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- [00:01]
Steve Austin
Support for this podcast comes from Progressive, America's 1 motorcycle insurer.
- [00:07]
Sam Roberts
Did you know?
- [00:07]
Steve Austin
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Jim Norton
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- [00:12]
Steve Austin
That's a whole new pair of riding gloves and more Quote Today Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and Affiliates national averaged 12 month savings of $197 by new customers surveyed who saved with Progressive between October 2024 and September 2025. Potential savings will vary. You're listening to this podcast, so I know you've got a curious mind. Here's a helpful fact you might not know. Drivers who switch and save with Progressive save over $900 on average. Pop over to progressive.com, answer some questions and you'll get a quick quote with discounts that are easy to come by. In fact, 99% of their auto customers earn at least one discount. Visit progressive.com and see if you can enjoy a little cash back. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates national average 12 month savings of $946 by new customers surveyed who saved with Progressive between June 2024 and May 2025. Potential savings will vary. The following program is a podcast1.com production
- [01:16]
Jim Norton
he started in a small town in Texas, worked his ass off to become
- [01:22]
Sam Roberts
one of the most famous wrestlers of all time.
- [01:24]
Steve Austin
We're going to take care of business tonight and that's bottom line.
- [01:29]
Sam Roberts
And now he's dominating the world of On Demand Audio and he's doing it
- [01:34]
Steve Austin
for the working man. This is a damn good outlet for me to spew the off my brain.
- [01:40]
Sam Roberts
This is the Steve Austin Show.
- [01:42]
Jim Norton
Unleash.
- [01:51]
Steve Austin
All right everybody, welcome to Steve off the Show. Why I'm coming to you from the Mean spot in Los Angeles, California. Today I'm sitting here in my office at 316 Gimmick Street Hill. It's about 11am on a Wednesday morning. I am headed down to Palm Desert, California for the dealers convention, the Kawasaki Dealers convention. Gonna be there, hanging out about four or five days, representing that great brand and looking forward to getting down there and riding around on some of the vehicles on the course. Last time I was down there I had a torn rotator cuff and couldn't get on any of the equipment. But this year I'm about six, seven months out of my surgery. I'm ready to go out there and try out some different machines in comfort, driving at full speed, looking forward to getting down there. I tell you what man, just woke up this morning, shook off the cobwebs, ate breakfast. I'm sure a lot of you guys stayed up late like I did last night. Holy smokes, the election process, it started off Trump with a sound lead over Hillary Clinton. And I kept thinking, I was talking to my buddy Court Byer on the telephone while all this was going on. And I was thinking, man, you know, here's the storyline. Trump's going to mount a lead and then here's Hillary, she's going to make a big ass comeback. She's going to win the state of California, which she did probably 55 electoral votes. But you know, I think what Trump ended up winning, Michigan and what was the other one, Wisconsin. He needed whatever it was. But holy smokes, man. Donald Trump was elected President of the United States just last night. And I'll tell you what, it's going to be an interesting four years. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens. The last eight years, you know, has been average. I'm not going to go on a political tirade, but if we'd have had four years of Clinton, I think it would have just been more of the same. So hopefully Donald Trump can unite this country, take care of business, spin up the economy and do a lot of the things that he said he was going to do. Not build a wall, just do some of the things that he said he could do because he's a businessman. So anyway, we will see what happens in the next four years with Donald Trump as our illustrious president. And I tell you what, since that whole election process took place, there's a lot of pictures. I think there was one on a, what's it, Bleacher Report had me saying that if I was elected president as a write in candidate, I would lower the prices of beer. Well, I didn't get elected. I can't lower the price of beer. But I can direct you to one fine beer, which is Steve Austin's Broken Skull IPA from Elsa Gundale Brewing Company. Had to include a little plug in here in the opening of the podcast. Hey, I'm gonna keep this open kind of short. I got Sam Roberts and I got Jim Norton from Sirius xm. He stopped by the crib here a couple days ago and we sat down and started shooting the breeze about everything under the sun. Y' all know Sam Roberts from, you know, his wrestling podcast. He's interviewed just about everybody in the business. He's a super sharp guy. It's always fun to talk to him. They came by the crib here. I was needing an extra cord for an extra microphone and Sam brought me a cord out of his bag and left it here at the house. So I now Owe Sam Roberts a cord. And so Jim Norton also stopped by the house and man, it was nice to finally meet Jim Norton. I've been a big fan of his stand up comedy work for so long and I've met him in the past over at Opie and Anthony and they had a parting of the ways there. We'll talk about that on the podcast. But man, that Jim Norton is a funny, funny guy and when you sit down and talk with him in person, he's just down to earth likable guy, loves mma. We're going to talk some UFC with Jim Norton and Sam will kick in plenty of pro wrestling stuff. Hey man, we're just shooting a breeze. So again I'm going to keep this open short and get ready to get down the road to head to Palm Desert. Head in there for about four or five days with Kawasaki. This is Kawasaki's 50th anniversary of being here in the United States of America. And I think Kawasaki, you know, their motto is let the good times roll. And they do. I've owned more Kawasakis in my life than any other motorcycle, four wheeler or UTV than I've ever had. So I'm a Kawasaki guy. Looking forward to seeing everybody down there and having a good time riding that course and doing some demonstrations on the Mule Pro FXT and the Mule Pro fx along with finally getting a chance to throw a leg over one of their four wheelers and get it out there on the track. But enough about that. I gotta take care of some business. One more thing before I take care of this piece of business. Don't forget this Sunday night, November 13th season premiere of Steve Austin's Broken Skull Challenge. The toughest, baddest, coolest show on Television. Sunday, November 13, 109 Central. Do not miss the season premiere. This is the baddest show on TV. Set your DVRs. CMT 109 Central Nov 13 Steve Austin Unleashed.
- [07:07]
Sam Roberts
Unleashed.
- [07:08]
Steve Austin
All right, I'm sitting in podcasts on 316 gimmick street I got a computer in front of me. I got a pearl bear neon clock, a second hand that's spinning around like a rotisserie chicken in front of me. I got a stand up comedian, radio personality, one of the funniest cats I know, Jim Norton on my right. Not Sam. Sam Roberts, host of the Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast. Along with how you guys got a show together now.
- [07:31]
Sam Roberts
Yes, I'm also the co host of Jim Norton and Sam Roberts every morning on SiriusXM.
- [07:36]
Steve Austin
Hey man, I was reading a little bit about that. There was some Soap opera going on down there.
- [07:40]
Jim Norton
Oh, yeah, yeah.
- [07:41]
Steve Austin
Is there bad blood now? What's going on with that Jim?
- [07:43]
Jim Norton
I don't even know if it's bad blood or just no blood. We haven't talked. It's so weird. We have not spoken.
- [07:49]
Steve Austin
Seem like you guys are tight, man. You've been there since like you said, before we started rolling. 2000. 2001. Yeah. History.
- [07:55]
Jim Norton
It is. But it's like a marriage. It's like. Or any other relationship you have where it goes bad and then you don't want to talk to the person or even when it's not bad, it's just. It's just there. Right. So we were ready to separate. And to be honest, I'm much happier with Sam, and I think Opie is happier in the afternoon with the guys he's been using. You just. You need to get away when all that. When there's all that tension in the room. It's not fun. This is a fucking fun gig. I don't want to walk into work and be unhappy.
- [08:19]
Steve Austin
Okay, well, how do you work is. Because you're still touring it, right? I mean, I was on your website, so you got some stuff coming up because are you guys going every single day?
- [08:28]
Sam Roberts
Yeah, we're. We're every morning. Jim, if he's taking a weekend to go, like last weekend was Philly, right?
- [08:34]
Jim Norton
Yes. I'll be gone Friday.
- [08:35]
Sam Roberts
Right. So like we got on the Friday. So I'll just take care of things on the Friday.
- [08:39]
Steve Austin
Will you bring in another guest or you just sub and just do everything yourself?
- [08:42]
Sam Roberts
I usually I'll start off by myself and then bring in like a comedian, two or three people just that I know to kind of hang out and do the three hours. And it's a Friday show anyway, so it's a little looser, but. But we, you know, just to keep the show alive while Jim is out there on the road, not only doing himself a service, but doing the show a service by getting in front of audiences and, you know, reminding.
- [09:04]
Jim Norton
I'm just doing them a disservice.
- [09:08]
Steve Austin
Hey, how did you get on the. The radio? First of all, with Obi, back in
- [09:11]
Jim Norton
the day with Andrew Dice Clay, I was touring with Dice. How was an opening act?
- [09:15]
Steve Austin
God dang, that guy was so funny for so long. And then he kind of started trying to play to the chicks and he kind of lost everybody. Now he made a comeback with him back years. Yeah, I was a huge fan. So go ahead.
- [09:25]
Jim Norton
Oh, yeah, yeah. Well, Dice was great to me. He changed. Andrew changed My life, he took me to on tour, and he would. He would bring me an Opie Anthony. He would say, hey, you got to talk to my opener. He's hilarious. Like, Dice talked me up to those guys. So I did a phoner. I wasn't good, but they were scared of him, so they were nice to me. And then when I started going in, it just became the natural progression. Opie liked me. Anthony was fine with me going in. I was dirty. I talked about my perversions, and they just thought it was entertaining radio.
- [09:53]
Steve Austin
Entertaining radio? Yeah.
- [09:54]
Jim Norton
They liked the fact that I was honest and I wasn't afraid. And then once I got arrested, me and Lewis Black were on the voyeur bus. We got arrested, spent the night in jail. Yeah.
- [10:01]
Steve Austin
A bunch of topless chicks on a bus while you going doing the radio show, right?
- [10:05]
Jim Norton
Yeah. And it was like we weren't even doing. We weren't even with them. We were just calling into the radio show and. And so after me and Lewis spent the night in jail, Opie goes, anytime you want to come in, carte blanche just to come in. So then I started coming in twice a week. And then he goes, come in more. Come in more. And they got me paid. And then we promptly got fired for two years and then came back on satellite.
- [10:23]
Steve Austin
What is the punishment for driving around the city with a bunch of topless chicks and a bus? I mean, you had to be reprimanded by. You're arrested, right?
- [10:31]
Jim Norton
We were arrested. We were put.
- [10:32]
Steve Austin
Charged with.
- [10:33]
Jim Norton
That's what the problem was. They couldn't think of anything to charge us with. They would. They charged us with promoting the lewdness of a body, and that was it. We spent 27 hours in jail promoting the lewdness of a body. And the judge was furious. He said, you're wasting their time, and you're wasting the court's time.
- [10:51]
Steve Austin
27 hours in a correctional facility. How did you. How did you fare, Jim?
- [10:56]
Jim Norton
Not well. I was a smoker. I didn't get raped. But I wasn't there long enough, it would have happened. They were fucking eyeing me up.
- [11:03]
Sam Roberts
I was about to say, is a smoker a nickname for something?
- [11:06]
Steve Austin
This one over here, he's a smoker. Had it been a couple years stretch, maybe it could have turned into a bad thing. The worst of it was not having your cigarettes.
- [11:13]
Jim Norton
Not having my cigarettes and having a shit. And the bathrooms are so. The toilets are so dirty, I couldn't shit.
- [11:18]
Steve Austin
Yeah. I mean, I only been to a couple of jails, just kind of passing through looking. I've never been arrested in my life. But you know, back in the old days when I was growing up in Edinburgh, Texas, we'd go down to the sheriff's department, you know, the cops were cool. They'd show you all the shivs and stuff like that. They were kind of framed up and they'd lock you behind the bars, man. As soon as those bars clacked, I realized that a life of crime was not for me. I'm claustrophobic to begin with. Oh, you are? All of a sudden you shut them bars mess. I don't care if it's a 10 foot cell, a 5 foot cell or a 20 foot cell, you ain't gonna get out. So therein lies the fact that you're in there there with a bunch of people. Not so good, my friend.
- [11:52]
Jim Norton
Now, are you a guy who doesn't like elevators or are you okay with that?
- [11:55]
Steve Austin
I'm good with elevators. But I tell you what, being here in Los Angeles a couple years ago, we were in a skyscraper about 27 floors up. And we're going up there and man, all of a sudden, you know, those elevators kind of paused a little bit and you're thinking, okay, motherfucker stuck or there's going to be an earthquake. And the thing starts wobbling like this, you know, that bothers me. We were over. I think it was right after I wrote the Stone Cold Truth a long time ago. I barely contributed that book. Jim Ross gets the credit on that. I spoke to a recorder for about four hours, but nonetheless we were promoting that at Piccadilly Square. We got about 15 people in one of those elevators. Seems like it's 100 years old because everything in England is really old. And that's with respect to my UK fans, because I got a huge fan base over there. Respect. But then all of a sudden that elevator starts creaking a little bit and it just stops between the floors. And I'm like, okay, dude, you stone cold Steve Austin. There's a bunch of women, guys, you know, we're just crap like sardines in a can. And I'm thinking, man, for some reason I got about to come out of my skin. I'm about to take my shirt off. I don't know what good taking my shirt off is going to do, but I just need some space. Finally that summit started moving the happy ending to the storage gym as I'm sitting here talking to you. So I survived, but it really freaked me out. And I was just ready to get the fuck out of the elevator. So, yeah, I just don't do good, especially on MRIs. Stuff like that. Just don't dig it.
- [13:11]
Jim Norton
What is the feeling? Because I get weird things when I'm trying to sleep. I'm a very bad breather. I have sinus problems. I sleep afternoon sometimes. I'm like, I can't breathe. I have to sit up in bed and prop myself in my right elbow. I can take a deep breath, but I feel like I can't breathe. Is that what it feels like when you're in one of those Claustrophobic?
- [13:25]
Steve Austin
Man, to me, it's just a complete lack of okay. Like, for instance, if I go into an MRI tube, I'm like this. And I'm not the biggest guy, you know, in professional wrestling ring. But all of a sudden, I'm a bigger than average human being. And so when your shoulders are hunched in like this and your arms are down here by your legs, if someone were to put a cap on either end of that MRI tube, you ain't going nowhere. Because, you know, I come from the business where everybody's ribbing you, right? Or if there's another earthquake, the power goes down. I'm trapped in that motherfucker. So you're helpless. I don't like being helpless.
