← The Nerve with Maureen Callahan
The Nerve with Maureen Callahan
Johnny Depp Speaks Out, Karen Read's Distasteful Post-Trial Behavior, and Katy Perry's Marital Feud
01:26:08
Maureen dissects the undoing of Johnny Depp's career with Executive Editor, Jonathan Dean, who spoke with Johnny Depp in an exclusive interview for UK's Sunday Times. They dove into Depp's highly publicized downfall as well as his possible comeback. Then Maureen lays into Karen Read's shameful victory lap and lack of humility in the moments following her acquittal. And Bill from Brooklyn joins Maureen to breakdown the latest in the Diddy trial, Katy Perry's marital dispute and more. Firecracker Farm: Visit https://firecracker.FARM & enter code Thenerve at checkout for a special discount! Done with Debt Visit: https://www.DoneWithDebt.com
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- [00:02]
Maureen
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- [00:31]
Bill
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- [01:05]
Maureen
Hey everyone, welcome back to the Nerve. I am so happy to be back with all of you guys. We have so much to discuss. You guys, by the way, you really, it seemed like you really enjoyed the Mini Nerve we just did on the Kennedys and JFK Jr. In particular on Saturday. So we've got updates for you and we've got your reactions which were killer as usual. You guys continue to outdo yourselves. And just a side note, but a very important one. I hope all of you troublemakers out there who are on the east coast like we are suffering through this heat wave are taking really good care of yourselves, staying cool. Not to sound like a morning show where I'm giving you super obvious tips, but sometimes we think we can gutted out and often it's better just to err on the side of caution. And to those of you who are, you know, working outside, those of you who do manual labor, an extra huzzah to you. You are heroes. I don't think we've ever seen anything like this at this level of athleticism where over the weekend we saw two major league ball players like nearly pass out from either like heat exhaustion or heat stroke. The Cincinnati Reds shortstop, and if I'm saying his name correctly, Elliot De La Cruz vomited in the outfield in the fourth inning. And Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Trent Thornton, I mean the irony, he had to be helped off the mound due to heat exhaustion and then he got to the dugout where he threw up multiple times. These are tough, strong, elite athletes. So just, I'm just saying be careful out there. And that's the end of my morning show pro tip. Okay, now for, for today's show We've got not one, but two incredible guests, one of whom you already know and love. I'm not going to spoil it, just a little tease. But first we've got Jonathan Dean, and he is the executive editor at the Sunday Times. And he landed the white whale of celebrity interviews, Johnny Depp, who is three years out from his successful, highly publicized defamation lawsuit against his ex wife, Amber Heard, who had accused Johnny of domestic violence and all manner of horrible, degrading behavior. He won that. He won $15 million in defamation and punitive damages. So Jonathan's gonna tell us all about how he got that interview, how he found Johnny to be at this stage of his life and his career and the larger consequences of that case for victims of domestic violence. Hey, Bill Maher, talking to you. We're going to come at you later, my friend, so don't worry. And what that case meant also for and means for the Hollywood industrial complex and the culture at large. Then we are going to get into some high profile true crime. Per your request, we are taking apart the Karen Reed verdict that came down last week because a good amount of you troublemakers have been emailing and asking me what I think of that case and this second trial. The first trial ended with a hung jury and the verdict just came down last week. So I have lots of thoughts to share. And then we have a brief recap. We're touching down on that other cultural abomination, the bunker busting bomb, if you will. That is season three, episode four of and Just like that. Plus we have even more Kennedy family squalor and scandal topped off with your feedback and emails. And last but certainly not least, Bill from Brooklyn is back here to talk Diddy. He's got a personal anecdote that he told me the other day and I was like, you gotta come back on the show immediately. We have to talk about this with the troublemakers. We're gonna talk Katy Perry and we're gonna talk a heartwarming legal ruling truly about man's best friend. And we're gonna end with a special moment of nirvana. And guess what, you guys, again, per your requests, this is going to be our very first informal but real deal book club pick for the summer. First up, Johnny Depp. Johnny Depp was one of the biggest movie stars on the planet for decades. That is a rare group of people. It's part of a generational trifecta that includes Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt and I think that's it. Johnny. And this guy was a movie star like no other. Truly. He was original. And I'm talking about him in the past tense, which goes to show you the magnitude and consequence of this legal case, which is now coming up on its three year anniversary. You know, he always played against his looks. He had this appeal to just about every cohort on the planet. Kids, women, hipsters, outsiders. He always brought like sideways genius to his roles. You know, Captain Jack Sparrow, one of the most iconic. He was supposed to be a garden variety Disney hero until Johnny Depp interpreted him as a drunk. Keith Richards, Monke. And Tim Burton, the director that he's worked with often, and his close friend, said that for Willy Wonka, Depp channeled that rumors were correct. At the time, he was channeling one half Michael Jackson, Wacko Jacko, as he used to be known, and the other half, Anna Wintour. That's brilliance, okay? That is the kind of fearless, original thinking that we love here at the nerve. But by 2016, Johnny's career, his reputation, his finances, his image, they all collapsed like the outer wall of the Roman Coliseum. I mean, it was late stage Elvis. Late stage Elvis. And despite winning that contentious, infamous graphic Depp v. Heard defamation trial that captivated the country, his career has never really rebounded. So now in a Nerve exclusive, we have with us Jonathan Dean, executive editor of the Sunday Times of London, who's going to tell us all about the first in depth interview with Johnny Depp since that trial. Jonathan, welcome to the Nerve. Hi there, Jonathan. First of all, are you coming to us from London?
- [07:40]
Jonathan Dean
I am, yes. Which is why it's dark here.
- [07:44]
Maureen
Time difference. So I appreciate it. These are kind of Johnny Depp hours. He really seems to come alive late at night, early morning hours. From what I understand you, it took you years to land this interview, is that right?
- [08:01]
Jonathan Dean
Yeah. So in 2022, the summer of 2022, I happened to be spending a month in Los Angeles and the editor of the Sunny Times back then asked me to try and get an interview. And he's been through various different people, so it's relatively hard to sort of find out exactly who was representative at any one time at that point. But I emailed somebody and at that point he was just putting the finishing touches to, I think, Jean dibarry, a film that premiered in Cannes last year, and think, and they said the time wasn't right, but let's stay in touch. And we actually did. And, you know, it was one of those sort of, quite frankly, quite rare instances in this business where people kind of stuck to their word and then about sort of like I'D say a couple of years later, they got in touch because he was about to bring out a directorial debut which is going to be at the San Sebastian Film Festival, a film called Modi, which is about the painter Modigliani. And it was, you know, it's not, it's not his actual debut. He made a film a few years ago, but this was like. This was of his. They were very excited about it and they. We had some discussions and essentially it did take a long time to finally set up a meeting, but I'd say good. Two and a half years after, after first emailing and having a few emails over the course of that time, we did eventually sit down in a room together.
- [09:23]
Maureen
Jonathan, were you given parameters or no go zones? Because one of the reasons celebrities increasingly avo print is that they have zero control over the final outcome. Unlike sitting for a television interview with a known outlet, unlike communicating with your fans unmediated via social media. It's a real trust exercise for someone. And we don't really land on the side of celebrities here at the Nerve. But given the stakes for a Johnny Depp, that's a real risk for him to sit with a print journalist.
- [09:57]
Jonathan Dean
Yeah, but I think he's. I think he's just incredibly old school, which is like. Which is a. Which is a point that I do, I do repeat in my piece for many different reasons, but over the last few years, in what I do, which is to sit down with people and, you know, take a, you know, take our conversation and write into some sort of narrative, you know, that's what I do. There has been a sense that people want to do it less. They obviously believe that they can. If they're pushing something, they can push it via social media. You know, like there's. There's a sense, there's a sense amongst the absolute alias that they don't need to do this anymore. But my argument has always been, which is still just about keeping me in work, is that actually fans do want to hear from them in this sort of format. They don't want to just hear from aliases on an Instagram post because there's no personality there. You're not learning anything. And I think people who have a fandom we like think about how we all grew up knowing people, which goes back to Johnny Depp when he starts, when he admired people when he was growing up, whether the countercultural comedians who he loved, various actors who he admired, he would have read profiles with them, he would have read interviews with them. And I think you Get a real window into it. So I think yes, there is. That there is sort of a risk. I maintain that if you. That there's less of a risk than people think you could. Headlines are slightly different, but obviously every quote that we include has to be their quotes. So because of us, we'd obviously be like, well, it's against the law. So I kind of feel that there's a trusting there. But I just think profile wise, he's so old school. He's so from an era when people did this sort of thing and spent time with journalists. I think he quite likes that idea.
