Adam Ferrara (comedian, actor, host of Top Gear)

Adam Ferrara is a comedian, actor and podcaster. He had recurring roles on Rescue Me & Nurse Jackie and was also the co-host of the American version of Top Gear for seven seasons.  His latest comedy special “It’s Scary in Here” is available now for free on YouTube. We discuss all this in the interview plus where he got his work ethic, living with Kevin James, why performing at the roasts is difficult and more!

00:00 - Intro
00:42 - Adam's Studio
01:47 - Beatles & Music Fan
02:50 - Pete Townshend & Writing Bits
06:10 - Work Ethic, Job Experiences & Learning
10:03 - Playing in a Band & Early Stand Up
12:45 - Colin Quinn & Writing to Understand
13:22 - Riffing and in the Zone
15:26 - George Carlin & Chris Rush
16:40 - Picking Up Headliners & Grinding
19:30 - Last Day Job
23:10 - Working with Kevin James
24:20 - Joe Namath
25:28 - Tea Leoni, Michael Tucci & Acting
29:43 - Criminal Minds & Crying
30:30 - Dennis Leary & Rescue Me
32:10 - Rescue Me & PC Culture
33:25 - Nurse Jackie
34:53 - Italian Family, Sopranos & Edie Falco
36:15 - East Coast, West Coast & Woke Culture
40:20 - Adjusting Sets For Different Cities
41:28 - The Roasts
42:58 - Pushing Past Fear & Channeling Energy
44:15 - Top Gear & Driving Cars
50:30 - Adam's Dad, Derek Luke & Humanity
54:01 - When The Work Takes on a Bigger Life
56:38 - Leary Firefighter Fund
57:18 - Outro

Adam Ferrara website:
https://www.adamferrara.com/

Leary Firefighter Fund website:
https://learyfirefighters.org/grant/

Chuck Shute website:
https://chuckshute.com/

Transcript

Chuck Shute: 0:00

Adam Ferrara is my guest today he is a comedian and actor a podcaster. And he was the host of Top Gear for six or seven seasons. Plus he's had some other interesting jobs he's going to tell us all about. And this is one of those easy episodes for me where I just get to sit back and let the guests go. And my goal of course of these podcasts is to entertain educate and inspire people and I think we accomplished a lot of that on this episode. So a lot of great stories and wisdom from Adam Ferrara coming right up ready, my friend All right, it looks like you got a professional setup because you have your own podcast.

Adam Ferrera: 0:47

I do. Yeah, I do. And I like you. I like your backdrop. This is actually the exterior of Abbey Road. Wow. You can't see it says Abbey Road on the net light but this is the exterior of Abbey Road.

Chuck Shute: 0:59

How did you get to setup over there?

Adam Ferrera: 1:02

That is Abbey Road desk, studio three. The tube desk I think it was I'll say 1969 before they went solid state. But that's the desk they had in studio three that they The Beatles did tomorrow never knows on. And Pink Floyd did a bunch of stuff on that as well. And that's it. And then that's just a bunch of TV shit I

Chuck Shute: 1:22

got. So it's like those are replicas.

Adam Ferrera: 1:25

I know that this is a they're both murals. This is a mural.

Chuck Shute: 1:29

Oh, okay. You fooled me. Okay. Wow, that's really cool.

Adam Ferrera: 1:33

So that's my, this is my little m&a. My studio is called abnormal recording studios.

Chuck Shute: 1:39

That's a reference to Frankenstein. Yeah, none. Frankenstein.

Adam Ferrera: 1:42

Frankenstein and Abbey Road. Interesting.

Chuck Shute: 1:46

Yeah. So tell me about that. Because you're a big Beatles fan, right?

Adam Ferrera: 1:50

Yeah, yeah, I was. I was I when I was a kid. I learned how to play. I took guitar lessons on my guitar teacher was a real Beatles fan. And he he's the one that like kind of opened up my mind a little bit because when I was in my formative years the edge was punk. So it was your choice. It was punk and disco neither one. I'm like, Wow. This girl that fall on the floor Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang drumbeat not really my thing funk. I like because funk is on the one bump. Bob So funk. They're like, and punk. I wasn't that angry. You know? I know three chords too, you know, but I'm not shoving up clothespins through my face. So. So I went backwards because my guitar teacher was teaching me the Beatles songs as we were playing and as as his love of the Beatles transferred onto me. And then as I just got always just started reading books and listen to the music and it's just what spoke to me. You know, everybody has their own Muse and that was one of mine.

Chuck Shute: 2:49

Was Do you think that how the Beatles made music? Is there some sort of crossover with how you make comedy like the creative process at all because I think like and I hear this with a lot of musicians as they say like, oh, the songs they just come to me.

Adam Ferrera: 3:01

Yeah, jokes come bits, some bits do some bits come fully formed. And I will take that I would aspire to have my my work be on level of The Beatles. I'll tell you who I like and my stuff to a lot is Pete Townsend of the hill, only because, and I had Glyn John's on my podcast who produced let it be and he produced who's next? He produced my generation he produced Zeplin one. He produced the Eagles. So I had him on the podcast and I was talking to him. But the reason I'm sorry, my ADD is raging today, Chuck.

Chuck Shute: 3:38

No, you're fine.

Adam Ferrera: 3:39

I the reason that I identify a lot with Pete towns is I have these grand ideas. And the jokes usually are connected to this grand idea that usually falls apart. Like one of my I think my third special was my third special is called funny as hell. And part of that stand up was supposed to be the narrative that weaved through a movie. So the standard was used as the narrative I never got the financing to do it it all fell apart so I got a call to do especially when I got these pieces up put this together.

Chuck Shute: 4:09

Did you do the part is that the one with the where you do the opera a bit? That was really like a well like I would assume that took a long time to practice that and like that's not something you just do on the spur of the moment.

Adam Ferrera: 4:20

No, no the opera bit I think was it was either on the album unconditional the special unconditional or the special. It's scary and you I think it's on it's scary in here. Yeah. Isn't that your latest? That's the latest want to call it scary in here. Now the opera bit was just you know, that's just a little song and and now see, but the thinking and the delivery system of comedy and just the way we get our information now is it moved from albums to singles. You know if you're looking at the way the music industry it went from the big thing in the album is just like well, we wrote some shit together. Yeah. Then in England, the Beatles were actually released singles and an album so you have two singles in an album have songs that weren't on the album, the United States, we didn't do that. So just the production of the music and the production of, of the output of the artists was was in great demand, which it is now. But now it's like singles because now when I write a bit, I don't need it to connect it to something bigger. You know, I can write a bit to be in that that 32nd minute bit, and make it a complete thought. And move on from them, which kind of lends itself to my stuff to most of the bits I really like. They're about 30 seconds to a minute. It's not just a joke. And the bigger ones I have, like I got a bit of an anxiety, a bit of a bit of the anxiety derby is the name of the bit. And it's about two and a half minutes. I did it on Wednesday. I do I did on James Corden show. And then when I was asked me to do the show, it's a great I like the show, but I want to do this bit. And so it's like two and a half minutes. So it's going to be half the set. And he said, Fine, show up Tuesday, you know, so it's so building around that to get to that bit. So in answer to your question. i Right now, I'm thinking more of how the bits connect, but also breaking them apart to use for social media.

