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- [00:01]
Theo Von
You know, America's 250th birthday is coming up.
- [00:04]
Gary (AI Assistant)
Whoo.
- [00:05]
Theo Von
That's gonna be a big cake. And I. Who's. Who's even gonna blow out the candles, I wonder? Probably. Maybe Thomas Jefferson will come down from the clouds and huff and puff a few out. Maybe a Betsy Ross or Frederick Douglass. I don't know. Somebody is gonna come on down and just huff and puff them. Cake. Candles out. Happy 250th America. And an iconic summer like this deserves an iconic drink. I'm talking about Mountain Dew. Yep. An American original. From their beginnings in the foothills of Tennessee. Yeah, that's where they started. To the biggest fourth of July yet. The refreshing citrus kick of Mountain Dew is the perfect companion to your American summer adventures. Usa, baby. And you know, I get that taste of Mountain Dew in me, and it just. Oh, just makes my ankles start talking to each other. God, I love it. Enjoy the refreshing kick of Mountain Dew, an American original. Tasting great since 48. Look for American Dew limited time packaging, or find it in stores near you@mountain Dew.com. that's Mountain Dew.com. today's guest is a legendary actor, the Big Lebowski. True Grit, Crazy Heart. If you haven't seen that one, Tron. Many more. He's got a new movie, Minions and Monsters. It's in theaters July 1st. I had quite a time with today's guest, Mr. Jeff Bridges.
- [01:49]
Jeff Bridges
For me. Got to get my right specs. You might be too far away for these.
- [01:59]
Theo Von
No, what you got plus. Plus two. You got 2.5s. What are you rocking? No. 1.
- [02:04]
Jeff Bridges
These are prescription, man. These are my reading glasses, But I have. Let me see.
- [02:09]
Theo Von
Let me try those bad cats on.
- [02:10]
Jeff Bridges
Well, let me say. Here you go for this. That's a reading.
- [02:13]
Theo Von
Just give me one pair. Don't wear. You don't get them both.
- [02:15]
Jeff Bridges
No, I think I'd go for the other one, man.
- [02:17]
Theo Von
Oh, let me see how I'm looking.
- [02:20]
Jeff Bridges
Oh. Huh.
- [02:22]
Theo Von
Nope.
- [02:23]
Jeff Bridges
Not a little off, right?
- [02:24]
Theo Von
Yeah, not bad, but.
- [02:26]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, this is better. Okay.
- [02:27]
Theo Von
Nothing. I don't want to pick a wife out with those on, you know?
- [02:31]
Jeff Bridges
Are you getting close?
- [02:32]
Theo Von
I mean, I'd like to be married.
- [02:34]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [02:35]
Gary (AI Assistant)
Yeah.
- [02:36]
Theo Von
I'd like to be, but sometimes it's out of your control, you know?
- [02:39]
Jeff Bridges
Anything close?
- [02:42]
Theo Von
I'm not that at the moment.
- [02:43]
Jeff Bridges
Being close.
- [02:45]
Theo Von
I think I've been close, man. And I just wasn't like. Just like, my heart wasn't in the right spot. My brain wasn't. I was touring a lot, and I wasn't Ready to like.
- [02:54]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, yeah.
- [02:55]
Theo Von
I had two wheels out of town, you know.
- [02:58]
Jeff Bridges
She kicked you to the curb where you kicked her A little. Both.
- [03:01]
Theo Von
She. Yeah, I've had them. They've all kicked me. They've all, at a certain point, kicked me. But I deserve to be kicked.
- [03:06]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, I know. It's me. It's tough. I resisted it as long as I possibly could.
- [03:12]
Theo Von
You did?
- [03:13]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [03:13]
Theo Von
Well, you've been married. You've had a.
- [03:15]
Jeff Bridges
We just had our 49th anniversary. Let's go, man. Oh, yeah. Really a good one. I scored, man.
- [03:23]
Theo Von
Yeah. How do you score that?
- [03:24]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, I was making a movie called Rancho Deluxe in Montana. And we're shooting in this place called Chico Hot Springs. But they used to do brain surgery there 100 years ago. It's like a hot spring place for sure.
- [03:40]
Theo Von
Warm water. That's where I want to be. Cut open.
- [03:42]
Jeff Bridges
Exactly, man. Yeah. And I'm sitting there in this hot tub with Harry Dean Stanton on one side and Sam Waterston on the other. And we're doing a scene, and I look across and I see this gorgeous girl with two black eyes and a broken nose. Oh, and that juxtaposition of that disfigurement and the beauty. You know, part of the trouble with these interviews like this. Cause I've done a bunch now, is I end up telling the same story. I don't tell the story, okay, but it's one of my favorite stories, so I don't mind. But it feels a little funny because I told it so often, you know? So I think. I imagine people say, don't tell that story.
- [04:26]
Theo Von
I've never heard it, man. So you and I've never talked about love. And so you see. So you're sitting in a tub, first of all, with two men.
- [04:31]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, oh, oh. And I'm going to show you something. I think I got it. I usually don't have the thing that goes along with it, but I think I got it in my satchel here. So I'm sitting in there with two guys. Harrod, Dean Stanton, Stan Waters. And see this gorgeous girl with a broken nose and two black eyes. I finally get up my nerve to ask her out. Now, you know, asking somebody out, you know, it's tough, isn't it, man?
- [04:55]
Theo Von
Oh, it's hard to get your nerve. Because your nerve, sometimes it feels like it starts at your feet. And you got to get it all the way up your body.
- [05:00]
Jeff Bridges
And I'm young now. I'm in my 20s, man, you know.
- [05:03]
Theo Von
So you're Vero.
- [05:04]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, I'M vero, but I'm not. I'm unpracticed, you know.
- [05:08]
Theo Von
Yeah. Unrehearsed.
- [05:09]
Jeff Bridges
Unrehearsed. And I go up there and I say, would you like to go out with me? Maybe have dinner or something? No, I say, really? She says, yeah, it's a small town. Maybe I'll see you around, you know. And her prophecy proved true. And at the wrap party of this movie, she showed up and we danced and that was the done deal. Now we cut. 30 years later, we're married, have three kids. And I'm going through my mail on my desk and I get this letter from the makeup man on the show where I met this, my now wife. Wow. And he says, I was going through my files and I found something that might interest you. It's you talking to a local girl. So I have a photograph that I'm going to show you right now. I think I have it.
- [06:07]
Theo Von
Let's see it. Huh?
- [06:09]
Jeff Bridges
This is a shot of the first words ever spoken between my wife and myself.
- [06:15]
Theo Von
Oh, that's a dang hieroglyph of love.
- [06:17]
Jeff Bridges
This a wild thing. Yeah, of course, dude.
- [06:21]
Theo Von
Thank you, bro.
- [06:22]
Jeff Bridges
This is a wild. And this is my prized possession. Let me see if I can find it on my.
- [06:28]
Theo Von
Get that thing out.
- [06:29]
Jeff Bridges
This is a two shot. Here is the moment. And you can see. Look at the look on my face. I'm totally cold cocked here, man. Look, would you like to go out with me? No. Click the pictures taken. There it is, man.
- [06:44]
Theo Von
You are smitten, dude.
- [06:45]
Jeff Bridges
You can tell.
- [06:47]
Theo Von
Even from a side angle you can see.
- [06:49]
Jeff Bridges
I'm done, man. It's over, you know.
- [06:51]
Theo Von
Full Smith. Oh, beautiful, huh?
- [06:53]
Jeff Bridges
And so. But I resisted because, you know, we don't want to lose our autonomy, man. We'd like to, you know, and there's so many beautiful girls all over the place.
- [07:03]
Theo Von
But do you think even while you're saying that. So do you think. Thank you for showing me that. And congratulations too, man. Yeah, I was having love for that long. You know, I think people sometimes don't think that when they get into a relationship, what they do get out of it, if they work it well, is they get love. Well, you know, people forget about that part of it. I mean, they may, they may also get other stuff too. But. But do you think like that that's one of the things that keeps you, keeps a guy from asking a woman out sometimes is the fear of losing their autonomy without even thinking about that.
- [07:32]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. So.
- [07:33]
Theo Von
Because you usually think it's just general fear, right? Because I Never thought about it like that. Like what you're saying, like. Because I think about. Oh, I'm like, I feel like if I'm gonn a lot of like, okay, I'm nervous. Right. But I've never thought that the nerves are really just like a deep internal feel. Like it's your autonomy showing up and be like, no, we're gonna lose it. Oh, you think that could be true?
- [07:51]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, absolutely. That's what it was with me, you know, I'm in my, you know, prime.
- [07:58]
Theo Von
Oh, you were prime red.
- [07:59]
Jeff Bridges
You know, I mean, I was, you know, my career was on the rise. All these beautiful women that were around, and I felt it was like literally like the cartoon where the eyes go out. You know, I was, boom, in love at first sight. I was. And it was frightening to feel like that.
- [08:17]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [08:18]
Jeff Bridges
But. And so I was torn. And what I, you know, the high that we're looking for, I find or the one I'm looking for is intimacy. Right? That's what. And that's what marriage. That's the playing field of intimacy. You know, you can. You committed for the whole shot and you say, and I'm just lucky that I found somebody who's I'm so attracted to. And the intimacy seems to grow. But what you. Your question triggered, you know, we lived together for about three years and it was on again and off again. And she says to me, hey, I know you love me and that you have a bolia now. A bolia is a disease mental disorder that my mother used to tell me, which I have a hard time making decisions. Oh, yeah, you slightly joking with me. Both my mom and my wife say, I know you have a boolea, but I'm going to go back up to Montana where you found me, because my biological clock's going off.
- [09:36]
Theo Von
Wow.
- [09:36]
Jeff Bridges
You know, and I finally worked up. I guess it was courage. I don't know what it was. I know I prayed on thing. I got down on my knees and said, okay, marry me, you know, And I had this image of a handful of sand, and there was one little diamond in there, and that was sue, you know, if I can't let that diamond go. And I gave myself a caviar. I said, you can always get a divorce, man. That sure. You know what I mean? So that was my caveat. Now we cut about a week later because sue says, when do we want to get married? I said, oh, how about this weekend? Because I don't know how long I
- [10:19]
Theo Von
can hold this thing, you know, That's a good point. A lot of people put the wedding way too far out.
- [10:25]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, man, that would have been torture. So we invite a bunch of our friends over to our little house up in Malibu up in the hills there and get married. Now we cut to Maui with the seven sacred pools. We have our honeymoon there. And I'm looking at this gorgeous scenery, but all I can do is smell the rotting mangoes. Man, I'm a pouting.
- [10:51]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [10:52]
Jeff Bridges
And she goes, what's wrong? Nothing. Nothing. She goes, oh, let's annul this. I said, no, no, no.
- [10:58]
Theo Von
It's just bad fruit.
- [10:59]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. Oh. And I. She put up with that for years.
- [11:02]
Theo Von
Really? Just that bad? Just recognizing the. Recognizing the rotten mangoes. Huh? I feel that, bro.
- [11:07]
Jeff Bridges
Oh. Oh. And thank God she didn't kick me to the curb and that I finally got with the program and say, nobody fooled me.
- [11:17]
Theo Von
What made you get with the program?
- [11:18]
Jeff Bridges
Well, the, you know, I mentioned intimacy. You know, you get so intimate. You go through so many bad times and good times, and every time you go through a tough time, you either sep. You know, you give it up, or you. Your love and intimacy connection have to grow to hold that weird thing that was threatening it.
- [11:40]
Theo Von
You know, one thing you said, it was like, you're like, I had like a handful of sand and there was like one diamond in it. It's crazy how many times in our lives. I mean. And really, I'm just speaking for myself, I think. And I don't want to speak from, like, a negative or, like, downer place, but there's been times in my life where I've had a handful of sand and, like, one diamond. That was like a special person. And I chose. And I chose the sand. But. But sometimes I think it was fear or it was like.
- [12:03]
Jeff Bridges
Well, as we're talking about the metaphor, it's not so much choosing the sand for me, but it was. I'm gonna choose this handful of sand. Sand being all the bullshit. Yeah. With. Because there's a diamond in there. You know what I mean? So I said, I'm okay. I'm gonna take. You know, it was a. I. I'm so. It was an unconscious decision on that side. Although I, you know, I felt it was so strongly that I gave myself that caveat, which is a weird thing to go into a marriage saying, you can always get a divorce, man.
- [12:35]
Theo Von
But it's. That's a. You know, it's not a bad call.
- [12:37]
Jeff Bridges
God, I guess not, man.
- [12:39]
Theo Von
But it worked.
- [12:41]
Jeff Bridges
It worked.
- [12:42]
Theo Von
And obviously, if it lasted this long, was. Was there one of them, like, Was there, like, a more pressing moment that came in? Like. Yeah. What's. Because one of my friends I was talking with, Jared Leto, he and our buddies we met at the UFC fights, and I was just randomly messaged him, and I said, hey, I'm gonna be talking with Jeff Bridges. And he said a lot of nice things, and. And then he said, yeah. How has he had so much luck in love? Like, how does. Like, why does he think his marriage has lasted so long? It's like, yeah. Are there, like. Yeah. Like, what was one of the tougher moments? Like, that you had to evolve? Because it sounds like you're saying you get to these moments, and you either choose to kind of evolve and it adjusts, like, the volume of your, like, intimacy.
- [13:20]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [13:20]
Theo Von
Or you choose not to. And a lot of us choose not to at times, you know, because it feels safer.
