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A Very Important Podcast by The Heckler

A Very Important Podcast by The Heckler

By The Heckler

The Heckler shares very important things with millions of people
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Weekly Weekend Wellness Check: Chug-Chug the Comeback Clown

A Very Important Podcast by The HecklerMay 03, 2020

00:00
19:11
Harry Caray's CEO Grant DePorter

Harry Caray's CEO Grant DePorter

Grant DePorter has worked at Harry Caray's since 1989 (less than two years after the restaurant group was formed) so he worked closely with Harry himself for quite a while. Not surprisingly, he has some wild stories about Harry back in the day (including an estimated 14,000 bar visits and 300,000 alcoholic beverages consumed in his life). Grant also talks about the hard work he puts in to keep Harry's legacy alive, even if that means embracing some of the great and not-so-great Harry Caray impressions that are out there including Will Ferrell's and Ryan Dempster's. 

Grant grew up in a hotel, which not everyone can say. He's also a massive sports memorabilia geek, as evidenced by several of the stories he told during this interview. 

Feb 21, 202158:29
7-time Jeopardy! champion Brian Chang

7-time Jeopardy! champion Brian Chang

A Very Important Podcast by The Heckler is back! Today's guest is Brian Chang, a friend of Brad's who recently wrapped up a seven-game winning streak on Jeopardy! during which he netted $163,904 in prize money. Only about 30 other people have had a streak like that in the history of the show.

Brian had plenty of memorable moments during his run, including going viral for trolling guest host Ken Jennings, winning a very rare tie-breaker in what could have been the craziest finish to an episode that you'll ever see, blanking on what many thought should have been a gimme, and going up against a four-game champion at the end of his run.

In addition to all this, Brian and Brad talk about dealing with social media trolls (of which there are many), Alex Trebek's passing, behind-the-scenes surprises, the Tournament of Champions, and much more.

Feb 02, 202139:47
Brad discusses giving up his Cubs season tickets with Ben Finfer

Brad discusses giving up his Cubs season tickets with Ben Finfer

Earlier this week Brad decided to give up his Cubs season tickets after Todd Ricketts' performance opening up a Trump rally. Like many Cubs fans, Brad has struggled to confront the ownership's links to the President and all that surrounds him. After doing a quick hit on WBEZ Thursday, Brad and Chicago sports media personality and fellow tormented Cubs fan Ben Finfer discussed their feelings on the matter. 

Oct 30, 202042:52
Ryan Dempster on impersonating Harry Caray, beaning A-Rod, partying at Spring Training, & more
Sep 10, 202038:50
Wild elk, swarming monkeys, a fear of heights and much more with Brad's friend Tron
Aug 25, 202057:13
Wellness Check: Sluggers co-owner David Strauss
Jun 24, 202043:54
Wellness Check: Talking race with Brad's friend John Burks
Jun 09, 202001:14:10
Wellness Check: NBC Sports Chicago Exec. Producer & Founder of Live Like Roo Sarah Lauch
May 27, 202057:04
Wellness Check: Second City & SNL writer/performer Katie Rich

Wellness Check: Second City & SNL writer/performer Katie Rich

May 19, 202056:45
Wellness Re-Check: Resident millennial jackass Ethan Blumenthal
May 14, 202045:22
Wellness Check: DJ Dante Deiana
May 13, 202035:05
Wellness Check: Brad and his friend John Burks solve racism
May 12, 202054:42
Wellness Check: Brad's mom on Mother's Day weekend

Wellness Check: Brad's mom on Mother's Day weekend

This weekend's Wellness Check is with Brad's mom, Julie Ehlert. Due to the quarantine, Brad won't be able to see his mom in person. She's been dealing with a series of health issues that are discussed in this Wellness Check.
Brad and his mom also talk about how she's been dealing with the loneliness of living alone during the quarantine, the best and worst moments of motherhood, her difficulty digging back into her passion for reading, the amount of time she spends on Facebook, when the roles of parent and child's concern for each other flip-flopped, her divorce, the wonderful and loving upbringing she had, her parents' relationship with Brad and his sister Becca, her love of Jeopardy, and much more.
May 09, 202031:56
Wellness Check: Yoga instructor & Heckler Spring Training ROY Kiley Enmark
May 08, 202034:23
Wellness Check: WGN-TV Morning News Sports Anchor Pat Tomasulo (pt 1)
May 08, 202022:40
Wellness Check: WGN-TV Morning News Sports Anchor Pat Tomasulo (pt 2)
May 07, 202037:01
Wellness Check: Sun-Times sports reporter & former Heckler intern Brian Sandalow

