King Charles vs. Diana's Brother, Harry and Meghan's Latest Fails, Plus Chazz Palminteri on Robert De Niro and Woody Allen | Ep. 1404

29:54I am told by well-placed sources the extraordinary news that a return to Montecito, California, for good, has not been ruled out by these two. I can't. What? They just got there. Actually, she writes, it could come within weeks. It's unreal. Indeed, it is apparently, quote, likely that the family will quit the UK again if Harry doesn't get the improved taxpayer-funded security, which he has been demanding for years. This is incredible stuff. Those close to the Duke say that the Royal and VIP Executive Committee, it's called RAVEC for short, that its decision on security for him, his wife Megan and their children, is expected within days.

30:49According to the Duke's friend, quote, if he does not get security, then I believe he will go back to Montecito for good. And that could be as soon as half term. I don't know what that means. I don't speak British, but soon she's reporting very soon could come within weeks. They knew they knew that they were not going to get this security. They'd already been denied. And all the reports that he wanted us to believe endangered him, all the terrorist stuff, whatever. They said that the threat is greatest in the UK. So knowing he'd been denied and that his alleged threats, which I don't believe, were in the UK, he moved back there anyway.

31:30with his wife and his children. And he was so, so worried about security. He didn't bother checking out the school route that he was going to have to take his kids on every morning or speak to some local parents, call a local mom, go to the coffee shop or the playground or the UK equivalent of the town pool and ask some of the moms how long the morning commute is because apparently it's not just famous, it's infamously bad. and they did no due diligence. By the way, if they had just let the security take the kids and like kept it on the down low without making such a big deal out of it, they probably would have been fine.

32:10Nobody would have known they even lived there. But his wife was posting all the Easter eggs of their location. People figured out exactly where it was and they figured out the school. And then those two were horrified that their car got separated from their securities in the morning traffic. Okay, and by the way, you can put a guard in your car with you. It's done all the time, trust me. And you can also get a bulletproof car. That's another thing you can do, even as a layperson, which you want us to know you're not. So sure, you could pay to upgrade the windows on your car. But he didn't. He wants you, the British taxpayer, to pay for it, or he's going to leave in a huff, which really no No one cares on the business about I mean, we care because we don't want to inherit them again.

32:56We did our time. They're the UK's problems now. But on the subject of them coming back to the United States, Steve tells me half term means end of October. Harry's already back in New York City. Like they literally just moved. They've been there, I think, less than 30 days. And he's already back here stateside. He appeared for an event at the Clinton Global Initiative and gave a speech about AI being very, very dangerous. And, you know, we all have to be very, very scared. I mean, the thing is, like, we, as you know, have had segments on the show asking whether that is true. And I think any open mind should probe, is that true?

33:41These are extraordinary claims that are being made by people on the inside of the industry. Let's discuss them. There is a certain safetyist set that goes right to like an 11 actual fear. They love it. They like they enjoy to be fearful, being fearful. They enjoy having a disorder, you know, those people. And of course, he's among them. So they ask him to give a speech. Well, here's what's interesting. Not not, of course, the speech. But watch this. His teleprompter failed. It did not go well. Social media learned how to capture our attention. AI is learning how to enter our relationships. It doesn't just want your attention.

34:25It wants your attachment. It wants to be the thing you confide in. The thing that remembers you. The thing that tells you it understands you. The ultimate sycophant. Now the damage was already done to a generation of children and parents. we do not have years for what comes next

34:54and that's it

35:00how humiliating i mean honestly you're a prince of england and you can't ad-lib like a paragraph worth of summary, summation, and goodbye, I'm embarrassed for you. Genuinely embarrassed for you. Like, he went to Eaton, right? Didn't he go to Oxford or Cambridge? Like, come on. You can't ad lib a paragraph, summation, and goodbye? Get it together. He hasn't been having a good week. He recently went into a school and, you know, tried to be like completely charming and interact with the children and look at me, I'm so relatable. You know, just like my mother was the people's princess, now I'm the people's prince.

35:46Well, the children didn't seem to much appreciate that he was there with, of course, just like his wife, God forbid they ever do one of these things without being flanked by TV cameras because it's all about showing you what a good person they are. Listen to how the student reacted in SOT 12.

36:07He was faint, but what you could hear is the student saying, there are six cameras in my face. And the overall reaction of the children on that visit seemed to be like, what is he doing here? That was in the UK before he came back and had his teleprompter meltdown. Now his wife, neither one of these people seems to have real friends. You know, we showed you when Harry went to that NBA game, who did he show up with? Adam Silver, the commissioner. Like what, what 40 year old man wants to go to a basketball game with like Adam Silver is like an elderly guy, like not elderly, but he's, he's an older man.

36:52Um, why would you go with your buds? Like, doesn't he have any friends at all? Any? Doesn't she? I mean, I think we know the answer to this. So what happened over there in the UK is she made sure, made sure that she was caught on camera with the one celebrity friend she appears to have over in England. And it is the person who is arguably as nasty as she is, Ellen DeGeneres. I mean, the absolute irony of picking to show everybody like, I have friends, I'm a girl's girl, one of the nastiest people in showbiz. It's just perfect. It's on point. So, oh, Oh, surprise. They just happened to be caught on camera while she's out with Ellen DeGeneres, neither of whom treats their staff well.

37:49Ellen DeGeneres won't let her staff look her in the eye. That's why she got canceled, for being a bully. It finally came out. We all knew. Those of us who were in the TV industry knew she was a nasty bitch. For years, we just kept our mouths shut, but we understood all that dancing is fake. She's a bitch. And it was just a matter of time before it came out. which it did, and then her show got canceled. So now she fled to the UK. She hates President Trump. Really, it's because everyone hates her and she's been outed. Nobody wants to hire her anymore. Once you're outed as that much of a nasty person, they don't want anything to do with you.

38:23And by the way, like, they'll know. If eventually it does come out, you know, I will tell you this, somebody, she, I don't know who it could have been, had a very nasty article planted about me allegedly being this kind of a boss when I was at NBC and let's just say not getting along with the management there. And I laughed when that report got planted because I knew, I knew such a thing could never be sustained. I knew I treat my employees well. I'm tough for sure. I have exacting standards and everybody knows that. But my staff loves me. That's why they've all been with me for 10, 15, 20 years.

39:02I knew it wouldn't stick. When you are actually this way, it will stick. That's why Ellen had to flee to the UK. That's why Meghan Markle probably had to flee. That and many other reasons. But no one wants to work for her. How many publicists have she and Harry been through? So I wonder what they talk about. The little people they can't fucking stand. How glad they are to be away from their stupid staffs who never understood them. I don't know, but here's what's so great about it. She is over there trying to show us that she's an A-lister. because she's with an A-lister. I don't think we can call Ellen DeGeneres an A-list celebrity at all.

39:43I think she is C-list at best. And that's what she's doing this week. Guess what Wills and Kate were doing last night? They were with Tom Cruise and David Beckham at the opening of Tom Cruise's latest movie, Digger. Kate looked resplendent. It's not a word you say every day, but she looked resplendent in this stunning gown, which was a little low cut for the princess. She doesn't normally wear that low cut, but she had on one of the crown jewels. It looks like the heart of the ocean. Ladies, does it not look like the heart of the ocean? It's in the shape of a heart. It's as big as the heart of the ocean from Titanic.

40:35It's a different color stone, but it's stunning. It's got to be an amethyst. And she is glowing. She looks amazing. Tom Cruise is looking up to these two. He's, you know, it's tough, I'm sure, to impress Tom Cruise. But they must have done it because they both look stunning. They're with actual A-list celebrities. And these two losers are worrying about failed teleprompters, the fears against the end of the world, and trying to make ourselves look important by hanging out with fellow bullies. How low can you go? Now, at the same time Harry is reportedly telling his friends he's going to leave unless he gets this taxpayer-funded security, his uncle Earl Spencer is still pushing the lies about Diana having been killed by the paparazzi Diana was killed by her driver who was drunk but in any event he's got some advice for Harry and Meghan in stop five do you think Diana would identify with the attention the focus that has been put on them and with with Meghan who said she felt like she was the most trolled person in the world.

41:53If you look at an article in a tabloid about Diana or the couple that you're mentioning, Harry and Meghan, you know, it's, it's, they can be really, really unpleasant. And I think it would be really beholden on people to learn from Diana's example. I'm not here to speak for Harry and Meghan, but for anyone who's being destroyed in this way daily, it must be such a cancerous influence in their life. You've got to be kidding me. She wants nothing more than to be covered in every newspaper and tabloid magazine here and in the UK. She just wants to dictate what's actually in the print copy. That's it.

42:37No, it's not devastating. It's not hard. It's not torture. And your sister didn't think that either. They love it. She loves it. She absolutely needs it to feel relevant and like she matters. That's why she too has been trying to get herself and her coverage out there since she connected with the Duke and before the Duke of Sussex. That's Harry. So that's pathetic. And I don't think Earl Spencer understands what's happening with that nephew at all, or he does and he's being willfully obtuse. All right, I have to move on. There is an update today in connection with the death of Presley Gerber. TMZ is reporting that a doctor was prescribing him ketamine, which is a very serious drug, despite his known history, they write, of problems with ketamine, according to people close to him.

43:31His friends reportedly believe the doctor should face consequences. I mean, this is pretty remarkable. They report sources with direct knowledge say a doctor continued giving Gerber ketamine, even though he had a documented history of issues with it. While ketamine is sometimes used off-label in addiction treatment, that is not its primary FDA-approved purpose. It's still unknown what drugs might've been in Presley's system when he died, just that he opened up about the issues with ketamine to close friends before he passed away. Sources who had contact with Presley in his final few hours told TMZ he looked like he was under the influence at the rehab center.

