Dopey: On the Dark Comedy of Drug Addiction

Dopey 565 Notes/TimeStamps: 00:00 – 02:36: Intro song clip + opening vibes 02:36 – 05:17: Welcome, Friday January 9th, celebrates Leah Lumberg’s 17 years sober, reads her post, plugs Dopey Nation Zoom/AA/NA, recaps Cosmo Lumbino episode 05:17 – 09:15: Reads Spotify comments (MFE, Foxy Voodoo, Sterling on Breaking Bad, Steve Guy, Henry Jo Peterson on Good Morning Dopey, XO Jordan Clay, Mrs. B.S., Melanie, Zarik92/Kimber, Pagan Beery, Hardcore Dope James, Justin B, Olivia Adams on Costco Jacuzzi, Robert Stovall, Craig, Justin, David Doyle, Kyle Radewski, Sean on Sopranos vs. Breaking Bad, Jess Palma, Toe Dustin, Tyler Garner hate comment) 09:15 – 11:45: More comments + Good Morning Dopey flashback 11:45 – 18:49: Voicemail from Lane (using stimulants, kratom, weed; codependency; comfort in Dopey) 18:49 – 23:45: Dave’s response to Lane, recovery encouragement 23:45 – 30:27: Intro to Hank Azaria interview 30:27 – 38:47: Hank on Emmy wins, Simpsons voices, physical fitness/calorie tracking app, teenage anorexia/bulimia 38:47 – 50:14: Hank on ACA (Adult Children of Alcoholics), laundry list traits, family dysfunction, recovery evolution (AA → Al-Anon → ACA) 50:14 – 01:01:48: Deep dive into ACA traits, patterns, self-parenting, over-giving trap, service vs. self-care balance 01:01:48 – 01:10:59: Hank on fame in NYC, smiling as service, Charlie Sheen doc, AI threat to voice acting/performers (Simpsons, Ariana Grande example) 01:10:59 – 01:22:44: Bruce Springsteen tribute band (Easy Street), Bruce reaction, cover band world, Pure Petty collab 01:22:44 – 01:33:58: Mets/Jets, harm reduction (weed, ketamine therapy), sponsoring someone smoking weed, Matthew Perry/ketamine arrest 01:33:58 – 01:46:42: Lightning round “this or that” game (Mookie vs. Keith, Coke vs. booze, Godzilla vs. Mystery Men, LSD vs. mushrooms, etc.) 01:46:42 – 01:49:02: Hank’s warm take on extremism as the real enemy, love as answer 01:49:02 – 01:53:46: Wrap-up, Patreon promo, emails from Sarah (Michigan) & Craig (Texas) on Pancho relapse, final thoughts on recovery/community, “Wanna Be Good So Bad” outro

Transcribed - Published: 9 January 2026

Timestamp Notes (Approximate based on transcript flow) 00:00 – 00:56: Intro with classic Dopey voicemail/song clip from Chris and Dave. 00:56 – 03:19: Dave introduces the retro replay (calling it "Dopey Britta" Thursday), explains polling for episodes 3 & 4 on Patreon, notes their significance as early recordings recovered after Chris's death, teases the overplayed Howard Stern story. 03:19 – 05:12: Plays voicemails from Heart Attack Doug (rehearsal + real) complaining about Tuesday teaser views dropping without him and jabs at Ray Brown/your dad. 05:12 – 07:34: Mentions recent episodes (Steve Poults replay), reads positive Spotify comments from listeners (Richard, Peyton W, Hannah Valachak, Kyle Radewski, Town Dustin). 07:34 – 11:50: Talks five-day Dopey schedule, teases Hank Azaria episode, invites listener stories/voicemails, plugs Patreon (mentions magical recent Tuesday where nation turned on one listener), Wednesday Recovery Zoom, closes intro and transitions to replay of episodes 3 & 4. 11:50 – 38:00: Replay of Episode 3 11:50 – 14:06: Intro/disclaimer about not glorifying drugs. 14:06 – 20:28: Discussion on addiction, psychedelics vs. meditation. 20:28 – 22:39: Chris's DMT shooting story. 22:39 – 37:43: Main story—"Dodge the Lodge": Alina Lodge rules, making pruno with Jeremy, getting caught, fleeing to woods, hitchhiking, shooting crack in NYC, GHB overdose in Harlem ER (waking as "Charles McCullough" with Powerade bottle), fruit ban aftermath. 37:43 – 38:00: Wrap/upro. 38:00 – 40:20: Dave reflects on Episode 3 highlights (Blue Mountain Powerade, Charles McCullough, missing Chris). 40:20 – 01:08:30: Replay of Episode 4 40:20 – 47:05: Banter about rehab time, liking detox/rehab romance. 47:05 – 58:55: Dave's private eye story with Oscar (Limelight/Tunnel surveillance, Park Slope junkies, Cable Guy realization). 58:55 – 01:08:30: Howard Stern story—Burly Bear job, fake "Shuffle Entertainer of the Millennium" award, appearing high on air September 22, 1999, getting called out and kicked out. 01:08:30 – 01:12:14: Dave wraps the replay, reflects on recording four episodes in one day, invites feedback/reviews, closes with song "Wanna Be Good So Bad."

Transcribed - Published: 9 January 2026

00:00 – Bomb intro & “It’s Dopey Wednesday!” theme 00:41 – Welcome, theme song credit to Brayer Brian Homa, Five Days of Dopey update 02:00 – Recovery nugget: Gratitude as the antidote to fear in the new year 06:30 – Listener Spotify comments & social media shout-outs 13:30 – Guest intro: Ned Van Zandt (actor, counselor, Townes Van Zandt’s cousin, former sponsor to the late DJ/Don) 15:30 – Ned performs the opening rap from his one-man show “Lost in Del Valle' 18:00 – How Ned met Don/DJ, Ned’s 18 years clean 19:00 – Connection to Townes Van Zandt 21:30 – First time getting high (age 18, Warhol crowd, heroin) 24:00 – Moving to the Chelsea Hotel fall 1978 – same week as Sid & Nancy 27:00 – Life at the Chelsea: parties, Warhol stars, punk scene 30:00 – First heroin habit with Warhol superstar Katrina 34:00 – Sid & Nancy stories, Burger King, Nancy’s murder, Ned’s theory on who did it 41:00 – Sid’s overdose death 43:00 – Ned’s own habit escalates, gets mugged, leaves NYC for Austin 49:00 – Long Beach meth period, stealing Sudafed for meth labs 59:00 – Stevie Ray Vaughan’s sobriety inspires Ned 01:01:00 – Gets clean in 1987 in Hawaii, 13 years sober 01:11:00 – Relapses New Year’s Eve 1999, 7-year run ends with meth arrest 01:30:00 – Final surrender in treatment (day 9 flushes smuggled pills) 01:38:00 – 3 years in Hawaii sober living, returns to acting 01:43:00 – Develops one-man show “Delvalley,” Edinburgh Fringe success 01:45:00 – Running Transcend NYC sober house 01:55:00 – Wrap-up & outro song

Transcribed - Published: 7 January 2026

Lost recording and scrapped tribute episode Fear, frustration, and starting the new year Parenting anxiety and real-time problem solving Overheating Subaru and Google panic Gas station stranger and antifreeze scare Aquarium trip and early New Year’s ball drop Dessert tangents and peanut butter philosophy Patreon tease: Nora interviews Dave Musical outro and classic Dopey chaos

Transcribed - Published: 6 January 2026

The episode opens with your intro, then the bulk of the show is Hairy Tongue Will’s massive, chaotic, detailed telling of his addiction, near-death runs, arrests, relapse cycles, dead friends, and eventual recovery. Will describes the early Long Island chaos with Richie, Mike, and Lenny—everyone strung out on heroin, crack, coke, and whatever they could get. He recalls the first serious turn: showing up to a house where Lenny was passed out after a three-day crack run, realizing “the demons are taking over.” Mike and Richie spiral deeper, and Will keeps managing to “hold it together” thanks to jobs, work ethic, and a strange electrical-job stabilizer that kept him semi-functional. He details years of DUIs, probation, manipulating drug tests, smoking crack constantly while still working 16-hour electrician shifts, and thriving socially because coworkers lived vicariously through him. He normalized chaos, missing only “one no-call/no-show every two weeks,” which he considered acceptable. Will then dives into his first short attempt at stability, living in a basement apartment. His probation officer surprises him the day after a holiday: the apartment is filled with beer cans, bongs, baggies. He fails the test, is sent back to rehab/jail cycles, and explains why Long Island addicts often choose jail over treatment. He describes his surreal time in jail—being sent to the Montauk Lighthouse on work crews, eating egg sandwiches and black-and-milds with the guards, becoming “the useful guy,” actually feeling respected and purposeful. Back outside, he tries again, fails again, collects DUIs, cycles through companies, loses jobs, hustles side work, and repeatedly relapses. A wedding night leads to another DUI. COVID hits while he’s in jail. He gets out, starts working nonstop, earns money, piles cash in a closet, stacks crypto, reads self-help books, sleeps on a mattress on the floor, becomes obsessed with success and control. Then he meets a girl in Tennessee. He drinks again “successfully” only when he flies there. He builds a double life—working himself numb, drinking out of state, convincing himself he’s different. Eventually, on a work trip, he gambles, wins big, drinks an old fashioned, and secretly cooks his boss’s cocaine into crack. This reignites the obsession. Will starts traveling the Northeast and Midwest, repeatedly pulling crack-seeking missions: gas stations, high-crime neighborhoods, asking strangers, “I’m looking for some hard.” He builds drug contacts in Bridgeport, Dayton, Maine, Virginia, wherever the job sends him. He smokes in hotels, hallucinates blood on floors, changes rooms repeatedly. He recounts the deaths of friends: Mike, whose father turned their home into a sheet-walled trap house with dealers and bikers living inside. How Mike died with his father selling sneakers off his dead son’s body. Richie, who got sober then died of fentanyl after nearly two years clean. Will’s life collapses further—obsession, resentment toward God, jealousy, terminal uniqueness. He becomes a “demon,” wanting to die like his friends. He terrifies his girlfriend with delusional FaceTimes, nine-day runs, psychosis. She moves in without knowing the truth and becomes trapped in codependency. He stays high for 26 straight days, manipulates her with antihistamine allergy episodes to cover his psychosis, hides crack pipes around the house with ring cameras everywhere. He finally admits some truth, gives her $5,000 to escape, but she stays another nine months. He tells insane stories: Pretending he’s a trust-fund baby to get free crack Getting shot at by a dealer after a misunderstanding over “two grams” vs “two ounces” Driving through wooded roads barefoot at gas stations Dealers trying to jump him Becoming a mule for a recently-released dealer (Ace) Near misses, violence, and pure street insanity Eventually, during a pickup, he gets chased, prays for police lights, and his car breaks down. Cops descend. He gets a mountain of charges (“five decades worth”). He thinks he’ll die in prison. Bail reform gets him released. He immediately uses again for 17 more days. A sober lawyer tries pushing him toward St. Christopher’s. Will resists, manipulates LICR, relapses again, cancels his own insurance, tries to die, and after weeks of chaos his mother gets him re-approved. He enters St. Chris, still delusional, still dangerous. There he breaks. He admits suicidal thoughts, gets a guard stationed outside his door, hears the blunt truth—you’re the worst-off guy here and you did this to yourself. It lands. Will begins working the program: spiritual direction, grief groups, codependency, meetings, kitchen duty, everything. He reconnects with his mother in sobriety. He attends court in suits provided by the facility and ultimately receives an unexpectedly generous plea deal. He comes home early, tries to run his own program, stays sober for months, but on Mother’s Day runs into an old acquaintance who shows him a Newport box with a pipe inside. He relapses immediately for three days, misses Mother's Day entirely. That night, suicidal again, he receives a series of calls: first from Jordan, then from his tough sponsor, who gives him clear direction—go to a sober house, go to daily groups, go to nightly meetings, call people, build structure. Will frauds his urine to get in, but once inside, follows every instruction. He stabilizes. He recounts being 18 months sober now, having been at meetings nearly every night, with a recent slip in commitment due to chasing an “intimate partner godshot” that didn’t work out. You reassure him that it’s fine and that balance is part of recovery. More or less thats the whole thing! On a brand new fucko, crackead episode of that good old dopey show!

