In this episode of 2 Bears, 1 Cave, Tom Segura and Bert Kreischer explore themes of friendship, mortality, and the entertainment industry through personal stories and wide-ranging conversations. Bert reflects on his relationship with the late comedian Patrice O'Neal, whose brutal honesty shaped his comedy career, and draws parallels to his marriage dynamic with his wife Leanne. The discussion moves to funeral preferences and life expectancy predictions, with both hosts sharing their perspectives on legacy and mortality.
The episode also covers historical topics including the invention of the meter during the French Revolution and Daniel Boone's frontier adventures. Tom and Bert discuss the economics of horror versus comedy filmmaking, highlighting how limited budgets can still produce successful horror films. The conversation touches on Florida culture through Publix grocery stores and their Porosos vodka brand partnership, demonstrating how regional products and cultural touchstones intersect with their business ventures.

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Bert Kreischer candidly describes his marriage to Leanne as one requiring emotional adaptation to her harsh personality. He compares his numbness to her bluntness to ignoring a persistent smoke detector beep—a learned survival mechanism. While her harshness is difficult, Bert accepts the trade-off, noting that Leanne fiercely defends him against others, much like being married to a fighter.
Bert's friendship with comedian Patrice O'Neal mirrored this dynamic. Patrice was notorious for brutal honesty, including ripping up Bert's set list at an audition and ridiculing Bert's bombed performances. Despite the harshness, Patrice's critiques contained hard truths that forced Bert to confront his weaknesses. Patrice extended this unfiltered honesty to everyone, even telling comedian Todd Berry he would never succeed at panel comedy.
Evidence of genuine sentiment occasionally broke through. Bert recalls Patrice tweeting support for his show "Birth Conquer"—a rare gesture of approval after years of criticism. When Patrice died, Bert didn't attend the funeral due to financial considerations, but felt certain Patrice would have disapproved of spending $900 on a plane ticket for any funeral, even his own.
Bert and Tom Segura discuss changing funeral customs, with Bert expressing a strong preference for a traditional funeral in a church with attendees in suits, rather than a casual "celebration of life." Bert wants celebrities like Joe Rogan, Rob Lowe, and John Stamos at his funeral as marks of legacy and loyalty. Tom is more pragmatic, attending only if it involves minimal inconvenience.
Bert confidently predicts he'll reach 88, crediting his late start in weight training for preserving his joints. Tom estimates his own life expectancy at 77, citing family cancer history. However, both speculate that medical advances might cure cancer within 30-40 years, potentially extending their lifespans significantly.
In the 1770s, a French scientist introduced the meter as a new measurement standard, but the concept proved too radical and confusing for most people. As the French Revolution progressed, the inventor became a target and was executed—revolutionary leaders often persecuted major scientific innovators more fiercely than military figures. This pattern extended to other intellectuals like Antoine Lavoisier, who was guillotined, and Giordano Bruno, who was burned at the stake for contradicting Church teachings.
Daniel Boone's story exemplifies colonial expansion's dangers and ethical dilemmas. In debt and facing legal consequences, Boone accepted a judge's deal to settle Kentucky land and displace Native Americans in exchange for avoiding incarceration. This led to founding Boonesboro but came at the direct expense of the Shawnee and other tribes. When Boone's daughter Jemima was kidnapped by a Shawnee war party, she cleverly left pieces of her dress along the trail, allowing rescuers to track and recover them.
Tom Segura argues that horror is easier than comedy to produce successfully with a $1 million budget, emphasizing that horror films don't require star power—audiences are drawn by story alone. Bert shares his surprise at selling a horror script faster than any comedy project, and Tom notes that horror has maintained a substantial, dedicated fan base for over a decade.
Filmmaker Baker Curry exemplifies this potential: his debut horror film cost $750,000 and grossed $16 million on opening weekend. His next project, "Anything but Ghosts," features fake ghost hunters facing real paranormal events, blending documentary style with genuine scares. Bert highlights Curry's versatility as both a comedic and horror creator, positioning him for greater commercial opportunities.
Bert reminisces about Publix as Florida's premier grocer and cultural hub, especially its famous "pub subs." He describes the ritual of letting a sub marinate overnight so the bread absorbs oils and flavors. Publix serves as the central hub for stocking up before boat days on the Gulf, with Floridians purchasing subs, snacks, and alcohol there.
For Bert and Tom, getting their Porosos vodka into Publix represents a major milestone. Bert highlights the buy-one-get-one-free promotion timed for Fourth of July, emphasizing how this validates their brand's quality and regional power. The podcast also integrates sponsored advertisements for products like Hims, where Bert offers personal testimony about hair loss treatment improving his confidence within three months.
