How you doing out there. It's me Tigger Dark Wayne Duck. It's me
Bunkers Deep Bobcat. All right, y'all, did it great? Your favorite
firefly you desire hold the old knock guy. My name is Jim Cummings and
welcome to tuned In. Welcome back everybody. This is tuned In with Jim
Cummings. Today we have Karen Ashley. Thank you so much for joining us.
Thank you, thank you, and the crowd went wild. Yes,
yes, yes, you know her best as the Yellow Ranger on Power Rangers.
Is that correct? Yes, yeah, that's what they love. They
I've done other things, but all they like to talk about is Power Rangers,
and so we do. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
I'm not going to change your subject, you know it's one, but
but I'm sure we'll end up asking you, yeah to do so. So
this is so great. First of all, thank you very much for being
here. Absolutely anything for you, Jim, anything, say it again,
anything for you. Oh it's just that phrase is magical, something magical.
Bless your heart. And uh, I'm just glad to have you here.
It's weird. You know, we known each other for a good, pretty
good stack of years. Here and yet we've never worked together, work together.
So we're going to fix that tonight. That Yes, finally we're going
to fix that. Work with the legend. Yeah no, that's my life.
Yeah, the legend. You don't even understand. I remember the first
show I ever did with you. I was like secretly fangirling, yeah,
because I was like, what show was that? Well? It was just
well the first comic con we ever did together, and I was I remember
telling all of our friends that we always do. I was like, oh
my gosh. When I was a baby girl, I used to call me
poo bear, so fan of yours? So sweet. Yes, well that's
nice to hear. Thank you. Absolutely, we'll take that all day.
Man, they used to call me something, but it had it was just
but it was another There was no H on the end. It wasn't the
same when I was a little a little bit val earned the H. Look
I know. Oh man, So so what what what has happened in these
days? What what is keeping you happy? Oh my gosh? Everything?
Like I know, we we do comic cons all the time, and I
do them because I love them. I Mean, we meet some amazing and
it's so nice to see people yeah, you know, are you like me
when when people come up to you and they'll they'll say, well, you
know, I was having a tough time and this and that, and yeah,
yeah, you just never know, like I mean, you, well,
we've always been living our dream right with actors, and we've been doing
our thing, and you never know what how your work resonates with people.
And to know like they feel like it changed their life or we played any
part in helping them as humans like that is mind boggling. And you realize
not everybody had a great life, but they had you know, your show,
our show. You know, they had something that we contributed to and
that changed them. So that's a beautiful thing. And that's that's the reason
I do it. I always say I'll stop doing cons when it's no longer
fun, but they just pull you in with the love. You know,
it's the love best. It's true. Yeah, it's true. And you
just don't have a sense of affecting people right, So from here you go,
where where should we go? Because you know we should recap that at
the end. But on the other hand, oh the hell you doing,
darling. I'm doing great. You know, life is good. I'm still
acting and traveling and you know, I'm starting to get into producing, so
yeah. Yeah, So I mean it's just like, you know, when
you're creative, you do a lot of things, and you should. I
always encourage people to do it all or at least try it, because you
never know, you might be great at it, you know. Yeah,
absolutely, That's what I feel like. When you're a creative person, you've
got to keep your spirit going. And so whether it's you know, working
on your you know as an actor, or working writing or doing anything,
I just feel like you got to keep that creative energy going. Yeah,
definitely. Well, the more irons in the fire. Yeah, yeah,
we were just talking about that at dinner, you know, honing your craft.
You know, this is a very honeable craft. Absolutely, I think.
You know, like the popular opinion tends to be like you either got
it or you don't. And it's like, you know, it's like almost
like anything else like woodworking or you know, anything else, surfing, it's
like the more repetition, the better you get at it. Yeah, I
mean, speaking from personal experience, like even this podcast, you know,
every week seems to get easier and easier because it's just muscle memory and it's
repetition and yeah, yeah, and it's cool to create something and cool to
have these conversations like we always talk. Anytime we're at a show, we
all get together and we start talking about life or whatever, and so it's
kind of cool to share some those stories. Oh absolutely. Yeah. And
you have a podcast as well. I do. I have. It's called
the BOP. It's the Blurred Official Podcast. And for those of you who
don't know, we know a blur it is. It's a black nerd.
So yeah, so b L e yes, b L like it's blurred like
a you know. But but yeah, it's fun. We talk about everything.
We love is as adults and we're just big kids. You know.
I always feel like I've always felt like in this nerd space, we've never
as a culture, you know, we don't have the room to enjoy the
things that we want to enjoy. And so I'm like, we want to
encourage, you know, especially black you know, kids to be themselves,
be nerds. You get into it chic to be geek, so let's do
it. That's true. But no, we just have fun. We talk
about superhero stuff, We talk about everything everything. Do we have to thank
for that I hope. So, yeah, he's the first blurd I think
him. You know, I'm gonna tell him that because I never thought of
it that way. But he was Yeah, he made it cool to be
a nerd. Yes he did, Yes, he did. He'll be at
He's at a couple of conventions here and there, right, Yeah. Yeah,
that's what's cool about him too. You get to see all your heroes,
like you see all these people that you've always wanted, I mean,
you looked up to and you always wanted to meet, and we get to,
like, you know, just hang out for the weekend in these places.
Absolutely. I remember when we first met at and does everybody know who
we're talking about, by the way, Arkle? Yeah, yeah, well
he was on Family Matters Julie White, Ye White. Yeah that's why I
met Yeah, yes, yes, it was like we must love might as
well get the guy's name. Absolutely, But I remember we were doing Sonic
the Hedgehog and he was Sonic the Hedgehog and I was Doctor robut Nick that
Hedgeho. You're welcome anyway, uh so, uh chills look at you.