Chuck Shute: 6:09

Yeah, so before you did the music, and before you did comedy, I mean, you had some other stuff that you did you have a degree in finance and you were like worked in a kindergarten school. And now it's

Adam Ferrera: 6:19

my checkbook. Chuck can checkbook so did

Chuck Shute: 6:23

did like doing the fences? You did all this other stuff. Did that stuff help you kind of find the path of comedy? Was it just like trial and error? Like I don't want to do this? I'll try something else. I don't want to do this or did you learn things from doing those jobs that have any any

Adam Ferrera: 6:36

kind of experience and the the one thing that I did realize it's funny, you brought this up, the one thing I didn't realize is every experience comes into use. You just don't know how or when or in what form. My work ethic came from my dad because my dad owned kitchens and bathrooms. He built kitchen, he'll come into the kitchen as a bed as a plumber. And my grandfather was a plumber. And he like, I can do better than more than this not better, but more. So he would do the plumbing and and design everything. And he started working with my mom and they built this business together and there's no paycheck unless you get up in the morning. So my father got up in a dark, he came home in the dark. So that's I got my work ethic from my dad. And then just being in an environment, we had to work with other people to find out how you fit in, you know, in the family and like the Fence Company. You know, I was doing everything. I was driving forklifts. I was driving trucks. I was and I wasn't good at any of it. I'm not good at any of this stuff. I love cars just I can't. I love dad loves them. And I was working on the car one day, and I was doing my best you know, but the oil spilling blood spurting wrenches are falling. My flat took a long drag off his lucky put his hand on my shoulder. You don't have to get a job and work at something the rest of your life. This ain't it.

Chuck Shute: 7:55

Your brothers were better at that. So they became chefs. Is that what happened?

Adam Ferrera: 8:00

That's my brothers. Yeah. But again, the mechanical gene. My brothers have maybe a little bit more than me. But, you know, I my father really had my father built our house. I came home one day on the school bus. We lived on a corner. And my fault. We heard my mom and dad fighting because my father was building the house and he wanted a circular driveway. So we've heard them fighting up in there. And why do you need a circular driveway? Joe because I don't want to back up. Okay. So I come home from school one day, get off the bus. My father rented a bulldozer and he's cutting the driveway into the front lawn. And I ran off the bus and jumped on the bulldozer. I go How you doing? Probably this how you doing? Can I go? What are we doing? He's like, we're making a driveway today. So he's like what learned? This is what we're doing today and he's on a bulldozer and he's grading the soil and cutting the driveway himself.

Chuck Shute: 8:49

This is before YouTube, you can't just look this because I know a lot of people do use YouTube. I feel like that's cheating. He just did a trial and error just

Adam Ferrera: 8:55

rented a bulldozer I don't know how to Hell, he did it. But he did it and a driveway looked great, you know? Okay, so I think I got my work ethic. I know I got my work ethic from that. I learned how to I learned I got them I read people's the words that are coming to me but as because every comic has a spidey sense. You know, every comic has, can feel a room. Most of us are wanting to relieve tension. You know, in the room in the family unit. That was most of the comics I've spoken to on my podcast and guys I know and just, you know, comics, I've known my whole life it just like you know, I would be the release valve, you know, in the family.

Chuck Shute: 9:35

And also Weren't you bullied too? Isn't that part of it? The humor is the defense.

Adam Ferrera: 9:40

Yeah, on the school bus. You know, if you're funny on the school bus, why don't they laugh and they can't hit you, you know, so and if they laugh and and people like you, you know, Carly Carlin had the line don't hit that it's bad luck to hit that guy. You know? Stuff kept you it gave you a form of identity of where and how you fit in. Um, And it very much protection on the school bus. Yeah,

Chuck Shute: 10:02

yeah. So then music though is really the first time you get up on stage and you know, that's when you're like, Okay, I feel like this is where I'm supposed to be. I'm supposed to be on stage. It just, it took awhile to figure out the comedy so with the music, you were in a band in college what kind of music was that? Band

Adam Ferrera: 10:17

and stuff we knew. We knew 11 songs and we played Born to be Wild twice we had no

Chuck Shute: 10:25

but you did you open for Lionel Richie is I'm gonna hurt I did stand up for an opening. Oh, okay. So not not with the band. So the band was not very successful.

Adam Ferrera: 10:33

Now it was a bar band was a college bar band. But but it again, well, this ain't it. But being on stage gave me that Oh, okay. I like this feeling. And then when I did stand up for the first time on an open mic on Long Island where I'm from, I got that ping. And I went I don't know where this is gonna end but I belong here for now. Is that the first time

Chuck Shute: 10:58

because I thought the first like, I've done standard before the first time usually for open mic or something. don't usually get your ass kicked, doesn't it? Usually people boo you.

Adam Ferrera: 11:05

Because what happened to me? July 13 1988, Wednesday night, Eastside Comedy Club, Long Island, New York. I sign up for the open mic. They tell me to be there. At eight o'clock, I make the mistake of telling my mother, my mother was the original Twitter. She's everybody. The whole neighborhood showed up. Right? So everyone has their places sold out and I'm on. And I wrote some stuff down. I was going to try. I'm nervous as hell. I go on stage. And somebody says something. One of my cousins said something and I just answered him back and started riffing. I didn't know what I was doing, Chuck.

Chuck Shute: 11:37

That's the that's the talent though. Because I can't do most people cannot riff?

Adam Ferrera: 11:42

No, well, I can't I didn't know I had the ability. And the conditions were set where I knew what my cousin was like, I would just shut up this people here for God's sake, look at Jerry came all the way out. She didn't leave the house, you know, whatever. I said, you know, and she didn't you know, she's not gonna stay to the end of that. He said, All right, we gotta go, you know, that's gonna happen. And they're all laughing. So it was like my house after Thanksgiving. And before I knew it, five minutes, were over, and I killed. And I got that high. I got, yes, I got the hit. And that's where I went, Okay, I've never felt this before. I think in further experience, it was the first time I experienced the integrity of being, you know, say, think, feel and do is all lined up at once. And you're just there, and you just open and it's coming through you. That's the first time I felt it. And I realized very early on that, okay. This is my state of grace. This is where I know, I'm not thinking. I know that. But and I know that that's how to make this work. And I could do it can't do it my life. But I can do it here. It's like I just I just spoke to Colin Quinn. I just had him on my show. And, and one of the things when he writes he's right, he writes to understand, you know, he writes to his one man shows to understand this, and that that's the impetus for him to attack a subject. I don't know, I'll take an idea on stage. And I don't know how I really feel about until I'm in front of an audience, you know. So that's, I don't know if I need the reflection. I don't know if I need to get out of my own way. I just know my state of grace is in front of an audience. Not doing material. I just know that that feeling. And then most comics when they riffin kind of tell you the same thing. I don't speak for everybody, but it's that feeling we're chasing.