- [13:57]
Jim Norton
Right.
- [13:57]
Steve Austin
So I scared. You know, I just got finished interviewing a Navy seal, and he was telling me about this box breathing technique for relaxation. You know, five, count in, hold, five count out, hold, hold, without any air, five count in, you know, repeat. So all of a sudden, I started freaking out when the chick put me in there and I started doing the box breathing. Five in, five out. About two minutes to that. I squeezed that little bulb. I said, get me the fuck out of here.
- [14:23]
Sam Roberts
Yeah.
- [14:23]
Steve Austin
Anyway, there was a whole other story I told on the podcast of how they was able to get me back in there, but required some medicinal things that I went down to drugstore and get. But anyway, so going back to you guys, how did you guys decide to come up with the show that you guys came up with?
- [14:38]
Sam Roberts
Well, Jim and Opie were doing the show. Anthony was gone. Jim and Opie were doing the show for two years, and they decided they were separating. They were going to move on at the end of the contract. They weren't going to do the show together, and they didn't really know what they were going to do. They just knew they weren't doing it together. And the company first came to me, the guy who runs the company, and said, hey, you know, Jim and Opie are separating. I was like, Yeah, I know. And he said, what do you think of this idea? What do you think of you doing a show with Jim? And I was like, well, at that point, you know, I'm doing my own show at nights. I know Jim is getting out of this radio partnership. I don't know what he wants. I said, I'll talk to Jim about it. And Jim and I had a bunch of conversations about, you know, what we wanted to do, how we would do it. We did a few test shows in the morning just because there was some free time. And I had him come in on my night show and just figure out if the chemistry was there, if it was something we could do every day,
- [15:29]
Jim Norton
but see how it feels just talking back and forth for a few hours a day.
- [15:33]
Sam Roberts
Yeah, we had a good time. And then we both realized that we thought it would be bigger for both of us in terms of what we wanted to do if we did it together.
- [15:41]
Jim Norton
And Sam, I mean, I know Sam for 10 years. So, like, he's always been on Opie. He was jocktober other radio shows. Sam was always leading the charge. Like, he's. He's been an on air guy with us for a long time, so we were totally comfortable together. I know he's funny guy. He's a capable guy. He's a smart dude. So I had no doubts about that. It was just, how did we gel? Because you have to. If you're gonna do radio every day with somebody, you don't click. That's what happened. Me and Opie, we just stopped clicking.
- [16:04]
Steve Austin
Right.
- [16:04]
Jim Norton
It just wasn't fun anymore. We would, like, not look at each other. You know, that lack of eye contact when you're unhappy with each other, Like a bad marriage. Oh, man, it's awful.
- [16:13]
Steve Austin
So then. So you guys stand up comedian. You just. You're talking professional broadcast. You're a professional broadcast. Talk to anybody about anything and never miss a beat. So on Yalls normal gig, I mean, like, what's this kind of subject matter that y' all like to talk about? Because I know you have your wrestling podcast. Do you try to stay away from wrestling if you guys are together?
- [16:33]
Sam Roberts
Yeah. I mean, if there's like a big wrestler who's in town that wants to do the morning show, I'll talk to Jim and we'll have him on. Or if there's some kind of story that goes beyond pro wrestling, like, if it's a national story, but beyond that.
- [16:46]
Steve Austin
But what about politics? Yeah, election, everything.
- [16:48]
Jim Norton
Sure.
- [16:49]
Sam Roberts
We like to talk about the news, like politics. We like to keep it topical and talk about our lives that way. But we like to hit more of a show that's going to be something that people are talking about, not a niche of people. Not like a hobbyist show. Because I got my wrestling podcast, he's got his UFC podcast. So we got those things on the side, and we can come together and do the morning show. That's a very mainstream sort of.
- [17:12]
Jim Norton
And I like interviewing wrestlers. I don't know near. I know very little about them. But in. Sam knows everything. But wrestlers are great interviews, always. Because you guys are so good on the mic. It's. It's always a fun time. It's always an interesting talk, always open.
- [17:25]
Steve Austin
There's a couple every now and then leave you hanging, but by and large, most of them got a pretty good story to tell. And I'm glad you reminded me about the UFC podcast, you and Matt, Sarah. Yeah, I completely forgot about that. They advertise that great. On the. On the paper.
- [17:36]
Jim Norton
They do, right?
- [17:37]
Steve Austin
So how's that going?
- [17:38]
Jim Norton
It's great, Sarah, to work with.
- [17:40]
Steve Austin
Like, he's a funny bastard.
- [17:41]
Jim Norton
He's hilarious, and he's a maniac. Matt comes in, he's such an. I told Matt, you're such a New York guy. Like, he just is, you know, I mean, he won't demand anything, but if it's too high, like, it has that air conditioning, he's just that dude, and he's a killer. And he's just a gentle, lovely guy. Like, he's just a sweet guy. Everyone in the UFC loves him. He's, like, walking through an event with him. Every fighter knows him. I mean, he beat gsp. It's a legendary fight that he fought.
- [18:07]
Steve Austin
Right.
- [18:08]
Jim Norton
He's just considered one of the greats.
- [18:10]
Steve Austin
So what's he doing now? Because I always deal with guys. I just got finished talking with Kurt Angle the other day. I'd read some headline. I was taking 65 Vikings a day, and I said, man, I got to talk to you about that. So we finally lined it up, we started talking, and, you know, Kurt's looking at the back end of his career. A lot of guys want to go for that last run of that last shot with wwe. Kind of like Goldberg's doing it right now.
- [18:31]
Sam Roberts
Right?
- [18:31]
Steve Austin
I love it. And so always look back, guys transitioning out of the wrestling business, the square circle business. What do they do? So what's Matt doing? Is he training people? Does he have a training center? I'm not asking for dollars, but is there money in that? Because there Was last thing Jim Paul Orndorff had to tell me, Mr. Wonderful Steve, there is life after wrestling. And I said, is there? He goes, oh, you're damn right there is. And there is. So tell me about life after the ufc, what he's doing.
- [18:58]
Jim Norton
It's funny what Matt's doing. He's got two schools. Sarah, I think it's Sarah bjj, it's called Long Island. And he's always bugging me to come train. Like, you know, he's like encouraging me to, but I'm like, I can't go out to Long Island. He does Dana White looking for a fight with him. And Dana, we'll go city to city. And he's just what he makes, I think, a good living from his schools. He goes out, he teaches, he does the podcast, he does the thing with Dana. Matt's a very active ex fighter. He's. And he's very sought after, so people love talking to Sarah. So he's a guy who will always like Chuck Liddell, these, these, these spokespeople for the sport, who will always have a foot in the door and always be employed.
- [19:35]
Sam Roberts
Plus, he's so, he's so sharp and so with it. We had him on the morning show and completely away from the world of MMA because I like, I watch the fight sometimes, but I don't know much about it. But out of that world, he came in and he was able to take the room over, just shooting the shit with us.
- [19:50]
Jim Norton
Just a funny guy.
- [19:51]
Sam Roberts
Yeah, funny guy and sharp guy. Like, he's quick and he's just with it in these conversations.
- [19:56]
Jim Norton
Yeah, he's 100. And he's a really sweet guy too. Like, he loves. We have a great camaraderie on the podcast and, you know, he's much more important to the UFC than I am. And he never acts like that. He never feels that way. He's just, he's a real. He's a great partner. And that's important when you're in a partnership. To have somebody who doesn't try to outdo you or be better than you, it's like, it's just. What do you think? It's like a real 50, 50 thing. For over 25 years, BetOnline has been one of the most trusted names in online sports and casino gaming. And this year, it's all about sports. Soccer moments as the world stops here. 48 nations and 104 matches. Every one of them is a decision that is yours to make. Betonline has all the livelines and Player props on everything sportsbook and casino through the whole tournament. No limits. And when you are right, you get paid. No ceilings, no excuses. 26 is your year for the soccer championship. Beton at Betonline.
- [20:49]
Steve Austin
This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever think about switching insurance companies to see if you could save some cash? Progressive makes it easy to see if you could save when you bundle your home and auto policies. Try it@progressive.com Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states. I'm Kiana and I leveled up my business with Shopify. Once I figured out that Shopify was a thing, I never turned back. I can create a site with my eyes closed.
- [21:20]
Jim Norton
Shopify thinks ahead of us, you know,
- [21:23]
Steve Austin
and it thinks about the customer more than anything. Every day I'm thinking about some other new business, but Shopify is doing it to me because it's so easy to use.
- [21:32]
Jim Norton
It's like, I can't stop.
- [21:33]
Steve Austin
I'm addicted. Start your free trial@shopify.com so how long have you been a fan of UFC or MMA in general?
- [21:43]
Jim Norton
UFC. I think Joe started bringing guy Rogan would bring guys in probably 2005 and I started watching it after that like when Liddell was fighting and Marco CRO Cop and those guys when he came over to the ufc. But I mean I'm not like a fan that's like knows everything about every fighter. But it became more and more the more I interviewed those guys. There wasn't any of them that were dicks. They were all good guys. I liked them all. So I became a bigger and bigger fan. So I would say for the last seven years I've been a pretty big fan. Maybe seven, eight years. I've really.
- [22:13]
Steve Austin
So do you know what's going on when you're watching? Because I love listening to Joe Rogan, Carlos matches and you know, I love Brian Stan, Dan, he's great too. I missed his last month when Joe Rogan wasn't there. But man, he's talking about, man, here's where he's going next. And he, man, I, I've been a fan, kind of like you. I really was a fan way back in the day before it evolved into what it turned into. And now I'm just like a super fan. I don't miss any pay per views. But when you got Rogan in your ear and he's saying, oh, he's got to go do this to get out or do this to get out of the or is in a butterfly guard or Whatever. And he can sit there and tell the, the story for me, so I get it. Are you at that level?
- [22:49]
Jim Norton
No, I, I, I can go. He just kicked him, you know, I, I cannot.
- [22:55]
Steve Austin
Almost sprayed water on my MacBook. Don't do that again, Jim.
- [23:00]
Jim Norton
Joe can. Joe, I think he's the best announcer in sports because I do too the anticipate. Here's when Joe convinced me the first Bisping Dan Henderson fight. Henderson's right is a sledgehammer, and Bisping kept moving. And Joe's like, he's got to stop doing that. He's moving and then a 30s and POW. I'm like that son of a. Understood the subtlety of the movement. He's so good at anticipating. Yeah, Joe's great.
- [23:23]
Steve Austin
How about that rematch? It was seven years in the making. And then at like, at the end of the fight, it looked like Bisping had lost. But while you were watching the fight, I thought Bisping was winning and indeed he held on to the belt. What were your thoughts after that fight?
- [23:36]
Jim Norton
I thought the same thing. I was amazed. It went five rounds. Nobody, it was like Connor, Nate too. No one saw that going five rounds. And I thought Bisping deserved to keep the belt. You got to really beat the champion. He had a couple of really bad moments. He was bloody. But I think Bisping overall kept his belt. I was very impressed that it went five rounds, though. I mean, the fact that he kept away from Henderson's right for five rounds is amazing.
- [23:59]
Steve Austin
I thought that one time when Hendo knocked him down, took him, boom, he went down. I just think he almost gashed himself trying too hard for the knockout, and maybe should have been a little bit more patient. And here's me, a retired pro wrestler, telling a legendary guy, you know my opinion, but man, if he'd have just held back a little bit because it just seemed after that, I mean, he just never had that, that sense of urgency or the gas or the oxygen to get to the next level to do more damage to Bisping than he was.
- [24:30]
Jim Norton
I think you're right. I think he was just a little bit tired. He was breathing really heavy, and Joe was pointing that out, how heavy he was. He definitely looked like he was. There's a couple of moments where those guys are both just, oh, yeah, he's 46. I think Bisping's 37. I mean, that's, that's been around for a while. That was a tough fight. Those guys were both seemed like they had a little bit, they wanted a little bit of a break.
- [24:49]
Steve Austin
But what A shocker before we switch gears and get out of mma. What a shocker when Bisping got in there with Rockhold, and it seemed like Rockhold seemed like he came in and he just knew he was going to win this fight. And pop, pop. Not so fast, my friend. And we got a new champion. They go all the way to England. What a. What a story Michael Bisping has been ever since he's come here. And at first when he. When he came over, I was kind of like. He was kind of like a heel because he can talk a lot of shit. Oh, he's tremendous on a microphone, right? But then when I saw Star, when I saw him start analyzing and breaking down fights, I was like, man, I really like this guy because he's a likable guy. So now I'm a huge fan.
- [25:26]
Jim Norton
He's so funny. And he will. He's really. He is a really nice guy, too. Like, I've sat next to him in fights, and he's just a really good guy. But he's. He'll, you know, he's like, oh, he's a cheating piece of shit. You know, he will talk. Talk about anybody. And I, I love the fact that he will. Another, you know, another great color guy on the mic is Dominic Cruz. Does a great job of calling fights, and he's the. The co. Main on the Ronda fight is him and Cody Garbrandt. That's another great fight that. I can't wait.
- [25:52]
Steve Austin
That is too. But I. I like, uh, Dominique when, uh, dc, uh, Daniel Cormier. They're together and they're breaking down the fights or saying, hey, what this guy has to do to win. I'm just a big, big fan.
- [26:02]
Jim Norton
Yeah, it's nice. I love watching it. And the fighters are all sweet guys, so they're all like, really, like, they're. They're humble, they're nice dudes. You know, they're not quite the interviews that wrestlers are. Wrestlers just have the more mic. They are just better or more outgoing. So I would rather probably interview a guy who's a wwe. Even though I'm a UFC fanatic, there's
- [26:24]
Steve Austin
a couple of guys that really know how to sell fights. Connor's one, Bisping's won, Kel Sennin's won.