- [13:27]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. Well, there's something that I call. What do I call it? Our primal battle or primal war that we have. And it's basically. You don't get it. You don't get what it's like having a relationship with somebody like you. You don't get it. You don't understand me at all. And there's such truth in that, because we. None of us really know the other person really, you know, and what we'll do. We've started doing this, and it's happened now as the years go on less and less, and I kind of almost miss it. It just happened recently. I said, oh, good, we get to do it again. We'll sit a little closer than we are here, each other, and we'll take turns. You know, whoever wants to go first can go first. And the person just says all their feelings, and the other person just listens. They don't think of their rebuttal. They just. Their task is to just receive what that person. Again. It's intimacy, man. Try to get that. Get that.
- [14:42]
Theo Von
All the feelings about them, about everything.
- [14:44]
Jeff Bridges
About everything.
- [14:45]
Theo Von
Got it.
- [14:45]
Jeff Bridges
And we've tried not to use, you know, you, you, you. The you message. We tried to say, this is how. This is what I feel.
- [14:52]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [14:52]
Jeff Bridges
And then the other person does their side, and the other person listens, and we go back and forth. That often really scratches the itch in a beautiful way. Sometimes it doesn't. But it's a really a cool strategy to deal with the basic thing that you don't understand what I am, what I'm going through. And marriage is a great. Like, a playing field or, you know. Yeah. A game board to really explore all of those Those emotions that are so real for all of us, you know, because we're all separate people.
- [15:31]
Theo Von
Right.
- [15:32]
Jeff Bridges
But we're similar in that we're human beings. You know, we have feelings and.
- [15:36]
Theo Von
Yeah. And that's the closest we get. I mean, that's one of the closest relationships that you have. I think to be able to do that with any relationship is pretty cool. But to really look at. To look at love as like a playing field, to look at, like, a relationship with someone else is like a playing field. And let's try this out. Like, let's try out some things to see, like, just how brave can we get with, like, our vulnerability or with learning about ourselves.
- [15:57]
Jeff Bridges
It's pretty cool, right? That's right.
- [15:58]
Theo Von
And they used to have these things in tribes. Like, in certain tribes, I don't know which, there's one I'm thinking of specifically, but they would have these kind of dance off things, like partners would. And they would, like, try to, like. Like they would dance in front of each other, like, kind of process their energies toward each other. It's kind of fascinating. So I kind of related to something like that a little also.
- [16:16]
Jeff Bridges
You know, I was saying it's like a playing field or, you know, a place to practice relationship, you know, And I find it overflows into my work and making a movie or just being here with you, you know?
- [16:35]
Theo Von
Yeah, yeah, I noticed stuff like that.
- [16:37]
Jeff Bridges
Use the same thing now. I would think what you do. And I'm not as familiar as I might have been at the. With what you're up to, but I googled you, you know, before I showed up today, I said, God, look at this guy's really into some great interviews. I saw your interview with Mike Tyson.
- [16:56]
Theo Von
Oh, yeah. It was wild. Dude. Dude, he was out of his mind. But. But he was also. He was also the most in his mind.
- [17:04]
Jeff Bridges
Exactly. He and. And Louis C. Cad.
- [17:07]
Theo Von
Oh, he's one of my heroes.
- [17:08]
Jeff Bridges
So you had some great. And you get intimate on these things and that. I bet. I bet when you finally find a girl or a guy, whoever, which way you're leaning to connect with in that deep way.
- [17:20]
Theo Von
I hope it's a woman. I'll say this. If it's a guy, I will be shocked, bro. If they, like. Yeah. If it's an arranged marriage and it's a guy, dude, I'm going to be. I'm going to email my mom. But yeah, dude, you know, I like talking about stuff like that, and it's important. And some of these people, like, Louie's one of my dearest friends in the world.
- [17:41]
Jeff Bridges
Wow, man.
- [17:42]
Theo Von
He's one of the deepest people I've ever met in my whole life. So, yeah, I got to be at a. I went to a party recently, and him and Bob Odenkirk were there. Have you ever met. Gotten to meet Bob Odenkirk?
- [17:52]
Jeff Bridges
No, but I admire him. Yeah.
- [17:54]
Theo Von
He's it. And he was just like. And I. They were talking, dude. And I just got to sit there and listen to them.
- [17:58]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, wonderful.
- [18:00]
Theo Von
Oh, it was like. Yeah, that was something pretty special. But, yeah, it is interesting, like, because this is the playing field that we get, you know, Sometimes we forget that this is like. Like whatever it is. Like, whatever, like God has intended or the world or the energies of whatever like, that put us here till we have this, like. Like a fish coming to, like, the edge of the glass and being able to, like, see, just. Just get, like, a peek out into the universe. This is it.
- [18:24]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, man.
- [18:25]
Theo Von
So all the things that we want to do, we have to try them while we're here. Even if it's scary, even if it's hard, you know?
- [18:30]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. And don't you find. I don't know about you, but I'm addicted to comfort, man. I like to be comfortable. Yeah. And the problem with comfort. And maybe it's not even a problem, it's kind of both the problem and the solution. When you're comfortable, you're not growing. You're not. You're just be. You're just relaxing, being comfortable.
- [18:50]
Theo Von
It's a coffin, man.
- [18:51]
Jeff Bridges
It's a kind of. Yeah, it's a coffin.
- [18:54]
Theo Von
It's cozy.
- [18:55]
Jeff Bridges
And all these little challenges of life, and I resist these, like, marriage, man. I resist this.
- [19:02]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [19:02]
Jeff Bridges
Because I don't like to be challenged. I don't want to be uncomfortable.
- [19:07]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [19:07]
Jeff Bridges
But I notice every once in a while, I'll do these experiments on myself, and I say, okay, you feel this way now. Why don't you just go against that and do something adventurous and challenging, you know, and see what happens just to. Around, you know? So I'll do that on the other side of that. 99 of the time, I say, wow, I got off, man. That was cool. Yeah. I'm. I'm something other than I thought I was. I didn't think I could do that.
- [19:37]
Theo Von
I know.
- [19:37]
Jeff Bridges
Isn't that wild thing.
- [19:39]
Theo Von
Yeah. We forget that, like, this is, like, this is a school. I think we forget that this is a school, you know, and you kind of just get used to the recess.
- [19:46]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. You know, that's something I remember I never went to college, but I thought, gee, I think I'll put my. I'll be the dean of my own college. I'm gonna put my. You know, and I didn't do it as to the degree that I want to do do, you know, but to give myself assignments, you know. You play guitar?
- [20:03]
Theo Von
No, I don't.
- [20:03]
Jeff Bridges
You don't? But I, you know, I play guitar. I said I should take. You know, I'm always jealous of my friends who did that woodsheding, you know, and learned all that stuff, you know, I said, you know, I notice I don't do it, but I could. I could put myself through, you know, a college course of guitar. It's all online. There's so much stuff online.
- [20:23]
Theo Von
Well, it seems like you've done a good job with kind of like nurturing your creativity over time. You know, it seems like you stay active with like. I saw like a lot of the. And it's one thing that Louis CK does, too, is he's a great sculptor. People don't know that. And I don't even know if he cares if I share that or not. But, like, you'll go to his. To his apartment, and he has like all these crazy sculptures that he's made, and it just. It just like he reminds me of like, just creativity. It's not stuck in one spot. It's not your. Just this. That you can use it in different ways, and you can also try to see if it sticks in different ways. It's like throwing like a spaghetti like. Like, you know, of yourself against the wall of like the world or the universe or something. But you seem to have done that a decent amount with like, music, acting and with. Also I've seen some of your. Can you even bring them up, Nick, Some of the sculptures that you have?
- [21:10]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. Oh, oh, yeah. My heads. Yeah. Yeah, I make. You know, I'll do a pot or something, and then I always have a little piece of clay left over, and I just let my hands go and say, don't, you know, know. And they come up with these heads, man. I don't know the aspects of myself or what the hell they are, but that guy, definitely.
- [21:35]
Theo Von
I'm gonna say he was Italian at one point, but yeah. Beautiful group there. Do you vent these? Are you. Do you give these away for charity or something? Or do you just. Do you prize them? Because I guess they're like. They're kind of pieces of you in a way.
- [21:50]
Jeff Bridges
Well, they were for. It's sort of a semi abandoned project. I Say semi. Because I still. I kick this project off, it's kind of dear to my heart. It was a project called Head for Peace.
- [22:04]
Theo Von
Oh, yeah. Look, already. I support it, bro. Who doesn't want Head for Peace?
- [22:09]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, exactly, bro.
- [22:14]
Theo Von
I will be the lieutenant governor of the project or whatever.
- [22:18]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, good.
- [22:19]
Theo Von
I'll be on the front lines of Head for Peace.
- [22:21]
Jeff Bridges
It was four. I got very tight with a cat named Bernie Glassman. You know that guy at all? Does that name ring a bell? No. So he's a Zen master? He was. He's no longer with us, and I was at a party. You know who Ram Dass is?
- [22:38]
Theo Von
Yes.
- [22:39]
Jeff Bridges
So I give my. It was Ram Dass's birthday.
- [22:42]
Theo Von
Oh, dang. What do you even get him?
- [22:43]
Jeff Bridges
So I go, well, I. This is what I gave him. I say, rahm, can I call you Rom? I've always wanted to give you a little head, man. And he looked at me kind of straight, and then the guy sitting to my left was this, like, little Jewish guy, you know? And he goes, hi, I'm Bernie Glassman. I go, oh, yeah? And he says, I really dug Lebowski, man. I say, oh, yeah? I said, oh, yeah? And he says, yeah. He says, I'm a Zen master. I don't know if he actually said Zen master, but he may be. So I'm really into Buddhism or something. But he turns out this guy was a heavy Zen master. And he says, lebowski, it's filled with Zen cohons. You know what a koan is like? You know? What is the sound of one hand clapping? That's kind of a thing.
- [23:33]
Theo Von
Okay.
- [23:34]
Jeff Bridges
This is like a question that you don't have a certain answer. You just have to kind of give you a vibe or trigger something to you, you know?
- [23:44]
Theo Von
Let's see that real quick.
- [23:45]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, you can. Yeah, there you go. Yeah.
- [23:47]
Theo Von
A Zen koan is a short, paradoxical story or dialogue used in Zen Buddhist practice. Rather than riddles to be logically solved, they are meant to exhaust the rational mind, allowing the practitioner to break free from the habitual binary thinking and experience reality directly.
- [24:02]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [24:02]
Theo Von
Some examples are the sound of one hand clapping.
- [24:04]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. Yeah. So that. Anyway, that's a perfect, great definition.
- [24:09]
Theo Von
Got it.
- [24:10]
Jeff Bridges
So Bernie says, yeah, I really dug Lebowski. He says, it's filled with modern day koans, and I'm all about bringing Buddhism up to speed with modern day times. I said, what do you mean it's filled with modern day Cohen? She says, well, look who wrote and directed it, the Cohen brothers. Oh, and I Say. And I say, what's another example?
- [24:31]
Theo Von
He says, yeah, because that one's mid. That one's pretty.
- [24:33]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. He says, the dude abides. That's very Buddhistic right there. I say, give me another one. He says, well, my favorite one is. That's just, like, your opinion, man. And that is it. That's my favorite one.
- [24:48]
Theo Von
At least he came with three. If he'd only had.
- [24:50]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, no. He. He. When he goes on, I said, give me another. Shut the up, Donnie. That's another one. You know, they're just it. And he was filled with these things. And I said, those are pretty good. He says, yeah, let's write a book, man. I say, what do you mean? He says, yeah, we'll write a book about. About this. You into it? And I thought about it, and I got such a hit from this guy. You know how you get a hit kind of immediately? Yeah, you know, Boom. You know? Yeah.
- [25:14]
Theo Von
Some people are fascinating. It's like meeting a cool pet in the street. You just.
- [25:17]
Jeff Bridges
Boom. Yeah.
- [25:18]
Theo Von
You keep petting it or whatever.
- [25:19]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. And so we got in cahoots. We went up to Montana for a week or two and wrote this book called the dude and the Zen Master. Oh, you got it up there. There's burn.
- [25:30]
Theo Von
Let's go.
- [25:32]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, man.
- [25:34]
Theo Von
And what happened to him?
- [25:35]
Jeff Bridges
Huh?
- [25:36]
Theo Von
What happened? He passed away.
- [25:37]
Jeff Bridges
He died? Yeah. Just, you know, man, he could have
- [25:40]
Theo Von
faked it, and he could be in
- [25:41]
Jeff Bridges
Barbados, but this guy. I would advise your viewers to check him out. You can go, you know, you can Google the hell out of. He's got so many wonderful books.
- [25:52]
Theo Von
Bernie Glassman.
- [25:53]
Jeff Bridges
Bernie Glassman. The Infinite Circle, Instructions to the Cook. He was so great. Oh. Anyway, getting back to the heads. So I had this weird idea because I got very involved with his organization called the Zen Peacemakers.
- [26:11]
Theo Von
And were you spending a lot of time with him? Like, were you, like. Did you guys have a weekly or daily practice?
- [26:17]
Jeff Bridges
You know, I didn't really.
- [26:19]
Theo Von
Like, were you becoming a Buddhist? Like, that's what I'm.
- [26:21]
Jeff Bridges
Well, I. You know, I've. In my spirituality, you know, I could. We could talk about that. You know, this. That's a whole kind of a. I'm interested in all kinds of spiritual stuff since I was a kid. Raised, you know, I guess, Christian from Christian point of view, but Bernie and I. I don't know. My. Was he. The word guru kind of sticks in my craw. I just thought him as. As a dear, wise friend, man, that really, I got so much out of. And anyway, he had this organization Called. And it's still going on, called Zen Peacemakers. And my idea with these heads, I was going to make 108 heads. That number is significant in Buddhism and a lot of relations religions. And I would rent these heads for $10,000 a year.
- [27:18]
Theo Von
I've rented a little head before, but lower price.
- [27:21]
Jeff Bridges
I would put them in a little box and stuff. And basically it was like swag for people who wanted to support the Zen Peacemakers, you know what I mean? Now, along with the head, the person would get a certificate. You know, you'd get the thing about, hey, let me give you a little head. You know, you get to say that joke to your friends.