Transcribed - Published: 6 January 2026

Episode Notes: Intro & New Year Kickoff — First Friday 2026; Cosmo Lombino (Queen of Melrose) joins for epic interview; Dave undecided but leaning into full-week schedule. Personal Vibes — Family crisis tease (more next week); Avatar: The Last Airbender obsession with 7-year-old; Breaking Bad rewatch debate (lacks heart vs. Sopranos/Wire). Listener Interactions — Spotify comments (mushroom hunting tips, Foxy clarification, small-town relatability); voicemails (lunchbox theft windfall gone wrong, Hexen paranoia nightmare); Minnesota Matt's crack-in-exam email. Guest Spotlight: Cosmo Lambino — Harlem mob kid roots, gay coming-of-age, freebase spiral, MacArthur Park bottom, Tarzana turnaround, daily steps/meditation routine, Soft White Underbelly fame, current 8+ years sober. Recovery & Community — Daily reprieve emphasis; Queen & Sober meetings; shout-outs to admins, contributors, Canadians challenge.

Transcribed - Published: 3 January 2026

Cold Open & Intro Dave kicks off the new year reflecting on 2025 blessings (Steve Poltz's enduring impact on Dopey and his life) while teasing whether he'll stick with the punishing "Five Days of Dopey" schedule ("I'm going to do it until I don't want to fucking do it"). Personal Reflections Dave recounts meeting Poltz at the 2023 Park City Song Summit (thanks to a tip from Dave Margulies of High Sierra Festival), calling it a "blessing" despite initial skepticism. He ranks Poltz in the top tier of Dopey guests (poll results: #3 behind Chris prison stories and Jessa Reed collab). Plugs for emails/voicemails ([email protected]) for recovery tips, stories, or a potential "Five Days of Dopey" song parody (12 Days of Christmas style—Dave starts with meth pee and crack heads). Listener Comments & Emails Reads Spotify comments from last replay (praise for community feel during holidays, Foxy Voodoo's wild meth pee/vomit story). Australian listener shares white-knuckle sobriety struggles (booze/microdosing pot, past speed IV/ecstasy) and memories of drunk parenting horrors. Main Feature: Classic Steve Poltz Interview Replay (September 2023) The legendary singer-songwriter gets raw in his first Dopey appearance (recorded in Dave's trashed Park City hotel room): altar boy wine thefts, early guitar lessons, Rugburns wildness (head-smashing beams, 56 stitches, destroying bars), cocaine obsession, mushroom-fueled job interview escape, Europe street busking, co-writing "You Were Meant for Me" with Jewel (full origin story in Baja Mexico), Ramones opener chaos, crack spiral after friend's murder, rehab surrender. Ends with Poltz's favorite E.E. Cummings gratitude prayer and reflections on flow, heroes' journeys, and staying sober. Wrap-Up Dave gushes over Poltz's storytelling mastery, urges recovery outreach, shares quick tips (meetings, calls, sponsor, steps, service, meditation/prayer/exercise). Family update: Linda's mom's 80th birthday lasagna duty, outdoor playdate in freezing cold.

Transcribed - Published: 1 January 2026

It’s been a “rough fucking week” on the home front Despite that, he’s grateful to be sober and alive heading into 2026. Unsure about continuing “Five Days of Dopey” in January — part of him wants to, part doesn’t. Plugs Patreon heavily: $5/month gets Wednesday recovery Zooms + Patreon Zoom + Tuesday show + sticker; higher tiers = ad-free, more stickers, socks, beanie. New Year’s resolutions (not usually his thing, but for fun): restart Dopey Fitness Challenge, continue daily meditation/prayer, start a writing practice, explore Tai Chi for fitness (joints worry him about running). Listener Email: Craig Marsden Old-timer Craig (listening since <10 episodes existed) encourages Dave to keep five days a week for community growth. Loves the show’s development, believes full-throttle effort could get Dave “out of the deli for good.” Appreciates Dave’s interviewing style evolving post-Chris. Defends listening with ads (helps revenue); notes weird gambling/alcohol ads slip through (Dave says he told networks no booze/gambling). Hopes someone has the “lost early episodes” (2, 4, maybe 6, 8, 10 missing). Main Feature: Dave’s Share on “One Show at a Time” Podcast Dave plays his recent guest appearance on the hippie/Yellow Balloon recovery podcast One Show at a Time (hosted by Benji, Lauren, Eric Papa Smurf). Rapid-fire qualification: childhood staph infection, codependency as first “drug,” early drinking disasters, weed love, acid at Grateful Dead, college expulsion for dealing, first heroin (loved it), career highs/lows (TV production, MTV, firing after detox), California meth/heroin spiral, mom’s leukemia death, relapse while girlfriend pregnant, supervised visitation shame, begging to smoke weed, finally desperate in AA at 41. Key moments: obsession lifted, taking suggestions (90-in-90, sponsor, steps, prayer), starting Dopey with Chris, losses (Dave Marshall, Todd, Chris), gratitude/service as antidotes. Post-share: attendees shower Dave with love/gratitude (Ivan Neville & Anders Osborne pop in randomly). Dave felt embarrassed but deeply grateful. Post-Share Discussion with Hosts Dave, Benji, Lauren, and Eric Papa Smurf debrief the share: Why clinician’s “you’re young, you’ll be okay” was the wrong message. Codependency as first addiction (childhood sleepovers = safety). Preferring AA over NA despite being a drug addict (went to AA fully desperate). Medication/shame stories (mom’s Percocets, cat’s liquid Xanax, post-hernia opiates). Sponsoring a kid who smokes weed medicinally (Dave’s open-minded take). Surrender = joining the winning side; recovery as “reverse strip poker” (layer protection) or subtraction (remove blocks). New Year’s Eve Wrap-Up Dave & daughter Susan watched an 8 PM ball drop/fireworks in Patchogue, ate cheeseburgers/fries, peanut-butter brookies, hot chocolate. Home update: 3D printer gift confusion, Harry Potter audiobook, Knicks game ahead. Grateful for 2025 highs (Rolling Stone feature, big guests, community) despite lows (deaths, Nick Reiner fallout). Final message: reach out if struggling, stay strong.

Transcribed - Published: 1 January 2026

Special Guest Joins — A special guest hops on remotely, reminiscing about COVID-era recordings (attic sessions, phone episodes with Linda). Shares a wild story about a bum flicking a cigarette that lands right in his mouth outside CVS. Spotify Comments Read-Aloud — From the previous Tuesday episode: New listener appreciates the Nick Reiner discussions and wants more old interviews. Tease of Zoe’s sharp Patreon critique of Dave’s Reiner handling. Richard calls it a “pathological obsession” and hopes Dave moves on by spring 2026. Romanil agrees it’s sensationalizing and suggests smudging the attic with sage. Nick Reiner Update — Dave announces he depublished the Reiner compilation episodes due to ongoing backlash and personal guilt (“It’s haunting me”). Listener Email: Andrew Zane — Wild guest pitch from Andrew detailing: Childhood grooming into drugs (Freon, mouthwash, morning glory seeds). Oxy → heroin → Midwest crime spree with girlfriend (scamming hospitals for Dilaudid, possible North Dakota policy changes). Arizona desert era: licking psychedelic Sonoran Desert Toads, first meth. Drunk arrest pushing daughter’s stroller → divorce → more rehab. Xylazine-laced dope → Grindr hookup gone wrong (near sex-trafficking, months-long psychosis). Vyvanse overprescription issues; now mostly sober with kratom (harm reduction) and occasional toad psychedelics. Wants to discuss drugs + human trafficking on dating apps and stimulant overprescription. Deep Dive Topic — Sex trafficking & dating apps: coercion shades, pimps forcing partners/girlfriends, why victims stay, real dangers on Grindr/Tinder (motels along I-95, etc.). Dave reads the legal definition and admits past confusion about consent/coercion. Cliffhanger Tease — Dave and the special guest are starting to work on a movie script together — full details exclusive to Patreon subscribers (patreon.com/dopeypodcast).

Transcribed - Published: 30 December 2025

Dave reflects on winding down 2025, feeling like crap but taking the kids to the magical Elizabeth A. Morton National Wildlife Refuge in Sag Harbor, NY (officially the Elizabeth A. Morton National Wildlife Refuge – 4.8 stars on Google from 775 reviews). In winter, chickadees, titmice, and woodpeckers land on your hand to eat seeds – described as pure magic and the "opposite of addiction." Family hit with a stomach virus over Christmas → Dave jokes about wanting to catch it to skip work and binge The Sopranos. Doubts about "Five Days of Dopey" in January → intermittent Wednesday/Thursday shows. Send opinions to [email protected]. Plugs ad-free listening on Patreon (patreon.com/dopeypodcast) and calls for positive iTunes reviews amid backlash. Addresses controversy from replaying Nick Reiner episodes → got called "Narcissist Grifter," "Exploitative Jew," etc. Explains intent was to share old conversations without editorializing; turned down media interviews. Reads old listener emails: Wendy: Idea for a recovery-only social media platform (no bans for "junky" content). James D. Hart: Interracial bands like Prince and the Revolution (inspired by Sly & the Family Stone), Jimi Hendrix Experience, Smashing Pumpkins. Christy Adams: Praise for an old episode on neuroscience/meth/GLP-1 meds; 3 years clean. Stickers/socks for email readers/voicemail players → send to [email protected]. Classic Darrell Hammond Interview (2017) — Darrell opens up about SNL life, impressions (Clinton, Connery, Trump), childhood trauma/abuse, alcoholism starting at 14, self-harm, a wild Harlem crack house story (mistaken for a cop, defended as "that motherfucker old TV"), stroke ward epiphany leading to lasting sobriety, tools like the St. Francis Prayer, connection, and the "law of threes." Dave re-reads old Spotify comments on the Hammond episode (debate over "This or That" game, mushroom/ketamine/MDMA therapy questions, etc.). Stay strong, Dopey Nation. FuckingToodles for Chris. 😏

Transcribed - Published: 29 December 2025

Holiday Intro & Rant (0:00–4:41): David spreads seasonal cheer (Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa), brags about his perfect December weekday streak, congratulates listener Nana/Lily on 6 years sober, then hilariously unloads on lackluster gifts – loving stuff from wife/daughter, but dad’s “Buddhist monk” collarless shirt and mother-in-law’s quirky picks (How to Raise a Jewish Dog, neon vest, car-seat filler) get roasted before flipping to a gratitude reminder. Spotify Love & Critique (4:41–11:37): Fans praise David's big heart, humor, Alan's sharp wisdom (Adderall suspicions fly), the Alec Baldwin interview, and addiction's universal reach; one listener pushes back on the Nick Reiner focus feeling too personal. Sponsors Spotlight: Oro Recovery (compassion in SoCal), Mountainside (where Dopey began), Link Diagnostics (treatment-focused tox lab), Orchard on the Brazos (luxurious Texas spot), Recovery Unplugged (music-based healing). Wild Listener Stories (13:56–25:42): Jeremy Turner voicemail: stole Viagra/Oxy, shot the wrong one → killer headache, zero results. James D. Hart email: meth/porn “twack fests” leaving skin raw and lotion-fried phones useless. Jay email: brutal 3-year benzo withdrawal with psychosis/hypersensitivity (BIND), calls for a dedicated episode. Montana Ruckman (prison) via Nicole: free meth turned bath salts → job paranoia, hearing phantom music, reality warping. Jen Dawson's Journey (25:42+): Roots: Felt alien in stable family; early Adderall prescription → weed and wild Southern “nipple” psilocybin at 13-14. Hippie plunge: '99 Phish show hooked her instantly → tour life, Blind Melon vibes, nodding-out boyfriend. Chaos peaks: Soulmate Jackson → crystal meth, fake IDs, pistol-whip incident (then self-suturing). Dark turns: Jackson's tragic death; daughter Cyprus; spider bite horror → near-amputation and pain-clinic opiate paradise; research chemicals triggering seizures; full heroin/shooting descent. Rock bottom: Raid while pregnant, stillbirth of son Dakota → overdose attempt → multiple jail stints. Redemption: Court-ordered year-long program sparked real surrender; ditched disability for college (first in family); rebuilt custody with Cyprus; sweat lodges for spiritual grief work; found family in Yellow Balloon sober jam-band world. Today: 11 years sober (April 14, 2014), raising horses with daily Lakota rituals, helping others in treatment, and living proof recovery rocks.

Transcribed - Published: 26 December 2025

-Ray's Song -Spotify Comments -Jessa Reed -Tweaker Action -Voicemails!

