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All right, welcome to the Jason in the House podcast. I'm Jason Chaffetz, and I do appreciate you joining me. Now, this is a special treat. We are re-airing this. We did this a while ago. Tyrus, you've seen him on The Five. You've really seen him on Gutfeld. Funny guy, amazing story. Okay, this is like one of my favorite podcasts I ever did. And I'm going to tell you a story.
He is a compelling personality. In person, he is like a gentle giant. He's the nicest guy, beautiful family. I just think the world of him. And he wrote this book and I got a chance to interview him. And I want to replay it because I hope everybody gets to hear this story. It is truly an amazing story.
And so we're going to kind of bypass some of the news and some of the stupid and all of that. That's going to come up next week because I want you to hear Tyrus in his own words, telling his own story. And I think you'll find it really, really compelling. So let's give a call to Tyrus. Hello? Tyrus. Hey, this is Jason Chaffetz. How'd you get this number, Jason? You know,
I was actually thinking before I dialed you, I thought, you know, they say when you go to school, you know, you go to a job interview, where are you going to be in five years? I never thought I would be dialing up Tyrus and just having this call. So I am not revealing my sources. I was the chairman of the oversight committee, but I don't give it up. I'm not telling you where I got the number. I too share your never thought in five or 10 years that
Jason Chevers would be calling me either. So we're both kind of shocked. Well, I have to see you in the buildings. I guess I can't hang up. So what's going on, man? What's up? How are you? Well, no, that's very true. I think I first met you when I did Gutfeld. Yeah. And, you know, I've seen you out there. You're a lot of fun. And you got a beautiful family, by the way. I get to see them in the green room. But
I think one of the first things you asked me to do was to help tie your tie. Yeah. So no dad in the house. And that's one of the things that you don't... Tying ties is kind of passed down. You know what I'm saying? It's like...
Either your dad or your grandfather, your uncle. And it was just me and my brother and my mom. So I never had that passed down. So I never really liked wearing ties. Not to mention I have a 22-inch neck. So the tie is always short. You know what I'm saying? It's never long. It's always like just past my chest. So I look ridiculous in a tie. But it works with like a sweater vest or when I button my jacket up. But you had amazing...
Your knots and your ties are phenomenal. Like, I have an eye for that. Like, there's certain guys you're like, wow, man, that guy's tie game is on point. It's like Charles Payne's suit game. Oh. His suit game is unbelievable. I won't wear a suit because of Charles Payne because if you can't duplicate it or replicate it, I mean, you just – why bother? So I went to the – I went right up to you and said, excuse me, sir, I know you –
served and you're used to helping the people so if you could help a big person with a tie i'd really appreciate it and you did you did you did a phenomenal job and uh it was so good i was able to keep it like that so i was able to use it several times on different shows without having to ask uh strangers to tie my tie so i appreciate that man well you know it's hard to do on somebody else so i put it on then i loosened it way up then we got it on you
You know, when I was in Congress, there were actually two members who grew up, their family business was mortuary. And there was this guy named Steve Sutherland, who's a congressman out of Florida. And somehow we were talking about ties one day, and he was saying, yeah, it was exactly what you said. It was passed from generation. And he said, I still remember when I told my dad, hey, dad, I need to learn how to tie a tie. And his dad said, all right, come over here and lay down.
And because it was a mortuary, the only way that Dyad knew how to tie a tie is laying down on the ground dead. Jeez. Well, I've had a great experience with you ever, ever since then and been on Gutfeld a few times. And, you know, I just love your perspective. But.
I want to talk a little bit more about growing up. What was little Tyrus? If there was ever such a thing, tell us about little Tyrus and growing up because my guess is my growing up, your growing up, probably a little different. Yeah, so, okay, I came out the womb in trouble. So my father was a 19-year-old brother from Lynn, Massachusetts, and my mother was a 15-year-old runaway.
white as the snow. And they got together in Boston, which at the time was illegal, believe that or not, and in modern times even. But so they – so he could marry her. They moved to New Hampshire, which is, you know, hashtag deadbeat dad state of the world. Yeah.
Guys go down there, hide from child support and stuff, apparently. Very libertarian state. But so I was born actually in...
Exeter, New Hampshire, because that was the only hospital where he wouldn't be cuffed off for impregnating a minor. So we just started off on the wrong foot. And unfortunately, drugs and unemployment and those kind of things made my biological father a horrible human being. There was a lot of abuse that my mother went through. And then when it got
turned on towards me because I started trying to fight for my mother at four years old and he didn't appreciate that. So shortly after that, she contacted her family. Her father showed up. Blaze of Glory kicked in the door. Of course, my biological father was out on a five day binge. So we had a little bit of a break and he took us away and we ended up moving still in Massachusetts. But
to his family home and they were on the other side of tracks. And Boston at the time was very segregated. You know what I'm saying? Like every group kind of looked after their own, but they didn't. And it wasn't just black and white. It was like Irish, Scottish, you know what I'm saying? Like whatever you're, a lot of times we forget that like division isn't anything can also be religious and just where you're from and all that kind of stuff. So it was a Scottish neighborhood. And unfortunately, unfortunately,
Me and my brother were unable to stay there. He basically gave my mother an offer she couldn't refuse. She could get her life back together, go to nursing school or something of that sort. But to do that, she would have to move back home and she'd have to give us up. So and she made a tough decision.
So we ended up going to like a foster care family for a while. And then I was there for about, I want to say four, four or five years that we were there. And then she eventually got her nurse's degree and moved to California and wanted us back.
and was able to get us back, and then we moved to California. And then I was an East Coast kid in California. I was already set in my teams, diehard Celtic Red Sox fan. I'm in L.A. It's the 80s. This is the biggest rivalry on the planet. So a lot of schoolyard fights and stuff. But I was pretty scrappy. I got in a lot of fights.
