Occupational Therapy; A Quarantine Masterclass

Jared is joined by writer, producer and show runner Nic Pizzolatto to discuss his incredible journey from art student to creator of True Detective and beyond. In this spirited episode, Nic reveals some of his past adventures that lead him to where he is today, the moments when he saw opportunities and took them and how it’s impossible to place the process of a writer’s journey in a defined box or category. As Jared goes into deep detail about Nic’s Hollywood career, we are once again treated to an atypical pathway that resulted in incredible success. 

Brent Montgomery created the massive reality TV show Pawn Stars seemingly by accident and eventually became one of the most successful people of all time in cable television. This is a story of humble beginnings and all the little twists and turns that it takes to build a media empire. 

Jared sits down with dynamically successful TV producer and host of Men in Blazers Michael Davies to hear how his humble beginnings lead him from a shuttered tennis career to running some of the most successful TV shows of all time. In this laid-back, charismatic and hilarious episode, Jared and Michael go back and forth on topics like believing in yourself after failure, the enormous success of Who Wants to be a Millionaire and his numerous current projects that exist as worldwide TV staples to this day. 

Lee Trink’s diverse career path is highlighted in this episode as Lee shares his journey from an Assistant District Attorney in Brooklyn to the music industry to management and more recently to the world of esports. As the CEO of the most popular esports company in the world, FaZe Clan, Trink has been able to utilize his many experiences throughout his nearly 3 decade career to establish one of the world’s most recognizable brands. Jared gets to the bottom of Lee’s success one step at a time- and learns that there is no straight path to your final destination. 

Fred Savage grew up in America’s living rooms as the star of massively successful TV series The Wonder Years. Although he still performs in front of the camera, he has made an amazing transition into becoming one of the most successful directors in network television. Find out how he did it in this hilarious and insightful episode where Jared tries to see if he himself could transition into the director’s chair. 

Cleto Escobedo III has been the head of Jimmy Kimmel's Late Night Orchestra since 2003. His story of how he got here from his humble beginnings on the Las Vegas strip is too unbelievable to be true. Jared has a discussion with Cleto about what it takes to make it in the late night space as a house band leader.

Rags is easily one of the happiest people Jared has ever met in Los Angeles. This young man started out as a pedi-cab driver in Austin, Texas who made his fortune winning a Double Showcase Showdown on The Price Is Right. Following the wind where it took, him, he eventually became one of the top jingle salesmen in the country. This is a can't miss episode as Jared discovers what it takes to find true happiness in your craft, whether that means peddling festival goers across Austin… or selling jingles in Los Angeles. 

Jeff Ross started as a tour manager and road manager for musical acts like Diana Ross and AC/DC and is now known as having the title of Conan O'Brien's Executive Producer. On this episode, they discuss all of the steps and missteps Jeff took along the way that eventually got him to the top of late night TV. He also discusses how podcasts are now a big part of the Conan strategy. 

Media titan / mentor to Jared, Ben Silverman joins Occupational Therapy to talk to Jared about how he founded and brought some of the biggest shows in television history to America, from Who Wants to be a Millionaire to The Biggest Loser to perennial favorites like The Office and Ugly Betty. This is the person who invented television as you know it!. He breaks down his time as co-chairman of NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios and discusses his forays into his production companies and how he has constantly found new ways to discover and market new formats across entertainment.  This is one you don’t want to miss if you are looking to be the next king or queen of media. 

JP Crimi was a Boston local with a massive chip on his shoulder who moved to Hollywood where he became what he describes as one of the, “top five angriest people in L.A.” Since transforming himself through the power of BREATH WORK, JP he has gone from enraged - to enlightened. Today JP is considered the poster boy for calmness, serenity and acceptance. Find out how this magical and spiritual journey happened as Jared takes a breath work course with JP and they discuss it in great detail.