Live. Die. Podcast.

EPISODE 125: When Rosie Met Tommy

For this final episode of Season One of Meeting Tom Cruise, Jeff is thinking about the importance of underwear in the Cruise filmography. We’re sorry. We answer the question, “What have you learned this season?” (Hint: We have learned nothing this season.) And as our guest, we have the woman who broke open the doors for Public Displays of Tom Cruise Affection; the woman who turned Meeting Tom Cruise into an art form; the woman who always and forever knows him simply as Tommy. We are honored, thrilled - and clearly just giddy - to have with us the great Rosie O’Donnell.

Follow Rosie at the coolest handle on Twitter: @Rosie

… and yep, on Instagram too: @Rosie

EPISODE 124: Anthony Anderson meets Cruise… Scorsese… and … and…

That time Anthony Anderson met Martin Scorsese. That time Anthony Anderson met James Earl Jones. That time Anthony Anderson met Eddie Murphy. And yes, that time Anthony Anderson (really close to almost) met Tom Cruise. 

That time Anthony Anderson told us all about them. It’s all here, as we near the end•ish of our season.

Follow Anthony on TWITTER and INSTAGRAM.

EPISODE 123: Season’s Meetings - An MTC Retrospective

We’re a best-of, greatest hits, top picks, hot takes kind of group, and on this week’s episode we bring you highlights (oh, we also like highlights) of this first season of Meeting Tom Cruise. You’ll hear from (deep breath): Jay Ellis, Malin Akerman, Gloria Calderón Kellitt, Jay “Foggy” Hayden, David Alan Basche, Lisa Ann Walter, Kevin Pollak, Christy Meyers, Sarah Wright Olsen, Cousin Sal, Evan Ferrante, Dan Patrick, Anthony Natale, Victoria Kelleher, Craig O’Brien, Benito Martinez, Vinessa Shaw, Marc Blucas and… and…

Anthony Anderson and Rosie O’Donnell. 

Meeting Tom Cruise. It’s getting less impossible by the day.

EPISODE 122: Meeting Light the Fuse - Crossover Episode

It’s four hosts… two podcasts… and one obsession. On this crossover episode of Meeting Tom Cruise, Jeff and Joel talk with Drew Taylor and Charles Hood, hosts of the long-running LIGHT THE FUSE podcast, a show about all things Mission Impossible. To call this just a deep dive is an insult to deep things and to divers. Drew and Charles know all there is to know about Impossible series, and Jeff and Joel… they… uh… have also seen those movies.

Check out the Light the Fuse WEBSITE.

Follow the show on TWITTER and INSTAGRAM.

… and of course listen to their show on APPLE PODCASTS .

EPISODE 121: Meeting Joel and Alek

It’s the episode no one asked for but everyone’s gonna get! After (kinda) answering the week’s question, “Which role that Cruise turned down would you like to have seen him play?” the guys take a deep dive into shallow waters, learning about what Joel Johnstone and Alek Lev were doing right up until the moment when they never met Tom Cruise. 

Follow Joel Johnstone on INSTAGRAM and TWITTER.

Don’t follow Alek Lev on INSTAGRAM or TWITTER.

But please do follow the show on INSTAGRAM and TWITTER.

EPISODE 120: Shrinking Jeff Meacham

Dan Patrick told us that we should have a therapist on to talk about our issues. He told us: “Get help.” And so… we did. We now present this (first?) installment of Shrinking Jeff Meacham with psychotherapist Karyn Rosenberg.

EPISODE 119: Marc Blucas Blows our Blucin’ Minds

Let’s just put it this way… Marc started talking, and even BEFORE he told us about the time he met Tom Cruise on the set of KNIGHT AND DAY, we had ALREADY decided that this episode would be nothin’ but Blucas. (And yes, that’s a “nothin’ but net” reference, which is appropriate for someone whose best man was San Antonio Spur’s Hall-of-Famer Tim Duncan.) But yes. Marc met Tom. And Cameron Diaz. And started a business with Dale Earnhardt. Oh, just listen to the show!