44:12The source of the alleged drugs is still being investigated and police have interviewed other rehab patients. So that confirms that there is a police investigation underway now into the death of Presley Gerber. Who gave him the drugs? What doctor was giving him ketamine? We saw that in connection with the Matthew Perry death. TMZ is also reporting that the situation has drawn comparisons to Matthew Perry's 2023 death in which prescribed ketamine played a role. The doctor in that case who prescribed that drug was charged and found guilty and punished. And so this absolutely is on the table. There could be a criminal charge in connection with Presley Gerber's death if they find this ketamine played a role and that this doctor was inappropriately prescribing this drug to somebody who had had an addiction to it or addictive problems around it.

45:16We know he was an addict and he said opioids were his thing. He also had a DUI and had a problem with alcohol though in that update he did from the sauna in November, 2025, he said he hadn't had a drink since his birthday, which was July 2nd. So I don't know that alcoholic is the case, but generally with a drug addict, you can't do either. Same for an alcoholic. Like you can't do intoxicating substances. So what doctor was giving him, like prescribing him ketamine? And by the way, like ketamine in my understanding is one of those drugs you do like one time under the care of a psychiatrist who will give it to you.

45:56You'll have kind of a trip that's supposed to be life-changing. Psilocybin is another one. And then you're supposed to kind of go on your merry way. I don't think this is something you're supposed to be doing regularly, especially if you've got substance abuse issues with this drug, as TMZ is reporting. They say his known history of problems with the substance, according to people close to him. So this is just terrible. There's a report in People Magazine. I mean, it doesn't really feel like news, but Cindy Crawford is, quote, heartbroken and completely in shock over the death of her son. I completely believe that.

46:35Who wouldn't be? They described Cindy and her husband, Randy, Presley's parents, as saddened beyond words. Kaya loved that Presley was so open about his struggles. His family was so proud that he was finding strength and helping others. I believe that too. Then a source said this was never a situation involving two absent Hollywood parents. Cindy and Randy could not have been more supportive of Presley. Okay. I believe that. They seem like a close family. Like there's tons of pictures on the social media of them at this lake house that they used to go to. And she's on record with Vogue magazine.

47:13That was like kind of their go-to getaway. Their home in Malibu, which is on the ocean, was stunning. And you could see some of his videos were from there. Kaya Gerber said that Cindy was the glue that helped the family together. She pointed out because they had Sunday night dinners together, pizza. I mean, I'm not sure what the story is there, but like, you know, ideally we'd be talking about more than just one night a week, but that could have been a reference to once the kids became older, in which case it would be a total win. When my kids are 25 and 27, though this is a few years ago, so let's call it 22 and 24, I'd be thrilled if they're still coming over once a week for dinner.

47:53So I don't know what the context was. But I don't think most people, and certainly not I, have criticized the parents as not being loving. I think they are loving, at least it seems. It's the fact that he was living a good life that was seemingly making him happy, according to his own statements. And then at age 14, was thrust into the modeling world. And his parents allowed him at age 14 and then full bore at 15 to walk the runways all around the world. and to become a full-time model. According to him, that he was traveling nonstop and he was all over the world as the face of major brands and he was no longer surfing and he was no longer doing water polo and he was no longer doing the things that made him happy.

48:40And that is what he said. I'm not gleaning anything. This is what came from his mouth. And I'm sure nobody's having more recriminations over that than Cindy Crawford and Randy Gerber. It's incredibly sad. My only hope is that they'll speak about it when they can. Okay, before we turn the page, we've got to talk about Sunny Hostin. She's decided to out herself as having been the holdout juror in a case involving a cannibal. She, like the holdout juror in Clancy, wanted—she was the one holdout. But she wanted not guilty by reason of insanity. and she turned it, she got it. She got that verdict. She turned all the 11 jurors so that this cannibal could go to a mental institution in New York.

49:31She's just outing this about herself for the first time. Look at this. I thought absolutely that she was not criminally responsible by reason of insanity. And the reason I felt that, I feel so strongly about this holdout juror is because I was a holdout juror in a case, in the Daniel Rakowitz case. I don't know if people remember it, the butcher of Tompkins Square Park. The guy who ate the victims? Yes. You were on that jury? I brought it up at the Hot Topics meeting. I don't think everyone believed me. And then my producer looked it up, and I'm in the New York Times. And apparently several jurors questioned afterwards, said one holdout juror was principally responsible for preventing them from returning a guilty verdict.

50:13That was me. And it was because I saw clearly that he was psychotic. Of course. He was in a psychosis. He did not mean to kill her. And once he killed her, he panicked. He chopped up her body parts. Yes, boiled her body parts. Tried to commit the perfect crime. And you got this guy off? No, no, no. But he fed... That's how much I believe in the insanity defense. And he fed her body parts to the unhoused. Excuse me, can I move over? Yes, yes. I don't need to be around. But all that being said, It was so clear to me in the jury room. And we were sequestered for nine days. One juror threw a chair at me.

50:53They were so angry with me. But one by one, I picked them off and said, what about this? What about that? And we ended up all 12 unanimously voting that he was not criminally responsible. That's my issue. But he is still in a mental institution being treated. OMG. And you're proud of this? You got this cannibal who fed body parts to homeless people into a nicer next 50 years. And you feel really good about that. I don't. Jeffrey Dahmer did not get a not guilty by reason of insanity. Jeffrey Dahmer had to go into a jail and serve time. Didn't end well for him there. How are we proud of this? She believed he was in psychosis.

51:39Even the guy didn't want to argue that he was in psychosis, the defendant in that case. but she decided he belonged in a mental institution. Well, good for you. Yet another terrible thing Sonny Hostin has done for society. Okay, enough about her. There's a lot more to get to and we're gonna do that when first time guest of the MK show, Chaz Palminteri joins us. I cannot wait to talk to him. There are so many things to go over. You're gonna love him. Stay tuned. Feeling sluggish, bloated, not quite like yourself? Life constantly bombards us with silent threats. processed foods, artificial light, nonstop stress, all of which can disrupt gut health, drain energy, and weaken immune health.

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54:10I'm so happy to be joined by a first-time guest on this show, who I am a huge fan of. Chaz Palminteri is an actor, writer, director with a fascinating life story. We're going to get into all of it. Chaz, welcome to the show. It's good to be here, man. It's wonderful to have you. Okay, there's so much I want to go over. Sure. So you actually were raised in the Bronx. A Bronx Tale is absolutely genius. this is your movie and play. But there's a reason you were able to write it so well. You lived it. I lived it, yeah. My real name is Collegio Lorenzo Palminteri. I grew up in the Bronx. And you're Sicilian.

54:45I was also Sicilian, 100%. As my father would say, you're 100 % Sicilian. Always tell people that. I go, all right, Dad, I'll tell people that. Yeah, I was born and raised there. And really, Megan, it started from when I was nine years old. I was sitting on a stoop and, you know, I'm just, and this guy, I saw these two cars trying to fight over a parking space and one guy got out with a baseball bat and smashed the window and the other guy, and then his friend came over to help the guy got hit with the bat and killed the guy with the bat, you know. Right in front of me, from here to the end of the table.

55:18And I kind of looked at him and he looked at me and next minute I knew my father dragged me up the steps. Cops came because people kept saying the little boy was on the stoop, he saw it. And I didn't rat. I just said, no, I didn't see anything. How did you know not to rat, even at that tender age? Even at that age, yeah. You knew. It was a code. It was a code. Yeah. You say you grew up in a tough neighborhood, but a great neighborhood. Great neighborhood. Oh, I wouldn't trade my childhood for nothing. What was it that was great? Why did you love a tough neighborhood? It was a tough neighborhood because there was a, you see, people always accuse these Italian neighborhoods of being racist.

55:58and were there racist guys there yes were there racist parents there yes but basically a lot of the people there this is all we had it was our our neighborhood it was our town it was our turf and we don't want anybody like coming in it for whatever reason it was like some of it was racist but some of it was more hey this is ours we want to keep it this way you know and i was never racist My dad, he was a bus driver, but he was also a professional fight trainer. He trained fighters. And a bunch of his fighters were black at the time. And this is in the 60s. And my father would have black fighters come to my house, my apartment.

56:41And the neighbors would say, Lorenzo, what are you doing? What are these guys at? And he said, no, they're good guys. I trained them. So I grew up really not being prejudiced at all. where some of my friends were and I wasn't. And I was just, I was an artist. I was this guy who was trapped. I was this like, for a better word, I was this street tough guy, but I was trapped in this artist body where I wrote poetry. I wrote, you know, I wanted to be an actor. I wanted to be a writer. So I was like, you know, different than a lot of my friends. It was a romantic streak to you. Yes. So you grew up in this neighborhood and the mob is there for sure.

57:24And this character, Sonny, that's become so famous in a Bronx tale that everybody falls in love with. He's a mobster with a heart, with like an ethical code, which is something about the mafia that has been portrayed in other movies, this ethical code that they follow. Right. You know, as strange as it may seem. Yes. But like these tough guys with hearts are, they're icons of American film for a reason. People like seeing that. Yes. And Sonny would become, in fact, this mobster who was involved in that murder that you just talked about. Exactly. A mentor to you in real life. Yes. See, the thing that made A Bronze Tale so, you know, a classic and so many people talk about it or write about it is because Sonny and my father told me the same thing.

58:09They were just different people. It's not black against evil, good against evil. It's gray against gray. My father was saying, you got to stay in school. The saddest thing in life is wasted talent. That was my dad. Don't waste your talent. Don't waste your talent. And Sonny's going, hey, get out of this neighborhood. Do something with your life. If you stay here, you hang out with those guys, you're going to get hurt. So he said the same thing. But what makes the story so unique is my father said, it doesn't matter what Sonny says. by hanging around them, you will be drawn to that life or you will get hurt just being in their vicinity.