But back then was different because when you got in fights, you became friends afterwards. That's how boys were. They'd be like a fight. Yeah. You get broken up and the next day it'd be round two. And then you decided it turns into wrestling. And then all of a sudden you're friends, you know? So it was very different that way than it is now. And I spent most of my time on a bike riding all over the hills of California with my buddies. I think that was the gist of my childhood. A lot of, uh,
weird adventures and stuff. And, uh, I was always fascinated by my kids having like parents and family members. It was always kind of like strange to me, but, uh, I was the kid that like always spent the night, you know what I'm saying? Like I was, I had more dinners and family homes and more weekends and family homes. Like everyone always wanted me around. So that was a good thing. I guess that was a good time, but, uh, so go back to the foster family. Um, you know,
I just find these people to be saintly. The people that will step up and say, hey, we'll take this whatever situation on. We're going to help raise this child. Was it that kind of household that you hope it is where, hey, look, they're just doing everything they can to uptake terror of this child? Or was it like more of a horror story like, I cannot wait to get out of here? No. Well, it was a horror story, but it was a horror story for them in the beginning.
I was damaged goods, to say the least. My father would he was very violent and he had passed the savings down to me. So one of the thing one of the sick things he used to do is I don't know if you remember those playpens, those old giant playpens. Him and his buddies would put their kids in the playpens and bet on fighting. Oh, man. And I I typically won. But I had been a lot of fights and I was very aggressive.
And I was very angry. I was very protective of my mother. So when they took, they kind of tricked me, they took me on a trip. Um, and, um, I went to, uh, I went to the house of my foster parents and, um, I walked in and they, it was, they were, they were a nice family. I was like, Hey, how are you? They were so nice to me. I kind of felt something was up cause they were like too nice. You know what I'm saying? Like I just met you and like, they're like telling me how nice my hair is and like,
how tall and strong and handsome I am. I'm like, yeah, that's great. Nice to meet you too. And then they said they had toys down in the basement. So I went down to the basement and they had two – actually they had three kids of their own who were older. I think the youngest one was like 15. She was their daughter. And then one of their sons was getting ready to go to West Point on a hockey scholarship and the other one wanted to be an actor. It's always one in the family, right? And I went down into the basement.
And they had an Incredible Hulk toy. And I was like, oh, Incredible Hulk. And as I went to pick it up and look it up, the door closed behind me. And I was like, huh? And the kids were sitting there. And about 20 minutes went by. And then the door opened up. And I came up. And I'm like, where's my mom? And they said, you're going to stay with us for a while. And I was like, what?
No, I'm not. Like, I'm I'm leaving my mom. I got to go to my mom. And so they had to deal with an extremely angry child for a long time. And it was I talk about a little bit in my in my book that's coming out in April 26. They were trying to basically civilize, for lack of a better word, a caged animal. Like I was aggressive. I had a mouth like a sailor.
They were very they were they were Italian, very religious family, family values. You know, the the the the husband, he worked two jobs. He was a Navy man. He drove a truck for Coca-Cola. He cut hairs on the way he cut hair on a weekend in a barbershop. I mean, he was a man's man. And so.
And she was, not only did she take care of her own kids, she ran a daycare during the week for enlisted families who would go overseas and would go on trips. So they would have kids.
sometimes staying for like months at a time. So it was a kid utopia. It's just that I was just a monster and angry. And, you know, I couldn't understand the color of my skin was the reason why I wasn't with my mother. So I did a lot of self-harm, you know, with the Brillo pads and stuff, trying to change my skin color so I could get home. It was a lot. They had to deal with a lot. Bedwetting, nightmares, night terrors. I mean, they, they, any, any normal family probably would have tapped out.
But, you know, she rolled up her sleeves and even in her own peril, they used to they used to dress me up. And this is something that I to this day, I always thought was I think back of it and I just smile. They would dress me up.
in these day corduroy day suits to send me to school the thinking was if they dress me up like a little gentleman i might act like one and not be a savage at recess and get in fights all the time so they would dress me up and i had this one suit this corduroy maroon suit i mean this thing was i mean i was amazingly proud and i had a clip-on tie that went with it and i was
I was looking the part. Now, back then, they didn't know what to do with my hair. So they kind of cut it in a bowl. You know, they just kind of like put it all around because I had that good hair. And if one drop of water got on it, it got all curly. So they really didn't know what to do with my hair. So she did the best she could. She didn't have training with it, but she did the best she could. But I looked debonair walking out to kindergarten and to get on the bus and
But this suit, there was one rule. Like if I got into a fight or a rough house at school, if I got a grass stain on my corduroy suit, I get a spanking. And she was about 4'10", 9 on a good day. She was small. But in the house next to the Bible, they had two things. It was a spatula that was not used for food.
and a stick with holes in it and a religious quote, don't spare the rod, spare the rod, not the child or something like that. And we all understood what those things meant. When they walked to the fireplace, that was your ass, basically, literally. You were getting a whooping. And so that was the deal. If I got grass stains on my suits, I got a spanking.
And I was having a good day. I wasn't even fighting or anything. I was just having fun. And next thing I know, I think I slid on the ground or something. And I was sitting on the bus on the way home and my friends were
looked at me and they were like, Ooh. And I looked down, I had this huge grass stain on my knee. And I was like, quote, man, F bomb on the bus. I was seven years old, horrible mouth. I'm just telling you horrible mouth. Like I, it was a Richard Pryor cassette tape in my house. And I think I had it memorized by the time I was six. So the plan was I'd get home,
change my clothes, put my play clothes on, because those are the rules, and stuff them in the bottom of the hamper, and that would give me time, at least for the day, so I could go out and play and not be bothered with this spanking thing. I didn't have no time for that. But...
But unfortunately, I didn't understand patterns and consistency because my nickname was Tornado because I would come home and just drop all my clothes off change and she would basically just be picking up after me. It was like her routine was like whatever room I was in was destroyed. And then I would she would pick up behind me. But today I was fine.
I folded up my clothes, put them on the bottom of the hamper, put my other clothes on and went outside without any redirects or anything like that. So she obviously knew something was up and I was playing, having a good time thinking nothing of it. She went to the hamper grass stain. She comes out young man inside. I go inside and there was, we had, this is when you could put kids in the corner. So there was three kids in the corner from daycare that had messed up. My brother was one of them and he was in the corner.