Chuck Shute: 13:22

Yeah, cuz the riffing, though, just I mean, it's so amazing when you guys comedians can do that, like so quickly. Like, I think it's a camera with special it is it's one of the ones I watch. And somebody coughs and you just immediately like, did you I don't know if you guys have some kind of canned responses for things like that? Or did you just think of that immediate? Because that's in your special? You left that in? You didn't cut that part out?

Adam Ferrera: 13:41

Of which one? Oh, gosh,

Chuck Shute: 13:44

I think it was I feel like I thought it was scary. What is it? What is it?

Adam Ferrera: 13:48

You don't when you're not thinking you are the best. And you know that there's certain lines you can use after you know, you do have stuff that's in the library.

Chuck Shute: 13:56

But the belly of comebacks for hecklers, and things like that. Yeah,

Adam Ferrera: 13:59

you got you got a little bit you can draw from but for the most part, it's spur of the moment. Because if you're doing it correctly, you're in the moment, you know, you know if, if incorrectly is is a subjective term, but know this certain things, you can say what the stock lines are stuff that you've done before that works. You know, I know that one of the one of the writing devices I use on stage is, I'll take I'll mix my set up, I'll take two bits here. And I want to get from this bit to this bit. And I'll go into the audience. And I know I'm going to go out of the audience is something will happen. They'll draw me into the audience. Or I'll use the end of that bit to ask a question of somebody in the audience knowing I got to get from here to here. So whatever laughs I get along the way, wrap them up and make it that point, or use that point in your head to drag you there. And none of this stuff is conscious. I just know that that's where I want to go. You throw the intention out into the heads up display. And and all of a sudden, things gifts get bigger. That's cool. It's hard to explain. It's like Michael Jordan, explain when he's in the zone. The Room Yeah, big bucket. And this is like, I want to go here, I want to go there. And you just shut your mind up. That's the only time I can really trust anything. It's like you just trust the intention, it will happen. So that's really cool. I don't have it in my life. I don't trust any money. All right, Chuck. Yeah.

Chuck Shute: 15:20

But there are some comedians that that aren't good at riffing, right that have to be more structured like, I think you talked about Carl and you're a big fan of him obviously open for him but you really liked he had that structure. He he didn't riff as much, right?

Adam Ferrera: 15:32

Carlin Carlin didn't say to me, but said I don't improvise. I memorize, you know. And Colin Cohen does that to Comic Con like point can riff you know, but But he, he's got to write it down. Memorization is the hardest thing for him. And the only reason I keep bringing up cons. I just spoke to him. So he's present in my mind, but one of my heroes was Chris rush, which was a guy he's since passed away. And he was a comic. That was just brilliant. I mean, you just give him a subject and he was gone. And I was like, You jaws on the floor. Like where's this guy channeling this from? Because this isn't coming out of human beings on

Chuck Shute: 16:10

Chris rush. Why have I know a lot of comedians have never heard of that guy

Adam Ferrera: 16:14

is rush started with Carlin when Carlin was in the suit. Okay, so he's real old school. He's dead now. But I got to know him when I was when I was a kid starting out. I have in fact, I got this. I got this on my desk. Chris rush. Okay, CD, that many next is cassette tape, but that was at the bitter end in New York. And yeah, he was a genius. And when I was a kid, I started doing comedy. The reason I worked a lot, Chuck was I had a car. He lived on Long Island. I had a car and I had a work ethic. You know, I would, I would get one of almost honest booking agents I ever met in my life was a guy named John Shula. He used to book these bars, the shitty bars in Connecticut and he would call me up, Adam, look, I got a gig. It's far away. The crowd sucks. It's not a lot of money. You want it? Yeah, we'll take it. And I would have to pick up the headliners. At the improv when the improv was in the city was on the west side. So I was on time I was Uber for Uber, I was on time the car was clean, it was water. And for the headlines, they pick him up and he supposed to drop them off. That's the deal. And then they take a cab home. Well, I picked them up for work, I stuck them time I didn't wreck the room. I've worked a little cleaner than I usually work when I'm headlining because I know nobody really wants to follow a dirty comic and my job is to set it up. So I knew what my job was, and stick to your time. And then when we drop them off, I suppose drop them off at the Improv ago, you're gonna get out of my car to get into another car to go home, I'll take you home safe the cab fit where do you live? So they would call up and say I want to work with Adam. So that's why I got so much stage time because that was important to me. And just being just working for a living I knew what you know, I knew what the responsibility Oh, I knew how to identify what my job is and the bigger picture

Chuck Shute: 17:58

that's so smart. So how long what is the timeframe of you like grinding basically because at what point did you decide for the big break to happen? What are you talking about? You hosted Top Gear you got rescue me Nurse Jackie got all the specials? You do the rose? Yeah, I'm very

Adam Ferrera: 18:17

fortunate to be able to work but there is no one big break as far as grinding the nice thing about about when I started and when most guys guys man I mean guys and girls almost comic start. That's what you want. So it's not work you know, it's you want to be there you want I was at the high was haunting the clubs on nights I want to working just to be in that environment. That was the pole of it pulls you there. It's this job is it's not a job as much as it's a calling. You know. And when you're you're younger, and you have that desire and your life isn't complicated. That's where you want to be. So the grind is not really a grind because it's what you want

Chuck Shute: 19:03

it No, but I just mean like we're the point where you like you're making a living, you're not having to do side jobs and fence companies and all this other

Adam Ferrera: 19:10

fortune that happened very early. It happened very early. Because it was a time when it could happen

Chuck Shute: 19:16

that early. There wasn't that many comedians back then right that many comedians TV

Adam Ferrera: 19:20

just found out it was really cheap to produce. And so the bar owners, so I was making a living, but I always kept my day job. Because I didn't want to quit. I'll tell you wow, I quit.

Chuck Shute: 19:31

Right which which day job?

Adam Ferrera: 19:32

Last Straight Job was I was a dishwasher at a corporate office of a savings bank. The long

Chuck Shute: 19:38

even though it was this after you had the finance degree.

Adam Ferrera: 19:40

Yeah, I got out of college. I started selling binoculars at both shows. And I was doing stand ups I was I always worked for my dad. I always ran tools. I always will on the job site. I was always my dad when he needed me and when I needed him, but then I thought okay, I gotta make I got out with this degree. What am I gonna do? So I got a sales job. Selling binoculars at both shows for an optical company, and I went shit. If I'm going to be on the road, I'll be on the road doing stand up. But this is bullshit. I'm not doing this. So I did that I started doing stand up, I got a job at the Fence Company, which I've had all through high school, that was another place, I could always go and pick up work. Defense cup, I can always work on my hands, even though I wasn't good at it. So I could always do that. Then the last straight job I had was I needed something during the day. So I can go out at night and do stand up. And I didn't need anything. I needed a job. But once I left the job was done. So there was the Long Island Savings Bank had his corporate offices on route 110 in Huntington, where I'm from, they needed a dishwasher. Okay, I applied for the job and I got it and they look at me go You're a dishwasher. I go That's me. That's me. spiffy, Ferrara, they call me.

