The John Clay Wolfe Show – JCW ARCHIVE: Hollywood Shuffle

Aired: September 20, 2025
Host: John Clay Wolfe
Featured Guest/Highlights: Adam Carolla archive segment

Episode Overview

In this “Hollywood Shuffle” episode from the John Clay Wolfe Show Archives, the crew revisits a classic studio moment featuring comedian Adam Carolla. The main focus is the intersection of celebrity hobbies, Hollywood culture, and their effects on personalities, with a humorous deep-dive into relationships, image perceptions, and the sometimes-absurd expectations of Hollywood life. The discussion also brings out playful behind-the-scenes stories about Jimmy Kimmel, male fashion trends, and the subtle art of elevating your social image—all dished out with the irreverence and candidness the show is known for.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Adam Carolla on Hollywood Hobbies & Friendships

(02:32 - 04:05)

• Relationship with Jimmy Kimmel:

  • The crew checks in on Carolla's friendship with Jimmy Kimmel and whether they still bond over mutual interests:

    “Is Kimmel into your cars and your racing or is he just... Y’all are still buddies, aren’t you?”
    (Interviewer, 02:32)
    “Yeah.”
    (John Clay Wolfe, 02:36)

  • Turns out, Kimmel is not interested in cars at all:

    “He doesn't care. No. Comedians, I shouldn't say no. There's the aforementioned Jay Leno, but there's Tim Allen and there's Jay Leno and in the car department... They don’t like it.”
    (John Clay Wolfe, 02:40)

  • Debunking a rumor:

    “Tim's dead, right?”
    (Interviewer, 02:53)
    “Tim Allen. No, he's not dead. Wow.”
    (John Clay Wolfe, 02:54)

• Kimmel’s Real Hobby:

  • Kimmel’s passion lies with the culinary world, not mechanics:

    “He is a foodie. Most Hollywood people are sort of into food or architecture, art or stuff, you know, dumb stuff, you know, they’re not into cars.”
    (John Clay Wolfe, 03:14)

2. Hollywood’s Transformative, Conformist Culture

(03:25 - 03:42)

• The Price of Fame:

  • The team laments how Hollywood can change personalities and interests for the sake of popularity:

    “Do you hate watching what Hollywood does to good people?... Turns them into what’s popular. They change their clothes, they change their habits, they change their hobbies. Turns them all into sissies.”
    (Interviewer, 03:25 & 03:35)

  • John riffs on Hollywood’s fashion trends and subtle stereotypes:

    “There's some dude, he's wearing an earring at some point. Now we got a problem. Yeah. Too many guys wearing bracelets. Although almost every time I say that, I say to someone who happens to be wearing a bracelet, who’s a dude.”
    (John Clay Wolfe, 03:42)

  • John pokes fun at “sentimental” male jewelry justifications:

    “Too many dudes, the wooden, wooden beads, you know, they always make some excuse. My 9 year old daughter made that for me. I was like, that’s what that thin drawer on your desk is for.”
    (John Clay Wolfe, 03:56)

3. Playful Exposing of Kimmel’s Quirks

(04:05 - 04:08)

• The hosts try to get John to dish on Kimmel’s little-known flaws:

  “Can you bust on Kimmel for anything that we don’t know about that he’ll take?”
  (Interviewer, 04:05)
  “He doesn’t wear bracelets, he doesn’t have any tattoos. He doesn’t have any aggressive piercings or any piercings at all. No, he’s a good dude.”
  (John Clay Wolfe, 04:08)

4. The “Piano Tuner” Social Experiment Story

(04:08 - 06:23)

• John shares a standout anecdote about crafting social perceptions in Hollywood:

  • Inspired by a neighbor’s “Piano Tuner” car magnet, John jokingly decides to make his own version to appear like a “winner family” in the neighborhood.

  • The running gag: JOHN DOESN’T OWN A PIANO.

  • He even ropes his nanny into playing along, explaining:

    “I told my nanny, Olga, this must be put on your car. And when you park it in front of my house, people think I’m a winner because they think I have a piano in there and that I play and my kids play, and I have to hire... a professional tuner to come there often to tune my piano. And they’ll think we’re the winner family, but instead, we’re the loser family. We play video games and blame everyone and grubhub horrible, but they’ll think we’re winners.”
    (John Clay Wolfe, 04:24)

  • Eventually, he forgets and leaves the sign on his car; a stranger tries to hire him to tune their piano:

    “I had a guy come out, he’s like, hey, what are your rates? And I’m like, for what? He’s like, for the tuning. Oh, yeah, don’t worry about it... I don’t have real time to explain. My dance car’s full. I’m... I’m gonna do Burt. I gotta go by Burt Bagarat’s house later on tonight.”
    (John Clay Wolfe, 06:05)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On car culture in comedy:

  “He doesn’t care. No. Comedians... In the car department... They don’t like it.”
  (John Clay Wolfe, 02:40)

• On Hollywood’s influence:

  “Turns them all into sissies.”
  (Interviewer, 03:35)

• On LA fashion and male “accessories”:

  “There's some dude, he's wearing an earring at some point. Now we got a problem. Yeah. Too many guys wearing bracelets... Wooden beads... My 9 year old daughter made that for me.”
  (John Clay Wolfe, 03:42–03:56)

• The “winner family” ruse:

  “We’re the loser family. We play video games and blame everyone and grubhub horrible, but they’ll think we’re winners.”
  (John Clay Wolfe, 04:39)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 02:32 – Adam Carolla on Kimmel’s interests, Hollywood celebrities and their hobbies
• 03:25 – Discussion about how Hollywood changes people (clothing, hobbies, habits)
• 03:42 – Riffing on male Hollywood fashion (bracelets, beads, “sentimentality”)
• 04:05 – Kimmel’s quirks, mythbusting, and nonconformities
• 04:08–06:23 – The hilarious “Piano Tuner” neighborhood experiment and its outcome

Recap & Takeaways

This blast from the archives captures the John Clay Wolfe Show’s signature blend of authentic, irreverent humor and sharp observations about Hollywood culture. With honest revelations about celebrity lifestyles, inside jokes about image, and a perfectly bizarre story about the social value of a car magnet, listeners get a behind-the-scenes taste of what keeps the show funny and fresh, years after it first aired.