I think they were serving like seven minutes hard time, which is eternity for a child when you're stuck in the corner because you can't look and it's just there's no Internet or cell phone back then. So you're just you're stuck with your own thoughts, thinking about what you did wrong. When I was in there, I would be replanning and figure out what I did not to do not to get caught next time. So timeouts really didn't work for me. But and then she went and she got the spatula and I was sitting on the stool and I was like, you ain't spanking me.
And she was like, you knew the deal. I told you what it was. You're getting a spank. And I said, I'm not getting spanked today. And she's excuse me. And as she and the spatula had like a gleam to it, like shined, like the light hit it just right. And it was like ping. And I was just like, I'm not getting whooped with that today. So I picked up the bar stool. Now I'm a seven year old, but I'm a big seven year old. And unfortunately, because of where I how I grew up, I was pretty hand eye coordinated, pretty savvy because I had to defend myself all the time.
So I put the stool bar over my head, and she looked at me like, what are you going to do with that? And I was like, I'm going to hit you. And she was like, I dare you. And, well, gee whiz, I swung for the fences, and unfortunately I cracked her over the head and shoulders with a stool that shattered. Like it exploded. I broke her orbital socket in her collarbone, and my brother just turned around and was like, oh, you're in timeout forever. Like he was just –
Oh, man, what are you going to do? So I was like, I'm getting out. I'm gone. I'm going to run back home. And it's when you're an abused kid, you always seem to want to go. I didn't want to go to my mother. Suddenly I want to go to my father's house for some reason. I'm not really sure what the thinking was. But I packed. I opened the refrigerator with some devil dogs, a Capri Sun. And I think like I grabbed like some pickles or something. And.
put it in a backpack. Front door was locked. Couldn't figure out how to get it out. Cause she had like a real cool child lock back in the day to keep the kids from escaping. And, uh, I ran down to the garage where my older foster brother was studying for acting classes and PBD Massachusetts, whatever that was. And, uh, he oblivious to everything that was going on. His mom's unconscious upstairs. Kids are forming a revolution and they're all rating the food of snacks, uh,
And I tried to open the garage door. He said, oh, sorry, bro. Let me help you with that. And I was like, and he opened it up and I was gone. Now, unfortunately, I didn't understand geography because I thought it was just one street over. I would just go up the street, make a right, and it would be my grandmother's house and I would be safe.
It's a big world and you don't realize it until you're running. Also, I wasn't as fast as I thought I was because one of the neighbors back when your neighborhood was involved and everybody's family and checked on each other and watched out for each other saw a seven-year-old with a bag full of food running up the street. So he thought, hey, you know what? I'm going to stop gardening for a minute and I'm going to see what's going on. So he
He jogged alongside of me while I was running as fast as I could. Again, I thought I was a lot faster than I was. They understand seven-year-old mentality. And he basically said, hey, what's going on, bud? And I said, I'm leaving. I'm out of here. And he could tell I was covered in sweat. And I had a couple splinters from when the stool exploded on the side of my face. And so he was like, hey, why don't you just come in my backyard for a little bit, calm down, we'll figure it out, and I'll give you a ride to your grandmother's house. And I fell for it.
So I went in the backyard. But then when I realized that he wasn't getting me right, I climbed a tree. So I'm up in this tree. They can't get me down. They now realize that something's happened to my foster mom. So the ambulance was called. The fire department was called. And this is Peabody. So fire departments were...
The firefighters were like, look, I'll spray a little bastard down from the tree. Like, hey, get down. It wasn't feelings. It wasn't a safe space. It was like, hey, get your little yellow behind down from this tree before we cut it down. And I was like, go ahead. And I was just feeling my oats. But it was so bad that they called her husband. And when he showed up, he just walked over the tree and said, you going to get down? And I just got down immediately. Didn't even think twice about it. And as I was walking up,
with him, she was coming out on a gurney, had a thing over her eye and her shoulder was pretty bad. All she could say was, "Please don't hurt my baby. "Please, he doesn't know what he's doing. "It's not his fault." And for me, that changed my life. Like just went from this monster to I did something really bad and she still loves me. And for me, that changed everything. Now, when I went into the house,
He sent me to my room and he let me sit there for about three hours while I contemplated what death was going to be like. So I just assumed life was over. And then he brought he came and was knocking my door, which was weird because I was used to doors being kicked in. So a knock. I didn't even have a greeting. I was like, huh? And he said, come with me. And he walked down. He took me down to the cellar and he sat me down. He goes, we got a problem. He says, you put hands on my wife.
And if another man, and since you want to be a man, another man puts hands on his wife, I've got to deal with that. And I'm like, uh-huh. And he goes, and not only that, you put hands on a woman. So you're not a man either. So what do I do with you? And he started taking his belt off and he's like, you're going to get a beating because
That's how it's dealt with when you put hands on people. You put hands on my wife. You put hands on... She takes care of you. She feeds you. You have no respect for anyone. And so I have no respect for you. And he gave me a whooping, which can only be described as a miracle round. But it was just... It was different. I understood what I did, why I did it. And I agreed that I needed a whooping for that. So it was the first time I was disciplined for the punishment fit the crime. I know that's... People are going to be like, oh, you shouldn't spend... Like...
That's the message. I got it. And when it was over, it wasn't name calling or anything else. He literally let me get myself together because I never wanted to cry. But after like eight, you start crying. You think you're glory. Everyone thinks they're glory when they're getting a whooping, but you're really not. And then about an hour later, there's another knock on my door, and he's got a couple bowls of ice cream. He's like, hey, you can come watch the game with me. So...