Wellness Check: Sun-Times sports reporter & former Heckler intern Brian Sandalow

Today's Wellness Check is with Sun-Times sports reporter Brian Sandalow. Based on a chance meeting at a Cubs game with Brad, Brian actually got his start "journalism" with The Heckler, where he "interned" for a couple years while in high school. He went on to bigger and better things, which he and Brad chronicle in this conversation. Brian had some stories about covering minor league hockey in a small Texas town on the Mexico border out of college. Brian eventually found his way back to Chicago where he worked for a few outlets, most recently the Sun-Times. He has covered the Cubs, Sox, Bulls, Blackhawks, Wolves, Sky, Fire, Northwestern athletics and more. This work ethic prompted Brad to call him a hustler, which he quickly corrected to "grinder" which doesn't sound much better in retrospect. Brad and Brian talk about journalism's existential crisis, some of the most memorable events Brian has covered, Brian's much cooler brother who works for AS Roma, how being a sports journalist makes it tough to maintain your fandom, what a struggle it is to play as the Bulls on NBA 2K, what Brian would sacrifice for the quarantine to come to a quick and responsible end, and much more. Follow Brian on Twitter: twitter.com/BrianSandalow

May 06, 202040:49
Wellness Check: Scott Weiner from The Fifty/50 Restaurant Group
May 05, 202043:03
Weekly Weekend Wellness Check: Chug-Chug the Comeback Clown

Weekly Weekend Wellness Check: Chug-Chug the Comeback Clown

In what's becoming a weekly feature, Brad checks in with Heckler mascot and occasional spokesperson Chug-Chug the Comeback Clown in his quarantine bunker located somewhere on Chicago's North Side. This weekend's conversation recaps Heckler news from the previous week. Unfortunately Chug-Chug is only capable of discussing Cubs-related news so he doesn't offer much about The Last Dance, Brad's Wellness Check with Peanut Tillman or Alex Smith's disgusting leg injury. He does, however, have plenty to say about the Wellness Check Brad did with Matt Szczur as well as Chug-Chug's efforts to get the Cubs to replace the Wrigley Field grass with blue turf from Empire.
May 03, 202019:11
Wellness Check: Peanut Tillman

Wellness Check: Peanut Tillman

Today's Wellness Check guest is former Bears great Charles Tillman. He and Brad talk about how the quarantine is impacting him and his family, the amazing amount of admirable charity work he did during his career and continues to do in retirement through his Cornerstone Foundation and other initiatives, how much he appreciates teammates like Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs making a case for Tillman to be in the Hall of Fame (he's the career leader in forced fumbles by a DB and No. 6 overall), the brotherhood he and his teammates shared under the leadership of Lovie Smith, his role in the FBI, the toughest thing about retirement,  the best WRs he matched up against, the time he complimented Aaron Rodgers during a game, the Bears teammates he keeps in touch with, why he could go vegetarian but probably never vegan, what he'd sacrifice for the quarantine to come to a quick and responsible end, and much more. Check out the Charles Tillman Cornerstone Foundation at charlestillman.org and follow Charles on Twitter twitter.com/peanuttillman.

May 02, 202041:37
Wellness Check: Physical trainer and Wrigley beer vendor Vinnie Avila
May 01, 202033:07
Wellness Check: Danny Rockett of the Son Ranto Podcast and much more
Apr 30, 202041:42
Wellness Check: Matt Szczur unintentionally makes Brad feel bad about himself

Wellness Check: Matt Szczur unintentionally makes Brad feel bad about himself

Today's Wellness Check is with Matt Szczur. What a dude! In addition to being an MLB player who won a ring with the Cubs in 2016, Matt was a standout "do it all" MVP football player for the 2009 NCAA FCS champion Villanova Wildcats. He made international headlines in 2016 when ESPN told the story of his bone marrow donation that saved the life of a young Ukrainian girl. He and his wife now run the "Szcz the Day" Matt Szczur Foundation, which increases awareness about bone marrow donation and much more. He's also an accomplished painter, selling his amazing prints for thousands of dollars to benefit a variety of charities.

