Representation Matters: From TV to Toys, Cruises and Yes Hollywood

How do you navigate the world of modern TV subscriptions amidst the barrage of persistent advertising? Join us for a spirited episode where we kick things off with a lively pre-show dispute, setting the tone for our energetic discussions. We dive into the pros and cons of services like YouTube TV and Hulu, sharing our frustrations with commercials despite our best efforts to avoid them. 

Ever wondered about the significance of representation in media? We've got you covered! From the impact of "X-Men 97" and the complexities of the "Loki" series to the powerful roles in "Shang-Chi" and "Black Panther," we explore how diverse characters are reshaping the landscape for audiences everywhere. Our conversation extends to toys, highlighting how inclusive versions are making a difference for children who have long felt unseen. Tune in for an enthusiastic discussion on how these portrayals offer authentic role models and contribute to the ongoing battle against racism in the industry.

Join us as we delve into the evolving representation of Latino and Afro-Latino actors in Hollywood and beyond. We discuss the industry's historical biases and celebrate progress with examples from shows like "9-1-1: Lone Star." We also touch on the portrayal of characters with disabilities and the importance of respecting personal space and boundaries. Wrapping up with reflections on disability etiquette and our joyful personal highlights, this episode underscores our commitment to inclusivity, respect, and understanding in all interactions. Don't miss out on this multifaceted and heartfelt conversation!

Watch live episode: 
https://youtube.com/live/3jev8lmtOq8

Thank you for stopping by. Please visit our website: All About The Joy and add, like and share. We'd appreciate that greatly. Also, if you want to find us anywhere on social media, please check out the link in bio page.

Music By Geovane Bruno, Moments, 3481
Editing by Team A-J
Host, Carmen Lezeth


DISCLAIMER: As always, please do your own research and understand that the opinions in this podcast and livestream are meant for entertainment purposes only. States and other areas may have different rules and regulations governing certain aspects discussed in this podcast. Nothing in our podcast or livestream is meant to be medical or legal advice. Please use common sense, and when in doubt, ask a professional for advice, assistance, help and guidance.

Transcript

Carmen Lezeth: 0:02

okay, we didn't want us to go live, right, we were having a conversation and then fucking tony comes in and pisses me off, as he always does just take a 30 second.

Tony D. : 0:11

I'm gonna say something. She's like I don't. I don't know what I deal with this. Why do I?

Carmen Lezeth: 0:15

invite you why. You know what I mean. Like, why do I do this to myself? Hey, everyone, welcome to all about the joy. We're a few minutes early. Rick will be by shortly. We were just starting to fight in the green room and then some kids are like fight, fight, put it online. Let me explain, Tony, Years and years ago I cut cable, which means I don't have like what's the cable in Boston? I'm saying it again for the people who want to know why we fight in our baby okay no-transcript.

Carmen Lezeth: 1:09

Okay, but when you get something like youtube, tv or hulu, does it too. If you get hulu I don't know, I don't have hulu anything, I just got it for this one show and I already canceled it. But youtube has all the channels. Even more channels. Hi, mel, hi, melanie. Oh, cynthia called it. Cynthia said you cannot go on early because Melanie is always our first person and she's on and she knows it's 9 o'clock Because, melanie, we were already in the green room talking. Who's that? Oh, is that Jason? Is it? He's so cute. Tell him. I said hi, he don't remember me. It's fine, did you just say what to me?

Tony D. : 1:45

Oh, he said hi.

Carmen Lezeth: 1:49

Oh, hi, baby. Anyway, so YouTube TV has all of that stuff, and the thing that I hate about YouTube TV is that, even though I said I don't you know, because you can decide what you want to watch, you can decide, right, it's like you. I mean, you pay for all of it, like 75 bucks or something a month, but then you can decide, right, it's like you. I mean, you pay for all of it, like 75 bucks or something a month, but then you can choose what comes on your feed. So, like, I've taken off everything that's you know, sports.

Carmen Lezeth: 2:11

I don't want to watch any sports stuff at all, that's true, no, you don't, then what it does is it still tries to advertise when you log on. It's like are you sure you don't want to watch the game between? I'm like holy god, because they're always trying to push you. It doesn't cost any more money, but they want, I guess, the views or something. I don't know what that is.

Tony D. : 2:28

But you can watch what, tony, go ahead. Cynthia, I'm sorry.

Cynthia : 2:33

I was going to say you can watch regular news like CNN and CNBC, all that on there too.

Carmen Lezeth: 2:38

Absolutely, it's everything. I got the BBC, I got all of the. I forget what the name of the channel is, but it's all the European shows. They have their own channel. Yeah, you can watch anything you want Al Jazeera, if you want, or whatever. I would never not be, because actually I usually don't watch TV. You know what I mean. Did you not shave a part, or something?

Tony D. : 2:59

Yeah, I missed a part.

Carmen Lezeth: 3:00

I hate that I hate when that happens to my legs. Yay, I hate when that happens with my legs, yay. Oh, my God, joy, I'm glad you're doing better. Hello, we miss you. I told her she can reach out to me when she's ready to come back to hang out. Oh wait, let me double check where Rick is. I hope he's okay. He probably knows we're on, so he's taking his time. Oh nope, I got a whole bunch of messages.

Tony D. : 3:20

If he's not here, that means something's going on, because he's always here.

Carmen Lezeth: 3:24

He's just doing what he can right now. He said he'll yeah, no worries, look at it. If he can't make it, it's okay. But he just said he's trying to deal with the situation at home before he jumps on.

Tony D. : 3:34

I'm sure he knows, we're on here I already knew what was going on when he wasn sitting here.

