1 00:00:07,839 --> 00:00:09,539 Hey, humans. How's it going? 2 00:00:09,839 --> 00:00:12,320 Susan Ruth here. Thanks for listening to another 3 00:00:12,320 --> 00:00:12,820 episode 4 00:00:13,199 --> 00:00:14,500 of Hey Human podcast. 5 00:00:15,974 --> 00:00:17,434 This is episode 423, 6 00:00:18,855 --> 00:00:21,414 and my guest is Ed Begley junior. You'd 7 00:00:21,414 --> 00:00:23,975 be hard pressed to not have seen a 8 00:00:23,975 --> 00:00:26,475 film or television show with Ed featured somewhere 9 00:00:26,535 --> 00:00:28,554 in there over the last several decades. 10 00:00:29,030 --> 00:00:31,449 His career crosses genre and format, 11 00:00:32,070 --> 00:00:32,570 and 12 00:00:33,109 --> 00:00:34,950 I just saw a movie this last weekend, 13 00:00:34,950 --> 00:00:36,710 and he was in it. And it's called 14 00:00:36,710 --> 00:00:38,710 Strange Darling. And if you have not seen 15 00:00:38,710 --> 00:00:39,370 this movie, 16 00:00:39,829 --> 00:00:42,329 I highly recommend it. It is phenomenal. 17 00:00:43,245 --> 00:00:45,664 It's not a horror movie. It's more psychological 18 00:00:45,965 --> 00:00:48,284 thriller, I I think, is the best way 19 00:00:48,284 --> 00:00:49,185 to describe it. 20 00:00:49,725 --> 00:00:51,645 And don't don't look up anything about this 21 00:00:51,645 --> 00:00:53,565 movie. Talk about a movie you have to 22 00:00:53,565 --> 00:00:55,164 go in blind or else you'll ruin it 23 00:00:55,164 --> 00:00:57,539 for yourself. I give it all my thumbs 24 00:00:57,539 --> 00:01:00,260 and toes up. It's really, really good. So, 25 00:01:00,260 --> 00:01:03,060 you know, here's Ed being an actor his 26 00:01:03,060 --> 00:01:05,380 whole life and you would think that that 27 00:01:05,380 --> 00:01:07,000 success that he's had would be 28 00:01:07,540 --> 00:01:09,620 his focus, you know, just doing the acting 29 00:01:09,620 --> 00:01:12,375 thing, but he began his passion for environmental 30 00:01:12,435 --> 00:01:12,935 activism 31 00:01:13,314 --> 00:01:16,135 really early on and never wavered there. 32 00:01:16,594 --> 00:01:18,855 He's also a civil and human rights activist 33 00:01:19,395 --> 00:01:19,895 and 34 00:01:20,674 --> 00:01:22,615 a kind of person 35 00:01:22,995 --> 00:01:25,700 who you know that saying, you know, show 36 00:01:25,700 --> 00:01:27,540 me, don't tell me? He's a show me 37 00:01:27,540 --> 00:01:29,700 guy. He shows up and he walks the 38 00:01:29,700 --> 00:01:30,200 walk 39 00:01:30,980 --> 00:01:31,480 and 40 00:01:32,180 --> 00:01:34,420 I think that's something to really admire because 41 00:01:34,420 --> 00:01:36,020 a lot of us say we're gonna do 42 00:01:36,020 --> 00:01:37,700 things and we didn't really get around to 43 00:01:37,700 --> 00:01:39,319 it. But he really lives the life. 44 00:01:40,515 --> 00:01:42,754 About a decade ago, he was diagnosed with 45 00:01:42,754 --> 00:01:43,254 Parkinson's, 46 00:01:43,715 --> 00:01:44,215 and 47 00:01:44,754 --> 00:01:47,575 he's still going strong, still staying healthy. 48 00:01:48,194 --> 00:01:49,734 He's got a good workout 49 00:01:50,114 --> 00:01:52,854 and health and wellness regime. He's so happy 50 00:01:52,915 --> 00:01:54,899 and has a beautiful family 51 00:01:55,200 --> 00:01:56,420 and just really, 52 00:01:56,799 --> 00:01:57,539 I think, 53 00:01:59,039 --> 00:02:01,039 as you know, because I'm sure you've seen 54 00:02:01,039 --> 00:02:03,599 him, again, I'd be shocked, anyone that doesn't 55 00:02:03,599 --> 00:02:05,920 know who Ed Begley Jr. Is, that, 56 00:02:06,239 --> 00:02:08,340 he radiates a kind of kindness 57 00:02:08,639 --> 00:02:08,879 and 58 00:02:09,465 --> 00:02:10,764 but it's it's almost 59 00:02:11,784 --> 00:02:13,145 I don't know. It's hard to explain. It's 60 00:02:13,145 --> 00:02:16,125 almost ethereal in a way. Almost seems beyond 61 00:02:16,185 --> 00:02:18,444 the the normal kind of human kindness because 62 00:02:19,385 --> 00:02:21,545 it's it's almost this can sound so weird, 63 00:02:21,545 --> 00:02:24,060 but he kind of he kind of glows 64 00:02:24,060 --> 00:02:24,960 in a way. 65 00:02:25,580 --> 00:02:27,740 I don't know how to explain it exactly, 66 00:02:27,740 --> 00:02:28,240 but 67 00:02:28,699 --> 00:02:30,860 I met him at a the first time 68 00:02:30,860 --> 00:02:31,680 at a book 69 00:02:32,139 --> 00:02:32,639 reading, 70 00:02:33,259 --> 00:02:33,759 and 71 00:02:34,219 --> 00:02:36,000 some mutual friends introduced 72 00:02:37,084 --> 00:02:39,324 us. My friend, Brad, his friend, Brad, introduced 73 00:02:39,324 --> 00:02:40,924 us. Brad, by the way, is the one, 74 00:02:40,924 --> 00:02:42,144 thank you, Brad, who 75 00:02:42,685 --> 00:02:44,544 got Ed to be on the show. 76 00:02:45,164 --> 00:02:47,884 And anyway, it was very, very nice. And 77 00:02:47,884 --> 00:02:48,384 then, 78 00:02:48,844 --> 00:02:51,084 gosh, maybe a year later, I was having 79 00:02:51,084 --> 00:02:51,539 lunch 80 00:02:52,099 --> 00:02:54,500 at one of my favorite places to eat 81 00:02:54,500 --> 00:02:55,479 on a Sunday, 82 00:02:56,340 --> 00:02:56,840 and 83 00:02:57,620 --> 00:02:59,859 he was there. And he was sitting and 84 00:02:59,859 --> 00:03:01,319 hanging out with his friends, 85 00:03:01,699 --> 00:03:03,639 and the cutest dog you ever saw. 86 00:03:04,025 --> 00:03:04,525 And 87 00:03:05,064 --> 00:03:06,665 I looked over, and I went, oh, that's 88 00:03:06,665 --> 00:03:08,844 Ed Begley. So I texted Brad, 89 00:03:09,224 --> 00:03:10,985 and I said, hey, your friend, Ed is 90 00:03:10,985 --> 00:03:12,985 here. And Brad, of course, being Brad, who's 91 00:03:12,985 --> 00:03:14,745 also a delightful human, said, go talk to 92 00:03:14,745 --> 00:03:16,604 him. Go talk to him. And I said, 93 00:03:16,745 --> 00:03:19,379 nope. I'm not gonna walk up to somebody 94 00:03:19,379 --> 00:03:21,780 during their meal and and disturb them. I 95 00:03:21,780 --> 00:03:24,659 think people who are famous very much should 96 00:03:24,659 --> 00:03:26,979 be left alone when they're enjoying their family 97 00:03:26,979 --> 00:03:29,060 and, you know, just let them be a 98 00:03:29,060 --> 00:03:30,840 normal regular person. But, anyway, 99 00:03:31,145 --> 00:03:33,224 Brad was pretty insistent, and then I get 100 00:03:33,224 --> 00:03:33,885 a text 101 00:03:34,504 --> 00:03:36,185 from Brad a few minutes later. He said, 102 00:03:36,185 --> 00:03:37,784 I told him you were walking over, so 103 00:03:37,784 --> 00:03:39,165 now you have to walk over. 104 00:03:39,705 --> 00:03:41,965 And I walked over, and I said hello, 105 00:03:42,025 --> 00:03:43,485 pet the dog, and 106 00:03:43,950 --> 00:03:46,030 Ed pretended like he remembered me. I'm sure 107 00:03:46,030 --> 00:03:47,710 he didn't. I mean, I met him one 108 00:03:47,710 --> 00:03:49,790 time briefly. And as kind as he is, 109 00:03:49,790 --> 00:03:51,150 it would be a lot to expect that 110 00:03:51,150 --> 00:03:53,150 he would remember me. But he was so 111 00:03:53,150 --> 00:03:54,370 gracious and so lovely. 112 00:03:54,670 --> 00:03:56,510 And he said, oh, I I understand you 113 00:03:56,510 --> 00:03:58,955 have a show, Hey Human. And I said, 114 00:03:58,955 --> 00:04:00,395 yes. And he said, well, I'd love to 115 00:04:00,395 --> 00:04:01,375 be on it. And 116 00:04:01,835 --> 00:04:04,075 there you go. That's how that happened. And 117 00:04:04,075 --> 00:04:05,835 he just so happened to have been at 118 00:04:05,835 --> 00:04:07,835 Reba's or with Reba. I guess Reba was 119 00:04:07,835 --> 00:04:10,094 at his house, Reba McEntire, the night before. 120 00:04:10,330 --> 00:04:11,930 And I had done the song for Reba, 121 00:04:11,930 --> 00:04:13,530 so I don't know. The the stars were 122 00:04:13,530 --> 00:04:15,069 aligning, and it was really good. 123 00:04:15,449 --> 00:04:15,949 And 124 00:04:16,810 --> 00:04:18,910 regardless, he could have been 125 00:04:19,449 --> 00:04:22,569 weird or or just not interested or but 126 00:04:22,569 --> 00:04:25,149 no. He was the absolute opposite, radiating 127 00:04:25,875 --> 00:04:26,375 kindness. 128 00:04:26,915 --> 00:04:29,254 Literally radiating kindness. So 129 00:04:30,355 --> 00:04:31,415 okay. Not literally. 130 00:04:31,875 --> 00:04:32,375 Figuratively 131 00:04:32,915 --> 00:04:34,055 radiating kindness. 132 00:04:35,314 --> 00:04:37,314 I'm excited for you to hear this, 133 00:04:37,714 --> 00:04:39,095 interesting life story. 134 00:04:39,395 --> 00:04:40,675 I know he's got a long way to 135 00:04:40,675 --> 00:04:41,069 go. 136 00:04:41,629 --> 00:04:43,629 And he's got a memoir out now, The 137 00:04:43,629 --> 00:04:46,029 Temple of Tranquility and Step on It, which 138 00:04:46,029 --> 00:04:48,589 I read. And it is a wild ride. 139 00:04:48,589 --> 00:04:49,089 It's 140 00:04:49,470 --> 00:04:51,629 it's really a lot of fun and so 141 00:04:51,629 --> 00:04:52,689 interesting. And 142 00:04:52,990 --> 00:04:55,310 my goodness, he has lived a life so 143 00:04:55,310 --> 00:04:55,810 far. 144 00:04:56,375 --> 00:04:56,875 Okay. 145 00:04:57,334 --> 00:05:00,295 General stuff. 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Be kind. 167 00:05:50,410 --> 00:05:51,149 Be well. 168 00:05:51,689 --> 00:05:52,430 Be love. 169 00:05:52,970 --> 00:05:54,189 And here we go. 170 00:05:55,365 --> 00:05:57,845 Ed Begley junior, welcome to Hey Human. So 171 00:05:57,845 --> 00:05:59,444 good to be here. I think I qualify. 172 00:05:59,444 --> 00:06:01,605 I'm fairly human those days. Let's see how 173 00:06:01,605 --> 00:06:04,884 I do today. Hey Human accepts all. Shout 174 00:06:04,884 --> 00:06:07,785 out to Brad for connecting us. Here. Here. 175 00:06:08,039 --> 00:06:08,539 Yeah. 176 00:06:08,839 --> 00:06:10,839 So I think a lot of people know 177 00:06:10,839 --> 00:06:13,259 your backstory, but just for the sake of 178 00:06:13,319 --> 00:06:15,479 setting the ball in motion, tell me a 179 00:06:15,479 --> 00:06:17,560 little bit about your childhood. I was born 180 00:06:17,560 --> 00:06:18,699 in Hollywood Presbyterian 181 00:06:19,000 --> 00:06:20,539 Hospital, and so that's 182 00:06:21,044 --> 00:06:23,204 kind of unique among my peers. Most people 183 00:06:23,204 --> 00:06:25,285 came from elsewhere. They came from other states 184 00:06:25,285 --> 00:06:27,845 and other parts of California or other parts 185 00:06:27,845 --> 00:06:30,004 of the city, but Hollywood is has a 186 00:06:30,004 --> 00:06:31,805 certain mystique to it. And I was born 187 00:06:31,805 --> 00:06:33,819 in right in Hollywood and I grew up 188 00:06:33,819 --> 00:06:35,580 in the valley, an area called the San 189 00:06:35,580 --> 00:06:38,379 Fernando Valley you're surely aware of. And I 190 00:06:38,379 --> 00:06:40,060 lived there most of my life. A bit 191 00:06:40,060 --> 00:06:42,060 of time back east, my dad was doing 192 00:06:42,060 --> 00:06:43,900 some stage plays. So for for a few 193 00:06:43,900 --> 00:06:46,460 years there, I was out in a town 194 00:06:46,460 --> 00:06:48,460 called Merrick out on Long Island, a very 195 00:06:48,460 --> 00:06:51,975 nice, sleepy little town, not a highfalutin place 196 00:06:51,975 --> 00:06:53,095 like Hampton. It's pretty, 197 00:06:53,895 --> 00:06:56,134 simple community, and so was our home in 198 00:06:56,134 --> 00:06:59,095 Van Nuys. Pretty simple, 1700 square foot home, 199 00:06:59,095 --> 00:06:59,595 so 200 00:06:59,895 --> 00:07:02,055 I never had a lot of grandeur growing 201 00:07:02,055 --> 00:07:02,555 up. 202 00:07:03,240 --> 00:07:05,720 With a father who was quite famous, did 203 00:07:05,720 --> 00:07:07,800 you want to follow in those footsteps right 204 00:07:07,800 --> 00:07:10,360 away, or was that just something that shaped 205 00:07:10,360 --> 00:07:12,139 you slowly over time? 206 00:07:12,680 --> 00:07:14,600 I definitely wanted to do what my dad 207 00:07:14,600 --> 00:07:16,120 did. If my dad had been a plumber, 208 00:07:16,120 --> 00:07:17,879 I'd be fitting pipe now. I'm certain of 209 00:07:17,879 --> 00:07:18,379 that. 210 00:07:18,774 --> 00:07:20,474 You know, I just I really 211 00:07:21,014 --> 00:07:21,995 idolized him, 212 00:07:22,454 --> 00:07:24,055 and there's a problem that came with that, 213 00:07:24,055 --> 00:07:25,414 though. He was so good at it. He 214 00:07:25,414 --> 00:07:27,014 made it look so easy. I thought, you 215 00:07:27,014 --> 00:07:28,774 know, I wanna do that. Get me a 216 00:07:28,774 --> 00:07:30,535 job on gun smoke. Give me a wagon 217 00:07:30,535 --> 00:07:32,615 train. I'm gonna do Perry Mason. Get me 218 00:07:32,615 --> 00:07:34,930 a series regular part. Pick up the phone 219 00:07:34,930 --> 00:07:36,330 and call for god's sake. Get me a 220 00:07:36,330 --> 00:07:36,830 job. 221 00:07:37,290 --> 00:07:38,889 And, of course, he couldn't do that. He 222 00:07:38,889 --> 00:07:40,670 didn't have the power to do that nor 223 00:07:40,810 --> 00:07:42,410 if he had done it, I wouldn't have 224 00:07:42,410 --> 00:07:44,090 appreciated, of course. He said, do you wanna 225 00:07:44,090 --> 00:07:46,009 be an actor? Go do the training and 226 00:07:46,009 --> 00:07:47,529 what have you. And I went on interviews 227 00:07:47,529 --> 00:07:50,134 somehow for a few years, had no training, 228 00:07:50,134 --> 00:07:51,995 and I never got a job, of course. 