Olympic & Bundy

If you’re a boxing fan, you’ve most likely stumbled upon one of Elie Seckbach’s videos from his YouTube channel, ESNews. His channel has nearly 331,000 subscribers, 71,000 videos and more than 617 million views to date. The Los Angeles Times recently did a feature on Elie, describing him as “quirky,” “always smiling” and that he could be “the most influential reporter in boxing today.” He’s constantly working, shooting video, editing and uploading to his YouTube channel, in addition to other social media platforms. He even posted a video during this podcast. Interestingly, the Israeli-born reporter did not always follow boxing. He covered sports, mostly NBA, but his focus shifted after he posted a video with a guy he’d never heard of – named Manny Pacquiao. The video received 300,000 views overnight. For comparison, he considered 2,000 views at the time to be "viral." Interviews with LeBron James or Kobe Bryant received 10,000 to 15,000 views. Elie joined me on Olympic & Bundy to talk about

Dana Pollack is the CEO and founder of Dana's Bakery, known for taking the traditional French macaron and putting that unique American twist on them with flavors like birthday cake, s'mores, fruity cereal, red velvet and more. But Dana wasn't always sending these delicious love bombs to people in the mail. At 30, she left her career as a photo editor at Muscle & Fitness magazine and enrolled at the Institute of Culinary Education to study fine baking and the pastry arts. She says she admired the French macaron's beauty and distinct texture, but noticed the lack of variety in the traditional French macaron flavors. She soon started perfecting her own Dana-inspired macaron recipes. Officially established in 2012, Dana's Bakery began in a small kitchen in New Jersey. Using her photography skills, she shot pictures of her delicious treats like she would have in her previous magazine job. Catching the #FoodPorn wave early, she was able to build a following on Instagram with beauty shots of her macarons

Andrew Rayel tours the world every weekend as a DJ and producer, known for his harmonic style of trance music -- a sub-genre of electronic dance music (EDM). **Songs featured in the episode: * Andrew Rayel & Fernando Garibay feat. Jake Torrey, "Last Summer" (Armada Music)  Andrew Rayel, Corti Organ & Max Cameron, "New Dawn" (inHARMONY Music)  The 26-year-old is from the country of Moldova. He studied orchestral music as a kid, and after developing an interest in EDM, he kicked off his producing career at age 13.  He eventually got the attention of Armin van Buuren, who started supporting and playing his tracks.  Fast forward to 2018, and Andrew is regularly headlining the main stages of the world's biggest music festivals, including Tomorrowland Belgium, Electric Daisy Carnival Las Vegas, Ultra Music Festival Miami and more.  The classically trained musician heads his own record label, called inHARMONY Music, and also has his own Find Your Harmony radio show. You can see him in the mai

Tiffany Young was raised in Southern California, and at the age of 15 she was discovered by SM Entertainment—one of Korea's biggest entertainment agencies. She moved to Seoul on her own and trained to become a pop star, eventually making her debut in the popular K-pop group Girls' Generation. With her bandmates, Tiffany enjoyed a decade of number one singles, millions of album sales and more than a billion YouTube views in what some would call the most influential K-pop girl group around. She's now back in the United States, living in Los Angeles and launching a solo career. Her new single, "Over My Skin," is semi-autobiographical about a young woman transitioning to the next phase of her life. In the music video, she transforms into "Professor T," taking the class through a "POP101" course broken down into five lessons on style, social media, facing criticism, focusing on the music and taking your career into your own hands. Tiffany joined me on Olympic & Bundy to talk about her experiences liv

Imagine hiring someone to go on a walk with you around your neighborhood, and at the same time, you could study a new language, learn about the history of an area or just have an accountability partner to exercise with. That's the idea behind The People Walker, an on-demand service that lets you book people to go on walks with around Los Angeles and form new human connections. When Chuck McCarthy first moved to LA, he began working in production and eventually acting. He also started walking more. He says a series of events led him to the idea to start a business where he would walk people and talk to them. His idea received a lot of media coverage, including an appearance on “The Doctors.” Chuck met Ary Sarbaz at a wedding. They bonded over the “horribly amazing” reality show “Mystery Diners,” and they also discussed the concept of an on-demand service to walk with strangers that could leave a truly positive impact. Ary, an attorney who ran a law firm for several years, was sold. Together they ha

