2291 – Bert Kreischer

High-Level Overview

Bert Kreischer returns to hang with his old friend Joe Rogan, fresh off his Netflix special Lucky. The episode is a loose, affectionate catch-up that opens with Bert thanking Rogan for the career advice that pushed him out of travel-show hosting and into stand-up and podcasting. From there the two roam across the early days of podcasting, radio legends Howard Stern and Art Bell, what makes the Oscars worth watching, a Boston hitman Rogan once taught taekwondo, Bert's past struggle with pain pills, Colorado's wolf reintroduction, bowhunting technique, gambling with Dana White, Mount Everest, Serbia, and why jiu-jitsu is so valuable for women.

The tone is warm, goofy, and frequently hilarious, with Bert's storytelling energy bouncing off Rogan's tangents and fact-checks with producer Jamie. Underneath the jokes are some sincere threads: the value of honest friends, the danger of comfortable jobs, the difference between being inspired by peers and competing with them, and taking care of your body as you age. The conversation meanders freely, swinging from career reflections to health tips to animal stories and back again.

The Discussion Explores:

• How Rogan's "be undeniable" advice pushed Bert away from TV hosting toward stand-up, and why comfortable jobs can be a trap
• Luck, hard work, and gratitude, plus the early, mocked days of podcasting
• Howard Stern, Art Bell, broadcast censorship, and what's changed about movies and the Oscars
• Health talk: mouth tape, deviated septums, hernias, pain pills, benzodiazepines, and sobriety
• Colorado's wolf release, coyotes, snakes, and Rogan's detailed bowhunting lessons
• Gambling in Vegas, mob stories, and the old Comedy Store's history
• Jealousy versus inspiration among comics, and why Rogan says it's healthier to be inspired
• Jiu-jitsu, getting choked, steroids, GHB, and the stigma around weight-loss drugs

Deep Dive into Main Ideas

"Be Undeniable" and the Velvet Prison

Bert opens by crediting Rogan as the big brother he never had. Years ago, backstage at the Comedy Store, Rogan told him Tom Segura was doing theaters and that Bert needed a special too, then summed it up in two words: be undeniable. Rogan recalls calling Bert while he was riding a motorcycle, drunk and high, through Vietnam for a Travel Channel show, and telling him to get out. "It's a velvet prison," Rogan says of those TV jobs: the money is good, but it isn't the kind that lets you walk away, and it keeps you from doing the work that matters.

Rogan relates it to his own years on Fear Factor, the number one show in the country at the time. He was grateful for the job and the crew, and it gave him financial freedom, but he knew stand-up and UFC commentary were what he really wanted. Some people advised him not to leave, and he says you sometimes have to recognize when a good job is holding you back from your potential. He describes UFC commentary, which he has done since 1997, as an honor rather than a job, and says he'd happily watch the fights either way.

Luck, Hard Work, and the Early Podcast Days

Bert says he named the special Lucky because he considers himself the luckiest person alive: he got into comedy after Rolling Stone named him the top partier in the country, and found his closest friends later in life. Rogan agrees everyone listening is lucky, noting that earning about $34,000 a year puts you in the global top 1%, but pushes back that Bert's success also comes from relentless touring and work: "if you work really hard, you tend to get luckier."

Rogan remembers people openly mocking him for starting a podcast, Howard Stern included. He was an early internet user who built his own computers and downloaded lectures by Alan Watts and Terence McKenna, so he understood that people were finding things online they couldn't find anywhere else. Bert admits he once thought Rogan was out of his mind for telling him and Tom Segura they needed a podcast. They credit Howard Stern (fined roughly $2.5 million over 14 years for indecency) and Art Bell, who broadcast Coast to Coast AM from a fenced compound in the Nevada desert, as the forerunners of what podcasters do now. Rogan calls censorship "a political beach ball" that the two parties toss back and forth, noting it was the Bush-era government that went after Stern.

Movies, Oscars, and Great Performances

A long, fun stretch covers film. Rogan champions 30 Days of Night and the new Nosferatu as the best vampire movies, praises Ben Foster, and they gush about Taylor Sheridan, whom Bert likens to dining with Ernest Hemingway; they recommend Hell or High Water. Rogan argues that awards built around inclusion standards would have ruled out classics like The Godfather, Jaws, and Shōgun, and that he doesn't need movies to lecture him because he already believes all people are the same. They marvel at the 1994 Best Picture lineup (Forrest Gump, Pulp Fiction, Shawshank, Quiz Show).

They also trade stories about Harrison Ford nearly losing the Han Solo role to Tom Selleck, Ford's improvised sword-fight scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark, Brendan Fraser's comeback, Mickey Rourke's lean years, and werewolf movies. Bert recommends Slow Horses on Apple for Gary Oldman's performance.

Mobsters, Hitmen, and Fighting for Real

The Quiz Show scandal leads Rogan to Whitey Bulger, who Jamie confirms bought a winning lottery ticket from its real winner to launder money, collecting a legitimate income for years. Rogan shares that in the 1980s he taught taekwondo to one of Bulger's hitmen, a stoic man who once casually asked him where he'd hit someone to kill them. He also describes training partner Richie, who came back from prison far more dangerous; sparring with him was an actual fight, and Rogan once broke his face with a wheel kick.

