The Steve Austin Show – SAS Classic: Adam Carolla

Date: April 17, 2025
Host: Steve Austin
Guest: Adam Carolla

Episode Overview

This episode of The Steve Austin Show features a deep-dive conversation with Adam Carolla, famed comedian, pioneering podcaster, radio host, filmmaker, and former carpenter. Live from Hollywood, Steve and Adam cover Carolla's unconventional journey—from blue-collar beginnings and comedic aspirations to podcasting stardom and independent film projects. The show delves into Adam's unique sense of humor, his path to success despite learning to read and write late in life, his boxing and football background, fatherhood, and entrepreneurial ventures like Mangria. Throughout, listeners are treated to Carolla’s sharp wit, candid storytelling, and unfiltered philosophy on life, work, and comedy.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Adam Carolla’s Unconventional Start in Entertainment

• Early Days as a Carpenter/Boxing Trainer
  • Adam shares his blue-collar roots in Pasadena, living in Hollywood with no parking, little money, and a succession of stolen trucks ([02:27]–[06:47]).
  • Ingenious strategies to avoid theft, like painting his Sony stereo brown:

    “The people who rip off car stereos aren't audiophiles… They're gonna sell it for 40 bucks and get a hit of crack. If you paint it brown, they can't sell it.” — Adam Carolla ([04:32])

• First Meeting with Jimmy Kimmel
  • Tries repeatedly to get into radio, finally meeting Kimmel in the station lobby; hit off immediately, trading training sessions for conversations about comedy ([08:03]–[08:40]).
  • Carolla and Kimmel’s “perfect symbiotic relationship” started with little boxing, a lot of Snapple, and talking comedy.

2. Drive to Comedy and “Secret Shame”

• Motivation Rooted in Discontent
  • Adam explains his turn to comedy sprang from misery and lack of prospects, not childhood trauma ([10:11]–[11:23]):

    “If my dad owned a successful unfinished furniture manufacturing plant...I’d probably still be sitting in that office, but I was living in an apartment with three dudes and...I was miserable.” — Adam Carolla ([10:11])

• Reading and Writing Difficulties
  • Openly discusses never learning to read/write as a kid, masking the issue for years, learning only in his 30s once in radio ([12:03]–[13:28]):

    “I never learned to read or write as a kid...It became my secret shame. And I sort of hid it after that.” — Adam Carolla ([12:03])

• Surviving and Thriving in Blue-Collar Life
  • Surrounded by working-class guys, cash transactions, and physical labor—a lifestyle requiring little reading/writing ([16:21]–[17:26]).

3. Comedy Fundamentals and Improv Lessons

• Groundlings Training and ‘Yes, and’
  • Attends Groundlings improv to hone comedic skills; breaks down “yes and” technique and rules against negation:

    "You never deny, you never ask a question… They drill it into you.” — Adam Carolla ([19:33])

• Comedic Sleight of Hand
  • Shares insights on turning everyday topics into extended routines with subtle shifts—a craft so practiced it appears seamless ([21:40]–[22:41]).

4. Living With Hypervigilance

• Sensory Processing and Comedy
  • Describes his ‘hypervigilance’—extreme awareness, distractibility—which aids his observational comedy but drives his wife nuts:

    "I sleep with eye shade, I put earplugs in, and I get drunk. Otherwise, I don't go to bed because I'm too alert… It's hard to shut off and I don't mind it because I'm living in it, but it'll drive my wife nuts."— Adam Carolla ([22:41]–[23:52])

5. Independent Filmmaking and ‘Road Hard’

• Crowdfunding and Hollywood Realities
  • Discusses raising funds for his movie Road Hard through fundanything.com, satirizing the fading glory of comics with past development/holding deals now forced onto the stand-up circuit ([26:23]–[29:19]).
  • Humor in producing fundraising videos, including cameos from Bryan Cranston who, in the comedic sketch, refuses to be in Adam’s movie ([31:17]–[32:37]).
  • Explains the perks for backers: blu-rays, scripts, premiere access, or even a role in the film ([32:45]–[33:27]).

    “It’s not a donation… You get an advanced copy, you can be in the movie if you want to pay enough. It’s all tiered out.” — Adam Carolla ([32:55])

6. Balancing Multiple Roles: Podcasts, Stand-Up, Television, Acting

• Variety as Antidote To Burnout
  • Loves the unpredictability of show business and variety, likening it to rotating favorite foods ([34:02]–[35:43]):

    “You never do anything long enough to get sick of it.” — Adam Carolla ([35:43])

• Live Performance vs. Podcasting
  • No nerves before live shows, just an obligation not to disappoint audiences; repetition is key to handling tough crowds ([36:08]–[38:13]).