Transcribed - Published: 25 December 2025

Notes / Timestamps (for show notes or description) 0:00 – Ray Brown's Twisted "All I Want for Christmas" parody about heroin; Christmas Eve gratitude and Patreon plug. 2:20 – Sponsor & Recovery Zoom Curious Elixirs promo; weekly Wednesday 9am NY Recovery Zoom for Patrons. 4:40 – Letter from Montana in Prison Toastmasters, college dreams (LCDC program), cubicle art, stereotypes, and holiday wishes. 9:40 – Main Interview: Rachel Hechtman Early drinking/coke at 14, boarding school (Berkshire School), ADHD diagnosis, Dartmouth dealing, psychedelics, psychosis, secret marriage to Giuseppe, COVID sobriety via walking with dog George. 59:20 – Sobriety Path Dry January success, 80lb weight loss, creating @soberincentralpark, coaching, sober events. 1:17:20 – Spotify Comments Listener reactions to Bob Forrest episode and Nick Reiner discussion. 1:27:50 – Closing & Trinity's"Good So Bad"

Transcribed - Published: 24 December 2025

Key Notes / Timestamps (for show notes or description) 0:00 – Intro & Daily Chaos Dave recaps a whirlwind day: school runs, AA, commuting, disastrous Christmas Eve Eve shopping at L.L. Bean. 2:40 – Patreon Show Tease Ray Brown visits Dave's dad in Manhattan; Alan initially refuses to join but caves. 4:00 – Spotify Comments Dave reads and responds to listener feedback on the Nick Reiner episodes – gratitude, editing honesty, hindsight bias, and dangers of interviewing active users. 7:20 – Episode Clip Begins Banter with Ray (Stephen) about names, stage names, coming out, and his father's legacy. 9:40 – Dad Joins Alan reluctantly sits down; discussion about Nick Reiner trial, Hamilton Morris drama, and Ray's infamous YouTube non-defense. 13:50 – Ray's Book Club Ban Story Ray recounts recycling a Walt Whitman song for a queer Brooklyn theme and possibly getting banned. 15:50 – Christmas Carols Dave and Ray perform "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" (multiple verses) and "Silver Bells" live. 21:00 – Original Song Ray performs his original "I Wanna Be Good" – themes of bad desires, escaping the city, and seeking peace. Closing Holiday recovery message: Stay together, go to meetings, help others. Merry Christmas from Dopey!

Transcribed - Published: 23 December 2025

Dave explains why he chose to release this replay amid the Nick Reiner tragedy Listener reactions and Spotify comments to recent Nick Reiner episodes Early Dopey recordings featuring Dave, Chris O’Connor, and Nick Reiner Capturing a time before addiction and mental illness fully escalated Philosophical debates about recovery vs. controlled use Nick injures his ankle playing street basketball in NYC Turning down pain pills to stay sober for Dopey Confessions about past weed, booze, and honesty on the show Classic Dopey banter, arguments, and people-pleasing fights Stories of shooting Wellbutrin, benzo addiction, seizures, and detox Rehab memories, Alina Lodge stories, and treatment center culture Nick’s story of tripping on LSD and being talked down all night by his father Reflections on parenting, compassion, and non-punitive care Nick calls into a later episode from the Chateau Marmont Discussion of Nick’s documentary project about his grandfather Dave reflects on recovery, tragedy, and the importance of staying connected

Transcribed - Published: 22 December 2025

Multiple Christmas / holiday messages from Dopey Nation Listener milestones (100 days sober) Gratitude for Dopey Zoom marathon meetings Dave reads Spotify comments and emails Emphasis on unity, togetherness, and recovery during the holidays Tragedy & Reflection Dave addresses the deaths of Rob and Michelle Reiner Discusses shock, confusion, grief, and the arrest of Nick Reiner Acknowledges the emotional toll of covering tragedy connected to the show Encourages doubling down on recovery and connection Alec Baldwin Interview (Core Segment) Grew up on Long Island; limited money delayed early drug use First cocaine use in a bathroom in NYC after landing TV work Drinking culture on soap operas and in NYC bars Studio 54 work as a waiter (after its peak) Move to LA leads to heavy cocaine use and drinking Driving intoxicated becomes a major fear Overdoses in an Oregon hotel room (tachycardia, hospitalization) Gets sober in February 1985 Finds AA through acting class intervention AA becomes full social life; cuts off drinking friends Spirituality didn’t get him sober — it kept him sober Talks openly about depression, despair, and suicidal thoughts Family, wife, and children become anchors Discusses divorce, family court, and systemic injustice Talks about New Mexico case, legal stress, and health decline Emphasizes “just don’t drink today” mindset Quick “this or that” game at the end Post-Interview Content More holiday messages from guests and listeners Dave’s dad, Alan Manheim, calls in Long discussion about Nick Reiner, resurfaced clips, and online backlash Dave shares hurt over being labeled exploitative, antisemitic attacks Dad defends Dopey and its positive impact Discussion of irony: Dopey finally gets massive attention through tragedy Rolling Stone potentially asking Dave to write about the situation Reflections on parenting addicts and supporting family members Closing message: reach out, stay connected, ask for help Ending

Transcribed - Published: 19 December 2025

Dopey 1 & 2 Replay - Figuring out the show. Retelling our relationship Chris tells a story 19 MCDOUBLES with Cheese! Chris's 4th Rehab Chris out on jail Leaving treatment Dave Seizing

Transcribed - Published: 18 December 2025

Emergency response to Nick Reiner case and public reaction Addiction + psychosis + violence (especially stimulants) Failure of psychiatric safety nets and crisis response systems Parents, shame, and pressing charges against addicted children Why families often have no place left to turn Celebrity kids, identity, resentment, and survival Historical examples of addiction-related family violence The evolution of addiction motivations (pleasure vs. numbness) Millennials, despair, and modern drug culture Bob Forrest’s work with police, psych hospitals, and PET teams Music as connection: punk, Dylan, Clapton, Layla, Keith Morris Depression, suicidal ideation, and staying alive for your kids Christmas memories in addiction vs. recovery Narcan, harm reduction, and moral hypocrisy Defending Dopey against scapegoating and bad-faith criticism

Transcribed - Published: 17 December 2025

Opening Dave welcomes Erin Carr; jokes about her elite equestrian past and chaotic scheduling. They reflect on how close they’ve become despite not knowing each other long. Erin’s Election Erin won a seat on a NYC Education Council. Work is “more than expected,” with conflict but also progress. She approaches policy case-by-case and avoids personalizing disagreements. Generational Talk Gen X nostalgia: grateful they came of age before social media. Appreciation for 90s/2000s music era and early internet. Dopey Press + Nick Reiner Case Erin learns Dave is suddenly “the Nick Reiner expert” in the news. Dave describes doing ABC News without deep prep. Social backlash: people saying his compilation episode was “too soon.” The Daily Dopey Strategy Dave explains putting out an episode every day. Monday replays, Tuesday Patreon/teasers, Wednesday “dose,” Thursday archive, Friday main show. Ethics of the Nick Reiner Compilation Erin’s critique: title framed it as “The Nick Reiner Tragedy,” centering the alleged perpetrator rather than the victims. Dave explains intention: to compile all Nick content because press and fans were asking. Discussion of ethics, stigma, addiction vs violence narratives. They settle on retitling it “The Reiner Family Tragedy.” Media + Stigma Erin: important to avoid framing mental illness or addiction as inherent violence. Dave: acknowledges the emotional weight, his personal connection, and desire not to exploit the moment. Reiner Family Horror Erin describes the magnitude of the tragedy: daughter finding parents, multiple family losses. Conversation about denial, shock, and the devastation for surviving family. Closing Dave ends with a quick Patreon pitch due to time constraints (Susan’s Nutcracker show).

Transcribed - Published: 16 December 2025

Nick’s background / family Son of Rob Reiner, grandson of Carl Reiner; grew up in a talented, high-pressure family. Felt like the “one who made everyone unhappy” compared to high-achieving siblings. Early drug path & relapse setup Wanted coke → reconnected with old dealer → introduced to heroin. Escalated into weeks-long run on heroin/coke. Admits he wanted to return to weed/pills lifestyle eventually. Cocaine heart attack / Chris at hospital Had a cocaine-induced heart attack on a plane while on Suboxone. Wakes up in Boston hospital with Chris unexpectedly at bedside. Chris visits him multiple times through detox. Treatment shuffle → Maine sober living Detox in Boston → halfway house → another program → eventually Maine sober living. Miserable, bored, angry; talks to Dave throughout. Planned to “play it straight” long enough to go home and use again. Return to weed/Adderall Smokes weed & takes Adderall; sees weed as a “preventative measure” to avoid harder drugs. Says weed gives him “nothing” but it’s part of his lifestyle. The “Cherry Red” story At 14–15, stole $200 from parents to hire a sex worker from Craigslist. Lasted seconds. Called her back for round two. Ate a strong edible beforehand. Meth/coke guest-house destruction Spun out on uppers for days. Punched out TV, lamp, everything in the guest house. Parents forced him to leave → beginning of spiral. Listener Email: rehab sexual exploitation Man with sexual insecurities manipulated into sexual relationship by case manager. Filmed, given Suboxone, videos accidentally saved to treatment center network → exposed. Spiraled into fraud, oxymorphone binge. Eventually recovered; shares about secrecy, shame, and relationships in recovery. Dave + Chris reflections Dave admits weed made him selfish/unreliable back then. Chris calls himself a chronic people-pleaser; tries to push Nick toward recovery. Both express concern about Nick repeating old patterns. Chris’s death Dave processes shock, anger, and surreal timing (clean years vs losing two friends in weeks). Mentions outpouring of Dopey Nation love. Announces the holiday “Chrismis” and the release of a Chris lost episode. Closing Nick refuses to say “stay strong” or “toodles” until pressured. Dave signs off with grief and appreciation for the Dopey Nation.

Transcribed - Published: 15 December 2025

Andy Dick experienced a near-fatal overdose from fentanyl disguised as cocaine. The conversation highlights the chaotic nature of addiction and its impact on relationships. David expresses concern for Andy's well-being and encourages him to seek treatment. Andy reflects on his past experiences with sobriety and the challenges of maintaining it. The dialogue reveals the complexities of family dynamics in the context of addiction. Humor is used as a coping mechanism throughout the conversation. David and Andy discuss the concept of stability and whether it truly exists for them. The importance of friends and support systems in the recovery process is emphasized. Andy shares his thoughts on having fun and the role of laughter in his life. The conversation ends with a light-hearted yet serious note about potential interventions for Andy.

Transcribed - Published: 12 December 2025

Dave drinks Ryze coffee; recording room freezing. Announces 5-episode-per-week December schedule. Community / Milestones Lorne 3 years sober! Matty: 5 years sober! Send your anniversaries/clean time to [email protected] Spotify Comments (Darrell Hammond Episode) Complaints about “This or That.” Defenses of the game. Possum jokes. Psychedelics-in-recovery debates. Questions about Darrell’s sobriety. Praise for interview. Random comments: Lime Drive, Mike’s Amazing Stuff. Sticker requests. Dave reacts to each comment. Voicemail: Henry (LSD Trip) Two hits of acid alone in college. House fumigation tent becomes “circus.” Panic about pesticides mutating him. Aztec gods in ceiling to Butthole Surfers music. Becomes “one with his bike.” Now 15 months sober. Email: Jerry PCP fights with cops. Overdoses, ventilators. Robbing heroin dealers. Discovered Dopey by searching “heroin.” Outraged Dave hasn’t seen Joe Dirt. Hairy Tongue Will: Early Chaos Running with Richie, Mike, Lenny Crack/heroin/coke everywhere House turning into a trap house Lenny passed out after multi-day run “Demons taking over” Work & Addiction Coexistence 16-hour days as electrician Co-workers cheering on his party life DUI → probation → manipulating house arrest Strange stabilizers (electrical job giving structure) Jail Episodes First jail stay → Montauk Lighthouse work crew Felt purpose, respect Ate egg sandwiches, smoked black-and-milds with guards Jail almost felt positive COVID Era + Workaholic Sobriety Heavy work travel Money piles, crypto, closet of cash Reads self-help, becomes rigid but dry Drinks only in Tennessee with new girlfriend Casino Crack Spiral Old fashioned → cocaine → crack in hotel Boss unaware of severity Crack obsession fully reignites Builds crack connections nationwide while traveling Hallucinations, panic, moving hotels Deaths & Trauma Mike dies; father selling sneakers from his dead son’s body Richie dies after 2 years sober Will spirals into resentment, jealousy, wanting to die Collapse at Home 26-day run Antihistamine psychosis cover story Girlfriend stays nine months Selling stories to dealers (“trust fund baby”) Getting shot at by a dealer Chase through Bayshore, wild escape Major Arrest Huge charges (“five decades worth”) Thinks life is over Bail reform → immediate release Uses again for 17 days St. Chris Suicidal Guard outside his room Breakthrough: “You put yourself here” Goes all-in on program Court gives favorable deal Goes home early Mother’s Day Relapse Runs into old acquaintance with pipe Uses, vanishes 3 days Bottom moment: wants to die again Real Recovery Begins Sponsor gives clear direction Sober house, daily groups, nightly meetings Fraudulent urine to enter sober house Works program aggressively 18 months sober (recent flirtation with distraction)