But it's likely I used to watch that show, so I'm like, oh
my god, well, it was so funny because you know, he's a
cool dude, and he made sure he put his stamp on it. We
were doing the very first show and I was sitting here, he was sitting
there. I mean it was literally like that close and there, and one
of the lines Wash for Sonic was, oh, dude, I don't know,
dude, I think that really lags, dude, and Jeli was going,
we have like five more dudes. But it was even better that it
was even better that he goes first of all, I don't really surf,
and look who's black. It's me the last time you ran into him,
rather than talking about no no no, no, no no no, I
like this like this guy. Yeah. So we didn't lag any further.
No more lagging, no more lagging. A great story. Everyone forgets like
he was Sonic the Hedgehog, Like I mean, how iconic was that role?
And people forget it. It's like, you know, he's probably done
a million things and they always talk about the main one. Yeah, oh
god, yeah, yeah, I forget that. What what was the movie
that he was in as a I can't believe we're sitting there talking about a
good actor. You know, it's okay, I'm a great actor. He
was actually really nice. I worked on a show hanging with mister Cooper and
he was super nice. And the stages were right next door to Family Matters,
And I remember like, whenever you were a guest star at Warner Brothers,
you would have to like park like like miles away, like it was
a long walk to get to the wherever the guests park. We were far.
Yeah, I had to park in Anaheim, right, felt that way.
So I remember one day we got film, we got done filming.
It was really late and it was me and a couple of other actors,
and he gave us a ride because he was like, I know, you
guys got to walk really far away. So he gave us all a ride
and he was so nice. Oh that's cool. Yeah, was super cool
and he would come over and say hi everything, and so just was a
cool person. So yeah, oh that's cool. You like to hear nice
stories, like I know, right, because there you do have those stories
where people are you know, they're they're a little they've they always say they've
they've bought into their own hype, and you hate to see it because there's
usually a person you really look up to and you know they just are not,
you know, happy, and that's unfortunate. You know, life's no
kidding. Yeah, well you know, I uh, I've had different people
over the years say well, well, you know the point is to be
happy. Now, I've been poor and happy, and I've been rich and
happy. Right And just for the record, rich and happy beats the ship
out of poor and happy. I mean, I'm just putting it out there.
It feels a lot better, right, Yeah, it's just something to
think about it. You're so accomplished, Like why are you still mad?
Yeah? Happy? Life is good for you. Yeah, shut up,
you don't remember you don't work. You get to go do stuff that like
in my case, used to get me kicked out of class. And you
know the joke, I've said it before. Joke's on system. Mary Agnes.
Now I tell you talk too much. You're coming to that all got
you paid? Oh yeah, arm parts, but this is my p Did
he just say yes? He did? He just said, well, I
used to think that was hysterical when I was in sixth grade and I'll be
going looking around, wasn't me? Well sure enough about ten years maybe a
little more. Uh, there's a there's a toy out there. You're gonna
really want to get this America or World. And it's called I swear to
God, arm Fart Task. I'm testmate, it don't yes, and and
you go and you buy, And he's got his arms are like right here
and one of them is going like this, and one of them's over here,
so do his chest and you lift up this army to go yes and
and I can remember, oh, and they were asking me to do songs
like like fart b b b by bye bye b bye bye bye bye bye
bye. And I was thinking, Ah, this is one for them.
Somebody should be carving this in the stone because they're the ancients. Are that
people thousands of years now are going to really want to know this? Yes,
yeah, that's okay though, Jim, you recovered my parents are going,
yeah, that's true. If I don't get arm part Task for Christmas,
I'm going to be mad. Everybody Christmas list, know what to do.
I'll take it. Now. You're going to get like three dozen.
I'm just going to take them to you and you can sell them. I
needed one, but I'll sign them and you could sell them for thousands.
No, you sell them for thousands. Oh that's hilarious. Well, somebody's
got to do that better than you, and I I know, right they
they've us signed really weird stuff, so I don't think if they got an
armfar task, they'd probably be really excited about that. I'm telling you,
what's what's the weirdest thing you've ever signed? Someone's butt? Someone's yes,
and they get to go like and this happened at Pensacon in Pensacon, Florida,
and he said I'm gonna go get it tattooed. And I was like,
he's not going to do that. But the year before, two of
my other castmates they signed the top part of the butt and it was tattooed,
so I was like, oh my god, this man is really going
to do this. So me and another guy we had to sign the bottom
part of the butt, which I throw was like lucky you, I know,
lucky me, I mean, and my my co stars were so obnoxious.
They were like their signatures were like this, okay, who is that?
It was Austin Walter David and we all so guy in Pensacola, Florida
has our signature on his ass. So yeah, and it's tattooed and his
kids were with him. That was the part that Yeah, and you know
it wasn't like you know, when you're at a conn there's no place to
like hide. So he just pulled it down and we just saw then threw
away the sharpie that video. No, no, no, I don't want
the sharp it's no, no, really, it's yours. And he was
a huge fan and yeah, I don't think. Thank god he had a
huge ass because otherwise the hell a lot of power Rangers care you're gonna get
Wow, I was. I was nicer than the guys though. There's I
mean it was oh I can imagine, yeah, yeah, like you have
you done that before? Can you imagine getting that tattoo? No, I've
had, I've had and it's and it's women. I mean, thank god,
you know, can you sign us for me? And I'm like,
uh, suppose, yes, I feel you feel flattered, but you're kind
of like she wasn't flat, oh flattered flattered? Yeah, we feel flattered,
but good night. Everybody offended as well, Like it's your your conscience
is like, yeah, you know, I had a girl, I had
I had one a boot and one bum and a few you also had a
bum. I also had a bum. Can you sign something from me?