- [11:37]
Maureen
It's interesting because in preparing to talk to you and I was so fascinated to read your piece for the very reasons that you just stated. I love a formal framing of a piece. A hook, another, you know, a profiler's is sort of your Trojan horse, your entree into that world. The last lengthy print interview I think that Depp sat for was with Rolling Stone, an American publication. It ran in June of 2018. It was called the Trouble with Johnny Depp. And it was a bruiser of an article. I mean, the, the reporter who you could tell really kind of went in liking Johnny Depp seemed to exit very alarmed at the copious amount of drugs, alcohol, paid people around this guy. He said, basically nobody around this guy is not on the payroll. The finances were collapsing. He had just gotten divorced from Amber. Heard the tattoos he had Slim, which was his nickname for her, turned into scum, which he since turned into scam. It's very Winona Winoforever. And I wondered if part of sitting with you guys is because you're a London outlet, the bar for, you know, celebrities who sue for libel. It's, it's a much lower bar than in the United States. Do you think that had. Because he spends a lot more time in London now than he does in the States.
- [13:03]
Jonathan Dean
He certainly did at that point. Yeah. The house that I met him, which is in the middle of Soho in London, I mean, it's, it's incredible. He's been hiding out there for so long. It's so smack bang in the middle London. It's place I walk past umpteen times, but nobody knew that he lived there.
- [13:16]
Maureen
Which amazing.
- [13:17]
Jonathan Dean
Which created its own problems because obviously he couldn't really leave. But anyway, that's, that's another thing. But I think, I think in a way, yeah, I, I do get that. I do get the sense that he kind of, you know, I think also he, he does treat London and he has done for A long time as. As home or. He certainly treated France's home so like he tweaks kind of like. So. So that there was of Europe as opposed to the US and he told me he doesn't spend that much time in the US he spends. Though he's got a place in the Bahamas and he had a place in London and since we met, he's left that particular place. But he is still around. So I think there's a sense of that. I also think the reason he did this, as opposed to the Rolling Stone piece is that we all go through these phases in our lives. We all have these moments when we all, you know, there were things that stayed the same and there are things that change. But the key thing here is that pretty much a day after we met, one of the times he went off to shoot Day Drinker with Penelope Cruz, which is a big. But what.
- [14:16]
Maureen
Day Drinking is the title, the working title of this film, which again is a bold move.
- [14:21]
Jonathan Dean
It is. He's definitely playing into an image. But I feel like. But you know, you go to make a big film like that, it's got a major Hollywood director, Mark Webb, it's got Penelope Cruise in it. This is. This is the sort of thing where you need to frankly behave. You need to sort of act in a way that is sort of consummate with other professionals on set. So I do think there's a sense that if that time when he did the Rolling Stone piece and. And other times in his life, you know, around that era, there was clearly a dishevelment, that there was clearly chaos. I do feel a bit like now he is. He is re. Entering the world where you kind of can't do that now because then you're just not going to get work.
- [15:00]
Maureen
Well, he hasn't really gotten a major role since this entire thing exploded. His last big role was in Fantastic Beasts 3. That was in 2023, 2022, I believe. And since then he's been doing indie films, kind of keeping a low profile. I want to take a quick look at this clip. He was interviewed with his director at Cannes. I think this was back in 2021. And he was sort of being asked about, or he was directly being asked about sort of be now becoming a pariah in Hollywood. Let's take a look at this. I. I mean, there's no. I don't have.
- [15:44]
Jonathan Dean
Why.
- [15:47]
Maureen
And. And that sort of just goes to what at least then seemed to be his fundamental either unwillingness or inability to understand that the disclosures in this Trial which included multiple photos of him passed out in day clothes looking like, frankly, I mean, he's an admitted hard drug user, a junkie, like an alcoholic, like a sad old alcoholic. The disclosure about the poop in the bed and who left it there, you know, the admission on both sides that there had been some kind of violence, the fingertips that he lost. And we saw that image in the trial of Johnny on a gurney in an emergency room holding his half or three quarters of the finger he had remaining. All of it was just, it was like the curtain was ripped back and it was like the image that you had of this guy could not be further from reality. And what Jonathan, was your sense of how much he's absorbed, the severity of the damage that was done to his reputation and career.
- [16:58]
Jonathan Dean
I think this is the interesting thing though, because I order those things, I put them all in the piece and we, and we talked to that and I, I was most staggered it, like, in a way about why he went through two trials, he, that, you know, that he went through two tries. You, you sort of go, you know, the first trial here, which was the libel case, which he lost, you know, kind of, you'd be a bit like, we know so much now, nobody really needs to know more. Surely he doesn't want people to know more. And then that's why I was like, why, why, why go through it again in Virginia? And so I just didn't really understand that. I think there's a general sense when you ask how much he's sort of taken this on what's happened to his career. The thing is, I don't think this is really going to. I don't think it's massively affected his career. I'll caveat that by saying that you're right. There's been a good sort of like five year gap where he hasn't been in any made major movies. You know, he did, he did Minamata, which was a tiny film. He did Jean Dibarry, which was a tiny French film. And they feel a little bit differently about certain things, I think, than the Brits and the, and the Americans. But, you know, and now he's directed a film about Modigliani which does have Al Pacino and Stephen Graham in it, but it's still a small film. But now you kind of go, I think one thing that's really telling is he had this art exhibition in Manhattan last September called A Bunch of Stuff, which is a collection of various bits of Johnny's art.
- [18:20]
Maureen
I remember it. It was not received well, critically.
- [18:25]
Jonathan Dean
At the opening of it, at the opening of the exhibition. So the opening party, you had Jim Jarmusch, who's the indie kind of kingpin, but you also had Jerry Bruckheimer. So you had. So. So you had sort of somebody from his indie world, somebody from his. Obviously kind of, you know, like, you know, kind of the biggest blockbuster he's ever been in, the Pirates films. And I don't think we're that far away at all after the Penelope Cruise film of him being in possibly another Pirates, possibly another big blockbuster. Jerry's on his side still, you know, like kind of, you know. And then also you look at one of the things I thought was really interesting. You look. There was a. There was an event. I think it was in April. I might get the date slightly wrong, but there was a Patti Smith tribute in again in New York. And Johnny. Johnny was on stage that night, had Scarlett Johansson there, and he was also on stage with Michael Stipe, Bruce Frankenstein and Patti Smith. And you're going to. If you wanted to sort of make a list of kind of, let's say, like liberal heroes who would. Who. Lots of people who don't, like, joined it would say that, you know, they're the ones who've taken against him. You know, it's a tacit approval of him by being on stage with him. And so all of this stuff about his career being damaged, I sort of had the impression that he's. He decided, maybe I'm going to ride out. I'm going to make a few small films to sort of keep you busy. I'll do my art now. I'm going to be in a Planet Cruise film next. I think he'll be in a. In a. In a blockbuster. There's nothing really to say that now the five or so years have gone, that this will affect his career at all.
- [19:59]
Maureen
You know, I think most people. The headline of your piece is very, very tantalizing. It's a. It's. It's a quote directed directly from. From Dep. I was a crash test dummy for me, too. And this has been going on for so long that I forgot its origination was before Harvey. These allegations against him by Amber Heard and the trial, the second trial. This whole narrative has gone on so long that Harvey exploded kind of in the middle of things, you know. And so for better or for worse, the MeToo explosion did. He caught a lot of shrapnel for that. But in reading your piece, you know, he lost his longtime agent, Tracy Jacobs. A lot of the people as you said at the top of this thing, a lot of his original people have gone, they have left. I wonder how much of this damage is really his self inflicted wounds of drug and alcohol abuse because they were having a lot of trouble with him on that shoot. It was a pirate shoot in Australia and he wasn't showing up on time. He was missing hours and days and they all knew it was because of the partying.
- [21:06]
Jonathan Dean
I agree. And I think this though, this is why it feels like that sort of like last chance saloon thing a bit for him. I think he's somebody who, I mean it's, it's very complicated obviously, but I feel like, but, but, but I feel there's a sense of him that he wants. For all the stuff that you see. One thing I didn't agree with him about at all, for all the things that he said to me about accidental fame and never wanting to be famous and everyone to be spotted by people.
- [21:35]
Maureen
And you know, they all say that, they all say it, but also you don't get to be a movie star of this magnitude without really working for it. Like it just doesn't happen.
- [21:45]
Jonathan Dean
But also, but the biggest thing about that with him is he, he wants this like again I think, you know, he's, you know, he's all this stuff happened when people left him or you know, because of what he did and, or what they did, you know, whatever. He lost his team and I think kind of like now I think he's sort of. And he, and he did suffer the career. He lost a lot. The career that he had because he was basically sacked essentially from Fantastic Beasts. I think it was particularly mutual. I think there's a sense that he does want this. You know, he knows this is the last chance soon and he wants to be able to write his own narrative. He wants to be respected and revered and famous again and, and it's all very, I think it's all incredibly meticulous. You know, I think there's, there's this idea of him being quite, let's say ramshackle being, you know. So like when, when I interviewed him, he was drinking most the time. But then, God, but then he, you know, he's like lucid with it. This is the thing, you know, I think there's, there's a level of, of like drink which we all know we can take it. If he's at that level at this point then like, anyway, so he was drinking most of the time. But, but, but, but I think, but I think, but I think it's really interesting. I think he sort of, he knows exactly what he's doing. You know, he's like, you know, doing the art expression, having. I almost think he almost deliberately picked John Motion Bruckheimer. He would have loved to do, he would have loved doing the Patti Smith thing. So sorry. But so my point, saying he was like drinking all the time and he's, and he does. He is ramshackling in, in conversation doesn't mean that I don't think he's doing everything very step by step. He's, he's, he's, he's plotting this kind of comeback which he doesn't like to call it, but it is.