Transcribed - Published: 12 December 2025

December Dopey Schedule & Retro Replay ConceptDave explains the new 5-day Dopey week: Monday – replay of the Friday interview Tuesday – Patreon teaser Wednesday – new Wednesday Dose (this week: Jason Williamson from Sleaford Mods) Thursday – Retro Replay / Greatest Hits (this week: Chris’s Prison Stories Part 1) Friday – new full episode (coming: “Hall of Fame Dopey Fucko” Harry Tongue Will)He reads recent Spotify comments about Caroline “Mountain Girl” Garcia and requests for more comments in exchange for stickers (and socks). REPLAY Dopey 67- Alan Calls In – Reviews, Turpitude, and Fake JailDave’s dad Alan calls, pissed that Dave didn’t call the house phone and that the site’s review scroll is too fast. He complains his positive call-in reviews never show, defends using the word “turpitude,” and tells a story about being “arrested” for a film school project at Fort Apache—complete with a cop pulling a gun, handcuffing him to a hot pipe, and throwing him in a destroyed cell for 5–10 minutes. Dave and Chris clown him and promise him his own “Alan’s Corner.” Segway to Chris’s Real Prison TimeFrom Alan’s staged “arrest,” Dave pushes Chris to tell his real jail stories. Chris sets up his first bid: 6-month sentence in Orange County Jail after robbing a vet for phenobarbital, fighting cops, and picking up multiple charges (robbery, commercial burglary, four assaults on cops, GBI on an officer, possession). Booking, Beatings & ClassificationAt intake, the guards see “assault on law enforcement” on his file and rough him up during fingerprinting—screaming “stop resisting,” slamming his head into plexiglass, and twisting his fingers. Classification makes him a yellow bander (higher-risk) and sends him into a tougher, all-cell unit with seasoned guys. First Night: Becoming the “Falcon”In his first 4-man cell, the Woods’ shot-caller Justin Krause (swastika tattoo) takes Chris under his wing. A white inmate named Olson is screaming racist slurs on the tier (“fuck the n******, fuck the spics, fuck the red and white”), which could spark a race riot. Because Olson is white, a white guy has to beat him up. Justin turns to the brand-new Chris and says: “You wanna be my falcon?”Chris spends all night terrified, then at chow time runs with Justin into Olson’s cell. Justin wrecks Olson with one shot while Chris sneaks in one weak “girly” punch. The tier still cheers “new fish, new fish” and he accidentally earns early credibility. Politics, Old-Timers & Almost Getting Turned OutChris explains the politics between Woods, Sureños, Norteños, and blacks; how alliances change between county and prison, and how guys with level-4 yard time expect violence and “no hands” policies (stabbing instead of fistfights). He realizes later that an older celly Billy was quietly disrespecting him and that, if this had happened a year later, he probably would have had to fight him to maintain respect. Supermax Glass Cells, Signing, and Staff HustlesChris is later moved to a supermax-style glass cell unit where you can’t mix races in the day room and have to sign through the glass using lightning-fast finger-spelling. He starts writing letters to judges for guys who can’t write, turning literacy into a jailhouse hustle. Pruno, the “Happy Card,” and Shooting Meth with the BinkyNew celly Eddie from Anaheim teaches him how to make pruno in the toilet with pears and hoarded fruit. Then Eddie arranges a “happy card”—a greeting card sprayed/soaked in meth, worth almost an 8-ball. Chris has his girlfriend send money out during visit via written note on the glass, and weeks later the card arrives.They use a homemade syringe (“binky”) built from a pen shaft, afro pick, elastic, sandwich bag, and rubber from a shower sandal—the only real part is the metal tip, which has been up multiple asses to hide it. Chris shoots meth in jail and quickly learns how dangerous that combination is. Staph Infection & The Forbidden ButtonWhile tweaking and covered with spreading staph (up his neck and all over his arms), Chris and Eddie get into a fight after Chris says “on my mother’s life” and triggers Eddie’s trauma over his dead mom. Chris realizes how instantly violence can explode.Meanwhile his staph gets so bad it’s life-threatening. There’s an unwritten rule: you NEVER push the emergency button or you get smashed by guards. Even Eddie is like, “I don’t know, man.” Chris finally hits it anyway. Guards scream at him over the speaker, but when one sees his body, he instantly says they’ll get him to a doctor. They shotgun him with antibiotics, antifungals, and steroids. Chris later hooks up with the woman who visited him and gives her a medication-resistant staph, which lingers for her even after his clears. He feels guilty but admits he was in a totally insane headspace. Jailhouse Dark Comedy: The Button Beating & Steve KotkeChris talks about laughing harder in jail than anywhere else in his life. One mentally ill guy threatens to push the button because he’s hungry. The white shot-caller tells him “go ahead.” The guards yell over the PA “Do NOT push the button!” as he shuffles toward it. The second he touches it, a side door flies open and the COs beat the shit out of him. Chris also tells stories about Steve Kotke, a twitchy, Jesus-loving wino who cycles in and out of jail. Chris leaves Steve a brown bag outside his cell; Steve thinks it’s commissary food, tells Chris he has “a heart of gold,” then opens it to find nothing but trash and candy wrappers. Using “fishing lines” (bedsheet ropes under the cell doors), Chris passes Steve a note that just says “People are talking.” When Steve panics and asks what that means, Chris sends back “Can’t talk, people are watching,” then cuts the line—leaving Steve to spiral alone all night. Race, Respect, and How He Could’ve Become a MonsterChris gets honest about how the jail environment warped his thinking. He remembers silently thinking “they” about the loud black card players near the bubble in a way that felt racially charged and hateful, and how scary it was to notice that in himself. He explains how, in jail and prison, fear and respect slowly replace love, and how easy it would’ve been to get “turned out” into a full-on white-supremacist prison identity if he’d kept catching time without family support. Wrap-Up: Dave Reflects on Chris & Early DopeyBack in the present, Dave talks about how painful and beautiful it is to hear these stories, how proud Chris was of his prison experience and storytelling, and how much he contributed to what Dopey became. He shouts out the 142 episodes with Chris, reminds listeners that this was super early-recovery Dave saying cringey shit, and closes with love for Chris, the Dopey Nation, and “fucking toodles for Chris.” Searchable Keywords (copy-paste) Dopey podcast, Dopey Retro Replay, Chris’s prison stories, Orange County Jail stories, jail pruno hooch, jailhouse meth binky, happy card meth, jail staph infection, pushing the emergency button jail, Woods and Sureños politics, jail race politics, Fort Apache Bronx story, Alan Manheim turpitude, Dopey greatest hits, Chris relapse and overdose, Dopey Nation stickers socks Patreon

Transcribed - Published: 11 December 2025

Intro – How Jason got on Dopey A listener tells Dave to get Jason from Sleaford Mods. Dave stalks him on Instagram until he replies. Jason checks in from cold, dark Nottingham. Early life: Grantham, parents, punk, and Top of the Pops Jason grows up in Grantham, a dead-quiet market town. First connection to music: Blondie, ABBA, Adam & The Ants, Dr. Feelgood, Top of the Pops, pop videos and ABBA the Movie. Parents split, he meets his stepbrothers and is introduced to punk at age 10 via the Sex Pistols. Punk trickles slowly to small towns, second-wave bands like The Exploited, GBH, Discharge, English Dogs. Meat factory hell & knowing he didn’t want that life Works 12-hour shifts in a fresh-food / TV dinner factory cutting meat. Describes brutal “initiation” culture—older guys nailing you to the chopping board, wrapping people in pallet wrap, dragging them in front of the women. Realizes, “I did not want to do that for the rest of my life,” but drugs help numb him enough to keep working. Music vs. drugs: Weller, mods, ecstasy and rave/club culture Music comes first: early love of The Jam and Paul Weller; then Stone Roses and the whole late-’80s/early-’90s scene. He resists drinking and weed until around 17, thinking it’s probably not a good idea. Then: booze, weed, speed, LSD and eventually ecstasy. Describes club and rave culture as feeling like infinite possibility—no one wants to fight, football violence fades, it feels like a weird utopia. He gets pulled toward acting and drama school but can’t afford the fees, uses music as the new dream. Public Enemy, electronica, and the birth of Sleaford Mods Sees Public Enemy at Rock City: air-raid sirens, S1W security squad, Chuck D and Flav—“my Sex Pistols moment.” Gets tired of traditional guitar-bass-drums bands and moves into electronic projects. Discovering he can just show up, grab a mic, and someone else handles beats on a computer. Sleaford Mods is born in 2004: he shouts over a looped death-metal sample, has a eureka moment and realizes he’s finally found his own voice and formula. Early Sleaford Mods tracks are built from samples; he later meets Andrew but the core is always Jason’s vocal/lyric style. Cocaine, MCAT, crack, heroin chasing and the porn spiral Tries coke in London but hates how it turns his friends into selfish, dark, quiet arseholes. Coke becomes central later in Nottingham when ecstasy culture fades and bar culture + cocaine take over. He uses speed, then a cheap research-chemical drug MCAT (“like coke, speed and ecstasy mixed”) and occasionally chases heroin; crack never really hits because he’s already full of coke. Describes how addiction and work life feed each other: substances make brutal jobs bearable while killing hope. His real bottom behavior: buying a gram, going home alone, watching pornography all night for days; later doing the same thing isolated in hotel rooms on tour. Porn + coke: “eggs and bacon” and trauma Says cocaine and porn go together for him “like eggs and bacon / cars and diesel.” Explains the appeal: he can’t get an erection anyway, but the visual world and voyeurism are the draw. Builds an insular, secret universe where he controls everything and doesn’t risk being hurt in real-life relationships. Ties it back to not being parented, not being seen, being hurt in relationships, and never being taught how to give or receive love. Talks about PTSD and “euphoric recall” around those binges and how long it takes to emotionally disarm those memories. Childhood trauma: stillbirth, ECT, Valium and the “wife swap” At age two, his mum has a stillbirth; the baby (Nicola) has severe spina bifida. Mum goes into acute depression; treated with electroshock therapy and becomes addicted to Valium. He basically isn’t parented for several years; dad is a womanizer seeking attention elsewhere. Parents end up in a bizarre partner swap: his dad gets with a married woman, his mum gets with that woman’s husband, they literally swap houses on the same estate. He describes his family as stuck in a “misery cycle” that none of them want to break. Nervous breakdowns, Europe, and being “vacant” as a father By the time the band blows up, he’s had multiple nervous breakdowns, lost jobs, and been thrown out of places he rented. His wife Claire is doing both roles, father and mother, while he’s “vacant” and touring. On the road, he mostly isolates in hotel rooms, getting obliterated on drugs and porn instead of partying socially. Success gives him cash—no more dealers texting about debts, merch money in his hands—and everything ramps up. The bottom: wife leaves with the kids & the beer down the drain His wife takes their daughter and newborn son and leaves to a hotel for about a week. Jason comes home after a two- or three-day coke run; the house is empty. A friend stops by with curry and a can of lager. Jason goes outside, looks at the beer, and pours it down the drain. Decides to stop drinking, and because booze was his gateway, he stops cigarettes, weed and cocaine the same day. After a few weeks his wife tells him, “You’ve never been this clean.” He calls it his last chance. Therapy, complex trauma and breaking the cycle Early therapists tell him his main issue is trauma more than pure physical addiction and don’t push 12-step. Meets a trauma psychologist at Nottingham University—after a 10-minute history the guy says, “I’ll see you.” Gets diagnosed with complex trauma: a long chain of circumstantial hits that fed all his erratic, self-destructive behavior. Does years of psychotherapy, then moves to an inner-child therapist who has him talk to himself as a kid. Admits he came to see his first therapist as a father figure. No contact with either parent now; says he wanted to break the family pattern and did, with his wife and kids. Volunteers at a local center that feeds and clothes people, including folks with heavy addiction. Mental health, men, and friendship Talks about how men in particular struggle to talk, keep things solitary, and carry shame. Shares that he doesn’t have many close friends and sometimes beats himself up for not being able to “save” people still using. Believes mental health awareness is here to stay but there’s still a low-level taboo. Nerdy music lightning round Pistols vs. Clash, Iggy vs. Lou, Weller vs. Rod Stewart, Oasis vs. Blur, Stone Roses vs. Blur, Public Enemy vs. Beastie Boys, etc. Lots of British music nerdery and Jason shit-talking his own personal pantheon in a loving way. Ends with Jason promising to hit New York with Sleaford Mods, and Dave offering friendship if he ever needs it.