Yes? Turns around? Oh that sign this? Yeah? And you had
to have signed Pooh on the butt, you know, yeah yeah? And
then then I put it. I put an arrow. You know who was
here or he will be soon. I think that. I think the signing
of the Pooh is gonna start. That might go up. That your stock,
that might go up. That's true. Well I get a lot more
of those. The trick is you gotta have that h on that the whole
New world, you know, you know, ain't nobody got time for that.
Nobody got no time for that. But yeah, I did it,
and bless her heart, she went and it was like Friday, and she
was back on Sunday. What do you think she showed it down? And
you tattooed my name on your butt? Like, she goes, what do
you think I was gonna do? And I don't wait till the war off.
I wanted to Okay, yeah, I mean you can check my mine,
but it's tattoo free, right, I know, so God bless you,
I know, I know. I always wonder though, I'm like,
what do you do when you're like eighty? Like obviously it's cool now.
And then what happens at eighty and they're like, what is that? Grandma?
Grandma on your butt? Yeah? Yeah yeah, and like some of
the old like sailors, you know, they have some old tattoos, you
know, and like some eighty year olds, and I think it looks pretty
bad. Do you have any tattoos? I have one tattoo? Yeah,
what's it? It's a Winny the Pooh. No it's not, is it
really? Yeah, it's Winny the Pooh your but not on my butt.
This is before I met you. Have you showed before he saw it?
Yeah? Yeah. They were like you gotta show him, and I was
like, oh gosh, yeah, but it was it's kind of like that's
my personality. And so my mom was like, oh, yeah, she
would have been mad at me, but she she lived with that one because
she would have been mad at your butt. Well she would have been mad
because I got it, mad at you, but she was okay. When
she saw it, she was like, okay, well that's my Pooh bag,
pooh Hell's angels, yeah right, you know, so she was fine
with that. Maybe with poo yeah, since it'd be a good tattoo.
Go with Pooh anyway, I know, me and one of my co stars.
That's so what we did when we first moved to la We were on
the show and that it was Catherine Sutherland's one of the Peak Rangers, and
yeah tramp. We went and got tattoos and we didn't know where to go,
so of course we go on Sunset Strip, you know, in Hollywood.
What do you do? So do you remember the name of the place.
I have no idea, I just know it's on Sunset Yeah, right
next to was that the tattoo parlor across from the tattoo parlor? Yeah,
it was next to the tattoo parlor. Yeah, okay, yeah, the
tattoo parlor, all those ones you know. Yeah, that was it.
Next to the Starbucks Tattoo park. Yes, Starbucks by there now I'm there,
Yeah, whether they want one or not. But yeah, I remember,
I was. I was. The Only time I ever came close was
when I wasteen and I had hitchhike to California. Yeah. Back when people
did that, I guess you might as well kill yourself now, yeah exactly.
I went across the country twice. I didn't know it was. I
didn't know it was that stupid yeah, and uh yeah if you say so.
You know, I shout up at my parents in Ohio's how'd you get
here? I drove? Where's your car? Well? It was in my
car. It was you know, it was like, all right, a
hitchhike, What the hell's the matter with you? What you know you're gonna
get My dad had a lot of things to say about that. Yeah,
to do that though, Like when you hitchhike, do do you just like
like you just do it and then someone comes and you talk to them like
on your way. Yes, well, you know we lucked out, Me
and my buddy Pipe, we lucked out. We were like in San Pedro,
honestly, and we're going back to Ohio. And we found a guy
who was going back to I like Virginia or something. So he and he
was a real trucker, never stopped well bathrooms. Yeah, but he had
magic pills. They kept him going, yeah, yeah, want some of
these, I'm gonna just take I'll be right here. What kind of pills
are those? Are those? Like the are those the rhino pills that you
always see in the truck stop? Please you're a woman Rhino because custom Yeah,
yeah, those yeah stops. Yeah, next time, next time you're
at a truck stop, one of those loves or you know those trucks on
those big ones right at the checkout, look at them and apparently the rapper
y g is coming out with all organic ones. You know, don't put
the toxins in your body, put the all natural can. God. I
used to love toxins, tux I'm always so curious who buys those things?
Who is buying? Guy? Who to Ohio? Yeah? Yeah, get
there three hours wait. I love those little truck stops. You always see
the coolest stuff in there. You see like a fry pan that you can
plug into the you know, the the cigarette outlet right, all the craziest
stuff. I got like a twenty foot Neon Orange iPhone charger from one of
those things. And I'm like, if anybody's gonna steal my iPhone charger,
now, I'm gonna find you. Now I won't know, I'll find it
in the dark. Yeah amazing. Yeah, man, I love walking through
those things. Yeah, yeah, I love it. Road trip, road
trip. Yeah, how do you like my hat? Seriously? I love
it. I think I told you you're not just make that up. No,
I love it. You are very dapper. Yes, yeah, okay,
we can call it. Yeah, gave me the thumbs up. Now,
Jim, Jim's out here trying to impress Bobby Costanzo. Let me dress
like a mafioso too, Yeah yeah, yeah, very yeah. Big gangster
history here, right, oh, yes, this is this is where moonshining
started. Yes, yes, yeah. We went to the Gangster Museum the
last time there's a there's a gangster museum. It was a big gambling town
and out in the Hot Springs, Arkansas. There's actually so one side of
the street, main street, is state property, and then the other side
of the street is federal property because of the state park. There's a state
park there. Forgive me, I can't remember the name of the state park.
But on one side is all the bars and old taverns and everything,
and then on the other side, on the federal side is the spaws and
the Hot Springs you know where you can go. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
that's right. It's National Spring Waters. And at the Gangster Museum they
told us that literally back in the day, you know, back in I
want to say, like the twenties or thirties, a long time ago.
That there was such animosity between because there was illegal gambling and there was moonshine,
and there was prostitution, you know, and like it was almost like
a Las Vegas, you know. That's where people came was Hot Springs,
Arkansas to come and do that stuff. And it was so tense that literally
the police and the sheriff's office literally had a shootout because so many of them
were paid off that they were like, you know, the sheriff's office was
trying to shut down the illegal gambling and prostitution and the police were like,
uh uh, that's that's our livelihood. Yeah, that's our yeah. Wow.