- [26:30]
Sam Roberts
Cowboy.
- [26:31]
Jim Norton
Oh, chaos. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He's amazing.
- [26:33]
Sam Roberts
Cowboy Cerrone.
- [26:34]
Steve Austin
I mean, he's so laid back, and that dude just wants to fight Sam. With that being said, those guys being able to talk people into the building also, you know, put on a hell of a show Talking to pro wrestlers. Who have you talked to lately that has. Hey man, there's a lot more here than I originally thought. One of them, I saw one of your interviews with Ryback and I came away talking from my conversation with Ryback as being impressed by the guy.
- [27:00]
Sam Roberts
Yeah, yeah, Ryback, the first time I talked to him is when he first started talking about all this like positive energy and reading the Secret and all this stuff that he hadn't talked about on TV yet. So that's when I first started to realize that there was way more than I thought under the surface. The trick with wrestlers though, especially nowadays, is if you really want to get below the surface, you have to either find a guy who's outside of WWE or who's fed up in there because people are very scared to kind of give a full on opinion about things. You know what I mean? There you, I, I see the wheels turning of how is this going to be perceived? How are they? How, what kind of feedback am I going to get on this? Am I saying the right thing? And that's not as, you know, you're
- [27:46]
Steve Austin
100% correct because a lot of times when I'm talking to some of those cats and they're gainfully employed by wwe, I just, you try to have as good a conversation as you can. But with respect to booking, hey man, you know, shoot. When I asked Big show, how do you think you're being booked? Like shit, right? But you know, he's been around long enough, he doesn't give a shit, right. And you know Vince is always going to keep him. He's always going to be on time, he's always going to be there. But to your point, amen. If someone is not being booked, right, or they're losing too much, they just can't come out here on your show, Jim's show or my show and just start openly venting, you know.
- [28:19]
Sam Roberts
He's a great interview right now though. Daniel Bryan, he's always, I think he's
- [28:24]
Steve Austin
always been a great interview.
- [28:25]
Sam Roberts
He's especially I find now though, because he's, he's blatantly saying he doesn't like, you know, he's kind of doing what he's told to do because he's under contract. But he said, like what are you gonna, are you gonna fire me? Like that's okay. You know what I mean? Because he's kind of.
- [28:39]
Steve Austin
But still there, I still think there's a veil that's, that's never gonna be lifted. I mean, you know, kayfabe is broken we all know that. But. But yeah, to your point, you just can't go to. You can't pry too much, right? Hey, man, give me honest thoughts on something or you can get about as honest they can be with you, right? But it ain't gonna be like all of a sudden with a stop button and we'll start talking about.
- [29:00]
Sam Roberts
Yeah, yeah.
- [29:02]
Steve Austin
The whole conversation changes to something we can actually really, really talk about.
- [29:05]
Jim Norton
You know, I have a question. What does it mean being booked? Like, does that mean getting bad matches?
- [29:09]
Steve Austin
Yeah, I mean, these store lines or something like, you know, oh, hey, Jim, we want you to dress up like this and, you know, maybe wear a couple of horns out of your head and we're gonna put a tail on you and you're gonna get beat every week. You know, just bad storylines, you know, Go ahead.
- [29:23]
Sam Roberts
What was great? Right before SummerSlam, I did an event at Caroline's and I did a live podcast. First I had Gallows and Anderson, which was great. It was a great interview. Then I had Kevin Owens after them that same afternoon. And both those, we did like an hour. Both were great. And both of those, I came back with this sense of the best interviews, especially from people like that, are like, man, why isn't. Why isn't more of that on tv? Like, especially the Gallows and Anderson interview. That. And I would hope anybody that listened to that is thinking, why is it? Why aren't. Why isn't that on tv?
- [29:59]
Steve Austin
Well, see, then that. That's my big thing. I mean, just like the question I asked Jim, you know, just talking to those MMA guys, UFC guys, they're doing pro wrestling better than pro wrestling's doing pro wrestling. Just because they. I just think. I don't want to be critical, but you know, wwe, man, their whole universe, it's their cameras, it's their thing, it's their product, it's their stuff. They can make any rule they want. And so back, I want to say, in the Attitude era, because my favorite time was the mid-80s NWA, you know, WCW World Class in Dallas before it was on the downhill. All that good shit that Bill Watts was doing in Mid South Power Pro. Serious shit, right? And a blinding junkyard dog when the Free Birds did that. All that kind of good stuff, just in a serious light. That's what I mean. Because UFC's done in a serious light. Hey, somebody can say something funny, someone can talk trash, but it's presented in a serious light because it's a shoot sport. Wrestling is supposed to be. I mean, it's based On a shoot sport.
- [30:55]
Sam Roberts
Suspension of disbelief, right?
- [30:57]
Steve Austin
Yeah, yeah, yeah. So that's why, you know, nxt. I love those pay per views because they're presented in a real fashion. Corey Graves, another guy, do an outstanding job of staying within the storylines and just keeping everything tight. They're not selling anything. No apps, no bullshit. It's all about wrestling. And I'm able to immerse myself. Jesus Christ. I've been in wrestling business since 89. I've been out since 2003. 2003. But, you know, I'm still a fan, I'm still a wrestler. Retired, but I still want to believe. So when I watch nxt, I'm like, I can buy into this almost like the good old days in the 80s.
- [31:29]
Jim Norton
So you're still. It's amazing. You've been out for that many years and you're still like a really, like a centrally named guy in wrestling. It's really like odd to see somebody got it like Liddell in mma. I equate it with that. Like, you're always gonna be one of those guys that just seems to be talked about whenever wrestling is talked about, man, that's.
- [31:43]
Steve Austin
It's been a good thing to be able to do the podcast and I got in what, three years ago, give or take, and it was, it was a nice outlet for me. And the fact that so many people listen to the damn thing is a blessing. But, you know, like I said, I never want to bury anybody on the show. And if you can kind of light a spark under someone every now and then just to help them, but you just don't want to trash people.
- [32:05]
Sam Roberts
But I'll tell you, people are listening because it just. Speaking of the Kevin Owens interview, I was talking to him about all the trash he talks in the ring. I said that's one of the most entertaining things, is that you're running your mouth the entire match. And he said that he met you in an airport as a young man. Just a big stone Cold fan. He had just started wrestling a couple years ago and you told him to just keep running your mouth when you're in there. Just keep going.
- [32:28]
Steve Austin
Yeah, I remember that. Man. I was about halfway haggard. We'd been on the road for a good while and I'll never forget that. And I've forgotten most of my career, but I think Sami Zayn or somebody was traveling with him at the same time and he was telling me about some of his moves that he does. And, you know, he asked, I think if I had any pointers for him, I Said, dude, just learn to learn how to run your mouth. Keep running your mouth.
- [32:46]
Sam Roberts
Do you ever, like, find young comedians that are looking for advice or do you. Or encounter young comedians that are like, don't really need your advice because they think they know it all.
- [32:55]
Jim Norton
And, you know, I'll get a lot of emails from comedians asking for advice. So they would call up and ask and always just tell them the basics, because I don't know, they might not be funny. So I don't. I don't know them. But, yeah, I mean, it's pretty simple. This is what you should do if you want to succeed. Like, this is the business side. If you're. If you're funny, do this, this, and this. And it will help. But, yeah, anyone that wouldn't want. I wouldn't offer it, though, to somebody unless I knew him or unless, like, you, we were having a weird moment. If I was having a weird moment in an interview, that's a little bit different.
- [33:24]
Sam Roberts
Right.
- [33:24]
Jim Norton
Then you do what you got to do, especially if a guy's being a dick.
- [33:26]
Steve Austin
Not just not to switch the subject, but a weird moment in an interview. Just got finished talking to Jesse Ventura. He was here in the crib the other day. I know in 09, John had a little bit of a beef, and. And he walked out. And then. I don't know. Did you guys ever get back on the radio together?
- [33:41]
Jim Norton
No. Jesse walked out very angry. And the.
- [33:45]
Steve Austin
There's a video constitution stuff.
- [33:47]
Jim Norton
Yeah. And 9 11. And it was. The video doesn't tell the story because the video. Opie only had X amount of memory on his video, so he was taking little snippets. But the entire audio interview, you could see that Jesse was kind of being a little nasty to me. I mean, not horrible, but just. I didn't agree with him on this. And he, you know, he was. He was.
- [34:06]
Sam Roberts
He was discrediting you a little bit instead of saying, well, this is just a guy who doesn't agree with me.
- [34:11]
Jim Norton
Right.
- [34:11]
Sam Roberts
But I was almost saying, like, your opinion doesn't count.
- [34:14]
Jim Norton
Yeah, but of course, like, I respected that. He's a Navy SEAL in the military, so we had that big fight. He said, I'll never come back on the show again. And I'm always okay with whoever wants to and whoever doesn't. We saw him recently after the. We interviewed Chris Kyle, and that whole Chris Kyle, I knocked Jesse out thing came from our show. Opie was actually informed about that, and he asked Chris, was it Jesse or. I forget how. And he was. Yeah, it was Jesse O'Reilly gets it and then O'Reilly runs with it. And that's how it became giant news, because Bill O'Reilly got it. But we had it that morning. And then Jesse. I believe Jesse. When I heard his explanation on Alex Jones, I even said publicly, I think Jesse, it sounds like he's telling the truth. He sounds like a guy who is not lying when he says this.
- [34:57]
Steve Austin
Right.
- [34:58]
Jim Norton
So we wound up sticking up for him in a way, even though we liked Chris, we had interviewed him on the phone as well as in person. Then he gets killed and the whole lawsuit happens or continues. So Jesse came by our studio not long ago. It was me and Opie, and that was right after he got the judgment. And Jesse just opens our studio door and goes, he was a liar and closes the door, which was funny, you know, and then. And then people told him at one point, you know, he was. Jim actually said he did believe you. I don't have it out for him. So I don't think he likes me or respects me. And I get it when I talk to him again, sure. But, I mean, I don't like when somebody, if we're having a discussion, we disagree. I'm not going to poke Jesse physically. So if we're having an argument and he does something really alpha to me, that really gets me angry, and I'm willing to take the consequences of it, but it's not. I'm not a tough guy at all. It's like one of the things, like, I don't like that energy from someone when I'm not giving. Trying to give the other side of that energy. Like. Like when he was leaving, he goes,
- [36:00]
Steve Austin
thanks for your service.
- [36:00]
Jim Norton
And he pats me really hard. And I knew what he was doing. Like, you know, if you were talking to a guy and he looked at you a certain way or he poked you, you would say, I know what you just did.
- [36:10]
Sam Roberts
Right?
- [36:10]
Jim Norton
Right. I couldn't prove it in court, but we both know what you just did. So that kind of really got me angry. And that was why I said something very rude to him on the way out. But I wish we didn't fight, because I do like the guy. I don't have any hatred for Jesse Vincenzo, man.
- [36:22]
Steve Austin
I always Doug Jesse, because first of all, I was a fan of his heel commentary work when Vince had the idea, when he had the pulmonary embolism and had to retire from the ring after only 10 years. And I think that was a silver lining and a dark cloud because that's where his true genius was. You give that guy a microphone and he's gold. And when he came over here, man, I'd watched I don't know how many interviews, but I knew every Jesse Loop, I knew every Jesse story. And because he was promoting Marijuana Manifesto, I knew which ones to keep him off of because everybody else had done got those same stories. So I was able to do that. Now he'll get one or two in on you, but he's just a really smart guy. He's very well read and he does the conspiracy theory things and he's highly intelligent, but he has that voice. And when he believes he's right, I mean, that's just all there is to it. He believes he's right because I could go back and forth with him about certain things, but that was not my agenda on the show. We shot the breeze, talked wrestling, pushed his book, and it was wonderful.
- [37:22]
Jim Norton
He said some things that. We interviewed him three times. That argument we had was the third. And the first time we didn't really click. Second time we got along great and then the third time we had that argument. But he said some great things like about how in the United States that you're rewarded for bad behavior. I forget what he was talking about, but he's made some really smart points and I just, I really enjoyed listening to him. Except for that one thing that we disagree with and I have a big mouth and I just couldn't shut up about it. And I heard Howard's interview with him and Stern did a fun job with him because he just kept asking and he's your guest, let him talk. So it probably. Maybe I should have debated it, maybe I shouldn't have. But most of the feedback from people was when 911 is a weird thing for people. So they liked that I debated him on it. However people feel about it, they and his Jesse has a lot of fans. So I got a lot of blowback and a lot of hatred from Jesse Ventura's fans. He's certainly a well represented guy. I mean, people love him, they respect him. So I still get a lot of hate from that interview, which was fine.
- [38:21]
Steve Austin
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- [38:39]
Jim Norton
Shut up.
- [38:40]
Steve Austin
Titanic, I'm the king of the World. And so much more for Showtimes, press nothing. They're free 24.
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Jim Norton
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Steve Austin
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Jim Norton
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Sam Roberts
I can also earn resi credits so
- [38:59]
Steve Austin
you know, I'm hitting the restaurants everyone's talking about.
- [39:01]
Sam Roberts
Plus with the digital entertainment credit, I'm even more excited to catch my favorite shows. All in all, I can access over $3,500 in annual value with benefits and eligible purchases across travel, entertainment and more. Learn more@americanexpress.com Explore Platinum Enrollment Requirements monthly and other limits in terms apply.
- [39:21]
Steve Austin
This is a paid message from GoFundMe.
- [39:24]
Jim Norton
Meet Juan Naula. When his son was hospitalized for a
- [39:27]
Steve Austin
viral infection, Juan started a GoFundMe to pay for medical expenses. It was 5k to pay the bill for my son and I need only 22 hours. It was amazing. People really trust on GoFundMe.
- [39:40]
Jim Norton
How did Juan raise $5,000 in less than a day?