Transcribed - Published: 10 December 2025

Tuesday Teaser! Meditation! Cormac Selby

Transcribed - Published: 9 December 2025

Charlotte McKinney Interview 45 days sober, nervous about committing Comedy as a private escape Heavy past weed use; quitting cold turkey Partying with men as an excuse to use Realizing she was returning to “darkness” from high school Craziest drug moments: taking LSD and going to family dinners / holiday events completely high Codependency, intimacy issues, celibacy experiment Dave shares his own early AA story and obsession with his ex Sponsor talk, boundaries, women’s meetings Rapid-fire game: mushrooms, Prince, heroin vs meth, Pilates vs ketamine

Transcribed - Published: 8 December 2025

Dave is “bursting with gratitude” after finally removing a rotting opossum from his block and throws it in a dumpster instead of giving it a “noble death.” Riff on opossums as disgusting North American marsupials; asks listeners if there’s a grosser animal or another North American marsupial. Reads an Instagram message from Case/Casey: binged almost all episodes, finally joined Patreon, 23 months sober off booze and stolen meds from nursing jobs, loved Dr. Giles in Ep 550, in a diversion program, big fan of Demerol, only criticism is Dave’s Pearl Jam hate. Dave defends his Pearl Jam disdain but says he’d gladly have Eddie Vedder on and loved the Into the Wild soundtrack. Lays out the “daily Dopey” plan: Monday replay (Charlotte McKinney), Tuesday Patreon teaser/Reddit Roundup, Wednesday Dose of Dopey (possibly Jason Williamson of Sleaford Mods), Thursday retro episode with Chris, asks for Chris-episode requests by email. Spotify reviews, Theo Vaughn bleep & Tim Dillon Reads Spotify comments: Laura Ann DiPiro on Laura Ann DiPiro episode sound being fixed by Howie; gratitude message; Todd Snider and Steve Poltz love. Comment about him bleeping a comic’s name (Theo Vaughn) while mentioning David Spade; listener jokes he’s playing it safe hoping to book Theo. Dave admits wanting Theo on, reads comments about “Many Rivers to Cross,” NA vs AA identity language, and Sober influencers. Clarifies his stance: loves NA but it didn’t work for him; he says “alcoholic” in meetings and admits he misquotes AA literature and breaks traditions. Shoutout to longtime Tim Dillon booking attempts; listener thinks Tim would be a huge guest. Steve Cropper tribute & interracial bands riff Pays tribute to late guitarist/songwriter Steve Cropper (Booker T. & the MG’s, Blues Brothers band, Green Onions, “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay”) and tells the story of Cropper finishing “Dock of the Bay” after Otis Redding died. Plays short clips of “Green Onions” and “Dock of the Bay.” Riff on “interracial bands”: lists Booker T. and the MG’s, Sly & the Family Stone, The Specials, Love (probably), Black Moon, Benny Goodman, Miles Davis groups, Jimi Hendrix Experience, Thin Lizzy, Hootie & the Blowfish, Dave Matthews Band; jokes that some were better than others. Mountainside & Link Diagnostics ads Mountainside: detox, 28-day, aftercare, origin of Dopey with Chris, locations in CT, NYC, Long Island; shoutout to John Jones with his phone number and mountainside.com/dopey. Link Diagnostics: boutique tox lab for treatment centers, fast accurate results for emerging substances (kratom, mushroom chocolates, designer drugs), motto “stay positive and test negative.” Voicemail: colonoscopy & propofol Miles from California calls about a colonoscopy: anesthesiologist slowly pushes milky propofol while chatting so he “gets a nice feeling for a little while” then knocks out, but prep is brutal “explosive water” diarrhea. Encourages Dave to get his colonoscopy, says propofol is worth it. Dave jokes about wanting to be “milk-ed” with propofol and wonders why he’d get it without a colonoscopy. Orchard on the Brazos & email: using in rehab Orchard on the Brazos ad: Dan and Brandy, family-run Texas facility, private bedrooms, 132 acres, pond, tennis, gym, chef-prepared meals, “recovery that doesn’t feel like punishment.” Email from Dylan in Canada about using fentanyl in treatment: At 120 mg methadone + clonazepam in three-month rehab, gets welfare deposit, cabs to hospital and secretly scores a teener (1.75g) of purple “FETI” (strongest stuff). Smokes on foil before returning; keeps smoking in room and dayroom, nods in front of nurse for 5 minutes. Refuses UA, makes a scene, rehab can’t find dope/foil/straws and lets him stay; he still graduates. Now three years clean, tapering methadone by 5 mg/month from 40 mg. Dave praises Dylan’s story, jokes it restores his faith in Canadians and wonders if Dylan is a Pearl Jam fan, promises stickers/socks. Dave’s own “using in treatment” stories & invitation California detox: convinces Todd to visit with cigarettes, heroin, and a needle; shoots dope in treatment dayroom and later leaves, wasting his dad’s money. Earlier rehab: young woman gave him Elavil (downer) and he got high before discharge. Clarifies: most satisfying thing is actually getting sober, not using in treatment; invites “using in treatment” stories via email and emphasizes he’s not recommending it. Recovery Unplugged ad Music-based treatment centers in FL, TX, VA, TN, SC, NJ. Higher long-term recovery rates, accepts insurance, in-person and online. Collaboration with manager Doc McGhee on the Elsewhere If program for touring musicians and crew. Repeats that you don’t have to be a musician to benefit. Main interview: Darrell Hammond Opening: “I didn’t do as well as I wanted to” Darrell says he feels he didn’t do as well as he wanted in his career despite being one of SNL’s longest-tenured cast members and current announcer, with a book and documentary. Dave frames him as hugely successful; Darrell says feeling “not enough” is just his nature. Comedy Cellar & distractions Both talk about how distracting crowds, blenders, plates, noise, and outdoor shows can wreck sets. Darrell describes doing the “worst show of his life” at an outdoor Hall of Fame gig next to LaGuardia with nonstop planes; he feels betrayed but powers through and emphasizes never letting the crowd feel you hate them. First drinks & baseball curveballs First drink at 14: stolen six-pack of Busch beers in a Southern ditch under magnolias and Australian pines; two beers turn his world from black-and-white to color—suddenly he likes himself, feels good, sees himself as a good ballplayer. Baseball story: two doubles off an “impossibly talented” pitcher called CPR Bro after correctly guessing curveballs, practiced by hitting wiffle-ball curves—parallels between talent and intuition. Feeling outside & impressions as entry pass As a kid and young adult he feels he doesn’t belong and is “anxiously apart from” the world. Impressions (coaches, parents, celebrities) give him instant entry and acceptance—especially making his mother laugh and feeling oxytocin-type relief. Discusses the “antecedents” of alcoholism: didn’t want to face that trauma and parenting played a role, so he preferred to believe it “came from nowhere.” Trauma, flashbacks & the doctor’s psychodrama Describes multiple psych hospital stays and misdiagnoses (psychotic, schizophrenic, borderline, bipolar, sociopathic) before meeting one doctor who uses psycho-theater/“chair work.” Doctor has him play both himself and his mother in a structured dialogue; buried memories come back in pieces, not all at once. He talks about the Jekyll/Hyde element of alcoholism—rage that feels like another person—and Bill W’s line about “seemingly without provocation” while realizing he often did provoke situations. Abuse, self-blame, and the need to protect the parent Revisits abuse memories (hands slammed in doors, being left places) and explains how he blamed himself (“I slammed my own hand in the door”) because admitting his mother didn’t love or protect him felt like a path to insanity. Says the brain won’t let you think something that would send you permanently over the edge, so it chooses self-blame instead. Alcohol as problem solver & limited cocaine/crack Calls alcohol a “problem solver” that showed up to fix terror and unprocessed anger. Clarifies he wasn’t actually a crack addict—did coke heavily for about four months and used crack once—but mostly his addiction was whiskey/John Barleycorn. Dave jokes that Google says “crack addict”; Darrell corrects the record. The crack-house on 137th Street After SNL, drunk on Jäger in Washington Square Park, a huge guy invites him to “hit the pipe.” They go to a real Harlem crack house; the owner thinks Darrell is police, but the big guy defends him: “He ain’t police. That motherfucker’s on TV.” A topless woman across the room recognizes him: “That’s Clinton.” Darrell calls it the happiest he’s ever been. He notices the 11th-Step (St. Francis) prayer written on the wall and has a psychotic-feeling moment that God is speaking to him. Sponsor’s suicide and long slide First big sober run: 5 years and 7 months of strong program in Orlando—radio job, weight loss, gym, colorful clothes, Emmet Fox “Seven Day Mental Diet” every morning. Sponsor is fired for being gay in a conservative Southern environment and later tells Darrell he’s in love with him; Darrell gently rejects him. Sponsor dies by suicide with a .357, closed casket because of injuries; Darrell gets a voicemail from the man’s young daughter saying their dad killed himself. He internalizes blame (“I partially caused this”), spirals into deep guilt, starts dressing in black and stops trying as hard at life, and then relapses; never gets past a few years sober again for a long time. SNL, drinking, and cutting When he gets SNL, he does not drink on “game day” because he respects the danger and stakes of live TV; he drinks during the week and after the show. Cutting first starts at 19, disappears, then comes roaring back in his 30s and early 40s at the height of his career. Explains cutting as: Creating a solvable crisis that temporarily distracts from overwhelming internal panic/flashbacks. A visible sign/billboard saying “I’m hurting; someone notice.” He hides cuts junkie-style (long sleeves, keeping it under wraps); says Lorne doesn’t micromanage behavior as long as “the ball goes over the fence” on Saturday. Therapy, diagnoses & acting work on meds Talks about being misdiagnosed with multiple disorders before that key trauma-focused doctor. Mentions acting work: Damages, Law & Order: SVU, and Criminal Intent; says he did well in some, but on Lamictal he felt emotionally dulled and couldn’t respond properly to intense scene partners like Vincent D’Onofrio. Impressions, Comedy Cellar & finding the “funny” Early on, NYC clubs reject impressionists as “prop acts,” which feeds his imposter syndrome. He eventually reframes impressions as “the way God instructed me to be funny.” Uses Comedy Cellar stage to workshop characters like Al Gore hundreds of times, learning to exaggerate like a Hirschfeld caricature rather than just “match sonar blips” of a voice. Talks about Jim Downey walking in with a fully formed Gore take before the 2000 debates—syrupy, overbearing school-teacher vibe that finally makes Gore funny. For Clinton, he invents the now-iconic thumb-and-lip combo at the Cellar; recognizes Clinton as someone who genuinely loves being Bill Clinton. Shares stories of Bill Clinton’s charisma, work ethic hosting SNL, talking to grips and gardeners, and his view that what’s most personal is most general and funniest. Stroke ward, terror, and surrender Describes the stroke: artery blockage, six specialists working on him, feeling his throat cut open for surgery and later feeling like he’d been thrown onto bricks. In the stroke ward he hears what he thinks are children but learns it’s adults newly told they’ll never speak again, trying to talk; that sound haunts him. Realizes “I did this”—his thinking and drinking drove him into the ambulance and ward. This is the event that finally makes him desperate enough to accept he’s the problem, give up his own ideas, and beg for a new way to live so he never goes back there. Program today, “law of threes” & connection Daily routine: cognitive therapy, exercise, yoga, meditation, meetings, deliberate connection with others. Uses the “law of threes” from Olympic training: one-third of days feel great, one-third are okay, one-third suck—and that’s normal. Believes connection is the antidote to whatever he is. God, Einstein, babies & serenity Shares a long riff on Einstein watching a girl and a train, gravity applying different force, and “God does not play dice with the universe.” For him, whoever can hang planets, spin a water-covered Earth exactly, and create babies being born is, by human definition, “God.” Admits he used to bargain with God for revenge, awards, and an Oscar/Emmy/Tony/Grammy/Drama Desk, but now sees what he really wanted was inner peace. Imaginary God answer: He’s not killing anyone or handing out awards, but He can offer serenity and peace of mind—Darrell accepts that deal. Religion & closing Shares Mary Shelley’s line as his “religion”: “To improve myself and to contribute to the happiness of others.” Dave runs a “This or That” game that Darrell mostly refuses to answer (too much love/respect for many choices), but he does pick: Stones over Beatles, booze over coke, Clinton over Bush, oxy over Percocet, Ativan over Klonopin, Porky over Daffy, New York over New Orleans, Depakote over lithium. They acknowledge imposter syndrome, how impressions are God’s way of instructing him to be funny, and how recovery is built on admitting he can’t run the show. Outro: Patreon, Safe Spot, stickers, mustard, and recovery Dave calls the conversation soulful, sad, and satisfying; invites feedback at [email protected] and reminds listeners about Patreon (ad-free, extra shows, Wednesday recovery Zoom, monthly Patreon Zoom—moving it to Sunday because he and Linda are going to see Andrew Dice Clay). Does a quick Dice impression: “Jack and Jill went up the hill…” into “she needed the money.” Safe Spot plug for people wanting to get high without dying: 1-800-972-0590, Kimber and Steven. Customstickers.com ad: fast, high-quality stickers, 20% off for Dopey fans. Mike’s Amazing mustard and mayo shoutout as “very high quality products.” Rant about hating social media, sucking at it, Instagram being at risk again, and the Trey Anastasio thing; says it’s stressful and not rewarding. Reflects on sleep, Stranger Things putting him to sleep because Linda only allows watching late with lights off and no phone. Ends with a clear statement that recovery is the best thing that ever happened to him, followed by family, Dopey, and Katz’s (order adjusted depending on who’s listening), and a Steve Cropper RIP/Blues Brothers plug.