1-Page Summary
Bert Kreischer candidly describes his marriage to Leanne as one involving emotional adaptation and acceptance of certain personality dynamics. He likens his numbness to his wife's harshness to how some people ignore persistent smoke detector beeps: a learned survival mechanism. Bert finds amusement in Leanne's sharp confrontations with others, but admits it's difficult when she's that way toward him. Over years of marriage, he grows accustomed to her bluntness, developing a kind of emotional callus—his method for enduring their dynamic.
For Bert, Leanne’s harshness is balanced by the benefits it brings. He observes that while she might be verbally tough on him, she is fiercely loyal and will defend him against others. He accepts this trade-off, viewing her protection as a silver lining, much like being married to a fighter—there's roughness at home but safety when confronted from the outside. Bert positions this pattern as essential to surviving a marriage with someone as unfiltered as Leanne: embrace the whole, knowing moments of support accompany the difficult ones.
Bert’s friendship with comedian Patrice O’Neal mirrors the emotional complexities of his marriage. Both relationships required Bert to adapt to a barrage of brutal honesty, but within the meanness, he recognized a measure of respect and even care. Patrice was infamous for his harsh criticism of Bert’s performances, including telling Bert after a bombed set that he "stunk up the room," and even physically ripping up Bert’s set list at an early audition, insisting Bert was better off just talking than reciting jokes. While these incidents stung, Patrice’s critiques inevitably contained hard truths about Bert’s talent and style, forcing him to confront his weaknesses.
Patrice’s testing of genuine friendship took on a ritual form; he denied any closeness by questioning whether Bert would host him or pick him up from the airport, setting concrete standards for what counts as real friendship. Even in personal matters, Patrice’s brutal honesty surfaced. He openly ridiculed Bert's girlfriend’s physical disability in a one-on-one setting, showing his impartial approach to everyone—no topic was off limits, no matter how painful.
Despite the harshness, evidence of pride and genuine sentiment did break through. Bert recalls Patrice expressing unexpected pride for Bert’s show "Birth Conquer," tweeting support publicly—a rare and subtle gesture of approval. This ackn ...
Friendships and Personal Relationships
Bert Kreischer and Tom Segura engage in a candid conversation about changing funeral customs and their own expectations. Bert observes that traditional funerals are falling out of favor in place of “celebrations of life,” which are often held long after the death and lack the immediacy and ritual of funerals from previous generations. He expresses a strong preference for a dignified, traditional funeral: he envisions attendees in suits, a church setting, and a gathering that features notable figures. Bert is adamant about not having a comedy-club style memorial or a lighthearted celebration, though he’s fine with such events happening separately to benefit others, as long as there’s a real funeral for him.
Tom, on the other hand, appears less invested in the traditional format and is skeptical about traveling for distant funerals. Their discussion drifts into the social calculus of funeral attendance, debating which fellow comedians and celebrities would or should turn up at each other's services. For Bert, having celebrities like Joe Rogan, Rob Lowe, John Stamos, and Dax Shepard at his funeral is both a mark of legacy and a reflection of loyalty and impact. He even jokingly demands that if his friends such as Joe Rogan do not attend, they should be shamed online. Bert expects videos from more prominent stars like Adam Sandler if personal presence is not possible. The convenience of location (ideally Hollywood or LA for Bert’s own funeral) and ties to travel become deciding factors for who might actually show up.
They further explore attendance expectations for comedian friends’ funerals, with Bert indicating plans to attend certain ones (like Joe Rogan, Sebastian Maniscalco, Ari Shaffir, Mark Normand, and Chris DiStefano) and evaluating each occasion based on factors like location, food, cultural experience, and friendships. Tom’s approach is more pragmatic—he’d attend if it involves minimal inconvenience or offers a good time. The conversation reveals deeper attitudes toward mortality, friendship, and the desire for a meaningful legacy marked by who gathers to remember you.
Turning to their own projected life spans, Bert confidently predicts he will reach 88 years old, crediting his late start in weight training for not damaging his j ...
Funeral Preferences, Mortality, and Life Expectancy
In the 1770s, a French scientist introduced the meter as a new standard of measurement, intending it to be one millionth of the distance from the equator to the North Pole. This concept was highly mathematical and challenging for most people to grasp. The scientist made a ceremonial presentation, unveiling a gold meter bar on a velvet table and declaring, "Ladies and gentlemen, this is the meter." He distributed brass replicas for others to adopt, but the measurement struck many as arbitrary and confusing, especially in an era before standardized units like the meter, yard, or foot were commonly understood.
