This Past Weekend w/ Theo Von

American Originals Holiday Special w/ Mike Rowe

Theo Von hosts a holiday special focused on American-made products, joined in-studio by Mike Rowe as they highlight small U.S. makers and talk about what it means to support American manufacturing. Throughout the episode they share stories from entrepreneurs and craftspeople behind items like gloves, cherries, hot sauce, cutting boards, pottery, and more, emphasizing resilience, ingenuity, and the "American dream" in action. The conversation closes with reflections on America as something citizens must actively maintain through everyday choices, including where they spend their money.

Nov 28, 2025

#626 - Baby Me

Theo Von records a Thanksgiving-themed solo episode with producer Riley Mao, reflecting on the holiday, American history, the current state of the world, and the importance of focusing on tangible relationships and small joys. He shares a humorous yet sincere list of little life experiences he appreciates, updates listeners on recent charity efforts, and reacts to several heartfelt listener calls about mental health, painful family dynamics, impending parenthood, and spiritual questions. Throughout, he and Riley also discuss Riley's upcoming fatherhood, Theo's evolving sense of purpose, and his desire to deepen his relationship with God and better care for himself.

Nov 26, 2025

#625 - Matthew McConaughey

Theo Von talks with Matthew McConaughey about childhood memories, old-school wrestling, and the daredevil legacy of Evel Knievel before exploring how modern technology has shifted our relationship to moments, identity, and validation. They dig into ego versus confidence, redefining humility, courage in the face of fear, and the psychology of peak performance in college football and SEC culture. McConaughey also shares deeply about fatherhood, marriage, family rituals, faith, prayer, his writing process for "Poems and Prayers," and the importance of pursuing transformation rather than a purely transactional life.

Nov 20, 2025

#624 - Sketch

Theo Von talks with streamer and content creator Sketch about the realities of live streaming, his recent experiences touring college football stadiums, and the mental and physical toll the lifestyle can take. They discuss relationships, shame, therapy, and faith, including how Sketch handled a highly publicized leaked video and how it changed his dating life. The conversation also covers college and pro football culture, future creative ambitions like reality TV and treasure-hunt style content, and various comedic riffs about health, doctors, sexuality, and identity.

Nov 13, 2025

#623 - Gary Sinise

Actor and musician Gary Sinise discusses his decades-long mission to support military service members, veterans, first responders, and their families through visits, performances, and the Gary Sinise Foundation. He explains how his experiences with Vietnam veterans, his role as Lieutenant Dan, and the post-9/11 wars led him into deep service work, including hospital visits, base tours, mental wellness initiatives, and programs for families of the fallen. Sinise also shares the story of his son Mac's rare cancer, profound faith, and musical legacy, and how Mac's compositions now support the foundation's work and help the family process their grief.

Nov 11, 2025

#622 - Miles Teller

Theo Von sits down with actor Miles Teller for a wide-ranging conversation about his life, career, and new film "Eternity." They talk about growing up in Florida and moving frequently as a kid, his family background and early injuries, and how experiences with illness and loss in his family shaped his empathy and outlook. They also dive into the themes of love, mortality, and the afterlife in "Eternity," discuss military service and veterans' mental health, and reflect on prioritizing relationships and normal life over constant work.

Nov 4, 2025

#621 - Andrew Santino

Theo Von and comedian Andrew Santino catch up about touring, filming stand-up specials, and the intense pressure that comes with trying to "capture lightning in a bottle" on camera. They discuss Theo's turbulent Netflix taping, mental health struggles, paranoia after a government video used his clip, and the way online media distorted what happened. The conversation widens into technology and AI, Saudi and Qatari comedy festivals, hypocrisy in public outrage, aging, family, community, and what to do when having children may not be in the cards.

Oct 30, 2025

#620 - Keith Peterson

The host interviews MMA referee and longtime diesel mechanic Keith Peterson about his no-nonsense approach to officiating, his path from amateur fighter to top-level referee, and his life in New York hardcore music. Peterson describes his family life, long marriage, parenting three kids who are into music, wrestling, and skateboarding, and his commitment to coaching girls' wrestling alongside his daughter. He also discusses health changes, the loss of his brother, and the discipline and safety mindset required to referee high-stakes fights.

Oct 26, 2025

#619 - Stan the Chauffeur

Theo interviews professional chauffeur Stan the Chauffeur, whose real name is Stanford Boyay, about his life journey from growing up in the Bronx to building a career driving limos and sprinters in Charlotte and Columbia, South Carolina. Stan shares how he left New York to be closer to his daughter, stumbled into chauffeuring, and developed a customer-first philosophy with many wild passenger stories. He also talks about quitting cocaine, a violent confrontation with a scamming contractor, a serious burn incident caused by his much younger girlfriend, his complicated love life, and his advice to young men to avoid the streets and pursue education.