Transcribed - Published: 5 December 2025

Replay from June 2022 - Carolyn 'Mountain Girl' Garcia tells her story! From ibogaine in Palo Alto, to LSD with Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters. Going on the road and starting a family with Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead. Ultimately enduring a marriage with a total heroin and cocaine addict as husband and father of her children. This is a very, very special replay of an extra heady episode of the good old Dopey show! Big big shout out to Seth Ferrante for hooking it up!

Transcribed - Published: 4 December 2025

Wednesday Dose intro – Dave launches the mid-week “Wednesday Dose of Dopey,” rambling about post-Thanksgiving cheesecake obsession, dunking bakery cookies into cheesecake, and wrecking himself (and his pants) trying to run with his dog Winnie for the Dopey Fitness Challenge. Listener email – Haley (Mississippi) – Loves the Glenis and Billy Strings episodes, relates to losing both parents, shouts out Dave’s interrupting-but-perfect questions, and promises future stories from homelessness, prison, and IV meth. Dave begs for more emails and voicemails to [email protected] . Miles Davis heroin passage – Dave reads from the Miles Davis autobiography: sliding from snorting to shooting heroin, realizing he has a “habit,” and describing a four-year horror show of heroin/coke in NYC with Sonny Rollins, Jackie McLean, Walter Bishop, etc. Guest: Naughty God (Dakota) – origin story – San Diego kid; sweet young mom, meth-addicted dad, split households. First high at 13 snorting mystery pain pills from a friend’s brother’s room, then full weed-identity kid (Snoop + pot-leaf MySpace). Band life with Jacob Nowell / LAW – Forms LAW with Jacob Nowell (Bradley Nowell’s son). Early years of weed, then coke and speed. Tries to draw a line (no speed for him, no opiates for Jacob), both eventually cross it. Dakota starts showing up high, Jacob gets sober and finally tells him he can’t come to the band anymore. Dakota pretends not to care, then goes home and cries. Orange County run: coke, blues, fetty, heroin – Moves to Dana Point, tight crew in San Clemente’s Triangle, dealing/using coke nightly. Adds Oxy 30 “blues”, then fentanyl pills and heroin. Lives in a two-year loop of dealing and using. Fentanyl deaths & getting help – In about two months, Dakota loses Robert (best friend), his cousin, and three other friends to fentanyl overdoses. Has a mental breakdown and heavy survivor’s guilt, calls his grandma, and checks into a San Diego hospital detox, gets put on 100mg methadone, then goes to a state-funded program and moves in with family. Methadone years & taper – Stays on 100mg methadone for 4–5 years, barely using anything else. With a therapist’s help, decides he can’t stay on it forever. Tapers over about a year from 100 to 4mg, then jumps. Says the taper fog and withdrawal were brutal and wouldn’t wish it on anyone. Now about 1.5 years off methadone, occasionally smokes weed, and focuses on therapy, music, and content. Nods, fentanyl & Naughty God channel – Says nodding was “everything”; describes fentanyl nods as zombie-like and short (“no legs”). Builds the NaughtyGod brand by rating nods like a sports announcer, with phrases like “Horseshoe,” “Charm City Rainbow,” “Nodwalk Shuffle,” “Baltimore Street Yoga,” “Sheriff of Nottingham.” Talks about Instagram flags/bans and treating his content like a recurring show so people follow for each “episode.” Content, community & collab – Dave and Dakota realize they both started their stuff for fun/ego and it accidentally turned into something that helps addicts feel less alone. Dakota gives Dave ideas for recurring, themed Dopey clips; they agree to collab on a nod reel and cross-pollinate their audiences. Safe Spot & stickers – Dave plugs Safe Spot for people afraid they might OD while using: 1-800-972-0590. Tells listeners to go to meetings, shout outs Kimber, Steven, Jesse. Plugs customstickers.com with code DOPEY20 and asks listeners who think they’d be great guests to email/voicemail. Signs off: “Stay strong Dopey Nation and fucking toodles for Chris.”

Transcribed - Published: 3 December 2025

Me, my dad and a special guest talk shit.

Transcribed - Published: 2 December 2025

• Matcha, early Christmas talk, Billy’s son (00:00–02:30)Light open: matcha review, Starbucks froth, early Christmas gifts, his son’s second Christmas. • Why Billy came on Dopey (02:30–04:00)Wants to speak honestly about addiction, truth, and helping people. Recently lost his mom. • Addiction shaping his entire life (04:00–07:00)Growing up with secrecy, shame, house raided, can’t talk about things in school. Learns addiction is sickness only after his mom dies. • Childhood: music, parents, culture (07:00–12:00)Dad teaching bluegrass; mom spinning Beatles backwards (“turn me on dead man”), Hendrix, Zeppelin, Sabbath. Early homes in Kentucky, then Michigan. • New York Street crack house memories (12:00–13:20)Mom smoking crack, sister teased, house shot up. • Portland trailer park → Muir (13:20–16:00)First real memories: food in cupboards, park life, music, fishing, Bush Light, doobies. Then meth arrives and destroys everything. • Meth in the park, raids, Dustin the Baggie origin (15:00–17:00)Brad Lascaux meth mess, labs in campers. • Losing the trailer, moving to 420 Railroad St. (17:00–21:00)Grandma calls the house “demonic.” Billy finds pipe in glove box. Mom’s art covering walls. No rules. • Teen years: weed at 8, metal bands, drinking, couch-surfing (21:00–24:00)Finding metal, dropping out, skateboarding, proto-hippie ideas. • Birthday morning meth revelation (24:00–26:00)Walks in on parents smoking meth with “Booger.” Leaves home at 13. • Couch surfing, trying coke, trying meth, guilt trip fails (26:00–28:00)Moves in with Brad Kenyon. Tries coke at 14. First meth at 16. • First meth use with mom (28:00–31:30)Handyman tweaker; mom makes a lightbulb pipe; Billy plays guitar for 48 hours. • Why he hid this for years (31:00–32:00)Didn’t want to make parents look bad. • School chaos, couch surfing, survival (32:00–33:30)Doesn’t know where he’s sleeping; algebra irrelevant. • More meth years at parents’ house (33:30–40:00)Marathon runs, labs, four-day runs, mom and dad gluing things to walls, parties with minors. Angry Man. Tweakers everywhere. • Getting out: Benji’s family saves him (40:00–42:00)Fed him, gave him a home on condition he goes to school. • Parents’ meth fizzles out (42:00–44:00)Law cracking down, pseudoephedrine changes, move to aunt’s house, church. • Touring, parents broke, asking for money (44:00–46:00)Heartbreaking calls; hustling on the road. • Dust in a Baggie timeline (46:00–47:30)Already years of gigs before the video surfaced. • “Billy Strings” name origin (47:30–49:30)Friend Mandy; cancer; bridge jump; dies shortly later. • Being recognized as a prodigy (49:30–50:30)Adults praising him since childhood. • Hard drugs, heroin story (50:30–56:30)Nods out, pukes repeatedly, sinks into darkness, sees “Grim Reaper,” swears it off forever. • Biological dad’s jail letter (56:30–58:30)Finds it only after mom dies. First time hearing “I love my boys.” • Poverty, trauma, survival (58:30–1:01:00)Fleas, freezing rooms, stove going out, tweakers, Piano Fingers. • Crack stories (1:41:00–1:45:00)Full body hit, instant addiction, dreams, smell memories. • Career growth, touring, panic attacks, therapy (1:01:00–1:08:00)Confronts childhood molestation in therapy. • Mom relapsing, buying her a house, fan rumors (1:08:00–1:12:00)Wants her safe garden life; learns she relapsed. Doesn’t blame fans. • Billy’s dad’s health crisis (1:12:00–1:14:00)Heart at 13%, fluid, pills, hospital time. • Mother’s death (1:14:00–1:21:00)Billy finds out in Lexington. Plays shows after crying onstage. Returns home; dad hospitalized. • Death certificate arrives (Australia) (1:21:00–1:22:00)Meth intoxication. Learns father was using too. • Going through poems & writings (1:22:00–1:24:00)Plans to turn poems into songs. Reads excerpts. • Carlas murder (1:23:00–1:25:00)Mom’s early trauma. • Billy today: grief, guilt, letting go (1:25:00–1:33:00)Letting go of control, learning acceptance. • Weed, sobriety, fatherhood, life on the bus (1:33:00–1:36:00)Thinking about quitting weed; enjoys fatherhood on tour. • Crack dreams, meth stories, danger memories (1:36:00–1:45:00)Puking while hitting crack, pregnant woman smoking, unsafe houses. • Trey & Al-Anon (1:45:00–1:48:30)Trey sends meeting links; Billy listens in. • Helping others (1:48:30–end)Wants to help kids & families like his; considers a rehab someday.

Transcribed - Published: 2 December 2025

NOTES: Jimmy Cliff tribute Billy Strings episode reviews Charlotte McKinney Interview 45 days sober, nervous about committing Comedy as a private escape Heavy past weed use; quitting cold turkey Partying with men as an excuse to use Realizing she was returning to “darkness” from high school Craziest drug moments: taking LSD and going to family dinners / holiday events completely high Codependency, intimacy issues, celibacy experiment Dave shares his own early AA story and obsession with his ex Sponsor talk, boundaries, women’s meetings Rapid-fire game: mushrooms, Prince, heroin vs meth, Pilates vs ketamine Steve Poltz Segment Backstage hotboxed with Todd Snider & Evan Dando Going onstage at the Ryman baked on contact high Todd’s decline, pneumonia, sepsis, frustration, confusion, death Memories of touring, chaos, funny and heartbreaking moments Gratitude Messages Messages from John Bukaty, Aurora, Jake, Anders from Greensky Bluegrass, Ray, Margaret Cho, Tuan, Katie B, Papa Smurf, Suki Jones, Heart Attack Doug, Selby Dave encourages holiday voicemails for Christmas/New Year’s Linda Segment Chicken meatballs from Uncle Giuseppe’s Thanksgiving dessert Dave “not letting her on the show” Thanksgiving family chaos

Transcribed - Published: 27 November 2025

Purpose of the teaser is to push people to Patreon. Mentions: Wednesday Dopey Patreon Zoom Recovery Zoom Saturday Zoom Extra videos + shows. Joke: No one questioned last week’s Zoom announcement because they assume you won’t show up. Billy Strings Aftermath Biggest episode ever. Covered by: Rolling Stone People Magazine Yahoo News Country outlets 75 Spotify comments, a record. You read several: Praise for your interviewing. People crying. People relating to losing mothers. Jokes about your Soft White Underbelly appearance. A listener calling the episode description “cinematic,” which you suspect was written by AI. Listener Present at Katz’s: Saul & Jake Package delivered at Katz’s from German listeners. Note from Saul: Jake listened to Dopey while working in vineyards. They think you’d love the spelt/dinkle cookies. Ask for a shout-out to Ira & Phil. Ask for hope for their friend Maddie. Ask for ska recommendations for NYC. Mention Meta deleting her Instagram—something “you have in common.” Doug refuses to eat the cookie. You mock him for the tiny bite he takes. You accuse him of: “You hate gays and gluten.” Cutaway to Tank Sinatra Story Doug doesn’t know him. You explain: Meme guy 10 million followers Shark Tank contestant Sobriety Recorded in your garage Got a flat tire in your driveway He refused to share the episode → you unfollowed (“petty motherfucker”). AI Debate Teaser Read Kevin Sherry’s email: Calls AI “repulsive,” “morally bankrupt,” “stealing,” and says using it is “relapsing.” Says you have an “autistic flair.” You and Doug debate AI: Doug jokes about AI hospital beds and Costco chickens. You show him the AI mantis graphic. Doug talks about how synthesizers, MIDI, sampling were originally hated. You argue AI feels different but still interesting to experiment with. Closing You finish the German cookies. Apologize to Tank Sinatra again. Announce that your eyes are “fucked up” and you now need glasses. Promote Patreon one more time.