- [23:29]
Maureen
Right.
- [23:30]
Jonathan Dean
Very, very carefully.
- [23:32]
Maureen
Yeah, it's. And obviously your piece is, is step one in sort of trying to reenter the arena with the likes of the Tom Cruise's of the World. I mean he was never gunning for that kind of stardom in a career that branding. But you know, that's Jerry Bruckheimer production as well. Tom Cruise, you know, halfway. I mean you got to give Tom Cruise a lot of credit. But it will be fascinating to see if Johnny Depp can pull this off and become what he once was and secure his legacy. It seems like. You think he can.
- [24:05]
Jonathan Dean
I think he can. Because you only have to look at. And I think this gets complicated, Rob, because you only really have to look at the people who he's working with to sort of see how much of a reputation has been, has been mended. Mark Webb just did the Snow White remake and then.
- [24:22]
Maureen
Oh my God, he's in it too. The Snow White remake. That was a big colossal disaster of publicity. Publicity that his leading lady did that in.
- [24:30]
Jonathan Dean
So, so, so basically you sort of go like he, you know, like. But he is a, he is a Hollywood player for.
- [24:37]
Maureen
Yeah, of course.
- [24:38]
Jonathan Dean
Yeah. Right. And so, and so you know, he did two. Two Spider man film. So you're going to like by working with him again, like Penelope again, the Patty Smith thing, whatever he does next, you, you know that you know, by association. And also the people who frankly turned up at the trial, that Winona turned up at the trial, Vanessa Palito, like, you know, Kate Mostyn.
- [24:57]
Maureen
Yes.
- [24:57]
Jonathan Dean
Thing. He, he, he has the sort of backing of the type of a lister that means that he will inevitably come back. I really don't see him. A lot of the me too thing was bracketing lots of people together. You know, like so, you know, like. And I feel like in, like in a way, you know. And I don't necessarily want to get into just like naming names. But, but he's obviously, he's significantly further along in a comeback than say Kevin Spacey, who doesn't have anyone, who doesn't, who doesn't seem to have anyone particularly on his side. Whereas, whereas Depp, you see by association the support that he has and that's the kind of support that pushes you further and further to basically just go, could go back to where he was.
- [25:39]
Maureen
Fascinating. This is so fascinating. It's going to be so interesting to see how this next step of his career unfolds. And thank you, Jonathan, for sharing a bit of the behind the scenes of this profile and the Johnny that you got to know during your time together. Really appreciate it.
- [25:54]
Jonathan Dean
It's a pleasure. Thank you very much.
- [25:56]
Maureen
Thank you. That was fascinating. It's a really interesting piece. I encourage you all to go read it over at the Sunday Times. And just a note to Johnny, even Keith Richards got CL clean eventually. Okay, you can make it. Cool. Just do it. Just do it. We're rooting for you. Okay, next up we will get into the Karen Reed trial and verdict plus as promised, the continuing decline and fall of. And just like that. And we are, we are reaching. Like the patient is in a vegetative state. The doctor is asking if we want to put life support or if we want to just on the patient or just let the patient go kindly. I think we know what Sarah Jessica Parker and Michael Patrick King would prefer. Any means necessary. Plus Kennedy family fallout. After our mini this weekend and your emails, we are back in a minute. Mundane and mediocre. That's for someone else. You know it, I know it. So why settle for boring food? And this isn't about indulgence, by the way. It's about having standards, which we all do at the nerve cost of entry. High standards. You deserve better. And yes, that includes flavor. Enter Firecracker Farm. You've heard Megyn Kelly rave about it. Maybe you caught it on Rogan. Thousands of five star reviews say it all. People are obsessed. Comments range from where has this been all my life? To how did I even live without this? Now this is a small family run American company making something truly crafted. It's not mass produced, it's not gimmicky. We are talking coarse sea salt infused with the what they call the three kings, Ghost reaper and scorpion peppers. Troublemakers. Firecracker Farm is speaking our language. Okay. These are aged for depth, designed for balance. It's never too hot. It comes in a precision gorgeous stainless steel grinder that gives you full control this is not about melting your face off. This is flavor with power and no regrets. The heat comes in waves. Eggs transformed. Veggies upgraded. Steak next level. If it was sold out last time, there's good news for you. Alex just made a fresh batch. Still small batch, still handcrafted, still blowing minds. So go to Firecracker Farm and use code the nerve for a little extra. Thank you. Zero regret. All flavor. Firecracker Farm. Your new beginning starts now. Dr. Horton has new construction homes available in Ellensburg and throughout the greater Seattle area.
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Jonathan Dean
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Maureen
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Maureen
Has the ideal home for you. Learn more@doctor Horton.com Dr. Horton, America's builder and equal housing opportunity builder. So let's do it. Let's talk about this Karen Reed trial. Now, you guys, really, since the show began and we are still a baby show, as I said, we were probably in our teen years, we're in our adolescence. We're like, we've got a mouth, we've got a point of view. You know, we're gonna let you have it. So you guys have been asking a lot about this person and this case. A lot. And I have to say, I love true crime. I wrote a true crime book that just the mystery of it like, enraptured me for years. But for some reason, the Karen Reed case, like, I couldn't latch into it and I, I couldn't figure out why. And I. And then in, in researching for this segment, I, I realized, I just think that there was an instinctual gut reaction I had towards Karen Reid. I think I read her immediately as one of the darker people that we have ever encountered. I knew very little about this case. I knew that her boyfriend had been a police officer in Massachusetts, I believe in a suburb outside Boston. He was Boston pd. He, he was found. They dated for two years. His body was found in a snowbank. She claimed, and still does, that there was this wild conspiracy involving like the entire police force who had like tortured and killed him and left him out to die in the snow. And that never really made sense to me but that she this poor but glamorous, camera ready and media friendly woman named Karen Reed. I mean, it is time for her close up. Okay? That's what was putting me off, that she had nothing to do with the death of her boyfriend of two years. We're looking right now at an official police photo portrait of John o' Keefe. Really handsome guy, by all accounts, a really, really, really decent guy. He. His. His sister had died, I believe her husband had died. He took her two children and was raising them himself as a single dad, a police officer as a single dad, I mean. Anyway, when I saw the verdict come in last week, I thought to myself, absolutely, the troublemakers, as usual. You are right. We have got to talk about this. So the first thing we're going to do is look at Karen Reid's address to her supporters. Last week, after she was acquitted in this murder, she got. She was convicted of like a much lesser charge of like dui, I think, and she got a year's probation. Anyway, this is Karen outside Norfolk with her lawyer making very mature hand signals. You know, things that really like, reflect the sober seriousness of this crime, you know, Here she is outside the courthouse, a V for victory. Look at me, I'm in a tailored suit. I'm blowing kisses to my fans. Are you kidding? A man died. Two children who already lost their parents, lost their uncle, their surrogate father. You know, is this really appropriate? I mean, where are we in the culture? Because I saw all of this coverage on the news. I saw this footage rolling over and over and over on the news, and I swear, not one. I never heard one single person say anything about how callous and inappropriate this was. Now that's what we're here for. Clearly there's a hole in the culture. There is a void bigger than, you know, the Grand Canyon. And we are here to fill it, people. Okay? Now here is Karen's speech to her supporters. After narrowly escaping with her life, she was facing life in prison. Here we go. Number one is I could not be standing here without these amazing supporters who have supported me and my team financially and more importantly, emotionally for almost four years. You would think this was the Academy Awards. You would think this was the Oscars. Listen, sister, I think you killed that guy. I have reason to believe you killed that guy, as do many other people. And she's out here thanking her supporters and those poor saps, those idiots who donated their hard won money to this piece of shit who was a top level financial analyst, who when she was facing these charges, called over to Harvard Law School where she got the good advice to go hire Kevin Spacey's attorneys. You think that doesn't cost a pretty penny? Don't weep for her, okay? You should not be giving her your. Don't give her your money. Don't do it. Let's look at what else she had to say. And the second thing I want to say is no one has fought harder for justice for John o' Keefe than I have. Than I have. And my team. I think his family would beg to differ. I think his friends would beg to differ. I think all of the witnesses that Reid has allegedly sicked her supporters on and we'll get to that. Would beg to differ. And I'm going to quote you something that she said in this. She did this HBO five part or it's investigative discovery now. It's on hbo, Max, whatever five part docu series during the trial and up to the verdict. And I'm going to quote you something that directly came out of her mouth and it's such a vulgar piece of obscenity. Nobody's fought harder for James o' Keefe than I have. Than I have. Yeah. You know, I mean, she's, she's an actress really. She's a dramatic actress who just never could have made it any other way. You know, look at, look, look at, she's got, she has a sophisticated sense of how you tell a story non verbally through the media. Okay. Look at what she's wearing. She's dressed in powder blue for the day. For when they're told that the verdict is. Has come in. Get to the courthouse. What does she dress in powder blue? She's a martyr. She's the Virgin Mary. However this verdict was going to go, she was telling