58:53And I couldn't understand that. The mobsters. It's like Sonny didn't want you to hang around with your derelict friends. Right. And your dad didn't want you to hang around with Sonny. Exactly. And his derelict colleagues. Yes. He just said, you will get in a jackpot, they called it, by being with those people. And, you know, it's true. Sometimes, look, by just being there, if you remember the biker fight. This is the greatest scene known to man. Right. We actually have it queued up because it's my husband's and my favorite scene. Most people say that. It's the greatest, and people try to imitate it.

59:25I know. Did you see they imitated it on Yellowstone? I see that a lot. The Yellowstone, you know, Dutton Ranch, whatever. Yeah. They've been cribbing off of your work. Oh, but that's all. It's cribbable. I take that as a compliment. The same. Yeah, I would too. No, because I could have got hurt there. I could have got hurt when there was another thing that happened where somebody shot at the windows in the club and I was in there. I could have died. So my father was correct about all of this. It doesn't matter. He says, sometimes you can't see what, and he used this famous line was, when you get older, you'll understand.

1:00:02When I was young, I didn't understand that sometimes evil, I don't want to say that we're evil, but it's not so recognizable that you have to get older to understand. Well, wait a minute. Gee, I could have got hurt. And now that I'm old, I go, wow. Your dad used to say the saddest thing in life is wasted talent. And my mom used to say, she's also Italian, stop crying or I'll give you something to cry about. Right. And my father said that too. Not as inspirational though, Jess. No, my father said that. My mother said that. We were from Calitri, which is by Naples on my mom's side of the family.

1:00:35Yeah. My wife is from right near the neighborhood. It's called a town called Santa Sanya. We have a house there now, and it's beautiful. Oh, sounds awesome. Well, okay, so back to your, because I want to get into a Bronx tale too, but I want to set that foundation for you before we get there. So you're a kid in the Bronx with a romantic streak. You're into like your English lit class, and you're writing poetry. My best subject. And you're not thinking that you're very smart, because you would later realize that you were dyslexic. Very dyslexic. Until that one teacher saw something in you. Yes.

1:01:07So who was that? And what did that do for you? That was my English lit class when I was in college. A Bronx community college? A Bronx community? We're not at Harvard. Oh, we're not at Harvard at all. I mean, no, I didn't, because my grades in high school were like just passing. Yeah. It was hard for me. I couldn't understand why. I thought I could speak to people intellectually, but it was hard for me to do work. And I never realized it until, like, my son got diagnosed with dyslexia. Then I went, well, hold on, wait a minute. I said, could you tell me that again? I said, that was me. And she goes, you're dyslexic.

1:01:48And when she tested, I said, you're dyslexic, she said. OMG. And I was like, because back then they called you dumb. They weren't doing this testing. No, they thought I was dumb. But there was something about the English lit class, and I'll never forget it. It was a short, I get the chills every time I think of it. It was a short story written by D.H. Lawrence called The Rocking Horse. And I read it, and then they said, we want you to do a paper on the whole thing. And I just read it, and I just, I was able to see the metaphors in the whole thing. And then I wrote it out. So, and then he said, he got up and he said, Mr.

1:02:29Palminteri, I want to read it. And I read it. And he said, that was the best metaphor. And I'm like, I am a little smart. Yeah, maybe I'm not dumb. Maybe I'm not dumb. And while you had been going through this upbringing and the neighborhood and Sonny and your dad, the bus driver and all that, your mom, who is very loving. Yes. And your parents loved each other, which is important. was taking you to the movies. Yes. My mom used to take me to the movies when I was very young. I remember seeing Around the World in 80 Days, and I remember the colors, the technicolor. And then I would constantly go to movies.

1:03:09And I used to watch the wise guys on the street, and I would imitate them. I was a very good mimic. I could imitate the wise guys. I wanted to be an actor. I wanted to write. When did you first have that thought? Probably about 10, 11. Oh, wow. Okay. 10-11. Was that an acceptable thing to say in the Bronx? You know, you just said, like, I want to be an actor. You know, guys would say that. All right. But I really wanted to be an actor, and I wanted to write. And I wrote poetry in high school, and I found some of them recently, and some of them were not bad. Some were not good. But, you know, but I always had this, like, I could always see.

1:03:53It's beyond, I always felt like I was looking through a lens and watching people. Is it hard to memorize lines if you have dyslexia? I had to work very hard at it. Yeah. The way I worked at it was I would say the line in tape recorder. I would say that person's line in a tape recorder, then leave a space, then read my line. say that person's line in a cassette player when I have. Wow. And then wait and then say my line. So then I would learn lines by hitting the tape recorder and then the person would say their line. So I would memorize it auto. It would say the line to me and then I say my line and then I wait till the actual line came out if I had it right or correct.

1:04:38Oh, gosh. And I still learn it that way. Really? Yes. So you majored in drama in college. Okay, so you definitely did want to be an actor. And now you're realizing I may have a talent in writing and storytelling. Yes. And then you graduate and it's like, it's not that dissimilar from when I decided I wanted to break into news. No. Where you're like, but I have no connections. It's a competitive industry. Yes. I don't know anybody. Right. And so you decided maybe to pay the bills. I'm a tall guy. Yeah. I'm from the Bronx. I'm not a fight. Yeah, I'm good at be a bouncer. My father taught me how to box, you know.

1:05:15Okay. So you decided to, and that actually, that was fine. It paid the bills for a while. Yeah. But it was your utter failure at that job that eventually gave us the Bronx tale. That's correct. I mean, I went to Hollywood. I was actor, you know, I got on Broadway as an understudy, which is a funny story. I got on Broadway as an understudy. And I mean, I was a good, I mean, I remember stuff. I got into Lee Strasberg. Yeah, that's huge. I studied with Lee Strasberg. That's like. Himself, him. Wow. You know, first, I mean, I just - Marilyn Monroe. Not right away. Not right away. Dustin Hoffman. I got, yeah, I was old.

1:05:49I'm younger than you guys. Yeah, yeah, no, I know. But I got - But Dustin Hoffman used to be a janitor there. Yes. A lot of people got in by doing whatever they could just to get noticed by him. But I studied with Mitch Nestor and Ernie Kavix. And then I got to study with Lee as a young, but I was good. You know, I was just good. I knew it. I'm talented. I knew it. I had that. I just knew it. My son always goes, Dad, you've got to easy on the ego, Dad. It's not an ego. I'm just telling you how I feel. Yes, when you're in your zone of genius, you know it. You know it. If I'm in my wrong way, I'll say it.

1:06:26I'll go, this is not really me. Yeah, it was like those cooking segments they made me do on NBC. Right. Not the zone of genius. Oh, you know what? But when I saw you when I was like, come on, Megan. Yeah. Be back to where you were, Megan. You were not alone. I was like, Megan, come on. You like Fox, Megan. I said, all right, you made a lot of money. Stop doing this now. Go back to Fox, Megan. We wound up going a different route. Yeah, anyway. But so I... With Lee Strasberg. Yeah. So anyway, to make a look. The actor's studio and also... And then I got an understudy part, which is really... And I'll tell you a quick story, which I think it's amusing.

1:07:03Your fans might like it. So I finally get my break, somewhat break. I'm an understudy on Broadway. understudying this big, the lead guy. And I go, wow, man, this is great. So when the wise guys, when I go back to the neighborhood and the wise guys here, I'm telling everybody, I'm going to be on Broadway, they say to me, Chaz, we want to come and see you. And these are the guys that took over after Sonny passed on in his crew. Oh, man, Sonny would have been proud, but we want to come and see you. I go, great. Chaz, when can we come? I said, well, you can't really come now. They said, why? I said, well, because I'm an understudy.

1:07:46They said, what's an understudy? They don't know. They don't know these guys, right? They're hoodlums. What do they know? I go, well, if something happens to the guy, then I go on, not realizing what I just said. You know? And I kind of walked away and saw some of my other friends. And then one of the guys walks over to me, the one guy who took over. And he goes, hey, Chaz, could I talk? I went, yeah, what's up? He goes, you want to go on? Oh, God. So I said, I didn't know what he meant. I said, excuse me. He goes, you know, you want to go on? And then I realized what he's saying to me. I said, no, no.

1:08:23No, not that badly. No, you can't do that. No, don't ever do that. He goes, don't worry. We'll make it look like a mugging. Nobody will know. They'll be in the hospital two, three weeks. Don't worry about it. I said, I'm begging you, please don't do this, please. And I talked him out of it. But that night when I went to see the show, because as an understudy, you have to watch the show. And this guy treated me terrible to start. He treated me really bad. He was always very dismissive of me. Would I know the name? Yeah. You don't have to tell me, but would I know it? Is it a household name? No, it's not a household name, but he's an actor.

1:09:00He's known. And I looked at him, and I said, man, you don't know how lucky you are. Right, you should be thanking me right now. You should be thanking me. But anyway, I always felt that, you know, but my big break came. I went to L.A. I got a part right away on Hill Street Blues. I was doing that for like four episodes, then on Madlock, then on Dallas. And then, you know, you do all the guest star shows. You run out of guest star shows. And then about a year after that, I went through the money that I made from that. And then I said, well, I got to go back to running doors again. So I went to as a doorman.

1:09:38And I was really good at being a doorman because I was personable. And the Bronx accent, it's good. The Bronx accent. But I could talk my way out of there. I was always like, hey, man, just take it easy. Let's really. Why? Come on, stop. What are you going to fight over this? And people always liked me without the bosses. But then one night this guy walks over and just gets in my face right where the rope is and goes, hey, hey, I'm late. Just open the rope and let me in. I said, screw me, take it easy. Are you on the list? And he looks at me and says, do you know who I am? Obviously not. And when people ever say that, when somebody ever goes, do you know who I am?