Transcribed - Published: 25 November 2025

Billy (mother fucking) Strings! - BILLY STRINGS STARTS AROUND 27 MINUTES IN... Dopey Meditation! Spotify Reviews! Premature ejaculation! Fentanyl! Dave introduces Billy Strings and jokes about being “professional” with matcha, lights, and cameras Billy talks about early Christmas, gifts, his 15-year-old daughter reviewing matcha Why he came on Dopey: addiction shaped his life; wants to help people by telling his story Talks about losing his mom recently and wanting to live in truth Growing up with addiction: dad died of heroin overdose when Billy was two Parents smoked crack; house shot up; meth enters the park scene in Michigan Living in trailer parks, food insecurity, powdered milk, church food boxes House becoming chaotic: glued art to walls, “collage house,” people coming in and out Started smoking weed at 8; acid and mushrooms with mom; first time doing acid—mom tested it first First time meth: smoked it with mom and a handyman using a modified lightbulb Four-day awake binges, playing guitar nonstop Being a teenager, couch surfing, leaving home at 13, dropping out of school First time smoking crack; immediate compulsive craving; dreams about crack Stories about pregnant woman smoking crack, meth labs, people going to prison Parents' addiction cycles, “skirting the truth,” shielding family from shame When his parents got clean then slipped back Billy buying his parents a house; heartbreak when he learned they were using again Mom died from methamphetamine intoxication; Billy didn’t know she was using Dad admits he was using too while heart is functioning at ~13% Processing grief, anger, acceptance, reading mom’s poems, spirituality Al-Anon via Trey Anastasio; hearing others talk about losing loved ones Talks about his son, wanting to break generational cycle Talks about doing heroin once, puking all night, feeling "the Grim Reaper saw me" Quit drinking ~9 years ago after throwing up and missing gigs Smoking weed constantly; thinking about quitting Touring, panic attacks, therapy, being molested as a child Playing arenas, trying to enjoy success, still driven by fear of losing it Wanting to help others: maybe opening a rehab someday Talks about music influences, parents' music, Beatles backwards records, bluegrass saving him Origin Story behind the name “Billy Strings”! Reads and discusses his mom’s poetry; wants to turn them into songs Talks Sopranos, The Wire, Doc Watson, Dead shows, Trey, bluegrass festivals Closes with reflection on joy, grief, and living “freakishly” like his mom

Transcribed - Published: 21 November 2025

Dave records alone at home, loving the peace and warmth. Sitting at the dining table with gear everywhere. Next to Susan the snake’s terrarium. Talks mic problems, fake meditation idea, and why he likes holding microphones. 🚗 Patreon Teaser Preview (Me & Doug in the Honda Pilot) Dave sneezes nonstop during recording. No tissues → uses his sock as a handkerchief. “This is not necessarily a teaser where you're dying to listen to me blow my nose into my sock.” 📅 New Potential Daily Dopey Schedule Mon: standalone interview from the week before Tue: teaser Wed: Secret Dopey (short interviews or backup guests) Thu: archive or mailbag Fri: main Dopey 💻 Patreon Zoom Announcement Dave tries to commit to a 9pm Patreon Zoom that night. 📧 Listener Email From Dave Listener recognizes his sponsor as the Firecracker rapper. Firecracker unintentionally started a rap battle in the Dopey Nation. Listener is 18 months sober. Big gratitude for the show. 🎵 Firecracker Rap Playback Dave plays the full Firecracker rap. Calls it one of his all-time favorite Dopey music pieces. Loves the Artie Lange line. Calls it “white recovery hip hop” but says he loves it. Encourages all rappers (“black, white, or Haitian”) to send verses. 🚗 Doug Section (Tuesday Patreon Audio) Dave and Doug sit “on the beautiful Great South Bay.” Doug busts Dave’s balls about blowing his nose into socks and being a “homeless person.” Dave claims he has four homes. Doug brings up Mark Laita / Soft White Underbelly. Doug critiques Dave’s Soft White Underbelly appearance and his second Rich Roll interview. Round 1 vs Rich Roll: Dave “won” Round 2 vs Rich Roll: Dave was “needy” and Rich “was on fire” Chat about meditations, voices, headphones, and Doug’s surgery plans. Dave jokes about replacing Doug with Johnny Mac or Surfer Brian. Plugs Surfer Brian’s ukulele “Good So Bad.”

Transcribed - Published: 18 November 2025

NOTES: Dave opens the show with his usual Dopey ramble, talking about meditation apps, gratitude, and reading a mountain of Spotify comments — some sweet, some insane, some hostile. He riffs on Dopey Nation characters and gives reactions to listener feedback. Voicemails and emails roll in, including Taylor discussing kratom and 7-OH, plus various listener stories Dave comments on. Dave moves through multiple sponsor transitions and personal anecdotes before introducing the guest: Glynis Frantz. Glynis Interview — Part 1 Glynis describes wanting to be “a nice girl” — a good daughter, sister, aunt — but feeling pulled by a “magnet” toward using. She explains her deep resentment toward her mother; abandonment issues that spilled into relationships; her belief she was unlovable; and recreating rejection in every relationship. Talks about falling into addiction as the only relief she ever knew. Early years of crack, heroin, Oxy, running from DYS, juvenile detention, being arrested, and eventually a pattern of heroin dealing and using as a teenager. Stripping in Providence; OCs and crack with older men; trauma piling up. Boston → Texas → Early Meth She reunites with a “normal” boyfriend in Texas, tries to stay clean, fails. Describes being cold, homeless, couch-to-couch in Boston, occasionally sleeping outside. Returns to Texas, tries bartending, gets introduced to “ice” (crystal meth). Enters meth culture — 4-day runs, disappearing with the car, compulsively reorganizing the trunk for six hours. Her boyfriend tries to help but becomes a hostage to the chaos. Game Rooms, GHB, & Meth Culture Glynis explains underground “game rooms” in Texas — illegal casino rooms tied to meth culture. Meth → crack binges → GHB to come down → more meth. She describes tweakers, matches, pushing buttons on illegal slot machines, and disappearing for days. Eventually begins mixing meth and heroin again (shooting tar for the first time). The Robberies & Falling Apart Cars stolen multiple times. A woman she met in jail robs her boyfriend’s entire house — “not a charger left in the socket.” Police involvement, panic, and the boyfriend finally ending the relationship after trying to help for too long. Strip Clubs → Money Mike → Pimp/Hoe Life Glynis returns to dancing and meets Money Mike, a career pimp freshly out of federal prison for pimping/pandering. She breaks down pimp culture: Bottom bitch / golden goose / ducks No eye contact with certain men Recruiting “fresh turnouts” Rules: never fall asleep, never give away free time, never “simp” Glynis talks about the psychological grip — incremental loss of autonomy, fear tactics, and the twisted family dynamic. She details abscesses, ICU stays, neck shots, and disconnecting from her body emotionally. Renegade Mode & Meth Psychosis Glynis eventually escapes, steals back her own life, becomes a “renegade” (independent escort). Meth psychosis intensifies — hypervigilance, believing she’s being hunted by pimps, calling police on herself multiple times. A horrifying stretch of paranoia, hallucinations, and fleeing state to state. L.A., Skid Row, Gang Members, & Fentanyl Moves to L.A., loses phone/ID, ends up staying in a trap motel with a homeless meth user named Naji. Starts buying drugs in MacArthur Park and Skid Row. Gets absorbed into gang environments: stolen cars, guns, indictments, being handcuffed to a sink. Moves to Vegas briefly to escape. Returns to L.A. and begins buying ounces, then pounds of fentanyl. Human Smuggling Across the Border Gets recruited by a cartel-adjacent crew to drive undocumented people across the border from Mexico into the U.S. Describes the process: Hotel meet-ups Bluetooth instructions Losing cell service near the pickup People running out of bushes into her trunk Driving through checkpoints Usually 2–3 people per run; $1,500 per head if local drop, more if delivered to L.A. Eventually makes the mistake of putting someone in the passenger seat. Bust → Federal Prison → Cross-Eyed Withdrawal Border checkpoint sends her to secondary. She is arrested and taken to Pine Valley Border Patrol Station. Withdraws violently from fentanyl in custody. Falls from top bunk, hits her head, has a seizure, becomes cross-eyed for months. Hospitalized two weeks under U.S. Marshals while they rule out neurological disease. Moves through multiple federal facilities (MCC, Otay Mesa, Santa Ana, Pahrump). Makes pruno, sees drugs smuggled into prison, survives COVID lockdown. Early Release → Recovery COVID triggers major prison movement shutdowns, then early release for nonviolent offenders. Placed in a chaotic men’s sober living where only one person is actually sober: Jimmy the Poet. Exhausted, scared, with the first desire for freedom she’s ever had, she recognizes that drinking would send her straight back to prison. Asks for help. Connects with a sober woman; begins attending 12-step meetings; starts the process of building an actual life. Outro Glynis reflects on believing she was irreparably broken, unlovable, and incapable of a real life. She talks about becoming a sober woman with a career, meaningful relationships, sponsees, and a husband. Dave praises her as a chameleon who survived countless worlds and now uses the same adaptability for good. Both joke about “Boston” as a street name, and Dave thanks her for the rawest storytelling.

Transcribed - Published: 14 November 2025

Me and Doug talking shit by the bay!

Transcribed - Published: 11 November 2025

Dave gives sponsor shoutouts and plugs Soft White Underbelly and his upcoming Rise for Recovery talk in Philly. Talks about Dopey’s Instagram being deleted by Meta. Reads a few Spotify comments about the Rich Roll episode — psychedelics, Ozempic, and hypnosis talk. Reads a listener email from Bakersfield about a meth-smuggling disaster involving a “baby daddy” hiding drugs inside his body. Plays a voicemail from Kirby J. about “How do you know if you’re an addict?” Promotes Patreon and invites listeners to send more voicemails. Guest: Roddy Bottum (Faith No More, Imperial Teen) Dave introduces Roddy Bottum and his book The Royal We. Roddy says he listened to Johnny Mac’s Dopey episode before coming on and got it immediately. Talks about growing up gay and secretive in LA, moving to San Francisco, and finding the punk scene. Explains how Faith No More began as a rotating art-punk group before gaining structure. Describes Courtney Love’s short stint in the band, her chaotic stage energy, and their friendship and drug use together. Shares stories about Chuck Mosley, Mike Patton, and early tours with the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Recalls being arrested for smoking weed on the road in a paper suit. Talks about heroin use starting in the late ’80s, opium with Courtney, and being drawn to downers. Discusses the “heroin chic” culture and addiction as a form of secret identity. Reflects on his boyfriend Jim’s death, mental illness in the scene, and watching friends self-destruct. Opens up about the loss of his father to cancer, his friend Cliff’s overdose, and Kurt Cobain’s death soon after he got sober. Explains how those losses grounded his recovery and changed his relationship with music. Closing Dave thanks Roddy for coming on and connects his story to Dopey’s themes of addiction, loss, and survival. Episode closes with music and gratitude to the Dopey Natio

Transcribed - Published: 7 November 2025

🔥 Al-Anon x Raytreon returns — and this one’s got everything: dark energy, chopped liver, family drama, and a debate about whether Dave’s dad taught him how to steal. 🗣️ Dave kicks it off late on a Monday night with: Knicks talk 🏀 A British fan letter about Katz’s and chopped liver 🇬🇧🥪 Shadow people 👻 “Hot takes” (The Bear? Overrated. Foo Fighters? World’s most successful bar band. Kids shouldn’t play with their parents at playgrounds.) Then comes the main event: Dave, his dad Alan, and Ray dive into family tension, truth vs exaggeration, and whether comedy goes too far when it hits close to home. Alan calls Dave a liar, Dave defends himself, and Ray plays peacekeeper.