- [39:43]
Steve Austin
He posted a short video on GoFundMe telling his story in 30 seconds. 30 seconds. Be specific. Be quick and tell. What are you gonna be using the funds for? I was nervous to to do it because it doesn't feel okay to ask money. But you shouldn't be nervous. Sometimes you just have to do it and see the results.
- [40:04]
Sam Roberts
We were able to save my son's
- [40:07]
Steve Austin
life thanks to gofundme that we still have my son with us. Start your GoFundMe today at gofundme.com that's
- [40:15]
Jim Norton
gofundme.com gofundme.com this message reflects one person's experience.
- [40:21]
Steve Austin
Mom, can you tell me a story?
- [40:23]
Jim Norton
Sure. Once upon a time, a mom needed a new car.
- [40:26]
Sam Roberts
Was she brave?
- [40:27]
Jim Norton
She was tired, Mo. But she went to Carvana.com and found a great car at a great price. No secret treasure map required.
- [40:33]
Sam Roberts
Did you have to fight a dragon? Nope.
- [40:35]
Jim Norton
She bought it 100% online from her bed, actually.
- [40:38]
Sam Roberts
Was it scary?
- [40:39]
Jim Norton
Honey, it was as unscary as car buying could be. Did the car have a sunroof? It did, actually.
- [40:44]
Steve Austin
Okay, good story.
- [40:45]
Jim Norton
Car buying. You'll want to tell stories about. Buy your car today on Carvana. Delivery fees may apply.
- [40:52]
Steve Austin
Sam, you're about to jump in with something.
- [40:53]
Sam Roberts
Well, I was gonna say, I don't know if you know this, but we've only been on the air a month, and we've already had our first walkout interview storm out of the studio.
- [41:02]
Steve Austin
I saw that.
- [41:03]
Sam Roberts
You did?
- [41:03]
Steve Austin
I saw. Was Nancy Grace. Yes. What happened? I started watching it because I Wanted to get ready for you guys. The thing happened so fast. Yeah, you know me, Sam. I do my homework.
- [41:12]
Sam Roberts
I always do.
- [41:13]
Steve Austin
I did get a chance to do enough homework on you guys. But, yeah, I saw her walk out. I didn't understand what she was getting hot about.
- [41:18]
Sam Roberts
Well, we go like we did the guest booker, because we both, Jim and I, on our separate shows, have spent a lot of time saying unkind things about Nancy Grace on the air.
- [41:28]
Jim Norton
She blocked me on Twitter. She's like, one of the only celebrity to block me on Twitter. Or I give her a picture.
- [41:33]
Steve Austin
I'm about to throw this neon clock through the window. I can't believe it. Damn it.
- [41:38]
Sam Roberts
So our guest booker comes up to us one afternoon. He goes, would you guys take Nancy Grace on the show? And Jim and I look at each other like, yeah, we would take her. I mean, why would she walk into that studio like, yes. The answer from us is yes, but there's no way. And he was like, all right, she's coming in. We're like, all right, we don't think so. Up until the day we were going, there's no way she walks through that door. Up until. So we didn't announce it because we didn't want all our listeners on Twitter smartening her up. Yeah, no, no, no. And so she walks in, and immediately, I think with a quote from one of our listeners, was, hey, idiots, it's not supposed to be Bad Cop, Bad Cop. Cause we just started hammering her as soon as she walked in on all the stuff that she's done on her TV show. On the stuff she did. I brought up all the wrestling stuff she did that, you know, DDP and the rest of them got so mad about. We brought up all the stuff she's done to exploit the dead kids and everything.
- [42:35]
Jim Norton
I felt I had to mention it, though, because I beat her up on Twitter, and I'm like, I can't be such a pussy that I'm like, I hate those keyboard. Like, if I said it on Twitter, I wasn't gonna be nasty to her in person. But I said, I've had problems with what you've done.
- [42:49]
Steve Austin
Yeah, you're very frank and very calm about it.
- [42:53]
Jim Norton
Yeah, I felt that'd be a liar if I didn't and a fake if I didn't. And it's like, what kind of tough guy just tweeted somebody and then when they're in the room with you, doesn't at least say, hey, look, I've said this stuff?
- [43:01]
Steve Austin
Right? Right, Man, I. I didn't quite understand it. Did you guys follow the goddamn. What was that? The Steven Avery case? It wasn't.
- [43:08]
Jim Norton
Yeah, making a murderer. Brendan Dassey.
- [43:11]
Steve Austin
Brendan Dassey, yes, Brendan Dassey, man. I mean, they set that kid up.
- [43:15]
Sam Roberts
That's exactly what I was thinking about when you were talking about the claustrophobia of jail. Like when I think about. I don't even think about the physical claustrophobia, but just like when you talked about that bar, the bar clinging and you know it's locked like you know you're not in control of when it opens back up again. And if you saw that thing on Netflix, listen to that kid say, am I going to get out in time for seventh period? Because I got a project. And you know, that's 15 years ago, however long ago it was. And from that moment he wanted to get out that afternoon and he still hasn't got.
- [43:45]
Steve Austin
Well, they, they finagle him to saying, you know, if you, if you say this, you can go home. Yeah. And they then they detained him and said, you know, she said something about going to Wrestlemania or some wrestling event.
- [43:55]
Sam Roberts
He did watch WrestleMania.
- [43:57]
Steve Austin
Yeah. Yeah. So they set this kid up and the man those dirt bag. Was his name Lynn? I can't remember.
- [44:03]
Sam Roberts
The prosecutor?
- [44:03]
Steve Austin
Yeah, no, not the prosecutor, but his attorney, something.
- [44:12]
Sam Roberts
A blonde guy. Right.
- [44:13]
Steve Austin
I think whatever it was.
- [44:14]
Sam Roberts
Yeah.
- [44:15]
Steve Austin
And then to make up that story about the, the. Well, obviously there's a horrific act on this mattress. Where was the mattress? It was always in the house. There was no blood on it.
- [44:25]
Sam Roberts
Right.
- [44:26]
Steve Austin
So you know, if it was a made up story, what the going on here?
- [44:30]
Sam Roberts
Right.
- [44:30]
Steve Austin
So now I guess state of Wisconsin doesn't want to let the kid out, but evidently that lady, the lawyer I'm following on Twitter, who took up that case and got it. Oh yeah, I can't remember name. But anyway, that was a whole clusterfuck.
- [44:44]
Sam Roberts
Yeah, there was like a federal appeals case that said yes, but then still on the state level they said no way.
- [44:51]
Jim Norton
I don't know what the right thing is either because you watch the documentary and then when you hear the prosecutor. Because they made the prosecutor seem like the bad guy and then you hear him interviewed about all the physical evidence that they didn't include in the documentary. Like there was a lot of Steven Avery DNA, like his sweat under the hood, like all kinds of the documentary left out. And with dassey, I'm not 100, I don't know the answer. There was something about. He had jeans with bleach on them and there was a big bleach Thing where they had. They had cleaned up blood and the thing. It was a bunch of stuff and
- [45:18]
Steve Austin
I'm not well, a lot of that was left out.
- [45:20]
Jim Norton
Oh yeah, the documentary left that. They made it look like there was one drop of blood. I do think the cops threw the keys down. I do think they planted to get him. But when you look at all the
- [45:29]
Steve Austin
evidence, what do you think Steven Avery, after doing how much time he did for being falsely accused of that first gimmick, would do something to put himself back behind the bars?
- [45:37]
Jim Norton
I think he did it. I'll tell you why. Here's why I think he did. First of all, he threw a live cat into a fire. Years before, Eddie was jerking off watching women. He was a bad guy. He had called this woman from a block number a few times because she had come over one time and the woman who wound up dead and she thought he was a creep. He answered the door to towel. She didn't want to come back and see him. She didn't like him. So he called her from a block number. He got her back to the property. Then all of a sudden, whenever she's gone, he calls from his number, goes, hey, are you coming? Almost like putting an alibi in documentary. Left all that out. They left a lot of stuff out.
- [46:09]
Sam Roberts
They are doing another set. Right.
- [46:11]
Jim Norton
They should do more.
- [46:12]
Sam Roberts
I think they're doing a season two or whatever it's gonna be called with all the evidence that they said wasn't there.
- [46:17]
Jim Norton
Well, the blood explanation I read too. And it was like they made it look like that was so ominous. But if you remember, there was really no great follow up to it. There was a couple of possibilities. And then when you read like, no, it's very common. That happens all the time with blood samples. And his perspiration was found under the latch key under the hood.
- [46:34]
Steve Austin
It was kind of gimmicky when they found the car. It just had little gimmick branches. That was the worst job I'd ever seen in my life.
- [46:39]
Jim Norton
Right.
- [46:40]
Steve Austin
If they had access to all this stuff, why wouldn't you crush the car? Kay fabed it. That means hide it, stash it away.
- [46:45]
Sam Roberts
Yeah.
- [46:46]
Steve Austin
But then again, there never was the bloody mattress where this was allegedly supposed to have happened. I definitely, I. I subscribe to the theory that it was committed off premise.
- [46:55]
Sam Roberts
Yeah.
- [46:55]
Steve Austin
Brought back over. I don't know if someone did.
- [46:58]
Jim Norton
It may have been.
- [46:58]
Steve Austin
But then again, I mean, he stood to gain. What was the payoff that he was going to get from the first thing? Yeah, it was in the high, high millions of dollars. And all of a sudden, boom, the girl. And I'm sorry I speak, I don't mean to disrespect the, the woman who was killed, I just can't remember her name.
- [47:14]
Sam Roberts
But the Dassey story too, I mean you watch that thing and you see they were tricking him into confessing.
- [47:20]
Jim Norton
Yeah.
- [47:20]
Sam Roberts
And having him sign things and doing all this stuff. He didn't know what was going on.
- [47:24]
Jim Norton
The prosecutor, he's. I want to interview the prosecutor. Because when you hear him talk, he knew he was painted as the bad guy and he's more than willing to come out and say everything they left out. He's.
- [47:33]
Sam Roberts
But he's a scumbag though. I mean he's got charges against him.
- [47:36]
Jim Norton
Yeah, the charges, he was, he was a jerk off. He was texting dirty to some. Fair enough, but all that. But just because you're shitty and you're a pervert doesn't mean that this guy. Because they found her cell phone, they found all this weird stuff in the fire pit. I think the documentary left out. There's a lot more evidence found, physical evidence than the documentary mentioned. I was like, why would you guys. It's a fascinating story no matter what it is. It's amazing. This guy went to prison. He never should have went to prison. Whether even if he did kill the girl, fascinating. If he didn't kill the girl, fascinating. They didn't need to to leave any evidence out.
- [48:06]
Sam Roberts
Maybe they didn't have enough time to cover it in their 12 hours.
- [48:10]
Jim Norton
I know literally they were showing flights in real time. You didn't need to do that. So it's a fascinating story either way.
- [48:16]
Steve Austin
So what brings you guys out to Los Angeles?
- [48:19]
Sam Roberts
Well, we're doing the, we're doing the morning show out here from the SiriusXM studios.
- [48:23]
Steve Austin
Well, tell us the time of the morning show so the people that listen to my show will know when and where the morning show is on.
- [48:28]
Sam Roberts
It's 11, 8am Eastern.
- [48:30]
Jim Norton
Yeah, I said 8 to 11. I don't know how to plug my own show. I really stink.
- [48:35]
Sam Roberts
I'm an ask 8am to 11am Eastern on XM103 series 206 and it replays a couple times during the day and yeah, it's Monday through Friday.
- [48:46]
Steve Austin
So we're doing it about the creative process for you. I just got finished. It was a few months ago. I had Bill Burr on the show.
- [48:52]
Jim Norton
Oh, we saw Bill today.
- [48:54]
Sam Roberts
Yeah, we did the show this morning. Yeah.
- [48:55]
Steve Austin
Oh man, I would saw him at the comedy club over Hermosa Beach. I thought my head was going to explode. Me and my wife were laughing. So goddamn amazing. And, you know, the thing about was just like, you. All of a sudden you get backstage with him or like when he showed up on a podcast, I just thought he was going to riff and he'd like, kind of like, go off. Yeah, no, he's just a regular human being. But boy, when he hits the stage, whole different thing. So what's the story about you trying to create new content or how do you go about the process and fleshing out a joke or going through the process of, hey, this is some good shit here.
- [49:27]
Jim Norton
Sometimes I'll write stuff down, other times I'm at the Comedy Cellar. Most nights I'll just go on and go like, man, the Trump Hillary stuff and this. It's a weird. It's almost like you can feel it. Like, it's like a smell. Like when there's a smell in the room, you can't identify it's there, but you can't pinpoint. Like, that's how I am with thoughts for jokes. So I'll just kind of go on stage and just start talking about something and then see where it goes. I let myself do that to keep it very natural. I think radio trains you for that because you're so used to it being off the cuff every day and then it starts to formulate into a joke. It's really fun, though, when all of a sudden you click and you know you're being funny and you're hitting.
- [50:01]
Steve Austin
You're just kind of riffing.
- [50:03]
Jim Norton
Yeah, but. And then it becomes a bit. And then, okay, boom. That goes in the act.
- [50:06]
Steve Austin
Boom.
- [50:07]
Jim Norton
You just keep building and pushing the old shit out the back door. It's like squeezing someone's head and they're just shitting. That's the way my act is, squeezing all the old.
- [50:14]
Steve Austin
So how do you separate, like, you've written what two books are working on? Third.
- [50:20]
Jim Norton
Yeah. You know, it's funny. I started writing within the last few months. I wanted to do a third book, but I did specials in the last few years. So all my writing is going into stand up. But.
- [50:29]
Steve Austin
So that's my question. I mean, like. Like, what's the difference between writing a book? Because of these, like, halfway. What, autobiographical?
- [50:35]
Jim Norton
Oh, yeah, Very.
- [50:36]
Steve Austin
Okay.
- [50:36]
Jim Norton
Talk a lot about hookers and a lot of stuff in my first book especially.
- [50:39]
Steve Austin
So I was just completely different gig from, you know, Bomas for the routine.