The lack of immediate understanding and the audacity of introducing such a sweeping change created resistance among the audience and, more broadly, among the population. As the French Revolution progressed, people grew even more suspicious of big scientific ideas. The inventor of the meter became a target; his contribution, perceived as too radical and disruptive, led to his execution. Remarkably, the revolution's leaders appeared to persecute major scientific innovators, like the meter's creator, even more fiercely than some prominent military figures, such as Napoleon, who was exiled rather than executed.
The period of revolutionary change proved dangerous for those engaged in science and philosophy. Antoine Lavoisier, the father of modern chemistry, was executed by guillotine during the French Revolution not because of his scientific achievements, but due to his previous role as a tax collector. This was typical of the era's blending of social, political, and intellectual suspicions.
Beyond France, other intellectuals faced similar fates for challenging established authorities. The Italian philosopher Giordano Bruno was burned at the stake for his assertions about an infinite universe and for contradicting Church teachings. The persecution of thinkers stretches further back to the execution of Socrates in ancient Greece and the beheading of Thomas More in England, who refused to endorse the king as the supreme head of the Church. These examples illustrate a long history of intellectuals being punished or executed for advancing ideas or questioning power structures.
On the American frontier, Daniel Boone's story exemplifies the dangers and ethical dilemmas of colonial expansion. Boone, in debt while living in North Carolina, planned to journey to Kentucky to obtain valuable animal hides to repay what he owed ...
History and Documentaries
Bert Kreischer poses the question of whether it is easier to make a hit movie in comedy or horror with a $1 million budget. Tom Segura immediately responds that horror is easier, citing that successful horror films do not require star power to succeed. He emphasizes that unlike other genres, horror movies can attract audiences through story and storytelling alone, without relying on well-known actors. This is almost unique to horror, where viewers are drawn in by the premise and execution rather than star recognition.
Kreischer shares his own experience, noting he managed to sell a horror script much faster than any of his comedy projects. He expresses surprise at how well horror always performs financially, even as someone with a background in comedy. Segura agrees, pointing out that for more than a decade, horror has consistently attracted audiences and maintained a substantial, dedicated fan base. The genre’s continuous appeal and robust revenue stream make it a safer commercial bet for filmmakers working with limited budgets.
Kreischer gives an example of filmmaker Baker Curry, whose debut horror film exemplifies the potential success of modestly budgeted horror. Curry’s film was made for just $750,000 and grossed $16 million on its opening weekend, underscoring horror’s viability for innovative, lesser-known talent.
Curry’s next project, “Anything but Ghosts,” further highlights the genre’s creative possibilities. The film adapts the concept of fake ghost hunters—characters who stage supernatural investi ...
Entertainment Industry Discussion
Publix holds a revered place in Florida’s cultural identity, especially among locals who rely on it as the go-to grocer for everything from daily needs to preparing for classic coastal outings. Bert Kreischer reminisces about the evolution of Publix’s famous subs (“pub subs”), recalling how, as a kid, a massive 12-inch pub sub would be partially eaten, with the rest marinated in the fridge overnight. He explains the ritual of flipping the sub so the “heavy part of the bread got wet,” which, to him, elevated its flavor, evoking mouthwatering nostalgia. Despite resistance from outsiders who claim to prefer crisp bread, Bert insists that allowing the bread to absorb the Italian meats and oils overnight actually improves the sub.
Beyond sandwiches, Publix stands as the central hub for Floridians stocking up for boat days on the Gulf. According to Bert, the Florida ritual entails purchasing chips, multiple pub subs, snacks, Porosos vodka, beer, tequila, and more at Publix before heading out on the water. This makes Publix integral to the state’s recreational, sun-and-water-centric culture.
Bert recalls a quintessential Florida outing: renting a boat and taking his daughters, their friends, his wife Leanne, and parents out to an island in the Gulf of Mexico. He fondly details bringing a bounty of snacks and pub subs for everyone to enjoy on the water, capturing a family memory that epitomizes the Publix-infused Florida lifestyle.
For Bert and Tom, their vodka company Porosos reaching the shelves of Publix marks a major business and personal milestone. Bert highlights a buy-one-get-one-free (BOGO) promotion at Publix for Porosos vodka just in time for Fourth of July, a holiday known for home celebrations and well-stocked bars. He emphasizes how strategic this partnership is, appealing directly to Florida residents who already associate Publix with premium and essential purchases for personal and festive gatherings.
Achieving placement at Publix validates both the quality and regional power of the Porosos brand. Bert's pride is palpable as he identifies this as a sign of real success and viability in a competitive market. He describes the timing as perfect, with the Fourth of July being a peak vodka sales period as consumers prepare for celebrations with family and friends.
A seamless mix of personal conversation and business, the podcast incorporates sponsored advertisements for products li ...
Lifestyle Products and Brand Partnerships
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