Chuck Shute: 20:50

So you don't think you don't think I'm above this? I've got a degree in finance. I'm a stand up comedian. I'm too good to be like, I'm just gonna do some of the peasant

Adam Ferrera: 20:57

bills. Nine o'clock in the morning to three o'clock in the afternoon. It's a bank job. So I got benefits. And I could do it hung over. I just gotta be there. Yeah, wash the dishes say goodbye. What do you don't want I quit that job. Kevin James wanted that job.

Chuck Shute: 21:18

We look at. Tell me about that. You guys shared an apartment together something? Was that like a sitcom in real or would people be disappointed if we saw what went on there?

Adam Ferrera: 21:27

Basically, I was I was washing dishes. And Kevin was working at Granger, a supply house and we were doing stand up at night. And that was a community that came out of and the reason I quit the job was I got my first weekend. I got my first weekend. So Thursday, Friday, Saturday, I was hosting in Syracuse, I had to drive all the way up to Syracuse. And I take off Thursday and Friday to do this gig. So I I knew three weeks. I said I need these days off. They said you Canvas days off. I need Thursday, Friday off in two weeks, whatever it was. I'm sorry. You can't have those days off. It's okay. I quit. Because you can't quit. I go look, I'm leaving. The only question is, am I coming back? I'm telling you, I'm leaving. Do you want me back at night? He's like, his head started spinning around because it's a dishwashing job. I

Chuck Shute: 22:14

don't write well, so was it you made enough on the weekend to not have to have the dishwashers making enough

Adam Ferrera: 22:19

I have I've always worked I have five providers anxiety so I'm always working, you know, so I'm always I always wanted to keep a job that money in my pocket. You know, I always was working. So I said look, I quit I'm not coming back. So the afternoon they came back goes alright, we'll give you those two days off. But I don't know what's so important. I said, Okay, so I gave it to me. They gave it back I got another week as I knew these days off I go I quit again.

Unknown: 22:46

I long can this go on for it was at the end.

Adam Ferrera: 22:50

What I was doing. I told them what I was doing. I say quit

Unknown: 22:55

people. No, this is not important to me. Right? Right. Wait, yeah. No, that's hilarious. Okay, so then

Adam Ferrera: 23:02

what? So then I quit the job. And I took the I forget why quit the job. I quit because I was getting I was getting work. I was like, Alright, I gotta you got enough at that point. And Kevin, I just started with Kevin. We were and I met him.

Chuck Shute: 23:16

He's a funny stand up. I don't think people know that. Like he had a special before it came Queens like

Adam Ferrera: 23:22

we didn't have enough money to do we didn't have enough money. We'd have to stand up time to do gigs on our own. So uh, Kevin and I would do is we would do these college gigs where he did whatever stand up. He had I did whatever I had, and we could do improv together. Because we both we knew the improv games. We will go to that. So that's how we did it. And this is important comedy was to us. The I think it was Super Bowl. 25 you gotta check it was the Giants playing. Giants playing the bills.

Chuck Shute: 23:50

Oh, that's a big one. Right wide. Right. Right. Norwood. Yeah,

Adam Ferrera: 23:53

Norwich wide right. We listen to that call on the side of the New York State Thruway in his old Hyundai in a snowstorm heading to some gig at Jefferson College. We pulled over to hit a call. Wow. So for comedy was more important a nooner comedy was more important to us and the Superbowl than the Superbowl and

Chuck Shute: 24:12

that's your team. That's New York.

Adam Ferrera: 24:14

Now I'm a Jets fan jets. weird hybrid guy because my father was a Giants fan. But Joe Namath in the second grade book report. I went this is the coolest guy I've ever met. Holy shit. So I'm more of a Jets fan.

Unknown: 24:27

You're a frickin fur coat on the sideline.

Adam Ferrera: 24:32

Yeah, and I met with Kevin on the on the sidelines of a jet game I get started I say story off the air but it was it was a good

Chuck Shute: 24:39

Oh shit. Yeah, definitely tell me I love the clip of him where he's like, I want to kiss you like I think that was one of the funniest things I've ever seen. I think he quit drinking.

Adam Ferrera: 24:48

He did that was that was I was playing the Ontario improv and it was a Sunday night and I did that was pom pom McGuire was calling the games and I was shaving the I was in the bathroom shaving and the game was on and the for was bit break. I'm like, that sounds like I remember thinking that sounds like Nemeth but sounds like Nemeth who was hitting ahead Jaden wash my face, Kim, I'm getting dressed. I really want to kiss you.

Unknown: 25:13

I went he was, he wasn't happy drunk. That'd be drunk.

Chuck Shute: 25:22

A little creepy drunk. But yeah, not so funny to the female reporter but yeah, so but then that's you're doing the comedy for a few years. So it was 91 or 93. You had to like TV film? Jobs. Like the first one. I think you were kind of maybe like an extra. And then you had that one. The sitcom with the tail Leone, which was one of those where you walked in, and you're like, oh, yeah,

Adam Ferrera: 25:43

that was the one I had come out to LA to do. I think it's not tonight shows come out and do stand up live on Fox was one of those shows, right? So I was coming out to do and while I was here. I auditioned for that sitcom, and I got it. And I'm like, Oh, check it out. No, I'm doing I made it up. I don't know what I'm doing. So I get to the set. And Michael Tucci from Greece was on that show. Tailee only, by the way, tailing stunning, nice, stunning and nice as the days long, beautiful woman, Corey Parker was on the show. Just it was amazing to me. I was like, and I got that feeling like, oh, I want to be here. But I knew I knew I didn't know. I knew enough to know. I didn't know. And Tucci was a sweetheart. He pulled me in because I you know, he saw me looking at him like you in Greece. And we started talking he goes come in he goes, he goes Are you an actor? I go listen, I'm a stand up. I bullshitted my way into this and he started laughing and he was taking me through he goes well you know what you're doing when he said camera right? And I just nodded I got no fucking

Chuck Shute: 26:52

it's that you're that far off. You don't know what camera. These terms mean? Adam downstage and

Adam Ferrera: 26:58

of course I'm not used to being on the stage with other people. I'm a stand up I'm working a stage was a luxury. Are you kidding me? As far as in Connecticut, New York. I would go up to the owner goes What time does this show start? He would spit on his own floor and go as soon as you turn around and start talking, okay. Formal thing like a light or a microphone. Yeah, that's the kind of shit so took me under his wing a little bit just for that week. And I realized I liked this. And this is something you can study and that's what I'm going to do. So that's what I did.

Chuck Shute: 27:35

Is that where you learn from the guy what's his name? Steven Booker's.

