Criss Angel

32:16You know, when you see a child that's supposed to be worrying about what they're supposed to play with, worrying about life and death, it just changes everything. And so I just adore my family. I'm blessed and grateful. Yeah, I don't know why I'm so emotional today. This is you. Did you put something in the air? I know they do things. I'm just coming at you with love, Chris. That's all. That's all. And it's been a long time. We need more love in the world. We do need more love. you know, especially now, you know, like we're such a divided country. And it's unfortunate because I remember growing up and having President Reagan and Tip O 'Neill who were from two completely different sides of the spectrum.

33:09And yet they were best friends. They would disagree all day and then we'd go out and have drinks at night. And we miss, I miss that. Like I want to be able to have a difference of opinion and that we can love each other and respect each other enough to embrace the fact that's why we live in the greatest country world, because we're allowed to have differences of opinions and celebrate them and still have love for each other and friendship and not hate each other because we come from a different perspective. It's just crazy. I agree. It is crazy. And I do believe the answer is love. And Dr. King has a great quote that he chooses love because hate is far too great a burden to bear.

33:54100%. Yeah. There's a lot more energy that you have to exude to be mean to somebody. Correct. Than to be loving to somebody. And I think, and you might know something better from a physics principle, but I think energy begets energy. And I think positive energy begets positive energy. And the same is true on the other side. negativity only grows you're a product of your environment my dad used to say you hang out with i don't know if i said the f word before if you hang out with shit you start to smell like it you hang out with good people you start to become better so you're a product of your environment and i think um it's so true if you have a loving family environment your kids are going to see that they see that and that's what they're going to know.

34:47That's how they're going to grow. And that's what they're going to put out there. You know, Johnny Christopher went through six years of hell. I call him St. Johnny Christopher because this, this kid is like beyond any other kid I've ever met. Like, you know, he sees a kid crying. He'll take his own, like whatever he has in his hand and give it to them and let him keep it. He's just selfless. and so um yeah we have my three-year-old little girl lucia angelina and i've not seen a picture yet is the one that is the ruler of everyone including her dad of course she she yeah i'm gonna i'm gonna keep her locked up and i'm sure paul can relate this until she's like 45 because I'm so worried that she will meet a guy like I was.

35:44I'm an old dad, so I have to live to like 150. I feel like you could do that. I'm 57, so she's only three, so it's like I've got to live a long freaking time.

35:58Crazy. Well, you know, it's one of the things you say about your son is what I've witnessed, you know, with so many kids who have battled pediatric cancer. You've done a lot of great work. Oh, thank you. Thank you for doing it. No, it's it's I made a I made a promise that I will forever keep. And now here I'm going to start crying. But at any rate, all these kids are just so giving. and I met a little boy who wanted to go around and give the kids action figures, WWE action figures to all of the kids who were still suffering, you know, and going through chemo during Christmas. It's really hard to talk about this because I lived it as a dad.

36:46And when I used to perform at your place, there was an organization called Sunshine Kids and I became friends because these kids were fans of wrestlers with these kids and it was this little boy named Corey and I gave him my phone number and he would call me and his dad would bring his kid to see my magic show and then they would go to the to the restaurant and and and I'll never forget that was the first boy that I used to talk to and and I then he passed and I you know I uh I've spent a lot of time in those hospitals and, and I understand it. And, and it's why I guess I'm so sensitive. You understand it in a totally different way.

37:30People don't get it. Yeah. They don't get it. One child every two minutes is diagnosed with pediatric cancer. And, um, and it doesn't discriminate. It doesn't care if you're black, white, brown, rich, poor, famous or not. It can affect you and your family or a family, you know. And, um, And I didn't mean to interrupt you, but when you talk about the action figures and that stuff, because you're taking some child that's going through chemo and going through putting poison in their body to kill the other poison. And, you know, it has a devastating effect. And you're trying to give them hope, like, get through this treatment, Johnny Christopher, and daddy will take you to Disney.

38:17I have the means to do that. Lots of people don't. And that's why Make-A-Wish has been so great, because they give that capacity, that mental capacity, give hope to get through something and motivation for these kids to be able to do something that they look forward to. And so I've done a lot of work, probably not as much as you have been able to accomplish, because of the means and the reach that you have. But that's a mandate for me and for Chenille and our family. And then the emotional trauma that we see Johnny go through to this day now. People don't even understand the mindset and then the things that happen and the thoughts that go through his mind, which are very scary today.