1:10:20That's awful. I mean, I can curse, right? Yes, you can. I can say, they're an asshole. When you say that to me, do you know who I am? So I looked at him. I said, yeah, I know who you are. You're the guy that's not getting in tonight. So he got really mad at that. And he said, you'll be fired in 10 minutes. So I said, really? Yeah, right. Everybody says that. But 10 minutes later, the boss called me in. And he said, you know who that was that you just didn't let him? He goes, this is his party tonight. I go, it's his party? He goes, yeah. I go, who is it? He goes, that was Swifty Lazar. Oh, gosh.

1:10:57He goes, Swifty Lazar is the biggest agent in the world, Chaz, is a way of Mars, who I'm with now. So I go, wow, I didn't know who it was. He goes, look, he throws these big parties there. He wants you out. I said, hey, you know what, Fernando, you've always been good to me. It was like the Godfather when De Niro gets fired. I shook his hand. I said, you know what, you've always been good to me. you helped me out a lot the past four months. Don't worry about it. And I left. I went home. I sat in my, I went home. I got in my 1972, this is 40 years ago, 47. I got in my 1972 Honda Civic. It used to have a leak in it in the water, you know, it used to overheat a lot.

1:11:42And I got home and I sat down. I had this kind of dumpy apartment in West Hollywood. And I just said, what the hell am I going to do? and on the refrigerator was the saddest thing in life is wasted talent. I had one of those magnets to hold it caught up. I looked at that. I said, you know, if they won't give me a great part, I'll write one myself. I got back in the car. I went to thrifty drugstore. I got five tabs of legal paper. And I said, what am I going to write? I said, I'm going to write about Sonny, the killing. I said, I'm going to write a one-man show. I'm going to play all the parts.

1:12:21I'm going to show people how great I am. So I started writing. And each week I would perform it at the studio where I was studying. And I would do 10 minutes, 15 minutes, throw out five minutes, add five more, edit this, put it that. And at the end of 10 months, I had 90 minutes of this one-man show. I borrowed money off my friend, a legitimate guy who owned the limelight where I used to work in Manhattan. and he lent me money. I found a young producer. I put the money into the thing. All I had was a chair as a set and I did the show and I got a five-minute standing ovation and I was like, holy smokes, what the hell is this?

1:13:08I knew it was good. I'd be onto something. Right. And then I performed it. I got more money and I performed it at a theater for five weeks and the reviews came out, the time at the LA Times it was like it was like these what they wrote about me was like insane you know I'm embarrassed what they said never we have never seen this it's and all all the people were coming every big every Hollywood producer director writer filmmaker studio head Pacino came Nicholson came Burt Reynolds came Redford they all wanted to play Sonny Oh. You see? That's why they came. Okay. And the studios came because they wanted the piece so they could use one of them.

1:13:56And so after like two weeks, they offered me$250 ,000. And that was the hardest offer, the$250 ,000. Oh, yeah. Because, Megan, that came out of nowhere. And that's a fortune. It was a fortune. I had$200 in the bank left. Oh. So$250 ,000. I was like, I said, well, give me a, they said, you got 24 hours. Otherwise, this won't be here. I said, okay. I hung up. I called my mother and father. I said, Mom, Dad, I want to help you. But, you know, they want to just take it. They don't want me in. And my mother and father said, son, you do what you want. Don't worry about us. I said, thanks, Mom. And I hung up.

1:14:34And I called them back. And I said, no, I have to play Sonny. I have to write it. They said, forget it. They hung up. So I went back and did the show. Crowds, lines around the corner, Megan. And finally, two weeks later, they call back$500 ,000. Oh, gosh. Now I don't care. Really? Now it's numbers. That was easy. The$250 ,000 was the hardest. Oh, the$500 ,000 sounds hard too, though. No, no, no. The$250 ,000 was the hardest. This is in L.A.? L.A. Okay. I said, no. I placed, no. I said, no. Now? Right? Finally, I sign up. William Morris is attacking me. They want me. here, ICM, Ovech, Michael Ovech at the time, he wanted me, you know, everybody wants me.

1:15:21I'll tell you how bad they wanted me, Megan. I'm not talking to them. No, this is great. I'm fascinated. I'll tell you how bad they wanted me. The three agencies were after me. They wanted me, right? Finally, I was deciding I would visit each one of them. Finally, the one in William Morris said, oh, you got an appointment or two. I said, well, I can't be there. Why can't you be there or two? I said, well, because I'm, I, I have my car. It's overheating. I said, I have to wait until it went down because my car overheated. We'll get right back to you. Hangs up the phone. I said, what the hell was that about?

1:15:5545 minutes later, knock on the door. I open up the door. There's this little guy there in a brown uniform. He goes, you're transparmentary? I go, yeah. He goes, come with me. I walk down. I go in the parking lot with all these broken down cars. I'm with all these actors. and in the middle of the parking lot is a 1989 Cadillac Eldorado, black saddle interior. He says, here, William Morris got this for you. Don't be late. What? I thought you were going to say he was your driver. He gave me the keys. He said, William Morris said, this is for you. Don't be late for the meeting. That's incredible. I call up Lee Cohen and Fred Westheim.

1:16:41I go, what's going on? They said, no, no, we just don't want you to be late. We leased it for you for two years. I said, I know, but I didn't decide. They said, that's okay. You go home whatever you want. But you went with them. I went with them. Yeah, good call. Well, so then eventually they upped the offer. Then I got with them. And then they said, we have another offer. Come with us. and I went to this big meeting with this very famous, I guess I could say it now, it was Rob Reiner. Oh, yeah. It was Castle Rock. God rest his soul, because I love him. Yeah, God rest him. Great, great, great director.

1:17:18And Alan Horn, who's a great guy. Great, great organization. Anyway, they offered me a million dollars. They said, if you sign this paper. But once again, not starring you and you don't get to write it. Well, I said, first thing I said, was there a men's room here? And he said, yes, went right over there. I said, all right, I'll be right out. I went to the executive men's room. I looked in the mirror, and I flushed my hands, put my hands on my face, and I put my hand in my pocket, and I took out my father's card. For some reason, I took it. I don't know why. And I looked at that. I went, fuck it.

1:17:58I put my hand back in my pocket. I went out. I said, look. I said, I'll sign that paper. But I play Sonny. I write the screenplay. They said, can't do it, Chaz. Why? Well, he was, I mean, I could understand what they said. He was very honest. They couldn't make a big movie. Like, at that time, it was a$25,$30 million movie with me as the star. Yeah, that's, I mean, Sonny is the star of the movie. Yeah, so I do understand what they were saying. They wanted a Redford or Pacino. Pacino, Nicholson. They all wanted to do it. So it makes more sense. I said, well, but I own it. I wrote it. No. So I'm walking out.

1:18:38And he said to me, he goes, what makes you? He goes, you know, this movie will never get done, Chaz. I said, you're right. It won't with you. But it'll get done. And he said, why? I said, because it's too damn good. And I left. And two weeks later, I did the show. And I got off. And somebody said, Robert De Niro is in your dressing room. I said, Robert, then everyone's in my dress? And he said, yeah. I walked downstairs, I walked in the dressing room, and Bob was sitting there, and he said, he said, wow, that's a great show, he loved the show. And he was very smart, he goes, if you sell it, they're going to come to me anyway, you know that, right?

1:19:16Yeah, right. So I said, yeah, I know, but I'm not selling it, Bob. He said, I know. He said, but I'll tell you what we'll do. He said, you should play Sonny, you'll be great at Sonny, and you should write it because it'll be honest and truthful. He goes, I'll play your father and I'll direct it. And if you shake my hands, that's the way it'll be. I shook his hand and that's how the movie got made. That's incredible. That's the whole story. The film is thought by some to be a mob movie. Yes, it's not. But it's not a mob movie. It's a family movie. It's a family movie and a coming of age story. And it's about, I think, mentorship and good men and how they influence younger men to be.

1:20:04And Sonny was a good man with a very complicated dark streak. He was a paradox. Yeah, he wasn't all good, but he wasn't all bad. I mean, I'm not saying that Sonny was this saint. Sonny killed people. He did. And maybe he ordered to kill people. I don't know that for a fact. I can't say. But his crew was some of the baddest people you've ever seen. But Sonny was a human being. He was funny. Funny as hell. And he had a heart. Now, people have asked me in interviews that I've done years later, Megan, and they said, why do you think Sonny did that with you? And I don't know. That he took you under his wing.

1:20:52Yes. And he protected you. He didn't take you under to make you a mobster. No. He wanted the opposite for you. In fact, he told other people, stay away from this kid. Yeah. This kid's a good kid. He used to say, he's a good kid. Leave him alone. Just don't bother him. He's a good kid. I think, and maybe it's me romanticizing again my mind, that he looked at me like I was his penance in life. Like, if I'm ever going to do anything good in this world, I'm going to save this kid and make him something. From this neighborhood. Yes. Yes, because as great as that neighborhood was, it was a great neighborhood.

1:21:26And many people came out of that neighborhood. Some of my closest friends became, you know, big lawyers and doctors and everything. But some, a lot, didn't. Ended up the street, got to them. You know, so, but he said, no, no, I'm going to. And some of my friends were bad guys. Some of them were great guys. But at any moment, you could be one of the bad guys and be stuck in a jackpot. Like, I didn't mean to be here, you know? So the scene we referenced earlier is many people's favorite scene, as you point out, and it's unforgettable. It involves Sonny, played by Chaz. Right. And there's the young kid in it, Collogero, who goes by C.

1:22:12That's your name. Right. But he's in the scene as well, and he's watching how Sonny handles this gang of bikers who come in, and I'll just let the scene play out. Let's watch it. Toast to our host. In the name of the father and of Sonny, let's go. Look at all this shit over here. Hey. Oh, you again, huh? That wasn't very nice. Now you just got to leave. I'll tell you when the fuck we leave, all right? Get the fuck away from me.