Adam Ferrera: 27:38

Steven but great book book on acting, I highly recommend his book The actor takes a meeting is another great book. Yeah, and I met him and I enrolled in that class. And that's been invaluable to me. And as a stand up to because I was afraid. And a lot of the guys I started with kind of had this fear, too, because we really didn't know what made us funny yet that if you study acting, you're not going to be funny anymore. Because it's going to take away whatever that magic is. It's an unfounded fear, but still want I had and afford it for a long time to apply what I took to the stage, but now I think it's in the machine. So when I'm on stage and idea comes out, other ways to go come out as well, if that makes any sense. Like when I'm writing, I don't have to write just from my point of view every every kind of wants to develop their point of view. But now I can hear the other voices. So they're more like scenes when I'm writing because I'm conditioned to look at a script like what's my part of the whole not just what do I want to say on this topic? You know, you can you can put put things in a context for stand up for me,

Chuck Shute: 28:45

did the directors have a lot of flexibility when you're I guess what TV? Probably not right? Like he probably just do a read through. And that's and then you It's go time right then you don't have a lot of time to try different takes and try different ways.

Adam Ferrera: 28:58

On television schedule, not really and then depends like because that tail that was three camera that was multi camera. So I was in front of a live audience. You got to do marks, you know, you got to you can try different alternative lines, if they don't get the laugh, you know, the jokes change in when you do run throughs and stuff. So things do change. And you get to improvise once in a while. But you're you stay in that structure, single camera, which is stuff without the audience, depending again, on your shooting schedule. You got time to play you play. You don't move on, you know. And movies, you get a little bit more time independent movies, not so much studio time, as depends who you are. Like I just did a bunch of guest stars. And you know what a guest star what was the one I just did where I had a cry. I did Criminal Minds. So I played the father of a kid that was abducted. So there's a scene where I break down in the FBI office because my kid was abducted I gotta cry. Eight o'clock in the morning. I gotta cry. And I'm the first setup because the old the regular cast is like shoot the guests. But as far as I'm only going to get two takes I know that because they don't you know, I'm just there to move the story along. So you got to be up and running and ready to go.

Chuck Shute: 30:08

How do you can you cry on cue?

Adam Ferrera: 30:10

But that day I could you can use breath patterns to get the body to think said there's certain things that go with that would say, yeah, you can. It's part of my job. You know, this is what I got to do. When do I got to do it? You know, but they don't go alright, cry. Now you got a script, you know what you're responsible for, and working. Denis Leary as much as I had conditioned me as well, because he's got that blue collar work ethic to.

Chuck Shute: 30:37

That's what Michael Lombardi told me, I had him on, he said, Yeah, like, he comes from a similar kind of family. It sounds like so it was very, like he learned and he learned from watching Dennis Leary how to like manage things and people and because he directed his movie, Lombardi and if you saw the retaliate errs, it's come. It's coming out. I don't know if it's our Yeah, yeah, that was

Adam Ferrera: 30:56

cool. That it's a work ethic. It's like and Dennis is like, we go when I remember once he was sitting in video village, and he said, I hate the way this scene ends make me laugh. Okay, that was it. We would, we would the direction we had was, he would say I met when the guest stars came on. There was a there was a who was it? I'm trying remember who it was, but we've known each other so well. We would say I do this, do this. And then you get the laugh and it will go out on me break you you leave the scenes. Okay. So we come up to that line. I would improv a line, walk offstage, walk off, walk out of satin would go out on Dennis's face and got the laugh caught. Everyone laughed. It was great moving on, you know. So wow,

Chuck Shute: 31:45

that's such a cool show. I just got into that after I had Lombardi on and so I started well, I'm not to your season next. I don't think you've shopped till season three but three, I think yeah, yeah. Is that show? I mean, is there ever going to be a show like that again? Because I just I'm watching this and it's like it's in a way it's so refreshing to me because I grew up in the 80s and 90s and you know, guys would call each other names that you can't say now and so I'm watching rescue me and I'm like, Oh, this is like the old days like guys being guys like what are your thoughts on that? I

Adam Ferrera: 32:13

don't think you can now anymore. It's like you couldn't it was I was fine. My my. I was reading a Mel Brooks book. And they asked him in the book he goes Do you think you can make Blazing Saddles today? He's like, I couldn't make it then I'm surprised we got away with the shit we got away with. Yeah, yeah, it's but it's it's it's of of its time. You know, there's things of its time you look at stuff now that you you look at commercials on TV, you look at old cartoons, you know, it's the sensitivity. If arts any good it reflects society, or it has a vision of what society could be so

Chuck Shute: 32:52

or was at the time. Yeah, because and there's definitely times like, I think I rewatched Blazing Saddles, because I was I thought about that. I was like that movie is such a classic. And I remember liking it, and then I rewatched it and that was kind of one where I went this sense. There's some kind of cringy things in this. Yeah, like rescue me even rescue me. There are some things I'm like, maybe this shouldn't say that. But at the same time, it's such a great show like,

Adam Ferrera: 33:15

but it's it's you know, is of its time. So

Chuck Shute: 33:19

yeah, that's That's it. That's a fun one. I can't wait to get to your season. Then you did Nurse Jackie. So you did like 20 episodes of that one.

Adam Ferrera: 33:27

That was fun. That's when that if I had to pick an escalation point, not a big break. But an escalation point of being an actor. I think that was it for me, because I wasn't I wasn't using my father as a structure, Chuck because on rescue me my character was a guy and authority figure. But he was still a contemporary, he had one foot as being one of the guys and because of 911 My character the chief was thrown into a leadership position because all the other guys that, you know, that's just what happened to you acceded to the NYPD, FDNY so I was a guy that had to straddle that that was what my character was. So in order to draw on an authority figure I drew on my dad because that's who I knew, you know, so I had not a backstop but a framework and to play a romantically which is what I had to play coastline with with Edie Falco it opened up a whole nother place of where I had to be when I had to apologize to her when I had to do all these this this grown up back there but not not guy kind of, you know, I had more more more places I needed to go as an actor that were afforded to me on rescue me if that makes any sense. And you know, yeah, it pushed you basically and to be in that space when to push me with Edie. Falco Flack. You got to bring your A game quick, baby.

Chuck Shute: 34:50

Were you a sopranos fan?

Adam Ferrera: 34:52

Yeah, well, first of all, I lived it. So it was like watching home movies. But watching her yeah, just because

Chuck Shute: 34:58

that's that's true. Like I When Italian friend he's like, Oh, he's like, Oh, every Italian family has some sort of connection to the mob somewhere. Some kind is

Adam Ferrera: 35:05

always like my mother. I was actually I go back to my pockets. I have my mother on my podcast once and she was my great grandmother had had a safe house up in the Bronx. So when the boys had to hide out, they paid the rent, and they came in. And that's where they stayed. They cooked for him. And God knows what else went on there. Wow. But yeah. So my mother would my mother told me that story. So it is what it is, you know. But as far as the sopranos, the acting on that, which is so great. And she's just God, she could be in the scene with her. It's just it's like, when they say you're generous as an actor, she is so open in there. It's just like, it's difficult to articulate. But that's what the generosity of another artist isn't when you're invited into that space, whatever the circumstances of that space are. She she makes you, she makes you it makes it easier to be there with her. And we bought from Long Island. So a lot of the eye rolls and subtle body language. We drank water from the same well, so the connection was, was was pretty easy and immediate.