- [50:42]
Jim Norton
Yeah, it's weird. It was like blogging in a way because we were off the radio when I wrote that first one. So I couldn't get it out, I couldn't talk about it, so I had to write it. And I wrote a little bit recently and it felt so good to do. But I have to write in the moment when I'm feeling something I can't go back and recapture very well. So if you're feeling something like now, I'll talk it into Siri. Unless he's around because Sam's a piece of shit. Whenever you're talking into Siri, he says things and he ruins it. So you have to. You have to actually physically type when you're around Sam. But, you know, I would talk it out and I'll talk out a lot of stuff. And what I've written recently in the last couple years, I've written some stuff for Time.com. so that was more serious stuff or opinion stuff on the language policing, you know, to write funny stuff I want to do in my book. I want it to be fucking funny.
- [51:26]
Steve Austin
Did you go to college?
- [51:27]
Jim Norton
No, I'm a high school dropout.
- [51:29]
Steve Austin
And you were a sociology major?
- [51:30]
Sam Roberts
Yeah, in Syracuse.
- [51:32]
Steve Austin
God damn it. So where comes this need to create?
- [51:36]
Jim Norton
I think it's just probably self hatred. I don't want to look at my. It's either that or the mirror.
- [51:40]
Steve Austin
You always hear me being, you know, I want to be comedian or just a guy that just really looks up to stand up comedians who can make me laugh or whatever. A big Mitch Hedberg fan. But you hear a lot of times that sometimes comedians are kind of miserable people.
- [51:55]
Jim Norton
Yeah.
- [51:56]
Steve Austin
Is that true?
- [51:57]
Jim Norton
Chris Rock had a good quote about. Chris is such a smart guy. And he was talking about comedians being unhappy because they say ignorance is bliss. He said, comedians notice everything. And that's why we're miserable, because we see every. We look for everything. You look for every wrong thing, every wrong innuendo, and you notice it and you make a mental note. So it's hard to feel good when you can't not see things. And I don't think it's a smart thing. I think it's just the way our brains focus on things. But a lot of comics are miserable. Yeah, because this conflict is funny. Like, conflict like in all. Look at the great sitcoms. What? Happy marriages, you know, married with children, all in the family. It was always. Shut up. That was funny. You know what I mean? You know, eat them like any other elephant. You didn't want to see Ralph and Alice get along. You wanted to conflict, right? So conflict is Funny. And that's kind of what comics focus on, is conflict. I think that's what makes it funny to me.
- [52:47]
Steve Austin
Does your comedian background help you with the interview process?
- [52:51]
Jim Norton
You know, I mean, I think a little bit, yes.
- [52:54]
Steve Austin
And are you Groundlings? Are you just.
- [52:56]
Jim Norton
Oh, no, no. Like improv?
- [52:58]
Steve Austin
Yeah. I mean, or just. Just with respect to having a conversation?
- [53:03]
Jim Norton
I think so, yeah. Because I'm comfortable. I don't feel pressure to be funny. I'm comfortable just chatting. I know something funny might come out. It's okay if it does. It's okay if it doesn't.
- [53:11]
Steve Austin
How are you with hecklers during your set?
- [53:13]
Jim Norton
I don't mind them as long as I hate when they step on a line. Like, I don't care what they yell. But when they're like. Like when there's a pause and they yell something because they just want, we love you. We talked about this with Bill. Yeah, you're great. You know, it's very rarely nasty.
- [53:26]
Steve Austin
You up? My joke.
- [53:28]
Jim Norton
Dude, your timing.
- [53:30]
Steve Austin
God damn it.
- [53:31]
Jim Norton
But you guys get eaten. The hecklers. I remember the. One of the first wrestling matches I went to see. I saw Sergeant Slaughter wrestle somebody, you know, and I forget who he wrestled, but it was, like, in a high school gym, and I hated him so much, and I didn't have the courage to say anything to him, but he's walking through and people are screaming at him. And, like, the shit you guys got to put up with is a lot worse than comics do. I mean, you get people really angry at you.
- [53:53]
Steve Austin
Well, that was back in the old days, you know, when you get, like, shooting heat, like, real heat, and people just like, well, the business hadn't been exposed as many times as it had been. Even when Stossel and Ronald Rivera did his thing or whatever. Still, you could get heat these days, Sam, talk to me about. Because you're knowledgeable enough, even though you're a young cat. You know, of the stories, you've talked to so many guys who had shooting heat, who got stabbed, cut, gashed open, versus trying to get heat. Now, how much heat can a heel get these days? The way the business is structured, I
- [54:27]
Sam Roberts
don't think he really can. Like, the only real heat that exists, it comes from good guys who are being forced. Like, Roman Reigns gets more heat than anybody, and he's a good guy. You know, I think that the fans have all become so smart, or their interpretation of smart, you know what I mean? Like, they consider themselves also smart that anyone who's great at being a bad guy is going to get cheered. Whereas before, even when you were going, right, it would be this slow natural progression. Like, Stone Cold was a real bad guy, and then over time, people just appreciated him enough. Now, I mean, if you're really good at being a bad guy, it takes you two weeks and you're. Everybody's cheering for you. Like Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho. They can't do the show properly, especially Jericho, because all that happens is everybody cheers for Jericho and his catchphrases and everything. He's supposed to be this ultimate weasel villain.
- [55:22]
Steve Austin
Yeah.
- [55:23]
Sam Roberts
You know what I mean? So I don't. I don't think that that era.
- [55:26]
Jim Norton
It's harder.
- [55:26]
Sam Roberts
Yeah, it's way harder. And there was this kind of romantic era of, like you said, guys literally would start riots and they'd have to get snuck back into the dressing room and stay there for hours because otherwise there was going to be real violence.
- [55:43]
Steve Austin
But, you know, I think the. I think the wrestling fans are. I love them and they can do whatever they want to, but. But now I think what they do is they're watching the show, they're watching the guys and the gals go through their paces, their storylines, their angles. But they're more so, you know, because they're so smart. They're judging the writing.
- [56:04]
Sam Roberts
That's exactly right. I was.
- [56:05]
Steve Austin
So the writing's getting the heat rather than the, The. The talent getting the heat, when, you know, I'm not going to walk out of a Tom Cruise movie going, God damn, those writers, really? Me? Yeah. No, they met Tom Cruise is badass in that movie. Right. You know, but here they want to say, ah, the writers are doing this, or they gotta push Roman and. Gotta push Roman. Just watch it happen. Forget about the writing. Just go back into suspending your disbelief.
- [56:32]
Sam Roberts
I went to one of the. The pay per view where they did Chris Jericho and Dean Ambrose in the cage. A few months back, I went to that pay per view with a Hollywood writer who didn't know anything about wrestling but was working on a wrestling related project. So he wanted to be familiarized. I was like, come with me. I'll show you the whole show and explain everything as it goes. And that's what blew his mind that I was trying to explain. He's like, why are they booing that guy? I go, they're not booing that guy. They're booing what they think the creative team that they're all aware of is making that guy do. They might like that guy, but they don't like that guy reading those lines because they Think that guy should be reading the lines that they want him to read?
- [57:11]
Jim Norton
Are they playing along in a way by booing the guy? If they want. If the creative team wants him booed, or they're. Or they're booing against the creative team,
- [57:18]
Sam Roberts
they're booing against the creative.
- [57:19]
Jim Norton
Okay, that makes sense.
- [57:21]
Sam Roberts
And then it seems like, from a fan's perspective anyway, that then the creative team or whoever's in charge over there, wherever, whatever, sticks their heels in the sand and just goes, no, we're gonna do it my way. And then the fans go, no, you're gonna do it our way. And. Whereas there was a time where they'd kind of bend a little bit and. And go the fans direction, but then grabbed the fans once they had them and said, okay, now you're going in our direction. Now it's just two opposing forces.
- [57:48]
Jim Norton
Would you get booed when you, like when you were a heel, would you get booed?
- [57:51]
Steve Austin
Oh, yeah. When I first came in, you know, long story short, I wrestled for about seven and a half years and then in Atlanta, started off in Dallas and went through Tennessee, and then I had an injury in Japan. I fucked up my arm. I got fired. So I worked for about a few months with Paul Heyman in ecw, and that's when Vince called me and he pitched me this gimmick. They were going to call me the ringmaster, the master of the ring. Ted DiBiase was going to be my manager. So it was a bad idea, but it was a foot in the door.
- [58:21]
Sam Roberts
And that's the way you saw it even at the. The time, right?
- [58:23]
Steve Austin
Yeah, yeah. So I knew it was Polish, that gimmick, but okay, now they actually are pursuing me, so I'll go. Before, they'd never pursued me and just saw me as a mechanic. And so I just said, hey, I'm not going to go there. And that's when I came up with the Stone Cold Steve Austin thing. But when I first started the Stone Cold Steve Austin thing, I came up with a name, you know, came up with being from Victoria, Texas, where I used to live. But then I was. You remember my debut stuff? I mean, I was laying my shit in. You couldn't see through anything. And I was talking so much shit, you just couldn't deny it.
- [58:51]
Sam Roberts
And there'd be no playing to the audience either. No, no, no, no playing to the audience.
- [58:55]
Steve Austin
You know, straight up, if this. If this table we're podcasting from is square, just like a ring, all I'm paying attention to is me and You. And here's a referee, Sam. But I'm not trying to get a look or go to the crowd or, you know, get a response from them. I'm getting my response here. Not even by being somebody's ass.
- [59:15]
Sam Roberts
And it was great because it wasn't even like the bad guy thing. It wasn't even like he beat up the good guy and say, hey, how do you all, like.
- [59:21]
Steve Austin
No, no, that's pandering, right? You know, you. You're. Every time you do something, it's a lot like stand up. It's like I was talking to Bill Burr about a few months ago. The gigs are so similar because you. You throw out a joke or put out a line or whatever you want to call it. You do something in the ring to elicit a response based on the response, you. You proceed accordingly. And normally, back in the old days, you're making these decisions on the fly. Some of it's mapped out already, like a routine maybe, but all of a sudden, you lose them. Okay, let me go here. Because they're not buying us. And so you shift gears in the ring, so you're always listening. But yes, to answer your question, yeah, people were booing the shit out of me. But then all of a sudden, I started getting kind of cool, and I was still vicious, and I was talking so much shit. And that's when Vince took the filters off, and Brian Pillman had just came to wwf and I'd be working with guys, and I was the heel, and I was getting cheered more than the babyface was when we went out to the match, and as soon as I walked back through the curtains, there was Brian Pillman. God damn it, kid, you're a baby face. And, you know, you take being a heel or a baby face, a bad guy and a good guy very seriously in that business, because you're trying to be either or, not both. And I said, fuck you, I'm a heel. Well, I was turning so organically. I don't want to talk about my story too many times because people have heard it so many times, but we did a transition match at WrestleMania 13 many years ago, myself and the one and only Brett the Hitman Hart, in which I entered that match as kind of a guy that was still a heel, but people were starting to like me. He had been around for so long, and he was a legend, but he was kind of pissing and moaning a little bit, so they were kind of turning on him a little bit. Although he was still the overwhelming fan favorite. I went to the Ring first after Ken Shamrock was a special referee. That was a great attraction. Ken was wonderful in his role. And then I'm out there and I get a pretty positive reaction, but some boos. And then here comes Brett. Almost all cheers. And over the course of 20, 25 minutes, passing out in a pool of blood. And then, you know, Ken challenges Bret Hart to a. And Brett backs down. And that kind of further cemented Brett's heel direction. So we had work to do on the backside of television to get us both in the roles. And it wasn't like they automatically said, okay, Steve, just because people are cheering you now, you are a baby face. We never said I was a babyface. Jim Ross was so. Was smart enough to give me backhanded compliments or. I don't know why they like him, but also, they just transitioned my opponent. I started working with heels rather than babies. And so that's. That's how they work. But along the way, I became just a cemented hardcore baby face. But in the. In the formative years, I was a heel getting heat.
- [62:08]
Sam Roberts
He was also not to blow smoke, but he was also such, like, a change from what was going on. Like, you would have loved, like, the old promos because they went from, like Hogan, very cartoony, very sort of family friendly, to like, Steve jumping on a microphone. And when he's, like, challenging Bret Hart, he just jumps on and he goes, you know, he's Bret the Hitman Hart. And he goes, if you put an S in front of the word hitman, you've got exactly what I think of Bret Hart. And nobody's heard anything like this before on wrestling.
- [62:37]
Steve Austin
But I mean, it's kind of like. I mean, if you look. I mean, look at kind of what stand up has gone through. I mean, you had guys, you know, your Lenny Bruce's guys, early guys like that, but when guys like, God dang, I just had his name on tip of my tub. Sam Kinison came along. All of a sudden you've got all this standard fare delivery, and all of a sudden he's yelling, he's angry. He's a former priest or ran preacher. Yeah, yeah, that guy was. He was dynamite. But it was just different. It was a different presentation to me. I guess mine was just a different presentation, but mine was serious, hardcore, straight up, hey, man, this is real. The fight you and me are about to have is real. So. And that's the game we were playing. The presentation has just changed over the last few years.
- [63:22]
Jim Norton
I think Rodney told Sam to do that. Like, he Was doing his yelling. But I think he would do it as part of his act in Dangerfield when he did the special. Goes, no, do that. Open with that. Like, be that guy. I think he actually convinced him, like Dice doing Dice was just a part of the show. He would do all. He was Andy Clay. He would do all these impressions and do all this stuff. And there was like, no, just be Dice.
- [63:42]
Sam Roberts
And then it becomes revolutionary.
- [63:43]
Jim Norton
Then it becomes revolutionary.
- [63:44]
Steve Austin
Whatever. With Dice, when he kind of started playing to the women because that's when things didn't go so good for him. Then he made his comeback. What did that do to him? Because you know him real well, right?
- [63:53]
Jim Norton
Yes.
- [63:54]
Steve Austin
Did that just take him to a psychological low?
