

The Sport of Life: Chats w/ Comedians, Filmmakers, Sports Figures, Musicians, & Intellectuals
Trey Elling
Trey Elling chats with comedians, filmmakers, sports figures, musicians, and authors about their stories.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Mar 22, 2024 • 10min
#410 - Jermaine Dupri & Luther Campbell on FREAKNIK
Jermaine Dupri & Luther Campbell chat with Trey Elling about FREAKNIK: THE WILDEST PARTY NEVER TOLD, ahead of the Hulu documentary's world premiere at SXSW 2024. Topics include:
Why this story needs to be told (0:00)
What Freaknik was all about (2:20)
Jermaine's Super Bowl outfit (5:24)
The direction of college football (6:46)

Mar 11, 2024 • 14min
#409 - Thomas Haden Church on ACCIDENTAL TEXAN
Actor Thomas Haden Church chats with Trey Elling about ACCIDENTAL TEXAN, which opened in theaters on March 8th. Topics include:
Accidental Texan (0:00)
The Texas Hill Country (1:41)
Self-sabotage as a young actor (5:52)
Total eclipse of bachelor party? (9:04)

Mar 10, 2024 • 55min
#408 - Robert Smigel
Robert Smigel has made people laugh though SNL, Conan, Leo on Netflix, and much more. He chats with Trey, ahead of his appearances at SXSW 2024, to discuss four decades of creating comedy. Topics include:
Austin, TX (0:00)
Chicago (2:13)
SNL (11:13)
Replacing Lorne Michaels (19:45)
Triumph (22:01)
Norm (25:39)
Imitating Norm (28:01)
Is comedy harder in 2024? (29:43)
Cancel culture & comedy (38:12)
Armenia (42:07)
Watching movies in a theater (43:30)
Shameless promotion time (51:49)
Where's Triumph? (53:50)

Mar 8, 2024 • 24min
#407 - Evan Turner
Former pro baller Evan Turner chats with Trey Elling, ahead of Evan and Andre Iguodala bringing their Point Forward podcast to SXSW on March 10th for a conversation with Megan Rapinoe. Topics include:
Da Bears (0:00)
Jay Cutler (2:16)
Austin, TX (4:14)
Interviewing Megan Rapinoe at SXSW (5:51)
Post-NBA adjustment (6:41)
Starring at THE Ohio State (9:40)
Staying in school (12:36)
Parenting in 2024 (15:10)
Learning how to be a pro (17:08)
The AAU system (18:12)
Moving the 3-point line back (19:47)
The big question (20:33)

Mar 7, 2024 • 22min
#406 - Stephen Root on OFFICE SPACE
Emmy-nominated actor Stephen Root chats with Trey Elling, ahead of the 25th anniversary reunion of the Office Space cast & crew at SXSW 2024. Topics include:
Making Office Space (0:00)
NewsRadio (6:53)
Improv in Barry (8:14)
Mike Judge's brilliance (9:51)
Betting on yourself (11:15)
The end of Barry (14:09)
Working with Norm MacDonald (16:24)
Rebooting King of the Hill (17:39)
The Lasting legacy of Office Space (19:54)

Mar 5, 2024 • 38min
#405 - Steve Treviño
Comedian Steve Treviño chats with Trey Elling, prior to his Good Life Tour to Bass Concert hall in Austin, TX on March 8th. Topics include:
Moving back to Texas (0:00)
Working out new material (4:03)
Youth sports (6:28)
Non-offensive standup (16:44)
Kids and cussing (19:49)
Theaters vs clubs (23:39)
Helicopters For Heroes (28:27)
Renae, aka Captain Evil, joins in (30:34)

Mar 2, 2024 • 19min
#404 - Mark Normand
Comedian Mark Normand chats with Trey Elling, ahead of his Ya Don't Say tour stopping in Austin on March 1st & 2nd. Topics include:
His career blowing up (0:00)
Austin, TX (1:52)
Brian Simpson (2:47)
The Comedy Mothership (3:22)
Larry David (5:31)
The We Might Be Drunk podcast (8:36)
Bodega Cat Whiskey (10:18)
Shane Gillis on SNL (11:32)
Two 'taboo' words that are back in fashion (12:46)
A downtown Austin lunch rec (15:38)
The current tour (17:04)

Feb 29, 2024 • 29min
#403 - Christopher Titus
Comedian Christopher Titus chats with Trey Elling, prior to his Feb. 29 - Mar. 2 shows at Cap City Comedy Club. Topics include:
Stupid people (0:00)
Stupid drivers (2:13)
Carrying Monsters (4:51)
Dark (standup) comedy (8:17)
A Bill Hicks story (10:10)
Standup & cancel culture (12:13)
A Titus family history lesson (16:01)
A boost from Dana Carvey (17:07)
Parenting (19:57)
A question he's pondering (27:19)

Feb 20, 2024 • 32min
#402 - Mark Greaney on THE CHAOS AGENT
#1 New York Times bestselling author Mark Greaney chats with Trey Elling about THE CHAOS AGENT, the 13th installment in his Gray Man series. Topics include:
Focusing on Artificial Intelligence (0:00)
Only using actualized technologies (2:59)
AI being allowed in military warfare (7:06)
Disturbing AI discoveries from his research (10:42)
Parenting (13:59)
The creative process (17:48)
Failure (21:21)
Maladaptive daydreaming (24:15)
Appearing on JRE (26:58)
Key to a good story (28:22)
Ode to the Gray Man (30:40)

Feb 15, 2024 • 26min
#401 - Bryan Callen
Comedian, podcaster, and actor Bryan Callen chats with Trey Elling, prior to The Fighter And The Kid broadcasting live from Vulcan Gas Company on February 15th at 10pm. Topics include:
TFATK live broadcast (0:00)
Parenting in 2024 (3:09)
The cult of the amateur (8:01)
Challenging your kids (11:59)
Pursuing of acting (15:53)
The theme for his next special (20:05)
THE question he's pondering (22:11)
The death of Los Angeles (24:06)