1:22:51Go watch the bikes, man. Hey, man. Come on, honey. Come on. That's not a thing. Hey, what? Get out of here. It's like this. It's still half-empty shit. You might suck a bitch. Come on. Come on. Come on. Come on. Come on. Come on. Now you just can't leave. I will never forget the look on their faces. All eight of them, their faces dropped. All their courage and strength was drained right from their bodies. They had a reputation for breaking up bars, but they knew that instant they made a fatal mistake. This time they walked into the wrong bar. Come on, motherfucker! Come on, you scrappy motherfucking-packing!

1:23:36Now you just can't leave once they disrespect his worker, him, his establishment. but he gave them a chance first he gave them a chance stood up for them first then there's a second iteration where he comes over and gives them another chance you need to leave right they won't they won't and then the last resort is violence and the other mobsters come out and beat the hell out of them see the logic of the of wise guys is and the people go gee that's so nice why is it that's so nice the reason why megan they're so nice because i know their psychology is I'm going to be so nice to you that you're going to have to be nice to me.

1:24:15And if you're not nice to me after I'm so nice to you, I am going to be so violent that it's going to justify my violence, what you did to me. That is their psychology. Can I say, like when you were saying that without the violence part, it kind of reminds me of Trump. He's usually very nice when he first meets you. Right. And if you then do something to him he thinks is nasty, and as a reporter, you always do because there are some negative things you have to do, then he turns and he's like a dog with a bone. You know, he can't let go of it. It's the same sort of honor code without killing people.

1:24:54Right. If I am, what the wise guy thinks, if I am so good to you and you betray that trust, then I'm going to be just equally as violent to you. And that's what happened there. I mean, don't forget, I mean, these guys were tough, these bikers back then. But there were no match for these guys. These guys were like, you're talking about guys who have been in Attica for 10 years, 20 years. What are you going to do to them? No, either stay away or apologize. What are you going to do? You know, Megan, they're not like you and I. We have a family. We have children. We have a life. They can't wait to show Sonny that I'm worth this money you're paying me.

1:25:42They can't wait. Oh, they live for stuff like this. You know, they live for that. They're not worried at all about the fight with the biker gang. oh, this is like, this is, as they would say, a butterfly's belch. You know, it's like, it's like nothing. So I want to point out that you've now renewed the one-man show version of A Bronx Tale. And I couldn't figure out how that would look because I'd never seen you do that. But I pulled a clip. Yes. Wait, what were you going to say? I'm going to say that I still do it. I do it all over. Yes. And that I should come because I would love to. You have to come.

1:26:20You have your husband. We will be there. Or your children. All of us. Yes. My kids loved Bronx Tale. How old are they? Now they're 17, 15, and 13. Oh, I mean, that's perfect ages to see this because it's really, it's just something that people should see. There's so many good lessons in it. People bring their kids. Yeah. No, they've seen the movie, so I would love to bring them to the one-man show. But we did. I did find you doing it on YouTube. Yeah. And told my team to cut a bit of this so people can see how it looks as the one man version. Let's watch. Give me those dice. Give me those dice.

1:26:53Come on, baby. You can do it. Let's put some money down. We put some real money, real money. Jojo, Jojo, you're breathing all over me. You want to back up, Jojo? Back up. Come on. Back up. Just back up over there. Come on, kid. We're going to do it. Put some money down, baby. Give me a seven. Give me your, no, hey, no good. Eddie Mush, no good. I don't want your money touching my money. Eddie Mush, I don't want your money in the same neighborhood as my money. Jimmy, come here. Get Eddie Mush. Lock him in the bathroom. What? I don't give a shit he don't want to go. Put him in. I'm on a wind street, kid.

1:27:29He's killing me. He'll kill me. He's a schmonica. He's killing me. Get him out of here. I don't want my money near my money. Come on, baby, you can do it. Give me a seven, baby. give me seven okay sonny okay seven look at this kid is he a winner pass those dice down pass them down come on baby let's put some more money down uh that scene is in the movie and it's sunny getting to meet c right for the first time who is rolling the right dice i do the whole movie like the whole movie yeah myself that's incredible Yeah, I... So how do you do that? Because like, how do you interact? You have to see it.

1:28:07I got to see it. You have to see it. Okay. Well, this was not the first introduction I had to Chaz Palminteri, A Bronx Tale. I found that after. For many people starting a fitness routine, going to the gym without a clear goal or structure often leads to random exercises and minimal progress. While traditional personal training offers structured strength training, it can often be cost prohibitive and difficult to fit into your busy schedule. This is where the ladder app comes in ladder, like a ladder that you climb. Uh, it will transform your daily routine. It acts like an elite personal trainer right in your headphones.

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1:29:32My first introduction to you was Bullets Over Broadway. Oh yeah. Which is so funny and your role in it is so charming. It's a Woody Allen film and the basic premise is that this mobster wants his girlfriend to be cast in the lead role of a John Cusack, who's kind of the Woody Allen character, play. But she's terrible. But the mobster's going to fund the movie. So John Cusack, unlike you, Chaz, did not hold to his principles. He takes the money. He casts the terrible mob girlfriend as the lead, or one of the lead characters. And then the mobster wants you, the bodyguard. To watch her. To watch her and make sure everything's okay.

1:30:19And it's just the funniest twist ever. I'm not giving anything away really but the mobster loves the theater and doesn't appreciate this girlfriend's acting at all he realizes it's so close to me see what he said you were born to play this Chaz he goes you were this guy who grew up in the streets you know the word he used this genius playwright who doesn't realize he's a writer. You know, so, and he just says, ah, no, say this, say that. And it was, and Cusack looks at him, you know, and he says, how could you? He never let anybody ad-lib, but he let you ad-lib. He let me ad-lib. Well, he let me, he let a few people ad-lib, me and Jennifer and a couple of others.

1:31:11He would only let a few people ad-lib. Okay. But he knew that I knew the milieu, so he said, go, go, go. So it's such a clever premise that this tough mobster is sitting there annoyed with the character played by Jennifer Tilly because she was terrible. Right. And he's, he's like, she's ruining the play. I like I, and then let's just say he, he realizes he has to do something about it. Right. But wait, we've got a clip. Let's watch it. I'm not making a fool of myself. She's right. It stinks. Oh, Jesus. Another party heard from. It's a stupid way of talking and nobody talks like that. I don't, I don't believe this is happening.

1:31:45Frankenstein is right. When I watch your opinion, I will ask for it. Listen, I can't stand to listen to this garbage. Every day I sit back there and I hear the same bullshit over and over again. Then leave because no one asked you here. Oh, David. He's totally easy. Where did you study playwriting? Was it Sing Sing? Amaze me set by brutal pitfalls. Hey, Olive, I memorized it. And I'm telling you, it comes to me all the time. And it stinks on fucking hot ice. That's it. I quit. I quit. This is crazy. So quit. Please, I have a little hangover. Okay, wait. Then there's another one we have cut. But by the way, Diane Wiest was one of the gems of that movie.

1:32:21Yeah, she won the Academy Award for that. Did she win? I forgot that. She won, yeah. Don't speak. Don't speak. Don't speak. And I'll tell you something funny about that movie. We all got nominated. So did Jennifer. It got about 10 nominations, the movie. And through the whole movie, Diane keeps going, don't speak, don't speak. And I said, I go, Diane, I love that line. It's so funny. I said, I'm going to say that. She goes, how could you say it? She goes, you're a totally different character. You can't say that line. I go, I'll find a spot. I'm going to say that line. And if you remember the movie, when I die at the very end, I go, I say the ending.

1:33:01I go, say Sylvia Poston was pregnant. It'll make a great ending. And I die. And Woody went, cut. Oh, we got everybody's applauding. That's a wrap. I go, no, no, Woody, let me do one more. And he goes, no, no, Chaz, we have it. I go, just one more, please, Woody. for me, one more. He goes, all right, set it up again, do it again. So we do it again. I lay down and I go, John Cusack's over me. And I go, tell Sylvia Postman she's pregnant. It'll make a great ending. And John's just about to open his mouth. I go, don't speak. John did not remember that. Don't speak. And then I die. And he kept it. And he went cut.

1:33:40The whole place is hysterical laughing. And Woody comes over and he goes, you? I left it in. She's this overly dramatic thespian. And she's having an affair with John Cusack. Don't speak. Don't speak. My husband and I say that to each other all the time in jest. Here's another scene between you and Jennifer Tilly, also known as Olive in the flick. Can't you see you're living out the exact same pattern your mother lived out with your father? I am? Pray tell. In some way, you're trying to relive it. And in the process of reliving it, correct it. As if that were possible. Ha! Hey, don't say ha. I don't want to say ha.

1:34:30I added that. What do you mean you added that? I added it. I added it. We're allowed to have things. How could you just add something? You're allowed to have things. It's called ad-libbing. You can't do that. I can do that. What do you know? You don't know nothing. Shut up and read. I think the whole thing stinks. I think you're a degenerate zombie. Shut up and read. You shut up and read. Just shut up. You shut up. You had to be dying laughing at the end of these scenes. That was all I loved, that one. Really? Yeah, I'm pretty sure that scene was all I loved. That's incredible. And so when you auditioned for Woody Allen for this film, though, he was not telegraphing that he thought you were a genius.

1:35:07Absolutely not. No, I just went in there and auditioned, and he just said, thank you. That was it. So you must have thought. So I walked out. I went, well, that didn't go too well. Yeah. You know, and then they called me back and he said, they want to see you again. I said, oh, great. And when you walk in, you don't even see him. He's all the way in the corner with a little light on him. And you were in this big dark room. And I read and he went, thank you. The second time? Second time. Same thing? Same thing. I left and I called my agent. He said, Woody loves you. You got the part. I was like, wow.