Many people first heard the soulful voice of Conrad Sewell in the massive song "Firestone" with Kygo.  Since being released in late 2014, it's racked up billions of streams.   The singer-songwriter, originally from Australia, also found success with his debut EP "All I Know," his Coca-Cola collaboration with the late Avicii and touring with Ed Sheeran and Maroon 5, among other things. Life on the road took a toll on his life, however. He says he was drinking a lot and it affected a previous relationship. This period inspired more honest songwriting (and beautiful vocals), which you can hear in "Come Clean" and "Healing Hands" off his latest release Ghosts & Heartaches. Conrad joined me on Olympic & Bundy to talk about growing up in Australia, his former band Sons of Midnight, the story behind "Firestone," songwriting, his musical influences, his latest release "Ghosts & Heartaches," his great hair and a lot more! Share this story: https://bit.ly/2nK3bhN Thank you to Conrad Ignatius Mario

Hal Eisner is currently in his 36th year on television here in Los Angeles. He's a reporter at FOX 11 and also hosts a show called "FOX 11 News In Depth." The longtime broadcast journalist just won an Emmy Award for his news special taking a look at the 1992 Los Angeles Riots. Hal got his start in Texas on the radio (by sending in a postcard, believe it or not).  Eventually making the transition to television news, he has since covered all kinds of local and national news stories, including the O.J. Simpson trial and the deadly 1994 Northridge earthquake.   Hal has also been very active in TV industry organizations throughout his career and creator of an annual weekend camp for aspiring news reporters and anchors across the country.  He joined me on Olympic & Bundy to talk about background in radio, covering the LA riots, winning an Emmy, mentoring young people and the importance of future journalists, his cowboy days in Texas and more!  Check out Hal's In Depth series at www.foxla.com/indepth a

David Mikkelson started one of the first online fact checking sites known as Snopes.com. In a time before social media and the convenience of search engines, David was discussing urban legends in the Usenet newsgroup alt.folklore.urban. In 1994, he started Snopes. Originally, the website focused on his interest in researching urban legends. More than two decades later, in the era of fake news and misinformation purposely being shared online, Snopes is still fact-checking but the website has evolved in the topics it covers. David Mikkelson joined me on Olympic & Bundy to talk about the beginning of Snopes, the process of researching a story and methodology behind the website's fact check rating system, the evolution of the website, his legal battle with Proper Media, the future of Snopes and more. Share this story: https://bit.ly/2Kk4vRi Thank you to David Mikkelson! Subscribe to Olympic & Bundy on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify and Stitcher. Connect on social: Facebook.com/OlympicAndBu

Ashley Bell's documentary "Love & Bananas: An Elephant Story" will take you on an emotional journey that ends with a love of elephants. Bell is an actress you may know from films like “The Last Exorcism” and “Psychopaths,” but over the past five years, she’s worked on a passion project that she both directed and produced. In the film, she joins Thai conservationist Sangdeaun Lek Chailert on a mission to rescue a 70-year-old, partially blind elephant named Noi Na from a trekking camp and bring her 500 miles to freedom. "Love & Bananas" also exposes the dangerous and unfortunate situation the Asian elephants are in, including the damage caused by tourists riding elephants at trekking camps, their loss of habitat and the illegal hunting and trade. It's a very hopeful film, however, and does an amazing job at humanizing these giant animals by sharing their intelligence, their empathy and their individual personalities. Ashley Bell joined me on Olympic & Bundy to talk about her background and

This episode is all about skin! Dr. Jacqueline Schaffer a board-certified medical doctor, author of "Irresistible You," and founder of Schique Skincare. While studying at Semmelweis Medical School in Hungary, her mother was diagnosed with skin cancer. After learning about the harsh chemicals in her mother's beauty products, she was inspired to create her own skin care line full of natural ingredients.  Dr. Schaffer joined me on Olympic & Bundy to talk about her background and her decision to pivot from working in a hospital to entrepreneur, her approach to skin care, her nonprofit A Sandwich A Day and more!  Share this story: https://bit.ly/2uSd8g7  Thank you to Dr. Jacqueline Schaffer!  Subscribe to Olympic & Bundy on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify and Stitcher.  Connect on social:  Facebook.com/OlympicAndBundy  Instagram.com/OlympicAndBundy  Twitter.com/OlympicAndBundy  OlympicAndBundy.com 