I learned what family was in the worst situation, and I was attached to the hip of this man. Like, I couldn't go – he couldn't go anywhere without me. On the weekends when he went to the barbershop, I went with him. When he came home, I was waiting for him. Like, it was a bond. He would take me out in the front yard looking for frogs in the yard, knowing there's no frogs in the yard in Peabody, Massachusetts. But I saw him on TV. Like, he was – they were that kind of family. Like, we had –
dinner, structure, Sunday breakfast. Like it was a, it was a family. I was playing hockey. I was like doing well in school. Like my life was, had really turned around. So they went above and beyond what I would even call it foster family. And at one point they were trying to adopt me and my brother, but my mother stepped in and we ended up, they ended up
letting me go letting us go to california but uh yeah most of my morals work ethic the few short years i was with them changed my life forever because i was on the fast track to just being another brother in and out of jail and angry and you know i mean i literally had already been arrested three times so and i was seven so i had a pretty good rap sheet when i was seven so
And I mean, detained at school, taken in the back of a police car, driven home. You know, that happened a few times. So, you know, but they they really they really changed my anger and they replaced it with love and understanding and respect.
Everything they did made sense to me. And I think as a parent now, that's what I always try to do with my kids. When they do make mistakes, I try to make them understand. Now, obviously, times have changed and you're no longer with belts and things like that because it's not socially acceptable anymore. But the lessons are still the same.
But I would argue there were certain kids that like with my kids, like my son in particular, if he does something wrong and I look at him and I'm like, man, I'm disappointed, that fool will cry. And he will be like, Dad, I'm so sorry. I don't know what I was thinking. I was not that child.
If you told me you were disappointed in me, I'd be like, well, I'm disappointed in you too. What? So we both said, may I go now? Like that did not work with me. Punishments, groundings, nothing because I had a great imagination and I would be like having the time of my life in my room by myself. And they'd be like, can I have two more days? Just two more days. I'm building a fort. I got a lot of things going on. So those things didn't work with me. Luckily, my kids, although my seven-year-old, my daughter, she's a lot like me and although –
I'm unable to... I've never... I think I spanked once. The fear of the spanking is more powerful than the actual spanking. But timeouts, I see her little face and I'm going, she's marinating. She's not learning. So yeah, my particular case with my foster family was a life-changing experience. Well, yeah. I mean, you know, the people who step up and deal with that and change the trajectory of a life like that, you just...
I just can't thank those people enough. You're listening to Jason in the House. We'll be back with more of my conversation with Tyrus right after this. The Fox True Crime Podcast presents Crimes on Campus. Sharing chilling stories of scandal, corruption, and murder. New episodes available every Tuesday this month. Listen and follow at foxtruecrime.com. So on your journey...
I mean, you had to be sad to have left, but did you feel like in your heart, hey, it was just right to go with my mom? Oh, no. The conflict was, what was that conflict like? Unfortunately for me, because I had been rejected by my mother's parents and I came from, been ripped out of one home, moved to another home, kicked out another home. I was so hardened in certain ways that when they were trying, because they tried to make it a positive thing.
I mean, they were heartbroken because they really wanted us. And they tried to make it a positive thing, a fun thing. But I was always able to see through that. But I loved them so much that I wouldn't let them know that I was upset. And this is how old again? How old are you? I'm eight and a half, nine at this point, I think, nine. Wow. But I could tell they were holding back. Because, well, he was dad at that point. Dad was...
a strong man. I mean, he was in the Navy. He was, he worked, he was a strong man. He had an anchor tattoo. I mean, he literally looked like Popeye. I couldn't, I couldn't, I am not...
He literally, I mean, his forearms are a little smaller, but I mean, it was pretty much it. I mean, he looked exactly like that guy. And for him, he was sitting drinking a sherry because that was his preferred drink. He'd have a sherry and smoke his pipe at night. And that's when he was having his sherry and smoking his pipe. You knew that was, it was quiet time. That was quiet time. But it was the middle of the day and he's drinking a sherry and he didn't have his pipe.
And his face was red like he had been crying. And I had never seen that before. So I really immediately went in. I wanted to protect them. So I didn't want them to know that I was angry. And, you know, they said the same thing, like, oh, we'll be in touch. You can come visit. It's going to be fine. This, that, whatever. And once I got out there.
Even the trip out there was just my mother was supposed to fly back to get us, but she couldn't because she had to work. So she had a friend flying with us and it was like TWA or something. And so it's a strange skinny girl who looked like I was almost as tall as she was. She tried to was going to teach us how to be brave on a plane. I was like, yeah, right. I think I said two words to her the whole flight, you know, and I just wanted I was waiting to see my mother and I was nervous to see her and.
We get to Sunland, Tujunga, California, and it looked a nice house on the outside. But inside it was like a bunch of roommates living together. You know, it was, you know, they partied on the weekends and they were like kind of hippie-ish. And I was just like, I just came from super conservative. Everything has its place. And what is this? You know, and my brother was like, oh, these are toys. I'm like, those aren't toys. Those are pipes and pipes.
straws and stuff. Like, don't touch that stuff. So I immediately was the parent again. So it was... My mother was young and she just... I think she was leading with her heart. But I always think that... I always say this all the time. Parenting needs to be a choice. When you force parenting on people, we end up with horrible results. And she did the best she could. But...
She was young, you know what I'm saying? And I didn't really look at her like mom. I looked at her like we're like buddies, you know what I'm saying? We're like friends. And that is never a good relationship. So it was an adjustment. And, of course, the first day I was there, I called and, you know, and wanted to come home. And they were so positive and supported my mother the entire time, even though I was like – and then my mother just got tired of it and, you know, just –
Didn't allow me to use the phone to call them anymore and told me that they were paid to take care of me and they never, they didn't want me either. So, and it was a lot of that. And then, you know, I just, it just time went by and we just didn't speak again. But did you, do you have contact with that foster? I contacted them a few years ago. I literally from some crazy Facebook, something like that. Back when I had Facebook, they reached out to me and I was able to,
see them and uh my my dad was dying so i was able to uh see him one more time and um say goodbye and it was funny because he was you know when they get to that point they drift in and out i don't know if i'm i'm sure you've experienced that i have unfortunately yeah yeah and um he kept he's my nickname was georgie he used to call me georgie all the time so uh he basically went back to like i had just got home from school and um so it was a really really
good moment, you know, and then he passed away a few days later. So I was able to see, I spent about a week with him. And then, then it was done. And then I just, I'm not good at
Staying in touch with people. That's just something that I've never developed. And after that, I just kind of drifted away. And then she ended up passing away a few months later. And then once that chapter in my life was closed, that was it. I didn't keep in touch with the kids or anything. I'm just not built that way. Some things are great about you, but one of the things about me is that I don't maintain relationships. Some of my best friends, we won't speak for years.