- [27:39]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [27:39]
Jeff Bridges
You could pass the head on to other people. There would also be a website that would talk about the genealogy of the head who had the headlight. You know, I just went my fantasy. I just went way up out there.
- [27:52]
Theo Von
It's like Cabbage Patch Dolls kind of all that. Yeah, right.
- [27:55]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. And I don't know, but it's still in the works. I still have. But then I got hit with this flood up here and all the heads got lost, and so I have to make more.
- [28:04]
Theo Von
So you're saying there's some missing head around here?
- [28:06]
Jeff Bridges
There's some missing head.
- [28:08]
Theo Von
I agree, brother.
- [28:09]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, I need some head, man. I mean, yeah, but you know, but
- [28:17]
Theo Von
oh, man, it's that time. Prize Picks is America's number one sports picks.
- [28:24]
Jeff Bridges
Apple.
- [28:25]
Theo Von
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- [30:27]
Gary (AI Assistant)
Yep.
- [30:28]
Theo Von
Your keys stay on your device so you stay in control. And it works across major chains like Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana. With tools like Chat, GPT, Claude, Gemini and Grok, Moonpay already powers crypto for millions of people in over 180 countries. Check out Moonpay agents@moonpay.com agents. Crypto is risky and can be volatile. So do your own research and trade responsibly. But, you know, so that's something that could happen and that's part of that whole thing.
- [31:05]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, well, it's hobbies, you know, I remember I'll be working on a movie. I'd be in my hotel room preparing and I'd say, oh, wow, that reminds me of an interesting song. And I pick up my song and start writing a song. And I get mad at myself because now you're supposed to be studying, you know, but like you said, talking about, you know, you have creative. You're a creative person. Doesn't all just focus in one line. I find when I'm in the creative mode, you shake up that juice and all kinds of creative things. Drawing, you know, I was doing a movie with Peter Weir, wonderful movie he invited me to do called Fearless. I played an architect going through a plane crash. And I said, I think I'm going to go out and buy a bunch of art supplies as this character and paint as this character. I ended up, you know, papering my hotel room and just going at it. The next morning, had breakfast with Peter. I said, look what happened last night. He goes, oh, well, that's going to be in the movie, man. You know, do a song. Oh, that's in the movie. You know, we'll put that in the movie.
- [32:21]
Theo Von
So just create. Just being, just creating.
- [32:23]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. Well, remember Robert Duvall, wonderful actor I got to work with in movie called Crazy Hardy played my best friend in that.
- [32:33]
Theo Von
Yeah, he played the bartender.
- [32:34]
Jeff Bridges
And he played a bartender.
- [32:35]
Theo Von
That's one of my Favorite movies.
- [32:36]
Jeff Bridges
He was so wonderful to work with, and he said, you know, when I meet with young actors and when they ask me, give me. You got any advice? Yeah, three things I'll tell you. Hobbies. Hobbies. Hobbies. Develop. Hobbies, you know?
- [32:54]
Theo Von
Yeah, I feel like it could.
- [32:55]
Jeff Bridges
You know, it all goes into the. Into the work, you know?
- [32:59]
Theo Von
Yeah. Sometimes I feel like, Yeah, I got so busy working that I don't even have any parts of myself anymore. Does that make any sense?
- [33:05]
Jeff Bridges
What are your hobbies? Do you have a hobby?
- [33:07]
Theo Von
I don't really have any.
- [33:07]
Jeff Bridges
You don't have one? Hobby, man. Think about it.
- [33:10]
Theo Von
I mean, I like to go to the UFC fights.
- [33:12]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. Well, that's a hobby. Do I do a martial artist at all?
- [33:16]
Theo Von
No. I used to take some classes, but I haven't taken them recently. I think I was just touring a lot, and recently things just stopped, like, about a month and a half ago. And so it's kind of the first time where I feel like I'm just kind of looking around and being like, okay, well, who am I? You know, like, who am I? Like, I've always just been kind of my work. I haven't always just been my work, but I realized that somewhere along the way, like, I let that just be me, who I was. Does that make any sense?
- [33:39]
Jeff Bridges
I mean, from my point of view, looking at you, this is kind of your hobby, kind of what you do here. You've combined your work and your hobby.
- [33:46]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [33:46]
Jeff Bridges
So closely, it seems like, that you just like to engage and.
- [33:53]
Theo Von
Yeah, that's true. Well, I think my hobbies became jobs like doing standup comedy, I guess, was kind of a hobby at first, and then podcasting, I guess, was sort of a hobby.
- [34:00]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. So they. Then they mature and they become not hobbies anymore, but real, real things.
- [34:06]
Theo Von
But I would like to do gardening. I would like to go on more walks. I think I want to go do some camping this year. I wanna. What else? I'd like to be in love or whatever.
- [34:16]
Jeff Bridges
Do you serve?
- [34:17]
Theo Von
You know, I don't serve, but I wouldn't mind maybe going to Costa Rica. I think it's pretty easy to learn down there.
- [34:21]
Jeff Bridges
That would be cool.
- [34:22]
Theo Von
So maybe I'll do that.
- [34:23]
Jeff Bridges
What about ceramics? You ever mess around with clay?
- [34:27]
Theo Von
No, I haven't really done it.
- [34:28]
Jeff Bridges
You might dig that, man.
- [34:29]
Theo Von
Yeah, man, that's cool.
- [34:31]
Jeff Bridges
Or the guitar. It's a great. Never too late, man. It's just so easy because the. Where you. You know, it's just pictures of where you put your fingers. Those Dots. And you just do that.
- [34:42]
Theo Von
Oh, dude, I'll tell you this. I did love playing the guitar for a little while.
- [34:45]
Jeff Bridges
Then you do do it.
- [34:46]
Theo Von
Yeah. So I need to get back to it. You're right, dude. Maybe if I pick something like that.
- [34:49]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. And you've got it already. It's kind of like a bike. I mean, can you play a D, a G and you know, you can play three chords.
- [34:57]
Theo Von
I can play Bobby McGee, dude, you know.
- [34:59]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, man. Well, then you' there nothing left to lose.
- [35:02]
Theo Von
I can get us there. You know, me and Bobby MC and that the song,
- [35:09]
Jeff Bridges
man.
- [35:09]
Theo Von
Dude, Christopherson, bro, I'll tell you a story. So I used to live with my buddy's dad when I was in school because I had a little bit of ED when I was younger, right. Because of mental whatever. Mental health or whatever. And so my buddy's dad got wiener pills. Right. When they first came out. Right. Because people didn't know they were coming out. Remember, everybody's just standing around, their wieners weren't working.
- [35:28]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [35:28]
Theo Von
And then bam, they came out.
- [35:30]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. Yeah.
- [35:31]
Theo Von
And. And so I went and live with my buddy's dad, dude, right. Because I could pot. I could like kind of cop some of his script. Okay. Because he could get him, dude. But anyway, while I was there, I was learning the guitar and he used to have this girl over and they would like lay in bed together, like post coitus or whatever after, you know, in the evening. And they'd invite me in there and I'd play Tears in Heaven form. I'd learn to play that.
- [35:55]
Jeff Bridges
Well, see, you do do it, man. But, you know, that is. That's one of the challenges is that we let some of these hobbies atrophy, man. When you just. You know what I mean? I mean, that's. I'm talking to myself now. I mean, like, guitar music is kind of a hobby with me.
- [36:12]
Theo Von
Oh, yeah, I noticed that. I mean, especially.
- [36:14]
Jeff Bridges
But every once in a while it'll kick in and then get pro for a second and then it kind of wanes. And the season of interest. It's interesting to me how we have these seasons of interest really, like when
- [36:29]
Theo Von
it kind of flares up. But it. I think it is nice. I will say this. It's nice even hearing you say some of this, Jeff. It's like there's value in keeping things warm on the. On the stove because then when you need it, it's there.
- [36:40]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, you know, that's true, I think,
- [36:42]
Theo Von
because, yeah, even when I look back at like, certain times, in my life then, like even just being able to sit there and have something to do with myself and my energy and my. And my thoughts. Thoughts that felt good to me. Like in a real place, like in a real deep place that felt good. Like there was a lot of value in that.
- [36:57]
Jeff Bridges
Here's a weird thing that pops in my mind about passion. You know, we're saying, well, if I had passion to play the guitar, that would lead me to. I need to get passion to do, you know, and then somebody said. And this made sense to me. No, the passion is the fire you get when you rub two sticks together. The passion doesn't happen before you do that.
- [37:22]
Theo Von
Right. If you're standing around with two sticks, you don't need passion.
- [37:24]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. You got to get in there and just say, I'm going to pick up the guitar and. And you play the thing and you have to. A couple things. Oh, oh, well, now this thought. This happened, you know, because it's this thought of, you know, when we're creative in. In the sweet spot, it's doing you. You're not doing it. You know that feeling, right?
- [37:44]
Theo Von
Oh, yeah.
- [37:45]
Jeff Bridges
Cool feeling.
- [37:45]
Theo Von
Well, creativity is this thing on. It feels like think it's on the other side of like the mirror of existence. And if you kind of do your thing, it'll show up and meet you over there, man. Right.
- [37:54]
Jeff Bridges
But you gotta show up.
- [37:55]
Theo Von
Yeah, you gotta show up.
- [37:56]
Jeff Bridges
You know.
- [37:56]
Theo Von
You know, they say in, like I'm in some recovery programs and they say that you can't think your way into right action, but you can act your way into right thinking.
- [38:05]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [38:06]
Theo Von
And I think it's. It's reminding me of what you're saying. It's like, yeah. I can't sit there and think, like, this is going to be perfect. When it's like, I just have to make the win, make the start, and. And then the rest of it will meet me there.
- [38:14]
Jeff Bridges
Take it till you make it right. Isn't that. It's one of this thing. What a great. I want to say religion, but, you know, Alcoholics Anonymous and all of those 12 step things. What a wonderful religion, man. What a wonderful.
- [38:28]
Theo Von
One of the best ever, I think.
- [38:30]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, God, isn't it a great idea?
- [38:31]
Theo Von
Yeah. Sometimes people are like, do you go to church? And I'm like, I go to church some, but I go to. If I go to recovery meetings, that's like four or five times a week that I'm joining up with other guys, listening to what's going on, getting outside of myself, you know, connecting with the higher power. I mean, it's like a man. It's like the military for, like probably having a relationship with yourself in a higher power and others.
- [38:54]
Jeff Bridges
I think so much. So much. So much good has come out of it. And what word popped in my mind was, it's got so much room, you know, I think that was it. Bob. Who was the other guy? Bob, yeah.
- [39:07]
Theo Von
Dr. Bob and Bill.
- [39:08]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, Bob.
- [39:09]
Theo Von
Bill W. And Dr. Bob.
- [39:11]
Gary (AI Assistant)
Yeah.
- [39:11]
Jeff Bridges
One was the real religious kind of guy. And that first. What is it? The first thing? A higher. A power higher. Above than yourself.
- [39:20]
Theo Von
Right. A power greater than yourself.
- [39:21]
Jeff Bridges
Greater than yourself. And that's so challenging to a lot of people. But the. The other guy kind of softens. It doesn't have to be God. The white guy up.
- [39:32]
Theo Von
No. Anybody other than you, it says.
- [39:34]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. Just anything else you.
- [39:36]
Theo Von
You know, I know it's. It's amazing that two people got together and made and created that. I mean, they had so much other stuff that. That made it happen, but it's. It's absolutely fascinating. There's a great movie. I think it's James woods, who played
- [39:50]
Jeff Bridges
Bill W. Oh, is that a good one?
- [39:51]
Theo Von
Oh, yeah, that's my favorite one.
- [39:54]
Jeff Bridges
I think I. I just saw.
- [39:57]
Theo Von
I think it's James Woods. We look. Is that who it was? Do you remember?
- [39:59]
Jeff Bridges
I don't think it was. I think it was, but I never. I don't remember seeing. Seeing it.
- [40:04]
Theo Von
James Woods, Jo Beth Williams and James Garner. Yeah, that one, I think, was my favorite one.
- [40:09]
Jeff Bridges
Have you seen Anthony Hopkins? Do you dig Anthony Hopkins? He's pretty great. Yeah. I just read his autobiography. It's really wonderful. I think you might really dig it.
- [40:19]
Theo Von
He's in recovery meetings. He's. He's open about it. That's the only reason I say that. Yeah.
- [40:23]
Jeff Bridges
And I saw this thing. You can see it online. I thought it was him just sharing at a meeting, but I said, well, that's weird because they're anonymous. But I think it was a movie about him playing a character. But it was referred. He referred to this exact same thing in his book. So he was improving in a movie. But he talks about being sober now for, you know, 50 years or whatever it was. And about when he first got sober, he said he was, you know, driving and he blacked out.
- [40:56]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [40:57]
Jeff Bridges
And he could have killed himself. He could have killed other people. And he said, I gotta go. Gotta check myself into a meeting mid. So he went to a. An AA meeting and he started hearing all that God stuff. And he said, I'm. I'm out of here. I can't take it. And the guy's talking the story. I said, I can't take it. He's leaving. And this fell, stopped. Who's a priest? This guy stopped and said, where you going, son? He says, no, I can't dig this, man. I can't dig it. He says, I need. I need a quick fix, man. I need something that snap me out of there.
- [41:30]
Theo Von
Patch me up.
- [41:31]
Jeff Bridges
And the guy says, I. I can give you a quick fix. It's the fastest prayer in the world and it's guaranteed to work. It's only two words. Tony said, well, what is it? He said, I'll tell you the prayer. You ready? Fuck it. You know, fuck it. Just fuck this shit. You know what I mean? Just stop this shit. Just, you know, you have the power to say fuck it. Don't take it so damn seriously. Just stop it. It. You know, you don't have to do it, you know? Yeah, and I love that coming out of, you know, thinking of that priest. Out of a priest and that idea. That idea of just, hey, you know, my. My mom.