And we went into one of the bars and it's I forget the name
of the bar, but you can still the bullet holes in the roof because
the sheriff or the police to get everybody's attention back then, they walk in,
bang bang bang and shoot the roof and you can still see it up
there. I love it. Who knew? Yeah? Very cool. And
it's not even the West as in wild yeah the Wild West. Yeah,
and they had secret doors and everything. It's really cool history. Yeah.
Okay, well now now I have a whole new found respect for this place.
That's right. Yeah, yeah, if you ever get a chet.
I know I've been spreading the rumor though that I am wanted in this state
only because because you want it in all of them though. Well no.
But we left the airport and Stacy, one of the guys that works for
the show, he was driving, and we're just talking and he runs through
red lights and we get pulled over and like the guy like the comes up
behind it. I mean, we're I'm not even in this town for five
minutes, and he has these blue lights like I've never seen, like blue
lights, no no noise, it was just blue lights. And we were
like and I go, are we getting pulled over? And he goes,
I got nah, and then he goes, yeah, we were getting pulled
over. Okay, well a little bit right. And then right when he
said there'd be a siren, we hear the siren and I'm like, we're
getting pulled over. And we had the nicest cop ever, like he was
like, you guys ran a red light. We're like, oh my god,
we did. And we was like yeah, because are you from here?
We're like obviously we're not. He was like so nice. He was
like, you guys just do better. We were like, but the way
that I've been telling the story that I have no idea where that cap came
from. It was like, do better have a great day. And I
was like, who are you? Like where are you or anything like that.
But like I've been telling everybody that we had a high speed chase and
are hanging on the comic con wall. Yeah, but no, Rager,
there's a no, there's a power rager. Rest easy. The person of
the state, he said, do better better. It's almost like a parent
when you're young, and they're like, I'm not mad. Just disappeared.
Was his name, mister Rogers obviously because do better? Do better? And
he was literally like just laughing, and I was like, I guess we
just seem really nice. Who knows. Yeah, we're just like we're sorry.
The worst criminals were apologizing. Oh that's cool. I was never pulled
over by that car. Yeah, never do better? Do you remember the
first time you were pulled over? Jim a little bit? Yeah? Can
you tell us the story? No, it's one of those. It was,
Well, the problem was I was eighteen for about four days. Oh
you got to be where were you last week? You know? You know?
Yeah, yeah, and I said you should have done better, not
me himim. Yeah. Here at the four Finger Discount Network, we produce
over twenty hours of podcasts each month covering the greatest shows of the nineties,
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the shows available right now on the four Finger Discount Network links. Earn a
description of this podcast of that topic. Can you tell us the story about
your your fake ID when you were trying to get in with your Well,
yeah, that's true. Yeah. I had my cousin Gary. Gary said,
hey Gary, Gary. He was three years older than me and I
was three years younger than him coincidentally, and so I was sixteen, he
was nineteen. And you can get into a bar and drake three two beer
in Youngstown, Ohio, which is like not full full blown beer whatever.
I think it's seven or like water down or yeah, something like that.
So I was getting through I was going through this place. I can't think
of the name of it. I don't know Casey's or something on the south
side of Youngstown. And so I'm walking through the door and I show my
I d and and didn't have a picture, so it was cool from you
from Ohio. And here you going, Gary sake and and and and the
policeman looks at me and goes, hey, how you doing. Gary?
Pretty good? In my mind's going peep peep, peep peep. Used to
date my cousin, Shirley. Okay, Gary's Gary's was her younger brother.
And uh and so, uh, Gary, how are things over on Bryson
Street? Because you live on Bryson Street, right, I go, oh,
yeah, yeah, seven eighty five. Ye, that's true, Okay,
good. How's your mother Loretta? I go, oh yeah, And
I almost stupidly said, oh, aunt, Loretta's fine, but I said
but yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah, no, she's good, and
she goes yeah, and okay, well how Shirley and Judy? Oh,
you know, it's so funny you asked, thanks for asking, because you
know she was dating James, you know, that guy from Cleveland. Anyway,
they're getting married next week. And he goes on like this for about
three or four minutes, and I'm answering every question because it's my cousin.
I was literally twenty yards away from the guy and he ran into my aunt
god rest in the in the grocery store like a month and a half later,
and he goes, can I ask you something? Do you have?
Who? Do you know? That is? Uh? He's about like this
talk and he's got to be maybe sixteen or something. He's got the blue
eyes, he got the dark and you know, and he knows every single
thing about your family. And I was trying to catch him and trip him
up because he's using Gary's ID to get into the bar, and I just
let him in because he had all the right He did everything right. She
goes, oh, that would be Jimmy. She knew, Oh, no
problem, So I was guilty. It was great, yeah, oh yeah,
yeah, oh my goodness. Well, you know, we're very by
the book there obviously, except except not yeah me and get there at what
you said? Nineteen that's I mean, well eighteen eighteen okay, war in
my case, sixteen right for Garrett. He's a sixteen year old in here,
you know. So yeah, I love it. Where are you originally
from? Karen originally from Odessa, Texas, Okay. And I grew up
in Dallas. Yeah, Odessa. I always thought that was what a cool
name that was. I think it was yeah, yeah, yeah yeah.
My uh my friend Pammy Siegel, she has a daughter named Odessa. Really
it's very southern, very southern name. Yeah, very sweet, very genteel.
Okay, all that stuff. Yes, yeah, oh, West Texas.
I'm West Texas girl in Texas. No, No, I live in
LA. But but yeah, my family's still there. I mean everyone's there
except for one nephew. He came, he came to La. Yeah,
and he just got here only two years ago. So I've always LA has
always been my city, like I had it to myself. But now he's
there with us. So how old were you when you moved to LA?