And then we're just able to, you know, come together whenever we come together and pick up like we left off. But if we don't have that kind of friendship, then I just don't stay in touch. I'm just not. Unfortunately, I could never unfix that. You know, it's different with my kids, but I'm just not a guy who, like, keeps in touch. That's just not my thing. Yeah.
But I think that's great that you were able to go back and kind of say goodbye. Yeah, oh, it was great. If I would have missed out on that, I don't think I would have been able to kind of put my upbringing in perspective. Because you focus on the bad so much. People, we always focus on the bad. We always talk about how we were wrong. And sometimes you forget...
That in those moments, there was good things happening to you that helped you get through that. And we focus on so much of the sad story and we don't focus enough on the powerful journey that was happening. Bad times happen. People are going to say horrible things to you, but it's your reaction that defines you, not what is happening to you. And he was...
He was my good moment through all that. And I look back on my life and I wouldn't change it at all because I wouldn't have got where I am today had it not been for his influence. And the only way I would have ever been in his world was that I came from a damaged world. So you can't – you have to look at things for what they are, and that's something that I've always –
kind of been like is I never like to focus on the bad stuff. Yeah, because you know what? We have very different lives, but I guarantee you, you've got some horror stories too, you know? And everyone has a horror story. I mean, that's part of how we all got there. So...
I don't regret it at all, but I, like I said, I got lucky. Like I said, I got, I got lucky, you know, cause some people, it is a paycheck. You know, some people do take foster kids in for checks and things like that, or their own selfish needs of being wanting attention. And, you know, I've seen it all, uh, being a teacher and working, uh,
with delayed children who are often in foster care or in group homes and stuff. You see a lot of that, but I got lucky. My whole theory is that I totally agree with you because I get a chance having been on a member of Congress and in Fox and you go out and get to speak to groups all across the country. And that's kind of one of the main themes I try to drive home is this idea that
You know, we all have a story. We all have heartache. We all have hard times. We just don't know what it is yet with each and every person, but everybody's got it. It can be
it could be something as dramatic as what you went through. It could be, you know, addiction, it could be health issues. It could be financial, you know, I, you just don't know what it is, mental health, but everybody kind of, I mean, that's, that's life and it's hard and it's difficult. And, and you do hope you, you cross paths with that saintly person who can help mentor you and, and, um, you know, give you that help and direction. And,
And I look at these kids and they hope they get it all at home. But I also don't think it's all governments that should be doing it either. No, I agree. Yeah, no, because at the end of the day, it takes a village and it takes people, not government programs, because they always get exploited. You know that better than anybody else. So there's always somebody gaming the system. That's why I always say parenting should be a choice, not mandated. You know, if someone says, hey, I can't be a mom,
There's people out there that can, you know, or a dad that wants to stay gone, you know, holding him down to child support and making and forcing him to be a part of something. I feel like it does more damage to the kids than not being there because I never missed mine. Never once. Never once thought, oh, man, I wish this guy was here. But if he was constantly...
Being in my world, you know, it would have been confusing. So I was glad that he was never apart because chances are I would have ended up just like him, sitting on a porch somewhere in Lynn Mass, blaming somebody else for my problems. You're listening to Jason in the House. We'll be back with more right after this. When did you realize, you know, I'm a little bit bigger than everybody else in this room. Like, when did you start to realize...
Yeah, I got some height and some strength that maybe everybody else doesn't have. Probably when I always had to stand next to the teacher in the school pictures. I think that kind of tipped me off. That's right. They put the tall kids right next to the teacher, right? So it doesn't look so different. Not fitting in the desk. That was fun. Going to the store and they were like, nope, we don't have that size. That's always...
good and things like a neighbor, the neighbor had a flat tire and, you know, she was struggling. Her husband was older. And I think I was 11. I just walked over and I said, do you want me to push it? And they're like, yeah, right. And so I pushed their car in their driveway. And as I walked there, I remember the guy goes, Jesus Christ, kid, who's your dad? And I just looked back and said, the Hulk.
Because I said the Hulk. And so my nickname was Little Hulk for a while in my neighborhood because the only thing I didn't do was paint myself green. But-
Lou Ferrigno was my imaginary dad, you know, so he was because I loved him. That show used to come on on reruns at night and stuff. And I used to watch it religiously because the Hulk was a good message. Like he was a good dude just trying to help people out. And if you piss him off, he'll break some stuff and then he'll go back to being cool again. But in the ending, he was always on his own, that piano song or whatever. But that song made me sad for a lot of reasons, just because not only was it
he once again was on his way. It was also bedtime. So, you know what I'm saying? So whenever I hear that song, I just, I think, ah, man, man, cause you're not staying up for golden girls. So, you know, you're going to bed. Did you ever get to meet him? Yes. Okay. So I got to interview, uh, Lou Frigno on my show. Nuff said on Fox nation, that's been in hiatus since the pandemic, but you know what? It's sometimes, you know, we went out, I guess I went out on top, but, uh,
Um...
I went to interview him, man, and I didn't care about anybody else. I said, I need to interview Lou Ferrigno. And ironically, his son worked with me. I got his son a job. We used to lift at the same gym, and I had seen him a couple times, and he acknowledged me. He gave me a head nod, and when Lou Ferrigno gives you a head nod, it's like, that's all you need in the gym. You have just been christened. You belong. So it was kind of cool, but...
We just started talking. I was supposed to ask some questions about it, but we just went off and we talked about family. And he told me the story with his dad and his issues and stuff. And then, you know, I kind of was told him like, yeah, I feel it. And he's like, oh, you had the same relationship with your dad, which yes, I kind of lied to my idol a little bit, but it was like, he was opening up and I was not going to stop it. You know, cause, and it was just like sitting under the learning tree.