Chuck Shute: 36:16

It's not very subtle on the East Coast, though, isn't it? People are a lot more direct. I'm from the West Coast. I kind of liked the East Coast better, though.

Adam Ferrera: 36:23

Yeah. Because there's no time for bullshit. There's no. Yeah, it's like, I know you have feelings. So why they don't enter into this. You're in my way. You know, it just didn't sets its density population for one. You know, New York City, there's 8 million people on a 26 mile island. No one's got time to wave. Good morning, so. So I think weathers got a lot to do. And you got to overcome weather and shit. You know, I'm, I'm in Santa Monica right now. My beautiful. I'm 17 blocks from the beach. You know, it's like, you know, the weather report in Santa Monica is gorgeous. Slightly windy. See tomorrow. That was it. You know.

Chuck Shute: 36:58

So it's harder to is it harder to work in that kind of weather, because I'm in Arizona, and it's like sunny every day, and it makes you want to go out and do things and not being you know,

Adam Ferrera: 37:07

it's hard to it's a beautiful day, let's take this day, but not for me because my head is just like, I need to take advantage of things. But it's I think when you got to overcome whether you have January morning, six o'clock is dark at cars covered with snow, I gotta get my ass up and get the work. And other job I don't want to go to and you know, so it develops a little bit of an edge and you're on the highway with people that are feeling the same shit. You are leaning on the horn. And yeah, so it's a different kind of exposure to Yeah, and even more free with your emotions to on east coast because it's more accepted. You know, you can scream and yell, and go ahead. That's just Adam. Well, that's just Anthony.

Chuck Shute: 37:48

Hmm, yeah, that's interesting. Yeah, I feel like even what is yeah, I grew up in Seattle. I felt like it was so people were so introverted. And then it came to Arizona. Yeah, I think that must be. Yeah, people just kind of keep their head down. I moved to Arizona and sunny and people are so much more friendlier here. It's very, and then I go to the East Coast. I've just visited there. But yeah, it's it's totally different people more direct. And people from the East Coast, they have that like kind of more personality like yours, where you're more open, direct. And

Adam Ferrera: 38:14

yeah, this is this is not time. It's like it's no, it's just your feelings aren't in this. It's what we got to do. It's more of it's more of the doing of the moment, rather than what you're bringing to the moment. Does that make any sense?

Chuck Shute: 38:27

Yeah, is that harder navigating in this woke culture or whatever you want to call it like where people are, there's a lot more sensitivities. It's got to be harder for people from the East Coast to kind of navigate especially like old school men like the like the people on rescue me like those guys, old New Yorkers. I mean, they gotta have a tough time. It's not

Adam Ferrera: 38:46

It's funny, I was having this conversation with my wife. The delivery system is different, you know, the delivery system is different. So

Unknown: 38:55

the intent is not the intent not I

Adam Ferrera: 38:57

mean, hopefully the depends on the assumption you operate on. Yeah, I think like man is basically good. I have to tell myself that otherwise, I'd kill everybody. I can't Yeah, man. So it's like if you if your intention is good, but your execution is because of whatever bullshit is happening. You will whoever you see the world you know, you got it. But no one has time to deal with your bullshit, especially on the East Coast. Don't bring your bullshit to work. Let's this is working. So as far as people's opinions and feelings and stuff, I always look at it like we're all we're all met. We're basically given we're caught in this body, right? We're caught in this the spirit is caught into the cell so we're all in jail role and as human jail, behave yourself in the day room, when you go back to yourself, let your feelings out. If you're in the day room, behave yourself. You're among other people. You Oh, you're gonna get shipped. So make us ugly. yourself in the day room, so everyone's everyone's walking around today. I have feelings stab him stab. Loud he's annoying me stab him. Yeah, but but you'd have to I try to at least set an intention to treat people as I would want to be treated and respect someone else's feelings and, and belief systems and everything you know, my my belief system says I can't do this fine good my belief system says you can't do this Wow, fuck you twice now

Chuck Shute: 40:18

there you go No, that's true do you have to you have to adjust your comedy sets depending on like you're coming to Phoenix so like you're gonna do a different set than you would have done in California or New York.

Adam Ferrera: 40:29

I'm not gonna I might talk about different things depending on what because I always like to walk around and I love the Tempe improv i The people are great. The staff is great. It's one of the best clubs in the country. So I'm very pleased to be to be coming back and I always walk around and find something new to write about. And I always I always look at my opening lines is like, Okay, last time I was here now I'm here you know, it's, I just think out of I want to bring a fresh energy of we're in this together again and this is why knows from the last time I'm here so just to bring everybody together just when you when you're invited over someone's house you walk in you go I love what you've done with the lawn, even if you don't meet it, you may you know that yeah, you're being invited over so I will find something to talk about. And it depends it's always talking about not changing for a different environment, especially in a club if I'm doing a corporate you chain because you know it's a corporate anytime it doesn't say comedy club or theater, it's an away game. So you just accordingly

Chuck Shute: 41:26

you know, you'll do some a little bit of riffing like because that's one thing like I love is the roasts. I was trying to find you've done two of the rows right? I was trying to find your clips. I couldn't find them.

Adam Ferrera: 41:37

Comedy Central sillones because I did them. Which ones that I did

Chuck Shute: 41:41

Rob Reiner? Yeah. Rob runner and Justin Bieber I think right.

Adam Ferrera: 41:45

And I do just I know I was him. I was at the he did the dog says Justin.

Chuck Shute: 41:52

Yeah, I was I was trying to find the Rob Reiner one and I saw

Adam Ferrera: 41:55

Dennis's Leary. Oh, that makes sense. Yeah, you roasted Reiner. I was I was at the Hugh Hefner roast. I don't think I did that one. And I was at a couple of other ones. But I was guessing a bunch of them and I think I only think I'm only did two or three. How do you

Chuck Shute: 42:11

write material for the rose like though? This is a hard

Adam Ferrera: 42:16

one. It's hard because you can't try it out. You know, you can't you know, you can you can try them out, you know, but the person is not there. And they're also difficult because there's whatever topics there are depending on where you are in the set. A lot of stuff has been walked over and you see guys cross and shit out all the time. And the only reason I did it was Jeff Ross asked me to do it. And I said, Jeff, I can't I'm shooting the show. I can't I don't have time. He's dude rose. Because he can't you guys. I'm busy. You're not busy. You scared ago. All right, you're right. I'm scared. I don't want to do it. I said Plus, I'm not a Friar. He goes, Don't ever act out of fear. And he went bang, bang, bang your fryer. I went alright, now I gotta do it. So I did it. And wow, me. Yeah.

Chuck Shute: 42:57

That's so good. That's such good advice, though. I've heard that from a lot of people. You got to push past that fear. That's where all the great things are.

Adam Ferrera: 43:05

Yeah, that's I think that's, I mean, it doesn't go away, Chuck. Once you get really, I don't think it does.

Chuck Shute: 43:15

though. You don't get nervous to go on stage anymore or anything like that. You still

Adam Ferrera: 43:19

feel if you don't if you don't get nervous anymore. You're not funny anymore.

