Nick Offerman
Wild Card with Rachel Martin
NPR
4.7 • 990 Ratings
🗓️ 16 October 2025
⏱️ 48 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Nick Offerman is an Emmy-winning actor, but that’s a small part of his identity. He’s also a woodworker, an author, and a devoted acolyte of the naturalist writer Wendell Berry. He talks with Rachel about the art of being satisfied, building up the courage for a home project and what he learned from a childhood that felt like “Little House on the Prairie.”
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | In the U.S., national security news can feel far away from daily life. |
| 0:05.0 | Distant wars, murky conflicts, diplomacy behind closed doors. |
| 0:09.5 | On our new show, Sources and Methods. |
| 0:11.5 | NPR reporters on the ground bring you stories of real people, |
| 0:15.3 | helping you understand why distant events matter here at home. |
| 0:18.8 | Listen to sources and methods on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts. |
| 0:24.3 | Just a heads up, there's some strong language in this episode, and also some very nice descriptions of woodworking. |
| 0:31.2 | How do you think your life should be judged? |
| 0:34.7 | I'll answer this at 3.30 this morning when I come awake from a deep sleep. |
| 0:42.2 | Because, you know, that's the human condition, I think, is being able to look in the mirror and be honest with oneself. |
| 0:50.3 | I'm Rachel Martin, and this is Wildcard, the show where cards control the conversation. |
| 0:56.8 | Each week, my guest answers questions about their life. |
| 1:00.1 | Questions pulled from a deck of cards. |
| 1:02.2 | They're allowed to skip one question and to flip one question back on me. |
| 1:05.8 | My guest this week is Nick Offerman. |
| 1:08.0 | Figure out who you're going to love. |
| 1:10.4 | Go to an independent hardware store. |
| 1:13.4 | Get the things you need. |
| 1:15.8 | Make some tongs. |
| 1:17.8 | Cook some goddamn sausages. |
| 1:19.9 | There's something about Nick Offerman that seems of another time. |
| 1:23.5 | Maybe it's his deep affection for woodworking and penchant for flannel shirts |
... |
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