rant · moment 9 of 21

Wormwood, Frank Olson's Son, and Obsession's Toll

from 2017, A Year Of Love And Peace · #76

Audio-only archive episode — no video to seek.

3 min

Tim and Ray discuss the Wormwood documentary series, particularly how Frank Olson's son was consumed and damaged by his lifelong quest to uncover his father's CIA-linked death, tying it to how research into dark topics takes a toll on the people who pursue it.

In this bit8 moments
  • 20:53Tim just started watching the documentary Wormwood about Frank Olson's son.
  • 21:06The son's obsession with investigating his father's death ruined his life, despite his intelligence and drive.
  • 21:24Researching deep government conspiracies takes a psychological toll, even when comedy lets you step away from it.
  • 21:49Sexual scandals among celebrities are getting worse, not better—it's not just scraping the bottom of the barrel anymore.
  • 22:11Tim on the contradiction of loving someone's comedy or show while they're also committing serious crimes.
  • 22:37Mario Batali's actions went beyond groping unconscious women—he was making out with them, which Tim calls depraved.
  • 23:13The cynicism required is recognizing you don't actually know any of these people.
  • 23:30Enjoying someone's work or thinking they're funny doesn't mean they're a good person.
Mentioned here

Mario BataliFrank OlsonWormwood

All 21 moments in this episode →