Chuck Shute: 43:23

But not as not as bad. Like when I started this podcast. I remember like the second episode. I mean, I was freaking out. I was like, Oh, God, I'm so scared. And now it's a lot. I mean, yeah, I guess there's a little bit there. But I think it's more for me. It's like excitement. And that's a very close,

Adam Ferrera: 43:37

good that the energy is the same. It's just how you channel it with good the minute you stop feeling that turn and turn off the microphone. Because you're not bringing anything to it.

Chuck Shute: 43:46

Yeah, no, that's that's really good advice. So how do you find new challenges in what you're doing in life? I

Adam Ferrera: 43:52

have a challenge every second day.

Chuck Shute: 43:56

All right, fair enough. Are you going to do more like

Adam Ferrera: 44:00

changing that's that's life is always changing. And you are always if you're any good as an artist, you got to change though.

Chuck Shute: 44:07

Well, it's good because because cool. You did all the acting and you've done the comedy, but the other thing we didn't talk about that I didn't even know I'm sorry. I'm so stupid. I did not know you were the host of Top Gear. I mean, I've heard of Top Gear, but I'd never watched it. I was like, Oh, he hosted that. That's like a pretty big show. Right?

Adam Ferrera: 44:22

Yeah, well, that was fun. That was for those who don't know show it's an ultimate automotive adventure. For lack of a better word buddy, Tanner Foust and Rutledge Wood. The show's run for 25 years I think in the UK and we were the American version we did about six and a half seasons of it went all around the world Chuck they flew me all around the world put me these cars that cost more than the house I grew up in. They flew me to Germany they gave me the brand new Lamborghini the hurricane when it came out they put me in the left lane of the Autobahn they said go

Chuck Shute: 44:53

how fast did you go?

Adam Ferrera: 44:55

I don't 73 in the left lane. Which is stupid because this People go into work. It's not a track. It's not a runway. You're right

Chuck Shute: 45:03

yeah, there's just like how fast are people going autobahn? Because there's no speed limit right

Adam Ferrera: 45:08

speed limit so there's just some guy in a Volkswagen Rabbit just run going to work like this. When it's loaded ticket sounds like he's flying past 173 He's not even blinking.

Chuck Shute: 45:20

Because they're used to that. Yeah, so how many lanes is it though is like oh, it's only to two lanes. Oh, so okay.

Adam Ferrera: 45:28

I was on was two lanes i was i i This is this is

Chuck Shute: 45:31

the rabbit was in the right lane then I Oh, dang. So what which which show which episodes of that show stand out you like as the most memorable obviously that must have been one of them. What else?

Adam Ferrera: 45:42

I drove up a volcano in Iceland in a Chevy diesel non turbo pickup so it was a slow trip. That one was the volcano in Iceland was a big one for us. We we went to Cuba was good. We did an episode in Cuba. Like the 50s cars like American Graffiti. The last the embargo was what 61 I think the last car I saw was like 59 There's like a 59 caddy down there. And they have to take care of them because there's no Pep Boys. There's no O'Reilly's there's no pilots. They take the motors out of them and they put in powerstroke diesels because they can get them and everything is Frankenstein. Every there's a guy you go to if you need like a gasket. He takes old tires and a machete chops the rubber up. He's got he's got a compressor from an industrial freezer. And that's that's his laid and he sharpens a piece of glass and he's cutting is cutting my eye these gaskets to fit whatever you need to fit. It's amazing. He was on the show. That one that that episode, amaze me. The Journey episodes I really liked because it was we would go we would go camp we did the Rubicon Trail. We went rock crawling. We went to Alaska a bunch of times and those I like because it was we were all together. It was it was like a family Top Gear because it had to be it was a hard show, man. There were no trailers. There was no craft service. There was just we were out on a desert. Overall, we had going through the desert for like, you know us in the crew.

Chuck Shute: 47:11

Yeah, I just saw I was watching some of the episode where you're in Arizona and you guys are testing out the different ones and you go through the Grand Canyon. Yeah. Oh, it

Adam Ferrera: 47:18

was great. It was a cool time. I'm trying to think if I got anything cool, cool. Shitty to show you. Okay, let me show you this. See that? Tak ometer. Yeah, that's attack from a 78 male Jeep that I think I took a sozial to and cut everything off of it because we had to we had to get a cut off the roof and the fenders and get all the weight off of it. And I think we want to see if the engine would run on BitQuick instead of oil. I think we did that. I forget. Wow, I got a bunch of stuff. A bunch of car stuff. From the from all the episodes we did I jumped the caddy about 40 feet in the air 76 coupe deville and I took the badges off of it because this thing saved my life. So did you

Chuck Shute: 48:00

ever get to drive like do they ever have you driving like movie famous movie cars or like Dukes of Hazzard car or something like that? i They took

Adam Ferrera: 48:07

the original I'll say it was the mach three was a 66 GT 40 The race car the one that actually raced in LeMans 66 I think it was and they took it out of the museum and I drove it right hand drive. And I only drove it six feet because it was a museum piece but they and the guys went museum where they opened it up and this big block right here but my head they started up the flames shooting out of the carburetor back and so it was Yeah, does that like not by my head and I could only drive it on camera. So I've never driven this thing before. Right? It's right hand drive. Cameras are on they say action and it's 40 inches that's where it's where it got the name of GT 40 So I'm in the actual race car. I put my foot on the clutch the clutch isn't really set up so now my knee is actually in my chest and I'm driving this car past the camera just to get the shot shift gears get that cut get out guys the museum come over open up the door they go You did good most people stole it and they come in Wow Yeah, so I drove that they took a flight of stairs 1927 P one Rolls Royce out of the Peterson because we were doing a piece on the on the Wraith the Rolls Royce Wraith when it came which is the two door coupe which was beautiful. So they bought that out so I could tell the story and I drove his actual Rolls Royce of Fred Astaire own that the Petersen let us do it again. Right hand drive non sync transmission I'm driving pre depression area farm equipment just

Chuck Shute: 49:41

a surprise it still works

Adam Ferrera: 49:43

yeah works fine. I told the camera guys ago all right when I'm making eight turns I get second gear. That's it. I cannot break in this thing.

Chuck Shute: 49:51

So if you ever broken any cars or gotten any wrecks are

Adam Ferrera: 49:54

shut out of a bunch of them. Yeah.

Chuck Shute: 49:57

Why did I wreck the show pays for that though.

Adam Ferrera: 50:00

An expensive show like that cat. It's 76 catty eyed banana, that thing that's on the internet flying coupe deville with that one up, that's cool. I pushed the V six Mustang off a cliff in the Grand Canyon with a hang glider on it to see if I could get it to fly. I made it I made an amphibious boat out of a Boston Whaler and a Jeep Wrangler that I think that's sunken Lake Ontario back. Sunken Lake Ontario. We couldn't find it.

Chuck Shute: 50:23

Wow. Yeah. So that's cool. So your dad was a big car guy, too, right?