Also follow Marc on INSTAGRAM.

EPISODE 118: Eyes Wide Shut the Front Door -- with Vinessa Shaw (Part 2)

The conclusion of our talk with Vinessa Shaw, who played DOMINO in Stanley Kubrick’s 1999 film EYES WIDE SHUT.

Follow Vinessa on TWITTER and on INSTAGRAM.

EPISODE 117: Eyes Wide Shut the Front Door -- with Vinessa Shaw (Part 1)

It took Stanley Kubrick and Tom Cruise four hundred record-breaking days to film EYES WIDE SHUT, and it’s gonna take Jeff, Joel, and Alek two episodes to figure it all out. Listen to three guys with little or no expertise analyze and critique a film that has challenged, delighted, frustrated, and confounded audiences and film historians for two decades, and settle in for a true insider’s look at the workings of Kubrick and Cruise with our special guest, Vinessa Shaw, who played the role of DOMINO in the 1999 film.

Follow Vinessa on TWITTER and on INSTAGRAM.

EPISODE 116: Benito Martinez

+ Rotten Tomatoes Quiz Show

Jeff may have been thinking about Tom Cruise this week, but somehow we wind up discussing Alek’s (lack of) drinking habits; We play the first installment of the Rotten Tomatoes Quiz Show; and our guest is the fantastic Benito Martinez who tells of his days with Tom making American Made.

Follow Benito on TWITTER.

EPISODE 115: The Skydiving Cameraman - Craig O’Brien

+ Saddest Cruise

Jeff and the guys prattle on about Tom on trains or something, and then ask the penetrating question, what’s the saddest Cruise? But NONE OF THAT MATTERS. This week’s guest - who was a surprise to Jeff and Joel until the moment the interview began - is CRAIG O’BRIEN who is, actually, in fact, no kidding, the guy who filmed Cruise’s HALO jump in Mission Impossible: Fallout. It’s Meeting Tom Cruise… at 20,000 feet.

Learn more about Craig on the Perris Skydive WEBSITE.

And check him and his amazing photos out on INSTAGRAM.

EPISODE 114: Victoria Kelleher (Minority Report)

+ Future Dead Guests

Jeff’s been thinking about the crazy stories which he “learned about” on the internet that happened on the Days of Thunder shoot; We ask the least useful question yet, “If you could interview a dead person who has met Tom Cruise, who would it be?”; We speak with Vicki Kelleher about her time working with these two guys named Steven and Tom on this movie called Minority Report.

Follow Vicki on INSTAGRAM.

And remember to check out our YouTube Channel.

Jeff’s been thinking about Kyra Sedgwick this week, though we desperately try to get him to focus on Mr. Cruise (we fail); We answer the question: What is the funniest Cruise? Hint: Jeff is wrong and Alek is writing these show notes; We speak and sign with Anthony Natale, who played the Man in the Elevator in Jerry Maguire, and was the first to speak -- well, sign -- one of Hollywood’s most legendary lines. We invite you to WATCH this interview on our new YouTube channel by clicking riiiiiight HERE.

And check out our other goodies on the YouTube Channel. Who will be our first subscriber??
Follow Anthony on INSTAGRAM and on TWITTER.

Meeting Tom Cruise exists because the great Dan Patrick took a shot on a bunch o’ rabble rousin’ Cruistastic Cruisinators who had nothin’ but an undiagnosed obsession and an inconsequential dream. On this Very Special Episode, we sit down with Dan Patrick to find out just how much he regrets his decision. And we even get a Meeting Tom Cruise story to boot.

Follow the Dan Patrick show on Twitter @dpshow and on Instagram @danpatrickshow

On this (relatively unedited) bonus episode, we lament the loss of the great Cineramadome in Hollywood, along with the entire Arclight theater chain. We discuss the new release dates of Top Gun:Maverick, Mission Impossible:7 and Mission Impossible:8. We hope you enjoy our Cruise News while enduring this inexcusable hiatus.