39:12And he shares them with you? Yes. We have a great relationship. That's wonderful. That's wonderful.

39:22And, you know, I can't imagine as a parent going through what you've been through, but he's okay. Yeah, he's great. He's okay. He's great. But you always have it in the back of your head. Yeah. And every test, because you have to continue to get tested every year, six months. He still goes in every like six, eight weeks. He goes in and he has to sit. Because he did something called binatumumab, which is, it was a new treatment that Dr. Allen, a great doctor from Cure for the Kids, told him that we should do because he had a relapse. He went through, I did a documentary, a short film, 13 minutes long, if you want to check it out.

40:03Yeah, and we should put links. You go to chrisangelhelp.com. It took me six years to make it. and uh and johnny went through 1095 days of chemo and everything three years and uh and then he was in remission and we were all happy and threw a big party and less than a year later he came back on his testicles and uh and he went through another two years of treatment and we did this thing called blanatumumab which was it's like the new thing that they're doing now because it's like proven to be very successful the downside about it is it's like a treatment that you then have to because it it lowers your your blood cell count and so you have to go in and get something um like a an iv to replenish like a transfusion yeah uh replenish um uh i'm not i'm not very smart with this stuff but but chaniel is and she He can talk to you about the specific names, but basically replenishes what your body needs in order to fight off and build your immune system.

41:16So in any event, he goes in every six to eight weeks or something like that, gets it, and he'll have to do that. But the time frame that he'll have to do it will be less and less because his body will start to produce it himself. But he's doing great. He's doing really, really awesome. And I just feel for all these other, these parents that get that, those words they never want to hear from a doctor about their child or these kids that are going through it. It's something that I wish we could have these pharmaceutical companies, you know, that I know, you know, are not in any rush because of big business.

41:56That we're working on as a part of the foundation that I'm a part of. I haven't exactly formally set it up. But we're in motion. We've been able to accomplish a few things. But is proving because parents of kids and the kids themselves who have been through this, that no child should even know what cancer is, let alone have to fight it. And Connor, by the way, who I've told you all about, he used to boo his nurse when she would come in to give the chemo. Which I just love because that's so his personality, you know, and he loved this nurse. But when she came in, he did not like it and everybody and he called it out for what it was, right, just by booing it.

42:38Just these special, special kids. But because they have gone through something in a way that that families should not, they're willing to share the data. and what that does is it speeds up potentially a lot of these different government initiatives that are out there. If they would focus on kids first, especially in the pediatric cancer, especially pediatric brain tumors where there's a lot of data, then they can really use that as a beta and that's one of the things that we're trying to actually influence right now across multiple sectors and there are various partners and I don't know if they'd want to be named who are working on this, but big time players in the space.

43:24So, and with all of the potential movements, I know you were sharing a little bit about some things, you know, I think it's time. I think there's an opportunity for us to really break open the way systems are working and re-examine them, you know, and make them work much better and potentially have a kids-first-minded approach to health care in general. Yeah, it hasn't been that way, as you pointed out, and it's kind of really unfortunate because there's such a, you know, even for just plain old cancer, there's X amount of dollars that's put forth, but there's such a tiny, I forgot the exact number, but the percentage that goes to pediatric cancer is...

44:05Yeah, it's gone to 8%. It's still under 10%. Yeah, it's just crazy. And, you know, I think, you know, I would have taken on what my child had so he didn't have to go through it because they're innocent. And they should worry about, you know, just living their life and learning and playing and being innocent and not have that trauma, which is what it is. And so anything that I can do to help in any way, if I could be a grain of sand on your beach, I'm happy to be that. And same. Yeah. Thank you. Because we're in it together. Yeah. No, it's... And I had hoped COVID was going to bring everybody together, you know, to find some type of...

44:49Divided. Right? And I mean, countries together. Like I thought, okay, we're all experiencing this. We're going to all come together to find... But if there's anything that could potentially bring us all together, it is our children. I believe that. And that's what I'm hoping is going to make the difference. Yeah, because... Amen. because no matter where you are in the world, no matter what language you speak, if you have a child, you know the connection that I feel, that you feel, that we all feel, right? And so who wants to see your child go through that? So we should be able to network and come together and have that spirit and the camaraderie that is required to make this a focal point because it affects us all no matter what you believe, what your God is, what your culture is.