us one thing, that she is a saint. She is not a sinner. Now, I as discussed, I watched all five episodes of that documentary. It's called A Body in the Snow. And the showrunner is a veteran. I was obsessed with the show as a kid. I would scare the living crap out of myself watching this show. I was addicted to it. The late great Unsolved Mysteries. So this is, this is a veteran in the true crime storytelling space. Her name is Terry Dunn Muir and she did an interview recently with the Hollywood Reporter and they asked her, how'd you get all this access? You know how she got all this access? Guess who made the call? Karen Reed called her. Not the other way around. Karen Reed is like, hey, I need some more cameras on me because the national media isn't enough. Let's get a camera crew in here and let's talk to me all day, day long. It's not really a smart thing to do when you're on trial for your life. But you know, I think I'm, I'm gonna say this and I think this person is innocent, but Extremely strange, very dark, very weird. Not since Amanda Knox. Again, I think she's innocent. She was eventually found not guilty of the murder of Meredith Kercher in Italy. But she was very weird during the entire investigation. She was, like, doing cartwheels at the police station. Anyway, I don't think I've seen a murder suspect so excited to be facing down a trial for murder for homicide than Karen Reed. Like, there's this scene in the first episode, the very first episode, she's in the back of a very expensive suv. She's wearing, you know, clothing that costs a pretty penny. And she's on her phone and she start. She starts, like. She starts, like, levitating. She can't believe it. And she's. She lurches forward in her seat so she can tell her lawyer up front or whatever member of her entourage is up front, like, oh, my God. Oh, my God. You're not going to believe it. I just got an email from Elle magazine. They want to do something on me. Can you believe it? I mean, like, she's arrived. She has arrived. And she is now the star that she has always been meant to be. And we are going for it, man. This is it. It is pedal to the metal. She's not leaving, by the way. And I'll tell you how she's going to stay. There is nothing about this woman, nothing that mourns the death of her boyfriend of two years. Nothing. This servant of the public who wound up dying alone on a cold, freezing winter's night in the snow. So this is. This is the quote I was telling you about. Here's what she says to us in episode four about her dead ex boyfriend. And I quote, I used to think poor guy. Now it's all about me. I used to think poor guy. Now it's all about me. Okay. It's all about me. This is my trial. Fuck him. She ginned up national news coverage, by the way. She couldn't get it. It was a local story. It was very stubbornly a local story. So she or someone on her team reached out to an online blogger, a grown man who goes by the name I could not make this up. Turtle Boy, to start agitating for coverage in Boston media that would fan out nationwide. And Turtle Boy couldn't participate in this documentary because he's currently facing 16 counts per more in the Hollywood Reporter of witness intimidation. This guy feels like a David Fincher invention. He truly does. And I really do hope David Fincher gets back to doing noirs and movies about crime like gone girls. 7. Like that is real. That's really where he shines, I think, anyway, reads fans who are her cult members really, you know, and I often think back to what Megyn Kelly said once about protesters that you would see like, like the pro Palestinian ones, for example. You know, you don't typically see healthy, fit, attractive, successful looking people showing up day after day to protest for or against someone. You just don't. You have to look at the group. It's a self selecting group. But anyway, Karen Reid's very proud of this cohort who were out there in their pink shirts because her favorite color is pink and she got them all to wear pink. And she, her lawyers would wear pink ties because that was their way of telegraphing, you're pro, Karen. Because the judge banned any kind of signage whatsoever in the courtroom. So, of course, this is the criminal mind at work. I learned a lot about the criminal mind writing American Predator. A lot. The criminal mind will find ways, even if they're no matter how small, they got to get around the system. They got to get around it. So anyway, here's what Karen Reid says about the people, some of whom were formerly friends of hers and her boyfriends, who have been terrorized by her supporters, who are dealing with these unhinged strangers who have parasocial relationships with Karen freaking Reed turning up at their homes. These people have children, some of them, and knocking on their doors. I quote, Karen Reed. It's impossible for me to have any sympathy for these witnesses. She says this, by the way, with a smile. Smile. She was really drunk that night. She had at least nine drinks that we know of. Admittedly, she was drinking in the car when she, as the prosecution alleged, backed over her boyfriend, who was also holding an open vodka drink and left him to die in the snow. Now, the defense claimed again that a cabal of police officers killed John and conspired to frame her. And that's what she has alleged. And that, my friends, is narcissism. That is malignant narcissism. Just my opinion. And by the way, as one of John's very smart, very, very commonsensical friends, like, this is a guy you look at and you're like, he's salt of the earth. Like, I went to high school with a guy like this, you know, like he's decent. He said his name is Brendan Cain. And among the very wise things he says in this documentary, to believe the defense's version, their theory of the case, you would have to believe that multiple members, veteran members of law enforcement, would conspire and be dumb enough to murder one of their own and then dump the body outside one of their own homes. I mean, as he says, he's like, there's railroad tracks in the back. An idiot could figure that out. Okay, finally, let's take a look at a. This is. This is giving. You know what this is giving? It's giving Casey Anthony, Karen Reed, canoodling with her lawyer, who I believe is married. This video was taken either video or still. And it was taken about a week before her verdict. And this is how they're carrying on in public outside a Boston restaurant. I mean, this is someone who truly exhibits great judgment, you know, and. Or she's just somebody who does not give a fuck. And I think it's probably more the latter. So, in short, I think just my opinion that Karen Reid is guilty. That she exhibits what is known in psychology as the dark triad. This is the cluster of narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy. And that she is evil. I think she's pure evil. She will, I guarantee you, she's not going anywhere. She loves being famous. If a guy had to do it, die to do it. I mean, you break a few eggs, am I right? She's going to be seeking out a book deal and the publisher who signs her. I mean, that's. Your blood is on your hands. That is a deal with the devil. She will be launching a podcast, I guarantee it. She will doubtless be saying that she is, as she said in this documentary, and she's going to use this garbage language again because it's got some traction in the culture. And we here at the Nerve, the troublemakers, we are doing our best to dislodge it and get rid of it. She's going to say she's finding her voice. She's getting her voice back. She's reclaiming her story. I suggest that Karen Reid take her wares over to Monica Lewinsky or Hoda Kotb. Or Kotb, however you say it. And I believe she will probably find a glide path into alternative media or mainstream media with one of those two empty vessels. Okay, now to another major crime currently being committed in America. Season three, Episode four of. And just like that, this is your brief recap. Carrie is now visiting Aiden in the country in Virginia. And because she is so easy breezy and spontaneous, she doesn't have a change of clothes with her. Oh, wait, she lost her luggage in her rental car, but didn't think to call the rental car to get the luggage back because they don't want it. She also apparently does not have an Amazon prime subscription to get next day or same day delivery. And so she also informs Aiden and I believe his sons, that she doesn't even have a fresh pair of underwear, which seems inappropriate to me. Now, this is how sloppy this writing is. Sloppy, sloppy, slop heap. Carrie doesn't have anything with her to read. Like, nothing. Like not even a back issue of the New Yorker. Okay, trust me, no actual writer goes anywhere. You don't go to the grocery store, the car wash, the doctor, the dentist, let alone a trip of indeterminate length without a book in your bag or a Kindle. Okay, if Carrie were a real writer, she would sooner ask where the nearest bookstore is than where the nearest thrift shop is. Okay, but anyway, we're Carrie. We're 900 years old, but we're so whimsical. We're just a girl in need of some dresses. So off we're going to the vintage shop and now, you know, we have to find a way to get there. Are we going to take Aiden's pickup truck? We are not. Are we going to get an Uber? No, we are not. We are going to because we're so quirky and we're just up for anything. We're going to climb onto an atv. And before she does so she's told, they have an ATV. And Carrie literally asks, what is an ATV? So she gets on the ATV with her 6 inch platform heels and a helmet. And she. She's so adorable, you guys. She just decides she's like wearing 600 sunglasses and a fresh blowout. We don't have fresh underwear, but we have a fresh blowout. And she puts on this helmet and she's like, look at me, look at me. I look like Paul Newman. I'm so cool. And she decides it looks better without it, like affixed, like the strap on. So, you know, I mean, she's already brain dead, I guess. What's the point? What's the point in wearing a helmet? And so she goes to this thrift store and there's just like a slew of dresses that look like Gunne Sax dresses from the 80s, like prairie dresses. And you know, I'm sorry, but in a town this small, the stock would be from dead people and the clothes would be stiff and they would be musty and they would be made of the thin, thicker material of yore that doesn't really move well and that feels heavy on and that traps heat, but it's all great. Okay, then let's Go back to the farm just in time to witness Aiden's deeply, deeply, deeply troubled son Wyatt throw a fit storm out of the house and then pitch a rake through the dining room window, shattering at least two panes of glass. And just like that, this show has turned into we need to talk about Kevin. Because I am not