Eighteen years old? Oh wow, yeah, only I graduated high school.
Is only out of high school maybe two months? Yeah, And I booked
a part on Power Rangers as a teenager. Yeah, and then the rest
was history because I that was the plan. I was like, I'll just
go to you know, I'm going to go to college, and but I'm
moving to lay in LA. I'm gonna sleep on somebody's couch. I'm going
to do it. And then I graduated high school and I didn't go to
college and I came to LA. You know, you were smart. Yeah,
it took me years to figure out go to l a idiot. But
I had to get New Orleans out of my system. Yeah, well New
Orleans is great New York musicians, so that made sense. Yeah. Yeah.
Do you remember McDonald's used to give out the Power Rangers toys and the
Happy Meals? Yes, everybody did. Yeah. I signed a lot of
those. Yeah yeah, yeah there, and they have them in like midt
condition, and I'm like, we're wild, like great parents, Suspenser's too,
Who's I don't. I never My mom didn't say anything for me,
like she was like me either, we're getting rid of it, you know.
But yeah, everybody comes with these original toys and they're not like they're
in the package and nobody ever opened them. It's crazy. Yeah, and
mom, no, it's not trash. I know it's twenty years old.
That makes it better. Yes, And I remember back then too, you
know, there was no Amazon, there was no eBay, you know,
there was none of that. And we were doing a family trip. There
was a family reunion in like Florida or Alabama, something like that, and
we had drove all the way across the country to go there. Yeah.
And back then, you know, they used to mix it up so it
would be like they only cert they only sold certain colored Rangers in certain states.
Yes. And I remember, like we were on the search. The
black and the white Ranger were like the rarest. Yeah, and it was
like hunt it down. Yeah, and I think I had all of them,
Like eventually I collected all of them. Like we'd stop at every McDonald's
in every state and wow, oh man, no idea. Yeah. Yeah.
And you couldn't pick no, no, that's the rob You could not
pick luck at the draw. Yeah. And you know what's funny is a
guy, I guess his big brother used to work at McDonald's and you know
how they used to put those like like it's almost like a plastic, but
it's like the power Ranger in the window and they're huge. This guy brought
me one and it's like the yell. I was like, oh my god,
yeah, and he was like, my brother used to work and I
want you to have it. And I was like what yeah, And so
I have this huge thing that's great. Yeah. Yeah. I was like,
oh my god, that's something you keep. Yeah. Yeah, that
one's in the collection. I remember they had like the plates and the little
plastic cups with all the characters on there. I had like a little handheld
video game and it was like just the one game, you know. Yeah,
yeah, there's so much merch, like there's there was, there's been
everything. I thought I was a power ranger growing up, Like my mom
had me pretty young. She was like nineteen or twenty when she and she
would take me to the tanning salon and I was in karate actually with my
instructor was actually the guy who played Shang Sung in Mortal Komba. I don't
forget his name. His name's evading me right now. And she would go
in the tanning bed and I would start punching and hitting people in the lobby.
He was that kid, You're the one we got letters about. We
got letters about you. Man. So they'd have to go in there,
held up the buckle. Oh yeah, oh yeah. They'd be like,
who is this little five year old like kicking me in the shins, Like,
yeah, where's your mom? Hilarious? Sorry, sorry. We had
to tell a lot of parents like we were like little little Bobby was going
to kick his sister in the head anyway. It wasn't our fault that was
going to happen. It wasn't brother. Yeah, I might have done that
to my sister times. She is who she needed to be because of the
truth. What was one of your favorite memories of working on that set?
You know what we always I mean it was we got to go to some
really cool places just promoting We did a movie and so we traveled all over
around the world promoting this movie and we got to shoot it in Sydney,
Australia, And for me, it was like my one of my big dreams
was to live abroad, you know, so I got to do that.
I was there for six months, and I don't know that I would ever
do that again. But it's like, you know, you always wanted to
say I didn't once you did it, you know, and so it was
very cool to to be able to do a movie and then but to do
it there, you know, an adventure within an adventure, you know,
living in beautif for Sydney. Yeah, yeah, that's really accept it.
The only thing bad about that is then you're outside of sag jurisdiction and they
steal your residual. Yeah, that's true. That's why, well, that's
why we shot it there. Yeah, they were they were what they were
doing. Yeah yeah, yeah, I did this crazy movie Balto one hundred
years ago, and they wanted you to fly over to London for the same
reason. And this is SIB and I'm yeah, well no I am flying.
You know, I want my residents because you better get I mean,
you better like get ten times more than you were done again without them,
Yeah, sorry, this is inside. Well that's where everybody's on strike because
they're they kind of changed the game with and that's why everybody's like, you
know, we got to fight for it. You didn't, I mean because
honestly, you remember back in the book, a commercial or a couple of
commercials, and you would you'd be good, you could live, have an
apartment and you could just and it gave you the room. And but now
it's like, I mean, they started streaming and they're like, oh,
we don't know how to count that, or like how did you not know
how to do so it's like all of that, but they know how to
make the money off exactly exactly. Apparently they do know how to count,
right. Yeah, So that's why we were just talking about that earlier the
day. You know, I feel like in the in the media and everything,
everybody says it's like, oh, all about AI and this and that,
and I feel like that's that's a part of it. Yeah, But
like you're saying, I think the biggest thing is transparency exactly, you know,
because nobody knows there's no Nielsen boxes for Netflix, you know's, and
you hear these stories like these shows that are like huge, Like they were
saying, like the Oranges, New Black people casts were saying that. They
kept going, oh, we don't know how to count this. We don't
know, because that's when Netflix first got its big hit, you know,
Oranges and New Black it was huge, and they were like they they were
like, you know, we were sharing in a part with two other people,
Like you couldn't even live on our own in New York, but we
couldn't go get another job because we were on this show and we had to
be available. And they were like and then one day the I guess one
of the big exacts from Netflix came on set. They're like, we're bigger
than Game of Thrones and they were like, hold on, hold on what
And so that's when they started realizing like this is bad, but it's yeah,
it's crazy, But I think it's wonderful that a lot of the stars
that are on shows, like recent shows have been very transparent with like their
residuals and how like like how they are getting nothing, and it's made people
go, Okay, wait, we gotta gotta fight. You know. If
you know the cast of This is Us, they're not getting any residuals.