45:46We all share that through our child. Yep. So I think that's an awesome concept. And now it's just about the execution, right? And how to bring people together and get that messaging out there because I think it's such a great message, but it has so much competition, especially in the day and age that we live. There's so much noise out there. I want to do a march on Washington with kids and families. That's awesome. And healthy kids and families, not just sick kids. Because also, every pediatric cancer is almost like a rare disease in and of itself because kids are growing and mutating. Their cancers are growing and mutating it the same way.

46:35And that, you know, obviously this is about kids wanting to help kids too. Yes. And how good that could potentially feel, especially if it's able to move forward some big, you know, legislative change or big change that we're able to make, you know, to save kids' lives. The thing about children, and I always say this, the reason why I believe that pediatric cancer is kind of pushed to the side because people don't want to look at it they don't it is very very difficult to look at it and um with the film that i did is i try to inspire people i try to to show people you know this is this is something we all should be concerned about because it can you might have a child that doesn't have it maybe you're a grandparent down the road that your grandson son or daughter is now going to have to confront this.

47:33And the methods of treatment that my son went through, I pray to God that no kid has to be putting chemo in their body. It is such a volatile drug and and it's just so invasive and aggressive and what it does in deteriorating the body and my son you know like just because of his bones and so many years six years of this, you know, just trying to get back his physical abilities, you know, to walk and to have the muscle, you know, density and mass and structure, you know, now he's working out every day and stuff, but it does psychological and physical damage that lives on even when you're blessed to be able to say that I'm in remission.

48:35There's a lot of continued treatment that needs to happen. And so I hope we can make it a priority because it should be a priority. It should be the most important thing on everyone's minds. And yet you go on to social media and it's this purse or this watch or these pants or the, you know, these, these things that, you know, we're misdirected or misdirected. I want you to expound upon misdirected because you said that before you said that in the very beginning that we're misdirected by material goods. I'd love to know especially given your perspective of the world not only as a magician and how to manipulate what people believe they're seeing right because you in and of yourself that's sort of what you do create the illusion and how do you want to position people's eyes where do you want them to look so because that is how you think of things how do you see what's happening in the world from your vantage point yeah i i mean it's psychological right it's creating an illusion any means possible and you could look at that and really see it in and we're blind to it but i mean look at us look at what has happened within in our government, right?

50:17With the stuff that, you know, we didn't know, but we were told certain things, right? Even about COVID, right? And right now you can find completely opposing perspectives. And both sides very vehemently angry and vehemently accurate according to them. And that's the thing. It's like, you know, we're misdirected to think that what is important in life are these materialistic materialistic items power and the purse money um you know it's it's these items that that we we we create this false sense this this narrative like okay I'm gonna work and by the way my dad always wanted this Mercedes and and he sacrificed getting this dream car he always wanted his whole life for his children right and so a lot of us including myself right I think this is what is something that I want right and I want and I want and then I'm fortunate enough to get it.

51:36And then I realized, I said earlier, it doesn't do what I think it's going to do. It doesn't bring you sustaining happiness. It's momentary. And so I think every day, fashion, and I'm a victim of it. I'll be the first to look at the cross. It's beautiful. It's a statement. How can you not look at that? And it's something that I did because it was a certain type of thing that because of my belief and my faith that I believe that, you know, and I have like the cheapest little crosses too that I wear that my kids gave me that they're more valuable than is. The ones they make. Yes. Yeah. But for me, it's like you see misdirection no matter where you go.

52:25And misdirection is like you go like this and you believe it's in this hand, but it's really in this hand. But I made you look over here. That's what misdirection is. It's like, look over here at the shiny object because you really want this shiny object. And yes, you're going to save up to buy this shiny object. But you know what really matters is what you can get for free over here. Yeah. And that's misdirection. And that's in everything. It's how you create the illusion. And as a professional illusionist, the icon of illusion. Well, thank you. But that's what I do on stage. But you can find that.