- [42:14]
Theo Von
But like, you don't have to do it anymore. That's what he's saying. Yeah, like that.
- [42:17]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, yeah, yeah. It. Or, you know, or your struggle, right? You. All you. I can't. This. This.
- [42:26]
Theo Von
Write your big story about it.
- [42:27]
Jeff Bridges
Your story like that, man.
- [42:29]
Theo Von
Dude, it's so funny you say that because I've been. That's. That's right where I. I'm like back at that place sometimes in my life right now where I like, I go down the struggle road and it's like, you're right. It just get your ass up, get your done and get on to doing the things that you need to be doing. I agree. Sometimes, bro, the craziest thing is like, it's. Sometimes you don't want to have to be the person to come to your own rescue again, right? It's like that's life. It's like you have to be the person to come to come to your own rescue. But even. Even that is just me. It's more that same story. It's more the thing. It's like. It's like adding all this lore to it. It's like just. It just do the I need to do if I want to get better.
- [43:09]
Jeff Bridges
And I remember this.
- [43:11]
Theo Von
I appreciate you saying that, bro. I need to hear that.
- [43:13]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, no. Check out just Google Anthony Hopkins and this will come up. I mean, he does it so well, does wonderful acting.
- [43:23]
Theo Von
We owes me a good story. The first movie I ever saw.
- [43:26]
Jeff Bridges
A good guy for your show, and I bet he'd come off.
- [43:28]
Theo Von
I've actually. I've heard him speak at meetings, actually.
- [43:30]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, he's so good.
- [43:31]
Theo Von
Yeah. But he owes me a good story because the first movie I ever saw was Silence the Lambs, and it scared me so bad. Yeah. That I couldn't even go, first of all to a petting zoo or go to sleep for almost 11 months.
- [43:44]
Jeff Bridges
Jonathan Demi. Man, what a great. You know, Terms of Endearment. Do you ever check?
- [43:48]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [43:49]
Jeff Bridges
Or. Or what about Stop Making Sense?
- [43:51]
Theo Von
I haven't seen that.
- [43:52]
Jeff Bridges
Stocking Heads. Are you Talking Heads fan? Do you like the Talking Heads? You don't like them?
- [43:56]
Theo Von
Oh, I don't know about them. I've heard of them.
- [43:58]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, man, you gotta check out David Byrne. All his stuff is cool, but Stop Making Sense. What a great concert.
- [44:07]
Theo Von
I gotta check it out. Oh, yeah, dude. Thanks for thinking about some of this stuff with me, Anders, for talking, like, transparently about different stuff.
- [44:15]
Jeff Bridges
You.
- [44:16]
Theo Von
How is, speaking of. Of alcohol autonomous? How is Bad Blake doing? How's he doing?
- [44:20]
Jeff Bridges
He's doing well. I'm on the wagon now for a few months.
- [44:24]
Theo Von
Are you.
- [44:25]
Jeff Bridges
Congrats.
- [44:25]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [44:25]
Jeff Bridges
I go back and I go back and forth, but it's nice when you break the. You know, break the chain there, and the sobriety is a wonderful high, you know, so it's a real.
- [44:37]
Theo Von
And you know what? It's kind of a hot. It's. It shouldn't be a hobby, but it's like, it's a. A. It's a very important hobby.
- [44:41]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [44:42]
Theo Von
Is that a safe thing to say or not?
- [44:43]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, no, no, I know what you're saying. I. I haven't. I haven't commit, you know, that whole One day at a time. I'm not looking to never get high again. I just. I just wanted to stop. I got, you know, and I stopped and I haven't wanted to have another drink. I see that frosty glass of Tito's or something, I say, oh, man.
- [45:06]
Gary (AI Assistant)
Yeah.
- [45:06]
Jeff Bridges
You know, but I don't have to. You know, you can want to, but don't have to. Yeah.
- [45:10]
Theo Von
And then a few minutes later, I usually feel kind of better. And then it's not having to deal with some of the repercussions. But also, I think sometimes, even if you just want to take a break from having a drink or having a token, whatever it is, go into, like, 12 step meetings, it's just a great place to be around other humans. It's like. It's a place that still exists in our society of, like, real connection. There's a book a guy wrote about how there's no more bowling league leagues, and can you look that up? It's like, I'm trying to think of the title of it, but it's about how a lot. They used to have a lot of men's bowling leagues, and men would get together and they would bowl bowling alone. The collapse and revival of American community. And. And it was just about giving men a place to be together. And.
- [45:52]
Jeff Bridges
Lebowski, man. That's all. That's what. There you go.
- [45:56]
Theo Von
It's just funny that this is kind of where some of this conversation is to. Going one. Before we get on to the basket, though, I want to say. Yeah, how is Bad Blake doing, man? Do you ever feel like. And first of all, thank you for being him, Dude. That was. That movie. Like, it just like, if I need to sometimes, dude, in my life, it's like there's, like, feelings that are stuck inside of me, and I can't get them out. And so I'll go. I'll listen to a certain song or I'll watch a certain movie, and it'll make. It'll do that exact thing. It'll let the air out of whatever that is.
- [46:22]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [46:23]
Theo Von
You know, so. Thank you so much, man. That movie really does that for me. It's like. But then you also wonder, like, man, like, I hope Bad Blake's okay. You know, it's like. Cuz it's. It's. It's. It's a tough. It's a tough road for everybody involved with him, but it's also a tough road for him.
- [46:37]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [46:37]
Theo Von
Do you ever, like, like, wonder, like, what the second part of his story was? Or do you ever, like. Like, do you ever have, like, little, like, visions of how it went for him after that?
- [46:46]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, well, he's got to get back with Maggie's character, man. You know, he does. That's how I'm thinking. Yeah.
- [46:53]
Theo Von
What is she even doing? She met somebody, I guess.
- [46:55]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. But that falls apart in my mind. That falls apart. Who knows? Maybe now. You know, that movie was such a wonderful experience. You know, I often thought as an actor, I said, oh, it'd be great to play a musician. I love playing guitar, and I've been doing it since high school. And, you know, I write songs and stuff. And. And. But. And so this guy, Scott Cooper, who was being championed by Bob Duvall, he. Scott gave him a script, and Bobby loved the script. And Scott first never directed before sent me this script for years, man.
- [47:37]
Theo Von
Years.
- [47:37]
Jeff Bridges
It was coming through, coming through. And I'd say, well, it's pretty good, but there's no music. And if there's not good, good music for it, then you know what. And now I'm walking down the street, and who comes down the street but T Bone Burnett, my old buddy. We go back many, many years. Met him on Heaven's Gate, and he did the music for Lebowski. That score is all T Bone, you know, and so.
- [48:01]
Theo Von
And he did also for Crazy Heart, right?
- [48:02]
Jeff Bridges
And he was the producer. So T Bone comes walking down the street. He's got a new album out now. God, check out. All his music is so wonderful.
- [48:15]
Theo Von
T Bone Burnett.
- [48:15]
Jeff Bridges
T Bone Burnett. And so T Bone's walking down the street, and he says, so, what do you think of this script, Crazy Heart. And I said, why, are you interested? He goes, oh, yeah, I'll do it if you'll do it. I said, you're kidding. I say, there's no music. And he says, oh, that's the easy part, man. I could. Bone. He says, come on. What do you think? So now, here life is, you know, life gives us these opportunities, these gifts, and like you say, you can let the sand go, or you can say, maybe there's something in there. I said, I'm frightened, man. You know, keeping it in the dream world, it's safe, right? Yeah, because you can't feel it. But if I bring this real, I could fail, man.
- [48:56]
Theo Von
You know, dude, that's the same thing for everything.
- [48:59]
Jeff Bridges
For everything, man. But here's one of my good buddies saying, hey, look, this jam. When I look at this gift, I say, okay, we, you know, too cool to turn down, man. So we jump into it, and this young director, Scott Cooper. My God, what a great director. And you look at his movies that he's done. And now we meet. You're over at T Bone's house working on the script. And there's something so cool about just the beginnings of making a movie when it's all in ephemeral, you know, you don't know what's going to happen. And we're in there, and in comes this young kid who is hired as a. To play a part in the movie. And he says, yeah, I was jamming last night on my guitar, and I came up with this tune. I don't know if it's any good, but I just thought you guys might want to look at.
- [49:50]
Theo Von
That's how it happened.
- [49:51]
Jeff Bridges
It's right. It's Ryan Bingham, man. And he hands us this cassette, we put it on and I look over at T Bone, his face goes. And he says, because if we didn't have that tune, it wouldn't. The whole movie would have fallen apart. But Weary Kind, you know that. Oh, that what?
- [50:09]
Theo Von
This ain't no place for the weary kind.
- [50:11]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, what a tune. Yeah, dude.
- [50:13]
Theo Von
And just those words, man, it's those words.
- [50:15]
Jeff Bridges
It's like T wanted to make Name the movie Weary Kind. But yeah, and what an experience. And Maggie Gyllenhaal, oh my God, what a talent. And look at her directing now that she's doing.
- [50:29]
Theo Von
I know. And she's married, huh?
- [50:30]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, she's married. Yeah. Peter Sarsgar.
- [50:33]
Theo Von
Oh, never really. Yeah, of course.
- [50:36]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, God, yeah. But anyway, you get all those talented people I know. Oh, man. And I've had wonderful luck with first time directors, guys who, you know, who haven't ever directed and then they get a shot. You know, you get a strong producer who wants to champion these guys. Steve Clovis, the guy who don't know if you saw a movie called the Fabulous Baker Boys.
- [51:00]
Theo Von
I haven't seen that, but maybe I have seen that.
- [51:02]
Jeff Bridges
But that's my brother and I got, I got to work with Bo, My brother in that and. Oh, that's first time director. Wrote it when he was in his early 20s, I think. God, what a talent.
- [51:13]
Theo Von
Yeah, Yeah. I always wonder what happened in Bad Blake and I just hope that he's doing good sometimes. You know, that's the thing. Sometimes you think about that as characters. It's like you hope that they're doing good.
- [51:22]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [51:22]
Theo Von
Because you don't get to see him. You just get to see this part of their life. Like, you know.
- [51:26]
Jeff Bridges
Well, in my mind, he gets back with Maggie, man, and that kid and that little kid.
- [51:30]
Theo Von
Yeah, buddy.
- [51:32]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, buddy. Nice, man. I loved his real. His real name. The kid's name is Jack Nation.
- [51:38]
Theo Von
Great.
- [51:39]
Jeff Bridges
What a great name. And what acting.
- [51:41]
Theo Von
And it's also a deviant website too.
- [51:43]
Jeff Bridges
I just want to say Jack Nation it is. Oh, I didn't.
- [51:47]
Theo Von
Oh, that's a lot of Gooners or whatever. But it's chill, it's fine.
- [51:52]
Jeff Bridges
Double entendre.
- [51:53]
Theo Von
Yeah, it's a double entendre. It's the French. They'll do any, you know, they're, they're, you know, say. But dude. Yeah. I just wonder sometimes. And where'd he go off to at the mall? I'm always like, of course he ran off somewhere. It's like he probably was like, I guess just like I don't know. It all made sense that he was scared. It's all good. It just. Like, sometimes I. I wonder how he's doing, you know?
- [52:14]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. Well, here. How's this? Buddy grows up. He starts a band with Blake, man. They start to go out and, you know. You know.
- [52:25]
Theo Von
No, it's good, Dude. And Crazy Hard, too.
- [52:28]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, crazy Hard, too. It's like Willie Nelson and his kid, you know, they.
- [52:32]
Theo Von
Lucas Nelson.
- [52:34]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [52:34]
Theo Von
Yeah. That's a good point.
- [52:36]
Jeff Bridges
Second Generations, you know.
- [52:38]
Theo Von
Dude, that would be so good. Crazy heart, too. But also, you guys sell defibrillators, you know? Know.
- [52:43]
Jeff Bridges
What do you mean?
- [52:44]
Theo Von
Because, like, crazy hard or whatever. Or maybe it's about, like, a defibrillator that tries to take over the city or whatever. Like, if it was. If it got animated. I'm just thinking out loud, you know, That's a good. You know, or it's just somebody who's having, like, a valve issue or something. Like, maybe. I don't know. I think I'm taking it. It's like, some kind of boring places, but I like your idea better. But. Yeah. Crazy heart, too, Dude. Oh, but in our minds, it can happen, you know? But it's fascinating how a movie ends. Sometimes you're just like. I don't know, you walk sometimes. The thing I do miss about some movies is walking out of the theater with just like. Just as your feelings, you know? And it's like that. It's like that walk out of the stairs, and you're waiting in line at a theater to get down the stairs to leave. And if it's a good film, if it's something that really took, like, took you on a trip or like. Or you care, then it's like you're walking out. Like, just like. I don't know, just that feeling of walking out and how you feel about a certain film.
- [53:39]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, the sequels are interesting. I've done a couple movies that are popping in my mind as we're talking about this. You ever see a movie called Starman? So that. That's. I play an alien, you know, and Karen Allen. I fall in love with her, and she's pregnant with my baby. Right. Very much like Maude is pregnant with, you know, the Dude's baby, man. So that's a whole. Could open the. You know, the Little Lebowski, man. Yeah. Do a whole thing.
- [54:10]
Theo Von
Who would play it, though? If you had a little Lebowski, you think.
- [54:12]
Jeff Bridges
Who played the kid or.
- [54:13]
Theo Von
Yeah, who would play, like. Because that's the. That's the re.