being facetious. And I don't know that the writers are writing the show that they. I'm actually sure that they don't know what they're writing. They don't know the show that they're writing. Aiden is clearly raising a future school shooter, you know, but Carrie thinks this is just a bump in the road, you know, and they're going to have their happily ever after. In her grammar sequence, Gramercy Park Mansion. And also, you know, the thing we said last week and the week before and the week before, this idea that Michael Patrick King, the showrunner, is a gay man who hates women and probably hates Sarah Jessica Parker at this point, he's giving us more evidence. I'm the prosecutor laying it out for you guys. The evidence. This, I believe, episode marked three jokes this season about horses. And in this episode, I believe two of them were either made to Sarah Jessica Parker or came out of her mouth. And I'm not saying anything, but I am saying Sarah Jessica calls coming from inside the house. Okay, finally an update to our Kennedy mini nerve. Thus, that struck the nerve with you guys. Struck the communal nerve. This amazing report from the Sunday New York Post. This dishy, bitchy, like, double truck article. Caroline Kennedy has been, quote, virtually blacklisted by her cousins over her loser, Instagram addicted son, Jack Schlossberg. And I love it. I love it. This couldn't happen to a more insufferable Alpha Kennedy. Caroline thought all along that she was the generational standard, standard bearer, excuse me for Camelot, which is a total fabrication. That Jackie, despite how much I love her, she made it up. And it was not a good thing. She made it up. Caroline thought that she was the political star of the Kennedy clan until she opened her mouth here in New York. She wanted Hillary Clinton Senate seat. And you know what you got to do? You got to talk to the media. And New York media will take a lot from Kennedys, but even New York media is like, whoa, this woman is an idiot. She is a. She couldn't string a sentence together. She made KA Harris sound like an orator on the level of like Abraham Lincoln. She. And then she thought that her son, her son, we need to talk about Jack. I'm not saying, but I'm saying we need to talk about Jack Schlossberg. Okay? So from this piece by Kennedy biographer, Jen Jerry, excuse me, Jerry Oppenheimer, very well known guy in this, in Sunday's New York Post, quote, like the Titanic, one insider says the Kennedy brand is a sinking ship. Brutal. According to insiders, Caroline has been again, virtually blacklisted over these posts that her son. And I'm sure, like nobody wants Jack around either, like in person. So it's easier just to say, you know what, even the online is too much. Okay. Jack has posted videos of himself making fun of RFK Juniors, spasmodic dysphoria, which is a neurological disorder that affects his speech. Other members of the family may also be suffering from this. And Jack Schlossberg, who recently just lectured us about showing respect to the Kennedy family, made fun of his own relatives for things they can't control. He's such a little piece of shit. He also has called RFK Jr. A liar. He's called him a, quote, guru shaman figure who runs a cult. He said that the second lady, Usha Vance, is hotter than Jackie O. He implied it. His maternal grandmother, he joked about having a baby with her. RFK Junior's daughter, Kick Kennedy. You know it's bad when they're coming to the post quote of Jack, I hope he gets the help he needs. I don't think it's happening. He thinks he's on fire. He thinks his life is on fire. He thinks everything's great. So Caroline is now Persona non grata along with her son, her loser son. And she has been completely isolated from the clan and it's hurtful to her. According to this report. Now, Caroline did not return requests for comment at time of publication. Also mentioned in this piece, Kerry Kennedy. We'll deal with her later. There's a lot to deal with there. She has just signed a one million dollar book deal for what can only be called, I'm going to say it. This is a work of fiction. My opinion, just my opinion. This is going to be a glowing biography of her and RFK jr's mother, Ethel. And you want to talk difficult mothers and we're doing that segment, trust me. But Ethel's in there. We can, we can do a whole segment on Ethel. Okay, now your feedback to the mother. Mini nerve. Mini nerve feedback. Okay, this is from our YouTube feed. One troublemaker, JFK Jr. Did not have the confidence, ability or intelligence to be a leader of the world. He was selfish, lacking in comprehension of himself or others. He was A hunk and a Nepo baby. May his soul rest in peace. That's what I'm talking about. Another. Schlossberg is doing what he claims other people are doing. Living off the Kennedy connection. Exactly. If only Jack could see it. I mean, physician, heal thyself. Okay, Another. What is it with Junior and Caroline? I heard they are not too bright, yet both parents did have intelligence. Thank you for keeping up with the lessons. Troublemaker in chief. I salute you. Are you kidding? Troublemaker in chief. I'll take it. Another. JFK Jr. The OG nepo. Compared to Jack Schlossberg, JFK Jr. Was great. He had a job. How novel. Another. Even Brooke Shield spoke negatively about Junior at the height of her career. This is true. She gave an interview to Howard Stern, I believe, and she said that she ran into JFK junior Skiing. You know, they were. All the celebrities were clustered on whatever mountain, and he got her number, and they met up later, and they had, like, a date or he. She went over to his cabin, whatever, and he kissed her. And she. She wasn't impressed. By the way, with him as a kisser. This is not a surprise. Madonna said he was, like, incredibly boring in bed. Thank you, Madonna. She gives so much to the culture. I mean it. And so she said. And she was a virgin at the time. Brooke Shields. You know, if you haven't watched her documentary, you should. It's really great. She was a virgin at the time, and she didn't want to go any further. And she was like, John. Like, I can't. Like, I can't. I wonder if the Seinfeld episode was informed by that. The Seinfeld episode where John Jr. Deflowers the Virgin. Anyway.
- [54:34]
Jonathan Dean
She.
- [54:34]
Maureen
Brook Shields said that John Jr. Turned on a dime like that with her and was really nasty and was like, you can get out. Just get out. And, like, just ignored her. Just blanked her the rest of the time on that trip. So classy guy. Remember that when you're in the CNN documentary talking about what a saint he was. Okay. What a great guy. Okay. Another troublemaker. How many families have a body count like this one? Yeah. Jackass. Let's hear your take on the body count. How great it is. Yeah, He. Let's spin it. The Kennedys. The biggest body count of any family in America. It's an accomplishment. And then finally, this email from a troublemaker named Sarah. I will not use your last name per your request. Won't do it to you. Okay. I have an anecdote about JFK Jr. That further illustrates how much of a ne' er do? Well, he was. She has an uncle who is at Brown the same time as John. John as he was known. The uncle told me that he used John used to walk around the library barefoot. You know how we feel about bare feet here at the Nerve, right? The image of John Jr. Waltzing around the Brown University library sans footwear compared to how he was portrayed in the media as this smart, glamorous American prince hurt my brain. It is galling that he obviously felt no need to show respect in such an esteemed place as a library. Agreed. Keep them coming. Keep your emails coming. Keep your experiences, your encounters with celebrities in the wild, your tips and tricks regarding Bill Maher. Keep them all coming over to me at the Nerve and we will talk about them together. Okay? I am Maureen@devilmaycaremedia.com Again Maureen devil may care media.com Also I am working hard to get back on Instagram so I can communicate with you guys directly on that medium as well. And remember, like subscribe and spread the word because the faster the nerve grows, the faster we can bring you even more original content. Now next up, the one, the only Bill from Brooklyn. Who? Himself.
- [56:55]
Bill
Him.
- [56:55]
Maureen
He. This guy too has a personal anecdote related to Sean Diddy Combs. The guy was everywhere. I tell you, Diddy was everywhere. Back in a minute. I mean, we're all feeling it. It wasn't supposed to get this bad. You're on top of your bills that inflation hit. Groceries have gone up, gas has gone up. Everything has gone up. Prices are up 26% from just a few years ago. 26%. So if you've fallen into debt, it is not your fault. Let me share a smarter, faster, far easier way out of debt. It's called Done with Debt and they are not like other debt relief companies. They do not push loans or bankruptcy on you. Okay? Done With Debt are legendary negotiators who go head to head with your credit card and loan companies with one goal, to drastically reduce or eliminate your debt altogether. And unlike those other companies, Done With Debt moves lightning fast. Most clients see more money in their pocket in month one. But a word to the wise, hurry because some of their brilliant debt erasing strategies are time sensitive. Do not make another bill payment until you talk to a Done With Debt strategist. It's free. Visit donewithdebt.com that's donewithdebt.com donewithdet.com I won't let my moderate to severe plaque psoriasis.
- [58:24]
Bill
Symptoms define me emerge as you. In two clinical studies, Trimfaia guselkumab taken by injection provided 90% clearer skin at 16 weeks in 7 out of 10 adults with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. In a study, nearly 7 out of 10 patients with 90% clearer skin at 16 weeks were still clearer at 5 years. At 1 year and thereafter, patients and healthcare providers knew that Tremphya was being used. This may have increased results. Results may vary. Serious allergic reactions may occur. Tremphya may increase your risk of infections.
- [58:53]
Maureen
And lower your ability to fight them.
- [58:54]
Bill
Before treatment, your doctor should check you for infections and tuberculosis. Tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms of infection, including fever, sweats, chills, muscle aches or cough. Tell your doctor if you had a vaccine or plan to emerge. As you learn more about Tremphya, including important safety information@tremphya.com or call 1-877-578-3527. See our ad in Food and Wine magazine for patients prescribed TR support may be available.
- [59:27]
Maureen
We are back and we have with us the one, the only. You guys love him almost as much as I do. Bill from Brooklyn. Bill, thank you for coming back. How are you doing in this heat?