Doug Minnick is the co-founder of the Garagiste Festivals (www.californiagaragistes.com), which bring together small, artisan winemakers and wine lovers in various cities across California. He loves wine, but not in that snobby, intimidating kind of way that the world of wine sometimes holds. "Garagiste" is a French term originally used in the Bordeaux region to criticize small-production winemakers, sometimes producing out of their garage. Think rule-breakers and renegades -- driven by their love of wine. The Garagiste Festivals connect people with ultra-premium and hard-to-find wines. It also raises scholarship funds for future winemakers at Cal Poly University, San Luis Obispo. Doug is a garagiste himself, sourcing top-quality grapes for his Hoi Polloi Winery (www.hoipolloiwinery.com) that he owns with two other wine lovers. A plural noun in the Greek language, "hoi polloi" translates to "the masses, the common people, riff-raff." The label has a tasting room called "Double Trouble" in Old Town

Todd Wertman and Nick Smith are both car buffs and are professional appraisers on the Discovery Channel show "Sticker Shock." The 13-episode show features some classic cars and asks the question: "What's my car worth?"  It's a show for everyone (even those who are non-car buffs), telling the owner's story behind the vehicle. More often the not, the owner of each car has spent years and thousands of dollars restoring the vehicle -- and it holds a lot of sentimental value for each person.  Todd and Nick are among four appraisers who investigate the vehicle's history and condition to come up with a price tag.  In the show you'll see a 1966 Batmobile replica with working rocket launchers, a 1931 Chevrolet Roadster that was once featured with the Beach Boys during a performance on the "Ed Sullivan Show," and even a street-legal WWII military tank that the owner inherited from his dad.  Both Todd and Nick me on Olympic & Bundy to talk about their backgrounds, filming for "Sticker Shock" and the variou

Drew Manning was working as a personal trainer when he purposely gained and lost 75 pounds in order to gain a better perspective on the struggles of his clients. He has since become a New York Times bestselling author and hosted the A&E show "Fit To Fat To Fit," which follows other personal trainers from across the country as the undergo a similar experiment in which they intentionally gain weight -- and then lose it alongside their clients.   Drew has also become very knowledgeable about the ketogenic diet, appearing on "The Dr. Oz Show" to explain its benefits. He now runs a 60-day Keto Jumpstart Program and is working on a keto book.  On his podcast, The Fit2Fat2Fit Experience, Drew interviews various people talking about everything from physical health to mental health. In two recent episodes that are both very honest and vulnerable, he shares some pretty intimate details about his own life, his divorce and overcoming his addiction to pornography -- and then his ex-wife Lynn follows by sharing h

Francesco Mastalia is a photographer who takes portraits of people using an old and beautiful photographic technique from the 1850s, called the wet plate collodion process. The photographs are taken on glass plates, and Mastalia uses a large format wooden camera and antique brass lens. The glass plates are hand coated to produce images that are each individually unique -- yet possess an ethereal-like quality in all. For his new book "Yoga: The Secret of Life," Mastalia met and photographed more than 100 of the world's most renowned yogis, asking how they came to yoga and what it means to them. In doing so, the project seems to have left a profound effect on his own life. Mastalia joined me on Olympic & Bundy to talk about the enchanting wet plate collodion process, how this project positively impacted his own life, his photography style versus digital photography and more! Share this story: https://bit.ly/2lrLUbL Thank you to Francesco Mastalia! Subscribe to Olympic & Bundy on iTunes, Go

Tony McEwing was surprised this week by Los Angeles City Council with June 13th being proclaimed "Tony McEwing Day." He recently celebrated his 25th anniversary on Los Angeles television at FOX 11, and there were a lot of surprises for him. Tony says he doesn't really like all of the attention on himself, but is very grateful and appreciative for all of the love. He joined me on Olympic & Bundy to talk about his early days in Chicago, what made him switch from law school to a news man, his strict diet and more! Share this story: https://bit.ly/2JY0llY Thank you to Tony McEwing! Subscribe to Olympic & Bundy on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify and Stitcher. Connect on social: Facebook.com/OlympicAndBundy Instagram.com/OlympicAndBundy Twitter.com/OlympicAndBundy OlympicAndBundy.com