229 00:07:52,055 --> 00:07:53,654 So finally, when I started to take some 230 00:07:53,654 --> 00:07:55,814 classes, I began to work and I kinda 231 00:07:55,814 --> 00:07:57,814 learned on the job, learned by learned while 232 00:07:57,814 --> 00:07:59,495 I was doing it. Do you think you 233 00:07:59,495 --> 00:08:00,314 had a sense 234 00:08:00,694 --> 00:08:02,235 as you were moving through 235 00:08:02,610 --> 00:08:03,350 your acting 236 00:08:04,050 --> 00:08:04,550 experience 237 00:08:05,329 --> 00:08:05,829 that 238 00:08:06,689 --> 00:08:09,569 your self, your sense of self was rather 239 00:08:09,569 --> 00:08:11,029 malleable or did 240 00:08:11,810 --> 00:08:14,310 you approach it from a really grounded place? 241 00:08:15,555 --> 00:08:17,475 Not at all a grounded place. I wasn't 242 00:08:17,475 --> 00:08:19,074 very grounded at all. I had a lot 243 00:08:19,074 --> 00:08:19,574 of 244 00:08:20,355 --> 00:08:20,855 anxiety. 245 00:08:21,475 --> 00:08:23,555 Most kids did most of it fairly normal. 246 00:08:23,555 --> 00:08:25,875 Some of it kind of unusual and that 247 00:08:25,875 --> 00:08:27,875 there was some question about who my mother 248 00:08:27,875 --> 00:08:29,555 was as it turns out. Everybody in the 249 00:08:29,555 --> 00:08:30,774 neighborhood knew who 250 00:08:31,370 --> 00:08:33,370 my sister and I had for a real 251 00:08:33,370 --> 00:08:35,850 mother, who our genetic birth mother was, but 252 00:08:35,850 --> 00:08:38,669 we didn't know. And I found out unceremoniously, 253 00:08:39,610 --> 00:08:41,370 discovering the day I went to get my 254 00:08:41,370 --> 00:08:43,290 driver's license. I suddenly had my hands for 255 00:08:43,290 --> 00:08:44,830 the first time on my birth certificate, 256 00:08:45,384 --> 00:08:47,384 And so I got a big surprise that 257 00:08:47,384 --> 00:08:49,865 day. But being kind of in a victim 258 00:08:49,865 --> 00:08:52,024 mentality for years, I went, oh, poor me, 259 00:08:52,024 --> 00:08:54,024 and I decided to use that as an 260 00:08:54,024 --> 00:08:57,304 excuse to to numb myself in a number 261 00:08:57,304 --> 00:08:59,159 of ways and did that over the years 262 00:08:59,319 --> 00:09:02,039 with different substances and really did that from 263 00:09:02,039 --> 00:09:02,539 1965 264 00:09:03,480 --> 00:09:04,299 till 1960 265 00:09:04,839 --> 00:09:05,339 1979, 266 00:09:05,799 --> 00:09:07,399 actually. I did it for quite a few 267 00:09:07,399 --> 00:09:09,399 years. I read your book Thank you, by 268 00:09:09,399 --> 00:09:11,819 the way. The to the level of tranquility 269 00:09:12,424 --> 00:09:14,504 and stuff on it. Great title. Thank you. 270 00:09:14,504 --> 00:09:16,105 But I was thinking as I was reading 271 00:09:16,105 --> 00:09:17,964 it, here's this kid 272 00:09:18,584 --> 00:09:21,804 growing up in, I would consider slightly extraordinary 273 00:09:22,024 --> 00:09:24,504 circumstances because of who your dad was and 274 00:09:24,504 --> 00:09:27,144 then finding certain things out about yourself. Yes. 275 00:09:27,144 --> 00:09:27,644 But 276 00:09:28,120 --> 00:09:30,300 all the while as you're growing up there's 277 00:09:31,000 --> 00:09:31,660 this humongous 278 00:09:33,000 --> 00:09:34,059 event happening 279 00:09:34,519 --> 00:09:36,460 in parallel to your upbringing. 280 00:09:37,000 --> 00:09:39,559 How much did the Vietnam war and the 281 00:09:39,559 --> 00:09:40,940 understanding of it 282 00:09:42,154 --> 00:09:45,115 coalesce with your understanding of yourself and place 283 00:09:45,115 --> 00:09:45,855 in the world? 284 00:09:46,394 --> 00:09:47,914 It was always there. It was this for 285 00:09:47,914 --> 00:09:50,154 voting, ominous kind of thing that was happening 286 00:09:50,154 --> 00:09:51,695 to friends of mine, 287 00:09:52,154 --> 00:09:54,235 mostly, you know, sons and daughters of the 288 00:09:54,235 --> 00:09:55,134 working poor 289 00:09:55,490 --> 00:09:57,089 were going to the front lines, and I 290 00:09:57,089 --> 00:09:59,350 somehow magically my dad was a conservative 291 00:09:59,970 --> 00:10:01,970 and, but we agreed on many things. We 292 00:10:01,970 --> 00:10:03,809 did not agree about the Vietnam War, but 293 00:10:03,809 --> 00:10:06,049 somehow for his son, he found some way 294 00:10:06,049 --> 00:10:07,110 to get me a medical 295 00:10:07,569 --> 00:10:11,004 waiver. I was, classified as a partial albino, 296 00:10:11,065 --> 00:10:12,764 and I had very poor vision. 297 00:10:13,384 --> 00:10:15,065 Both things, I think, were true. I think 298 00:10:15,065 --> 00:10:17,325 there are degrees of albinos, and I certainly 299 00:10:17,545 --> 00:10:20,279 have very fair skin, so they reasoned perhaps 300 00:10:20,440 --> 00:10:21,960 correctly that I might be easier to spot 301 00:10:21,960 --> 00:10:23,480 in the jungle. You know, there's no good 302 00:10:23,480 --> 00:10:26,120 sunscreen back then other than the silver thing 303 00:10:26,120 --> 00:10:27,100 you put on called 304 00:10:27,480 --> 00:10:29,480 Afill, and I'd be like the tin man 305 00:10:29,480 --> 00:10:31,399 trying to hide in the in the shrubbery 306 00:10:31,399 --> 00:10:33,160 of Vietnam. But there's no joke about it, 307 00:10:33,160 --> 00:10:33,660 really, 308 00:10:34,034 --> 00:10:36,514 ultimately, because people came back, friends of mine, 309 00:10:36,514 --> 00:10:39,495 you know, in in bags, guys that were 310 00:10:39,714 --> 00:10:41,954 friends of mine, they did not come back 311 00:10:41,954 --> 00:10:42,855 alive. So 312 00:10:43,235 --> 00:10:45,154 I thought I'd, be one of them and 313 00:10:45,154 --> 00:10:47,634 somehow got this medical waiver, courtesy of my 314 00:10:47,634 --> 00:10:49,350 dad. So god bless him. I didn't ask 315 00:10:49,350 --> 00:10:50,950 for it. I didn't even know what was 316 00:10:50,950 --> 00:10:52,789 happening at the time. Well, no. I can't 317 00:10:52,789 --> 00:10:55,110 serve. Okay. I'm I'm kinda glad, I guess, 318 00:10:55,110 --> 00:10:57,269 but, you know, it's out of my hands 319 00:10:57,269 --> 00:10:58,870 now. I I liked that there was an 320 00:10:58,870 --> 00:11:01,589 excuse. I I wasn't a draft dodger, but 321 00:11:01,589 --> 00:11:03,850 I I got a I got off. 322 00:11:04,365 --> 00:11:06,684 Yeah. Was there any kind of survivor's guilt 323 00:11:06,684 --> 00:11:08,365 that plagued you, or do you think it 324 00:11:08,365 --> 00:11:10,044 was just one of those things? I mean, 325 00:11:10,044 --> 00:11:12,044 a lot of people didn't end up getting 326 00:11:12,044 --> 00:11:13,585 their number called, obviously. 327 00:11:14,205 --> 00:11:15,804 Right. I had some friends who had the 328 00:11:15,804 --> 00:11:17,985 number called and some who didn't, and I 329 00:11:18,470 --> 00:11:20,570 can't remember what my number was before, 330 00:11:21,350 --> 00:11:23,929 but I did feel survivor's guilt and 331 00:11:24,710 --> 00:11:26,389 but it was the one big thing that 332 00:11:26,389 --> 00:11:28,149 my dad and I disagreed with. I didn't 333 00:11:28,149 --> 00:11:30,389 stand up to him much and didn't I 334 00:11:30,389 --> 00:11:31,210 won't call, 335 00:11:31,745 --> 00:11:33,584 I won't call it standing up. I kind 336 00:11:33,584 --> 00:11:35,904 of slightly elevated in my seat, you know, 337 00:11:35,904 --> 00:11:37,745 to let him know I felt a little 338 00:11:37,745 --> 00:11:40,304 differently. I didn't quite think the domino theory 339 00:11:40,304 --> 00:11:41,125 was viable. 340 00:11:41,584 --> 00:11:43,924 Yeah. And then we were hearing things about, 341 00:11:44,065 --> 00:11:44,725 you know, 342 00:11:45,080 --> 00:11:46,539 the amount of people that are actually 343 00:11:46,919 --> 00:11:48,220 lost over there and 344 00:11:48,600 --> 00:11:51,080 the winnability of the war, and it turns 345 00:11:51,080 --> 00:11:53,340 out we were right. You know, Robert McNamara 346 00:11:53,399 --> 00:11:56,120 was, you know, fudging things a good deal. 347 00:11:56,120 --> 00:11:56,620 And 348 00:11:57,095 --> 00:11:58,695 my dad was a great guy. He went 349 00:11:58,695 --> 00:12:00,875 over there to Vietnam and entertained the troops 350 00:12:00,934 --> 00:12:03,095 and brought a lot of joy and solace 351 00:12:03,095 --> 00:12:05,575 to their lives. They recognized his friendly face 352 00:12:05,575 --> 00:12:07,254 from a lot of TV shows and movies. 353 00:12:07,254 --> 00:12:08,934 So he was a great guy, and bless 354 00:12:08,934 --> 00:12:10,695 him for going over there and entertaining the 355 00:12:10,695 --> 00:12:11,195 troops. 356 00:12:11,629 --> 00:12:12,370 Yeah. Absolutely. 357 00:12:12,830 --> 00:12:14,750 Well, as I mentioned, I read your book 358 00:12:14,750 --> 00:12:16,450 and it is a wild 359 00:12:17,070 --> 00:12:17,570 ride. 360 00:12:18,190 --> 00:12:19,330 You are 361 00:12:19,950 --> 00:12:20,450 absolutely 362 00:12:21,070 --> 00:12:23,789 laid bare in it, and it's funny, and 363 00:12:23,789 --> 00:12:24,254 it's 364 00:12:24,654 --> 00:12:28,514 scary in places, and and heartwarming and heartbreaking 365 00:12:28,894 --> 00:12:29,554 in places, 366 00:12:30,174 --> 00:12:33,294 and you're quite daft in moving between those 367 00:12:33,294 --> 00:12:33,794 things. 368 00:12:34,894 --> 00:12:35,554 I imagine 369 00:12:36,174 --> 00:12:37,955 as you're putting it all on paper 370 00:12:39,049 --> 00:12:41,149 and honoring those moments in your life, 371 00:12:41,529 --> 00:12:42,990 it's gotta have a surreal 372 00:12:43,529 --> 00:12:44,909 quality to it. 373 00:12:45,529 --> 00:12:48,329 Almost out of body, did you experience that 374 00:12:48,329 --> 00:12:50,589 as you're putting it all down? Yes. 375 00:12:51,065 --> 00:12:53,144 There was something otherworldly and kind of, 376 00:12:53,865 --> 00:12:55,784 mystical going on while writing it because I 377 00:12:55,784 --> 00:12:57,225 didn't intend to write a book at all. 378 00:12:57,225 --> 00:12:59,225 I was just taking notes with the help 379 00:12:59,225 --> 00:13:00,684 of my daughter and her smartphone. 380 00:13:01,144 --> 00:13:02,504 You know, I wanted to get down my 381 00:13:02,504 --> 00:13:03,565 whole life in Hollywood. 382 00:13:04,049 --> 00:13:06,210 That point, the whole 73 years of it, 383 00:13:06,210 --> 00:13:07,409 I think, is when I started when I 384 00:13:07,409 --> 00:13:09,250 was 73 a few years ago to get 385 00:13:09,250 --> 00:13:10,690 it as much as her data plan and 386 00:13:10,690 --> 00:13:13,090 battery would allow, you know, and she started 387 00:13:13,090 --> 00:13:14,929 recording it. And we did a full hour 388 00:13:14,929 --> 00:13:16,690 and her arm got tired. I said, well, 389 00:13:16,690 --> 00:13:18,710 we'll pick up again tomorrow the next day. 390 00:13:18,934 --> 00:13:20,615 In the meantime, I thought, I don't wanna 391 00:13:20,615 --> 00:13:22,615 lose that idea. Maybe I'll write a few 392 00:13:22,615 --> 00:13:25,014 things down on my computer, some notes to 393 00:13:25,014 --> 00:13:27,414 take, you know, to take down some notes 394 00:13:27,414 --> 00:13:29,654 to give her to complete the work. And 395 00:13:29,654 --> 00:13:32,294 then that's what it happened, Susan. The computer 396 00:13:32,294 --> 00:13:32,794 keyboard 397 00:13:33,370 --> 00:13:35,690 came became like a Ouija board, but one 398 00:13:35,690 --> 00:13:37,290 that actually worked where it took me to 399 00:13:37,290 --> 00:13:39,370 all these different places and pulled me this 400 00:13:39,370 --> 00:13:41,290 way and that way. And the stuff I 401 00:13:41,290 --> 00:13:43,210 hadn't thought of in 50 years or more 402 00:13:43,210 --> 00:13:43,870 was suddenly 403 00:13:44,170 --> 00:13:46,090 in great detail before me, and I just 404 00:13:46,090 --> 00:13:47,894 kept writing it down. And I did most 405 00:13:47,894 --> 00:13:49,334 of it in the fur in the 1st 406 00:13:49,334 --> 00:13:50,074 3 months. 