- [63:56]
Jim Norton
I think he was just, you know, I think a couple things. One, the feminists sunk him. Like, don't forget when political correctness and Colin Quinn pointed out they should have been going after rap a lot harder. Like they went after it. But a lot of that was focused on Andrew. So the feminist ruined a three picture deal. He had done Ford Fairlane. My cousin Vinnie was written for him. And they gave it to Joe Pesci because they just paid Dice off to like, fuck you when he was getting the death threats for the gay jokes. So I think that he just went into a different direction just to comedically explore. And I'm guessing he got a little bored. And he's. Andrew's a goofball. Like, he loves to. He would go on stage sometimes and you see like in a club and see how long he could talk without getting a laugh. Just to do it. Just to.
- [64:38]
Steve Austin
Around.
- [64:39]
Jim Norton
Yeah. Or he likes to. With people. So I think that he was just trying something different.
- [64:42]
Steve Austin
But Andy Kaufman was like that.
- [64:44]
Jim Norton
Yes.
- [64:45]
Steve Austin
And just do that was so random. Or off the wall and people like, what are you doing?
- [64:49]
Jim Norton
Yeah.
- [64:50]
Steve Austin
And then out comes the genius of Andy Kaufman.
- [64:53]
Jim Norton
Yeah. And I think Dice would do stuff like that. But I think that it was probably less fulfilling for him because it didn't feel as honest for him. But like any comic, he dipped down. But his acting is so good. And then he's come back up with Blue Jasmine was fucking amazing. Dice is a really good actor and he's. He's.
- [65:09]
Sam Roberts
And the Showtime series is great.
- [65:10]
Jim Norton
The Showtime. And he was great in. In Vinyl. Did you see Vinyl? He was in two episodes of that.
- [65:15]
Sam Roberts
Yeah.
- [65:15]
Jim Norton
Oh, he was fucking phenomenal in that.
- [65:18]
Steve Austin
Two questions. Who influenced you and who do you like now?
- [65:22]
Jim Norton
I mean, growing up, it was Carlin and Prior and Robert Klein. I think Robert Klein is very underrated right now. I love watching Colin Quinn. David, tell Chris Rock. Those guys are just great. I mean, I think Colin. My favorite comic to watch is Colin Quinn. I don't. Have you ever seen Colin?
- [65:37]
Steve Austin
I love his voice.
- [65:38]
Jim Norton
Yeah. Blathers through things. You pick up half of it. But he's just. He's really brilliant. And he's the best at dissecting human relationships. Patrice o' Neill was great at that. But Colin, we all agree, was the best at dissecting human interaction. He was really great at it. So did you.
- [65:58]
Steve Austin
Did you ever get into Mitch Hedberg? Because that guy was so. I won't say if random is the right word because I want to give him. I want to put him over. But just his delivery, his cadence.
- [66:08]
Sam Roberts
Yes.
- [66:08]
Steve Austin
You know, everybody talks a little bit different.
- [66:10]
Sam Roberts
Sure.
- [66:10]
Steve Austin
And just the way they rope in a crowd like Carlin, my mastermind him. And prior to two of my all time favorites. Hell, Eddie Murphy, back when he was doing stand up.
- [66:18]
Jim Norton
Amazing.
- [66:19]
Steve Austin
But just the way Mitch would phrase the way he delivered a joke.
- [66:24]
Jim Norton
Yeah. Mitch was very unique in that. And he's a guy that you see a lot of guys doing. Like guys like him. David Tell. Like David tell goes.
- [66:32]
Sam Roberts
Okay.
- [66:33]
Jim Norton
And there's an attel cadence. Mitch. Yeah. Oh, you know, that whole laid back thing or the way he would phrase. People do that now and you're like, that's a guy who likes Mitch. Mitch was very unique and he was not praised as a tremendous hero a lot of times. It took him a long time. The Comedy Central tour with it with Attell and Lewis Black, he did really helped him. Mitch was so funny and he's a guy who influenced a lot of comedians, a lot of guys.
- [67:00]
Steve Austin
What was it like the first time you got up on stage and when did you decide? I mean, were you funny as a kid?
- [67:06]
Jim Norton
The only thing I ever did well, it was the only reason girls didn't spit on me when I walked by, so I can make them laugh. The only thing that kept me getting beat from getting beat up by big guys was that they. I could embarrass them. Like I couldn't get fight with them, but they knew that I could make them laugh and I could make them look stupid in high school. That's everybody's greatest fears being so they would leave me alone. So 1990, I wanted to try it. I was 21. I was dropped out of high school. It was all I ever wanted to do. It was fucking weird. Hearing your voice over a mic was weird. I was terrible. I was dirty. So that was what got to me was. Was how I wasn't being funny to people. They didn't think I was very funny. The first time I was on stage, I stunk.
- [67:40]
Steve Austin
Yeah, I know, but it takes a lot of guts to. To do that. So you kept going back. You got your chops up.
- [67:44]
Jim Norton
Yeah. I don't know why. I used to root for shows to get canceled. I'd go back and I'd be like, I hope that no one shows up so I don't have to do this tonight.
- [67:50]
Steve Austin
I've been there.
- [67:51]
Jim Norton
Yeah.
- [67:52]
Steve Austin
Like, maybe they'll send the wrong ropes like he did in Phoenix one time. We won't have to work.
- [67:56]
Jim Norton
Oh, is that right? Yeah.
- [67:57]
Steve Austin
True story. They set the wrong ropes. We didn't worry. Oh, okay. Because right when you get. Right when. Like I told Bill Burr, right when you think you're getting the hang of things, you know, maybe you're in the business a couple years, hey, man, I got a pretty good routine, or I'm pretty good worker. And all of a sudden you got there and you shit the bed. And then all of a sudden you have, like, a week's worth of shitty matches. Like, I thought I was getting this. Yeah. And it turns out maybe I'm not as good as I thought I was.
- [68:18]
Jim Norton
Oh, it's the worst when I'm up there. And I could. Even today, I'll have my nights where I feel like I'm just a stiff little fucking fruity robot boy saying nothing funny. Nothing's coming out funny. Nothing's coming out smooth. I'm like, you're a fucking fraud. And they can all see it. Oh, it's the crazy. The inner dialogue you have when you're on stage. There's so many times I'm just talking to myself as I'm talking to them.
- [68:38]
Steve Austin
But are you spinning up? When. I mean, like. Like I said when I was talking to Bill Burr and he made me laugh my head off, my wife and I go backstage, and he's back to the Bill Burr that was on the podcast. A normal, rational, very smart human being. But he hits that stage, man, and it's almost like he would be like. If it was stone cold Bill Burr. He's stone cold out there. And then when he goes back, it's the same thing in the dress. I go back to being Steve Austin.
- [69:02]
Jim Norton
Sure.
- [69:02]
Steve Austin
Are you a different creature once the light goes on and you got a
- [69:06]
Jim Norton
mic a bit more, you know, it's focused on you a little bit more. You're more. You're more like it's an exaggerated version of yourself. But I'm not that much different. I mean, I'm telling the truth about a lot of things I do and have done. So it's a bit more of a high energy me and more of a focused on only trying to say funny things or make to a funny point. But no, it's not that much different.
- [69:27]
Steve Austin
Where do you draw a line on how crude can you go
- [69:32]
Jim Norton
the wrong guy, Steve? Well, I always say this. If cunt is the first word of the joke, it could, it can't be the last. It's either or. I, I, there's no, there's no line. You're on tv, you don't curse. If I'm on terrestrial radio, if this podcast was clean, I wouldn't curse. I know where I can't curse. But, you know, you, there's no subject I won't make fun of as long as I think I have a good joke, no matter how tragic. Because if you start getting into. I can't joke about that. There's just too many things that I wouldn't make fun of.
- [70:03]
Sam Roberts
Right.
- [70:03]
Jim Norton
So I would rather go down swinging and offend somebody than leave out a tremendous amount of subjects that people need to laugh about because they're sad.
- [70:10]
Steve Austin
What's the atmosphere back in the comedy club when a bunch of guys just kind of having a reunion, a couple of you going to perform, but other guys just coming to check out the gig. Is it all cool, y' all trying out material on each other?
- [70:21]
Jim Norton
No.
- [70:22]
Steve Austin
Oh, really?
- [70:22]
Jim Norton
No.
- [70:23]
Steve Austin
Give anybody any 41 1.
- [70:25]
Jim Norton
No, no, no. But if you try out material, if you, if you do a bit in conversation, the guys in New York, Colin, Keith and when Patrice was around, oh, the. It was humiliating. It was huge. Like they would call you out. Is that a bit. I'm not an audience member. Not some fucking college student picking you up at the airport, you shithead. Oh, yeah, you real earn fast if you're funny organically and conversationally, if you're teasing each other.
- [70:49]
Steve Austin
Yeah.
- [70:49]
Jim Norton
But if it's you, if you come to the table where we're hanging and you're doing a bit, you're going to get slaughtered for it.
- [70:55]
Steve Austin
So that's jabroni. You don't do that.
- [70:58]
Jim Norton
Yes. Or on tough crowd with Colin Quinn. It was one of the things was that applause generating stuff. Like you don't, you know, like if you're sitting there and you're on and you would say something like, you know, because I just believe that America is the greatest country and you look at the audience and they clap. The fucking comedians would pounce on you. Phony. Shut up. But it keeps you honest and it keeps you from going down a lot of embarrassing roads. It's really cleansing.
- [71:19]
Sam Roberts
Would you ever do that when you guys could do your own promos and everything? Would you try promos out in front of other guys in the locker room? Or would it be. It'd be the same thing, wouldn't it?
- [71:27]
Steve Austin
Yeah, yeah, it would be. To answer your question, no, I wouldn't cut a promo on somebody. Now, I have asked opinions from guys or guys have asked, you know, opinions of mine on something. Because sometimes, you know, if you're an elder statesman or a guy who's been around a horn or at a high level, you, you know, asking someone's 411 ain't a bad thing, right?
- [71:46]
Sam Roberts
Of course.
- [71:47]
Steve Austin
I mean, as long as you've been in radio, I'm sure if you came across some people that you look up to, I mean, I don't think it's a basic elementary question that you would ask them, but I mean, just a conversation kind of, I don't know, enlightens you to a degree.
- [72:01]
Sam Roberts
Definitely. Definitely staying just being around people like that is going to be enlightening the more you can do it. But, yeah, you just go and you watch and you look for the nuances and then you ask about the nuances. That's where you really start to learn sort of technique and the little things that go into making it really good.
- [72:18]
Jim Norton
Nobody minds either. I think if you ask somebody to ask you for advice, like, what do you think about this or that? People like to have their opinion valued as long as you're not some, you know, fucking draining sponge who's always asking. But if someone comes up and asks you, what do you think about this thing? Or whatever, most guys are happy to hear.
- [72:32]
Sam Roberts
The worst is when somebody asks you for advice and then you give it to them and then they don't. They just go about their business. You go, but don't ask me again.
- [72:40]
Steve Austin
Then, yeah, what about the time, Jim, when somebody goes out there on the stage and just completely shits the bed and it ain't funny, they ain't got a funny bone in the body. And they say, why'd I do?
- [72:52]
Jim Norton
It's, you know, it depends on your relationship with them. You stunk is really fun. But usually if I'm gentler with people, I don't know, because what if one
- [73:05]
Sam Roberts
of your friends does really poorly on stage?
- [73:08]
Jim Norton
There's nothing like this times the comedy show, if one comedian's bombing and you hear one person in the room laughing, it's probably the guy who's on next. Because I love watching my friends bomb. I don't want to see them bomb on tv. I don't. That's not even true. I don't want to see them bomb in a place that's really going to hurt them, because I love these guys. But when you're at the Comedy Cellar and you see one of your friends eating his dick, oh, oh, it's so great. And what you want is because the Comedy Cellar door, the stage is facing you. What you. What you like, Sit there and look because you want them to know you're watching them bomb.
- [73:43]
Steve Austin
I'm watching you and your. In the bed.
- [73:46]
Jim Norton
Oh, you make faces.
- [73:48]
Steve Austin
Your buddy's probably out there thinking, man, what a bunch of deaf mutes. This is good. Why aren't they laughing? Something, you know is wrong. Something is very, very wrong. When people would ask me, hey, man, what you think about that match? And, you know, my little. My normal thing to him was, kid, take two weeks off and quit the business. So, yeah, you got my permission. As you use that one little.
- [74:13]
Jim Norton
That's very funny.
- [74:16]
Steve Austin
And someone will actually act like, well, why do I want to take the two weeks off? It's a rib. You're the shits. You're gonna learn. Just give it time. I'm with you.
- [74:26]
Jim Norton
Yeah. Sometimes, if it's a new comedian, I don't like to bully a new guy because I feel bad, because they're more. They're a little more likely to run out the door. Like, you know, and it's like, I feel for those guys, but a guy who's been around for a while, I'm much more comfortable making fun of someone who's cool with that.
- [74:41]
Steve Austin
But sometimes, I mean, as funny as anybody is, or as. As good as. Or as over as I could be back in the day, man, Sometimes you roll into a town people ain't buying, and you're like, I don't know why they bought a ticket, because they don't give a. What's going on in the ring. And so sometimes you just have a crowd that they came to see you or they're there. Yeah. But they really ain't appreciating the show
- [75:04]
Sam Roberts
as long as they're not heckling. When was the last time you really bombed?
- [75:07]
Jim Norton
I bet the comedy sell because they're not my fans. I'm just going to perform. Like, they don't know I'm going to be there. So, like, I don't usually bomb in front of my own audiences at all because they're like, bill said, they pay to take it. They're in for the ride. They're okay with that. They know I'm gonna talk about X, Y, and Z, and they're fine with it. But at the seller, I had a lot of stuff bomb. You know, a lot of jokes go down the toilet. I did a cancer benefit last year that I almost bombed on. Like, I started off in the toilet. I'm like, oh, no. I tried a joke that was either gonna kill or really make me a hero, or it did not work at all. It got like a.
- [75:38]
Steve Austin
Out of the crowd. I was like, oh, no.