Jen and Samir Sarkar are the loving parents to 6-year-old Carter and 8-year-old Sophia. Their son, Carter, was diagnosed with a fatal disease called Sanfillipo syndrome, which is sometimes referred to as childhood Alzheimer's. It's a progressive brain disorder in young children -- caused by a missing enzyme. Carter’s parents say as the disease progresses, he will eventually lose the ability to talk, swallow and walk. He will develop seizures, suffer severe dementia and eventually pass away.    His parents, like all parents would do, are working tirelessly to give Carter his rightful chance at life. They started a GoFundMe campaign with the goal of raising $1 million to fund a clinical trial that could potentially save Carter’s life.   Visit www.SavingCarter.com to read more and use #SavingCarter on social media to further spread the word.  Share this story: https://bit.ly/2IM2EbZ  Thank you to the Sarkar family.  Subscribe to Olympic & Bundy on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify and Stitcher.  Con

If you're drawn to true crime shows and podcasts, you may have heard the voice of Tracy Pattin. She is the host and co-producer of the popular Hollywood & Crime podcast by Wondery, which delves into the unsolved murder of Elizabeth Short (aka The Black Dahlia) in 1947, as well as the murder of more than a dozen other women who died in similar circumstances around the same time. Most recently, Tracy's new six-part series called "The Wonderland Murders" skyrocketed to No. 1 on Apple Podcasts upon being released. She and writer/director Larry Brand use a docudrama style of storytelling to look at the 1981 case in which four people were brutally murdered at 8763 Wonderland Avenue — located in the Laurel Canyon section of Los Angeles. The case involves drugs, criminals and even the world's most famous porn star "on a downward and deadly spiral." Based on the success of Tracy's projects, as well as others like "Serial" or the docuseries "Making a Murderer," it's clear that people are drawn to true crime

Lesli Linka Glatter is one of the most prolific television directors around. She's received seven Emmy nominations, won two Directors Guild Awards and even received an Oscar nomination.  Her work includes "Homeland," for which she also serves as an executive producer, "Twin Peaks," "Mad Men," "The West Wing," "Gilmore Girls" and even "Freaks and Geeks." As part of the Female Forward Initiative, she's actively opening the door for other female directors to advance in their own careers.   As all good stories begin, you could say Lesli's began with a conversation with a stranger at a coffee shop in Japan. She joined me on Olympic & Bundy to talk about her modern dance background, the person she met in Japan that ultimately led her to change career paths, her first short film that got her an Oscar nomination and noticed by Steven Spielberg, directing and the environment she likes to create on set, reinventing each season of "Homeland" and more.  Share this story: https://bit.ly/2IKZcyd  Thank you

Valorie Kondos Field, or "Miss Val" as she's affectionately known, is the longtime head coach of the UCLA Women's Gymnastics Team with seven NCAA National Championships.  Valorie has been named the PAC-12 Gymnastics Coach of the Century and is a member of the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame.  Most importantly, she has a unique coaching style with a focus on joy, gratitude and choices. She says a breast cancer diagnosis in 2014 led her to an epiphany: "Be anxious for nothing and grateful for all things."  Valorie joined me on Olympic & Bundy to talk about her ballerina background, what led her to coaching gymnastics at UCLA, her coaching philosophy, the culture of gymnastics amid the Larry Nassar trial and conviction, empowering athletes to use their voices, how her breast cancer diagnosis and treatment changed her -- and a lot more.  Share this story: https://bit.ly/2Gz4ya4  Thank you to Valorie Kondos Field!  Subscribe to Olympic & Bundy on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify and Stitcher.  Connect

Heidi Moneymaker is one of Hollywood's go-to stuntwomen and has been doubling for actress Scarlett Johansson for years. She's also doubled for Julianne Moore ("The Hunger Games"), Michelle Rodriguez ("Fast and the Furious"), Drew Barrymore ("Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle") and many more. Before entering the stunt double world, she was a champion gymnast for UCLA. Heidi is the only woman gymnast in UCLA history to win NCAA gymnastics titles all four years in school, and she is UCLA’s first-ever uneven bars NCAA champion. In other words, she's a force to be reckoned with. Heidi joined me on Olympic & Bundy to talk about what got her into gymnastics as a kid, the transition to working as a stunt double, various films and roles she's taken on, the training you need to get work as a stunt double, her fitness company Fierce Lotus and its Action Star Workouts -- and much more. Share this story: https://bit.ly/2jOExuo Thank you to Heidi! Subscribe to Olympic & Bundy on iTunes, Google Play, Spo