53:04And we take for granted what really is magic. Like how does a plane fly? A baby being born. Like that stuff that's real magic. And I always say for me, I think the reason why I've been successful is because I don't care how something works for the audience. I care about how they feel when they watch it can I create the most potent connection which is the magic of emotion when I can connect to someone like this I don't have to do one trick I don't have to do one trick because when you're able to when you're able to have that connection you're taking them on a ride on a roller coaster ride where they don't know what's going to twist or turn and you have them in a way that can make them cry, they can make them excited, it can make them scared.

54:04And that's the emotional rollercoaster that I try to bring every single night in Mind Freak at Planet Hollywood, plug, plug, plug, for my show. Because I want to give people an experience they're not only going to have in Vegas, but anywhere else in the world. this illusion, this misdirection, the psychology that goes into it, we can also find if we open up our eyes in everyday life. Can I just say, we got in the car after your show the other night, and I was first time ever being at the show, and I said, I have never been somewhere where I have cried, laughed, I was on the edge of my seat, my mind was blown, like I felt every single thing that you just said.

54:50Kind of like this interview for me. I mean, I was actually really hoping Elise was going to say that because she really did say that the second we got in the car. I was hysterically crying. I was hysterically laughing when the fans were blowing everything at us. I was covering the drinks and just taking it all in. And in the next moment, I was mesmerized by what you were doing next. So I felt that wholeheartedly the entire time. well that that to me is the greatest compliment you can give me whether i'm levitating flying around that is not as big of a compliment as somebody saying i cried i laughed because that really as an artist if if i can accomplish that then that is there's no higher compliment because I've created with the magic of emotion.

55:43Yeah. And that's the purest form of magic. So all these other things that I do are just vehicles, are instruments to make that connection. Yeah, it works. It's the purest form of communication. Yeah. Right? True. And Maya Angelou has this beautiful quote, that people will never remember what you said. they'll never remember what you did, but they'll always remember how you made them feel. 100%. If you can make people feel, that is, that's the ultimate goal. And it's the same with WWE, right? It's what makes certain storylines so compelling, is when people can relate to them, when there's that emotion, when they feel something, whether they're angry, same thing.

56:28I mean, you're not trying to make anybody angry, we do. My character in particular tried to make people angry, But it's an escape. But it's an escape that when you have that and people reflect after they experience the WWE WrestleMania, which is going down, which is exciting. But when they leave there, you know it's successful when they start talking about it with their friends, their family. And then they lay in bed thinking and reflecting about it. Yep. That is real powerful stuff. So it's Elise and Jackie who is our esteemed makeup artist and has made a few appearances somewhat, at least from the background.

57:13There she is. They have not been able to stop talking about your show. I know. I mean, really, every element of it. It's like exactly what you're saying. I think everyone in this room. They have been doing. Everyone in this room has heard Jackie or I telling the story. I'll pay you after. Thank you. No, that's very kind. That really means a lot. And I'm so grateful that you came to see Mind Freak. No, of course. I love Mind Freak. Yeah, well, Mind Freak, you know, started with you guys. And it's evolved and transformed. And I'm always trying to keep it fresh. And I'm always challenging myself.

57:45Like, you know, how can I keep this, you know, immersive and a spectacle? And really what your company has mastered beyond, you know, anything, any sporting event has ever mastered. Like really, if you think about what you all bring to it, it's, you know, I was around that and it had to have a profound influence on me to bring it to my craft. And so I just love all that stuff. And I love when you have heart in it. Yeah. You know, because that then it doesn't become superficial and and just plastic. I think that's one of the things that is truly unique about WWE is our connection to our fans because our fans have their hearts in it, too.

58:35It's like we're all fighting to make it together. And it's just this sort of unique, you know, business. It is. It is. I guess it's a movement. They have stake in it. Yeah, they do. And the characters themselves, whether they're just getting started on one of, now we have multiple platforms, but you can follow someone's whole career from when they first start to when they ultimately hopefully make it to the main roster or the main event of WrestleMania. And our fans know they're a part of that success for that talent. Right. Because it's them that helps get that person to the next level. 100%.

59:13Their feedback or their lack of reaction when something's not working. And they know they're a part of it. It's just something so special and remarkable. And it's totally in line with what you're saying. Yeah, and I think that's why a lot of my fan base are people that love wrestling, WWE. There is a unique crossover. We absolutely have a significant crossover. Significant crossover. That and like, you know, if I go to, when I used to go to like Paul Stanley, a great guy, good friend of mine, and would go to a Kiss concert. It was like the same, because those were my influences. Same with my husband, Paul.