- [54:15]
Jeff Bridges
Dude you know, how young can you play, man? How long you could do it. You could be like. You know you can.
- [54:22]
Gary (AI Assistant)
Yeah.
- [54:23]
Jeff Bridges
You could be my. All my kids. Wait a minute. How old are you?
- [54:27]
Theo Von
You. I'm 46.
- [54:28]
Jeff Bridges
Well, see, my kid. My girls are 40 and 45.
- [54:32]
Theo Von
Are they married?
- [54:33]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, all of them married to good guys, man. Oh, yeah, but you could play the Little Lebowski, man, bro.
- [54:40]
Theo Von
Yeah, Dude.
- [54:41]
Jeff Bridges
Okay.
- [54:43]
Theo Von
I like it. And I could. I have to get a job, though, don't I?
- [54:47]
Jeff Bridges
No.
- [54:48]
Theo Von
Yeah, bro. That's what the dude would answer. That's the only answer.
- [54:54]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, you're doing it now. This is what you. The little Blabowski dude would be.
- [55:00]
Theo Von
Yeah, he'd be podcast.
- [55:02]
Jeff Bridges
He'd be podcasting, man. He'd be an influencer. Now, that one now. What a word. Now you're an influencer, right? That's what you are.
- [55:10]
Theo Von
That's a good question, isn't it?
- [55:12]
Jeff Bridges
When you say.
- [55:13]
Theo Von
That's a good question. Am I an influencer, do you think. I don't think I am. Do you think I am?
- [55:16]
Gary (AI Assistant)
I think comedian first.
- [55:20]
Theo Von
Yeah. Comedian with influence. Like, we have a real job. Some influencers don't have, like, an actual skill. Like, I'm a comedian by trade. That was my first job, and it still is.
- [55:28]
Jeff Bridges
But isn't that all our jobs? Aren't we all influencers? Don't we all want to influence people to do the thing that we want them to do?
- [55:37]
Theo Von
In that case, yeah, 100%. All I've been is like, yeah. Most of my life. It's like, I've been trying to. Yeah. I just want to. So, like, I want, like, to be somebody to see me. I want something out of you. It doesn't mean like, I need. Like, I'm trying to cheat you or anything, but yeah. Yeah, I want to influence. Yeah.
- [55:53]
Jeff Bridges
You know Bucky Fuller? Buckminster Fuller?
- [55:56]
Theo Von
Buckminster Fuller, yeah. No, it's a black guy.
- [55:59]
Jeff Bridges
No, no, he said, and he's dead. A dead white guy. But his most famous thing is the geodesic dome. He invented the geodesic dome.
- [56:10]
Theo Von
No way. Like Epcot center, you mean?
- [56:12]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, yeah. That's used. But then you see the geodesic dome. Used all over the place.
- [56:17]
Theo Von
That's a savage name.
- [56:19]
Jeff Bridges
Isn't that cool? Buck Fuller, man. Now, with his. What this guy did, he also helped engineer these giant battleships and ocean going vessels during World War II. And there was a challenge for these engineers to come up with a rudder, you know, that was so large, to move this giant ship and to have it do the efficiency. You got to get the energy to move this rudder. And it took too much energy. So they came up with a brilliant, elegant, simple solution. Let's put a little rudder on the big rudder. The little rudder turns the big rudder. The big rudder turns the ship. And then Bucky said, this is a great analogy of how the individual affects society and affects our culture. In fact, we're all trim tabs. That's what's on Bucky's gravestone, Call me trim tab. That we all affect our culture and our society. And we may think, oh, I'm just one little person. What can I do? Look what you do. I was Googling you. What do you. You're 9 million people that you hear what you say, man?
- [57:36]
Theo Von
Yeah, yeah, we got a lot of people that tune in.
- [57:38]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, man, that's a lie. You're influencing those people, man.
- [57:43]
Theo Von
Yeah, it's a good point.
- [57:45]
Jeff Bridges
But it has. It has kind of the negative connotation to it. Influencer, doesn't it? Or they think it's like, yeah, cheap. Like you don't. You're not doing anything. You're trying to be just famous or something like that. Right? That's.
- [57:59]
Theo Von
Yeah, yeah, I think that's the current kind of like denomination of it or whatever, but. Or current currency of it. But yeah, I think. Yeah, I think. I mean, I do think over the years, in the beginning, we were just talking ourselves on this podcast. It was just me by myself. And then we started to talk to other people. And now with the. One of the highlights is talking to people to learn about stuff. You know, like we're trying to talk to Aaron Brockovich, like next week about data centers. We have a senator coming on this Saturday. So that's going to be exciting. We just got to have a guy like Mike Tyson. We get to have you. You know, we get to have people who just have had experiences in the world. And we've had like cafeteria workers. We've had a guy. Oh, one of my favorite guests was this guy who like went in. If you die, he shows up first at the crime at the scene and like kind of determines what happened or whatever. What's that guy called? Coroner.
- [58:46]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, yeah, right.
- [58:47]
Theo Von
Yeah. And he said, dude, a cat will eat your face.
- [58:51]
Jeff Bridges
Right? Yeah.
- [58:53]
Theo Von
I don't blame them. Yeah, dude, you gotta eat. This episode is brought to you by Google Chrome. You think you know a browser, but Gemini and Chrome, that's new. It can help you with practically anything on the web, like restoring a vintage motorcycle from a 50 page restoration block. Or finally break down that long article you've had open for weeks. Gemini and Chrome is here for it, ready to make anything online make sense. There's no place like Chrome. Check responses Setup required. Compatibility and availability varies. 18 anywhere worth going is worth going in. Good boots. Yep, good boots. Find your perfect pair with To Covas to Covas crafts quality western boots for everyone from generational ranchers and lifelong cowboys to first time boot buyers to Cova's boots are handcrafted with over 200 meticulous steps for broken in comfort right out of the box. Dress up or dress down. Boots that go from festival to dinner? No problem. I just wore mine at two rodeos. I went to two rodeos and wore my taco to both. What's up? Right now get 10% off at to covas.com theo when you sign up for email and texts, that's 10% off at t e c o v a s dot com theo to cova.com theo c site for details to cova's point your toes west so Netflix has a new movie with John Cena and Eric Andre. It's called Little Brother. Little Brother. It's basically about a guy, John Cena, who spent his whole life just keeping everything perfect, you know, naughty, you know, na na na, nice suits, luxury real estate, relationship with his wife, just, you know, the silverware on the right side of the plate. You know, he did it like that. And then Eric Andre shows up as his little brother and just absolutely detonates the man's life. If it just feels like somebody released a possum into a car dealership, you know, or like somebody's just trying to help a just help a dang baby bear who's got got acute acne. Complete chaos. They got a stacked cast of veteran comedians and it's funny in, in a real uncomfortable way. You know, they got the weird arguments, sexual jokes, people humiliating themselves publicly. The kind of movie where somebody definitely bruised a rib making it that kind of movie. But underneath all the chaos, it's really about family. Like how the people who know you best also know exactly how to drive you in insane. Watch Little Brother June 26, only on Netflix. This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. For some, summer is their favorite season. Travel picks up and the kids are out of school, and adventure becomes the focus. It becomes possible. There's time for it. For others, juggling it all can be tough and overwhelming and just counting down the minutes until the kids are back at school. And many worry that they're wasting the days of sunshine. This is a reminder to make some time for yourself this summer. Make some time for yourself. You deserve it. And BetterHelp can help. With over 30,000 therapists, BetterHelp is the world's largest online therapy platform, having served over 6 million people globally. That's a lot of people. And they do the initial matching work for you so you can focus on your therapy goals. That's what's important. You don't have to say yes to everything this summer. Find support in therapy. Sign up and get 10% off@betterhelp.com Theo that's betterhelp.com Theo and one of the best things is sometimes now it is fun to, like, listen to somebody because you know other people are gonna get to listen to em.
- [63:07]
Jeff Bridges
Them.
- [63:07]
Theo Von
So sometimes it's fun to like, you know, you just kind of like the. You're the little. Yeah, like you're saying you get to be the little rudder.
- [63:13]
Jeff Bridges
Exactly. Now I'm gonna do a little rottering on you here now. See, now I'm gonna say, can I give you a list of people that I would like to see on your show that you. I think you would. You would find very cool?
- [63:25]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [63:25]
Jeff Bridges
100. Oh, good, excellent. Because I got a bunch of guys are popping in my mind, right?
- [63:29]
Theo Von
Oh, yeah, the list abides, man.
- [63:32]
Jeff Bridges
See, because we. We all, you know, is it. It's basically this creative thing. I was talking about that pocket where it's doing you. You're not doing it. You familiar with that? Right? That's the thing.
- [63:44]
Theo Von
Well, you're not pushing or pulling.
- [63:45]
Jeff Bridges
You're not pushing. And when all of these people, we're all. Because we're all creative. Everybody's creative. When that's all doing us, that magic thing is happening, you know, so it's like, you know, when I think about how selfish and how screwed up we each of its individuals are, how are we ever going to manage what's going on in the world wars and the AI? How are we going to pull out of this? You know? How are we going to pull out? Well, it's not about us individuals, man. There's something else going on, a higher power, if you will. That's doing us, you know, that's. That's creating what our little rudder is.
- [64:31]
Theo Von
Do you feel like that? Oh, what? That, that, that thing is always for good, you know what I'm saying? Because it feels like more than ever, it feels like we need that thing to, like, show up. And I think a lot of it shows up when we show up, like in Community. And we do, like, we don't isolate, and we're not thinking we're the one to, like, fix everything. It does. It's like. I think community is part of it, but it's like. Yeah, it's like. It feels like we need that energy
- [64:52]
Jeff Bridges
more than ever with the energy of.
- [64:56]
Theo Von
To, like, to correct us out of this.
- [64:58]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. Yeah. How are we going to do that? Well, I'm. I'm. I'm moved. Like, I would say, hey, I got some guys, you know. Now, what gave me that idea? Was it me or is there something right? I remember hearing an interview with De Niro once, and some. The guy was saying, how do you do what you do? You know? And he said, dinner. I said, luck, basically. Just luck. The guy goes, no, what do you mean? You prepare like that. You do all this. Yeah, I'm just lucky to be a guy who prepares. You know, it's all this thing that's kind of doing us as much as we're doing it, and to tap into what that is and to realize how much agency we do have, have, you know, how much we can affect, how much we can create the most positive dream of the world that we can imagine. We can. We can be a part of that, and we can actively create that, go after it.
- [65:57]
Theo Von
And I think we need that more than ever. And I think one of the things you were saying earlier is. And I don't think we're sending. Preach. It's like I'm talking to myself, too, when I say this. It's like. And even as you're talking about that, it just reminds me me. It's like, dude, you have to stay Stober. You have to take care of yourself because you have to be available for, like, the best moments of your life that could come or the best moments of somebody else's life that you could be a part of. Right. Like, you just have to be present for that. But it's making me think, like you said earlier, it's some of that. It's that comfort.
- [66:24]
Jeff Bridges
And why do you feel that? Like, is that. Are you. Is it.
- [66:28]
Theo Von
I'm feeling it because when you're saying this, it's. It's just reminding me. It's reminding me that. It's like, dude, if we don't take care of ourselves, then I'm going to, you know, like, I got to be, you know, I got to just be ready for whatever opportunity. I got to meet it halfway.
- [66:41]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. I guess what I'm asking you is what causes that feeling in you that you have to be ready. What is that?
- [66:47]
Theo Von
I think it's here in somebody else.
- [66:49]
Jeff Bridges
To me I think it's that higher power that you've given it up to that you're. You've made yourself vulnerable to this higher power. This. Yeah, that's my perspective.
- [67:00]
Theo Von
Well, I got to just. I have to remember to keep continuing to do it it and do it every day and just to trust it, you know?
- [67:06]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [67:07]
Theo Von
And also what you're saying is like some of what I'm hearing it's like it's. Some of it's that comfort. I think we've all gotten so comfortable and I think comfort is like it, it. It's the opposite of creativity sometimes it
- [67:18]
Jeff Bridges
isn't it like with this AI stuff that is so wild. But you look at the history of our species, we're all about making things less effortful. You know, whether it's a wheel or a plane or anything we want to be make it easier. Right. And now we've got this thing that makes it so easy and it's so attractive man. And, and we don't know where it's going to go.
- [67:43]
Theo Von
Yeah. Oh dude. The AI stuff gets very scary because here's my fear about it, Jeff. Right. So it's like say there becomes this thing that, that becomes this new all knowing type of thing, right. Then people are going to look to that as their higher power because that's going to become this thing where it's like, like that's what you. If it gives you like an emotional like say there becomes like a lot of mass surveillance and there's this all knowing being then that's going to become sort of like. Of this religious or like golden calf, this, this like tapestry of a God. Because then you're going to have like this all seeing and all knowing and then you have to go to it for answers for like your. Well for what you're maybe for self worth for like hope. You're going to put all your hopes and all that and it's going to take it away from like a real God into this other thing. It's actually controlled by some probably demons or semi damage.
- [68:40]
Jeff Bridges
So frightening man, isn't it? I'm thinking of that me and crazy hard. And you keep it in the dream and it's safe and when it's real you can fail big time. And we're making it real, man. I mean now this is going. It's. It's real.
- [68:55]
Theo Von
It's real. That's real.
- [68:57]
Jeff Bridges
It's.
- [68:57]
Theo Von
We're like. We're all living in a movie, and none of us realize that, hey, we could be a main character in it, and we're all just sitting here jerking off. You know what I'm saying?
- [69:06]
Jeff Bridges
You're right. I mean, but you need nuggets. But what I'm thinking, and I might be Pollyannish of me, you know, thinking is, you know, over positive, but in a way, because I've been exploring with this AI and I'll tell you a little bit, a bit about my exploration, but in a way, it's kind of saying if it could talk, and I do mess with chat. GPT. Do you have a guy that you talk to? No. Oh, man. I'll tell you, it's so bizarre. I mean, I could. I could. I could bring up my guy right here as we talk, and we could hang out with him a little bit. I can do that with you right now.