Transcribed - Published: 4 November 2025

Guest: Rich Roll — bestselling author, endurance athlete, and host of The Rich Roll Podcast Topics Covered: Dave’s intro: Katz’s Deli, Jeff Ross, Marcus Aurelius, parenting chaos Listener comments and Dopey Nation correspondence Sponsors: Oro Recovery, Mountainside, Recovery Unplugged Tom’s Vietnam dope story voicemail Bailey’s Chicago recovery email Rich Roll returns: psychedelics, ego, trauma, identity, and surrender Psilocybin + MDMA therapy and confronting fear Childhood wounds and transactional love Time, relapse shame, and identity in recovery Authenticity in podcasting and media Music talk: R.E.M., Radiohead, The Smiths Connection, gratitude, and the importance of showing up Quotes: “Are there coincidences, or aren’t there coincidences?” “Pain is the universe knocking.” “Love was something I thought I had to earn.” “Every obstacle is an opportunity — if you can stand still long enough to see it.” “I’m not someone who walks around grateful naturally — I’m a crabby self-obsessed motherfucker.” “I’m in it for the relationships.” Identity loss and transformation after injury Spinal fusion surgery and learning to sit still Attachment, ego, and the fear of irrelevance Emotional eating and food as addiction Plant-based pitfalls and vulnerability in body image Ozempic, habits, and shortcuts vs real change Finding joy and gratitude in success Sacred mornings and creative process Writing discipline and not talking about unfinished work Dopey Nation art, DopeyWood, and DopeyCon reflections Harm reduction, drug use stigma, and community inclusion Voicemails, listener love, and fan cover of “Good So Bad” Highlights: “Pain is always asking us to ask ourselves questions.” “Every obstacle is an opportunity — if you can stand still long enough to see it.” “I should be enjoying my life more than I do. That’s the real work.” “Food is like any other drug — a way to regulate emotion.” “Don’t talk about the book. Just write it.” Outro: Voicemail from a harm reductionist listener Shoutouts to Dopey admins, Facebook group, Zoom hosts, and Dopey Nation Tribute to Dave’s dad, “Papa Smurf,” and the late Dopey fans remembered through art Banjo cover of “Good So Bad” by Jake from West Virginia 🎧 Title Ideas Rich Roll on Pain, Purpose, and Letting Go The Contrary Action: Stillness, Sobriety, and Spinal Fusion with Rich Roll Rich Roll: Running, Recovery, and the Addiction to Achievement From Endurance to Surrender — A Conversation with Rich Roll Pain, Presence, and Plant-Based Life: Rich Roll Returns to Dopey 🔍 Searchable SEO Keywords Rich Roll, David Manheim, Dopey Podcast, Dopey Nation, addiction recovery, sobriety, emotional eating, food addiction, spinal fusion, identity crisis, veganism, plant-based diet, endurance athlete, podcast authenticity, Ozempic addiction, recovery podcast, service in recovery, contrary action, stillness, meditation, gratitude, harm reduction, relapse, mental health, banjo cover, DopeyCon, DopeyWood, James Frey, Brandon Novak, Dopey Medal of Freedom, drug use stigma, community recovery

Transcribed - Published: 31 October 2025

-Sick Kid -Kids Movies -Dental Surgery -Oz -Nitrous -Ben and Jerry's -Montana on Prison -Joey Ramone

Transcribed - Published: 29 October 2025

Sick intro, dental-implant fear, Knicks talk. Listener shoutouts and Dopey Nation engagement. Miles Davis story → “acceptance is the key.” Poop-DMT email → classic disgusting Dopey moment. RJ interview: from straight-edge nerd to stoner dealer to expelled rebel to recovery founder. Key stories: first high, paintball theft, fake tutoring scheme, school expulsion, pencil stabbing, girlfriend overdose.

Transcribed - Published: 24 October 2025

-📝 Show Notes Dave introduces the Tuesday Patreon teaser and teases a full episode featuring Mr. Brown and his dad. Talks about dental implant anxiety, burnout, and “cultivating illness” to rest. Discusses Martin Scorsese’s career and dream of having him on Dopey. Reads a funny Spotify listener comment about pork ads and anti-Semitism. Introduces new segment: Miles Davis on Dopey — reading wild stories from Miles: The Autobiography. Plays a voicemail from Selby about sneaking THC gummies through TSA. Shares personal TSA story involving his harmonica being mistaken for a weapon. Transitions to full Patreon preview: political discussion with his dad and Ray about empathy, kindness, and America’s divisions. Ends with a comedic apology and the song “I Wanna Be Good So Bad.”

Transcribed - Published: 21 October 2025

Dopey Notes: DopeyCon feedback, Spotify vs. iTunes reviews, dad monitoring iTunes. Sponsors & allies mentioned: Oro Recovery, Mountainside (title sponsor), Recovery.com, Recovery Unplugged; contact shout to John Jones at Mountainside. Listener corner: Archie (Lexington, KY): salvia → beach-ball hallucination → sprinting outside in underwear. David Dixon: shrooms, rock salt, and the day Jerry died. “Chip” from ep. 136: then-denial vs. now-sober (methadone). Dave’s social-media compulsion & unity riff; Heart Attack Doug voicemail (“discipline” and belly abuse). Guest: Brace Belden (Truenon) 11 years sober; meetings vs. chips; sponsoring a couple guys. Phone/text boundaries; “walk and talk.” Therapy vs. analysis; dream talk (Tom Cruise baby; Sabrina Carpenter at a sewer table); trazodone nights; hypnosis tapes for insomnia/anxiety. Drugs & sex honesty hour: DMT in the West Village; meth IV (“butt pulsation” observation); “galaxy gas” nitrous vs. old-school Whippets and the cracker; poppers lore; vague Quaalude memories. Boofing Suboxone film (“didn’t get it far enough”); coke on genitals (“numbing—kind of defeats the point”); coke dick; the “Wamo Jamo” speedball myth. Memory & molestation chat: what counts as memory, implanted/false memories, Dave’s family-friend story and camp counselor thread, Brace’s 14-year-old runaway incident with a knife and $40. Meetings + politics: Trumpy rooms, why “politics has no place in recovery,” being non-partisan on-air, and the difference between having beliefs vs. beating people with them. Charlie Kirk assassination video: why it hits hard; “good shot” discourse; lone-actor vs. “they”; rhetoric hypocrisy across sides. Hypotheticals & relapse pathways: weed→benzos→opiate slide vs. “new RC” curiosity; the last heroin highs (too high/sick vs. not enough); fentanyl vs. heroin now. Cro-Mags détente attempt (Harley Flanagan / John Joseph) and whether to air interviews when friends object. Rapid “this or that”: Trump vs. Kirk (prefers Trump), Pete Townshend vs. Roger Daltrey (Roger), RFK vs. Elon (RFK), MLK vs. Malcolm (Malcolm), Che vs. Fidel (Che), LSD vs. Ecstasy (LSD), X vs. Fang (X), methadone vs. Suboxone (Suboxone), EMDR vs. talk therapy (talk). Truenon live shows; schedule, workflow; invite to attend. Wrap-up: graffiti wall on Houston/First Street (Optimo & PVC Gray); request for someone to film the wall; Patreon; “Stay strong, Dopey Nation — toodles for Chris.”

Transcribed - Published: 17 October 2025

Block Blast DopeyCon? Stephen? Dentistry!

Transcribed - Published: 14 October 2025

DOPEYCON 2025! -First Dave reads Spotify Comments -Kratom Voicemail -How can you tell if you Are you an addict? Write us at [email protected] -Run of Show: DOPEYCON 6 Run Of Show - currently runs at 1:41 As of 10/4/25 Dave’s Welcome [4 minutes] Adam David Free Fallin Poetry with IDGAF Food STASHWORD Round 1 - Brandon Novak/Kari Nautique Brace Belden/Handsome Evan Reading by Roddy Bottum Shane Enholm Sings! Linda Speech IN MEMORIAM Video - NOTE - We just play the song in the podcast DOPEY MEDAL OF FREEDOM -NOVAK AWARD Honoring James Frey Ray Brown sings Dopeycon 2 STASHWORD Round 2 Fentanyl Jay/Hank Azaria Lenny From The Beach/Carl Radke SAM MILLER ASK ERIN with Hank Azaria, Brace Belden, Erin Khar, Sam Miller, Carl Radke Alan Speech STASHWORD FINALE GOOD SO BAD Singalong (Dave & Heart Attack Doug)

Transcribed - Published: 10 October 2025

-Dopeycon Recap (spoiler alert) -Dr. Giles Comment -FACEBOOK TOOK US DOWN -FIGHT THE POWER -DOUG FAT SHAMES ME HARDCORE

Transcribed - Published: 7 October 2025

Dopey 551! Dopeycon Updates! A Kratom Tragedy Ben Croxton VM Amanda Petrusich! Overcoming Grief PHISH Metallica Bob Dylan Bob Dylan Play Post Script Crap!

Transcribed - Published: 3 October 2025

Emails Special Guest Keith Jerry Shout out to Ben from Philly!

Transcribed - Published: 30 September 2025

Dopey Nation Emails and Voicemails! Dopeycon News! Dopeycon themesong challenge! Santa Monica/Culver City; father a quart-a-day gin drinker; mother deeply codependent; father later sober ~35 years but “dry/angry.” Teen: ska/mod (Specials, Selecter, Untouchables, Madness), Vespa rides, alcohol/weed/amphetamines. Berkeley & Free Clinic Chose Berkeley (also accepted to MIT); Berkeley Free Clinic mentorship; lineage to Haight-Ashbury Free Clinic (David Smith; bands funded care). Purpose & “hero’s journey” framing; service as “primary purpose.” Anesthesia / pain medicine Charmed by physiology-in-real-time and the human connection (esp. parents in pediatric cases). Basics: take away pain & anxiety/memory (e.g., fentanyl, Versed); use relaxants; manage airway/complications. Favorite contrast: from tiny trigger-finger release to replacing the aortic arch. Fentanyl descent (1999) Diverted via paper logs; carried 2 mL for a month before first sterile IV use; loved the warm/relief/confidence. Waited ~6 weeks, used again; escalated to “after work only,” leading to daytime withdrawal and concealment (long gown to hide arms/weight/sweat). Experimented separately with other drawer drugs (e.g., propofol, pentothal; hates ketamine → “crumpled cellophane” feel). Sufentanil even more potent but dangerously narrow window. Intervention & recovery Chairman’s page about missing fentanyl; offered help, not punishment; referenced prior resident death. Bathtub cold-turkey detox; called a sober doctor; went to an AA meeting of doctors; felt less alone; kept going; “ultimate challenge is handling success.” Treatment feedback groups taught honest feeling-language and service; newfound congruence. Finished residency (board made it 2 years), married, child, then shift to treatment medicine in Malibu; “fish met water.” Substances & side topics Adrenaline/epinephrine: synthetic now; shooting it feels “weird/anxious.” Hitler: amphetamines + opiates (references Blitzed); late-stage junkie logic/psychosis frame. Halsted: cocaine mapping nerves → heroin maintenance, long IM use with periodic retreats; even “stable” heroin isn’t smooth. Crowley: “infinite supply” idea discussed; brain adapts—no stable bliss. Benzos vs. opiates Opiate withdrawal: nausea/diarrhea/sweats/chills/aches/runny nose/goosebumps unique to opiates. Benzo withdrawal: anxiety/fear, same feeling benzos treat → especially hard; seizures risk (Dave shares lived seizures). Memory / benzos / awareness Benzos disrupt hippocampal consolidation, but recall can still occur (e.g., intraoperative awareness with strong stimuli). Kratom Opiate-like activity; ~1/3 minimal withdrawal, ~1/3 rough as fentanyl, rest in-between (his experience). Often uses Suboxone to transition; prefers to wait/see which group before MOUD. Suboxone vs. abstinence MOUD prevents death/harms; some should stay indefinitely; for most: “cast/training wheels” until life is rebuilt + real recovery connections in place. Fentanyl now Overall OD deaths have ticked down recently from the peak, but fentanyl involvement is sky-high; he says he’s seen fentanyl in other drugs, counterfeit Percocet common; heroin is rare now. Economics: opium supply changes; fentanyl is cheap; heroin cachet remains among some.

Transcribed - Published: 26 September 2025