Oct 22, 2025

#618 - Sam and Colby

Sam and Colby, two YouTube creators known for exploring haunted and abandoned locations, talk with Theo about how they met in small‑town Kansas, built an online career from Vine days, and eventually shifted from illegal urban exploration to structured paranormal investigations. They describe the pivotal Queen Mary experience that changed their beliefs about the afterlife, the methods and equipment they use to investigate alleged hauntings, and some of the most disturbing locations they have visited, including Pendle Hill, the Paris catacombs, and the Smurl house. Throughout, they and Theo connect paranormal exploration to faith, intention, manifestation, and how people show up in their lives and relationships.

Oct 17, 2025

#617 - Aziz Ansari

Theo Von talks with Aziz Ansari about his new film "Good Fortune," the challenges of writing, directing, and acting in a feature, and how movie production differs from stand-up comedy. Aziz shares personal stories from growing up as the only Indian kid in a small South Carolina town, including the death of his younger sister and the kindness of the women who helped raise him. They also discuss burnout, avoiding ego, living abroad in London, and the importance of early gatekeepers and mentors in their stand-up careers.

Oct 15, 2025

#616 - Retired Boston Detective

Retired Boston police detective Kara Connolly discusses her 31-year career, from working busy 1990s patrol beats in Dorchester and South Boston to becoming a detective and later joining the human trafficking unit. She shares detailed stories about major cases, including armed robberies, a man who cut off his own penis, a baby abandoned in a trash can, long-term human trafficking investigations, and undercover stings targeting sex buyers. The conversation also explores how TV crime shows affect juries, the impact of politics and prosecutors on street-level policing, the emotional toll of the job, and how she is transitioning into retirement in South Carolina.

Oct 9, 2025

#615 - Ken Burns

Filmmaker Ken Burns discusses his career in historical documentary filmmaking, including the origin of the "Ken Burns effect" and how the early loss of his mother shaped his lifelong drive to "wake the dead" and keep the past alive. He dives deeply into his new six-part, 12-hour series "The American Revolution," arguing that the Revolution is the most important event since the birth of Christ, unpacking its ideas about equality, citizenship, virtue, and the pursuit of happiness, and correcting common myths about key events and figures. The conversation broadens into a reflection on American identity, media and social media, polarization, public institutions like PBS and the national parks, and the ongoing need for self-examination and civic responsibility to keep the American experiment from "dying by suicide."

Oct 7, 2025

#614 - New York Circus

Theo Von reflects on changes in the circus from his childhood to the present and uses that as a segue into describing a "circus" surrounding his recent comedy special taping in New York City. He explains how going off antidepressants, a viral Department of Homeland Security immigration video using an old joke clip of his, heightened security concerns, and performance struggles all contributed to a stressful night and a later viral clip of him joking about suicide. He clarifies that he is not suicidal, shares a personal story about a friend's sister who took her life, takes emotional calls from listeners about losing a son to suicide and a three‑year‑old finishing chemotherapy, offers prayer and encouragement, and notes that he is back on his medication and planning to rest while remaining hopeful about the future.

Oct 2, 2025

#613 - Forrest Galante

Forrest Galante discusses growing up on a farm and safari operation in Zimbabwe, witnessing wildlife decline and later violent land seizures that forced his family to flee during the land reform era. He explains how that background led him into wildlife biology and television, covering his work on "Extinct or Alive," his new series "Animals on Drugs," and hands-on conservation projects like chemically and surgically castrating invasive hippos in Colombia. The conversation ranges through close calls with deadly snakes, the ethics of extinction and de‑extinction, invasive species, and why reconnecting with wild places can ground people in a hyperconnected world.

Sep 27, 2025

#612 - Pete Davidson

Comedian and actor Pete Davidson sits down for a long-form conversation about his life, from losing his firefighter father in the 9/11 attacks and how that shaped his childhood, to his struggles with depression, suicidality, addiction, and eventual decision to get sober. He discusses the emotional toll of fame and tabloid culture, his tendency toward self-sabotage and people-pleasing, and how therapy, recovery, and supportive relationships-especially with his mother and older comic friends-have helped him. Pete also talks about gearing up for his first international tour, reflecting on a previous Amish guest, and his excitement and fears around becoming a father for the first time.

Sep 23, 2025

#611 - Louis C.K.

Theo Von talks with Louis C.K. about performing edgy stand-up in different kinds of venues, parenting, childhood neglect, race and taboo language, and the creative process behind Louis's novel "Ingram". They explore the American literary voice, the evolution of language, and broader cultural issues like polarization, social media addiction, and technology's physical footprint. A large part of the conversation centers on Louis's public downfall, his struggles with sex and pornography addiction, 12‑step recovery, and how confronting his own failures has reshaped his life, work, and friendship with Theo.

Sep 19, 2025