1:00:00Yeah. Loved Kiss. Yeah. Kiss was a huge influence on him. Huge. Yes. So for me, that obviously, you know, is innate in what I do because psychologically that influenced me. I remember, you know, being in, you know, high school and you had, you know, Jimmy Fly, Superfly Snooker. You had, you know, obviously Hulk Hogan, Andre the Giant, all these, you know, Piper. Yeah. And all these people I used to watch, and I would watch it because it was like a visual feast, you know? And so, same thing with Kiss, you know? These guys that are superheroes with makeup and all this stuff and larger than life.

1:00:52And so that, you know, obviously had a profound effect on how I evolve and develop and create because that's like, you know, in there because of the experiences and what engaged me. So I'm trying to bring that to the same fans that you guys have, to the same fans that rock and roll would procure or even like rap and, you know, pop culture. It's like that stuff is intriguing to me, but I want to do it with heart. Yeah. Which is what you do. Do it with heart. Yeah. Everything you do, right? I never do anything for money. I don't. I do everything that I do because it's something that's part of my lifestyle, something that interests me, something I'm passionate about.

1:01:38And then if you do it well, the byproduct is all the things that, is all the things that, the trappings. And how important is it to be able to believe in yourself? Oh, it's, you know, if you don't believe in yourself, you're not going to get very far. You have to, you have to have number one the belief in yourself not to talk about what you want to do but to put your plan into action you know and a lot of people most people and i say that with sadness i want to do this i want to do this but they want instant gratification and that comes with the misdirection right what you put in is what you get out if it were easy everybody would be accomplishing what it is you want to have happen and and you have to want something for the right reasons you can't like wake up and be like i want to be famous and that's like the reason why you're gonna do like you know um instagram and put these posts like no that because even if you achieve that and you know there's a small chance you will but even if you do you're gonna be very disappointed it's hollow it's really hollow or so so to me it's it's really about having a belief that i'm capable i get one life i get one body and i got to make the most of it and putting together something that interests you something you're passionate about and by the way no matter what you do is never a hundred percent happiness all the time nothing's perfect right i had to get up whatever time this morning.

1:03:25Sorry. No, to do this. And, you know, I would have rather slept in a little bit because I went to bed late and had a show. Not rather. That's how you felt before. But now I'm happy I did it. But my point is you got to do, you got to put the sweat equity in there. It's one thing to talk about it, but it's another thing to believe in yourself, believe in the vision, and then put an action plan together and stick with it. And be nimble to pivot because it's never going to go the way you want it to go. Life is death without change. So embrace the change, pivot, and keep on working toward it. And it ain't going to happen on your timetable.

1:04:02It's going to happen when you're ready and the right opportunity poses itself and you're able to capitalize on it. And so for me, if you want to be in the entertainment business, get out there and do it for free. I used to go and do magic for free whatever I had to do to get feedback to evolve and develop so it's not going to be on your terms and you can't be afraid to put yourself out there you can't be afraid to fail you have to fail failure is a step before success without failure you won't have success you got to jump in the water and you got to have honest people that will give you a sense of criticism, what you did good, what you didn't do good.

1:04:52But you have to have a good, basically soundboard to do that. And then you gotta be honest with yourself. Your ego can't get in the way. You gotta be honest. When I do things, I'm like, oh, that was shit. You know, like I can do better. Or sometimes I don't even wanna watch myself. Like I will not wanna watch this interview because I'll be embarrassed. No, you're so great, Chris. But I will tell you that you got to put the effort, the energy, be around people that are doing it so that you can allow their experiences and what they do rub off on you in a positive way. As we talked before, if you hang out with people that you're always the best at what you do around these people, you're not going to grow.

1:05:37You got to be the least at what it is you want to accomplish and be with smarter people that are successful doing that so that you can learn and be honest. You know, ego has to go aside. Got to be honest. I mean, you know, I'll have disagreements and things or something goes wrong. And I got to be honest, like, oh, you know what? Maybe that wasn't that good. Or maybe I was wrong. And that's how you grow in both professional and personal ways. You've got to be honest. It's one thing to be Criss Angel. I come out on stage and I flip the switch and I'm that character. But if I believe that that's who I am when I'm by myself or with my family or just out eating dinner, I'm going to live a really shallow, lonely life.