407 00:13:50,774 --> 00:13:52,934 Wow. Did you feel your dad with you 408 00:13:52,934 --> 00:13:54,235 as you were writing it? 409 00:13:54,774 --> 00:13:55,834 Yeah. I did feel 410 00:13:56,294 --> 00:13:59,574 influenced by my father's spirit. Ancestors were among 411 00:13:59,574 --> 00:14:01,014 us in some ways, so there's some sort 412 00:14:01,014 --> 00:14:02,615 of energy left over. I don't think it 413 00:14:02,615 --> 00:14:04,480 all ends at the point of death. 414 00:14:04,860 --> 00:14:06,940 I think there's something else that happens, and 415 00:14:06,940 --> 00:14:09,340 I can certainly feel his energy still, and 416 00:14:09,340 --> 00:14:10,000 my mother's 417 00:14:10,379 --> 00:14:11,980 the same, and other people that are dear 418 00:14:11,980 --> 00:14:13,659 to me, this woman, Jeanette Pierre, that was 419 00:14:13,659 --> 00:14:15,679 like a mother to my sister and I. 420 00:14:16,059 --> 00:14:17,600 You know, I I feel 421 00:14:18,254 --> 00:14:20,014 guided by them often to do the right 422 00:14:20,014 --> 00:14:22,014 thing, and I think that's a very good 423 00:14:22,014 --> 00:14:22,514 feeling. 424 00:14:23,134 --> 00:14:24,514 I imagine what 425 00:14:25,695 --> 00:14:27,795 LA was like in the seventies. 426 00:14:28,415 --> 00:14:30,335 And I think, my gosh, I was born 427 00:14:30,335 --> 00:14:32,434 too late. I would have ruled that time. 428 00:14:32,815 --> 00:14:35,830 But Yeah. Whatever you've heard, double it. Yeah. 429 00:14:36,529 --> 00:14:37,990 Just any anecdotal. 430 00:14:38,450 --> 00:14:40,210 I I want people to read the book. 431 00:14:40,210 --> 00:14:41,029 So certainly, 432 00:14:41,570 --> 00:14:44,070 let's not talk about everything, but 433 00:14:44,690 --> 00:14:47,990 pull out one great story from that moment 434 00:14:48,210 --> 00:14:51,404 in time for you? Well, it was wonderful, 435 00:14:51,404 --> 00:14:53,345 and it was horrible too because, 436 00:14:53,884 --> 00:14:55,485 you know, there's a price to be paid 437 00:14:55,485 --> 00:14:57,485 for drinking a quart of vodka every day 438 00:14:57,485 --> 00:14:59,725 and taking medications at the same time and 439 00:14:59,725 --> 00:15:02,205 snorting coke, you know, and operating a vehicle 440 00:15:02,205 --> 00:15:03,985 while you're doing that. So it was terrifying. 441 00:15:04,379 --> 00:15:06,059 The fact that I didn't wind up killing 442 00:15:06,059 --> 00:15:08,139 anybody, I think, is a bit of good 443 00:15:08,139 --> 00:15:09,519 fortune because I was 444 00:15:10,220 --> 00:15:12,539 barely conscious many nights I'd be driving home. 445 00:15:12,539 --> 00:15:14,860 So and but I quickly discovered that, you 446 00:15:14,860 --> 00:15:15,600 know, I 447 00:15:15,899 --> 00:15:18,215 got off quickly either because I was either 448 00:15:18,215 --> 00:15:19,975 because I was at Begley's son or the 449 00:15:19,975 --> 00:15:21,654 way I looked. How far are you from 450 00:15:21,654 --> 00:15:23,415 here? Can you just can you drive yourself 451 00:15:23,415 --> 00:15:25,335 home? You know, many other people in parts 452 00:15:25,335 --> 00:15:27,675 of Los Angeles don't get that same warning 453 00:15:28,134 --> 00:15:29,654 as I would get. You know, they'd allow 454 00:15:29,654 --> 00:15:31,254 you to just drive home, and they'd follow 455 00:15:31,254 --> 00:15:32,235 you home occasionally. 456 00:15:32,990 --> 00:15:34,589 I don't think everybody in the city of 457 00:15:34,589 --> 00:15:35,809 LA, you know, 458 00:15:36,190 --> 00:15:38,350 was privy to that kind of past, you 459 00:15:38,350 --> 00:15:40,289 know, that I got on occasion. So 460 00:15:40,669 --> 00:15:43,569 it was terrifying at times and then 461 00:15:44,029 --> 00:15:46,684 quite enlightening and quite serene when you get 462 00:15:46,684 --> 00:15:48,705 away from that whirlpool of negativity 463 00:15:49,245 --> 00:15:51,004 and you get some positive energy in your 464 00:15:51,004 --> 00:15:53,024 life and begin to build something from it. 465 00:15:53,085 --> 00:15:55,165 That was wonderful, but we we had some 466 00:15:55,165 --> 00:15:57,485 fun back in the in the sixties seventies. 467 00:15:57,485 --> 00:15:58,605 I won't lie. It was a lot of 468 00:15:58,605 --> 00:16:00,545 fun for a while till till it wasn't. 469 00:16:01,519 --> 00:16:02,340 Do you 470 00:16:02,800 --> 00:16:05,519 think that it was an escapism that was 471 00:16:05,519 --> 00:16:07,440 just for the times, or do you think 472 00:16:07,440 --> 00:16:09,940 you were running from some part of yourself? 473 00:16:10,960 --> 00:16:12,800 I was definitely running from some part of 474 00:16:12,800 --> 00:16:15,920 myself. I originally you know, with pills, it's 475 00:16:15,920 --> 00:16:16,820 how I started. 476 00:16:17,414 --> 00:16:19,335 I stole some pills from the medicine chest, 477 00:16:19,335 --> 00:16:20,695 and I just wanted to numb the pain 478 00:16:20,695 --> 00:16:22,294 of finding out that my mother was not 479 00:16:22,294 --> 00:16:23,735 my mother. The woman who died when I 480 00:16:23,735 --> 00:16:26,134 was 7 was not my mother. This woman 481 00:16:26,134 --> 00:16:27,975 that I was crazy about, my sister and 482 00:16:27,975 --> 00:16:30,600 I both love somehow deeply. We barely knew 483 00:16:30,600 --> 00:16:32,360 her. We're we're crazy about her. That was 484 00:16:32,360 --> 00:16:33,740 indeed our mother, so 485 00:16:34,279 --> 00:16:36,220 I didn't wanna go through that pain 486 00:16:36,600 --> 00:16:37,740 without any assistance. 487 00:16:38,120 --> 00:16:38,440 And, 488 00:16:39,080 --> 00:16:41,960 so I started taking pills. And the problem 489 00:16:41,960 --> 00:16:43,639 when you do that, when I started taking 490 00:16:43,639 --> 00:16:44,139 pills 491 00:16:44,514 --> 00:16:45,735 at about age 16, 492 00:16:46,674 --> 00:16:49,714 you don't you don't grow any anymore after 493 00:16:49,714 --> 00:16:51,815 that because you're numbing yourself. You're not experiencing 494 00:16:51,954 --> 00:16:54,774 good or bad things. Either thing that you're 495 00:16:54,834 --> 00:16:57,074 meant to learn a lesson with, you don't 496 00:16:57,074 --> 00:16:59,050 you don't feel it. So when I finally 497 00:16:59,050 --> 00:17:01,870 got sober in 1979, I was basically, emotionally 498 00:17:02,250 --> 00:17:03,389 17 years old 499 00:17:03,850 --> 00:17:05,529 because I hadn't felt the pain or the 500 00:17:05,529 --> 00:17:06,910 joy of so many things. 501 00:17:07,690 --> 00:17:09,210 So I I was a wreck. I'm one 502 00:17:09,210 --> 00:17:10,830 of those people that also think 503 00:17:11,144 --> 00:17:12,904 this is heresy to some, but I think 504 00:17:12,904 --> 00:17:15,065 it's true in my case. I think drugs 505 00:17:15,065 --> 00:17:16,984 and alcohol saved me before it almost killed 506 00:17:16,984 --> 00:17:19,224 me, you know, because I needed some way 507 00:17:19,224 --> 00:17:19,785 to numb 508 00:17:20,184 --> 00:17:22,025 I I made a dangerous choice by choosing 509 00:17:22,025 --> 00:17:24,525 drugs and alcohol. Some people choose therapy or 510 00:17:24,585 --> 00:17:27,049 meditation or many other things that are a 511 00:17:27,049 --> 00:17:28,190 lot less dangerous, 512 00:17:28,730 --> 00:17:30,670 but I needed to do something. And I 513 00:17:30,890 --> 00:17:32,730 I had read some Alan Watts early on, 514 00:17:32,730 --> 00:17:34,330 but I didn't know how to fully implement 515 00:17:34,330 --> 00:17:36,570 it. And and finally, when I started to 516 00:17:36,570 --> 00:17:39,210 learn those lessons and listen to his book 517 00:17:39,210 --> 00:17:40,394 called This Is It, 518 00:17:41,115 --> 00:17:42,955 my life got to be a lot, lot 519 00:17:42,955 --> 00:17:43,455 better. 520 00:17:44,474 --> 00:17:45,134 I feel 521 00:17:45,515 --> 00:17:48,414 like people like Alan Watts and Ram Dass, 522 00:17:48,714 --> 00:17:49,214 and, 523 00:17:50,714 --> 00:17:52,075 one of my favorite books of all time 524 00:17:52,075 --> 00:17:53,674 is The Alchemist. So I'm gonna throw that 525 00:17:53,674 --> 00:17:55,869 in there too. That when you take in 526 00:17:55,869 --> 00:17:56,930 that kind of information, 527 00:17:57,390 --> 00:17:58,130 even if 528 00:17:59,470 --> 00:18:01,789 you may not be ready for it on 529 00:18:01,789 --> 00:18:04,670 a grander scale, it's still absorbing into your 530 00:18:04,670 --> 00:18:07,470 DNA. You're still Exactly. Yeah. And that when 531 00:18:07,470 --> 00:18:10,095 you are ready for it, you'll have the 532 00:18:10,095 --> 00:18:11,875 benefit of that absorption 533 00:18:12,174 --> 00:18:14,255 to then implement it. But sometimes it takes 534 00:18:14,255 --> 00:18:14,755 time. 535 00:18:15,214 --> 00:18:17,295 Yeah. I remember being newly sober, and I 536 00:18:17,295 --> 00:18:18,355 was out in the driveway 537 00:18:18,734 --> 00:18:20,255 with my wife. We were gonna take a 538 00:18:20,255 --> 00:18:21,714 vacation to Monterey. 539 00:18:22,335 --> 00:18:24,275 We're packing up the car. It was very, 540 00:18:24,759 --> 00:18:26,279 I had a lot of notes about the 541 00:18:26,279 --> 00:18:27,720 way she was packing up the car. And 542 00:18:27,720 --> 00:18:29,079 so I was like, don't put that in. 543 00:18:29,079 --> 00:18:30,359 You put this in first. And I was 544 00:18:30,359 --> 00:18:32,039 getting very upset. I was supposed to take 545 00:18:32,039 --> 00:18:33,400 a vacation. I was angry because I wanted 546 00:18:33,400 --> 00:18:34,759 to get that vacation. I wanna get up 547 00:18:34,759 --> 00:18:36,519 to Monterey. And I was really going kind 548 00:18:36,519 --> 00:18:38,119 of crazy. And she and the kids looked 549 00:18:38,119 --> 00:18:39,319 at me like they were scared. And I 550 00:18:39,319 --> 00:18:42,115 realized, wait a second. The vacation doesn't start 551 00:18:42,115 --> 00:18:42,855 in Monterey. 552 00:18:43,394 --> 00:18:45,075 It starts right here in the driveway. This 553 00:18:45,075 --> 00:18:47,174 is part of the vacation. It's not Monterey 554 00:18:47,234 --> 00:18:48,994 that's great. It's the journey to get there. 555 00:18:48,994 --> 00:18:50,914 Whatever it is, the journey to getting on 556 00:18:50,914 --> 00:18:52,755 a show like St. Elsewhere, the journey to 557 00:18:52,755 --> 00:18:54,595 working with Meryl Streep, the journey to working 558 00:18:54,595 --> 00:18:57,289 with Jack Nicholson, the journey to own my 559 00:18:57,289 --> 00:18:58,890 own home one day, the journey to have 560 00:18:58,890 --> 00:19:01,289 the grandkids one day, all that is the 561 00:19:01,289 --> 00:19:03,150 experience of the process of that 562 00:19:03,769 --> 00:19:06,170 is what's truly, truly joyful. And if you 563 00:19:06,170 --> 00:19:06,670 don't 564 00:19:07,049 --> 00:19:08,410 wake up to that at some point, as 565 00:19:08,410 --> 00:19:10,634 the Alan Watts book suggests, this is it. 566 00:19:10,634 --> 00:19:12,974 This moment right now with you, Susan, 567 00:19:13,514 --> 00:19:15,914 is really all there is. We can certainly 568 00:19:15,914 --> 00:19:17,434 remember the past, so we don't make the 569 00:19:17,434 --> 00:19:18,954 same mistakes and we can plan for the 570 00:19:18,954 --> 00:19:20,875 future. So I make sure I eat dinner 571 00:19:20,875 --> 00:19:21,375 tonight. 572 00:19:21,740 --> 00:19:23,259 You can make some plans for the future 573 00:19:23,259 --> 00:19:24,700 and remember the past a bit, but you 574 00:19:24,700 --> 00:19:26,539 don't wanna dwell there. You wanna stay in 575 00:19:26,539 --> 00:19:28,940 this moment here comes again right now, this 576 00:19:28,940 --> 00:19:29,440 one 577 00:19:30,299 --> 00:19:31,820 where I have every single thing that I 578 00:19:31,820 --> 00:19:32,320 need. 579 00:19:32,700 --> 00:19:34,299 And if I let it be, it's perfectly 580 00:19:34,299 --> 00:19:36,220 blissful being here with you, and it really 581 00:19:36,220 --> 00:19:36,720 is 582 00:19:37,085 --> 00:19:38,765 when you just let it be. And and 583 00:19:38,765 --> 00:19:40,605 I've gotten very good at that. And that 584 00:19:40,605 --> 00:19:42,365 book, I can't say it enough. Alan Watts 585 00:19:42,365 --> 00:19:43,884 book, this is it. If you're just in 586 00:19:43,884 --> 00:19:45,805 an enlightened mood walking past the window where 587 00:19:45,805 --> 00:19:47,505 the book is sitting there for sale, 588 00:19:47,964 --> 00:19:50,109 think about it. This is it. It's not 589 00:19:50,109 --> 00:19:52,130 happening later. This is not a dress rehearsal. 