And, uh, it was supposed to be like a 20 minute interview. It ended up being like two hours. I met his whole family. Uh, I follow him on Instagram and every time he likes something of mine, I'll take a picture of it, send it to my friends. Like, boom, look, look y'all. And so, uh,
He was and then it's always nice when you meet your hero that he is exactly who you thought he would be. Right. And that was an amazing thing about Mr. Ferrigno was that he was exactly how I imagined he would be. And, you know, he was a big part of my childhood in terms of giving me.
And I think it would have been terrible if I would have met him and he had a cigarette in his mouth. And he was like, hey, kid, yeah, I'll do the interview, but it's going to cost you 200 bucks. And sold me a bunch of Hulk swag. That would have sucked. But he was a great family man. And I was really, really honored to meet him. He comes across like that. I mean, he comes across as just a great guy. There is no BSing in him at all. And he has paid his dues. He dealt with being partially deaf. He dealt with...
you know, a really, really verbally abusive father. And so, and he was able to turn in all of that into, and he, he was competing, he was competing on the main stage with Arnold. And there was a lot of us who believe watching that documentary over and over pumping iron, kind of feel like he won kind of just putting it out there. Arnold was again, Arnold Schwarzenegger, another favorite of mine, but yeah,
Lou was just something... He was just more relatable because Arnold looked like he never had a bad day in his life. You know what I'm saying? Like, he just came out and everyone was like, oh, this guy is it. And, you know, like, he's never had a bad day. Even when you think it's a bad day, somehow he turns it around to where it's not a bad day. Yeah. So, where Lou was like he was...
perfection in the bodybuilding world, but you just could relate because he didn't start that way. So I think that's what the extra connection was for me with Lou Ferrigno, was just that he started small, he had a disability, he was picked on for it, and he turned that into something powerful. Now, you found your way into wrestling, but then somehow you found your way
Fox News. How in the world did that happen? Bruh, I'm still scratching my head. Basically...
I met Greg on the internet, so it just sounds weird when I explain it. But yeah, we met on the internet. Apparently, he swiped right. Wait, wait, you got to explain that a little bit. You guys are on Tinder? What was going on? No, I wasn't on Tinder. He might have been. I don't know. I just got released from the WWE, and I just signed with Impact Wrestling.
And there was a it was a tweet, a red eye tweet or something. And I wrote a comment to somebody who was somebody said something really foul. And I made a joke about it. And apparently Gutfeld liked it. And then he said, hey, that was funny. And I was like, cool. All right. And he's like, hey, I got a show called Gutfeld. And I was like, yeah, I think I've seen it once or twice.
And I had seen Red Eye. I mean, who hadn't seen Red Eye? I think everybody at an airport or a doctor's office at 3 in the morning has seen Red Eye. And that was weird. And so based off that and this random message from him, I was like, all right, this dude's weird. He's like some guy who thinks he's going to have a wrestler come down and body slam him or something weird like that. Or like, hey, you mind choking me out on TV? I'm like, oh, man, but –
I thought it would be good. I thought, oh, he asked me to come on the show, and I was like, man, why not? It can't hurt. And then my boys were like, Fox News? I was like, yeah, there's this comedy show on Fox News, and they're like, Fox News. Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity, Fox News? I was like, yeah. Oh, hell no, dog. It's a trap. It's a trap. Don't go on there. It's a trap. And I was like, well, I mean, if he tries something, I'll just –
Knock his ass out on national TV. I mean, he's like four feet four. I'm not worried about this little leprechaun. And I'm like, I was going to go on there just to defend wrestlers. You know what I'm saying? I went on there like, he's trying to bring me on there and he's going to try to make fun of me. Oh, he's un-messed with the wrong one. Like,
Ooh, he done messed with the wrong one. He doesn't even know what I'm like in the locker room. I take no prisoners. So I was skeptical. And even when he invited me, I was like, yeah, right. Okay, bruh. And then he's like, I'll have my assistant call you. And I said, great. I'll have my assistant call her. Have your people call my people. Full disclosure, I did not have an assistant. Still don't. So when Joan called and like, hey, here's your travel. I was like, wow, this dude's maybe he's not. So.
And I came on the show and we shook hands and we were talking and he's like, how do you want to do the intro or whatever? And at the time they had a door. He came in through this door of the Gutfeld show. And he was like, hey, wouldn't it be great if you carried me through the door? And I was like, here we go. I knew it. I knew it. So I was like, all right, man. Yeah, I got you. Like, man, damn it. I knew it. I knew it was going to be creepy.
But I did it, and then we came down, and I sat in my chair, and it was like Cat and I think the –
Joan was the other co-host but they were looking at me like I stole something, you know I was like everyone was looking at me like what is this? We got Shrek like wait a second. I stole something. Yeah, like Shrek is in the house ladies and gentlemen He does not have the donkey with him. So he is not not fun to watch at all So it was just kind of awkward and then he asked me a question about Royal Grande eating donuts and I made a joke about it and
The commercial break happened and he was like, hey, man, you're pretty funny, man. If you lived in New York, I'd make you a co-host. And I said, well, I don't live in New York and that's not happening. He says, well, what about once a month? And I was like, seriously? He's like, yeah, just come on once a month. I was like, yeah, I'm thinking this is great for me. And I was like, all right, cool. This was fun. It wasn't as evil white supremacist Fox News as my homeboys told me it was. Right. And so.
So I was like, all right, cool. And then just kind of, you know, and he actually was true to his word. Once a month I come on and then I came on and it was about we had the we had a series of videos about police brutality coming out and all these protests and stuff going on. And I was coming on the show and he wanted me to he was going to ask me about it. And I was really apprehensive because I was kind of stuck.