1:06:30and I got to be honest and I got to like, you know, try to better myself and you can always be better. Perfection is like trying to hold water. It's impossible. You can't. You can always be better. I love that. I love that. You've left us with so many valuable lessons. The importance of pivoting, the importance of hard work, the importance of believing in yourself, of never giving up, of always wanting to learn. of making sure that you, there's some weird noise, but it's a podcast, so we don't like cut. Does it matter? I'm sorry, I'll stop doing that. I sometimes do shit to play with people. No, but really.

1:07:15Sorry about that. Can I just, that was an earthquake. Yes, that's what I did. It gave a little earthquake. No, was it? Yes. Yeah, it was. Really? Yeah, it was. I think that was my first earthquake. Yeah, and typically we don't feel earthquakes in Nevada. So that was interesting, but I apologize and I will not do it again. Yes. Thank you. Let's please not do that. Please don't do that again. Okay. Sorry. But I would like to just ask, you know, maybe one final question that's sort of off the beaten path. And then I have to do one question for fanatics as well. Whatever you want to do. I'm here for you and I'm grateful and humbled and honored to be here with you.

1:07:55Well, I feel exactly the same way. And I'm curious, outside of magic and spending time with your family, which I know is the number one, what do you enjoy doing? Fighting. Fighting. Yeah, I love sparring. I love kicking and punching and jiu-jitsu and all those. And taking the punches. Oh, yeah. Frank, me, I was 295 pounds and people are like, oh, yeah. Okay. I got my purple belt in MMA under Frank. Congratulations. Yeah, and I got that - In any particular discipline? I got that like two years ago or whatever it was. In MMA, so I do jujitsu, wrestling, a little Muay Thai. I just thought the belt was a sign to like, because I just got my blue belt in jujitsu.

1:08:44Right, right. But I thought that was a jujitsu thing. I didn't know you could get it kind of crossed. So Frank Muir has his own system. Okay. And his system is jujitsu is part of it. But if you're going to be mixed martial artists, and I used to do a little bit when I was a teenager. I love that stuff and I always wanted to do it, but I had to focus on magic. So, you know, mixed martial arts requires stand-up game, you know, grappling, ground game. So for me, I wanted to really dive into everything. So I have like, you know, Don McGregor, who's an amazing wrestler. you know um i have uh jake shields who's an amazing fights and study it well the problem is i used to go and dana was always so very kind and i would go there and sit next to him but um now i do a show all the time and i very rarely like i'm gonna get to go with my family and i'm very thankful to go to wrestlemania but i'm gonna be there and then i'm gonna run out of there to go do a show.

1:09:49I want to do it at the last second. I hope that's safe. I'm always, yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm always, I never get to do a lot because I'm always working. I'm working. I used to do 480 shows a year. How many shows do you have left under your current deal? Well, my current deal is as long as I want to do it because we're the number one show in Caesar's portfolio. And you own the theater. Well, I own the show. I own every every light of the 2000 lights, every, this, everything that you see, I own it, I produced it. And, uh, but, but Caesars has been a great, great strategic partner. They were bought by El Dorado and they have more, you know, resort casino, um, hotels in the world than any other company.

1:10:40And so to be their main number one show is a huge, uh, testament to my cast, my crew, the people that make it happen every day. Actually, the president's coming today to see the show with his kids and to hang out. Very cool. Before I come out to see you with Paul's Honor tonight, which is amazing. But yeah, so I forgot the question. Well, we were originally talking about fighting. Oh yeah, so for me, I love doing mixed martial arts because it's a little bit of everything. It's a stand-up game. It's a ground game. And then I get specialists in that are like Anthony Pettis, who's an amazing kicker and a karate guy, a karate guy, whatever, however you want to say it, a Taekwondo guy.

1:11:35And he's also great on the ground. But Jake Shields is a world champion on the ground. And then you get Frank Mir kind of putting it all together for me. So I love it. They punch me in the face. They kick me. They grapple me. But it's the strategy of trying to survive, right? Yes. And overcome those uncomfortable positions. Exactly. And how that then also applies to your life. Well, Frank does this to me all the time. So I'll be doing jujitsu. First, I usually do stand-up, and then we'll go on the ground. And we do between drills and all that, like four hours or something. I mean, that's a long time.