So basically, he's the kind of guy who inadvertently makes the rest of us feel like chumps. But he's so damn nice about it.

In addition to his awesomeness, Brad and Matt talk about Matt's time with the Cubs, including his disappointment at being left off the 2016 playoff roster, the time Anthony Rizzo used Matt's bat to break out of his 2016 playoff slump, what it felt like to be traded to the Padres in May 2017, his impressive but injury-laden 2019 campaign in the Diamondbacks farm system, what he hopes 2020 holds for him while playing in the Phillies system, enjoying the quarantine life with his wife and newborn son, the former Cubs teammates he stills stays in touch with, and much more. 

Links
ESPN E:60 about his bone marrow donation:
https://vimeo.com/188176176
The "Szcz the Day" Matt Szczur Foundation: https://www.szcztheday.com
Szcz the Day merch: https://szczthedayshop.com
How to join the National Bone Marrow Registry: https://join.bethematch.org
A gallery of Matt's artwork: https://mattszczurart.com

Apr 28, 202033:31
Wellness Re-Check: Joe Johnson from Obvious Shirts

Wellness Re-Check: Joe Johnson from Obvious Shirts

Today's Wellness Re-Check is with Joe Johnson from Obvious Shirts. We first checked in with Joe a few weeks back to see how the quarantine was treating him. The good news is that people are still buying shirts and Joe is raising quite a bit of money for COVID-19-related charitable efforts. 

Brad and Joe also talked about Joe's efforts to keep his business moving despite the pandemic, how emails and social posts from angry customers really bother him, why he has to be careful with certain shirt designs now that his business is as popular as it is. the partnership he's working on with ESPN-1000's Marc Silverman after he was diagnosed with lymphoma recently, Joe and Brad's first sports memories, and much more. 

Follow Obvious Shirts at obviousshirts.com. 

Apr 27, 202044:29
Group Wellness Check: Chug-Chug, Joe Malonecki & Jen
Apr 26, 202027:22
Wellness Check: Haymarket Books author/publicist & former Army Ranger Rory Fanning

Wellness Check: Haymarket Books author/publicist & former Army Ranger Rory Fanning

Today's Wellness Check is with Rory Fanning, who has many extremely interesting stories to tell. Rory and Brad met about a decade ago through Rick Telander, who walked with Rory in the Arizona desert while Rory was trekking across the country to raise money for his fallen Army Ranger comrade and former Arizona Cardinal Pat Tillman. Rory enlisted in the Army after Sept. 11 because he felt it was the patriotic thing to do. After spending time serving in Afghanistan, he grew very unhappy with the United States' war effort and became a war resistor. Most of his leaders and fellow servicemen felt he was a disgrace but Tillman was very supportive. Shortly after Tillman was killed by supposed "friendly fire," Rory was discharged. He tried to take up a "normal life" as an investment banker, but found it unfulfilling and decided to walk across the United States to raise money for the Pat Tillman Foundation and to raise awareness of Rory's war resistance movement. In addition to that amazing accomplishment, Rory spends time talking classrooms and other groups to share experiences from his time in the military. Rory is also a big Cubs fan and talks about how he's able to enjoy the team even though he might not exactly agree with the politics of its ownership. Rory now works and writes for Haymarket Books. Among the many titles they've published are Craig Hodges memoir "Long Shot: The Triumphs and Struggles of an NBA Freedom Fighter" and Scoop Jackson's book "The Game is Not a Game: The Power, Protest and Politics of American Sports." Rory is also a woodworker, so he and Brad talk a bit about that and much more. Follow Rory on Twitter: twitter.com/RTFanning.

Craig Hodges book: www.haymarketbooks.org/books/964-long-shot

Scoop Jackson’s book: www.haymarketbooks.org/books/1409-the-game-is-not-a-game
Apr 25, 202035:35
Wellness Check: The Heckler’s South Side corespondent Joe Malonecki
Apr 24, 202022:23
Wellness Check: Brand marketer & Pizza Summit founder Anthony Spina
Apr 23, 202030:52
Wellness Check: Standup comedian, writer and 'prolific-taker' CJ Sullivan
Apr 22, 202048:14
Wellness Check: Christian Deme from Blackhawks FB page Joel Quenneville's Mustache
Apr 21, 202039:18
Wellness Check: Chicago Ald. Ed Bus (53rd)
Apr 20, 202020:47
Wellness Check: Chug-Chug the Comeback Clown
Apr 18, 202021:24
Wellness Check: Will Perdue (part 2)