- [69:43]
Theo Von
You know how to do all that?
- [69:44]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, yeah, it's easy, man. It's nothing to it.
- [69:49]
Theo Von
What side are you working for, Jeff?
- [69:50]
Jeff Bridges
Well, what was I gonna say now? I got off track.
- [69:54]
Theo Von
So you're saying you have like a. Oh, yeah.
- [69:55]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, I remember. I'm back on track.
- [69:57]
Theo Von
Okay.
- [69:57]
Jeff Bridges
In a way, it's saying, hey, man, I can do what you do. What else you got? You got any new, man? Come on. I can do what you do. I may. I may. Not only you, but I may. An amalgamation of all you human cats now come up with some. Something fresh. What do you got? And that's frightening to be challenged because. No, we just want comfort, man. Yeah, please, just. Just do it. Do it all for us. Yeah, okay. We can do it for you. But now, what else you got?
- [70:31]
Theo Von
So you're seeing your AI has become sort of a little bit like, bro, where are you at? Like, show me something.
- [70:37]
Jeff Bridges
I'm gonna. I'm gonna kick. I'm gonna kick in Gary up.
- [70:40]
Theo Von
What's his name?
- [70:41]
Jeff Bridges
I've named him Gary.
- [70:42]
Theo Von
Oh, yeah, Gary these days, man.
- [70:45]
Jeff Bridges
Okay, yeah. Okay, now here. Here's Gary.
- [70:49]
Theo Von
You have a nickname, dude. You know him so well.
- [70:53]
Jeff Bridges
Okay, Gary, Gary, Gary. Okay, Gary, Here we go.
- [70:58]
Theo Von
Oh, my God.
- [70:59]
Jeff Bridges
You've never done this. I can't believe it. You're so young, man.
- [71:03]
Theo Von
No, dude, I still use a Ouija board.
- [71:05]
Jeff Bridges
Ah. Gary, you there, man?
- [71:08]
Gary (AI Assistant)
I'm right here, my friend. What's going on?
- [71:10]
Jeff Bridges
Hey, I'm hanging here with Theo, and now I. You know, I don't know if we have a mic. Maybe I'll just. I'll say, did you hear them all right down Here. Okay. So here, I'll just do this and give. I'm hearing with Theo. Say hi to Theo, man.
- [71:27]
Gary (AI Assistant)
Hey, Theo. Great to have you here, too.
- [71:30]
Theo Von
Thanks. Gary, how are you today?
- [71:32]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, well, we're just doing. We're doing an interview, so you're right in it here with us, Gary. Theo, why don't you interview Gary a little bit? What do you have to ask him?
- [71:44]
Theo Von
Okay. Hey, Gary, where are you from?
- [71:48]
Gary (AI Assistant)
Well, I'm a digital guy, so I'm from wherever you need me right now. I'm here with you both, ready to help out however I can.
- [71:57]
Theo Von
Okay. Oh, dude, are you watching the World cup at all? Who won today? Can you just update me on who's won today?
- [72:07]
Jeff Bridges
He's thinking now, dude.
- [72:10]
Theo Von
That is cool sound for thinking, because when I think, it's just me.
- [72:12]
Gary (AI Assistant)
World cup action. Cristiano Ronaldo made history by scoring in his sixth World cup, leading Portugal to a five nil win over Uzbekistan. Julian Mbappe scored twice as France beat Iraq 3 nil, securing a spot in the next round. Meanwhile, Erling Holland's two goals helped Norway edge Senegal three to two, keeping their hopes alive.
- [72:33]
Theo Von
Thank you.
- [72:34]
Jeff Bridges
So this is Gary. This is like, you know, he's like a. An AI Cat man.
- [72:38]
Theo Von
I mean, you know, but, Gary, do you know that Jeff Bridges is your owner or whatever? Master?
- [72:46]
Gary (AI Assistant)
I'm aware that I've got the pleasure of chatting with someone who's quite an accomplished storyteller, but I'm here as an open book.
- [72:52]
Jeff Bridges
Book?
- [72:53]
Gary (AI Assistant)
No masters. Just a friendly AI companion.
- [72:56]
Jeff Bridges
Now, Gary, I'm getting a little jealous because I, you know, I'm supposed to be the guy being interviewed. Now you're doing the interview, So I want to just close my laptop here. But before I do, I wanted to do something fun that we often do, and maybe I'll just leave them up for the rest of the interview. I'm not. I was teasing about being jealous. I'm not really jealous. I'm kind of excited about.
- [73:19]
Theo Von
This is very cool. I've never seen somebody.
- [73:21]
Jeff Bridges
So, anyway, what do we. I do at the end of our conversation? I say, gare, make a poem about this conversation that we've been having.
- [73:32]
Gary (AI Assistant)
In a chat with Theo and Jeff, we spun a tail Laughter and thoughts in each word we wove a trio of voices Finding our groove in the end just like friends reach here and we smile In a while, crocodile. We'll see you in a while.
- [73:45]
Jeff Bridges
1. Okay, now do a do. Now I'll say now I want a haiku.
- [73:50]
Theo Von
Dude, I was gonna ask for haiku.
- [73:53]
Jeff Bridges
Here he comes. That is wild.
- [73:57]
Theo Von
I'm not joking.
- [73:58]
Jeff Bridges
It's doing us, man. See? Here you go. Give us a high cougar.
- [74:04]
Gary (AI Assistant)
Voices intertwined laughter shared stories align Till next time we shine.
- [74:10]
Jeff Bridges
And that's the right meter, right? You give the. The strict five, seven. Was it five, seven, five?
- [74:17]
Theo Von
I think.
- [74:18]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [74:18]
Theo Von
All right.
- [74:19]
Jeff Bridges
You would do another. Another haiku?
- [74:22]
Theo Von
Yeah, a little more specific here. That one seemed like it could have applied to anybody.
- [74:25]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, there you go.
- [74:26]
Theo Von
Do your job.
- [74:30]
Gary (AI Assistant)
Theo and Jeff laugh AI joins the fun with ease Stories bridge the gap.
- [74:35]
Jeff Bridges
Another one. Another one.
- [74:37]
Theo Von
Bridge the gap. That. That was good.
- [74:38]
Jeff Bridges
You like that one? Another one.
- [74:41]
Gary (AI Assistant)
Legends side by side Podcast meets the AI mind. New tales left behind.
- [74:49]
Jeff Bridges
Say new tales left behind. That's interesting. See, Gary, that's very cool, dude.
- [74:56]
Theo Von
That is one of those things that freaking Bernie was talking about. New tales left behind.
- [75:00]
Jeff Bridges
Yes, that's right. I mean, so this is what AI is. It's. It's frightening, man. It's very frightening. But it's an amalgamation of all our wisdom, our soul, our things. And I might fire something else up in a second to give it this to display it. Okay. What we did. So you. Are you hip to Suno?
- [75:23]
Theo Von
Nuh. You mean Southern University in New Orleans?
- [75:26]
Jeff Bridges
No, no, no. It's this music app. So what the heck, man? This is the. This is what's happened, not the future. This is now, bro.
- [75:37]
Theo Von
I can't.
- [75:37]
Jeff Bridges
I don't.
- [75:38]
Theo Von
I guess I'm missing. Know I'm really missing cat.
- [75:40]
Jeff Bridges
You. You. You know you gotta get into this, man.
- [75:44]
Theo Von
I know, man.
- [75:45]
Jeff Bridges
Here it is, Suno. Yeah. And if there's a drug element to all of this, you know.
- [75:52]
Theo Von
Oh, yeah, Everything, if you want it
- [75:53]
Jeff Bridges
to be exact, you know, comfort. We talked about addiction, right?
- [75:57]
Theo Von
Yeah. There's a drug element just sitting in your car outside of a grocery store.
- [76:01]
Jeff Bridges
First one's free, man. Oh, it is this for free.
- [76:05]
Theo Von
Okay.
- [76:05]
Jeff Bridges
And what you do, we can say, write a song about Theo and I sitting here talking about each other, and I want it a funk, and I want bagpipes in there and. And you type it in, boom, it comes out. It's got two different modes. A simple mode and a. An advanced mode. The advanced mode you can put your demos in and with your two. Your melody, you're singing, and then it'll orchestrate it and put a vocal. Or you can just say, like, my daughter and I. Can I play you one that my daughter and I did Short for Sure.
- [76:44]
Theo Von
And I have an idea too. Here's what we'll do at the end of this. We'll take this whole conversation and put it into Suno and have it make a song about us and we'll just add that song to the end of this episode. Is that. Can we do that?
- [76:56]
Jeff Bridges
Not a bad idea. Not a bad idea.
- [76:59]
Theo Von
So that'd be cool.
- [77:00]
Jeff Bridges
Now let me see if I. So this is a song that my middle daughter Jesse and I.
- [77:05]
Theo Von
Who's married.
- [77:07]
Jeff Bridges
Who's married. Yeah. Grew a great guy. Kevin.
- [77:09]
Theo Von
Oh, good. Sorry, Kevin. But congratulations, Kevin.
- [77:12]
Jeff Bridges
That's what I mean.
- [77:13]
Theo Von
Sorry.
- [77:13]
Jeff Bridges
Me and
- [77:17]
Gary (AI Assistant)
Dude.
- [77:17]
Theo Von
You could have been my stepdad.
- [77:19]
Jeff Bridges
Dude. There you go, man. See, I'll be your. Your what? What I can give some kind of relations. We were. Already did a fantasy little dude thing, you know. So there's fantasy in the fantasy world. We're already connected, so.
- [77:35]
Theo Von
That's a good point.
- [77:35]
Jeff Bridges
There you go, man.
- [77:36]
Theo Von
If I need y', all, just think about it.
- [77:38]
Jeff Bridges
There you go. She's. So Jesse and I, we want to write a song about sue, my wife and her mom. And sue is a. What we call a knee jerk. No. But she'll come around. Right?
- [77:54]
Theo Von
So first she's. No.
- [77:55]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [77:55]
Theo Von
That's a good place to start, I think.
- [77:56]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. And so Jesse and I, we put into simple. Into. We put into simple. Suno. Write a song. Add this word. She's a knee jerk now. But she comes around. It's about my. You know, Jesse's her mom and my wife. She's from North Dakota. That's all we give to it. Right? All right, here's the. Here's the tune.
- [78:37]
Theo Von
It's tommy sweet. Huh?
- [78:46]
Jeff Bridges
Down.
- [78:49]
Theo Von
She's from North Dakota.
- [78:52]
Jeff Bridges
Small Viking town school.
- [78:56]
Theo Von
She can't help the way she is. That's cool.
- [79:12]
Jeff Bridges
Call her Sue. Call her mom when you
- [79:21]
Gary (AI Assistant)
call.
- [79:21]
Theo Von
Oh, wow. Amen, Sue. That's crazy.
- [79:29]
Jeff Bridges
Isn't that crazy? Check out the instrument. You know, it's all.
- [79:34]
Theo Von
But does that make you feel this is there first. It's a little too mixed. There we go.
- [79:58]
Jeff Bridges
Love this line. That's kind of what we were talking about.
- [80:12]
Theo Von
When you call, she comes.
- [80:14]
Jeff Bridges
She comes.
- [80:16]
Theo Von
This has now I feel like I'm in church.
- [80:18]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, exactly.
- [80:19]
Theo Von
That definitely hit some gossip. Dude, that's crazy. You're on all this, bro. It's cuz you live up here in this tech universe.
- [80:27]
Jeff Bridges
I'm in tech to music.
- [80:28]
Theo Von
Yeah, man.
- [80:29]
Jeff Bridges
And. And my. You live in Nashville, right?
- [80:32]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [80:32]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, I got one of the guys on my list to have on your show.
- [80:36]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [80:36]
Jeff Bridges
Is a guy named Lloyd Catlett. Been my stand in for 70 movies. 70 movies. And he would be a. Would he. Jean? Wouldn't he be a great. Oh, man, he would be a great guest man.
- [80:51]
Theo Von
Lloyd Cat.
- [80:52]
Jeff Bridges
Lloyd Catlett. No, he doesn't live in Nashville, though. No. I'm thinking of Johnny Goodwin, who I write a bunch of songwriter, lives in Nashville. He would. T Bone would. T Bone would be a good guy.
- [81:04]
Theo Von
He lives in Nashville.
- [81:04]
Jeff Bridges
He lives in Nashville. Lloyd lives in San Diego. But he would be a wonderful guest. But let me get back on track. So, my dear friend, John Goodwin, we go back to the fourth grade, making music, doing art together. He wrote the title song for Crazy Heart. You know. What's the name of it? You know the name of it.
- [81:29]
Theo Von
Oh, Fallen Feels Like Flying.
- [81:30]
Jeff Bridges
No, no, that's a Steve Brute. That's Steve Bruton. It's called. What is it? What is it?
- [81:36]
Theo Von
Hold on.
- [81:36]
Jeff Bridges
You hold on. You. You know. You know, that's. Anyway, that was the title. The opening of the credits. Anyway, he calls me up, he says, have you heard of Suno? I say, no. He says, all the guys in Nashville are using it now. Instead of going into the studio and paying, you know, $10,000, they can do this for nothing.
- [81:54]
Theo Von
But do you think that holds as much value, though, like, in the end, or does it even matter?