Email us at: contact@meetingtomcruise.com or use our form at www.meetingtomcruise.com/contact

Find us on Twitter @meetingcruise and Instagram @meetingcruise

Jeff’s thinking about Joel’s dream; we prove that our listeners are the greatest in pod-dom; we sit down with series co-creator/host/lunatic Jeff Meacham to try to understand what makes him tick (and prove that even a broken clock can be wrong twice a day); and we give special thanks to our friends who break all the rules of Hollywood and do actually listen to our show.

Follow Jeff on Instagram at @jeffmeacham and @meetingcruise
And on Twitter @jeffmeacham and @meetingcruise

Jeff’s thinking about old timey video rental joints; we write the first draft of Cruise’s space movie (hint: it involves space garbage, a broken Moon, and a frogadillo); Cruise impersonator Evan Ferrante blows our minds with his CruisePressions, and shares his own story of meeting Tom Cruise.

Follow Evan on Instagram at @nottomcruiseofficial.
And on Twitter @not_tomcruise.
On TikTok @evanferrante.
And check out his YouTube channel.
And while you’re at it, why not visit his website too!!

Jeff’s thinking about some new Cruise cake intel; we dive deep into Cruise’s characters’ daddy issues; Cousin Sal tells us about that time that Tom Cruise and his mother came to football Sunday at the home of Cousin’s Sal’s cousin Jimmy Kimmel and adjudicated a dispute between Sal and roastmaster Jeff Ross, with Sarah Silverman and Adam Corolla looking on. No, that’s not a fever-induced nightmare you had, that’s a Meeting Tom Cruise story that actually happened on the planet Earth.

Follow Cousin Sal on Twitter @TheCousinSal
And on Instagram @TheCousinSal
Check him out at Extra Points
And listen to his podcast Against All Odds

Jeff’s thinking about some of our listener mail; We debate the question – as it turns out, even more meaningless than you’d already expect – of whether Tom Cruise has the best name in Hollywood; Sarah Wright Olson recounts absolutely amazing tales from the (sometimes spinning) set of American Made.

Follow Sarah on Instagram and Twitter.
And check out her websiteYour Zen Mama.
And buy her new book: Zen Mamas: Finding Your Path Through Pregnancy, Birth and Beyond!!

Jeff’s thinking about another Tom, we debate the greatest of Cruise’s muses, and we are joined by Christy Meyers, who arrived at the set of Vanilla Sky as an extra, but left with the Meeting Tom Cruise story that started it all.

Follow Christy on Instagram @christymeyersla
And find her on IMDB.

We continue our conversation with Kevin Pollak and his amazing tales of filming Rob Reiner’s A Few Good Men. Kevin meets the iconic Mr. Nicholson, flies to Vegas with Bruce Willis, and overhears Meryl Streep yell “Stick ‘em!!” to a middle linebacker.

Follow Kevin Pollak on twitter @kevinpollak
And on Instagram @kevinpollak123

Check out his memoir, How I Slept My Way to the Middle on AMAZON.

Jeff is thinking about how mean we were to Top Gun; The question of the week gets its eyes wide shut in favor of our extended interview with the amazing Kevin Pollak who tells of his Tom Time working on A Few Good Men. This. Is. Why. We. Created. This. Podcast.

Follow Kevin Pollak on twitter @kevinpollak
And on Instagram @kevinpollak123

Check out his memoir, How I Slept My Way to the Middle on AMAZON.

Jeff is thinking about actors in the Cruisian age range; What’s the most overlooked and overrated Tom Cruise movies? Lisa Ann Walter recounts her Tom Time on the set of War of the Worlds (there’s blood, there’s ballroom dancing, and there’s a Bat Mitzvah).