1:12:18And we do it multiple days a week or at least two hours. But I'll be exhausted. I'll be rolling for 20 minutes with guys that are always way better than me. And then if I get lucky and catch them in a head and arm and make them tap, it's like the greatest feeling in the world. But I'll be exhausted. Yeah. And then Frank will be like, okay, lay down. I'll be like huffing up, huffing up. My heart rate's like, you know hitting high 160s and then he'll be like get in the ground and then he'll like go and put 295 pounds on me and put me in the worst uncomfortable situation he's like a fight through it I know you're exhausted fight and he'll put me in that to become more acclimated yes with being in there because that's like me and he he says you know he'll tell you that my mindset is crazy because I've been buried alive I've been underwater for 24 hours I've hung from fish hooks and I just kind of embrace it.

1:13:14And I just try to like, when your heart rate goes up and your adrenaline's kicking in, whether you're doing a show or you're on the ground being smothered, it's very easy to panic. It's very easy to like have that adrenaline work against you. But when you just kind of try to like, just slow your breathing, just think about things analytically and really crystal clear. And, you know, what am I supposed to be doing here? let me be calm, let me preserve my breathing yes, be in the moment it's really the only time I'm in the moment even when I'm on stage doing a show I find myself wandering you know, like I find myself wandering when I'm doing a routine to music because my body is like, you've done it so many times thousands and thousands and thousands of times but you can't do that in fighting no, you can't, no, because you get punched in the face and because fighting is way more newer for me than doing magic since I was six years old.

1:14:13So for me, when I'm there and I have somebody against me, I'm like, okay, what's the strategy here? You know, what are they doing? You know, what kind of reach do I have? Am I going to circle to the right, go to the left? Am I going to try to throw, you know, a fake punch? Am I going to try to, you know, do a takedown, a single leg or a double leg or, you know, like what am I going to do? And if I'm on the ground, I really like side control. I really want to get inside control because I can, you know, employ a lot of my game. You know, so everybody has like their own like strengths and weaknesses.

1:14:44You know, I don't really like going to the side that I'm weaker in. I'm still trying to develop that. You know what that's like? You have a good side and a bad side and you got to develop both of those sides. That's true. So anyway, we're talking like jujitsu now. Sorry. No, but I think it's the fighting mentality. Yeah. You know, the never giving up. You ever meet Gordon Ryan? No, but my instructor is good friends with him. Yeah, he's awesome. I had him on my, I was doing a little testing podcast. I saw him on the video you sent me. Yeah, I had him. He is, he's awesome. And I got to see him compete.

1:15:16He invited me and he won. He's crazy good, right? Well, there's no one better than him. I mean, he is like the Michael Jordan for his time. He is, his game is just nuts. He's like, it's like a chess game. He's so far ahead. It's so strategic. And he's just so calm about it. Yeah. I mean, I saw him. He broke his foot or his ankle and he still won. I mean, it's just crazy. And that's the epitome of mental toughness. And by the way, these athletes, these wrestlers, at what they do, the level of athleticism and skill and precision is like that. it's not fake that's real shit very real like that is crazy stuff and you're gonna see it on full display and and it's like the the difference between like this much that means like you could be paralyzed or you're gonna make the audience crazy and you're gonna be able to get up and go on to with the routine or whatever it is that you're doing it is um unbelievable i just have mad, mad respect for these athletes.

1:16:33It's just, it's incredible. You know, it's incredible. Like you got to get props. Well, thank you. Thank you. I have only been in a handful of matches, you know, not really enough to, to even say, you know, that I certainly am not a professional in any way, shape or form, but it gives you enough of an appreciation. But the thing that you brought to the table and I think this is why it was so effective because it wasn't like you were six years old and like I want to be a wrestler no but you kind of found yourself in this situation so you had a train yeah to do what you did but what came natural for you is the character development the character yeah and that is such a huge thing that a lot of people miss there's a lot there's magicians that will destroy me like as far as like a manipulator manipulating cars or sleight of hands.

1:17:25These guys are like, you'll fall asleep watching them. So it's like, you have to have a certain level. Then you have to think about like, what's going to make me unique and different? And how do I cultivate that and put that together into something that people are going to be interested and want to see? And your dad was a master. Master at that. The greatest showman on earth pt barnum this man knew how to do that and um it's it's of epic proportions and so you know what you did and how you did it was awesome because it just works so well within the storyline within your character and with what you could do physically and what you were willing to take on i could take a beating yeah no you i saw like you pulling hands offensively i'm not so great but i It could take a lot.