Wellness Check: Will Perdue (part 2)

The second half of our Wellness Check with Will Perdue. Enjoy! Follow Will on Twitter: twitter.com/Will_Perdue32

Apr 18, 202033:57
Wellness Check: Will Perdue (part 1)

Wellness Check: Will Perdue (part 1)

Today's Wellness Check guest is Will Perdue. Will and Brad talk about a ton of interesting stuff. Will was very forthright about his current financial situation, among many other things. We of course talk a bunch about his time with the first three-peat Bulls. Among the many other things we discussed are whether he ever gets tired of talking about the glory days, the time Michael Jordan punched him in the face in practice, the time an injured Scottie Pippen got dragged off the floor by a ref so play could continue, his thoughts on the league now vs. back in his day, how the 2020 Bulls left him feeling (spoiler alert: not good), if he was surprised it took a global catastrophe for GarPax to get canned, his long history with John Paxson, how he handles pushback from players and coaches on his analysis, his second stint with the Bulls in 1999-2000 that sounds pretty dysfunctional and not just because Ron Artest was on that team (though we got a few good Ron Artest stories), what he'd sacrifice for the quarantine to come to a responsible end, and much more. Follow Will on Twitter: twitter.com/Will_Perdue32

Apr 18, 202035:41
Wellness Check: Paul Czarnowski
Apr 18, 202039:06
Wellness Check: Paul Dzien from Crawly's Clubhouse

Wellness Check: Paul Dzien from Crawly's Clubhouse

Today's Wellness Check guest is Cubs mega-fan Paul Dzien who's taken the love of his team to a new level, launching Crawly's Cubhouse and building a pretty solid following on social media (Twitter in particular). Paul told Brad about giving Miguel Montero his World Series ring at the 2017 on-field ceremony, getting threatened with an ass-kicking by an 89-year-old Tommy Lasorda, his partnership with Pat Hughes, his boatload of appearances on NBC Sports Chicago's "Beer Money" trivia show, and much more. Follow Paul on Twitter: twitter.com/crawlyscubs

Apr 17, 202036:59
Wellness Check: Brett Taylor from Bleacher Nation
Apr 16, 202052:50
Wellness Re-Check Again: Jen, formerly of The Heckler

Wellness Re-Check Again: Jen, formerly of The Heckler

Quarantine drags on so it’s time for another Wellness Check. Today’s is our first repeat guest. The original Wellness Check we did with Jen, formerly of The Heckler, is the second-most popular Wellness Check behind Kyle Farnsworth, but don’t ask her who that is. Among the topics discussed: her family’s Dyngus Day celebrations, the bottle of Polish liqueur she stole from her dad, shaving her dog as a family over the weekend, her addiction to Instacart, her Hobby Lobby joke that Seth Meyers stole, and much more.
Apr 15, 202047:38
Wellness Check: Jim Graziano
Apr 14, 202041:47
Wellness Check: Heckler co-founder George Ellis

Wellness Check: Heckler co-founder George Ellis

Quarantine drags on but here’s another Wellness Check for you. Today’s guest is Heckler co-founder George Ellis. George is the kind of friend Brad can go quite a while without seeing or talking to but within a few minutes of reconnecting it feels like we were never out of touch. This conversation is no different. George and Brad talk about how he, his wife and their infant are weathering the quarantine in Austin, Texas, where George and his wife moved awhile back. George and Brad discuss the origins of their friendship, which dates back to working together at Leo Burnett in 1999. They also discuss starting RightFieldSucks.com in 2000 which was kind of a blog before blogs were things. From there, forward-thinking as always, Brad and George decided having created a digital platform where thousands of people from around the world shared content wasn’t the way of the future so they launched a newspaper in 2003 and called it The Heckler. George and Brad go on a deep dive of Heckler history, including some of the many highs and lows of their time with The Heckler. Brad and George also talked about some of the exciting stuff George is working on now, including Classic Dad, which has a huge following, particularly in Instagram where it has 325,000 followers (instagram.com/classicdadmoves). George and Brad also give a shoutout to their moms who might be the only people who listen to this. George of course tells us what he’d sacrifice for the quarantine to come to a quick and responsible end.
Apr 13, 202047:55
Wellness Check: Al Yellon from Bleed Cubbie Blue
Apr 12, 202035:56
Wellness Check: Bob Dernier