590 00:19:52,349 --> 00:19:54,210 Not gonna happen when you get to Monterey. 591 00:19:54,509 --> 00:19:57,069 It's happening right now in the driveway before 592 00:19:57,069 --> 00:19:58,369 you ever leave from Monterey. 593 00:19:58,750 --> 00:19:59,809 Wake up to it. 594 00:20:00,190 --> 00:20:02,130 It takes a lot of the pressure off 595 00:20:02,509 --> 00:20:03,009 because 596 00:20:03,549 --> 00:20:04,289 we never 597 00:20:04,909 --> 00:20:05,409 ever 598 00:20:05,845 --> 00:20:06,985 can get to the future, 599 00:20:07,445 --> 00:20:08,825 and we've left the past. 600 00:20:09,205 --> 00:20:10,884 Well, there's no way to get that either. 601 00:20:10,884 --> 00:20:12,904 Even 10 minutes ago, it's gone. 602 00:20:13,285 --> 00:20:13,525 It's a 603 00:20:15,045 --> 00:20:16,184 it's in the ether. 604 00:20:16,485 --> 00:20:19,700 Yes. And I think we do we're told 605 00:20:19,700 --> 00:20:21,960 by a lot of outside voices, 606 00:20:22,659 --> 00:20:24,019 what are you gonna do next? What are 607 00:20:24,019 --> 00:20:25,639 you gonna do next? But 608 00:20:25,940 --> 00:20:28,679 that's just a recipe for absolute anxiousness. 609 00:20:28,980 --> 00:20:30,519 It's not that you can't think, 610 00:20:31,484 --> 00:20:33,244 you know, someday, like you said, I wanna 611 00:20:33,244 --> 00:20:34,944 have a house or I wanna have kids, 612 00:20:35,404 --> 00:20:37,484 but there also needs to be room to 613 00:20:37,484 --> 00:20:40,365 grow into those experiences because we don't know 614 00:20:40,365 --> 00:20:42,125 which door is going to open. It might 615 00:20:42,125 --> 00:20:43,744 be 12 doors, and then 616 00:20:44,109 --> 00:20:46,109 you have to pick and walk through. And 617 00:20:46,109 --> 00:20:48,029 then maybe that door didn't work, so you 618 00:20:48,029 --> 00:20:49,710 walk back out and you go through another 619 00:20:49,710 --> 00:20:51,950 door, and you keep trying. And if it 620 00:20:51,950 --> 00:20:54,109 didn't work, if there were not tangible results, 621 00:20:54,109 --> 00:20:55,950 people wouldn't be doing it. You know? People 622 00:20:55,950 --> 00:20:57,389 would have stopped it long ago. There would 623 00:20:57,389 --> 00:20:59,535 be no Ram Dass, no Alan Watts, no 624 00:20:59,775 --> 00:21:02,355 Sai Baba. Those people would not have devotees 625 00:21:02,414 --> 00:21:04,015 or know who they be who we know 626 00:21:04,015 --> 00:21:06,414 them to be because people go, well, I 627 00:21:06,414 --> 00:21:08,095 didn't really feel I did that thing of 628 00:21:08,095 --> 00:21:09,375 being in the moment, and I didn't get 629 00:21:09,375 --> 00:21:11,295 anything out of it. If it didn't actually 630 00:21:11,295 --> 00:21:11,795 work, 631 00:21:12,789 --> 00:21:15,109 it wouldn't be, you know, still surviving for 632 00:21:15,109 --> 00:21:17,990 1000 of years. It's been, you know, going 633 00:21:17,990 --> 00:21:20,309 in many parts of the world in India 634 00:21:20,309 --> 00:21:21,130 and different 635 00:21:21,430 --> 00:21:24,549 parts of Europe and all over. People have 636 00:21:24,549 --> 00:21:26,605 tried it, and it's worked, And that's why 637 00:21:26,605 --> 00:21:28,284 we continue to do it to this day. 638 00:21:28,284 --> 00:21:28,784 So 639 00:21:29,244 --> 00:21:31,005 give it a try. I did it also 640 00:21:31,005 --> 00:21:32,845 in my acting career. I was always trying 641 00:21:32,845 --> 00:21:34,284 to get an interview for a job, get 642 00:21:34,284 --> 00:21:36,784 the interview, get the job, get the paycheck, 643 00:21:36,924 --> 00:21:38,765 learn the lines, do the job, get another 644 00:21:38,765 --> 00:21:41,005 job. I wasn't experiencing any joy in the 645 00:21:41,005 --> 00:21:43,379 actual moment of doing it, the learning of 646 00:21:43,379 --> 00:21:45,720 the lines and the performing of the lines 647 00:21:46,099 --> 00:21:48,200 and all the money investigating the character. 648 00:21:48,740 --> 00:21:50,740 All that can become joyful if you let 649 00:21:50,740 --> 00:21:52,419 it be. But if you're just always trying 650 00:21:52,419 --> 00:21:54,259 to get onto the next thing, you never 651 00:21:54,259 --> 00:21:57,365 had any joy enjoyment and indeed bliss in 652 00:21:57,365 --> 00:21:58,025 right now. 653 00:21:58,565 --> 00:22:00,265 Yeah. If you keep moving the goalposts, 654 00:22:00,644 --> 00:22:01,865 how do you ever win? 655 00:22:02,644 --> 00:22:04,565 You don't. I sure wasn't winning in those 656 00:22:04,565 --> 00:22:06,884 years. You said something in the book that 657 00:22:06,884 --> 00:22:08,884 really struck me, and you said, I'm in 658 00:22:08,884 --> 00:22:09,625 no hurry. 659 00:22:10,404 --> 00:22:10,904 And 660 00:22:11,380 --> 00:22:12,200 I'm curious. 661 00:22:13,299 --> 00:22:13,799 That's 662 00:22:14,500 --> 00:22:16,279 the words of a younger man 663 00:22:17,380 --> 00:22:19,059 who thinks they have their life ahead of 664 00:22:19,059 --> 00:22:22,200 them. Right? And rightfully so. Now that you 665 00:22:22,419 --> 00:22:24,200 have a few more years on you, 666 00:22:25,515 --> 00:22:27,515 are you in a hurry now at all? 667 00:22:27,515 --> 00:22:29,434 I, many years, started to get good about 668 00:22:29,434 --> 00:22:30,795 that. When I got sober is when it 669 00:22:30,795 --> 00:22:33,115 really started to make a a difference. And 670 00:22:33,115 --> 00:22:34,815 I got better at it. 1980 671 00:22:35,115 --> 00:22:37,595 was better than 1979, and 81 was better 672 00:22:37,595 --> 00:22:39,569 than 80. And I get continue to get 673 00:22:39,569 --> 00:22:41,490 better, but there's really no backsliding. It's the 674 00:22:41,490 --> 00:22:42,230 point now. 675 00:22:42,609 --> 00:22:44,929 I almost never I can't tell the last 676 00:22:44,929 --> 00:22:46,230 time I was stressed or 677 00:22:46,529 --> 00:22:49,250 yelled at another driver, anything like that. The 678 00:22:49,250 --> 00:22:51,730 solution is very good nuts and bolts solution 679 00:22:51,730 --> 00:22:53,569 to all that stuff. If you're stressed in 680 00:22:53,569 --> 00:22:54,069 traffic, 681 00:22:54,605 --> 00:22:55,424 two words, leave 682 00:22:56,205 --> 00:22:56,705 earlier. 683 00:22:57,484 --> 00:22:58,545 You know, just 684 00:22:59,085 --> 00:23:00,765 I go to Santa Monica for an appointment. 685 00:23:00,765 --> 00:23:02,285 Of course, there's gonna be traffic on the 686 00:23:02,285 --> 00:23:05,565 4:0:5. So just leave earlier, do the crossword 687 00:23:05,565 --> 00:23:07,325 when you get there or whatever you wanna 688 00:23:07,325 --> 00:23:08,785 do. We just sit there and meditate, 689 00:23:09,420 --> 00:23:11,700 but there's tools to do this. And when 690 00:23:11,700 --> 00:23:13,420 I get to four way intersection, I always 691 00:23:13,420 --> 00:23:15,180 let everybody go before me because I'm in 692 00:23:15,180 --> 00:23:16,880 no hurry. Maybe they are in a hurry. 693 00:23:16,940 --> 00:23:18,860 Maybe they have a medical emergency. Who knows 694 00:23:18,860 --> 00:23:20,380 what people have? Maybe they're about to get 695 00:23:20,380 --> 00:23:22,184 fired because they're gonna be late. Let the 696 00:23:22,184 --> 00:23:24,345 others go. I have no rush about anything 697 00:23:24,345 --> 00:23:24,845 anymore. 698 00:23:25,224 --> 00:23:26,984 What a great way to live. It's it's 699 00:23:26,984 --> 00:23:28,684 so much, much, much better. 700 00:23:29,065 --> 00:23:30,744 Sounds like a person who knows how to 701 00:23:30,744 --> 00:23:32,204 live in grace, especially 702 00:23:32,505 --> 00:23:34,924 if you see other people as 703 00:23:35,429 --> 00:23:37,929 also being important, which is what that is, 704 00:23:37,990 --> 00:23:39,289 letting them go first. 705 00:23:39,990 --> 00:23:42,309 And gratitude is a perfect lubricant for all 706 00:23:42,309 --> 00:23:44,069 of that. It gets all that stuff really 707 00:23:44,069 --> 00:23:45,769 working and running smoothly 708 00:23:46,230 --> 00:23:48,065 to really be in gratitude, to to figure 709 00:23:48,065 --> 00:23:49,664 out fairly early in my life, wait a 710 00:23:49,664 --> 00:23:50,944 minute. It's not a bad thing that Ed 711 00:23:50,944 --> 00:23:52,625 Begley is my father. I used to think, 712 00:23:52,625 --> 00:23:54,305 don't compare me to him. I'm different. I'm 713 00:23:54,305 --> 00:23:55,744 my own man, and I don't wanna be 714 00:23:55,744 --> 00:23:57,585 compared to him. It was a big plus 715 00:23:57,585 --> 00:23:59,585 having him for a father. People remembered my 716 00:23:59,585 --> 00:24:02,339 name. People were inclined to hire me for 717 00:24:02,339 --> 00:24:03,859 jobs because they thought I might be good 718 00:24:03,859 --> 00:24:06,359 because I'm his son. Nothing but a plus, 719 00:24:06,420 --> 00:24:08,420 but I I viewed it as a minus 720 00:24:08,420 --> 00:24:10,819 and began to accept how lucky I I 721 00:24:10,819 --> 00:24:12,420 was to be born at Begley's son. I 722 00:24:12,420 --> 00:24:13,859 won the lottery. I didn't even buy a 723 00:24:13,859 --> 00:24:14,359 ticket. 724 00:24:15,184 --> 00:24:16,625 Then have all the other breaks that I 725 00:24:16,625 --> 00:24:18,144 got over the years in and out of 726 00:24:18,144 --> 00:24:21,025 my career from different police officers and people 727 00:24:21,025 --> 00:24:23,285 who let me slide. Now some would argue 728 00:24:23,505 --> 00:24:26,224 that with some substance behind it, maybe people 729 00:24:26,224 --> 00:24:27,505 who let me off the hook for things 730 00:24:27,505 --> 00:24:29,444 like that, they're enabling me in my alcoholism, 731 00:24:29,585 --> 00:24:30,919 and that's probably true too. 732 00:24:31,700 --> 00:24:33,299 You know, I didn't have the kind of, 733 00:24:34,019 --> 00:24:36,179 the kind of challenges that some people had 734 00:24:36,179 --> 00:24:38,019 with that kind of bad behavior. I could 735 00:24:38,019 --> 00:24:39,940 have I could have really hurt somebody. That's 736 00:24:39,940 --> 00:24:41,460 what I just keep thinking of every day. 737 00:24:41,460 --> 00:24:43,694 So that's another reason to never try that 738 00:24:43,694 --> 00:24:45,775 behavior again. What what you could have done 739 00:24:45,775 --> 00:24:48,034 to an innocent person or persons 740 00:24:48,815 --> 00:24:50,275 is, is terrifying. 741 00:24:50,974 --> 00:24:53,375 Did your dad ever step in and say, 742 00:24:53,375 --> 00:24:55,214 what are you doing, or was he doing 743 00:24:55,214 --> 00:24:57,410 his own life? He was sober for about 744 00:24:57,410 --> 00:24:59,109 18 years when he passed away. 745 00:24:59,490 --> 00:25:01,410 I was 20. So the 1st 2 years 746 00:25:01,410 --> 00:25:03,089 of my life, he was drinking a bit. 747 00:25:03,089 --> 00:25:05,730 I remember him being drunk one night. Pretty 748 00:25:05,730 --> 00:25:07,170 certain he was drunk by the way he 749 00:25:07,170 --> 00:25:10,069 was behaving. It's a very, very young, very, 750 00:25:11,105 --> 00:25:12,565 you know, traumatic memory, 751 00:25:12,945 --> 00:25:14,164 but I remember that. 752 00:25:14,465 --> 00:25:15,525 And, fortunately, 753 00:25:16,625 --> 00:25:17,605 you know, he 754 00:25:18,065 --> 00:25:20,144 he got sober and stayed sober, and he 755 00:25:20,144 --> 00:25:21,825 knew I was having a problem at some 756 00:25:21,825 --> 00:25:24,144 point because the pills were missing from his 757 00:25:24,144 --> 00:25:26,085 medicine chest, and he reasonably 758 00:25:26,519 --> 00:25:28,039 figured out it was me that was doing 759 00:25:28,039 --> 00:25:30,680 it. Then when I got arrested on on 760 00:25:30,680 --> 00:25:31,820 acid in 1969, 761 00:25:32,920 --> 00:25:34,220 he took me to Synanon 762 00:25:34,519 --> 00:25:35,960 to see if maybe they could help me. 763 00:25:35,960 --> 00:25:38,380 They were more about getting off heroin than 764 00:25:38,519 --> 00:25:40,359 LSD. They didn't know that much about that 765 00:25:40,359 --> 00:25:41,099 in 1969. 