1:18:18Yeah, no, and it's incredible. And then obviously your husband, you know, getting in, am I allowed to say that? Of course, yeah. Inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. This will air whenever it airs, but it is happening tonight. It is amazing, and I'm just so grateful and honored to be invited to go experience that. Oh, thank you, Chris. He's always been so incredibly kind and humble and such a smart guy and a really good guy. You meet a lot of people that don't live up to the hype of what you think they're going to be like, but just a real class act, really classy family, good down-to-earth people, your whole family.

1:19:00My experiences have been just incredible because I do meet famous people. And it's just sometimes like wah, wah, wah, wah. Okay. Okay. Like it's disappointing. But you're the antithesis. You and your family are the antithesis of that. Good people, you know, and just. Well, same with you, Chris. Thank you very much. Very blessed to know you all. That's how we feel. Thank you so much. And your mom, you just said she turned 90? She turned 90 and she's in New York right now. Because I met your mom that first time I met. you too. I met her in the ladies room. Yeah. Yes. I remember that. I wasn't there, but I remember, I remember her telling me about that, but my mom is awesome.

1:19:44She was so proud and I just loved meeting her, you know? Yeah. She, she, when she was 70 on television, I lit myself on fire because I wanted to become a human candle for her. And it took her 20 years cause she just turned the beginning of March 90. And I threw a surprise birthday party for her in New York, which was awesome but um she wanted to pay me back so there's a picture in my show of like when i was going through puberty that is like i was 13 or one and young 14 so so people get to see my awkward stage uh yeah you call it out in the show yeah because i think it's funny if you can't you know be uh make fun of yourself self-deprecating yeah you have to be able to laugh you can't take yourself self-serious you know life life is too hard not to laugh oh my god you know we all go through so much in different ways and so grateful to you for sharing i got one question yeah okay i want to ask you a question okay go for it what would be the one piece of advice that you have or would give to your kids oh i give a lot of advice to my kids the most important piece of advice if you had to say one thing is at the top of the list, what would it be?

1:21:00That life is about love and that I wish for them as much love as they can possibly handle in their lives, the ability to give it and the ability to receive it because I think that's what life is all about. Beautifully said. Yeah, that's awesome. Well, thanks for wrapping. for, right? That's awesome. No, I love that. I love that. I just wanted to hear, like, you know, when you meet people, especially people that have experienced a level of success that, you know, that I'll never ascertain, like, what you guys have accomplished. I mean, it's just... Don't throw yourself short. No, but it's, I mean, it's at a whole...

1:21:41What was the evaluation of WWE? Okay, we won't talk about that. Well, now it's TKO. Yeah, well, they're very happy. So things have changed. They're very happy. But my point is that there's this crazy, so it's so much easier for you to be consumed by the shiny objects, the misdirection. So I find it fascinating what the life lesson is that you give for your children. And that shows you how grounded and what really is what's important. And we're telling you, both of us are saying the same thing, so we can't be wrong. And obviously, the most important thing for me is my faith with God. And I don't put that on anybody, but without God, I'm nothing.

1:22:31I'm so blessed to have that relationship because it's guided me in such an important way. Oh, that's so beautiful. So anyway, it's all emotion and it's all love and it's all amazing. Isn't that a full life, right? Jimmy Valvano said, and forgive me if I misquote a little bit, but if you think, cry, and laugh every day, that that's a full day. And the only thing I would add to that is love. You can think, cry, laugh, and love every day. Man, you'll live such a full life. And most people don't want to do that because they don't want to show that side of it because they don't think, like to me, being a man is being honest.

1:23:12and it has nothing to do with being strong or kicking somebody's ass. No, being a man and being strong is able to cry on camera, able to share the truth of my life and not create an illusion about who I am, but be true to what I am. I love it. Yeah. Anyway, there's my tissue. You're amazing. There it goes. Thank you so much. Chuck it over your shoulder. I don't know the angle of it. Look over here. Look over here. You see it? Boom. Fine. God. No, it's not real magic. You see it went between the legs. That's great. Thank you. Thank you so much. This was awesome.

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