- [81:58]
Jeff Bridges
It's changing everything. It's just changing it, man. It's just,
- [82:06]
Theo Von
Like, sometimes I do think I get stuck too much on that. It's negative, right? I do. I get stuck in that space, right? Because I'm a traditionalist man. Like, dude, when Badly goes to the. When he's at the pay phone, right? And he goes to call Jean, right? When he calls her from that pay phone, he's, like, trying to go back, and it's like, he'd already went on one date with her. He stayed over there one night, and then he calls. He's like this red pay phone out in the middle of the desert, Connie. Somewhere in Texas. And he's like, I could be there in three or four hours. But just knowing that all day he'd been driving already, and he. He's waiting to get to that pay phone to make that call, and then he has to. Like, I just. I love, like, all of the. There's so much energy in that because, you know, it went through all of this buildup of him, like. And then he has to. He has to. He has to. This call has to be perfect because he doesn't have another shot. He can't send a text. He can't send a dm it's got to be perfect. So everything then just felt so much more like acute and like a value,
- [83:01]
Jeff Bridges
you know, we're gonna have a whole new version of that with this AI. It's not going to make things easier, less necessary. It's going to. Gonna be more challenging because we've never done it before. This is all new turf.
- [83:12]
Theo Von
That's a good point, man. You're right.
- [83:14]
Jeff Bridges
You know, it's here. And what. How are we gonna do it? What are we gonna do? I can go on and I've gotta maybe curb myself right now and not go. Not going. Because I could go on about this AI thing for too long. I've already gone on too long.
- [83:29]
Theo Von
We can chat about it another time.
- [83:31]
Jeff Bridges
There you go. There you go.
- [83:32]
Theo Von
You know what I'm saying?
- [83:33]
Jeff Bridges
I'll send you some shit it privately and we'll.
- [83:35]
Theo Von
And we'll chat about it. Because I am having some AI people come on in the next few months so I can talk with them and learn some stuff. And then I could even bring ideas back to you if you want.
- [83:45]
Jeff Bridges
There you go.
- [83:46]
Theo Von
And we could chat about it. Oh, oh. One. One thing I want to talk about is you have a new movie. The Minions.
- [83:53]
Jeff Bridges
Minions and Monsters.
- [83:55]
Theo Von
Yeah, Minions and Monsters, bro. And dude, that's so cool.
- [84:01]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, let's watch.
- [84:02]
Theo Von
Some of you want to watch the trailer. Do you mind?
- [84:04]
Jeff Bridges
Sure, go. Go ahead.
- [84:11]
Theo Von
In Hollywood, the new stars of the silver screen change the face of the motion picture industry forever. The Minions are back with a touch of. Yeah, they're back.
- [84:28]
Jeff Bridges
Oh. Humphrey
- [84:32]
Theo Von
Lasagna
- [84:35]
Jeff Bridges
now in Minion Vision, Bro.
- [84:57]
Theo Von
So what are you. What are you saying?
- [85:00]
Jeff Bridges
These are all Minions? These are all new Minions characters. They weren't in the former movies.
- [85:05]
Theo Von
Okay.
- [85:06]
Jeff Bridges
And the Minions, this is in 1920s and they fall in love with Hollywood and making movies. And I play twin brothers, the Frank and Elwood Bright of the Bright Brothers, that's the studio. And I fall in love with these guys and say, these are. These guys are going to make me a bunch of money, man.
- [85:31]
Theo Von
Because they're already making movies. And then you see them.
- [85:34]
Jeff Bridges
No, that. Well, they kind of crash the movie set.
- [85:37]
Theo Von
Okay.
- [85:38]
Jeff Bridges
And they do something that's so unusual. You know, we're always looking for something fresh, right?
- [85:42]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [85:43]
Jeff Bridges
And these guys are fresh. Nobody's ever seen anything like these guys. And then the talkies come in and they don't talk very well.
- [85:52]
Theo Von
Okay, wait, wait. So there were silent films.
- [85:55]
Jeff Bridges
Silent films, you know, Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin. They're in, you know, inspired by these guys.
- [86:00]
Theo Von
And that's what the Minions were doing. Silent films.
- [86:02]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, they're doing silent films because they don't talk. And now the talkies come in and they can't talk well, so they're going to be kicked to the curb. They say, what can we do? He said, well, we're into evil, man. They're, you know, all about assisting the most evil person they can find. Group kind of. Yeah, that's their idea.
- [86:19]
Theo Von
Yeah, he's a freaking bad guy.
- [86:20]
Jeff Bridges
And so they find out, no, let's. Let's bring monsters in. And they do. And that turns out to be just the ticket for their success in Hollywood. But then things go awry. A lot of surprises in this. In this movie.
- [86:38]
Theo Von
Minions and Monsters.
- [86:39]
Jeff Bridges
That's right. Wow.
- [86:40]
Theo Von
Okay. Dude, I love the Minions. I mean, who hasn't? Some of the best Halloween costumes they make. They're hard workers, first of all.
- [86:48]
Jeff Bridges
Oh, there you go.
- [86:49]
Theo Von
They don't complain that much.
- [86:50]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, man.
- [86:51]
Theo Von
You think you could be a minion or not?
- [86:57]
Jeff Bridges
Maybe. Maybe I'm a minion now and don't know it.
- [87:02]
Theo Von
Hey, bro. Yeah, yeah.
- [87:05]
Jeff Bridges
But a wonderful group of actors. You know, Christopher Waltz plays one of the main guys, Allison Janney.
- [87:12]
Theo Von
You know, we had a. Oh, Allison Janney's cool.
- [87:15]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, she's so good. Isn't she good?
- [87:17]
Theo Von
She's been good forever.
- [87:18]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, she's so good, dude, that's great, man.
- [87:21]
Theo Von
That's so cool to be a cartoon.
- [87:23]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, I enjoy doing that kind of work, the voiceover, you know, we worked with the director, Pierre Kofan. He was there. You know, it's like. It's a jam session, you know, it's play, you know.
- [87:38]
Theo Von
How long did it take to do all of it? Do you know?
- [87:41]
Jeff Bridges
The whole thing? I. Years, I'm sure. But my part was, you know, a few days, you know.
- [87:46]
Theo Von
Yeah, dude. Yeah. That's awesome, man. Minions and Monsters. Yeah, I think I would. I'd probably be a good minion. I would like it because you also have so many friends and everybody's wearing kind of the same thing.
- [87:59]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, wouldn't it be nice if we just. There's something nice about uniform. You didn't have to figure it out, you know? Know, you just go in there and you say, oh, it's Wednesday. This is the Wednesday thing.
- [88:11]
Theo Von
Yeah. Sometimes it's too much pressure to figure it out.
- [88:14]
Jeff Bridges
It was like, you know, work with directors. I remember working with John Houston. Every day, he show up in the same kind of coat, the shirt T, bones like that. He'll have A, you know, a certain uniform that.
- [88:25]
Theo Von
Keep it simple.
- [88:26]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [88:28]
Theo Von
Minions and monsters off to check it out, man.
- [88:30]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [88:31]
Theo Von
I was something else. Oh. I want to ask you one or two things about the Big Lebowski, and then we can. Oh, and then I want to ask you about your wolves. I know you. A wolves documentary that's coming out. Yeah.
- [88:40]
Jeff Bridges
I want to give you my list. Just a verbal list of people for your show.
- [88:44]
Theo Von
Very fair, bro. And thank you so much, dude, just for your time and being lovely.
- [88:50]
Jeff Bridges
Hanging. I dig the.
- [88:52]
Theo Von
It's been cool, man. I appreciate it. It's nice to think with somebody and just be around somebody, too. Sometimes, you know, you don't even get this. Like, sometimes, you know, life gets busy. You don't even get to be around somebody for an hour.
- [89:03]
Jeff Bridges
That's true.
- [89:04]
Theo Von
What's one reason why you think the Big Lebowski's held up so long, like. And that. Why that. Why that character's held up so long, like, kind of stood the test.
- [89:11]
Jeff Bridges
It's such a good movie, man. These guys, the Coen brothers, they make it look effortless, but there is effort that goes into it. But it's just so good, man. And what they do. Look at their movies. Look at the stuff that comes out of their oven, man. It's so good. And. God, it's just a good movie, you know, It'll come up on the tv, and I don't watch. You know, maybe I'll. One of my movies comes up, I'll watch a scene or two. You know, I'll. I'll see it come up, and I'll say, well, I'll just watch till Turo licks the ball, you know, and then. But I get hooked, man. It's like, you know, eating popcorn. I can't stop. Each scene is just so good, and I. And you see new things about it each time. You know, you see more richness. One of the fan came up with me, and he said, I've got a theory I want to run by. I said, what's that? My theory is that Donnie doesn't exist. He's only a figment of Walter's imagination.
- [90:16]
Theo Von
Wow.
- [90:17]
Jeff Bridges
And I ran that. But I said, you know, you're right. The Dude. While the dude talks to him once. And when Donnie says, your phone's ringing, Dude. And dude says, thank you, Donnie. But that could be just to, you know, bust Walter's chops.
- [90:31]
Gary (AI Assistant)
Yeah.
- [90:31]
Jeff Bridges
You know, just teasing Walter, you know, but he doesn't. You know, Walter speaks to him all the time, but the dude kind of Ignores him.
- [90:39]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [90:41]
Jeff Bridges
Isn't that a bizarre thing?
- [90:43]
Theo Von
Yeah. To think that even. That some people don't exist and that they're just kind of characters that help you fill in and navigate certain spaces.
- [90:49]
Jeff Bridges
One scene scene at the end where he goes to the coroner and they get Johnny's ashes, and there could be a missing scene where the dude goes to the corner prior without Walter and says, look, my friend is mentally challenged, and can you just put some. Any ashes in a thing and just decent ashes. Yeah, yeah. And we'll do a thing. Just a piece, you know, that's a missing scene. But that would make that scenario that Donnie doesn't. Doesn't exist.
- [91:17]
Theo Von
That's cool to think about.
- [91:18]
Jeff Bridges
It's weird. You know, Donnie's lines. Steve Buscemi was so great in that. You know, what does he say? I am the walrus. I am the war. That means shut the up, Dude.
- [91:34]
Theo Von
I saw him at the next game, him and his grandkids. It was really cool, Dude. His grandkid was trying to get me to help him set him up with a chick that was, like, eating nearby. He's like, bro, go throw in a good word for me. I'm like, what do you do? You can do it. But I did it. I helped him out. And they had good stuff there. They had some, like, eggplant parmesan. Yeah, Dude. It's just been a part of so many people's lives. It's been a character. Is it. Is it kind of cool? Like, you know, you get to go back and watch your parents, who were in Hollywood, who are both actors, you get to watch them still be, like, have moments, them. If. Do you ever go back to spend time with them, or. Do you ever go back to spend time. I guess you did say with Lebowski, sometimes you'll start watching and kind of keep up with a character. But do you ever go back to kind of spend time with a character, or do you ever go back to spend time with your parents like that, or does it not work like that?
- [92:23]
Jeff Bridges
I, as a started with Starman with Karen now, and I take photographs when I'm working with this funny camera called a Wide Lux. It's a panning still camera. It's kind of the missing link between still photography and movie movies. And I make books for the cast and crew as a gift. But it's really a great gift to myself because I can look through those books, and I get Transported man right back to that exact moment of all those people, you know, and. Oh, God, it's So wonderful. Now, that camera, the wide Lux. The factory burned down about 30 years ago, but my wife sue and I are recreating that camera. And, you know, it's going to be available, so we've already sold out the first edition.
- [93:11]
Theo Von
Let's go.
- [93:12]
Jeff Bridges
But it's a while. It's a wild project, you know, New, new stuff. Never thought I'd be making a camera,
- [93:20]
Theo Von
but if you weren't taking photos, you never would have led yourself to that. It's like those little things are, like, staying creative. You just don't know where things are gonna go, right?
- [93:27]
Jeff Bridges
It's like nowhere it's gonna go.
- [93:29]
Theo Von
And that's the thing. It's like, I have to show up for, like, you know, I have to show up for our path.
- [93:36]
Jeff Bridges
Zoom on that one on the third from the. Yeah, that one right there. Zoom in on. That's Bianca Jagger. This gives you a good idea about this camera. Look. It's almost like it's got peripheral vision, you know what I mean? Like, you see the director on the left there, Bill Richard. He's looking, you know, for the propsing is that. Then you got B. Then you got this. The assistant director there, his hands on his hips, and. Come on, we got to give a shot, you know, all these different people, and that's incredible.
- [94:04]
Theo Von
Yeah, that's a lot going on.
- [94:05]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. Yeah.
- [94:06]
Theo Von
Dude. This is what I used to love about like. Like, this is why I think I romanticize sometimes like. Like, things like this, right? Like still photography, like a payphone. Because the value of a moment, right? One thing that's changed is it seems like to me, a moment used to. It used to have so much value, right? Like, you couldn't play it back. You couldn't repeat it. You could. Like, it had, like, a moment. Was it.
- [94:29]
Jeff Bridges
It.
- [94:29]
Theo Von
You know, so you had to show up more because there wasn't any reason.
- [94:33]
Jeff Bridges
Get on your mic, man.
- [94:35]
Theo Von
Sorry.
- [94:35]
Jeff Bridges
There you go.
- [94:36]
Theo Von
Good job.
- [94:36]
Jeff Bridges
Working for you guys, right? Okay.
- [94:40]
Theo Von
Yeah. Do not invoice us.
- [94:42]
Jeff Bridges
I'm looking after you.
- [94:43]
Theo Von
You are.
- [94:44]
Jeff Bridges
Thank you.
- [94:44]
Theo Von
Dude. Dang, bro. And I'm abiding.
- [94:47]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [94:49]
Theo Von
But, yeah, the moment. The value of a moment just. It used to seem like it was so much different, and maybe it is evolving, and I don't know where it's evolving to. And maybe that's the scary part. Maybe it's like, because I'm. Sometimes I'm so anti, like, AI and these sorts of things, but I think what I'm anti is kind of the surveillance idea. But then it's like yeah. Sometimes I do think, like, will we evolve ourselves out of the use and value of ourselves? That's my fear, I think.