- [59:40]
Narrator
Today was rough, but I'm actually very happy to be back, especially right now while I'm indoors in air conditioning. It's a much nicer environment than 102 or whatever it was earlier today.
- [59:52]
Maureen
So I know, I feel for you because you're what? Thanks for coming on. You often are outside for your job. You supervise. Your entire employee base is outside doing work in this heat. And so I can only imagine how grueling it is.
- [60:09]
Narrator
Listen, for me, it's not bad, but there are some people out there that are really struggling today. And hats off to all of them, 100% out there. Yeah.
- [60:17]
Maureen
All the trades out there going on today, 100%. And to that point, I want to ask you, did you see those two baseball players who had to come off the field? One one needed help because of the heat.
- [60:30]
Narrator
So I. Not until you sent me the link. But it's not surprising to me. I mean, the heat that. And the energy expelled and just the temperatures out there. Like I've had heat stress before. I've experienced it. I've had it.
- [60:45]
Maureen
What does it feel like? What does it feel like, though?
- [60:49]
Narrator
You stop sweating, you start really, you stop sweating, you start having the chills, you start nausea comes in, you start feeling nauseous, you become a little bit disoriented. There's all these different things that Happen. I'll tell you, like, I. I experienced something, a bunch of different things when. When I ran the marathon years ago and.
- [61:11]
Maureen
Right.
- [61:11]
Narrator
It was all different things that happened to my body that would just. They felt not right at all. And you know, those guys, like I read, he drank some water and he got right back on the field after throwing up. And I mean it. Like, we all want to see our. Our heroes, our sports, you know, our athletes out there giving it all 110 every game. But I mean, I even raised the question on that one. Maybe his coach should have pulled him.
- [61:38]
Maureen
Yeah, I mean, what I read was that. I think, if I read this correctly, he actually. He drank the water, he guzzled the water, and they were like, great. You're hydrated. He goes out on the field and he threw it up.
- [61:49]
Narrator
Yeah. So the problem is he had to start drinking water yesterday, the day before. Drinking now, does nothing.
- [61:54]
Maureen
I mean, but he probably was. I mean, at what point do these organizations have to say, you know what? We're not playing today. It's too freaking hot.
- [62:03]
Narrator
Or, like, who even wants to be there watching?
- [62:06]
Maureen
100%.
- [62:07]
Narrator
You buy a cold beer, it's hot. In 35 seconds, you're dying.
- [62:11]
Maureen
Everybody's dying. Like, just. I don't. Okay. All right, now to somebody else who gots it out on the regular, Sean Diddy Combs. Days long, freak offs. Now, before we get into this, you have to tell me. We were talking the other day and you were, like, telling me this story about this, like, famous pizza place in Queens and being told that you had just missed Diddy. So tell. Tell us. Share this story with us troublemakers.
- [62:38]
Narrator
So years ago, I worked overnight for a while, and it was.
- [62:42]
Maureen
How long ago was this?
- [62:45]
Narrator
Early 2000s.
- [62:46]
Maureen
Okay, so you're working overnight, 2002.
- [62:48]
Narrator
Somewhere in there. Yeah, so I worked overnight. And it was a. You know, at that point, you're looking for good places, clean, whatever that, you know, you could find, get decent food. So there was a place, Rose's Pizza in Queens that I used to go to because they, you know, good food. I got friendly with them because I was there often in the neighborhood. And one night I walked in and they said, oh, you just missed Diddy or Puffy. I think he went by at the time. Whatever it was, you just missed him. He was in here with his crew buying a bunch of pizza.
- [63:15]
Maureen
Pizzas.
- [63:16]
Narrator
So I was, oh, wow. You know, it would have been interesting to see that. And I said, what's he doing here? Just came in to buy pizzas. Like you guys are that you're well known. And apparently he had a, a girlfriend or a side girlfriend in the neighborhood that he would visit. That's what I was told until you pointed out what I probably just missed walking in on. You know, he was ordering pizzas for maybe one of his freak offs. I mean, they said he walked out with about 10 pizzas. So who knows where.
- [63:48]
Maureen
What could have been had you gotten there just a little bit sooner? You could have maybe been extended an invitation.
- [63:54]
Narrator
Oh, God, yeah. And then the therapy.
- [63:57]
Maureen
I mean, you're a good looking guy. He likes good looking guys. You know, I, you're the profile.
- [64:03]
Narrator
He said, I don't judge. But no, there, listen.
- [64:08]
Maureen
No, I know, but. So I just wanted to also show everybody there were some more. First of all, jurors were shown even more videos of freak offs in court. And they are. Half of them, it seems like, are visibly disgusted. We saw images of the baby oil that he kept in his homes. And Bill, there is. Did you see that photo of the baby oil? Like on expensive open shelving and it's arrayed like they're objects of art. Art. It's like.
- [64:36]
Narrator
Yeah, in a cigar box. It looked like a cigar box. So he had.
- [64:40]
Maureen
Like he's fetishized. Yeah, like he's fetishizing them. These are plastic J and J bottles of baby oil. Oh, my God.
- [64:48]
Narrator
All with the label perfectly faced outward. I mean, just. It was done with meticulous care to put them there.
- [64:56]
Maureen
Can you imagine the assistant who perhaps left a bottle askew and not perfectly hell to pay, I'm sure. Now, I wanted to also mention this testimony from Friday to you because I think you'll appreciate it. There's a prosecutor on this case, Maureen Comey, who is James Comey's daughter, and she was asking about. She was asking a witness about text messages or no, maybe voice messages, I don't know. From between 2023, between Diddy and a booker for the website. You could not make this up. It's so good. Cowboys for angels for the numeral 4. It's like cars for kids, but cowboys for angels. And they offer elite male escorts. And Diddy was seeking a male escort. The booker recommended one, but Diddy got angry at the pricing and he said to her, stop raising my rate. I'm a long timer.
- [65:48]
Narrator
Oh, my God. I mean, he gets frequent flyer miles for buying prostitutes. This is crazy.
- [65:55]
Maureen
It's always the really wealthy people who are like, give me a bargain, give me a bargain.
- [65:59]
Narrator
Especially you're doing this like you don't want to fight with anybody. You don't want anyone on your bad side that's going to come back out and maybe, you know, put this out to the media. Right.
- [66:08]
Maureen
Just think, such a great point.
- [66:11]
Narrator
Maybe spend.
- [66:12]
Maureen
Overpay.
- [66:13]
Narrator
Yeah. Overpay. Yeah, it's worth the money.
- [66:15]
Maureen
Overpay. For peace of mind, you know, but he, I don't think Sean Combs could really play the long game as we're seeing now now on Friday also. And we were texting back and forth about this. Diddy's not alone anymore because there are now accusers coming forward to say that Fat Joe was also throwing B level sex parties a la Sean Combs forcing one of his hype men to perform, quote, thousands of sex acts with women while he and members of his inner circle watched. This is a bombshell, Twitter, 20 million dollar lawsuit that's just been filed. And he's also been accused of like having sex with minors as well. What did, what do you make of this, this story, Bill?
- [67:05]
Narrator
So I'm going to say this as just a regular guy. Somebody ever accuses me of that, I'm shouting from the mountaintops. Not my lawyer, not my mouthpiece. I am shouting from the mountaintops. I did not do this. Right. I haven't heard it. I don't know if he has or not. I've read what his lawyers have said. It sounds like, I mean, I look at it, I read it and just, you know, my mind wondering, did he, did he go to a daddy party and say, hey, this is a good idea, I'm going to do this on my own? You know, probably a much lesser scale. He's not the same level of celebrity.
- [67:39]
Maureen
Lesser scale, lesser artists, lesser mind, less originality.
- [67:43]
Narrator
I had a question like 4,000 times in 16 years. That's a lot.
- [67:51]
Maureen
Well, that's like, do you believe Walt Wilt Chamberlain? Sorry, was it Wilts who said, yeah, I slept with 10,000 groupies?
- [68:01]
Narrator
I mean, the account, like you have a counter, you have a, you know.
- [68:09]
Maureen
Are there enough minutes in the day? Are there enough days in the year and years in a lifespan is the question.
- [68:14]
Narrator
Yeah, I, I don't know, but I, I, that number like I, I, I did the, I just got my calculator out when I was, when I read that and I'm like this, I mean, that's a lot. It's a full time job.
- [68:26]
Maureen
Well, it's not like he's selling records anymore, so, you know, he's got the time. Okay. Another repeat offender in the culture. And this is somebody I Love talking to you about Michelle Obama because I love your takes on her psyche and what we continue to learn every time she opens her mouth. So she. Her most recent podcast with brother Craig, long suffering brother Craig, who, by the way, seems to be doing all the ad reads because we cannot have the great Michelle Obama lowering herself to endorse a product other than Michelle Obama. She said very, like, a few days ago that she's really glad that she, she, she and Barack never had a son. Listen to this. I'm so glad I didn't have a.
- [69:11]
Jonathan Dean
Boy here.
- [69:13]
Maureen
Because he would have been a Barack Obama. Baby Barack.
- [69:18]
Narrator
It would have been amazing.