Because I've had wonderful experiences with police officers, and I've had horrible ones. I've had a gun to my head. I've been zip-tied for no reason. I've been pulled over just because. I had my car impounded just because I didn't answer the way he liked it. And then I've had officers who literally like your taillights out and told me where to get it done and this, that, whatever, or had a flat tire, and they've pulled over and be like, hey, can I help you? So, I mean, I had been through –
both sides of it. And I had friends I played ball with that ended up being cops and stuff. So I kind of really didn't want to pick a side, you know? And, uh, and for one was because, well, publicly as a brother speaking on behalf of the police department, and then I got to worry about being called the uncle Tom and all this other kind of stuff. And then if I go the other way, then I'm militant. And, you know, then I got to worry about police officers seeing the show and being like, Oh, wait till I pull his over, you know? So,
So those are the thoughts going in my head. And I actually just kind of started researching stories. And I actually reached out and called a few different cops and talked to them and got their takes on things. And then I felt really confident. I was prepared for this. And I said, you know, I'll just decide in the moment how I'm going to go with this.
And when he asked me the question and I just I remember I said it comes down to compliance, you know, and I was talking about I set it up. I talked about, you know, how I feel when I get pulled over. I'm imagining this is how they feel. I went through the whole thing. And at the end, I said, you know, if you have a warrant and they find out you have a warrant, prepare yourself like you're not resisting arrest does not make you Rosa Parks. It makes you a criminal.
I said, there's a difference between complying or whatever. And if it, you know, and I just put both sides of it on the table and it went viral and it was the biggest, most, I think it was like 5 million or it was some crazy number. And I get a call a week later. Greg was like, Hey, I'm fine. I'm pushing for you. I want to get you a deal. I want you to be a regular member on the Greg outfield show. And I was like, yeah, right. But I was like, yeah, cool. You know, it's just one day a week. It's Saturdays. Why not?
And, you know, Greg fought. I mean, can you just imagine that board meeting?
I mean, can you just imagine that meeting? All right, Gutfeld, what do you got? Okay, I got this six-foot-eight tatted kind of black guy. He's light-skinned, but he's black. He wears a hat all the time. He doesn't wear suits. He kind of cusses a little bit. He lifts a lot of weights, but he's really good about talking about political stuff. So I think we need to pay this guy some money. He's lucky he didn't lose his job. Like, Gutfeld's drinking again. So, and...
Lo and behold, I think the funniest thing was, and it's water under the bridge now, I was making about like 50 a year at TNA because they only filmed once a month. And I was doing indie shows to make up the difference. So I was working myself to death.
And Greg just walks up and goes, hey, how much are they paying you at Impact? And I was like, $110,000. And he was like, okay, so like $120,000, will that work? Yeah, I think that'll be cool. I think I can make that work. I can check the numbers. Let me check with my people. Yeah, you know, and I'll let you know. And, yeah.
And as I walked away, I just kind of looked back. I was like, he went for it. Cool. His brother was in trouble. Like, I was getting some phone calls from people like, yo, where's the light bill money? Kids need clothes. So it really, really saved my life in a lot of ways in terms of, like –
Because as an actor, it's like in a wrestler, it's like peaks and valleys. You're either working all at once and then you could have ghost town for months and then you'll start working again. So it added stability to my life. And it was something that I was I never thought I never saw myself doing it.
And we just grew. And then I started getting calls from other shows. And I was just like, what? Outnumbered? The five? Like, okay. And so I started doing different shows. And next thing I know, I'm a Fox contributor and whatever.
I find myself spending less time watching wrestling film study and more time film studying politicians and digging up stories and looking for sources and trying to reading over the constitution and just really just diving in. Cause I, here's the thing, whenever you're given a new opportunity, you,
The hardest part is getting it, but you don't realize what's even harder is maintaining. And the only way you maintain something is you constantly improve. You cannot ever get to the top of the mountain and be like, and pull out a lounge chair and be like, I'm cool because there's people climbing that mountain too. So I've always treated whether it was football, wrestling, bodyguarding, or Fox News as a competition. And I'm trying to win every show. Like,
Like I'm, I, I want to, I, when fans are like, whoa, Tyrus was on fire tonight. Tyrus nailed it tonight. Tyrus did it tonight. Um,
And I was also really lucky. She's not with us anymore, but Holly, when she was the executive producer for Fox, she held me to the fire. I mean, she found something wrong with everything I said. And I love that because constructive criticism, like you said this, right, but you could have phrased it this. Like she never told me what to say or how to say it, but she was always there. It was like having a coach.
just like in sports and just like in wrestling. It was like after the show, I would come back and be like, you got anything? A couple things. Even things like you got to look at the camera more. Don't look away. You're posturing. You're sitting. This, that, whatever. Don't wear your hat too low. It was just things that I continued. And the good news was that she never had to tell me something twice.
So I always Arne Anderson, who was part of the Four Horsemen, one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. When he was my coach and my agent in the WWE, whenever I made a mistake, he says, I don't mind you make a mistake. You just can't make it twice. And I was like, got it. So that's kind of been my motto for TV. And I've I had my mistakes. I had my one glorious moment on Gutfeld when I when Busgate happened.
with Trump and Hillary. Yeah. And I just said, I'm out. I'm not voting. Like, I don't know which way. Like, I'm done. Like, I'm not voting. Wipe my hands. And Holly was like,
Yeah, that's not really the message that we want to put out to Americans when you don't like something, not to vote. So we're going to sit you down this week. You're going to stay home. And I didn't understand it at first. I was kind of like, what? No, you said I could speak my mind. She's like, yes, but you still have a responsibility. And I didn't get it at first, and I was all mad and blamed them and everything.
Because I'm black, right? And she's like, no, because you're an idiot who just said that you're not going to vote. And if that's something that we just don't want to promote, we want everyone to vote. You know, right, right, right. And I it was a lesson. And that's when I realized that even though I can say whatever I want, I have a responsibility in the words that I say.
So it's not just fly off at the handle and say things for reaction is to understand that there are people who watch that my words and I don't know how this happened, but my words mean a lot to them emotionally and they treat it like facts in some cases. So that responsibility was something that I had to really work on in terms of like think before you speak. And it's hard for a guy who blurts.