    “Your range shouldn’t be between sucks ass and great—it should be between decent and great.” — Adam Carolla ([36:59])

7. Boxing and Athleticism

• Boxing Background
  • Golden Gloves competitor in the ‘80s, but knew he’d never go pro—enjoyed the discipline as a hobby, not a career ([38:41]–[39:28]).
• Training Approach and Lessons
  • Champions humility, technique, and focusing on weaknesses in training—parallels with comedy’s discipline ([40:19]–[41:43]).
  • Still trains others, skips rope, shadow boxes, but doesn’t spar due to injuries ([41:45]–[42:49]).

8. Fatherhood, Grit, and Modern Schooling

• Culture Shock: Schools in LA Today
  • Questions about school safety, Carolla laments the lack of grit and abundance of “walking recesses” and coddling ([44:58]–[46:15]):

    “Everything’s about hydration and not exerting… it drives me insane.” — Adam Carolla ([45:27])

• Letting Kids Play Football
  • Believes football builds toughness; being “a pussy” lasts a lifetime, while a dislocated finger heals ([46:19]):

    “I say, dislocated finger—that lasts three weeks. Being a pussy, that’s a lifetime sentence.” — Adam Carolla ([46:19])

  • Shares strict, old-school football coaching anecdotes from his own youth ([47:38]–[48:24]).

9. Football Career and Academic Struggles

• Junior College Realities
  • Was a standout in high school; quickly realized junior college football was another level ([51:13]–[52:08]).
  • Hilarious bits about teammates, abrasive coaches, and quitting football after realizing his limitations ([54:56]–[57:54]).
• How Adam Gained His Intelligence
  • Candid about being an “auditory learner”—absorbing everything by listening to talk radio and people speak, not by reading ([58:24]):

    “Everything I absorbed, I did it audibly. I never read anything and absorbed it. I would just listen.” — Adam Carolla ([58:24])

  • Placed in advanced algebra without ever taking it—“had a good math mind, just couldn’t read or write” ([58:24]–[60:22]).

10. Life Now: Hobbies and Business

• Vintage Car Racing & Mechanics
  • Loves collecting and racing Paul Newman’s old cars; satisfaction from restoring and campaigning them ([60:35]–[62:12]).
• Mangria—A Boozy Business
  • Invented Mangria (a wine-based cocktail) by improvisation at home; business grew after Kimmel’s endorsement and a Napa distiller’s help ([64:10]–[65:37]):

    “About a cup and a half later, I got a pretty good buzz going!” — Steve Austin ([64:27])

  • Tours include Mangria tastings, merging business with comedy shows.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with timestamps)

• “The people who rip off car stereos aren't audiophiles… If you paint it brown, they can't sell it.”
  — Adam Carolla ([04:32])

• “I never learned to read or write as a kid...It became my secret shame.”
  — Adam Carolla ([12:03])

• “You never deny, you never ask a question… They drill it into you.”
  — Adam Carolla ([19:33])

• “I sleep with eye shade, put earplugs in, and I get drunk. Otherwise, I don't go to bed because I'm too alert.”
  — Adam Carolla ([23:04])

• “It’s not a donation… You get an advanced copy, you can be in the movie if you want to pay enough.”
  — Adam Carolla ([32:55])

• “Your range shouldn’t be between sucks ass and great—it should be between decent and great.”
  — Adam Carolla ([36:59])

• “I say, dislocated finger—that lasts three weeks. Being a pussy, that’s a lifetime sentence.”
  — Adam Carolla ([46:19])

• “Everything I absorbed, I did it audibly. I never read anything and absorbed it. I would just listen.”
  — Adam Carolla ([58:24])

• “About a cup and a half later, I got a pretty good buzz going!”
  — Steve Austin on Mangria ([64:27])

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [01:17] — Introduction to Adam Carolla
• [02:12] — Adam’s boxing & Kimmel origins story
• [12:03] — Confessions about not learning to read/write
• [15:16] — Discovering the Groundlings and improv philosophy
• [22:41] — Living with hypervigilance & comedic focus
• [26:23] — Discussion of ‘Road Hard’ and crowdfunding
• [36:08] — Live performance, repetition, and nerves
• [38:41] — Adam’s amateur boxing history
• [44:58] — Discussion about LA schools, fatherhood, grit
• [52:08] — Football, junior college, and quitting sports
• [58:24] — How Adam learned and became “smart” through listening
• [60:35] — Car racing and collecting Paul Newman’s cars
• [64:10] — The invention of Mangria

Tone and Language

True to form, the conversation is unfiltered, direct, and filled with Carolla’s signature blend of sharp observational humor mixed with sincere, blue-collar candor. The dynamic is informal, good-natured, and often self-deprecating, marked by Steve Austin’s gravel-voiced enthusiasm and curiosity.

Final Thoughts

This classic episode offers a fascinating glimpse into Adam Carolla’s journey from the working class to entertainment leadership, candidly discussing failures, blue-collar ingenuity, and the continued hustle. It’s equal parts funny, motivational, and surprisingly heartfelt—offering both nostalgia for longtime fans and life/career inspiration for new listeners.