- [75:40]
Jim Norton
I'm gonna make these guys so worse. So I wanted. I wound up salvaging the set. But I had a lot of moments like that where I feel like I'm after 26 years. You know, you start to learn how to salvage the moments, right? Like, for me, it's like, if it sets going poorly and it's not getting big laughs, I'm like, okay, this is a personality workout. So what you do is slow down, Fucking pause. Sit in it, motherfucker. I'll tell myself that on stage, just feel that silence. And then the next time it happens in front of a thousand people, you know how to work, you know, I mean, it's like I'm use this like the gym. So just take that pause and take that fucking silence and don't panic. Don't run through it. Just eat it for a second and act like it's supposed to be this way. If it's quiet and you're acting like, this is exactly the response I'm expecting, half the time they think that you know what you're doing.
- [76:25]
Steve Austin
Never let them see you sweat.
- [76:26]
Jim Norton
Never let them see you sweat. But don't start. You know, I've also had plenty of times they saw me, me sweat, and I just. The bed and. Oh, it's. It's ugly. Like, when you can't close strong, there's nothing worse than when you have the red light and you're like. The two bits you're trying at the end are just bombing. And I'll just walk off and go, all right, thank you very much. And there's like a tentative applause, like they're clapping workers. Like, oh, thank God that's done. It's humiliating, and you've been defeated.
- [76:50]
Steve Austin
So y' all are back to the studio tomorrow for y' all show, right?
- [76:52]
Sam Roberts
Yeah, we're going back tomorrow morning.
- [76:54]
Jim Norton
We fly home Sunday morning, and then right back next week. I actually took off next week. I'm going to UFC 205.
- [76:59]
Steve Austin
So, I mean, that's gonna be awesome at the Garden.
- [77:01]
Jim Norton
Oh, it's gonna be great.
- [77:03]
Steve Austin
The Garden is not the biggest building in the world, but God damn, it's just a magical building because it's the Garden.
- [77:08]
Jim Norton
Sure.
- [77:08]
Steve Austin
And so. And that's a rocking card, too.
- [77:10]
Jim Norton
I think it's the best card they've ever put together. I think it's really. From top to bottom, it's amazing. I mean, the fact that, you know, Wideman is fighting, Cowboy is fighting, you know, obviously Eddie Alvarez is fighting. Ioanna Jacek, who I love is. It's Wonder boy. It's such a great car.
- [77:27]
Steve Austin
Golly. Hey, here's a quick question for you. Life on the road for Jim Norton at 48 years of age. Our man. Are you. Are you boozing it? Are you straight edge? I mean.
- [77:37]
Jim Norton
Yeah, I don't get higher drink at all. So it's mostly just me looking at back page on my computer, trying to find maybe an escort or a massage or just talk to somebody, even if I'm not hooking up. A lot of tech, texting, a lot of dirty texting. That's what most of my road time is. It's just been talking, trying to get girls over or whatever. It really is exhausting. Not much, not much of substance happening in my room. I go to the gym and I just.
- [78:00]
Steve Austin
What about nutritional values? Because I know a little bit about Sam Roberts diet. This guy loves hamburgers, cheeseburgers, fried chicken.
- [78:07]
Jim Norton
Yeah.
- [78:08]
Sam Roberts
You still owe me a cheat day.
- [78:09]
Steve Austin
I do. I do owe you a cheat day. What's your dietary restrictions? Anything and everything.
- [78:15]
Jim Norton
I eat healthy. Healthy. I like grilled chicken, steamed vegetables. Yeah. Because I'm so paranoid. Getting fatty. I was a fatty for a while, so I'm so scared of going back to that, that I try to eat healthy. I eat fruit. I, you know, I don't eat a lot of junk.
- [78:27]
Steve Austin
You run, do any kind of cardio?
- [78:29]
Jim Norton
Yeah, I exercise, but my sleep apnea. So my cardio stinks.
- [78:32]
Steve Austin
Okay, question. Sleep apnea. I got that, too. I wear a mask. Got the CPAP machine. You.
- [78:37]
Jim Norton
I have an ASV machine because I have two types of apnea. I have the throat one and the brain one. So I can't get used to it. Does it help you? Do you feel more rested?
- [78:45]
Steve Austin
It's a game changer. It is. See, here's the thing. Like, my face I don't know. Shape kind of different. So it's hard when you put that mask on. And I'm a mouth breather because my nose has been broken so many times. Deviated septums, real pain in the neck. Sometimes, you know, one side will work, it'll switch out.
- [79:00]
Jim Norton
I get that a lot.
- [79:01]
Steve Austin
Yeah, I'm a mouth breather, so I gotta, I can't use one of those ones on your nose. It's a full face. And so you put that thing on and when I first got the CPAP machine, and I always happy to share this story because there's too many guys out there that got sleep apnea and need to get a checkup, get a sleep study done. When I was breathing out, you know, the machine's blowing in. And so if it's blowing in at 12 CSI, 12 centimeters a square inch, or whatever the gimmick is, it's not like a psi for a tire. If it's blown in and I'm breathing out about the same, the pressures meet and it pushed the mask away from my face. So the air shoots into your eyes.
- [79:33]
Jim Norton
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- [79:33]
Steve Austin
What the fuck, right? So the machine I got now, when I breathe out, it stops blowing in. And then when I inhale, it starts blowing again. So you don't get that discombobulation with the mask. You don't have to strap the motherfucker on so tight you got these big streaks on your face. So that's, that's a game changer.
- [79:50]
Jim Norton
Is that an apap what you have?
- [79:51]
Steve Austin
I'll show you exactly what it is. I don't know if it's called a bipap or whatever.
- [79:54]
Jim Norton
A bipap? Yeah, that might be it.
- [79:55]
Sam Roberts
Yes.
- [79:55]
Steve Austin
Yeah, but that's what you need. Because if you got sleep apnea, I mean, it will make you feel light years better. It's a game changer.
- [80:02]
Jim Norton
And you feel like you don't want that feeling you get when you wake up. Like, I feel stoned all the time, like I'm lightheaded. There's times I feel like I'm gonna pass out when I'm walking. And it's all because I'm not sleeping, but I'm always fucking tired.
- [80:14]
Sam Roberts
Always.
- [80:15]
Steve Austin
You gotta, you gotta get the machine I got.
- [80:16]
Jim Norton
I, I, it's the mask. I'm a little claustrophobic. I'm amazed you can do that, being claustrophobic. That's.
- [80:21]
Steve Austin
Well, see, well, here's the thing. I just knew that I needed to do it. And I kept thinking, there's got to be A better way. There's got to be a better way. No, there's just a better machine. And all those machines are about 600 to $1,000. That's just the price range. So if that's an arm and a leg for somebody or whatever, it. That's the price for a goddamn good machine. That's gonna last you. I've had these machines now for I don't know how many years, and so I just, I just don't sleep without them.
- [80:44]
Jim Norton
You don't?
- [80:44]
Steve Austin
Ah, fuck no, man. You know, it was that. You know, Reggie White died of that. I think there's a lot of complications. Reggie, big, tough, strong, badass guy. So I think it's a little bit more than sleep apnea. But I mean, that was, that was a contributing fact factor.
- [80:58]
Jim Norton
How long did it take you to get used to the mask, the old one?
- [81:00]
Steve Austin
I never could get used to it and I couldn't sleep. And so that's when I found out the bipap. And after that, it was really a couple of month adjustment. And you got to commit to it because you got to understand if you put yourself through a sleep study, you want to get better. If I go to the doctor and there's something wrong with me and I need to get a procedure done or take medication, I've got to do that. So the prescription for my sleep apnea, unless I want to get my deviated septum, is fixed by, you know, sticking that rod up there, breaking the out of my nose and getting it straight and all that other bullshit. Or if it's the one in your throat gimmick to get that, that, that thing trimmed up. That's not my problem. You know, you're going to fix the problem. And so since I don't want my nose fucked with, I'm a mouth breather, I use a CPAP machine. That's my prescription. That's my medication.
- [81:45]
Jim Norton
How do you not run out of air? How do you not run out of air? Like, I'm amazed with guys that are mouth breathers because just talking a lot on stage, sometimes I would feel like, oh, my God, you're gonna pass out because you're not, you're not breathing.
- [81:56]
Steve Austin
You gotta get a CPAP machine.
- [81:57]
Jim Norton
Yeah, the one I have.
- [81:59]
Steve Austin
You know, you're doing your podcast with Matt, Sarah, going back to, you know, mouth breathers. You know, just being a fighter, man, if I, if I had to be a shoot fighter, like UFC fighters, you know, they keep their mouth closed for a reason. You know, if you got an open Mouth easier to get knocked out, correct?
- [82:14]
Jim Norton
Yeah.
- [82:15]
Steve Austin
And so they're always breathing through their nose. And I also think there's some other issues going along with that. Well, as. As well. But I'd have my mouth open all the time because I can't breathe. Yeah, I'm never at a loss for breath. But, you know, half time I'm breathing through my damn mouth.
- [82:28]
Jim Norton
I just can't fall asleep with it. That's the problem. I cannot fall asleep with it. Psychological, dude.
- [82:32]
Steve Austin
It might take some ambient, it might take something else. But if you start getting. I'm get you on some drugs over here.
- [82:39]
Jim Norton
I took a half an Ambien. I don't take any drugs. For my third sleep study, I went to three. Yeah, I took a half of one. I think I took one the first time too, just to help me fall asleep. Because I know they needed results.
- [82:49]
Steve Austin
Yeah.
- [82:49]
Jim Norton
To get the reading, they had to get the readings. I'm like, this is a medical thing. And it didn't make me high. I just fell asleep. And that was it.
- [82:54]
Sam Roberts
Right.
- [82:55]
Jim Norton
But I would love to get, well, Propofol. You have to be constantly have pumped in you. I'd love to take propofol.
- [83:00]
Steve Austin
No, you don't do that.
- [83:01]
Jim Norton
No, I can't. I'm like, I'm remembering. You need someone to administer that.
- [83:04]
Steve Austin
But so what about the Amy? I mean, you know, half one a night ain't. No.
- [83:08]
Jim Norton
I'm an addictive person though, you know, Fast forward six months, it'll be four a night. Tweaking my nipples on the phone. It'll be really bad. I'm bad, I'm a bad boy. I just can't do it. Can't do it.
- [83:18]
Steve Austin
But that's the thing, you know, going through, you know, in my career in professional wrestling. The other day I was talking to Kurt angle and he was talking about all the shit that he was taking. I just never went to that level, you know, I don't really have an addictive personality. I like my alcohol. You know, when I was on the road, I was drinking pretty much, but, you know, just left your own devices. If you know, boom. You know that, you know that 0.5 or that half is going to help you get some quality sleep. I mean, something to consider.
- [83:41]
Jim Norton
You had happened when you were wrestling too. Like, how would you do it, being that tired?
- [83:45]
Steve Austin
Oh, man. Well, it didn't really hit me, you know, you gotta understand. I quit 12 years ago. When I retired, I was 38. God damn, I was a fucking baby, man. I still had there Was so much money on the table, so many angles still to shoot, so many different matches to have. But that's what I needed to get out of the ring, so. So I wasn't tired back then. Because when you're 38, I mean, you might as well be 28, you know? Dude, that's when you're bulletproof. I mean, you can go all night, whatever it is, you know, whether it's wrestling, you know, 25 minute match. Go out there and you hit the bars, partying all night. You go to the gym early in the morning, you go get, get to the next town, get your ass in the ring. I mean, it's just a cycle, but you're a fucking psycho when you're that age, man. I mean. I mean, just from a standpoint, point of human performance.
- [84:29]
Jim Norton
So you go to the gym every day?
- [84:31]
Steve Austin
Yeah, I mean, but you look at guys these days who are starting to fall off. I mean, like Manning, you know that last year they won a Super Bowl. But I mean, boy, he was really falling apart there, you know, he had some nerve problems with his neck. But, I mean, you know, physical performance kind of starts slowing down. But you're still a young cat. You try to do the same schedule. At 51, forget about it.
- [84:51]
Jim Norton
Yeah, yeah. You're in trouble.
- [84:52]
Sam Roberts
Yeah.
- [84:53]
Steve Austin
Jump in here, Sam. Let's don't talk about sleep. Let's wrap his motherfucker up.
- [84:57]
Sam Roberts
All right, look, I know you get asked about it all the time, but I want to ask in the context of Goldberg, you see a guy. Because it just jarred me a little bit because I guess I knew. But just like really putting into context the fact that you're 38. See, I'm 33 now, so maybe when I'm 15, if you retire. At 38, I'm like, yeah, that makes sense. But at 33, when I'm hearing that you were 38 at the time you retired, it's mind blowing.
- [85:19]
Steve Austin
Yeah.
- [85:19]
Sam Roberts
You know what I mean? When you see that a Goldberg, a sting, these guys can come back, do their one or two matches. They all seem like they're having a good time doing it. Does that put the bug in your head at all? Maybe I should do that one match run. No, you're out. Good for you.
- [85:40]
Steve Austin
I can't. Chips, man. Wade asked me the same thing. No chance. I'm coming back, man. I'm so happy, happy right now. I. I kind of. I'm like, I'm busy all the time, right? But I'm on my schedule. Busy, right, so. And I ain't got to do nothing that. No, I don't want to.
- [85:59]
Sam Roberts
Did you see the Brock interview I did over the summer?
- [86:02]
Steve Austin
No, I didn't know you talked to Brock.
- [86:03]
Sam Roberts
I talked. It was like. It was. It was a two minute interview.
- [86:07]
Jim Norton
Brock handled it the way he should have.
- [86:08]
Sam Roberts
Oh, it went. I mean, and it went everywhere. It did like, you know, a million and a half years or something like that on YouTube. Because he doesn't do interviews.
- [86:16]
Steve Austin
No.