Adam Ferrera: 50:27

Yeah. So I got my love of cars with being with my dad. So

Chuck Shute: 50:32

when that show started, had he already passed as he never get to see you host that

Adam Ferrera: 50:35

and never got to see it. That was Yeah, never got to see it. He got I was shooting. I was shooting a movie in New York. And my brother called me and said pops in the hospital. Holy shit. And we went, we got there was cancer, we got the diagnosis. And, and I remember, we, I went back to him, they were kind to me, let me run home. I went back to the movie. And I remember sitting in the trailer. And, and thinking, I don't know how this is gonna, he's gonna be me with it. He's he's going to beat it. You know, I remember convincing myself but. And I had got the call for Top Gear A couple days after that. And then my father, I showed my father to clips online because it wasn't on TV. It was online. It's all on YouTube. I show him the clips. And every day we're all and they were English, right? So my dad was a Beatles. So he got to he got to see the clips. And it was a long process to get the job so he was with me during the process, but as his health declined, he passed away before I got the gig but I like to think he was with me because I should have been dead a couple of times Chuck so I like to think he went really well the correct the steering

Chuck Shute: 51:44

from the cars you're saying yeah, the cars Yeah. Tell tell this to my audience. So the story though, when you got the call of the diagnosis, I thought this was like this is one of the coolest stories I've ever heard. Like you're on you're working on the show. Definitely. Maybe. And you're supposed to you get the call and you're in your trailer and you're supposed to go work on the show. And your your co star Derek Luke?

Adam Ferrera: 52:04

Luke? Yeah. Oh, okay. Yeah, that was one of the most this is one of the reasons that was reinforced to me that man is basically good. met this guy at the table read my How you doing? Nice guy, you know? Gotta call supposed to go we're walking spur to start a scene. I just got the call faces. Wait. And Derek, are you alright? Oh, yeah. I'm trying to keep it together. Because I'm still processing it. You know? He goes, I forgot some it was Kiki back my trail from it. And we told the stage manager give him something came back because you're not alright. He goes now and I started breaking now. I popped just got diagnosed with the My brother says he thinks it's cancer. Chuck, he didn't pick a beat. He grabbed my hands. He dropped to his knees and started praying out loud for me and my family and my dad. I met this guy a day ago, said hello. At a craft fair was

Chuck Shute: 53:07

and you're not a religious guy. I'm not a religious guy. But for some reason that story is so cool to me that

Adam Ferrera: 53:12

that story is I'm not a religious dude doesn't mean I don't believe in in some sort of guiding principle, which I like to call love. Some people call it dog some people call.

Chuck Shute: 53:25

But it's just another human. Just showing compassion and his way that was his thing. He was religious. That was his way of showing compassion to you. It's cool.

Adam Ferrera: 53:35

And you know what? He wasn't even thinking about it. That's that's not what he did. That's who he is.

Chuck Shute: 53:42

I gotta get that guy on my show someday but I don't

Adam Ferrera: 53:45

even know if he remembers it. I think that was Tuesday for him as informed as informed my understanding of mankind vam I think it was Tuesday. Yeah, that's just who he is.

Chuck Shute: 53:59

Well in for you your role in the world is a comedian is to make people laugh and bring joy and you do that you get a lot of messages that people reaching out that they've that you've changed their life. Right that's that's

Adam Ferrera: 54:10

that's the nice part. When it when it takes on a bigger life than itself I did a bit one I did a bit of my third special I think it was about my dad going to chemo and cancer I was very pleased that that bit grew up to be something other than a bit I got not to be self serving but I got asked by a professor at free felt to lightest the bit to teach as a teaching tool for a Yale Drama and why you writing class because I got the emotional turn and the bit was you know, my father goes through cancer and I bring the audience way down. Yeah, you the pause long and then the right cross gets the

Chuck Shute: 54:54

I've never seen that in a standard routine. Rarely do you have that you you take it so seriously. And there's this pa And you can hear a pin drop. And then all of a sudden you make us all out. It's brilliant. Now, thank

Adam Ferrera: 55:05

you. Yeah, so I'm just proud of that because that that reached other people and, and even on the podcasts, even this stuff, you know, this kind of this medium, you don't know we have no idea. And then you know, you're out somewhere and someone come up after his show and goes, Man, that show got me through whatever it is, whatever the voice resonates. You're not alone. You're not sitting in your loneliness that's sitting in the thoughts that play you. You just you reach for something. And if you reach for something that's on your phone that that's my voice or your voice, it serves a bigger purpose. Awesome. I love it. Well, money in it. Chuck, what's that? We need more money, Chuck?

Chuck Shute: 55:40

Yeah, hey, I monetize my YouTube channel. So I'm making a little something so a lot, but it's, uh, it's, I can say that I'm a paid podcast one I got

Adam Ferrera: 55:48

one we qualify. My wife is telling me we gotta use I don't I'm gonna call you.

Chuck Shute: 55:53

Okay. Yeah, I'll help you set it up. It's as long as you have to get 1000 subscribers, which I'm sure you'd have way more than that,

Adam Ferrera: 55:59

that she says we got all the stuff we need. So yeah, it's just

Chuck Shute: 56:03

then they gotta like get proof that you're in America and that you're in the city, you say that you're in so it's not some Russian disinformation campaign.

Adam Ferrera: 56:10

So what do I look like a Bolshevik I'm full of

Chuck Shute: 56:16

no Italian and Jewish, right? Isn't

Unknown: 56:18

that Italian? Italian? Does it? No, 100% of time. That's it. Why did they get the Jewish part?

Adam Ferrera: 56:25

I grew up in an Italian Jewish neighborhood. And I Oh, that's what it was a couple of bits about it in one of my specials, so that's sort of what Yeah, but yeah,

Chuck Shute: 56:34

cool. Well, I'll let you get to your next whatever you're doing because you're I know you're such a workaholic. But I always end up promoting a charity. And I think your publicist said Leary. Firefighter.

Adam Ferrera: 56:43

Firefighters fun. Yes, Dennis does a great job of the firefighters I got to know a bunch of them personally just working on the show and and they come out to see me do stand up. So if anyone's I don't know when this drops. I'll be at Tempe. Improv, Thanksgiving weekend 25 through 27th of November. And I always invite the firefighters out there as well. So

Chuck Shute: 57:03

cool. Yeah, I'm gonna try to catch one of those. I probably definitely will catch one of the shows because I think you got like three shows that weekend. So

Adam Ferrera: 57:09

so please come up. Say hello after the show, and I only ask you some YouTube questions. Okay,

Chuck Shute: 57:13

sounds good. I'll see you then. Thanks. All right. Bye, bye. Well, I hope you guys all enjoyed that episode. I know I did. Sometimes you just click with the guests. And I feel like Adam and I clicked and I'm really proud of how the episode turned out. So make sure to support Adam by following him on social media, liking, sharing and commenting on his content, and go see a live show if he comes to your town. And you can support my little show in much the same way with the likes, comments and shares. No live shows yet. But make sure you are subscribed to the podcast so that you won't miss future episodes. We have some good ones coming up. Thank you so much for your support. Have a great day and shoot for the moon.