1:35:48Okay. Yeah. Were you stunned? Yeah. I was like, wow, great. What was he like as a director? Great director. Great director, great writer. I mean, look, he wrote a great script. Him and Doug McGrath wrote a great script. And I used to love to say what he wrote. But once in a while, he would say, no, no, say what you want once in a while. You know? So I said, all right. I said, but let me do what you wrote first, and then I'll play around. See how it goes. Because he wrote a great script. You know? And he was a great director. He did one thing to me where I went, there's a line I have. When John Kuzak says to me, you burn your school down?

1:36:27And I said, ah, it was Lincoln's birthday. There was nobody there. So when I said the line, I went, it was Lincoln's birthday. There was nobody there. When he stops and comes over. Now, he never talks to you. Well, he very rarely ever says anything. And he goes, Chaz, why are you pausing for it? I said, it's such a great line. It's a great joke. I said, I love the joke, you know? He goes, no, no, no. It's funny if you don't pause. And I went, okay. And I did the line again. I said, no, no, it was Lincoln's birthday. There was nobody there. He was right. Wow. He was a stand-up comedian for years.

1:37:06Very smart. People didn't realize that about Woody. I mean, he's still alive. if I shouldn't speak. Very, very smart. But he, that's how he got his start, as a stand-up comic. Knows comedy. The timing. Timing. Mm-hmm. Really, really very genius. Genius smart. Like, genius smart. So what were the differences, would you say, when you think of, like, the way De Niro directed you in your own film that came from your heart and your life and the way Woody Allen directed you in a film that he wrote? Well, Woody doesn't talk to you at all, except for something like that. In fact, they say if Woody talks to you and continues to talk to you, you're going to be fired.

1:37:45You're going to get replaced. Wow. Oh, yeah. So you don't want him to talk to you. So he hires actors he trusts. He trusts. Okay. Exactly. He hires actors he trusts, lets them go. Go. Do what you got to do. Okay. Where Bob was different. Bob hires actors he trusts. But Bob, like Woody, likes to hire real people. In Bronx Teal, me, Bob, and Joe Pesci are the only actors in the movie. Wow. Everybody else is from the street. The kid who plays C, the young version of you, is so authentic. All of them. Yeah. They're all. Things didn't wind up that great for him. He's had some trouble with the law. He had some trouble with the law.

1:38:21He went away for 10 years. And now I hear that he's on recovery and he's doing great. And he's helping other people, which is fantastic. That's good. Do you ever keep in touch with the young actors from that film? Some of the young actors I do. I mean, the thing about Megan that's so ironic, this kid was in the quintessential movie about not wasting your life. Yeah. And that's exactly what he did. Yeah. Well, you know, of course, the truth is Hollywood for young people. Bad. It's bad. Me and Bob even talked about it when he was 16 and he made that movie. We said, Bob, I hope we didn't curse this kid.

1:39:01Well, I don't think it's your responsibility. It's the family, the parents. We were just talking about this this week, the death of Hayden Penentier, and then we have the death of Presley Gerber. He was in modeling. But these are very toxic industries. Music, too, very toxic, very damaging, and very bad people in some pockets of those industries from whom you'd want to protect. You're a dad. Protect your children. Absolutely. You know, I don't know. Would you ever put one of your children in child acting? They both are. Child acting? Not child acting. Yeah, no, that's a different kettle of fish.

1:39:33No, not child. My son is 30, and he's an actor and a singer-songwriter. My son Dante and my daughter, but they both had to go to college. They both had to go to good colleges and graduate. My son went to Berkeley, and my daughter went to University of Michigan and a theater degree. And she's been, you know, she's done three movies. She's been on stage. So I said, you got to do that. But it's hard for them because when your parent is famous, it's difficult. Now, it's like if your child wanted to be a newscaster. I'm sure they could be talented, but they're always like, oh, you're Megan's daughter?

1:40:13You're Chaz's son? It's always you have to, they have to deal with that, which is always, but they'll find their way. They'll find their way. Something to live up to. I mean, that's why Nicolas Cage changed his name, right? Because he was a Coppola. Yeah. But look, nobody's going to hire my child because I said so. They're just not. Could I open a door? Yes. Could I say, hey, see my son for this movie? Yes. But they're not going to hire him if he's not good. No, if he stinks, forget about it. In fact, they have to be better. Yeah. Because already when they're walking in, they're like, oh, it's his kid.

1:40:50Right. What have I gotten saddled with? What am I going to watch this now? So they have to be even better than everybody. I mean, Tom Cruise has a son who's making it. Not Cruise. Hanks. Yes. On his own. A lot of them do. Matthew McConaughey. He's got a boy. He was on our show this year. And his kid is doing well. Yes. You know, it can happen. People can get past it. You can get. But you have to get past it in your own head. Yeah. You see, that's the problem. Yeah. In your own head, you've got to get past it. I would definitely not want one of my kids to be in one of those industries before the age of 18.

1:41:28I agree. I agree with you. They need to cook as a normal human being. Nobody should be a star before the age of 30. Nobody. Were you surprised when you got to Hollywood of what it was like as a normal person from the Bronx? Yeah, because I knew what helped me navigate through that whole thing with Bronx Tale. First of all, I was 38, 39 when I finally hit it. So I was a seasoned guy who grew up in the street. I was very smart. Nobody was going to pull nothing on me. Don't give me this, trust me with the eyes. The Hollywood promise. The Hollywood promise. I didn't go for it. They were messing with the wrong person.

1:42:10I'm messing with the wrong guy. I met with a very big director. And he said, this is before De Niro. He says, I want to do, and he's a great guy and a very famous director. And he said, I want to do Bronx Tale. So I met with him. And before I met with him, I looked him up on the internet. And I saw what school he went to. Because I like to know people before I meet with him, you know, what they're about. You know? And I trust my eyes because I got x-ray eyes. I could read people. So I sat down with him and we talked. He told me how much he loved it. He saw it. He wanted to make the movie. And I said, oh.

1:42:45He says, but I can't make it with you. I'm sorry. I have to use the star, you know. And I went. I said, oh, yeah. I said, you went to the, you went to NYU, right? Did you go to NYU? And he goes, yeah. I said, oh, yeah. And you came out here about eight years ago. After you left college? He went, yeah. I said, and you did this movie and it became a very big, success and that's how you got so big and you have this incredible office here he said yes i said well answer me this am i not am i allowed the same break that you got am i any different than you and he just stared at me and he said uh you're right good for you he said i apologize he goes oh he says but i still can't make the move and i said that's all right I'll make it without you.

1:43:38All right, stand by. I've got to take a break. We'll do more in the back. Sure. Don't go anywhere. Chaz Palminteri, what a great guest. Much more to go over. Don't leave. Everyone's talking about weight loss injections because the results can be so dramatic. They work by lowering blood sugar and reducing appetite. But what if you're looking to lose weight, but you're really not interested in painful weekly injections, especially when you hear about some of those intense side effects? This is why doctors created a weight loss supplement called Lean, and the results could be remarkable. Lean says the studied ingredients in their product have been shown to lower your blood sugar, burn fat by converting it into energy, and curb your appetite and cravings so you are not as hungry.

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1:46:07Legendary actor, director, and writer Chaz Palminteri is back with me now. And you got your own podcast going. Yes, the Chaz Palminteri Show on YouTube. It's on Spotify and Google. It comes out Mondays, once a week? It's out Mondays at 11 o 'clock. Okay. What do you talk about? I like to collect the guests. I have Tony winners, Grammy winners, Alan Menken, Billy Joel. Wow. I had basketball players. I had Shaq on. Oh, wow. I had boxers. I don't think I could fit Shaq in this studio. You couldn't come in that door. And I have Shaq on. And Shaq is a great human being, great guy. Larry Holmes, fighters.

1:46:46And then I have neighborhood guys, just like regular neighborhood guys. Like the old neighborhood. old neighborhood guys like not bedford my friend squiggy no no my friend squiggy and sandy blue eyes and all these people squiggy and sandy blue no you hang out with hillary at all and upstate no no they live near me not too far but i no i don't no you never hang out i never hang out with hillary no that would be an interesting dinner i'd love to zoom in on yeah we were talking during the break and i was asking you whether you're still friends with robert de niro and you said yes you guys never talk politics no no i don't talk politics this is good for friendships yeah yeah yeah i mean i'm my own person some things i do agree with bob some things that you know i have my own views on yeah but i never took politics about that ever even before he became so vocal about trump you and he didn't talk politics no never i never did don't beat your base your friendship on that no not at all and i never talk about my friends people could ask me uh about bob as an artist, then I'd be more than happy to tell you what a great artist he is.

1:47:53But when it comes to personal lives, I never talk about Bob's personal life or anybody's personal life. I just don't do it. Why would you to your friends? They're my friends. That's nobody's business what they do. But I like that. I mean, Adam Carolla is a dear friend of mine and one of his best friends is Jimmy Kimmel, who I don't like at all. But I respect that these two guys love each other and they don't make politics the stakes of their relationship. I have a lot of relationships like that in my life too, where I couldn't care less what their politics are, my friends. It's like I love them for a bunch of other things.

1:48:27You're my friend. I love you. That's it. That's it, man. You're my friend. I love you. Yes, I love that. So why do you say Shaq is a great guy? What's he like? Because he's a very giving person. He walks around with his big heart, and if there's kids in trouble or kids need something, He doesn't donate to a charity. He goes, what do you need? You need a playground? Get him a playground. Who could you call? You know what I mean? Yes. Oh, you need this? Go to the store. Pick this up for these kids. You know, he's like right there. That's so sweet. Yeah, and he's from the heart. He's a really good man.