And that show was just out. It was the biggest show on ABC.
How is that possible? Literally, how is it? Well, because they're
like they're I know, well they well they put the they don't rerun it
on ABC. They put it on Hulu. You stream it. So there's
no resist, there's the resist. And speaking of speaking of Orange is the
New Black, have you heard this story? It just made me think about
it because Laura Preppin was on Yes you know or Just New Black in this
story that just came out yesterday about Danny Masterson getting sentenced to thirty years.
Yeah, thirty years for sexual assault. I mean, holy cow, I
know, holy cow. And you know it's bad if you're getting thirty years,
I mean people are getting twenty five years for murder. Yeah, know,
yeah, well, and you know, thankfully those women got their day
in court, absolutely, because it's like those kind of stories. You hear
that kind of stuff all the time, and it's I mean, I'm just
glad that the victims got seriously, you know, like gosh oh yeah,
yeah, yeah, because it's hard because I guess like for the longest,
you know, he's a rich man, so it's like he's been able to
evade it. So yeah, and he was doing some crazy stuff too.
I was reading this article today and it's like awful, like he was told
them these women at gunpoint, drugging them like super violent. Yeah, r
Kelly Batman. Yeah. And who else was? Yeah? The Astley Judge.
I never studio had the movement, the whole reason it started. Yeah,
what is his name? I can't good good thing we can't remember.
Thing we can't remember to go nasty ugly fart that that I think that was
his given name, Harvey. Yeah, well yeah, you've mis it for
big old, nasty ugly fart exactly. Yeah. Yeah, No, it's
good, Like it's good to see these people like actually paying the price,
you know, and we're talking decades and decades ago. It had to be
a movement like it's all the women to come out and just go and go.
And they pressured you know, law enforcement to finally pressed charges on a
guy like Harvey Wants you know, who was evading it forever because he had
so much money pay him off and you know, nda them, and there
was all these crazy things that were happening. Oh crazy, But what was
even worse? Like I felt like, okay, yeah, he's terrible,
but think of like all the agents that were sending this they knew what they
were sending these girls to these meetings and they were like, go have a
meeting in your career, be made. Don't say nothing. And it's like
we need those people to get charged too, yeah cause you know, yeah,
yeah, well that's been going around for a long time. I remember
reading The Godfather, Yeah, and they touched on it in the movie.
But in the in the in the book, it was like this mother took
in this kid to the studio head and it was like, oh my god,
lamb the slaughter. Yeah yeah, well you heard all those stories with
like Judy Garland and they kept her you know, drugged and she was a
teenager child. Yeah yeah, so but yeah, I mean, what's crazy
is that was what almost one hundred years ago? Now it's so crazy,
how you know, we're getting into the twenties and thirties and now we're seeing
like a hundred years of cinema and it's like, it's amazing. It's fascinating.
That's very fascinating because it feels like such a new medium still, you
know, yeah it does. Yeah, I'm a I love old movies and
I love that kind of too. Yeah. Yeah, what was that,
Emmy that there's a channel that has all the old cowboy westerns and black Yes,
I'm in heaven. I know my mom loves watching that. She loves
it. We'll sit there and when we're with her, we watch what she
wants to smoke and on a Yuma and raw high bat Masters and all these
like oh hell, yes, you know, give me some popcorn. Yeah.
Yeah, We'll be on the plane and I'll look over, I'll peak
out what Jim's watching, watching like an old Elvis movie. Yeah. I
loved all the musicals and all the dance, like the cinematography and some bad
stuff was amazing. They don't make movies like that anymore. They really don't.
They really don't. But there is some very artistic movies. We were
just talking like Across the Spider Verse, and man, what a beautiful movie.
Yeah yeah, yeah, very cool. Yeah, very artistic. And
to me, it's just like the soul of you know, what filmmaking should
be, you know, water colors, all different animation, all brought together,
compelling characters like I love that. I could. I could talk movies
all day. I think we should do one. Yeah, Disney, Marvel,
anybody out there, you're ready, what do you think? Yeah?
And by the way, you're welcome me. Don't call you, yeah,
you'll call me. I mean, I'll call you anyway. The answer right
YouTube. Absolutely, it's a deal. It's a deal. What is your
favorite movie of all time? Jim Boy? Of them? Well, the
Godfather? Yeah, way of favorite. Yeah that's why. Yeah, yeah,
part one and two and then yeah were the best. And uh actually
Rocky is way up there. Oh yeah, Taxi Driver? Yeah, oh,
Taxi Driver. And let's see Raiders of the Lost Dark. Yeah yeah,
I mean that's yeah. Speaking of Taxi Driver, did you ever see
The New Joker? The New Joker movie Walking Phoenix. Yes, I swear
that movie was Taxi Driver with Joker maybe inserted in like, yeah, yeah,
and I loved it because of that. Yeah, I like that it
was dark and like you know there and he's so good. Well you know
what they're doing it. They did a part two. They've already shot it
and it's a musical, so I don't know lad and and he's the joker.
But I was like, how are they going to do this? Like
have a serious isn't Lady Gaga? Harley Quinn? Yes, Harley Quinn.