- [69:19]
Maureen
No, I would have felt for him. Poor baby Barack. Poor Barack Jr. Who would likely inherit Barack's looks, talents, intellect, excuse me, charisma, you know, all these great traits that obviously Barack Obama has that Michelle Obama lacks. Bill, what is she doing? What is she doing?
- [69:42]
Narrator
No, because all I hear while she's saying, I thank God I never had a son, is I hear nothing. Hear nothing from Barack Obama. He's off living his best life right now, right? He's joking it up and laughing with Trump. He's doing the party circuit. He's doing speeches, he's traveling everywhere. And she is just miserable in life. She just, she, she's famous for being one thing. And you know what, be happy that you got, you know, eight years in the White House. You're, you know, you have a platform that you can do and say all these things, but just, can you imagine living with that kind of misery in your life all the time that all you could think to come up with is just negative things about your spouse? And, and no.
- [70:27]
Maureen
And I think, yeah, I think that's why Barack Obama probably isn't living with her anymore. That's what I think.
- [70:35]
Narrator
I've begun as fast as possible. It's just, you know, the other part, too. Like, I, I was thinking about this earlier. You know, for essentially eight years, she probably barely saw him, right? He must have been. Right. So now she's taking vacations, what, to Hawaii now? This summer, Spain. And, you know, by herself. You would think, you know, eight years, you know, you might want to hang out with your spouse. But everything's fine, right?
- [71:00]
Maureen
Everything's all good and everything's fine. Like she said the other day, she said if, if I was having, if I were having problems in my marriage, people would know about it. And it's like, Michelle, we do. We know about it because you're telling us, even though you think you're not telling us. Because you're not that bright, husband.
- [71:20]
Narrator
No one cares. No one cares.
- [71:23]
Maureen
I know, but, like, we're still talking about it, I think, because I guess it's really rare to see people of that high of a profile, a former president, a former first lady, and one of them is just out there dragging a former president through the mud. Like, you don't see this. Yeah, it's kind of unprecedented.
- [71:46]
Narrator
You know what?
- [71:48]
Maureen
I.
- [71:49]
Narrator
We've talked about this. Like, she must have had such high hopes and dreams for herself that she had to. To put aside and sacrifice for him. And I. I mean, I'm sure some of that exists. And, you know, maybe she could have been, you know, something more than the first lady.
- [72:04]
Maureen
I doubt it.
- [72:05]
Narrator
Who knows? But still, if your spouse has the, you know, if this is the path you guys have chosen and he has the opportunity to become the leader of the free world, I mean, you kind of got to get on board. Like, you can't deny that from someone. I. I don't know.
- [72:22]
Maureen
Well, she's making him pay for it. She's making him pay for it now.
- [72:25]
Narrator
I don't think so. I don't think he cares at all.
- [72:27]
Maureen
I don't think. I think he's smart enough to know the only person who looks bad in this scenario is Michelle Obama. He's smart enough to know that, you know, so he's going to let her just keep doing it, burning herself down to the ground. And this leads us to another couple on the verge. On the verge. Orlando Bloom and Katy Perry.
- [72:46]
Narrator
Yes, I read this one today. This one was funny.
- [72:49]
Maureen
This is amazing. So the Daily Mail has this incredible exclusive about these two on the rocks yet again. They've been engaged forever. You know, like these people who get engaged forever, like, they're never gonna get married. Okay? And these two are definitely gonna break up. And Katy Perry's camp, which is like Katy Perry whispering into her publicist's ear. Just my opinion said that the whole prop. The major problem in their relationship now is that Orlando Bloom doesn't understand what her life is like now that she's been into space, to outer space. So she's going to go over here with Gayle King, who will only talk to people who have been. I'm still waiting for calls, by the way, both from Gail and Katie. You know, I've been. I've been. I can relate.
- [73:32]
Narrator
So. Right on that argument. I'm calling bullshit because you still talk to me.
- [73:37]
Maureen
I take your calls. I might not pick up on the first ring, but I take your calls.
- [73:41]
Narrator
Yeah.
- [73:42]
Maureen
Okay, so he, so he told her, this is the, this is, these are the money quotes from the Daily Mail story. Orlando Bloom told Katy Perry the whole thing looked ridiculous. He said the outer space joyride was, quote, cringe worthy, embarrassing, and it was in the middle of a fight. It hurt her feelings. And now the source continued, because that's not enough to understand the dynamic here. Okay, we've got to know more. Of course she was hurt. The source said this quote, I swear this might, this is in the running already for the first annual Nerve Awards. Imagine going to Space Hyphen. Motherfucking space hyphen. And your partner isn't impressed. She had hoped he'd be more supportive. Bill.
- [74:31]
Narrator
I don't even know.
- [74:31]
Maureen
What do you say to this?
- [74:32]
Narrator
Hey, to this? I, I, I, I, I don't know. I, I guess, you know, you stop selling out arenas, people don't care about you anymore, and then you come act like a complete ass because you got on you, you went to space with a few other women, and then now you think you, the world owes you something. I mean, it's, I'm almost at a loss for words at how stupid this is. It's just.
- [75:03]
Maureen
I mean, the other.
- [75:05]
Narrator
I read the article today. They were originally supposed to be married in 2020, but Covid had a delay. I mean, I'm going to guess there was one or two red flags up there before that. Orlando Bloom saw that said, maybe we're going to delay this a little bit longer. This, to me is just, this is his way out. This is, you know, way out, way time to go.
- [75:28]
Maureen
Yes, you're 100% right. He's using the joyride to outer space as his way out of this relationship. I saw those quotes and I was like, who knew Orlando Bloom had, like a working brain? Like, he has a sense of proportion.
- [75:42]
Narrator
But I did read at the end of the article, I don't know if you read through the whole thing, that he's going to Jeff Bezos wedding and she's not, she's not allowed to go. He's going by himself.
- [75:52]
Maureen
So how interesting is that? He gets Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez in this semi divorce. They're not technically married, even though Katy Perry's the one who went on the spaceship with Lauren Sanchez. I mean, that is a cut. That is a cut. Okay, now I want to go to your friend in mine, Bill Maher, our friend Bill, who thinks that, you know, the rule shouldn't be that men should stop abusing women, but that women have to leave after the first assault. Otherwise it's all on them. Okay, now like a stopped clock is right twice a day. And he. On his most recent show, he's off for a month, but we're not. On his most recent show, he issued a woman hating take that. I can get behind and I think you can too. Let's watch this.
- [76:43]
Narrator
We got to do something about the View.
- [76:48]
Maureen
I really believe that. I mean, could you get huge in Iran, though?
- [76:56]
Narrator
You know.
- [76:59]
Maureen
Watching the View in Iran. Head cover, can't even tell which one is which. My district, my district, my district. District in the great state of Texas is actually a white majority district that President Trump would have won by 25 points.
- [77:11]
Narrator
As I said, I'm a direct descendant of a slave. My great, great grandfather was born on Rose Down Plantation.
- [77:16]
Maureen
I am literally being judged not by.
- [77:18]
Narrator
The color of my skin, but by.
- [77:20]
Maureen
The content of my character.
- [77:21]
Narrator
That's the progress because, like a lot.
- [77:24]
Maureen
Of white people had to vote for me a lot. Now, in case you're listening and not watching, that is the black representative Republican out of Texas, Wesley Hunt, who was amazing and just summarized it all. Bill, your thoughts as to Whoopi Goldberg asserting with her sagacity, she is an older black woman and what she says goes okay, that blacks in America have it worse than women in Iran.
- [77:57]
Narrator
I think we're starting to get to a point that we have to start doing some type of psychological testing on certain people. Like, you know, Biden was one of them. You know, she. She's not all that. You can't make that statement and be any kind of serious. It's just, it's.
- [78:15]
Maureen
You could be ill informed. You could be somebody who doesn't really read anything or listen to any opinions outside your bubble. I mean, you could be someone who's been famous the bulk of her adult life and really rarely hears anything but how wonderful she is. It could be.
- [78:32]
Narrator
That's. That's definitely part of it. These people, these, these actors and actors, sometimes they get so famous and they think everybody should listen to them. Like George Clooney, he's another one, right? We had to listen to you.
- [78:43]
Maureen
Excuse me. He's Edward R. Murrow, Bill. He's got it for at least the rest of the month.
- [78:47]
Narrator
What was he, Dr. Ross on ER, right. That's when he got famous and all of a sudden had an opinion on everything. Who cares? No one cares. Will be Goldberg making statements like this. I would love to know what the women in Iran really believe that are, you know, being imprisoned for, you know, maybe showing an inch Too much of skin on their face or their hair is out.
- [79:11]
Maureen
You know what the view should do? You know what the view should do? You know how they sometimes do like special remote weeks from like Disney World? Yeah, they should do. They should do a special remote week from Iran. Yeah, yeah, do it, do it.
- [79:23]
Narrator
I think it's a great idea. And you know what? They could interview some of those women that are there.
- [79:29]
Maureen
No, they can't, because those women can't talk.
- [79:30]
Narrator
Oh, right. Yeah, they can't talk.