766 00:25:41,994 --> 00:25:43,115 So I just went there for a day 767 00:25:43,115 --> 00:25:44,794 and lied to everybody. So, no, I wasn't 768 00:25:44,794 --> 00:25:48,095 on LSD. I was hypnotized. Somebody hypnotized me. 769 00:25:48,315 --> 00:25:50,255 That was my excuse. Back in 1969, 770 00:25:51,115 --> 00:25:53,595 I'm not an asset. I'm hypnotized. That's a 771 00:25:53,595 --> 00:25:55,640 good one. How they kept a straight face 772 00:25:55,640 --> 00:25:57,240 at that, I'm not sure. I did a 773 00:25:57,240 --> 00:25:59,000 lot of acid in high school. It was 774 00:25:59,000 --> 00:26:00,220 it was hypnotizing 775 00:26:00,519 --> 00:26:01,980 for sure. Yep. 776 00:26:03,319 --> 00:26:04,140 For sure. 777 00:26:04,679 --> 00:26:07,079 You, of course, are very well known for 778 00:26:07,079 --> 00:26:07,819 your activism 779 00:26:08,200 --> 00:26:09,099 and environmentalism, 780 00:26:10,855 --> 00:26:13,035 And I think there is an idea 781 00:26:13,575 --> 00:26:16,214 that all hope is lost, and so why 782 00:26:16,214 --> 00:26:17,595 bother at this point? 783 00:26:18,535 --> 00:26:19,974 I I would love for you to speak 784 00:26:19,974 --> 00:26:22,694 to that because I think in general, you're 785 00:26:22,694 --> 00:26:23,194 an 786 00:26:23,910 --> 00:26:24,890 optimism guy. 787 00:26:25,670 --> 00:26:27,289 Let's talk about that a bit. 788 00:26:27,910 --> 00:26:30,230 There's 2 big lies about the environment. There's 789 00:26:30,230 --> 00:26:31,910 many little ones, but the 2 big ones 790 00:26:31,910 --> 00:26:32,410 are. 791 00:26:32,869 --> 00:26:35,350 And there's certain news outlets that promote this 792 00:26:35,350 --> 00:26:36,950 a lot. There's no problem at all. Back 793 00:26:36,950 --> 00:26:38,865 to your house, there's nothing to see. It's 794 00:26:38,865 --> 00:26:40,944 just people trying to be the nanny state 795 00:26:40,944 --> 00:26:42,384 and tell you what to do, and people 796 00:26:42,384 --> 00:26:45,025 trying to make things cost more. There's no 797 00:26:45,025 --> 00:26:47,025 problem with climate change and no problem with 798 00:26:47,025 --> 00:26:49,904 anything. Don't bother doing any of this stuff 799 00:26:49,904 --> 00:26:51,664 because it's not needed. That's one lie. The 800 00:26:51,664 --> 00:26:53,759 other lie that's every bit as dangerous as 801 00:26:53,839 --> 00:26:55,440 it's so far gone. There's nothing that we 802 00:26:55,440 --> 00:26:56,099 can do. 803 00:26:56,960 --> 00:26:59,279 And there certainly are huge challenges with climate 804 00:26:59,279 --> 00:27:01,039 change and many other things, but think about 805 00:27:01,039 --> 00:27:03,039 what we have done, what's quantifiable, what we've 806 00:27:03,039 --> 00:27:03,700 done already. 807 00:27:04,000 --> 00:27:06,400 That's huge. We have 4 times the cards 808 00:27:06,400 --> 00:27:07,619 in LA for 1970, 809 00:27:08,305 --> 00:27:10,384 millions more people, yet we have a fraction 810 00:27:10,384 --> 00:27:12,224 of the smog. If we had just the 811 00:27:12,224 --> 00:27:14,224 same amount of smog from 1970, it was 812 00:27:14,224 --> 00:27:15,365 bad. I lived here. 813 00:27:15,664 --> 00:27:17,585 We'd go, wow. Four times the cars, millions 814 00:27:17,585 --> 00:27:19,345 more people, and it didn't get worse. We're 815 00:27:19,345 --> 00:27:19,845 fantastic. 816 00:27:20,720 --> 00:27:22,080 That's not what happened at all. It got 817 00:27:22,080 --> 00:27:23,920 to be much, much less because everything that 818 00:27:23,920 --> 00:27:26,799 we hoped would work did work. You know, 819 00:27:26,799 --> 00:27:29,680 cleaner vehicles, cleaner power plants, all the stuff 820 00:27:29,680 --> 00:27:30,340 we did 821 00:27:30,799 --> 00:27:33,200 worked because we really got tough. We did 822 00:27:33,200 --> 00:27:35,234 it with something called the Clean Air Act, 823 00:27:35,394 --> 00:27:37,234 which was signed by Richard Nixon of all 824 00:27:37,234 --> 00:27:37,734 people. 825 00:27:38,355 --> 00:27:39,734 So it takes a bipartisan 826 00:27:40,035 --> 00:27:42,115 effort to do some things. We had that 827 00:27:42,115 --> 00:27:44,035 in LA, thank God, and the air got 828 00:27:44,035 --> 00:27:45,714 much, much now we still have people near 829 00:27:45,714 --> 00:27:47,575 the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles. 830 00:27:47,960 --> 00:27:50,119 There are shipping centers, fulfillment centers, there are 831 00:27:50,119 --> 00:27:52,599 freeway interchanges that are breathing dirty air. We've 832 00:27:52,599 --> 00:27:54,200 gotta clean that up for them, but we've 833 00:27:54,200 --> 00:27:56,440 proven that we can do it. Ozone depletion, 834 00:27:56,440 --> 00:27:57,960 we had a problem. I'm sure you've heard 835 00:27:57,960 --> 00:28:00,359 of years ago with the CFCs that were 836 00:28:00,359 --> 00:28:03,054 damaging the ozone. That's a global problem like 837 00:28:03,054 --> 00:28:04,755 climate change. We said no more CFCs. 838 00:28:05,134 --> 00:28:07,375 We're not gonna ever use CFCs again. We're 839 00:28:07,375 --> 00:28:09,855 gonna ban them. People said the naysayers once 840 00:28:09,855 --> 00:28:11,694 again jumped in and said, it'll be so 841 00:28:11,694 --> 00:28:13,134 expensive. You won't be able to buy a 842 00:28:13,134 --> 00:28:13,634 refrigerator. 843 00:28:13,934 --> 00:28:16,095 Nobody could ever buy an air conditioning unit 844 00:28:16,095 --> 00:28:17,474 again if you banned CFCs. 845 00:28:17,910 --> 00:28:19,509 I'm told that they still sell both those 846 00:28:19,509 --> 00:28:20,650 products. Have you heard? 847 00:28:20,950 --> 00:28:22,950 I think they're still selling refrigerators and air 848 00:28:22,950 --> 00:28:25,509 conditioning units. Yeah. They just banned CFCs, and 849 00:28:25,509 --> 00:28:26,890 they found another way to 850 00:28:27,269 --> 00:28:29,590 to keep them cool, you know, with another 851 00:28:29,590 --> 00:28:31,990 substance that isn't nearly as damaging to the 852 00:28:31,990 --> 00:28:32,490 ozone. 853 00:28:32,965 --> 00:28:34,085 And look what we did. We made a 854 00:28:34,085 --> 00:28:35,924 problem on a global way in that way, 855 00:28:35,924 --> 00:28:37,845 so we can do with climate change. Now 856 00:28:37,845 --> 00:28:39,924 having said that, I'm not living in a 857 00:28:39,924 --> 00:28:41,144 dream world. There's much 858 00:28:41,684 --> 00:28:43,285 much to be done and much that's gonna 859 00:28:43,285 --> 00:28:44,965 be damaged. Whatever we do, there's so much 860 00:28:44,965 --> 00:28:46,725 in the pipeline now. The oceans are so 861 00:28:46,725 --> 00:28:48,505 warm. There's so much 862 00:28:48,839 --> 00:28:50,700 plastic in the oceans. There's so many 863 00:28:51,000 --> 00:28:53,000 things like the damage of the coral reefs, 864 00:28:53,000 --> 00:28:54,940 the bleaching of the coral reefs, and 865 00:28:55,240 --> 00:28:57,480 so many things, loss of species. I mean, 866 00:28:57,480 --> 00:28:59,079 how many rivets can you lose from an 867 00:28:59,079 --> 00:29:01,400 airplane before it ceases to fly? And we're 868 00:29:01,400 --> 00:29:02,539 losing these rivets 869 00:29:03,134 --> 00:29:05,134 from the airplane, which keeps us all aloft, 870 00:29:05,134 --> 00:29:07,055 though, and that's the web of life that 871 00:29:07,055 --> 00:29:08,275 keeps us going. 872 00:29:08,654 --> 00:29:10,095 And if you lose too many of those 873 00:29:10,095 --> 00:29:12,255 rivets, those being the many plant and animal 874 00:29:12,255 --> 00:29:13,555 species that we need, 875 00:29:14,015 --> 00:29:15,934 it's gonna be the end of us. So 876 00:29:15,934 --> 00:29:17,055 we have to do it for our own 877 00:29:17,055 --> 00:29:19,049 survival. It's not just save the whales or 878 00:29:19,269 --> 00:29:19,769 save 879 00:29:20,070 --> 00:29:21,609 the earth. It's saving ourselves, 880 00:29:22,150 --> 00:29:23,589 and we can do it. We've proven that 881 00:29:23,589 --> 00:29:25,210 we can in big, big ways. 882 00:29:25,670 --> 00:29:26,730 Is your activism 883 00:29:27,029 --> 00:29:27,910 toward these things 884 00:29:28,549 --> 00:29:30,630 I mean, I think if you're paying any 885 00:29:30,630 --> 00:29:32,710 attention as a human being, you see the 886 00:29:32,710 --> 00:29:35,024 things around you. But did you grow up 887 00:29:35,024 --> 00:29:37,105 in a family that was aware of this 888 00:29:37,105 --> 00:29:39,585 stuff, or were you the pied piper trying 889 00:29:39,585 --> 00:29:40,484 to lead everyone? 890 00:29:41,264 --> 00:29:43,345 My dad was the influence in this way 891 00:29:43,345 --> 00:29:44,884 too. And I'm telling you, 892 00:29:45,585 --> 00:29:47,744 he never really used the word environmentalist, but 893 00:29:47,744 --> 00:29:49,160 he was one because he was a son 894 00:29:49,160 --> 00:29:50,839 of Irish immigrants. He lived through the great 895 00:29:50,839 --> 00:29:51,339 depression, 896 00:29:51,880 --> 00:29:53,640 simply turned off the lights, turned off the 897 00:29:53,640 --> 00:29:55,960 water, saved string, saved tinfoil. You know, he 898 00:29:55,960 --> 00:29:57,740 was a conservative that liked to conserve. 899 00:29:58,440 --> 00:30:00,039 So when he died within a few days 900 00:30:00,039 --> 00:30:01,559 of the first Earth Day, I did everything 901 00:30:01,559 --> 00:30:03,944 that I could to honor his legacy. And 902 00:30:03,944 --> 00:30:06,424 I started, you know, composting. I became a 903 00:30:06,424 --> 00:30:07,805 vegetarian. I started 904 00:30:08,184 --> 00:30:10,105 riding my bike even more. I took public 905 00:30:10,105 --> 00:30:11,565 transportation, even more 906 00:30:12,184 --> 00:30:14,819 non toxic soaps and cleaners, all that stuff. 907 00:30:14,899 --> 00:30:16,419 And I found very quickly that it was 908 00:30:16,419 --> 00:30:17,779 not only good for the environment. It was 909 00:30:17,779 --> 00:30:19,799 good for my pocketbook. I was saving money. 910 00:30:19,859 --> 00:30:21,859 I did it starting in 1970 and pretty 911 00:30:21,859 --> 00:30:23,220 soon I had enough money to buy a 912 00:30:23,220 --> 00:30:24,980 little solar oven. Pretty soon I had saved 913 00:30:24,980 --> 00:30:26,819 enough money to buy a rain barrel to 914 00:30:26,819 --> 00:30:27,639 collect rainwater. 915 00:30:28,184 --> 00:30:30,024 And after 15 years of doing it, I 916 00:30:30,024 --> 00:30:31,865 finally had solar solar hot water in my 917 00:30:31,865 --> 00:30:33,164 house in Ojai. 918 00:30:33,544 --> 00:30:35,304 Then 20 years after the 1st birthday, I 919 00:30:35,304 --> 00:30:37,625 could have finally afford solar electric, and I've 920 00:30:37,625 --> 00:30:39,865 had solar electric ever since 1990, and it 921 00:30:39,865 --> 00:30:41,005 works great. So 922 00:30:41,384 --> 00:30:42,204 start slow. 923 00:30:42,505 --> 00:30:44,359 You know, I'm kind of a fiscal conservative 924 00:30:44,420 --> 00:30:46,519 myself. I don't wanna buy something I can't 925 00:30:46,740 --> 00:30:48,820 afford. I didn't try to buy solar panels 926 00:30:48,820 --> 00:30:49,559 in 1970 927 00:30:50,099 --> 00:30:52,180 as a broken struggling actor, and his father 928 00:30:52,180 --> 00:30:54,099 wasn't around to bail him out. I just 929 00:30:54,099 --> 00:30:55,779 did what I could with bike riding and 930 00:30:55,779 --> 00:30:56,599 public transportation, 931 00:30:57,365 --> 00:30:59,525 things that I could afford and save money 932 00:30:59,525 --> 00:31:01,205 and did things as I as I could 933 00:31:01,205 --> 00:31:03,945 do them. I think that's the key that 934 00:31:04,565 --> 00:31:06,984 people get overwhelmed with the idea of 935 00:31:07,365 --> 00:31:09,445 they have to start in in a giant 936 00:31:09,445 --> 00:31:10,345 way, and, 937 00:31:10,884 --> 00:31:12,984 tiny steps are still steps. 938 00:31:13,339 --> 00:31:14,940 Yeah. All or nothing is that people get 939 00:31:14,940 --> 00:31:16,619 hung up on that. They make a long 940 00:31:16,619 --> 00:31:18,539 list of or a short one or a 941 00:31:18,539 --> 00:31:20,460 list at any rate of these things that 942 00:31:20,460 --> 00:31:22,380 they can't do. I'm not interested in that 943 00:31:22,380 --> 00:31:24,160 list. That's the list. Put it aside. 