And we'll see. I'm like, either it's going to be the most amazing
thing we've ever seen. We're going to be like, how could you ruin
it off? I mean, she's such a great talent and such a great
actress. Yeah, they're both amazing. So I'm like, knows, yeah
is a music. Yeah, and it's already shot and we'll see, Yeah,
we will what happens. I'm anxious just to see it. I'm gonna
watch it just because I'm like, how do you go from this? Like,
Oh, it was so dark and sad and torture movie and now it's
a musical. We're going to do it? Call us The one was kind
of a musical. He did a dance when spoiler alert, he shot DeNiro
at the end there you know, little jell and I think, I guess
you know that inspired it, but we'll see, we'll see. Yeah that's
true. Huh yeah, take that well has been shot before. Yeah,
we're not worried about him. Yeah, he's one of the best. He's
gonna be technically is shot in every movie, if you know what I mean.
I would think a lot of good death scenes. What about you,
Karen, was your favorite movie? I don't know it, So he named
my favorite favorites, which is Godfather. Like that was the first time I
saw a movie where it was just rivetine, Like it was the acting and
the story and the family and the complication and just the tragedy of it all,
Like you knew it was gonna just in battle. Oh yeah, it
couldn't. It couldn't be like We're gonna, you know, retire in the
Hamptons. It's never you know, it's not gonna be that. It's gonna
it's all gonna end badly. But I've always been really like I was when
I was a kid. I love like the goonies, I love e t
I loved the adventure movies, and I literally would want I was a kid
going, I want to be in a movie where it's an adventure, I
get to like you know, And so it was. That was always the
dream of mine to be in a movie like that. Yeah, yeah,
so yeah, and I ended up being. Yeah, I was. And
that was another thing. I always dreamt to be in a superhero like.
I literally was that kid that would put my little underoos on and I tie
a towel around my nack, drive down the road and my mom would be
like here, like living in a little what was that the big wheel?
Yeah? I remember. I was that kid who like escape the house and
just ride up and down and have the towel like it was my cake.
Did you live next door to me? Maybe? Remember attack with her hair?
My hair was like this, I looked like a thundercat. But no,
but that was I always dreampt to be in a superhero. It was
really crazy to one day get the chance to do that. The power of
my is no joke. I mean, Jim talks about it all the time.
He knew what he wanted to do. What since how old Jim?
Yeah it was five? Yeah, five years old? Yeah, me too.
I've picked absolutely no. Yeah, and my parents couldn't believe that I
said that stuff. But I bought him a house and it was okay,
but it was just fine. But no, I did. I remember seeing
on Jack Penny program when mel Blank was on there, and my dad,
you see this pastard. He's a guy that does all those voices and everything.
Okay, I'm him, yeah, him, yeah, thanks. That's
what I want and that's you know, and I aimed for it, and
it took me, you know, years and years. I had to get
all that other junk out of my yea, all that rock and roll and
everything, but it all went towards it. Yeah, all yeah. For
I started out in the music industry and it was like it was like to
me, that was my my. I don't know if you have like college,
like you have to learn how to get there. It was like my
my, my schooling to what I ended up doing, you know, just
all led to that. I knew that I that's why I didn't go to
college because I actually had a I feel like I'm repeating myself, but I
had an offer from Autubine College because I was in speech and I was really
good. I was like the second or the first in the state or blahlah
blah. But it didn't work out because I didn't want to go to college
and I threw out the thing from the thing with the scholarship offer so that
my parents wouldn't see it. Yeah, oh wow, I'm a genius.
But I didn't know I know anybody else, you know, but I but
it worked out. Yeah, I know the same thing. Well. My
mom was actually the opposite. She was all about it. Like when she
knew I wanted to be an actress, singer, whatever, she was like,
do it, do it? Like she was like go And like I
remember once I went back home for just like a year, just because I
just needed a break from La, Like, you know, La, is
you gotta take a break? I needed a break. And she literally after
a year she was like what are you doing here? And I was like
what don't you love it having me? Like I lived right by her?
And she was like yeah, but no, but you go like what are
you doing here? You're this is not your home anymore? Your home is
there? Go And I was like, oh, I was like, wow,
okay, go ahead. Yeah. Yeah. I always said my mom
she believed in me, Like whether I believed in me, she believed Yeah.
She was great Yeah, that's a beautiful thing. Yeah. Yeah,
Well just the points of what both of you guys are saying and previous guests
have said as well. It's like, you know, not I went to
college, you know, and I'm not advocating to not go to college,
right, No, that I mean, like you know, Tarantino says it.
You guys have said it, like tons of people have said it,
and like the best way to learn is doing, you know, go out
there and do what you want to do. If you want to be a
producer, you want to be a director, then go produce, Go direct,
you know, go go act. You know, like do what you're
passionate about, and the rest will follow, you know, because like there's
no substitute for doing things that you love for sure, you know, and
that that energy is going to come through. It's going to create a good
like we talked about at the top of the podcast, you know, repetition
and honing your craft, like that's going to come with that passion. You
know, you're gonna get it. You're gonna get it, you know,
go after it and don't be oblivious, you know, like don't be oblivious.
But I mean, like you know, know your talents and just really
go after that. I'm a firm believer in that. My mom was always
the type. She was like, if you book the gig, then work,
and then you can always go back to college. You can always go
back. Like it's not going that's not going anywhere, but that gig is
not coming back, especially in that business. Yeah, and that was unheard
of. Like all of my other friends where they didn't have that. They
were like, we can't believe your mother is in such full support. And
I mean literally when it was like tough times, I'd be like, well,
I have no money, she was like, give me a few hours
and she'd go have a garage sale and then there's like the money's in your
account. Like she was determined to keep me there. She's like this is
so cool. Yeah, yeah, she's amazing. That worked out, it
did. She was betting on you. She was on the college. Yeah,
she was just because she knew, like she wished her parents had been
that, because she would have done the same thing. She would have been
an actress, she'd have done something, and she wished that she had that
kind of support back in the back in the day, they were like,
no, you need to learn how to do something. Yeah. Yeah,
Well my dad was the oldest boy in the family, Irish Catholic, a
lot of a lot of kids, and in the depression hit and he had
to quit school and go to work to support the rest of you know,
help support the family, the family. So yeah, you know, and
he was all about, oh, you better get your ass to college and
this and that and okay, but no, you know, and I'm busy.