1:49:03I like Shaq a great deal. I was so glad to hear that. In fact, I'm doing, he's in this TV series. Well, I'm in two TV series, Godfather of Harlem with Forrest Whitaker. And I'm in Gravesend, and Shaq is in it. Will DeBello is the writer, creator of it. And it's coming out now on Amazon Prime. But he's just a great guy. I mean, he knows who he is, Megan. People who don't know who they are, they're not nice people. They have to show you who they are. Yeah, right. If you're really somebody where you're safe in your own skin, you're a great guy. I don't have to make believe. Well, I was asking about Jennifer Tilly, who we just saw in the Bullets Over Broadway scene, where she was the terrible actress, or so she purported to be when she played Olive.

1:49:54But my children, who have not yet seen Bullets Over Broadway, have seen you and Jennifer together because we are big modern family fans. We pulled a little bit of that, a scene of the two of you who came in as friends of Jay and Gloria. played by Ed O 'Neill and Sofia Vergara. Here's a bit of that. I sense that you got a secret that's maybe causing you a lot of anguish. You heard something, right? Well, I had the same situation with my son, Mitch. Really? Yeah. And I didn't handle it too well either. And I just want you to know that you can open up to me, that I'm going to do all I can to help you.

1:50:40Well, I mean, I... I never said this out loud before to anyone, but I guess if I did, it would be you. It's just that, Jay, you see, I'm... I'm... Go ahead. Yeah, go ahead. I'm in debt. Huh? I owe a bookie 20 Gs, and he's a serious guy. And you offering to give me the dough? This is beautiful. Wait a minute, you're not gay? Gay? What are you talking about, gay? I'm not gay. When did you get gay? Come on. I mean, you're always talking about clothes and everything, right? My father was a tailor. I like clothes. So what?

1:51:23So funny. That's funny. How much did you enjoy being on that show? I love working on that show. Everybody's so great in it. And Steve, the creator, is a genius in comedy. And I love doing the show. And Ed is a friend of mine and just so funny. And Jennifer played your wife. And Jennifer played my wife. And I mean, everybody on that show is great. Everybody. Everybody. There's no weak link. There's no weak link on that show. And everybody's great. We love that series. And you know what's funny? I have a whole new thing of fans that young kids that see me on that show. Well, it's funny because when I was telling the kids you're coming, I'm like, it's Chaz, Paul, and Jerry.

1:52:02And they said, from a Bronx tale. And I said, yes. And I said, and also. Modern family. And they're like, oh yeah, modern family, of course. That's great. That must've been so fun because that show is iconic. Yes. And while we're doing the acting crew, I got to mention probably the biggest movie you were ever in. Was it the biggest? The Usual Suspects. Yeah, pretty much. One of the biggest, yeah. I mean, that film was just, talk about a hit. It was one of those movies everybody talked about. It was like, nobody could stop talking about the ending, the mystery of it and so on. And if you haven't seen it, I won't ruin it.

1:52:36But there's a real question about who is this bad guy, Kaiser Soze. Right. And you played a cop. I played a cop, Agent Kuhan, who's searching for him. Yes. And so here's a bit of that. This is from The Usual Suspects, Sat 51. What do you think he would say if he found out you dropped his name to the DA? There's nothing in there about Ruby. I'll be sure to mention that to him. First thing on the job, you know what I learned? How to spot a murderer. Let's say you arrest three guys for the same killing. You put them all in jail overnight. The next morning, whoever's sleeping is your man. You see, if you're guilty, you know you're caught.

1:53:12You get some rest. You let your guard down. You follow me? No. Let me get right to the point. I'm smarter than you. And I'm going to find out what I want to know. And I'm going to get it from you whether you like it or not. I'm not a rat. So good. You've worked with some greats. Kevin Spacey, too. He crushed it in that film. He crushed it. I always laugh. Him and I always laugh because I said, Kevin, I don't understand something. I've had 10 pages of dialogue, 10 monologues. I go all through this thing, and then you look at me, you go, I'm not a rat. And you win the Academy Award. I said, explain this to me.

1:53:54How did this happen? You just look at me and go, I'm not a rat. That's it. I got ripped off. The key is you must play the invalid. the invalid you don't want to be the one wheel in the wheelchair you need a limp one in the wheelchair oh yeah like a limp or a list or something you're always too tough you gotta be the one in the wheel like in that modern family scene you should have been the gay guy yes yeah damn opportunity miss opportunity miss when you watch now so far i guess i should point out we've talked about you working with woody allen we've talked about you working with kevin Spacey. Both these guys have been like painted as these terrible dudes who have allegedly done terrible things.

1:54:35I've told my audience repeatedly, I don't believe that Woody Allen molested his daughter at all. I've completely, I've done very deep dives on that case as a lawyer, just because I love his films and I wanted to know whether he did this. And I don't believe one word of it. Kevin Spacey has slowly but surely been exonerated on the most serious charges against him too. So what has it been like for you to watch guys that you presumably care about go through this? Yeah. You know. Well, you know, I feel for Kevin, especially Kevin. And Woody, you know, I mean, I don't know anything about the case. And from what I know, people who know Woody very well said, no, that's not true.

1:55:16And so I don't really. Did anyone ever try to make it? There was a while there where they were trying to make other actors or actors who'd been in, for example, Woody's films. condemn him, disavow. Yeah, people have, I said, I don't talk about that. Good for you. I won't talk about somebody's personal life, Megan. Sonny would be ashamed of you if you did. That's a rat. Don't you think? It's a rat. You can't rat on somebody. You just don't do that. You don't do that. There's loyalty to friends. Yeah, there's, look, there's sometimes, you know, you just got to keep your mouth shut. I mean, wise guys would get shot at.

1:55:51And when Costello got shot by Gigante, he saw him. And in court, they put Gigante up in front of him. They said, is this the man? And he went, no. Yeah. He said, no, that's not him. There's a code. You just don't do it. Oh, gosh. We had Sammy the Bull on the show one time. Yeah. And Sammy the Bull Gravano. and there's this guy who lives across the street from me at the shore. And he never says much to me. I know he listens to the show as often as he can, but he never really comes over for a review. But after I had on Sammy the Bull, he comes out. This is a big Italian guy, the bald head, very tan.

1:56:34He goes, the guy's a rat. He's a rat. He's a rat. Did not appreciate his appearance on the MK show. He was fascinating. But there is a code, and if you violate it, you are instantly otherized. It's a rat. Yeah. He's not been on the Chaz Palminteri. No. No. That's not happening. No, no. But it goes to show you how ridiculous it is. He got off. And what does he do? Gets right back in it again, then goes away for 15 years. I mean. Well, you're a braver person than I am to criticize Sammy the Bull. I'm not saying a word. No, but I'm just saying, I mean, you got off. Go away. Keep your mouth shut and go away.

1:57:21You know, you get in trouble again. I mean. Well, what about you now? So you're still with the same woman that you married. Yes. And she was in a Bronx Tale. Yes. She had a role. Yes. She played Sonny's. The girlfriend. The girlfriend. Yeah. Yeah. I knew her before Bronx Tale, a year before. Yeah. So, but you're an anomaly in the entertainment business and in life. Yeah. If you married the same woman in, what, 1992, and you've stayed with her since? Yeah, we've been together 35 years. Wow. Yeah. How'd you manage that in such a competitive industry where I'm sure you've had a lot of ladies who are very interested in you, especially as you made a bunch of money?

1:57:53Well, I had a lot of ladies before that. Oh. Okay. You know what I mean? So I had my thing, you know. Sowed your oats. Yeah. Yeah. It's like you put it, you got to weigh it, Megan. and you got to go for 20 minutes of this or for a lifetime of this, what am I doing here? And it's still hard. I mean, I'm still a work in progress. And me and my wife, do we still battle sometimes? Sure we do. But, you know, I always laugh. I go, people say, what's the secret? I go, well, we never wanted to get a divorce at the same time. Yeah. You know, we always just said, you work it out. You're going to have the same problems with someone else.

1:58:35Different, but problems. You know, and especially if you have children, there's got to be, I just think you got to be a little, you can't be so selfish with your life, you know. Where were you living when you raised the kids? I raised them first. I had a farm out and I lived in the city and I had a farm out, like a farm, in Colts Neck, New York. I lived right next to Bruce Springsteen. Oh. Yeah. Speaking of politics and people have lost their minds. I see Bruce all the time back then. Oh, really? Oh, yeah. So you raised him not in Hollywood? No, no. And then I, no, never. And then I moved to, we lived in the city for a while.

1:59:17And then 9-11, a year before 9-11 happened, I was buying this beautiful apartment across the street from the World Trade Center, right on the same block, 73 Murray Street. And I was buying the whole floor, and it was a beautiful apartment. And the last minute, I'm very psychic. Are you? Oh, extremely. And I look up, and I'm looking at the World Trade Center, and I turn to my wife, and I say, this thing is giving me a darkness. Oh, no. If this thing ever falls, it'll kill us. She goes, fall? She goes, are you stupid? What are you saying? I said, they tried to bomb it in 93. Maybe they'll try again one day.

1:59:57And I talk her out of it, and then we bought all this land up in Bedford, and we built a big house. A year later, it fell. And that place, gone. Oh my, really? Yep. Couldn't live there for like five years. Whoa. Yeah. What else have you predicted? Things with people. Yeah. What, you just get a sense when you're with them? I don't predict things with people. I talk about who they are, but I don't go into the future with them. We just watched an old 80s film, The Dead Zone, starring Christopher Walken. Yeah. Where he gets into a car accident and he has a brain injury. And now if he touches your hand, he can see your future.

2:00:41And it's always bad. It's terrible. Like, is this a curse or is this a gift, this thing you have? Well, I work on it. But I'll meet people. I'll go, give me. But I can only do it if somebody gives me a piece of jewelry or something they held. Something they wore for a long time, like a ring, a watch. And then sometimes I get nothing. There was a guy on a set once. He said this to me. He said, I was doing Michael Lerner, and I got him really pretty good. And the guy says, I don't believe it. It's all bullshit. I don't believe in that. I said, well, you know, it's all right. And everybody was decayed.

