The Sport of Life: Chats w/ Comedians, Filmmakers, Sports Figures, Musicians, & Intellectuals

Multiple Sclerosis ambassador and motivational speaker Tyler Campbell chats with Trey Elling about THE BALL CAME OUT: LIFE FROM THE OTHER SIDE OF THE FIELD. Topics include: Tyler's goal with the book (3:00) The thing that caused him to let his guard down a bit as a kid (4:36) Growing up as an African American in an affluent, predominantly white community (7:13) How the discovery of football helped him (12:15) An mistake that derailed his life as a junior in high school (15:29) How his mom and dad reacted to that mistake (19:37) Ending up at Pasadena City College in California (27:02) Getting that full ride to play at San Diego State (30:10) Swallowing his pride in making a name for himself on special teams (33:03) The terrifying details of his first experience with Multiple Sclerosis (35:03) Continuing to play football through this debilitating condition (41:08) Becoming an ambassador for MS and a highly sought-after public speaker (46:48) Inheriting Earl's skill as a public speaker (50:18) The key to a good story (52:14) What his mom means to him (54:51) What his dad means to him (55:44) What his wife means to him (56:37)

Former world champion debater Bo Seo chats with Trey Elling about GOOD ARGUMENTS: HOW DEBATE TEACHES US TO LISTEN AND BE HEARD. Topics include: Bo's goal with the book (0:27) Why disagreement is valuable in human interaction (2:30) Bo's outright avoidance of conflict changing in 2005 (4:52) The importance of topic analysis for debate (10:38) Why 'truth' and 'importance' are debate's two burdens of proof to convince a listener (15:49) Counterclaims as an embodiment for justifiable hope, according to Aristotle (28:14) Why rhetoric has such a negative connotation, and what good rhetoric looks like (32:02) Four qualifications that determine whether an argument is worth pursuing (37:02) How to disarm a name-calling bully in a debate (44:46) The greatest lesson he learned while coaching debate (48:10) Side-switching as another tool to prepare for debate (54:42)

Everybody Loves Raymond creator and Somebody Feed Phil creator/host Phil Rosenthal chats with Trey Elling, ahead of his appearance at the ATX TV Festival. The fifth season of Somebody Feed Phil is out now on Netflix!

Actor Briga Heelan chats with Trey Elling, ahead of her appearance at the ATX Television Festival for a GREAT NEWS cast/crew reunion and table read. Briga shares what she loved about the show, lessons learned from working around some legends, where her natural comedic sense comes from, the joys of parenting, and more!

John Gleeson was lead counsel in the successful racketeering-murder trials of John Gotti and Vic Orena, which he talks about with Trey Elling, as detailed in the new book, THE GOTTI WARS: TAKING DOWN AMERICA'S MOST NOTORIOUS MOBSTER. Topics include: The allure of working for the Eastern District of New York in the mid-1980s (1:28) How he became involved in the first Gotti case (3:15) Why his office didn't get along with the FBI's Gambino squad (6:42) Gotti's 'allure' in person (10:15) The special treatment Gotti received, despite being a defendant (13:17) Losing that first trial (15:24) The massive evidence obtained by bugging an apartment about the Ravenite club in Little Italy (18:57) How Gleeson took the lead on the second case (22:08) Nearly losing the case to the Southern District of NY (23:40) What they charged Gotti with (24:51) Using the bugged recordings to keep the defendants in detention (26:00) Getting two attorneys removed from Gotti's legal team (27:38) His initial response when learning Sammy "The Bull" Gravano wanted to flip on Gotti (30:10) Meeting with Sammy The Bull about flipping for the first time (31:44) Having to keep this a secret from his bosses (33:24) Learning from Sammy why they lost that first Gotti case (34:49) What worried Gleeson, leading into the second Gotti trial (35:45) Whether Gotti putting a contract out on his head during the trial worried Gleeson (37:44) Earning 'guilty' verdicts the second time around (39:06) His emotional response when finding out Gotti had died in the early 2000s (40:50)

Actor Adam Campbell chats with Trey Elling, ahead of a reunion with some of his former GREAT NEWS cast- and crew-mates at ATX TV Festival. Topics include: Embarking on his first trip to Austin and Texas (1:25) Adam's description of Los Angeles to an outsider (2:53) The difficulties of learning the full picture on the issues most impacting the country and world (5:08) Adam gaining an appreciation of America when going through the citizenship process (8:50) American freedom (10:31) What Adam loved about GREAT NEWS (12:19) Adam's comedic influences (16:20) Ricky Gervais' new standup comedy special (18:36) Raising a five-year-old son (22:44) Adam's hometown of Bath, Sommerset, England (26:33)

Oscar-winning director Ron Howard and World Central Kitchen CEO Nathan Mook chat with Trey Elling about WE FEED PEOPLE during South By Southwest 2022. The Apple+ documentary, directed by Howard, details the tireless work and humanitarian aid provided by renowned chef José Andrés through his organization, World Central Kitchen. Nathan Mook (0:44) Ron Howard (3:17)

M. Chris Fabricant, Director of Strategic Litigation for the Innocence Project & expert on forensic science and the US criminal justice system, chats with Trey Elling about JUNK SCIENCE AND THE AMERICAN CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM. Topics include: The birth of junk science as a jury-swaying courtroom tool (2:22) 'Peer reviewed' as a misunderstood term regarding science (10:33) An early 1990s US Supreme Court case favoring Dow Pharmaceuticals helping with the awakening on junk science (19:55) The challenge of swaying those whose careers have been built on a belief in junk science (26:14) The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) uncovering major flaws with the most popular forensic sciences in 2006 (29:38) Debunking the uniqueness and certainty of fingerprints (35:56) How it went when the NAS revealed its findings at the annual American Academy of Forensic Science meeting in 2009 (42:59) Michael West as an especially belligerent example of dental junk science (47:32) Unindicted co-ejaculator theories (52:28) The importance of Steven Mark Chaney's story (55:00)

Several people responsible for the new Nolan Ryan documentary, FACING NOLAN, chat with Trey Elling on the red carpet before the film's premiere at SXSW 2022. The interviewees include: Bradley Jackson - Director (0:33) Reid & Reese Ryan - Executive Producers & Nolan's sons (3:22) Nolan Ryan - Major League Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher & Robin Ventura's daddy (9:16)

University of Michigan Philosophy and Law professor Scott Hershovitz chats with Trey Elling about NASTY, BRUTISH, AND SHORT: ADVENTURES IN PHILOSOPHY WITH MY KIDS.