Ep529: Johnny Brennan of The Jerky Boys

Johnny Brennan reveals how The Jerky Boys' underground cassette tapes became an American comedy phenomenon, spreading from NYC musicians to Howard Stern's radar before landing an Atlantic Records deal and finding success with voiceover work on Family Guy.

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Topics Include:

• Johnny Brennan reveals The Jerky Boys infiltrated American vocabulary for over five decades
• People still answer phones with "tough guy" and use Jerky Boys catchphrases daily
• Johnny started creating characters on tape for his brothers back in the 1960s
• Father's threat to "put boot in ass" drove kids to creative outdoor activities
• Nine-year-old Johnny was already doing fake sportscasting with neighborhood friends on tape
• Looking through Buy Lines magazine for trucks sparked idea to record prank calls
• First recordings made on boombox intended just for family gatherings upstate New York
• All characters based on real people: Frank Rizzo was Johnny's father's personality
• Sweet innocent voice character came directly from observing his mother's speaking style
• Friend Kamal discovered forgotten tapes and declared them funniest things he'd ever heard
• Kamal distributed copies to musician friends throughout NYC's Village music scene underground
• Tape trading exploded nationwide through word-of-mouth before internet or computers existed
• Howard Stern desperately searched on-air for mysterious Frank Rizzo character's true identity
• Atlantic Records' Ahmet Ertegun signed band after discovering underground cult phenomenon spreading
• Johnny's mom actually came up with "The Jerky Boys" name for the act
• Catchphrases like "sizzle chest" and "milky licker" were completely spontaneous during calls
• Johnny spent incredible week with Ozzy Osbourne filming The Jerky Boys movie
• Currently voices Mort Goldman on Family Guy for over twenty-one consecutive years
• Records at professional studio thirty seconds from home, works with hardcore bands
• Offers personalized Cameo messages, giving special shoutout to Australian fans after forty years

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