944 00:31:24,539 --> 00:31:26,140 What is the list what's the list of 945 00:31:26,140 --> 00:31:28,664 things that you can do? Much more interesting 946 00:31:28,664 --> 00:31:30,505 list. Can you ride a bike if weather 947 00:31:30,505 --> 00:31:32,984 and fitness permit? Can you take publish public 948 00:31:32,984 --> 00:31:35,625 transportation if it's available near you? Can you, 949 00:31:35,625 --> 00:31:37,704 you know, buy an energy efficient light bulb? 950 00:31:37,704 --> 00:31:39,484 Can you buy an energy saving thermostat? 951 00:31:39,960 --> 00:31:41,559 Make that list up of the things that 952 00:31:41,559 --> 00:31:42,460 you can do, 953 00:31:42,759 --> 00:31:45,000 then go down the line, and you will 954 00:31:45,000 --> 00:31:47,079 save money, I guarantee it, to do other 955 00:31:47,079 --> 00:31:48,919 things so you can afford them. It's pretty 956 00:31:48,919 --> 00:31:49,419 straightforward. 957 00:31:49,799 --> 00:31:52,200 I wanna pivot and talk about love and 958 00:31:52,200 --> 00:31:52,700 sex. 959 00:31:53,000 --> 00:31:53,500 You 960 00:31:54,085 --> 00:31:55,705 famously had some 961 00:31:57,285 --> 00:31:59,125 relationships going. You talk about in the book. 962 00:31:59,125 --> 00:32:01,285 You were a ladies' man, I think, is 963 00:32:01,285 --> 00:32:03,305 what the term would be as you were 964 00:32:03,445 --> 00:32:06,805 growing up and have been married and have 965 00:32:06,805 --> 00:32:09,470 beautiful children and are married now. 966 00:32:10,809 --> 00:32:11,710 What is your 967 00:32:12,490 --> 00:32:13,470 how has your 968 00:32:14,329 --> 00:32:17,769 thoughts on love changed through your life? I'm 969 00:32:17,769 --> 00:32:19,289 not sure I was ever a ladies' man, 970 00:32:19,289 --> 00:32:21,369 but I was with some amazing women. I 971 00:32:21,369 --> 00:32:23,130 had some amazing women in my life. My 972 00:32:23,130 --> 00:32:24,705 first wife was extraordinary 973 00:32:25,085 --> 00:32:26,924 in every way. My current wife is, of 974 00:32:26,924 --> 00:32:28,684 course, and I I did date a bit 975 00:32:28,684 --> 00:32:30,205 in the seventies and the eighties, so I 976 00:32:30,205 --> 00:32:31,904 won't lie about that. But I 977 00:32:32,205 --> 00:32:34,205 I just lucky to have met these great, 978 00:32:34,205 --> 00:32:35,664 powerful, smart, wonderful 979 00:32:36,205 --> 00:32:37,105 women, and 980 00:32:37,589 --> 00:32:38,710 I just feel blessed. 981 00:32:39,349 --> 00:32:40,470 I don't know what they saw on me. 982 00:32:40,470 --> 00:32:42,390 I'm still trying to figure that out. Apparently, 983 00:32:42,390 --> 00:32:43,130 I'm amusing. 984 00:32:43,990 --> 00:32:45,670 But, other than that, I'm not sure what 985 00:32:45,670 --> 00:32:47,750 they see in me. And all the all 986 00:32:47,750 --> 00:32:49,910 the people that I've gone with over the 987 00:32:49,910 --> 00:32:51,670 years, all the wonderful women I've known over 988 00:32:51,670 --> 00:32:53,734 the years, I'm still friendly with them. I 989 00:32:53,734 --> 00:32:55,494 can't think of one that I'm not happy 990 00:32:55,494 --> 00:32:56,554 to see. So 991 00:32:57,095 --> 00:32:58,934 there's a plus to that. I I must 992 00:32:58,934 --> 00:33:00,075 have done something right. 993 00:33:00,775 --> 00:33:02,794 Well, you must know that you're a lovely 994 00:33:03,174 --> 00:33:05,255 man, that you have a good heart, and 995 00:33:05,255 --> 00:33:05,755 you 996 00:33:06,400 --> 00:33:07,220 try your best. 997 00:33:07,519 --> 00:33:09,359 I mean, that was pretty clear as I 998 00:33:09,359 --> 00:33:11,779 was reading the book that you were always 999 00:33:11,839 --> 00:33:14,740 striving even, I think, even in your addiction. 1000 00:33:15,519 --> 00:33:18,400 And maybe that's the older person writing about 1001 00:33:18,400 --> 00:33:19,460 the younger person, 1002 00:33:20,000 --> 00:33:22,265 but there seemed to be a sense that 1003 00:33:22,265 --> 00:33:23,404 you did care 1004 00:33:23,865 --> 00:33:26,664 deeply. I did. That's true. Yeah. Yeah. That 1005 00:33:26,664 --> 00:33:29,384 people respond to that. And that is the 1006 00:33:29,384 --> 00:33:32,025 basis of what love is, is a a 1007 00:33:32,025 --> 00:33:32,924 deep caring. 1008 00:33:33,820 --> 00:33:36,299 And whether or not you at the time 1009 00:33:36,299 --> 00:33:37,359 are able to commit 1010 00:33:37,660 --> 00:33:40,299 to what the vulnerability around that means and 1011 00:33:40,299 --> 00:33:42,400 all that. But I that's why I'm wondering, 1012 00:33:42,859 --> 00:33:44,799 looking back as an older person, 1013 00:33:45,420 --> 00:33:47,980 how love has shaped your life and and 1014 00:33:47,980 --> 00:33:48,799 shaped you. 1015 00:33:49,259 --> 00:33:50,835 I mean, I think it's deeper than just 1016 00:33:50,835 --> 00:33:52,434 like, oh, shucks. You know, I'm just a 1017 00:33:52,434 --> 00:33:54,914 regular guy. No. You're right. It it has 1018 00:33:54,914 --> 00:33:56,994 shaped me, and I've been guided by these 1019 00:33:56,994 --> 00:33:59,795 powerful women. Some of with whom I've had 1020 00:33:59,795 --> 00:34:02,674 a relationship, I've been very much guided by 1021 00:34:02,674 --> 00:34:03,414 them and 1022 00:34:04,090 --> 00:34:06,090 felt and experienced a great deal of love 1023 00:34:06,090 --> 00:34:06,590 from, 1024 00:34:07,049 --> 00:34:08,650 you know, my some of my long term 1025 00:34:08,650 --> 00:34:09,150 relationships. 1026 00:34:09,530 --> 00:34:11,449 All of my relationships, really, I've felt a 1027 00:34:11,449 --> 00:34:13,369 great deal of love from the women that 1028 00:34:13,369 --> 00:34:15,610 I've known over the years. Has it taught 1029 00:34:15,610 --> 00:34:17,150 you now to 1030 00:34:17,994 --> 00:34:20,815 love and and see yourself as worthy and 1031 00:34:21,034 --> 00:34:21,534 deserving? 1032 00:34:22,074 --> 00:34:23,835 Yes. I'm much better at that now. I've 1033 00:34:23,835 --> 00:34:26,655 really opened my heart in many ways since 1034 00:34:26,795 --> 00:34:28,894 the late seventies, since I finally got sober. 1035 00:34:28,954 --> 00:34:31,114 Unfortunately, I had the addiction of drugs and 1036 00:34:31,114 --> 00:34:32,954 alcohol, then there's a few other addictions that 1037 00:34:32,954 --> 00:34:35,590 remained for about another decade, and that was 1038 00:34:36,210 --> 00:34:39,989 gambling and then philandering. I hadn't entirely gotten 1039 00:34:40,050 --> 00:34:41,829 well in every area of my life, 1040 00:34:42,369 --> 00:34:44,390 but I've gotten better at it. 1041 00:34:44,930 --> 00:34:47,190 This is my second marriage much, much better. 1042 00:34:47,565 --> 00:34:49,565 I've decided to remain true to all of 1043 00:34:49,565 --> 00:34:51,344 the vows, not just the ones I found, 1044 00:34:51,644 --> 00:34:52,304 you know, 1045 00:34:52,605 --> 00:34:53,824 easy to tick off. 1046 00:34:54,364 --> 00:34:57,085 Yeah. Sure. So, you know, I'm doing much 1047 00:34:57,085 --> 00:34:58,605 better in this marriage than I did in 1048 00:34:58,605 --> 00:34:59,264 my first. 1049 00:34:59,579 --> 00:35:01,739 My first wife was wonderful beyond measure, but 1050 00:35:01,739 --> 00:35:04,460 I wasn't grown enough to appreciate it and 1051 00:35:04,460 --> 00:35:06,619 to value it. So I decided to try 1052 00:35:06,619 --> 00:35:08,380 it again and and do better, and I've 1053 00:35:08,380 --> 00:35:11,099 been quite successful this time around. And it's 1054 00:35:11,099 --> 00:35:13,340 by ex exactly what you suggest by opening 1055 00:35:13,340 --> 00:35:16,094 my heart and being vulnerable and jumping off 1056 00:35:16,094 --> 00:35:17,934 the high dive and and hoping that there's 1057 00:35:17,934 --> 00:35:19,215 water in the tank by the time you 1058 00:35:19,215 --> 00:35:21,135 get down to the bottom. And doing it 1059 00:35:21,135 --> 00:35:23,775 anyway even if there's not. Exactly. That's the 1060 00:35:23,775 --> 00:35:25,715 hardest part about love is 1061 00:35:26,015 --> 00:35:28,219 to to do it no matter what the 1062 00:35:28,219 --> 00:35:30,380 outcome will be. That's again staying in the 1063 00:35:30,380 --> 00:35:30,880 present. 1064 00:35:31,260 --> 00:35:32,880 I choose to love in this moment, 1065 00:35:33,260 --> 00:35:35,900 and whatever happens, happens. I found that to 1066 00:35:35,900 --> 00:35:37,280 be true very much so. 1067 00:35:37,900 --> 00:35:39,599 I'm excited because on Saturday, 1068 00:35:40,380 --> 00:35:42,079 I get to see your new movie, 1069 00:35:42,585 --> 00:35:43,484 strange darling. 1070 00:35:43,784 --> 00:35:45,304 Yes. I just saw it the other night. 1071 00:35:45,304 --> 00:35:46,045 It's really 1072 00:35:46,585 --> 00:35:49,304 it's it's a chiller. It's kind of graphic, 1073 00:35:49,304 --> 00:35:51,224 so be prepared for that. But it's very, 1074 00:35:51,224 --> 00:35:53,164 very good. It's a very smart movie. 1075 00:35:53,625 --> 00:35:53,864 It's, 1076 00:35:54,440 --> 00:35:56,920 really, it's got some huge surprises. It's gotten 1077 00:35:56,920 --> 00:35:59,800 unanimously good reviews. Every review I've seen at 1078 00:35:59,800 --> 00:36:00,700 New York Times, 1079 00:36:01,559 --> 00:36:02,860 Detroit Free Press, 1080 00:36:04,039 --> 00:36:06,920 Arizona Republic, all the reviews I've seen have 1081 00:36:06,920 --> 00:36:09,295 been very, very good. Rotten Tomatoes gave it 1082 00:36:09,295 --> 00:36:09,875 a 100%. 1083 00:36:10,175 --> 00:36:13,054 I saw that. Very exciting. Doing very well. 1084 00:36:13,054 --> 00:36:14,655 We'll see how the box office is. That 1085 00:36:14,655 --> 00:36:17,295 starts tomorrow. That's the ultimate, you know, benchmark 1086 00:36:17,295 --> 00:36:19,295 is how well it does with actual box 1087 00:36:19,295 --> 00:36:20,195 office numbers. 1088 00:36:20,735 --> 00:36:22,894 Sure. Of course. Well, I have a strict 1089 00:36:22,894 --> 00:36:24,929 rule. I don't look at trailers. I don't 1090 00:36:24,929 --> 00:36:26,609 read up about a movie. I just go 1091 00:36:26,609 --> 00:36:28,369 to the movie. I love going to the 1092 00:36:28,369 --> 00:36:30,690 movies, so I'm super excited. That's the way 1093 00:36:30,690 --> 00:36:32,869 to do it. Let's talk a minute about 1094 00:36:33,089 --> 00:36:35,510 your diagnosis. You were diagnosed with Parkinson's. 1095 00:36:36,849 --> 00:36:37,829 How has that 1096 00:36:38,175 --> 00:36:40,094 been for you? How was that in that 1097 00:36:40,094 --> 00:36:43,454 moment, and and where is that taking you 1098 00:36:43,454 --> 00:36:44,114 in life? 1099 00:36:44,815 --> 00:36:47,235 It was a tough diagnosis to receive, 1100 00:36:47,775 --> 00:36:49,614 but I knew something was up. Back in 1101 00:36:49,614 --> 00:36:52,019 2004, I lost about half my sense of 1102 00:36:52,019 --> 00:36:54,340 taste and smell and was having trouble with 1103 00:36:54,340 --> 00:36:55,940 my balance, but I thought I just getting 1104 00:36:55,940 --> 00:36:58,039 older, I had some reaction to something. 1105 00:36:58,420 --> 00:37:00,739 I got some virus or something. Nobody knew 1106 00:37:00,739 --> 00:37:02,820 quite what it was. And a full 12 1107 00:37:02,820 --> 00:37:03,719 years later, 1108 00:37:04,704 --> 00:37:06,304 I went to a speech therapist. I was 1109 00:37:06,304 --> 00:37:07,984 starting to have trouble with my addiction. I 1110 00:37:07,984 --> 00:37:10,304 wasn't being as clear as I used to 1111 00:37:10,304 --> 00:37:12,005 be as an actor, as a person 1112 00:37:12,464 --> 00:37:14,945 talking to another human being. And so I 1113 00:37:14,945 --> 00:37:17,105 went to a speech therapist after the first 1114 00:37:17,105 --> 00:37:17,605 session. 1115 00:37:18,780 --> 00:37:20,699 She inquired with the rest of my medical 1116 00:37:20,699 --> 00:37:22,140 team, said, Why is it not in Ed 1117 00:37:22,140 --> 00:37:24,619 Begley's chart that he has Parkinson's? And nobody 1118 00:37:24,619 --> 00:37:26,539 had figured out that I had Parkinson's because 1119 00:37:26,539 --> 00:37:27,920 nothing was really presenting 1120 00:37:28,539 --> 00:37:30,924 in a noticeable way. The things that I 1121 00:37:30,924 --> 00:37:32,924 was doing, I somehow never did them at 1122 00:37:32,924 --> 00:37:35,005 the doctor's office. I'd have a little bit 1123 00:37:35,005 --> 00:37:36,764 of what they call pilling like this on 1124 00:37:36,764 --> 00:37:38,684 manufacturing. Now, like you're trying to hold a 1125 00:37:38,684 --> 00:37:40,924 pill between your thumb and forefinger, and it 1126 00:37:40,924 --> 00:37:42,844 kind of wiggles a bit. I never did 1127 00:37:42,844 --> 00:37:44,605 that once in any of the different tests 1128 00:37:44,605 --> 00:37:46,029 I had. They thought I had a brain 1129 00:37:46,029 --> 00:37:46,529 lesion. 