Bit: 'White, Black, Latino, or Other?'

• 67:33–71:09

Pop Culture/Political Scandals

• Ocasio-Cortez & Amazon: 21:00–23:54
• Robert Kraft & Spa Scandal: 76:37–84:46
• Jussie Smollett: 25:52–26:27

PC Backlash & Self-Awareness Segment

• 168:11–172:24

Celebrity Parodies (Bill Cosby, Satan, Rush Limbaugh, etc.)

• Cosby: 39:41–42:23
• Satan: 43:01, 115:08
• Limbaugh: 92:24–95:41
• Keith Richards: 101:44–103:56
• Robert Kraft: 82:23–84:46

The Show’s Signature Tone

• Unpredictable, irreverent, and sometimes controversial.
• Mix of blue-collar wit, dealership know-how, and authentic audience interaction.
• Consistent “no BS” honesty about car values & the car industry.
• Parody and satire as a throughline: every public figure and taboo is fair game, but the team ultimately insists it's all in good fun, not to offend.

In their own words:
"You got a radio knob. Change the dadgum channel." (D, 168:45)
"We're not out to offend. We're just having fun." (B, 172:24)

For More

• Listeners can catch more from the archives or subscribe to the podcast at johnclaywolf.com, especially as the live broadcast moves across affiliates and regions each Saturday.

This summary covers the episode's main segments, significant moments, and is designed for both super-fans and curious new listeners to instantly catch the spirit, humor, and content of The John Clay Wolfe Show #187.