Wellness Check: Bob Dernier

Quarantine enters its fourth or fifth year so it’s time for another Wellness Check. Today’s is with former Cubs player and coach Bob Dernier. Bob was an awesome guest not once but twice. Our first conversation didn’t properly record so Brad had the embarrassing distinction of having two great wellness checks with Bob. Our mutual friend and last week’s guest Stewart McVicar connected Bob and Brad, saying that Bob is a great guy and would be a tremendous guest. He was not wrong! Bob talked about how he’s holding up in quarantine with his wife and 86-year-old mother, the interesting way he’s still getting in swings as an avid golfer, some of the highlights of his time with the Cubs as a player in the ’80s (the 1984 team in particular) and as a coach in the 2000s and early 2010s, how the letdown of 1984 compared to the letdown of 2003, what he felt about the Ricketts family when they took over, getting hit by a pitch in fantasy camp by Ernie Banks’ son, and much more. Enjoy!
Apr 11, 202045:41
Wellness Check: Clinical therapist Danielle Kepler
Apr 10, 202034:39
The Time Bill Murray Crashed a Heckler Party
Apr 09, 202024:59
Wellness Check: Financial Planner Meredith Tabbone
Apr 08, 202023:51
Wellness Check: Club 400’s Stewart McVicar
Apr 07, 202050:15
Wellness Check: Kevin Kaduk

Wellness Check: Kevin Kaduk

Quarantine drags on so it’s time for another Wellness Check. Today’s is with Kevin Kaduk who after 12 years at Yahoo Sports was “laid off before it was cool” at the end of last year. While weighing his next opportunities, Kevin took on some freelance gigs and launched Midway Minute, a fun Chicago sports daily newsletter that’s worth checking out. Brad and Kevin talk about how Kevin is hanging in there during the quarantine, the letters to the editor Kevin used to write to the Tribune while growing up in Bartlett, Kevin’s plans for his newsletter, Brad’s suggestions for driving traffic to the Midway Minute (athlete dick pics and hottest daughters of Hall of Famers), Kevin’s career path since graduating from UW-Madison, what it was like working with legendary sportswriters at the Kansas City Star in the early 2000s, how Kevin helped launch Nick Friedell’s illustrious career, The Heckler’s mixed review of Kevin’s book Wrigleyworld in 2005, whether Kevin would sacrifice his gorgeous head of hair for the quarantine to end soon, and much more. Subscribe to the Midway Minute (midwayminute.win) and follow Kevin on Twitter (twitter.com/KevinKaduk).
Apr 06, 202044:28
Wellness Check: Jon Greenberg from The Athletic

Wellness Check: Jon Greenberg from The Athletic

Quarantine enters day 1,930 so it’s time for another Wellness Check. Today’s is with Jon Greenberg from The Athletic. Jon got his start in sports journalism with an internship in 2000 and has worked for a handful of great places, including ESPN. He became a founding editor of The Athletic where he produces a ton of great and insightful content. His dry sense of humor makes him a really good Twitter follow as well. Brad and Jon caught up shortly after Jon picked up a six-pack of beer thanks to curbside service near his home in the northern suburbs. Brad and Jon talked about how the quarantine is impacting him and his job, how The Athletic is still cranking out great content despite a lack of live sports, the bizarre “I’m Keith Hernandez” pseudo-documentary that he seems mildly obsessed with (link below), David Kaplan’s tattoos, the unique family atmosphere behind the scenes with the White Sox, the sad story of Ernie Banks, what Jon would sacrifice for the quarantine to end, and much more. Follow Jon on Twitter (twitter.com/jon_greenberg) and check our The Athletic (theathletic.com). Also, be sure to watch “I’m Keith Hernandez” (https://www.shortoftheweek.com/2011/01/26/im-keith-hernandez/)
Apr 05, 202039:57
Wellness Check: CBS Chicago’s Jim Williams

Wellness Check: CBS Chicago’s Jim Williams

Apr 03, 202048:44
Wellness Check: Stephanie from Players for Pits
Apr 03, 202020:01