What do you mean you're busy. I'll be right back. I'm gonna
go to New Orleans for ten years and but I'll visit. Yeah, you
know, so I did. Yeah, So how was it when you when
you made it? And your parents are like, oh, wow, he
really don't know. Well, uh gosh, it was really cool. I
you know, I would send them airplane tickets, you know, to come
visit and uh and that they were like, oh what do you mean you're
sending I mean had ticket. I go, it's just come on out and
spend a week and will lullygag and you know, and I was in this
fairly nice house and everything and they they and I actually I got I hadn't
thought of this in one hundred years. Remember, Chuck mccannon. He was
a great, great character actor. He was on Carol Uh, Carol Burnett
Show, and he was tons of I ended up working with him, but
he was very well known. He was like, oh gosh, Charlie,
Oh God, I'm gonna forget all their names. Now, this is terrible.
I can't start the story anyway. It was all over the Carrol Burnett
Show and then that Tim Conway and Harvey Korman, those guys. And my
dad recognized him because he was from his generation and and and he was walking
and we were walking out to the parking lot after the show. He watched
Tailspin I think it was a Disney show and uh. And we're walking out
there and he goes and Chuck says to my dad, who he couldn't believe
that Chuck McCann was there. He goes, you know, Chuck McCann,
christ he's really funny, he's really good. I'm not chiittingy, you know.
That was that was? I said, yeah, Dad, I worked
with him like a lot all the time. And he and he's and God
rest his soul. I could kiss him. He says, hey, how
about that kid of yours? Huh? And I go he goes I don't
know, what do you mean. He goes, no, he's really good.
I mean he's like the best I've worked with. And he goes,
you're shipping me. That was no, no, no, he's so it's
like Chuck mcinnon, you were certified. Chuck McGann said, I've got it,
blah blah blah, and I went, Okay, I made it.
I'm home. Okay, you can still do this? Y Yeah, thanks,
like your house, no kid, and I could still do it because
it was a house in Youngstown. It wasn't like you. It was a
house when I was But yeah, yeah, how about that. Huh yeah.
Anyway, those little sweet moments that will carry with us, right,
Yeah, for sure. The folks are proud of you. Oh yeah,
yeah they yeah. They. My mom has a whole shrine. Luckily,
my sisters loved me so much, like I was the baby of the family,
so I was their baby, So I was like any other sisters.
They would probably murder me because I'm like, she has a shrine of me
in the house and everything has ever done, she's added up on the wall.
And my dad is the same way. I go to bingo with my
dad and he wants to announce me on the and I'm like, stop it.
He wants to announce me at being Yeah, and he's like, come
on over, she'll take a picture with you. And I'm like, dad,
people pay for that. I can never go. Yeah. Yeah,
he's ruining my business there giving away all the free pictures. Well you know
what, Literally I signed one picture and he goes and makes copies of him
and gives them out Binga. So just to go to the Bengo Hall,
I'll be there. Well, you know what, Jesus had to leave town
to make it. So you're in good company, good enough for Jesus.
Yes, time I see He's like, I need like twenty more autographs.
I'm like what, like literally to this day I go to his house right
now, he's gonna want me to had better bring twenty out of guys.
Yeah that's funny. Yeah, okay, but you're my dad. I'm gonna
give you a good discount. You know. He won't. He won't stand.
He's like, no, we're giving him away. I'm like, what
is happening. No, we're not, we're not funny thing. No,
yeah, no, does not listen to me. I've said no a thousand
times, even My sisters are like, stop embarrassing her at the bingo,
like what are we? What's happening here? But he doesn't. Well that's
him getting back for you not listening to him all those Yes, I'm a
local celebrity. I get free, I get free bingo games as much as
I want. You're more than a local. Well I feel like extra free
bingo games and said something, Okay, that's cool, Wow, good stuff,
good stuff I need to bring. They need to come to Conz though
and see it, and then I think they'll I don't know what my dad
will do. He might have they ever been to a corn my mom has?
My mom has, but my dad he's like the way. Actually,
he came to one and Michelle Nichols was there and I got a picture.
I got to I got him to do a picture with her, and he
was, well, you know he used to have a crush on her,
right, He was so excited. It was yeah, yeah, yeah,
yeah, I was a good girl that day. That was cool. Yeah,
well God rest her soul. Yes, she was a sweet lady she
was. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that was so cool. I remember
the first time I met here, I was like, right, you make
that stupid face, your famous. You're really cool, you know, and
people would just in seventh grade again, you know, yeah, yeah that's
cool. And now we're doing that too, these poor innocent bystanders, you
know, they love it. I love it too, and I love that
you are doing this with us. Thank you, of course. It's just
so nice. Thank you, yeah, so nice. Yeah. So before
we wrap it up, is there anything you want to plug plug your podcast?
What? Yeah, you can watch the Bop the Blurred official podcast.
It's on YouTube or you can find it on my all my instagrams and social
media pages. But no, yeah, just I was happy to talk to
you, oh good and do this and have fun with you guys. And
I would never have up the chance to hear some some gym coming stories.
And some of them are true, I know, I know some of them.
Some of them are naughty. I've heard the whole spectrum. Okay,
good, I know. We'll look at that time, you know. Thank
you, Darnald, thank you, yeah, thank you so much for joining
us. That was a lot of fun. That was a lot of fun.