Follow Lisa Ann Walter on instagram @lisaannwalter
And on twitter @LisaAnnWalter

Get her book (with one of the world’s great titles) The Best Thing about My Ass is that It’s Behind Me from AMAZON.

Jeff’s wasting even more time thinking about how often Cruise dies and comes back to life in his films; our first Cruise Quickie; we risk it all choosing our favorite Cruisian stunt; and David Alan Basche remembers the hilarious time when he thought Tom Cruise was going to kill him.

Follow David Alan Basche on Instagram: @davidalanbasche
And on Twitter: @DavidABasche

Learn more about Stephen Bozzo’s He Does Not Want Peace and watch it HERE with Amazon Prime.

Jeff Meacham is thinking about what movies he’s been most excited about; We ask Jeff about his favorite Tom Cruise film and we lose that lovin’ feeling for what might feel like a few hours; Jay Hayden (STATION 19) recounts his urinal-adjacent meeting with The Man.

Follow Jay Haden on Instagram: @jayhayden00
And on Twitter: @jayhayden00

Would you wear an “I duked Mitchell’s kid” t-shirt? Write to us at contact@meetingtomcruise.com and let us know.

This week, Jeff Meacham is thinking about LEGEND, which is not something that even Jeff Meacham likes to think about; the gang debates the perks and perils of fame, and comes damn close to thinking about the needs of others, but only for a moment; Creator of ONE DAY AT A TIME Gloria Calderón Kellitt remembers her days working for Cameron Crowe, the great Snapple Incident, and the day that Tom Cruise whispered in her ear.

Follow Gloria on Twitter: @everythingloria
And on Instagram: @gloriakellett
Gloria also mentioned the great work of Operation Pedro Pan. Check it out!

And though we discussed helping the world for a briefer time than we discussed Tom’s favorite Snapple flavor, we thought we’d memorialize it here:

Leonardo Dicaprio Foundation supports projects around the world that build climate resiliency, protect vulnerable wildlife, and restore balance to threatened ecosystems and communities.

The Innocence Project, founded in 1992 by Peter Neufeld and Barry Scheck at Cardozo School of Law, exonerates the wrongly convicted through DNA testing and reforms the criminal justice system to prevent future injustice.

For the last two years, Joel has raised money for Covenant House through the NY Stage & Screen annual Sleepout. Covenant House is committed to helping find housing, support and education for the over 4 million homeless youth in this country. With your help, we can help them get off the street and look towards a brighter future. 

Somehow we haven’t been cancelled yet, and so this week, Jeff Meacham is thinking about just how yoked TC was in the early days; the trio debates Cruise’s decades-long Oscar snubbing; and we bring you our interview with the great and powerful Malin Akerman, who starred in ROCK OF AGES as the journalist who knows her way around a pool table, Constance Sack. Malin talks child psychology, eyeball licking, mommy brain, and of course, monkeys.

Email us at: contact@meetingtomcruise.com or use our CONTACT FORM.

Find us on Twitter @meetingcruise and Instagram @meetingcruise

Follow Malin on Instagram @malinakerman

In our long-awaited premiere episode of Meeting Tom Cruise, Jeff Meacham is thinking about what character we’d all play in the musical version of Interview With The Vampire; Jeff and Joel answer the big question about their love for Tommy; we hear our first Cruise Meet-Cute with his Top Gun: Maverick co-star, Jay Ellis; and we wrap up with a surprise that is so delicious, you’ll have to subscribe to get a taste.

Email us at: contact@meetingtomcruise.com or use our CONTACT FORM.

Find us on Twitter @meetingcruise and Instagram @meetingcruise

Jay Ellis stars in the upcoming TOP GUN: MAVERICK as “Payback.” Follow him on Twitter @jayrellis and Instagram @jayrellis.

Need to get your hands on a Doan’s Bakery Tom Cruise white chocolate coconut cake? They are sold through Goldbelly at: http://bit.ly/cruisecake. If they ask, tell ‘em Meeting Tom Cruise sent ya. Even if they don’t ask.