- [86:17]
Sam Roberts
And for some reason they had him doing press for the video game. And it was one of those. It was like a press party and everybody could stand up and do an interview. You know, like a quick, here's a camera back and forth standing deal. And he was there with Heyman. And so I got up there and he was, he was already like in an ornery mood, in a Brock mood. And Heyman was like, you know, the camera was on and he was like, sam, you better make this good. You got two questions, go ahead. And I was like, okay, two questions. And I looked at Brock and said, what's the haps?
- [86:51]
Steve Austin
What'd he say?
- [86:52]
Sam Roberts
He just looked at me. He's staring at me and I'm staring back and I'm like, oh, my God.
- [86:56]
Steve Austin
What?
- [86:56]
Sam Roberts
Like, you know, trying to strategize this thing. And I'm like, I gotta, I gotta go with it, you know, I have to. And he's like, I don't even know what that means. What's the hat? What the fuck does that mean? What kind of question is that? Like, you know, like, what's the haps?
- [87:12]
Steve Austin
What was your follow up then?
- [87:14]
Sam Roberts
The follow up is I go, okay, hey, if Conor McGregor stepped into WWE, because he's not gonna, he's, you know, they're not gonna fight in a cage, you know, right? Brock is twice the size of him. But if Conor McGregor stepped into WWE, would you want to fight him? Because that was when Conor McGregor was running his mouth about the wrestlers. And he gave me another look. I was like, oh, boy. And then he just goes, connor mc. Look, I take shits bigger than that kid. And he goes off on this tirade against him. And then he looks at me and he goes, now get the fuck out of here.
- [87:44]
Steve Austin
But see, that was the perfect question because it ties in his old background, right? Conor called out a bunch of those cats. A lot of them bit in and tried to respond back, and Brock just left it alone. But it's common ground. And I'm sure he's got at some level, a level of, of a level of respect for what the kid does as far as box office.
- [88:02]
Sam Roberts
Sure.
- [88:02]
Steve Austin
And certainly vice versa on it. But a great question. And then the fact that he cussed you out and told you get the out of here, that's kind of icing on a cake, right? He meant that in a good. Good. He meant that in a good way, right?
- [88:15]
Sam Roberts
Yeah, sure.
- [88:16]
Steve Austin
I'll take your word for it. You know, Brock, you meant that in a good Christian way.
- [88:19]
Sam Roberts
Yeah.
- [88:19]
Jim Norton
Believe me, I want to say it five days a week. So happy Brockton.
- [88:22]
Sam Roberts
That's how he wants to end the morning show every day. This is a good question for you that Jim was asking me on the car right here. Do you think the reception for you, because, you know, everybody knows the legend would be better in like an urban black bar? Like, say it's a bar, whatever. It's like a urban black crowd or like a country western bar. Where do they react more warmly?
- [88:44]
Jim Norton
If you walk in to Stone Cold
- [88:46]
Steve Austin
Man, I think it'd be the same in both places. You do, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
- [88:51]
Sam Roberts
I was telling Jim that that thing crossed all barriers.
- [88:55]
Jim Norton
You get that response everywhere, Right. They're just happy to see you.
- [88:57]
Steve Austin
Yeah, man. And men's in South Texas and in Walmart. Yeah. I mean. Yeah. It'd be the same thing everywhere. Yeah. And I mean, that's not me bragging.
- [89:06]
Jim Norton
No.
- [89:07]
Steve Austin
No question that's answered.
- [89:08]
Jim Norton
No. I asked him too.
- [89:09]
Steve Austin
Yeah.
- [89:09]
Jim Norton
The appeal, I'm like, does the appeal of certain wrestlers just crosses all boundaries? I think with a lot of those guys, it does be, but the appeal of certain guys just crosses every social boundary, every color boundary. It's just wherever you go.
- [89:21]
Steve Austin
I always looked at what I was doing back in the day, and then when I kind of started breaking it down and looking at other guys that were pretty damn over, like Shawn Michaels, you know, Shawn was kind of a guy went, okay, if you look at Stone cold ass kicking guy ain't trying to steal your girlfriend. He's just out there talking shit. He's entertaining. You know, if you like bad guys or good guys, I mean, if this is a piece of pie right here, you know, I was edgy enough or active enough that the kids dug me. But also I had that old school respect from the people that watched wrestling, you know, back when they were 50s, 60s, even the old people liked me. So I had really a whole pie demographic that liked me. Shawn Michaels, on the other hand, that, you know, back in the day, before I really got into the business, that guy ain't no good. He's a high spot artist, good looking guy. So he didn't have me in that pie right there. Right. A lot of guys didn't like Sean because he was so good looking. So, you know, in a lot, maybe some of the. The older people didn't like him. He's too cocky.
- [90:15]
Sam Roberts
Right.
- [90:16]
Steve Austin
But he was, you know, one of the best performers in the history of the business. And I love Sean. But when I looked at the pie that I had in my prime, I had it all as far as, you know, whether it's chicks, guys, old people, young guy, colored people, white people, this out or whatever, I. I had them all.
- [90:31]
Sam Roberts
Yeah.
- [90:31]
Steve Austin
That's why I looked at it. And some people you look at,
- [90:37]
Jim Norton
you
- [90:37]
Steve Austin
go back and watch an old Rock and Roll Express match. All of a sudden they played rock and roll music. And it's a shrill pitch and it's all the girls right? Now, the old people love them too. But man, you talk about drawing women to those houses. Go watch some old rock and roll matches. When they come out, you hear a different reaction. When people go out, the glass breaks it just through the roof. But when they played that rock and roll music, I mean, it was just. The chicks love rock and roll.
- [91:06]
Sam Roberts
Right.
- [91:06]
Steve Austin
Watch some old matches. I will. And watch probably some Midnight Express stuff or them against Arn and Oli. You'll dig it.
- [91:13]
Sam Roberts
That's what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna watch. I'm gonna get you, sucker. And then I'm gonna watch some Rock and Roll Express matches. I got homework.
- [91:18]
Steve Austin
You got homework to do, kid. So they can check out the show on serious. Yep.
- [91:24]
Sam Roberts
Jim Norton and Sam Roberts. Monday through Friday, 8am Eastern, XM103 series. We're also gonna have a podcast out on itunes very soon where it'll be like the best hour or something. Two hours maybe of the week. We'll put it up on itunes.
- [91:40]
Steve Austin
That's cool. Yeah, you already got your nuts. Your Sam Roberts wrestling podcast. But this is a good way to get.
- [91:46]
Sam Roberts
Yeah. Let everybody know what we're doing over there.
- [91:48]
Steve Austin
Cherry pick some stuff.
- [91:49]
Sam Roberts
Right.
- [91:50]
Steve Austin
Basically get a free show out of it.
- [91:51]
Sam Roberts
Right? Right. And if you're digging it, subscribe to Sirius XM.
- [91:55]
Steve Austin
Okay, now, on Twitter, you're not Sam, right? @not Sam. Explain to me this gimmick, this character. How did you come up with at
- [92:02]
Sam Roberts
not Sam, the deep meaning?
- [92:04]
Steve Austin
Yeah, what the fuck's going on? Because he's got Jim Norton. I want to see what the. That's all about here in a minute because how would you come up with at Jim North. But first you.
- [92:15]
Sam Roberts
Wow.
- [92:16]
Steve Austin
Not Sam. Why?
- [92:17]
Sam Roberts
Why?
- [92:18]
Jim Norton
You're right.
- [92:19]
Sam Roberts
You're right to ask. It's really a terrible story. But when I was in college, I wanted to start a website, write stuff, whatever, just, you know, do something creative. And so I was like, okay, it's got to be simple. I wanted SamRoberts.com taken. I was like, okay, you know what? Sam.com, that's even easier. Taken. And I was like, is not SAM.com taken? And it wasn't. And then that word not SAM was just like, oh, I like the way it sounds. So I just took it. And then ever since then, everything that comes out, I just try to register. Not Sam. Not Sam. Not Sam.
- [92:52]
Jim Norton
It's also what women will say when you say, who do you want to.
- [93:01]
Steve Austin
From humble beginnings as a sociology major, has built a global empire under the not Sam franchise tag. That's right, Jim Norton. Now tell me the thinkings behind this.
- [93:12]
Jim Norton
But that was all that was. It was someone got it for me, a fan got it for me and turned it over to me.
- [93:17]
Steve Austin
God damn. I used to want to be have a Steve Austin.com website and some over in England or wherever that been squatting on that forever.
- [93:25]
Jim Norton
Oh, that one years. Yeah.
- [93:26]
Steve Austin
And I'm like, man, I ain't gonna pay nobody to give me a damn website that they don't even use. So. But you actually had fan.
- [93:33]
Jim Norton
No, that was for Twitter for the website. They cyber squatted for years. And I finally do. I used eatabullet.com. that was different. I went to eatabullet.com. it became my website. And then I finally got jimnorton.com. they just forgot to renew it once. I never offered the money, pounced on it.
- [93:51]
Steve Austin
I'm hit the stop button. Unless y' all got something to add to this.
- [93:53]
Jim Norton
This was very fun, man. Thank you.
- [93:55]
Steve Austin
I appreciate you guys. God damn it, I'm trying to win a award with this podcast. Back to Sam Robertson, Jim Norton.
- [94:09]
Jim Norton
Thank you.
- [94:10]
Steve Austin
Jim, could you please retrieve my sleep apnea machine? Having a global meltdown. Hey guys, thanks for coming by the house.
- [94:18]
Jim Norton
Thanks.
- [94:19]
Sam Roberts
Thank you for having us.
- [94:20]
Steve Austin
All right, everybody, give me the Go home Q. It's time to wrap up his podcast and ride off in the sunset. But before I do, I've got to give you a little reminder. This Sunday, November 13, 109 Central. Don't forget, Broken Skull Challenge kicks off on CMT. The baddest, toughest, coolest show on television is back. And it's going to be back this coming Sunday, 11-13-10 9 Central Set your DVRs. Set your DVRs. Attention. Set your DVRs 109 Central on CMT for Broken Skull Challenge. Amen. I've been talking about it. It's finally happening. All them shirts that I've been talking about wearing on Broken Skull Challenge, we're going to start releasing them on prowrestlingtease.com steveaustral tomorrow or broken skull ranch.com and they some badass T shirts. I really dig them. They're all the shirts I wore on the new season of Broken Skull Challenge. Hey man, speaking of beer. Well, I wouldn't speak of beer, but I will speak of it now. The best damn IPA on the planet is Broken Skull IPA at El Segundo Brewing Company. You can also get it at Whole Foods and Total Wines if you live in California. If you don't, check out insidethecellar.com and see if they ship to your state. And I appreciate y' all supporting sponsors of the Steve Austin Podcast. They're the ones who let me do this for you free twice a week. So big thanks. To ddpyoga.com go to ddpyoga.com Austin get 15% off the DDP Yoga program and three months of full access to the DDP Yoga now app. To DraftKings go to draftkings.com and use the promo code Unleashed to play for free with your first deposit this weekend. To MeUndies, go to MeUndies.com SteveAustin to get 20% off your first purchase. To bowl and branch, go to BowlandBranch.com and use the promo code Steve to get $50 off your first set of sheets. And to BET DSI, sign up at BET DSI.com and use the promo code Austin25 to get 25 bucks free just for trying the service. And of course to Amazon, who have been supporting this podcast since day one. Amazon is the best place to get the Broken Skull cold steel knife. Just 75 bucks for the most badass pocket knife on the planet. And if you order the Broken Skull Cold Steel Knife through my Amazon links, Amazon will kick back a couple of bucks to the podcast. It won't cost you nothing extra. There are no hidden fees or charges. You can buy whatever you plan on buying to help out the podcast in the process. And you can find my Amazon links by going to podcast1.com click on the Killer Deals button in the top right corner of the page and then hitting the Steve Austin show button. I got Amazon links for USA, UK and Canada so again, just go to podcastone.com click the killer deals button in the top right corner, then click on the Steve Austin Show. Bookmark it so you can find it easier. Hey, keep listening. The 62nd AP news headlines are coming up next. Until then, my name is Steve Austin and I will catch your ass down the road. Download new episodes of Steve Austin Unleashed every Thursday@podcast1.com that's podcastone.com. Hello and welcome to plutofo. If you knew the name of the movie you'd like to see, just stream it for free on Pluto tv where all your blockbuster favorites are landing all summer long.
- [97:43]
Jim Norton
Catch.
- [97:43]
Steve Austin
Anchorman. The Legend of Ron Burgundy. Fantastic. Men in Black one through three. That's what I'm talking about. Mean girls.
- [97:50]
Jim Norton
Shut up.
- [97:51]
Steve Austin
Titanic. I'm the king of the world. And so much more. For Showtime's press, Nothing. They're free 24. 7.
- [97:58]
Jim Norton
That is so fast.
- [97:59]
Steve Austin
On Pluto TV. Stream now. Pay never. On the broad side, we take you into the heart of the south with stories that'll surprise you. Bigfoot apparently loves glow sticks. He likes to party, I guess.
- [98:13]
Jim Norton
Exactly, exactly.
- [98:14]
Sam Roberts
He's a raver.
- [98:15]
Steve Austin
And topics that dig into the muddy margins of history.
- [98:18]
Jim Norton
Wait a second. This is actually real.
- [98:21]
Steve Austin
From WUNC and the NPR network.
- [98:24]
Jim Norton
Listen to the broadside.
- [98:26]
Steve Austin
A podcast from the crossroads of the South.
- [98:32]
Jim Norton
Mississippi is breaking new ground for business
- [98:34]
Sam Roberts
at a historic pace. Amazon, xai, Toyota, Milwaukee Tool and GE
- [98:40]
Jim Norton
Aerospace have all tapped into our deep talent pool.
- [98:44]
Sam Roberts
Prime geographic location and welcoming communities.
- [98:47]
Jim Norton
This is bigger than megasites.
- [98:49]
Sam Roberts
Mississippi offers a thriving business ecosystem with
- [98:51]
Jim Norton
affordability, greater collaboration with energy partners and record breaking speed to market. Looking to expand? Break new ground@mississippi.org.