So I started to really take that into control. So I ended up, I was off for the week, right? My hand had been slapped and I was going to sit home for a week. But it was the first time I had a week off in a long time. So I went on a vacation, right? I went to the Cayman Islands. And as I was walking past the bar, out from the bushes jumps,
Osama bin Laden's assassin. And I was like, what, bruh, what are you doing? And he's like, what's going on, man? I was like, Muguya, what are you doing? I was like, you can't do that. You cannot jump out at people. Like, you're not allowed to do that. And he was like, oh, shit.
sorry, man. I didn't even think. Yeah. I'm like, if I send you, this is how I'm going out. This is because I said I didn't want to vote. So you're going to send you to do the dirty work. And he was like, what are you talking about? And I told him what happened. He's like, oh, and then you thought that I was going to, he's like, no, I'm not packing, bro. I'm not packing. So,
So we had a beer, and I was like, wow, it's crazy that of all the places you would just show up. He's a great guy. Yeah. He's a lot of fun. That's pretty funny. Yeah. Jumping out of bushes at people. It's not cool. There's stories. I mean, I could talk to you for hours about being a bodyguard, right, and doing that whole thing. I have to do a part two, man, because I got – I know. But what I'm saying is tell me about your book you got coming up. What –
Well, you kind of got most of it in today. I mean, at least chapters three and four are done. It's a memoir of my life, but it's more about how I've learned to use accountability and focus on my reactions opposed to the person who or the situation, the circumstance. Whenever something bad happens in your life, you need to remember it's your reaction that you're judged by. What's it called? What's the book called? Just Tyrus. Just Tyrus. And it's out when? April 26th.
Well, that's coming up. Yeah, and it's weird because I just got boxes of books and –
My face is on them, and I just feel really weird walking up to somebody and, hey, I know you know me, but you need to know me more. So here, read my book. So it's – No, people – I think it's going to be wildly successful. People want to hear more. And you have a different story, and it's a hard story. And people can – you know, my story, like I said at the beginning, it's a little different than your story. Just a scotch. But yours is much more –
dramatic. I mean, it's just an amazing story, and I think it buoys people up because it's
It seems to have such a great, happy ending. And your life's continued. You're going to have hiccups. You're going to have hurdles you've got to overcome, just like the title of your book here. But I think it will inspire a lot of people. So I'm excited about that. Tyrus, I've got to ask you a couple rapid questions as we wrap up because, you know, you've wrestled the biggest and the best, but you haven't answered these questions yet. And I've just got to go rapid fire. Are we cool with that? Let's do it. All right.
First concert you attended? Bruce Springsteen. My mother took me at 13 because she used to be his groupie a few years before. He gave her free tickets whenever he came to town. It's awkward. I was not expecting that answer, but that's interesting. I met him eating a bowl of cereal on my couch when I was younger, so it was awkward. I was like, hey, that looks like the guy that... Oh, no. Okay. Why am I here? Next question. Did you ever have a pet growing up?
Yeah. Oh, yeah. Some more everything that crawled. But I had a dog named Zapper and Trapper, and they used to accompany my bike on adventures. But I've had snakes. And of course, my obsession with fish. I've had a fish tank probably since I started when I was 10 years old. And now I have about 30 of them.
uh, and lots of reptiles and stuff. So I've always been, I was a zoologist major in college until I realized that I had to cut them up all the time. And I just wasn't interested in a physiology aspect of it. So, uh, but, um, uh, sir, David Attenborough, uh,
nut job. So I belong to Dolphin Project. So yeah, pets. I like pets more than people, honestly. Yeah. I could sit and watch documentaries on animals. And when I want to get away and clear my head and go do something and not think about the world or any of the problems or anything else, I like doing wildlife photography. So I go out, grizzly bears,
I would love to take you out. Go up to the Tetons, go out to Montana, Utah, and certainly Wyoming, and, you know, grizzly bears, elk,
Moose are so aggressive. Moose are more dangerous than bears. Yeah, elk are rough too. But yeah, and I just bought land last year in Montana. I got 21 acres out there. Oh, good for you. I'm planting it. As soon as I get some time off, I'm going to go dig a well. So when you want to clear your head, you want to get away from everything, what do you do? I go sit in front of my fish tanks.
And I just zone out there. And whenever I got to think something through or I'm struggling with something, I have a big decision, I'll go out there and contemplate it while I'm sitting in front of my fish and just kind of – it just is a really relaxing state. And it's something I just – I usually make my best decisions in that room. That's good. That's really good. All right. Pineapple on pizza, yes or no? Yeah. Why not? Oh, come on.
judges you were doing so well but the judges don't like that answer what judge where they live at i'm just telling you it's part of the the crew that i run with here you don't put a wet fruit on your on your pizza oh but pepperoni is better or sausage mushroom mushrooms just makes it that much better black olives it's not wet sopping wet pineapple i don't know what kind of pineapple you've had pal but uh
If it's cut up and prepared right, it's phenomenal. And it was a big deal in California. So if any of your crew wants to come take the pineapple off my pizza, they can try. I'll take that under consideration and share that with the other judges. Yeah, let them know. All right. Best advice you ever got. Don't make the same mistake twice. Yeah, it's good. You talked about that. Yeah, Arne Anderson. Yep. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Tyrus, thank you so much. Look forward to your book coming out on the 26th. Just Tyrus, right? Yep. Thank you so much. Anytime, man. I'm glad we've crossed paths and I hope we do it again soon. But thanks for joining us on the Jason in the House podcast. I really do appreciate it. No problem, man. Anytime. I mean, I think I foreshadowed this at the beginning, but I cannot thank Tyrus enough for taking the time and telling that story. And it's good to see somebody...
was such a great, happy conclusion and having such great success. Please rate the podcast. Subscribe to the podcast. I would remind people that you can listen ad-free with a Fox News Podcast Plus subscription on Apple Podcasts. And Amazon Prime members can listen to this show ad-free on the Amazon Music app.
Thank you again for listening. Again, rate it, subscribe to it. We'll be back with next week with a really good podcast. Until then, enjoy it. I'm Jason Chaffetz, and this has been Jason in the House. Listen to the all-new Brett Baer podcast featuring Common Ground. In-depth talks with lawmakers from opposite sides of the aisle, along with all your Brett Baer favorites like his all-star panel and much more. Available now at foxnewspodcasts.com or wherever you get your podcasts.