1130 00:37:46,829 --> 00:37:48,429 They tested for that. I didn't have it, 1131 00:37:48,429 --> 00:37:51,069 but I never exhibited those things because I 1132 00:37:51,069 --> 00:37:52,589 was in very good health. Every day, I'd 1133 00:37:52,589 --> 00:37:54,109 ride my bike up to Mull and drive 1134 00:37:54,109 --> 00:37:55,889 then around Franklin Canyon Lake, 1135 00:37:56,510 --> 00:37:56,577 around that reservoir. And I just kind of 1136 00:37:56,577 --> 00:37:56,644 every day just kept riding, even though it 1137 00:37:56,644 --> 00:37:57,718 got harder and harder. And just kept riding, 1138 00:37:57,718 --> 00:37:59,347 even though it's got harder and harder. And 1139 00:37:59,347 --> 00:38:00,243 there's nothing better to keep Parkinson's at bay 1140 00:38:00,243 --> 00:38:00,947 than rigorous out outdoor or indoor exercise. So 1141 00:38:00,947 --> 00:38:03,114 I did that every day, and I used 1142 00:38:03,114 --> 00:38:05,135 to do the whole upper body circuit 1143 00:38:05,515 --> 00:38:06,974 at the gym, 1144 00:38:12,849 --> 00:38:14,690 and still I do that to this day. 1145 00:38:14,690 --> 00:38:16,849 So it took me 12 years, even though 1146 00:38:16,849 --> 00:38:18,449 I had it. It's been 8 years since 1147 00:38:18,449 --> 00:38:19,349 I got diagnosed. 1148 00:38:19,650 --> 00:38:21,889 And every time I see my neurologist, which 1149 00:38:21,889 --> 00:38:22,949 I just saw him, 1150 00:38:23,329 --> 00:38:24,929 just a few weeks ago, he said, If 1151 00:38:24,929 --> 00:38:26,609 I was grading on the bell curve, you'd 1152 00:38:26,609 --> 00:38:28,265 be the head of the class. Keep doing 1153 00:38:28,265 --> 00:38:30,664 whatever you're doing. So I'm doing what he 1154 00:38:30,664 --> 00:38:31,965 says in the way of medication. 1155 00:38:32,425 --> 00:38:34,525 There's something called Ryteri, which is carbidopalevodopa. 1156 00:38:35,785 --> 00:38:37,385 I do that, but then I also do 1157 00:38:37,385 --> 00:38:40,045 hyperbaric chamber, something called NAD. 1158 00:38:40,425 --> 00:38:41,885 I do something called glutathione, 1159 00:38:42,900 --> 00:38:43,139 and, 1160 00:38:43,699 --> 00:38:46,500 I do lots of things and exercise every 1161 00:38:46,500 --> 00:38:48,339 day that really help you in other ways 1162 00:38:48,339 --> 00:38:49,719 besides the normal medication. 1163 00:38:50,019 --> 00:38:51,299 And it turns out to be a big 1164 00:38:51,299 --> 00:38:53,460 plus for me. May not work for everybody, 1165 00:38:53,460 --> 00:38:55,719 but it certainly made my life, my Parkinson's, 1166 00:38:55,940 --> 00:38:58,985 easier to adapt to. And so I'm still 1167 00:38:58,985 --> 00:39:01,005 working as an actor a good deal. And 1168 00:39:01,625 --> 00:39:03,385 on several different shows, I said, I wanna 1169 00:39:03,385 --> 00:39:05,625 thank you so much. I'm glad that we 1170 00:39:05,625 --> 00:39:06,744 had such a good time in the show, 1171 00:39:06,744 --> 00:39:08,105 and I'm sorry it's over, but thank you 1172 00:39:08,105 --> 00:39:10,344 for being so understanding about my Parkinson's. They 1173 00:39:10,344 --> 00:39:11,309 said, you're what? 1174 00:39:11,710 --> 00:39:13,630 My Parkinson's. You guys remember you've 1175 00:39:14,030 --> 00:39:15,309 The day you'd love me to do this 1176 00:39:15,309 --> 00:39:16,670 and that. They said, No, we just know 1177 00:39:16,670 --> 00:39:18,590 you're a man in your 70s. We had 1178 00:39:18,590 --> 00:39:20,369 no We didn't know you had Parkinson's, 1179 00:39:20,989 --> 00:39:22,829 so I've been getting away with it for 1180 00:39:22,829 --> 00:39:24,510 a while. Then I decided to talk about 1181 00:39:24,510 --> 00:39:26,289 it in the book, perhaps help others, 1182 00:39:26,704 --> 00:39:28,465 and I'm glad I did because a lot 1183 00:39:28,465 --> 00:39:30,545 of people have called me for advice on 1184 00:39:30,545 --> 00:39:32,545 it, and I've told them what's worked for 1185 00:39:32,545 --> 00:39:33,045 me. 1186 00:39:33,425 --> 00:39:35,184 Again, there's no guarantee it's gonna work for 1187 00:39:35,184 --> 00:39:36,704 them, but try it. But if these things 1188 00:39:36,704 --> 00:39:39,699 help you, you know, as it does, I 1189 00:39:39,699 --> 00:39:41,980 I firmly believe in the AMA solution too, 1190 00:39:41,980 --> 00:39:43,900 which is medications can help out a good 1191 00:39:43,900 --> 00:39:45,819 deal. The ones that I've taken have helped 1192 00:39:45,819 --> 00:39:48,299 me, but also try these other things that 1193 00:39:48,299 --> 00:39:50,400 may help you a good deal because medications, 1194 00:39:50,460 --> 00:39:52,299 the more you take them, the less they 1195 00:39:52,299 --> 00:39:54,235 work. So you have to keep upping the 1196 00:39:54,235 --> 00:39:55,994 dosage, so that's something to be aware of 1197 00:39:55,994 --> 00:39:59,295 and, you know, to adapt to. Well, certainly, 1198 00:39:59,514 --> 00:40:01,195 going into it, the fact that you are 1199 00:40:01,195 --> 00:40:04,255 so healthy, I mean, I you are truly 1200 00:40:04,315 --> 00:40:05,994 the only person I know that could ride 1201 00:40:05,994 --> 00:40:07,054 a bike up Mulholland. 1202 00:40:07,914 --> 00:40:09,809 So I know. I don't think I could 1203 00:40:09,809 --> 00:40:11,329 do that anymore, but I did it till 1204 00:40:11,329 --> 00:40:12,630 just a few years ago. 1205 00:40:13,010 --> 00:40:16,130 That's a feat for sure. Yeah. The things 1206 00:40:16,130 --> 00:40:18,309 that life throws at us. I mean, obviously, 1207 00:40:18,369 --> 00:40:20,289 that's that's a big deal. Parkinson's is a 1208 00:40:20,289 --> 00:40:22,630 big deal. And that you are, 1209 00:40:23,255 --> 00:40:25,015 again, staying in the moment with it and 1210 00:40:25,015 --> 00:40:26,454 being like, well, I'm doing what I can 1211 00:40:26,454 --> 00:40:26,954 do. 1212 00:40:27,655 --> 00:40:29,574 And I think back again as reading your 1213 00:40:29,574 --> 00:40:31,675 book and all these different scenarios 1214 00:40:32,215 --> 00:40:33,114 you were in 1215 00:40:33,414 --> 00:40:34,954 cheating death, certainly. 1216 00:40:35,280 --> 00:40:36,260 I mean Definitely. 1217 00:40:36,719 --> 00:40:39,280 Partying with Charles Manson, that one rang a 1218 00:40:39,280 --> 00:40:42,079 few bells. Yeah. I know. The situations I 1219 00:40:42,079 --> 00:40:44,079 put myself in through drugs and alcohol, I 1220 00:40:44,079 --> 00:40:45,140 mean, it's just crazy. 1221 00:40:45,679 --> 00:40:47,380 We just went to this house 1222 00:40:47,744 --> 00:40:49,344 of a a friend of his, and we 1223 00:40:49,344 --> 00:40:51,344 smoked to join with a bunch of hippies 1224 00:40:51,344 --> 00:40:52,324 there. And I later 1225 00:40:52,625 --> 00:40:54,384 see the LA Times under the picture of 1226 00:40:54,384 --> 00:40:56,144 those same people, and that they turned out 1227 00:40:56,144 --> 00:40:57,984 to be the Manson Gang. Me and my 1228 00:40:57,984 --> 00:40:59,824 friend, James, went and just smoked to join 1229 00:40:59,824 --> 00:41:01,980 with a friend. And when I get out 1230 00:41:01,980 --> 00:41:02,539 of it, 1231 00:41:03,019 --> 00:41:06,400 meeting with people that were extremely dangerous, I'm 1232 00:41:06,460 --> 00:41:08,780 I'm just grateful that nothing ever happened as 1233 00:41:08,780 --> 00:41:10,940 a result of my very brief encounter with 1234 00:41:10,940 --> 00:41:11,440 them. 1235 00:41:11,900 --> 00:41:13,440 Yeah. Lucky. Lucky. 1236 00:41:13,980 --> 00:41:15,599 The you talk a lot about 1237 00:41:17,855 --> 00:41:21,775 the lineage of actors in this town in 1238 00:41:21,775 --> 00:41:22,514 in LA. 1239 00:41:23,135 --> 00:41:25,614 And, certainly, that has been a big topic 1240 00:41:25,614 --> 00:41:26,355 of conversation. 1241 00:41:26,894 --> 00:41:28,114 That is not to 1242 00:41:28,414 --> 00:41:30,275 say that the people who are descendants 1243 00:41:30,574 --> 00:41:32,940 of actors who have already been successful that 1244 00:41:33,019 --> 00:41:34,140 I mean, they still have to do the 1245 00:41:34,140 --> 00:41:35,900 work. They still have to be good at 1246 00:41:35,900 --> 00:41:36,640 their job. 1247 00:41:37,099 --> 00:41:39,420 But for people that are looking to get 1248 00:41:39,420 --> 00:41:42,300 into the business, let's say, who are don't 1249 00:41:42,300 --> 00:41:44,780 have the benefit of being born into one 1250 00:41:44,780 --> 00:41:46,864 of the royalty of Hollywood. 1251 00:41:47,804 --> 00:41:50,364 Do you have any advice? Any advantage that 1252 00:41:50,364 --> 00:41:51,905 you can use? Any 1253 00:41:52,284 --> 00:41:55,744 any device that's, ethical, legal that you can 1254 00:41:55,885 --> 00:41:58,045 use to try to get work? I think 1255 00:41:58,045 --> 00:41:59,344 it's fair game. 1256 00:42:00,359 --> 00:42:02,440 I I mentioned earlier that I I didn't 1257 00:42:02,440 --> 00:42:04,039 wanna trade in my father's name, and I 1258 00:42:04,039 --> 00:42:06,039 was even gonna register with Screen Actors Guild 1259 00:42:06,039 --> 00:42:08,279 as James Begley, so I wasn't Ed Begley 1260 00:42:08,279 --> 00:42:10,519 junior and let people guess if I was 1261 00:42:10,519 --> 00:42:11,019 related, 1262 00:42:11,319 --> 00:42:13,259 and I didn't do that. I'm glad I 1263 00:42:13,695 --> 00:42:16,255 listed myself as Ed Begley junior because it's 1264 00:42:16,255 --> 00:42:18,494 a very positive thing. Number 1, they're gonna 1265 00:42:18,494 --> 00:42:20,815 remember my name. That's good at any job 1266 00:42:20,815 --> 00:42:23,454 interview. You're trying to excel at, you know, 1267 00:42:23,454 --> 00:42:26,655 law, medicine, sports, show business, whatever. They remember 1268 00:42:26,655 --> 00:42:28,594 your name. That's number 1. And number 2, 1269 00:42:28,949 --> 00:42:29,609 if they 1270 00:42:29,909 --> 00:42:32,070 know your parents or some relative close to 1271 00:42:32,070 --> 00:42:33,909 you, they're gonna be inclined to be rooting 1272 00:42:33,909 --> 00:42:35,349 for you. They have something to talk about 1273 00:42:35,349 --> 00:42:36,949 in the job interview. I work with your 1274 00:42:36,949 --> 00:42:39,050 dad in a Philco Playhouse. He was fantastic. 1275 00:42:39,190 --> 00:42:41,530 We did a show on Broadway too called, 1276 00:42:42,764 --> 00:42:44,924 odds against tomorrow, and so I I just 1277 00:42:44,924 --> 00:42:47,085 wanna say good luck, Eddie. Top of page 1278 00:42:47,085 --> 00:42:48,605 8. Good luck. We're all pulling for you, 1279 00:42:48,605 --> 00:42:49,105 pal. 1280 00:42:49,724 --> 00:42:51,244 So that's the kind of thing that happened. 1281 00:42:51,244 --> 00:42:52,844 I got, you know, a lot of help 1282 00:42:52,844 --> 00:42:53,585 from people 1283 00:42:53,885 --> 00:42:55,724 who like my dad, and how can that 1284 00:42:55,724 --> 00:42:57,484 be a bad thing? It was a very 1285 00:42:57,484 --> 00:42:58,224 big plus. 1286 00:42:58,619 --> 00:43:00,219 Take anything that you can use to your 1287 00:43:00,219 --> 00:43:00,719 advantage 1288 00:43:01,339 --> 00:43:03,179 and and use it, and and I did. 1289 00:43:03,179 --> 00:43:04,559 And you gotta deliver. 1290 00:43:04,859 --> 00:43:06,460 I mean, it's not Rob Reiner is not 1291 00:43:06,460 --> 00:43:08,619 just the son of Carl Reiner. He's a 1292 00:43:08,619 --> 00:43:11,675 brilliant director, brilliant actor. He's great. Liza Minnelli 1293 00:43:11,675 --> 00:43:13,914 is not just Judy Garland's daughter. She's much, 1294 00:43:13,914 --> 00:43:14,655 much more. 1295 00:43:15,034 --> 00:43:18,335 These talented people sometimes, they get lucky through 1296 00:43:18,635 --> 00:43:21,114 through birth, and then they do something incredible 1297 00:43:21,114 --> 00:43:23,034 with it, and and many people have. I'd 1298 00:43:23,034 --> 00:43:24,315 like to think I have, to a certain 1299 00:43:24,315 --> 00:43:26,369 extent, improved on what my dad handed me. 1300 00:43:27,170 --> 00:43:28,849 Be bold. I know people have come up 1301 00:43:28,849 --> 00:43:30,070 to me and said, you know, 1302 00:43:30,369 --> 00:43:31,650 can you keep me in mind for this 1303 00:43:31,650 --> 00:43:33,410 show with that? And sometimes when I can't 1304 00:43:33,410 --> 00:43:34,309 help, I do. 1305 00:43:34,610 --> 00:43:36,070 And I look to see 1306 00:43:36,450 --> 00:43:37,809 make sure that they know what they're doing 1307 00:43:37,809 --> 00:43:39,090 and go see them in a play or 1308 00:43:39,090 --> 00:43:40,450 something or look at a clip that they 1309 00:43:40,450 --> 00:43:42,554 have, look at their reel, make sure they're 1310 00:43:42,554 --> 00:43:44,255 qualified to do the work. If I'm gonna 1311 00:43:44,635 --> 00:43:46,315 recommend them to a casting agent, I have 1312 00:43:46,315 --> 00:43:47,835 to know something about the work. I can't 1313 00:43:47,835 --> 00:43:49,054 just recommend somebody. 