- [79:32]
Maureen
That's a problem. That's a problem. After that, maybe they could go to Gaza and do it. Greta Thunberg couldn't get done. I want to end on a great story. This is twofold and part of it is because you can sort of speak to this philosophically, emotionally and professionally. There was a piece in New York magazine this morning. They just did their like hacks of how to live in New York and get by in New York. And I read it with my jaw open and when I went to revisit it before talking to you for this episode, it had vanished. Which says to me, somebody over there got the smelling salts and was like, we gotta get rid of this thing. Like, only a Gen Z er who had been trained by AI would have written this. So one of the hacks was Bill. And you're a dog person. Like I'm a dog person. If your dog dies, the way you dispose of it, the way you dispose of it. Like nobody thinks about disposing their dog. But this was the hack. You get a contractor grade garbage bag, you put the dog in it and you tie it up and you throw it out with the rest of your garbage. Jesus.
- [80:43]
Narrator
And they publish this?
- [80:45]
Maureen
They published it online. I don't know if it's in the hardcover.
- [80:47]
Narrator
Anybody that fact checks or reads any. Like, no one does anything over there.
- [80:51]
Maureen
They say it's legal. Not, not, not, not to speak to the amorality of it and the heartlessness of it. And you know, I think our father spent more on burying Sarge, the German shepherd that we all had then he probably set aside for his own funeral.
- [81:07]
Narrator
Yeah, I mean, dogs, you know, we, we talked about that article, Dogs, dogs, your family. We, you know, we, A couple years ago we lost our dog and, and it was like a wake here at our house. Like it was a member of our family that went. And we took him to the vet and we had him cremated and we have his ashes.
- [81:29]
Maureen
It's.
- [81:30]
Narrator
If you, if you are going to treat your dog that way in death, you don't deserve the joy and the pleasure of having an animal throughout its entire life. You just, you shouldn't have an animal that you just discard like that in trash. You're horrible.
- [81:47]
Maureen
Could not have said it better myself. And by the way, just the media person in me, if I'm running New York magazine, I am corralling whoever wrote that into my office. And talk about psych eval. Okay? And that leads us to the feel good part of the story, which is that here in New York, a judge has just recently ruled that, yes, indeed, that dogs count as immediate family members. And this was part of a lawsuit brought by a woman who tragically watched the family dog Duke the dachshund, get run over by a reckless driver. And she had the dog leashed at the time and she saw it happen. And I believe the offenders attorneys were like, well, you can only sue for so much money because it's not human. And the judge said, not. So that is a member of the family and you're fucked.
- [82:42]
Narrator
Couldn't agree more.
- [82:43]
Maureen
Thanks, Bill.
- [82:44]
Narrator
Absolute member of the family. If again, if you don't treat them that way, if you don't intend on it, don't get a dog, don't get a cat. They're a member of your family.
- [82:53]
Maureen
And by the way, this, this is being said by somebody. You guys have recently adopted a dog who came from a kind of trauma I won't even get into. It's too personal. But like a dog that was turfed back to a shelter because the dog had been through so much. And you guys instead approach that dog with compassion and patience and, you know, yeah, when I come over, you'll put her downstairs. But she's a member of the family.
- [83:23]
Narrator
And proac.
- [83:24]
Maureen
And proac.
- [83:25]
Narrator
Yeah. But it, I mean, listen is what it is. And you, you see, you see the sweetness in the dog. You see the sweetness. She's a little crazy, but aren't we all at some point?
- [83:34]
Maureen
Agreed. Agreed. Thank you, Bill. Thanks for coming on and. And talking about all this insanity with us.
- [83:41]
Narrator
Thank you for having me. Great to be here.
- [83:43]
Maureen
And now to our moment of nirvana. I have been so looking forward to this. This is our. You guys have been asking. We've been doing a lot of thinking. It's our first book recommendation. And you know, I really was thinking about this hard for weeks now. And it, like a lot of things, like when you stop actively thinking about it and trying to approach an answer, it just, it comes to you. And it came to me over the weekend and I think you guys are really, really going to enjoy this one. And it came to me, not surprisingly, after our talk about Erika Jeung. And I won't say her daughter's name, but erica and the 70s, and how books and authors and thinkers were stars in the culture and how we were all so much better off for it. And so the book I'm choosing is a fairly recent novel. It was published in 2021, but the vibe is kind of like it's kind of 1970s. It's like that big novel that you just kind of luxuriate in. It's the novel that you just, you take it with you everywhere in the summer. You take it to the beach, take it to the pool on vacation if you're lucky enough to swing a vacation or just on your sofa lazing with like the dog and a cup of iced tea. This is the book, it's called Crossroads. It's by Jonathan Franzen. And it's actually set in the 70s, which I like. I read this book when it first came out and I forgot that it was set in the 70s. So it's. We're all, we're like clicking here, we're clicking here. And it's about an American family. We're not at all as it seems. The father is a guitar playing Christian minister. He runs a youth group called Crossroads. But at least one of his four children is onto him like that. He's like kind of a fraud. It's not dark the way you think like a Christian thing is going to go. It's not that. It's just he's kind of like enamored with himself and kind of full of shit. And he doesn't know it. And the mother has like this much more complicated inner life than like her husband or her kids know or really care to know. But she's like the real brains of the family. And each chapter of the book alternates from character to character. So you're seeing this family and their place in this community, in the world from their points of view. So you, the reader, are constantly in somebody else's head. And you know things about these people that other characters do not. And you know, honestly, when this book first came out, like I was kind of resistant to it. I didn't think it would speak to me. And I went into my local bookstore and the bookseller was like, we're doing this in our book club and none of us can put it down. And it's so good. So I bought it and I started reading it and you guys, I could not put it Down. I could not put it down. And every time I had to stop reading, I would think whatever else I was doing, running errands or driving or laundry, whatever, I would think, like, I wonder what's happening right now with so and so. Like, I wonder what's going to happen next to them. I wonder where their head is at. I wonder how they're doing. They like become like real people. Like, like friends, where you're like, I wonder how she's doing. I should give her a call, you know, and it's, it's an easy read and it's not easy in like that dumbed down way that like airport books are where like this is written at a second grade level and it's, it's like almost too easy. And it's, it's, it like it just goes down very smooth. It's like very literate, but it's very conversational. There's no showing off. There's no like, look at this turn of phrase. Look at what a great writer I am. It's just. He absorbs you into this world and he never doubts Jonathan Franz, and he never doubts the intelligence of his reader. It is so psychologically acute, it is so tuned in to the inherent dysfunction of most people and families. But it's told with real affection and real humanity and it's. I cannot, I cannot recommend it highly enough. Get Crossroads and make it your summer read. I actually, the structure I thought was so brilliant and it really influenced the way I structured Ask. Not different characters, different chapters. You're in their heads, you're moving along, and it's in service of a larger story. Franzen has said that this is the first in a planned trilogy. I can only hope the second is in the immediate offing. So there it is. Crossroads. That I think was a show. That was a show. We had a lot. We had it all. We had true crime. And just like that, Kennedy's major movie star attempting a redemptive arc. A lot of good stuff, you know. And we're going to be back here on Friday. The Diddy trial is promising to wrap up by then, so we're going to have a lot to begin with. So, you know, join us Friday back here on the Nerve, where you will never guess what we're about to say next. I won't let my moderate to severe plaque psoriasis symptoms define me.
- [88:47]
Bill
Emerge as you. In two clinical studies, Trimfia guselcomab, taken by injection provided 90% clear skin at 16 weeks in 7 out of 10 adults with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. In a study, nearly 7 out of 10 patients with 90% clearer skin at 16 weeks were still clearer at 5 years. At 1 year and thereafter, patients and healthcare providers knew that Tremphya was being used. This may have increased results. Results may vary. Serious allergic reactions may occur. Tremphya may increase your risk of infections and lower your ability to fight them. Before treatment, your doctor should check you for infections and tuberculosis. Tell your doctor if you have an.
- [89:21]
Maureen
Infection or symptoms of infection, including fever.
- [89:23]
Bill
Fever, sweats, chills, muscle aches or cough. Tell your doctor if you had a vaccine or plan to emerge. As you learn more about Tremphaya, including important safety information, at tremphya.com or call 1-877-578-3527. See our ad in Food and Wine magazine. For patients prescribed Tremphya, cost support may be available.
- [89:45]
Maureen
Psoriatic arthritis Symptoms can be unpredictable. I had joint pain and I couldn't move like I used to. I needed relief. I got Cosentyx.
- [89:57]
Narrator
It helped me move better.
- [89:59]
Maureen
Cosentyx Secukinumab is prescribed for people 2 years of age and older with active psoriatic arthritis. Don't use if you're allergic to Cosentyx. Before starting, get checked for tuberculosis. An increased risk of infections and lowered ability to fight them may occur like tuberculosis or other serious serious bacterial, fungal or viral infections. Some were fatal. Tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms like fevers, sweats, chills, muscle aches or cough, had a vaccine or planned to or if inflammatory bowel disease symptoms develop or worsen. Serious allergic reactions and severe eczema like skin reactions may occur. Learn more at 1-844-cosentyx or cosentyx.com Ask.
- [90:41]
Narrator
Your rheumatologist about Cosentix.