That leads to brain health. Rogan says even light sparring causes damage you carry for life, which is part of why he stopped sparring around 2007 or 2008. He also gave up skiing after a bad fall onto his head left him dizzy for the rest of the day. Later they read about Johnny Carson being thrown down stairs by a mobster and hiding for three days until a deal was struck, and discuss Bugsy Siegel's connection to the building that became the Comedy Store.

Breathing, Sleep, and Health Fixes

Rogan's big recommendation is mouth tape. He has sleep apnea and uses a fitted mouthpiece with a tongue depressor, and after adding Hostage Tape he says he woke up feeling around 30% more rested and stopped snoring completely. He also calls fixing his deviated septum one of the best decisions of his life, after some 12 nose breaks left his airway calcified; he says his cardio in jiu-jitsu improved noticeably. He tells Bert to get his septum and his abdominal hernia fixed: "Don't live in a compromised body."

On pain medication, Rogan recalls a doctor insisting on writing him two painkiller prescriptions after nose surgery, which he found unsettling, and says he'd rather deal with pain than feel foggy. Bert opens up about getting hooked on oxycodone after a back injury, until his wife LeeAnn took the pills away and told him "you're done big boy." They discuss how dangerous it is to stop benzodiazepines or heavy drinking abruptly, and Bert says life feels dramatically cleaner when he isn't drinking.

Wolves, Coyotes, and Bowhunting

Rogan is critical of Colorado's voter-mandated wolf reintroduction near Aspen. A friend with land there found an elk leg within two weeks of the release, and Rogan says the elk have no evolved fear of wolves. The first wolves, he says, came from Oregon after being captured for killing cattle, and promptly killed cattle again. He calls it "ballot box biology, the result of city dwellers voting on wildlife management, and notes wolves were already migrating south on their own. Stories follow about coyotes clearing six-foot fences, a pit bull that killed nine coyotes, his old dog Frank that kept getting bitten by rattlesnakes, and the rhyme for telling coral snakes from king snakes: Red touches yellow, killer fellow."

When Bert mentions shooting his bow in the backyard, Rogan gives a detailed lesson. He practices at 85 yards so that 50-yard shots feel easy, aiming for a group the size of a softball. He explains draw length (his is 28 inches), why a shorter, tighter draw improves accuracy, how tree-stand hunters need angle-compensating rangefinders because steep downward shots drop less, why hunters use amplifying Walker's Game Ear devices, and the difference between a sighted compound bow and a recurve, which requires feel like throwing a baseball. He credits John Dudley with teaching him most of his form.

Gambling, Jealousy, and Inspiration

They recount a Vegas night where Dana White went from $600,000 down to $600,000 up, and Bert describes the long process of getting a casino marker and quitting after losing a few hundred dollars. Rogan says gambling isn't for him, while acknowledging it works for Dana.

The most thoughtful moment comes when Bert asks whether Rogan has ever realized a friend was secretly competing with him. Rogan's answer: "Inspired by is a better way to look at life." He says, "I've never once competed with another comic," and that jealousy only hurts the person feeling it. Bert agrees, describing how Dave Chappelle generously broke down how he prepares for a special, and how he loves watching Tom Segura and Andrew Schulz roast whole cities. Rogan adds that he's learned to be friends with comics who don't make him laugh, because being a good person matters more.

Everest, Serbia, and Jiu-Jitsu for Women

They discuss George Mallory's body on Everest and the missing photo of his wife, Sherpas' extraordinary adaptation to altitude, early climbers carrying thousands of cigarettes, and old doctors prescribing tobacco. Bert, who shot a project in Serbia, describes a culture of blunt humor and very tough people, and Rogan pulls up a massive protest there and a ferocious Serbian basketball crowd.

Bert's daughter Ila, who took jiu-jitsu lessons arranged by Eddie Bravo, choked him until he tapped. Rogan explains why jiu-jitsu is so valuable for women: most can't generate knockout power with their hands, but everyone's legs are strong, and a triangle choke works regardless of size. He describes being humiliated as a white belt by a purple belt his own size, and the elbow injury he got from a kimura he refused to tap to in time; he now stretches about an hour and a half a night. The episode closes on steroids, GHB, and the stigma around weight-loss drugs, with Rogan relaying Derek from More Plates More Dates' argument that banning steroids halted research into safer versions.

Conclusion

This episode is Rogan and Kreischer at their most relaxed: two longtime friends swapping stories, roasting each other, and drifting from topic to topic. The through-line is friendship and honesty, from Rogan's "be undeniable" push that changed Bert's career to his reminder that being inspired by peers beats competing with them. Along the way listeners pick up practical nuggets, like mouth tape and septum surgery for better sleep, the risks of painkillers and benzodiazepines, and the fine points of bowhunting, alongside some great mob, movie, and animal stories. It's a light, rewarding listen for fans of both comedians, especially anyone who enjoys a meandering hang more than a focused interview.

This is a summary of "2291 – Bert Kreischer" from The Joe Rogan Experience, giving you the GIST so you can decide if you want the REST. Listen to the full episode.