1314 00:43:49,434 --> 00:43:49,994 Yeah. But, 1315 00:43:50,554 --> 00:43:52,315 I urge people to be bold and do 1316 00:43:52,315 --> 00:43:54,449 whatever it takes to really, you know, without 1317 00:43:54,449 --> 00:43:56,369 being a stalker or something with a casting 1318 00:43:56,369 --> 00:43:58,530 office, you know, to just do what's ethical 1319 00:43:58,530 --> 00:43:59,510 and proper and 1320 00:43:59,809 --> 00:44:01,010 and just go out there and do the 1321 00:44:01,010 --> 00:44:03,250 footwork and just keep trying because you'll hear 1322 00:44:03,250 --> 00:44:04,769 no a lot. Then one day, you'll hear 1323 00:44:04,769 --> 00:44:06,855 maybe. Then one day, finally, you'll hear yes. 1324 00:44:06,934 --> 00:44:08,934 And which is true of even your life. 1325 00:44:08,934 --> 00:44:11,094 I mean, it sounds like as as I'm 1326 00:44:11,094 --> 00:44:13,255 reading, it it sounded like you you didn't 1327 00:44:13,255 --> 00:44:16,054 get everything. You too had to work hard 1328 00:44:16,054 --> 00:44:16,715 to get 1329 00:44:17,094 --> 00:44:19,675 indoors and be heard and seen. 1330 00:44:20,329 --> 00:44:22,489 I did. After 15 years of it, I 1331 00:44:22,489 --> 00:44:23,929 was ready to move to Atlanta. I was 1332 00:44:23,929 --> 00:44:26,170 gonna sell the house. My first wife Ingrid 1333 00:44:26,170 --> 00:44:27,929 and I had bought because just after 15 1334 00:44:27,929 --> 00:44:29,949 years, I said to her, you know, 1335 00:44:30,409 --> 00:44:32,250 I don't care if it's law, medicine, show 1336 00:44:32,250 --> 00:44:33,929 business. You know, if you're not really getting 1337 00:44:33,929 --> 00:44:35,449 to where you want to get in some 1338 00:44:35,449 --> 00:44:35,949 way, 1339 00:44:36,255 --> 00:44:37,694 after a decade and a half, it's time 1340 00:44:37,694 --> 00:44:38,674 to mix it up. 1341 00:44:38,974 --> 00:44:40,414 I'll go to we'll go to Atlanta. I'll 1342 00:44:40,414 --> 00:44:41,614 try to get a job as a local 1343 00:44:41,614 --> 00:44:43,775 weatherman or something and try to one day 1344 00:44:43,775 --> 00:44:45,614 get a talk show in Atlanta. He is 1345 00:44:45,614 --> 00:44:47,154 big fish in a small town. 1346 00:44:47,454 --> 00:44:48,815 You know, all I know is show business, 1347 00:44:48,815 --> 00:44:50,414 so I wanna still work in show business, 1348 00:44:50,414 --> 00:44:52,160 but it's not working here in LA. The 1349 00:44:52,160 --> 00:44:53,300 ring, the phone rang. 1350 00:44:53,680 --> 00:44:55,200 What do you mean? What? Wait a minute. 1351 00:44:55,200 --> 00:44:56,960 Slow down. What's the saying elsewhere? I don't 1352 00:44:56,960 --> 00:44:58,719 know what that even means. And it was 1353 00:44:58,719 --> 00:45:00,400 just hospital show in the eighties, and I 1354 00:45:00,400 --> 00:45:02,320 had an interview for that. And I went 1355 00:45:02,320 --> 00:45:04,160 and read for a part and didn't get 1356 00:45:04,160 --> 00:45:04,660 it. 1357 00:45:05,264 --> 00:45:07,184 I got another part that had, like, 2 1358 00:45:07,184 --> 00:45:08,404 lines, a small part. 1359 00:45:08,704 --> 00:45:10,565 The part I wanted wound up being 1360 00:45:10,864 --> 00:45:12,565 shot in the 2nd season. 1361 00:45:12,944 --> 00:45:15,184 So my plans for my life and my 1362 00:45:15,184 --> 00:45:15,684 career 1363 00:45:15,984 --> 00:45:17,824 have never been good near as good as 1364 00:45:17,824 --> 00:45:20,360 what the universe has thrown me, so I'm 1365 00:45:20,360 --> 00:45:21,960 blessed. And if you want that kind of 1366 00:45:21,960 --> 00:45:24,199 blessing, you gotta do the footwork first. Do 1367 00:45:24,199 --> 00:45:25,019 you think about, 1368 00:45:25,719 --> 00:45:27,719 the what happens at the end of the 1369 00:45:27,880 --> 00:45:29,420 of this corpus and 1370 00:45:30,280 --> 00:45:31,019 what comes 1371 00:45:31,320 --> 00:45:33,400 on the other side? Is that something you 1372 00:45:33,400 --> 00:45:35,465 think about? I try not to dwell on 1373 00:45:35,465 --> 00:45:37,864 it too much, but again, as I mentioned 1374 00:45:37,864 --> 00:45:39,945 earlier, I just can't imagine that's it. The, 1375 00:45:39,945 --> 00:45:42,184 you know, the heart stops pumping and the 1376 00:45:42,184 --> 00:45:44,684 cells eventually die, and it all just stops. 1377 00:45:45,144 --> 00:45:46,985 I suppose that's possible, but that's the most 1378 00:45:46,985 --> 00:45:49,005 farfetched of all the possible scenarios. 1379 00:45:49,430 --> 00:45:50,970 More likely is if there's something 1380 00:45:51,349 --> 00:45:53,190 after and there was something before, and it's 1381 00:45:53,190 --> 00:45:55,829 perhaps like the Hindu the Hindu religion believes 1382 00:45:55,829 --> 00:45:57,750 that there's, you know, like a big bang 1383 00:45:57,750 --> 00:45:59,130 and a big crunch. There's 1384 00:45:59,430 --> 00:45:59,989 a infin 1385 00:46:00,390 --> 00:46:00,890 infinitesimally 1386 00:46:01,269 --> 00:46:03,430 small one thing, then there's many things. The 1387 00:46:03,430 --> 00:46:06,065 universe goes on. I think it's something like 1388 00:46:06,065 --> 00:46:07,605 that. I think the big bang 1389 00:46:07,984 --> 00:46:09,824 is where it all comes from, and I 1390 00:46:09,824 --> 00:46:12,144 think perhaps there's even a big crunch one 1391 00:46:12,144 --> 00:46:12,724 day out. 1392 00:46:13,105 --> 00:46:14,804 Hope it doesn't hurt when it happens. 1393 00:46:15,904 --> 00:46:16,404 Well, 1394 00:46:17,025 --> 00:46:18,944 you know, if by the time the big 1395 00:46:18,944 --> 00:46:19,924 crunch happens, 1396 00:46:20,340 --> 00:46:23,059 hopefully, it will be millions millions of years 1397 00:46:23,059 --> 00:46:25,140 in the future and will have lived a 1398 00:46:25,140 --> 00:46:27,320 1000000 different lifetimes by then. 1399 00:46:27,780 --> 00:46:28,920 Wouldn't that be nice? 1400 00:46:29,220 --> 00:46:31,380 Yeah. It would be. And, you know, it'd 1401 00:46:31,380 --> 00:46:33,539 be time for a nap by then. I 1402 00:46:33,539 --> 00:46:35,640 think so too. I'm ready for a nap. 1403 00:46:36,635 --> 00:46:38,795 Alright. So the book is To the Temple 1404 00:46:38,795 --> 00:46:39,534 of Tranquility 1405 00:46:39,994 --> 00:46:42,074 and Step on It. Well, how did that 1406 00:46:42,074 --> 00:46:43,755 that you said in the book that that 1407 00:46:43,755 --> 00:46:46,315 was something that someone had said to you. 1408 00:46:46,315 --> 00:46:47,614 It's such a great 1409 00:46:48,940 --> 00:46:49,440 juxtaposition 1410 00:46:50,140 --> 00:46:50,640 of 1411 00:46:51,340 --> 00:46:53,579 how humans live their life. I I just 1412 00:46:53,579 --> 00:46:56,160 love it. The great actor Dick Stahl 1413 00:46:56,699 --> 00:46:58,219 is the one who said it. I'm told 1414 00:46:58,219 --> 00:47:00,300 he didn't just say it on stage as 1415 00:47:00,300 --> 00:47:02,480 he did many times as an improv actor 1416 00:47:02,614 --> 00:47:03,974 or in a movie or a TV show, 1417 00:47:03,974 --> 00:47:06,135 which he was also brilliant. Dick Stall was 1418 00:47:06,135 --> 00:47:08,135 his name, and he, like me, was very 1419 00:47:08,135 --> 00:47:10,775 smitten with the Maharishi when the Beatles went 1420 00:47:10,775 --> 00:47:12,775 to him back in the sixties. And so 1421 00:47:12,775 --> 00:47:14,534 we all thought that was fantastic, and he 1422 00:47:14,534 --> 00:47:17,389 wanted to get somebody who is that practice 1423 00:47:17,530 --> 00:47:18,329 those kinds of, 1424 00:47:19,289 --> 00:47:19,789 spiritual 1425 00:47:20,329 --> 00:47:21,469 ways. And so 1426 00:47:21,769 --> 00:47:23,449 he had planned a very, like I would, 1427 00:47:23,449 --> 00:47:25,609 a very type a personality kinda trip. He 1428 00:47:25,609 --> 00:47:28,085 was gonna go from LAX to Hawaii, and 1429 00:47:28,085 --> 00:47:30,005 from there, get a plane to the Philippines. 1430 00:47:30,005 --> 00:47:31,204 And from there, he got a berth on 1431 00:47:31,204 --> 00:47:32,505 a merchant marine vessel 1432 00:47:33,045 --> 00:47:35,224 to get to this island, then to another 1433 00:47:35,844 --> 00:47:38,244 place on a smaller boat. Everything was planned 1434 00:47:38,244 --> 00:47:40,005 out perfectly with nothing could go wrong, but 1435 00:47:40,005 --> 00:47:42,105 that first plane was late leaving LAX. 1436 00:47:42,599 --> 00:47:44,860 And so it just barely missed a flight 1437 00:47:45,000 --> 00:47:47,880 to the Philippines. And from there, he had 1438 00:47:47,880 --> 00:47:49,500 to wait a week because it was monsoon 1439 00:47:49,559 --> 00:47:51,079 season to get another shift to get to 1440 00:47:51,079 --> 00:47:53,480 the smaller island. Finally, when he ran up 1441 00:47:53,480 --> 00:47:55,094 the dock and hopped in a little 1442 00:47:55,574 --> 00:47:57,414 little, like, a rickshaw to get to the 1443 00:47:57,414 --> 00:47:59,094 place, he said to the driver, he said, 1444 00:47:59,094 --> 00:48:01,355 the temple of tranquility and step on it. 1445 00:48:01,734 --> 00:48:03,894 So the driver started to laugh and so 1446 00:48:03,894 --> 00:48:05,894 did he. He thought it was absurd, and 1447 00:48:05,894 --> 00:48:07,414 I did too. So when it came when 1448 00:48:07,414 --> 00:48:08,614 it came time to write a book, I 1449 00:48:08,614 --> 00:48:10,559 thought that was a perfect title. It's such 1450 00:48:10,559 --> 00:48:11,539 a perfect 1451 00:48:11,840 --> 00:48:13,760 description of what it's like to be a 1452 00:48:13,760 --> 00:48:16,099 human being. I just love it so much. 1453 00:48:16,400 --> 00:48:18,320 Ed, tell people how they might find you, 1454 00:48:18,320 --> 00:48:20,640 learn more about what you do, and and 1455 00:48:20,640 --> 00:48:22,480 the things going on in your life, and 1456 00:48:22,480 --> 00:48:23,940 and the book, and everything. 1457 00:48:24,605 --> 00:48:25,424 Go to edbegley.com. 1458 00:48:25,964 --> 00:48:27,644 That's where you can find out more information 1459 00:48:27,644 --> 00:48:28,784 about what's going on. 1460 00:48:29,164 --> 00:48:29,565 I'm on, 1461 00:48:30,204 --> 00:48:32,284 Twitter. Well, I'm not on Twitter. I'm still 1462 00:48:32,284 --> 00:48:33,804 on x. I haven't figured out how to 1463 00:48:33,804 --> 00:48:36,144 exit yet. And I'm on Instagram, 1464 00:48:36,880 --> 00:48:37,619 and it's 1465 00:48:38,960 --> 00:48:39,460 ed_begley_jrfordjunioron 1466 00:48:40,800 --> 00:48:42,659 Instagram. That's where to find me. 1467 00:48:43,039 --> 00:48:43,359 And, 1468 00:48:44,159 --> 00:48:45,840 you can buy the book at your local 1469 00:48:45,840 --> 00:48:46,340 bookstore, 1470 00:48:46,719 --> 00:48:48,159 or you could certainly buy it at Barnes 1471 00:48:48,159 --> 00:48:50,400 and Noble. Those kind of stores, you can 1472 00:48:50,400 --> 00:48:52,420 buy it, at Amazon and 1473 00:48:52,824 --> 00:48:55,304 elsewhere. Just search Ed Begley book. It'll come 1474 00:48:55,304 --> 00:48:57,405 right up. And I'll put links on heyhumanpodcast.com 1475 00:48:58,425 --> 00:49:00,344 with all of your stuff so that it's 1476 00:49:00,344 --> 00:49:02,425 easy for people to find it. Thank you 1477 00:49:02,425 --> 00:49:04,829 so much, Susan. I really appreciate it. It's 1478 00:49:04,829 --> 00:49:06,910 been lovely speaking with you. This has been 1479 00:49:06,910 --> 00:49:08,910 great. Thank you. You too. You're great to 1480 00:49:08,910 --> 00:49:10,989 talk to. Thank you. Thank you, Susan. Thank 1481 00:49:10,989 --> 00:49:13,010 you, and thank you for listening, everybody. 1482 00:49:13,309 --> 00:49:13,809 Bye. 1483 00:49:14,110 --> 00:49:15,090 Lots of love. 1484 00:49:15,950 --> 00:49:16,307 Great. Review and subscribe to Hey Human podcast 1485 00:49:16,307 --> 00:49:16,349 on iTunes or wherever you get your podcast. 1486 00:49:16,349 --> 00:49:17,054 Thank you,