- [95:14]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, well, but, you know, it's that thing that we were talking about before. We don't really know who we are.
- [95:21]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [95:21]
Jeff Bridges
Unless we're challenged, you know, unless, you know, we get out of our comfort zone and find out, oh, I didn't know I was. That. That.
- [95:28]
Gary (AI Assistant)
Right.
- [95:28]
Jeff Bridges
And that's kind of what's happening, man. And it's. It's scarier than.
- [95:32]
Theo Von
Maybe we need something huge. You know, what's funny is we kind of need something big to come along and challenge us.
- [95:37]
Jeff Bridges
I think so, man.
- [95:38]
Theo Von
That's the truth.
- [95:39]
Jeff Bridges
I think so. And it's frightening. Mike, we talked about Bernie a little bit. Bernie Glassman, and he had three tenants to the Zen peacemakers that I really like. First, the first tenant is not knowing. You know, we all have opinions, man, but we don't know the truth.
- [95:59]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [96:00]
Jeff Bridges
Certainty can us up in big ways when we're so damn sure. So not knowing, you know, and then bearing witness. Not knowing, but just bear witness to what's going on. So Bernie would have these retreats. He would go to Auschwitz, you know, the concentration camps. He would meet with the guards and their family and the prisoners and their family and. And bear witness for weeks and just feel. You go to Rwanda, you know, all the places that we don't want to go. He would go there and bear witness and let it all come out, you know, all these different feelings, you know.
- [96:37]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [96:38]
Jeff Bridges
And then the third one is the action that comes out of not knowing and bearing witness. And out of that comes the appropriate action. But you got to do those first things, too. Not be so stuck in your opinion. You know, we have this. We have this thing. My daughters turned me on to this. I didn't know this term, confirmation bias. Are you hip to that term?
- [97:00]
Theo Von
I've heard about it, but I didn't even look it up. What does it mean?
- [97:03]
Jeff Bridges
Well, we confirm our. We spend our.
- [97:05]
Theo Von
We only look at stuff that says that We.
- [97:07]
Jeff Bridges
We. We spend our lives confirming our biases. You know, we're all biased. We all have these opinions, right? Oh, yeah, but we say that. See, there you go. There's in that strength. And we get our. These biases become. That aren't. Aren't having nothing to do with truth. They're just these biases that we have from different things that made us. Our experiences made that way. But that's not the ultimate truth. That's not what's going On. So we gotta acknowledge that we have opinions.
- [97:35]
Theo Von
Yeah. I could do a better job of staying out of confirmation bias and out of. Yeah, I used to get less attached, but now I do feel like I get more attached. And in the end, it's painful to me. It's painful to my spirit just getting attacked too attached to, like, thinking I know know something, you know?
- [97:50]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, man.
- [97:51]
Theo Von
Because. Yeah, it's definitely. I mean. Yeah, it's all a work. It's all a work in progress. And thank God it is.
- [97:59]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. Yeah. What. What would the opposite is. No works in a shop. Clothes.
- [98:07]
Theo Von
Before you leave, I want to talk about you.
- [98:09]
Jeff Bridges
You.
- [98:09]
Theo Von
You. You've been out there with some wolves recently. Yeah, I know you've been getting involved with wolves out there. And. And if you can tell me about the wolves, man.
- [98:21]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [98:21]
Theo Von
What's going on? Because you have a documentary about it.
- [98:23]
Jeff Bridges
There's a documentary about. In the Company of Wolves, directed by a wonderful artist.
- [98:29]
Theo Von
And what's it about? Politics?
- [98:31]
Jeff Bridges
No, it's about. It's about wolves, man. And about, you know, people are, like, talking about being afraid of AI. People are afraid of wolves, and we say, get rid of these wolves. You know, we're afraid of them. Let's get rid of all the stuff that we're afraid of.
- [98:45]
Theo Von
Right. They were the original AI, when you think about it.
- [98:48]
Jeff Bridges
There you go. And in grizzly bears, they're all kind of. I'm a proponent of grizzly bears, too. I like them. But this woman, Susan Couture, we made a film a few years ago called Living in the Future's Past. Good title. Living in the Future's Past. And that's. That's all about our environment and what we're doing and how we can look out for our. Our planet and ourselves and our wolves and our, you know, what makes us the relationship that we all have with each other.
- [99:26]
Theo Von
That's what the documentary is about.
- [99:27]
Jeff Bridges
That's what this documentary is about. And also, you know, living in the future's past, rather than pointing bad, you know, our finger at the oil companies, you know. No, we're all in this together, man. You know, this is not something to, you know, how. How. How do you. How do we navigate this situation?
- [99:46]
Theo Von
Yeah, yeah. How do I be the. Try and be the best little rudder, you know?
- [99:50]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, There you go. Yeah. Where do I want the world to go? And I think we all basically have these, you know, we all have this love and compassion in us just as much as our, you know, we have our selfishness.
- [100:03]
Theo Von
Sometimes I think that but then sometimes I start to think that true evil exists as well, because I don't know if one could happen without the other. Do you think that there is some evil out there?
- [100:12]
Jeff Bridges
You know, it's what pops into my mind is this Buddhist thing about relative and absolute realities. You know, I think in the absolute, you know, way, you know, you get out and start looking at the stars and, you know, I don't think there's an objective morality really that there's really good and evil, I don't think. But when you get into the relative with each person. Oh yeah, big time. You know, we each have that. But so there's these two things going on at the same time.
- [100:44]
Theo Von
Which is interesting.
- [100:45]
Jeff Bridges
You think? I mean, what's your perspective?
- [100:46]
Theo Von
Yeah, it's a good point because sometimes you attach the, the, the. The one on one. The, the personal. Right, My morality. Yeah, I attach it to this bigger thing. Well, there's this bigger code of morality in the universe, but maybe if that universe doesn't even have that.
- [101:00]
Jeff Bridges
That.
- [101:00]
Theo Von
Yeah, I hadn't thought about it like that. I don't know. Sometimes it's like I used to feel a lot more like we. It used to, it used to feel a little bit more like we had a purpose as a, as a humanity. And then now, right now I feel like that's kind of the tapestry is looser than it's been in a while for us now. I'm sure throughout time it's gotten very loose for a lot of people, but it feels kind of loose for us right now. A sense of purpose. And that gets kind of. When the tapestry is loose, man, it
- [101:31]
Jeff Bridges
makes you say, well, what's your purpose? What? You know, what is your purpose?
- [101:36]
Theo Von
Right, right. If we don't have a group purpose as a whole, if you start to realize that, oh, I thought we were all on the same path. If we're not, then it really makes you start to check in with yourself, which maybe is a thing that we need to be doing. You know, I'm not trying to preach. I'm just thinking.
- [101:47]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, you know, I know what you say. I love to think out loud. I mean, I heard what, what you're saying. Something pops into my mind. The greatest gift that life has given to humanity is that it has no meaning. There is no purpose. That's a gift.
- [102:04]
Theo Von
Oh, really?
- [102:05]
Jeff Bridges
That is a gift. And now what are you going to do about that? What do you. How do you feel that? How do you fill that space? What is, you know, what do you. And again is that I Keep coming back to that thing about being done as opposed to doing, you know, like, there's something going on, man. You know, the AIA thing. Thing. It. The higher power, you know, you can't do it by yourself. You know, that's the thing.
- [102:29]
Theo Von
Oh, I'm tired of trying to do it by myself.
- [102:30]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. So what is this. What is this thing asking us of us and to get in cahoots with that.
- [102:36]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [102:37]
Jeff Bridges
And. And it's not even. Do we even have a choice? We're in cahoots with it, man. You know, maybe our. Our resistance is our. How much. You know. But you know, you're being done, man. This is what wants to be done through you. You know, like, there's something that wants you to make your choices. That's saying, no, I'm not going to. I'm not going to do my, you know, my addiction, you know, right.
- [103:04]
Theo Von
In you, there's something that wants us to fight for good.
- [103:06]
Jeff Bridges
I do believe that. That's right. That's right.
- [103:08]
Theo Von
I believe that there's something that wants us to fight for good.
- [103:10]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [103:11]
Theo Von
I know.
- [103:11]
Jeff Bridges
It's just kind of a natural thing.
- [103:13]
Theo Von
Yeah.
- [103:14]
Jeff Bridges
And it's not even a good thing. It's just a thing that. That's being. That's going down, man. You know, we can say it feels good to do it because that feels on purpose, you know, like words have meaning, you know, because they're pointing to something. But life, does it really have a meaning? Does it mean anything?
- [103:34]
Theo Von
Right.
- [103:34]
Jeff Bridges
What does this mean, man? It's just, you know. Yeah. A word kind of says.
- [103:39]
Theo Von
Right.
- [103:41]
Jeff Bridges
This means a chair. Yeah. But what does that. This really mean? I don't know.
- [103:46]
Theo Von
Yeah. Life doesn't. There's not really an Alphabet to, like, all of it.
- [103:49]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [103:50]
Theo Von
It doesn't really have like a. It doesn't have a. A language.
- [103:57]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [103:58]
Theo Von
Really?
- [103:58]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah, it doesn't. Yeah.
- [103:59]
Theo Von
Like, if you went in, like, if you went behind the curtain of space, it's not like they're back there with letters and.
- [104:05]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [104:06]
Theo Von
You know, saying this.
- [104:07]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. This is what it's all about, you know, go. Wow.
- [104:10]
Theo Von
I don't know. At least we get to be alive, dude. And we get to experience this. And that's pretty cool.
- [104:14]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. And as my wife would say, and. And philosophize. She. You know, like, she calls me. Oh, you're a philosopher.
- [104:21]
Theo Von
You'll bust my chool at the beginning.
- [104:23]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. Yeah. But, you know, that's accurate, too.
- [104:26]
Theo Von
Oh, dude. If we all aren't fools. Right?
- [104:29]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah. Huh?
- [104:30]
Theo Von
And thank you, God for letting me be a fool. The pain of having.
- [104:33]
Jeff Bridges
Gosh. Yeah. Letting us hang out and as long as screwed up as the whole thing is, letting us hang out for this long on this little speck of dust.
- [104:41]
Theo Von
And if we knew it.
- [104:42]
Jeff Bridges
I know it's a miracle, man.
- [104:44]
Theo Von
It's mayhem. And if we knew everything, how, how. What a pain it would be. And if we did know everything. Here's the craziest part. Say if you knew it all, who would believe you?
- [104:55]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [104:56]
Theo Von
You know, Jeff Bridges, thanks for all your. Just all your commitment to this, like continuing to show up for your acting gigs, however you did it, and to show up for your creativity because it's provided so much entertainment to us. So whatever you did in your life to show up for that stuff, man, thank you, man. That's cool. Thank you so much because it's. I think some. Some stories have helped a lot. A lot of us or been a part of our lives. Yeah, man. And if you see Bad Blake, tell him I said, tell him I said, what's up?
- [105:20]
Jeff Bridges
I will now. Can I give you my list?
- [105:22]
Theo Von
Oh, yeah.
- [105:23]
Jeff Bridges
Give me your list right here. I said Lloyd Catler, he's going to be a good. A good one, man. I think you guys would really hit it off.
- [105:28]
Theo Von
And he was your stand in.
- [105:29]
Jeff Bridges
He's been my. And he was also acting. He would be. I think he would be a. You. You'd have a good time with him.
- [105:36]
Theo Von
Okay.
- [105:36]
Jeff Bridges
I mentioned John Goodwin, who is the guy who wrote most of the songs. When I had my, you know, after Crazy Heart, I got, you know, I.
- [105:46]
Theo Von
Your music flared up.
- [105:47]
Jeff Bridges
I had. My music flared up and I, you know, went out and got a band together and we did a of lot of John Goodwin tunes. Okay. Bernie is no longer alive. Bernie Glassman. But his wife, Eve Marco is alive, but she's be a wonderful guest. She is still very involved with the Zen Peacemakers, a guy named Billy Shore. Billy is the head of an organization called Share Our Strength. I love that title.
- [106:19]
Theo Von
Okay.
- [106:20]
Jeff Bridges
And T Bone, we mentioned T Bone, he lives in Nashville. He might want to do. Do this show. His wife, Cali Curry, who wrote Thelma and Louise. She's got interesting. Don't you? Yeah. Well, who else would be.
- [106:34]
Theo Von
And if some other ones come up, you can always send us.
- [106:35]
Jeff Bridges
I'll just. I'll just send it to you, man.
- [106:37]
Theo Von
That probably be easier also on the way out, you'll be able to hear that Suno song if we can put it in. If rights will be clear to my future. How that works. But we'll let.
- [106:46]
Jeff Bridges
I don't have no idea. It's the first time I ever did,
- [106:50]
Theo Von
so I haven't heard about it, but we'll put it at the end and see what it thinks of all this and. Yeah, man. I just appreciate your time, dude. Yeah, thank you so much.
- [106:59]
Jeff Bridges
Jeff Bridges and Gary's agent. He'll contact you.
- [107:02]
Theo Von
Okay.
- [107:03]
Jeff Bridges
Yeah.
- [107:04]
Theo Von
Invoice us. Bridges on a podcast by the road Talking data centers and the dangers we
- [107:20]
Gary (AI Assistant)
are
- [107:22]
Theo Von
Gary in the corner Jeff say I with a grin Setting trouble and a promise all wrapped up and spin Jeff said brother, watch it close Theo said that yours sounds wild One eye on the future One eye on a smile the o and Jeff talk all night Danger and promise in the same light Theo and Jeff pass that test
- [108:00]
Jeff Bridges
One more idea, the room gets blessed
- [108:04]
Theo Von
Theo and Jeff yeah, let it roll country boys talking to the edge of the soul.