2:01:14And he tried to come off his dislike, whatever. He goes, here. Here's my ring. I never took it off in 30 years. Do me. And he puts it in my hand. So I said, all right. So I sit there. All of a sudden, pictures just start flowing in my head, right? So I said, you grew up on a farm. And he goes, yeah, all right, but good guess. Go ahead. And I went, it's a big farm, a lot of acres on this farm. He goes, yeah, yeah, it's a farm. You know, he's trying to be a wise ass. I go, there was a dirt, there was a gravel road behind your house. It was wide. And he went, yeah. I said, on that gravel road, you were like 10, 11 years old.

2:01:58you got hurt. You got hurt bad. And he goes, yeah. I said, a white, a white car picked you up. And he went. Yeah, my uncle's white Chevy picked me up. And I went, the letter J. Letter J? He goes, yeah, my uncle Jim, give me my ring. And he got scared and he took his ring back. No way. Yeah. What? My hand to God. You didn't know any of that before? Nothing. Got that off of his ring. Off his ring. Now, sometimes I'll take it from somebody and nothing happens. Well, do you ever take it from somebody and you get something bad, like a foreshadowing? No. That would be awkward. No. No, I never get, because I'm not thinking of the future with them.

2:02:48I'm thinking of. Something from their past. From their past, about who they are. That's crazy. I don't think I'd like that. I wouldn't want it. Yeah. And I know people get spooked. Now, I don't know how that happened. I'm a Christian. I mean, I'm Catholic. I don't believe in that, but it's just something. But it's happened. Because I had a friend who was a very world-famous psychic, and he was, you know, he got paid tons of money. And he said, you know, you should do this more often because you could be good at it. Oh, my goodness. So, and I said, you should work on it, Chaz. You told me that many years ago.

2:03:23So when I meet people, I go, yeah, give me a ring. And then sometimes nothing, zero. And then sometimes something happens. So I don't know. Oh, I'm not going to give you my ring. No, no, no, no. I don't want to do that. No, no. Because what if you say something that's not true, then I don't want to put you on the spot. Oh, no, I don't care. I go, look. What if it's wrong? I've hit people that it's wrong. And they go, no, no, no, wrong, wrong, wrong. And I go, okay. You gave it a shot. I gave it a shot. I go, well, fine. So what do you think of what's happening with the movie industry today? Because it's so different now.

2:03:55Yeah. Hollywood seems like it's emptying out. Yeah. Filling it up with AI companies. Yeah. But I think it's good because I think we're in control now. I can make the movies I want to make. And look, I reach, you, you're more than I am, but I can reach four or five million people a month. Some of my videos went 10 million. Some, who knows? So if I have content, I can get it out there. The paradigm has changed. You don't have the power no more. It's not the big movie studios to make all the calls. I don't even have to go on advertising. I don't have to pay money for advertising, Megan. As a comedian, you used to have to get on The Tonight Show.

2:04:45Yeah. Right? I got a big audience in The Tonight Show now. You know what I'm saying? Yeah. So it's like, hey, I'm okay with all this. The democratization of Hollywood. You like it? Yeah, I'm okay with it. I'm okay with it. You don't have to still deal with all the alleged slime bags who make dirty deals and aren't good people. Look, there's always, are there people out there that make bad deals when there's a lot of money involved? Yes. There's always people like that, Megan. Everybody's your friend. No matter what business, no matter show business, this business, you become partners with somebody else in some airplane business.

2:05:23When the big money comes, now we see who the real friends are. Now we see. But don't you hate that? Maybe I'm still naive. I don't know. I just feel like now after 20 plus years in the news business and another 10 in law, I still have a sense of optimism and then I still get burned. You know, I wish I were a little street, more street smart. Yes, but I've been burned too. But like, how does it, how can you continue meeting people and using discernment? I feel like I can relate to my dog, Strudwick sometimes where I'm just running over appreciating this person and forgetting everything I've learned about humankind.

2:06:08Yes. Do you have, I'm a, see, I'm both. I'm, I'm like this paradox. I'm, I'm, I'm a Catholic, but I also am a student of Machiavelli. I read Machiavelli all the time. And there's a lot of truth in Machiavelli. If you remember Bronx tale, I took a lot of Machiavelli and put it into the movie. Is it better to be loved or feared? Yeah, right, right. You know, what way?

2:06:35People will always, in the end, if it's them or you, they'll go self-preservation. They will. And I understand that. I do. There are very few people that will go hurt me, but don't hurt him. Very few people. because they'll make things up in their head to justify what they've done. See, that's the difference. People will make things up. Well, she was not good to me in the partnership. She should have been there more. That's why I took the extra money. They'll justify it. But I'm like you. Having a good friend is like falling in love. The only way you can fall in love is to be vulnerable. You cannot fall in love unless you're vulnerable.

2:07:20You cannot. You have to say, okay, here's my heart. You could hurt me, but that's the only way I could do this. And it's like a friend. You say, I love you as a friend. Let's go partners. Don't hurt me. I just hope you don't hurt me. You have to do it. Otherwise, you become jaded and you end up like them, which I don't want to be like them. That's so true. That's so well said. I know. It's very sad because, well. I'm sure you've been hurt by people who betrayed you. I'm thinking of my assistant, Abby, who I love. She hasn't done anything wrong at all, but she's been with me for 17 years, and she's about to have her third child, and she's leaving me because there's someone who needs her more than I do, and I get it, but I'm so sad.

2:08:09It's what you just said. I love her. My God, I can't believe this. And so I'm so sad because I don't want her to leave me. I had a young lady who worked for me, and I can say her name. She was one of the great assistants I ever had, Maria Arago, great. And she was with me for a long time, traveled all over the world, me all my movies. And one day I walk into the office. I had my office in the city at times. She's crying, crying. I said, what happened? She goes, oh, my God. Just tell me what happened. She goes, I got offered this job, and they offered me an incredible job three times more than you, and I don't want to leave you.

2:08:50and I looked at her and I said, you don't want to leave me. You're leaving me. What are you, crazy? You have to take this job. You must take this job. And she goes, but I don't want to. And I hugged her and I said, you're taking this job. Don't you dare. I said, this is a move where you want to get into this fashion thing and do this. And it hurt me that she left, but I loved her. Just like you loved her. I know. Sometimes they have to grow. They have to grow without you. Yeah. Sometimes they outgrow us. They outgrow us. Yeah. And sometimes you just got to go, it's okay. I know. Because in the end.

2:09:33Abby, don't leave me. Because in the end, what's it all mean? I know. No, it's true. When I think about it from her perspective, I know it's the right move. And I completely get the logic. and I, you know, of course want nothing but good things for her. But when I think about it for me, I'm just so sad. It's like there's so few people who have been with you that long and so intimately in your life. Yes. And it's such a wonderful thing to count somebody like that, a friend who's with you every day, who's been through all the highs and lows. It's like, you know, almost like a spouse, you know, who's just been through everything with you.

2:10:07Right. But some people are meant to take the bus ride with you, but they're not meant to go all the way to the end of the line. They learn what they did and they got off. and you'll always be friends with her the rest of her life and your life yeah but see the his this is where this is that moment this is that critical moment in people's lives where you could be who the hell are you 17 years i gave you this i gave you your start you were nobody i mean that's how certain people would go no that's that hasn't been what happens yeah you see what i said but certain people would do that she and i both went in tears about it ever since exactly and that's That's the way me and her.

2:10:44And you know what? Me and her, that other woman, me and Maria, were just as close. And I'll have a great assistant, my assistant Stacy. She's been with me 20 years, and she's the best. Oh, Steve. Yes. Well, actually, I should mention, we have found a wonderful gal named Kayla, who so far is crushing it. Yes. She's my new Abby. Yes, go Kayla. Yes. And you know what? And it'll be fine. Yeah. I know. And Abby's been great. She's going to be like a big sister to Kayla, and I'm kind of like a big sister to her. We're all paying forward. And think of what you passed down to her, that she will pass down to the next girl.

2:11:15Yeah. It's all about passing down. At the end of my show, I always, I have this card about the wasted talent and I call up a young person and I, you know, when you come and see the show, you'll see. Okay. It's our job, and I say our job, that we are where we are in life. We have to send the elevator back down. Yeah. You have to. Sonny and your dad taught you well, Chaz. Yeah, well, thank you. This is such a pleasure. Thanks so much for coming in. No, I was so looking forward to it. Oh, gosh, me too. What an honor to meet you. This is the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Absolutely. You're terrific, and I like what you say.

2:11:55You say what you feel. You mean what you say. Oh, thank you. And I think that's important. Thank you. Yeah, it's one of the greatest liberties we have. Absolutely. Why not exercise it? Absolutely. All right, so next stop is wherever the one-man show is. I'll call your assistant, and she'll let you know. It's done. Thank you. Okay. Thanks for everything. And you're my guest for the show, please. I'd love to be. And thank you for all the laughs and entertainment over the years, too. Thank you. I know I speak for my audience when I say we're all grateful. God bless. Thank you. Isn't he wonderful?

2:12:22Chaz Palminteri, everybody. Check out his one-man show, which you can just Google. Yes? How do they? ChazPalminteri.net. Okay. Or go to my Instagram, Chaz Palminteri. Okay. And it's Palminteri, M-I-N-T-E-R-I, just in case you don't want to screw that up. So check out The One Man Show and check out his podcast, too. That'll be super fun to listen to. Thanks to all of you for joining us. We will see you again tomorrow. Lots of love. Thanks for listening to The Megyn Kelly Show. No BS, no agenda, and no fear.

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