Carmen Lezeth: 3:38

So, cynthia, how are you? No, no, no, wait, there is news, but I got to be involved in the news. Yeah, we can't talk about it yet. Why don't we talk about how bad X-Men 97 was?

Tony D. : 3:54

There's nothing wrong with it.

Cynthia : 3:56

Hey, I like it. I haven't finished. I stopped at episode eight, so I haven't finished it yet.

Tony D. : 4:00

You have to watch. Nine you have to watch it. Okay.

Carmen Lezeth: 4:03

Isn't there only nine episodes?

Tony D. : 4:05

I think, there's ten. Nine or ten, but you gotta watch it. I don't even want to tell you I love what they did. I love the action they added to it. I know it was a little bit darker than the older cartoons, but I thought they did excellent work with it.

Carmen Lezeth: 4:17

They switched it up very well and look at Carmen, she's about to lose it. That's all that's happening.

Tony D. : 4:24

I thought it was great. I really did. I was listening to last week's episode before I came on when I was doing some laundry.

Carmen Lezeth: 4:30

Carmen was right, it did suck, huh.

Tony D. : 4:32

No, no, no, You're talking about the Marvel character who was married. I was sitting there like that is a good question. First of all, I had to see which one I'm going to interrupt you.

Carmen Lezeth: 4:38

We didn't say hi to Sadie.

Tony D. : 4:40

I didn't say hi to Sadie, I didn't say hi to Sadie.

Carmen Lezeth: 4:42

Oh, I didn't mean to interrupt. Hi, sadie, how you doing.

Tony D. : 4:44

I thought you wanted us to talk what you doing.

Carmen Lezeth: 4:45

Wait, wait. I'm just going to tell you, I'm going to let you talk. Joy, I sent you the link on your cell phone. If you didn't get it, let me know on here on the chat.

Cynthia : 5:03

Because I can't see them.

Tony D. : 5:05

Go ahead, I'll give you a minute. She's hating Damn. What's up, rick? What's up with the Marvel character that you would marry? If I were to pick any character, I would say Anita Hill. I liked her. She was kind of cute.

Cynthia : 5:13

Yeah, I definitely got to watch it this week. Oh, I did watch Loki. Oh, you did Wait wait, wait.

Carmen Lezeth: 5:19

Let's say hi to Rick first. Hi, rick, cynthia, do you have any news you want to share? Wow, I got the job.

Cynthia : 5:29

Yay, woo, woo, I'm so excited, I'm so excited and they're giving me what I asked for Awesome.

Carmen Lezeth: 5:35

I know money that's a big ass raise though, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Joy: 5:45

So now you can get Tony an even better microphone.

Carmen Lezeth: 5:47

Oh okay, yeah, I'm so happy for you. Congratulations, thank you, and fuck the people who didn't help us along the way. That's all I'm going to say. Sorry, I'm going to be a little bitter. I'm going to be a little bitter because people say they're going to help and then they don't help. That's true, everything happens for a reason, yeah, when you show me who you are, I'm going to believe it now, anyways. So when do you start Like, what's the deal? Because you're going on vacation for a month, 10 days, two weeks.

Cynthia : 6:13

So I told them, you know, I would like to start July 1st because I'll be back from vacation. My boss will have time, you know, to get situated and stuff.

Carmen Lezeth: 6:22

So happy for you, so happy, thank situated and stuff. So, so happy for you, so happy, thank you, um. And then, before we hand it over to rick um, we were talking about that you saw wait, I think somebody just logged on again, um, that, you saw loki yes and I did like it.

Cynthia : 6:40

It was entertaining. Um, it was. It was kind of getting confusing having to follow, you know, going up him, going back and forth and everything. But I mean, I don't want to ruin it for anybody who hasn't seen it, but it was months ago. We've all seen it. Okay, now he's just the, he's the timekeeper, he's.

Carmen Lezeth: 6:57

He holds all of the. What is it called, Rick?

Rick Costa: 7:00

Rick, he holds all of the timelines. Yeah, that's a good way to say it.

Carmen Lezeth: 7:04

So when you go back and watch the first Thor, which I watch pretty regularly, it's all different. You know what I mean. It's all. It makes more sense. Hey, joy, joy, I love your hair, it's all wavy and curly. It looks cute and, yeah, we see you well now.

Rick Costa: 7:22

Yeah, perfect.

Carmen Lezeth: 7:24

Let me put Cynthia back on. There we go, can you?

Rick Costa: 7:27

see Joy now?

Carmen Lezeth: 7:28

Yes, you know what. I am so glad I came up with that idea because it makes sense. You know what I mean. Tony, you and I are going to go at it today, baby. Okay, rick, we're 12 minutes in. Go ahead, baby. Welcome to All About the Joy, rick Costa style.

Rick Costa: 7:42

Go ahead All right, so we're going to do that topic I was bringing up a couple weeks ago.

Carmen Lezeth: 7:48

I'm sorry, it's your show.

Rick Costa: 7:50

I didn't know I was going to do it today. I wasn't notified.

Carmen Lezeth: 7:53

You were notified last week's episode.

Rick Costa: 7:55

No, no, Two weeks ago is when we talked about it. Last week we said nothing about this.

Carmen Lezeth: 8:00

Why didn't you? Okay, we have to act like we're a cool company and like we got shit going on. So just apologize. No, I'm just kidding. All right, then let's do this. Let's clarify you will take over next week, because clearly we're not prepared, right? All right, we'll just do it then all right.

Rick Costa: 8:19

So the whole idea was representation, and what do I mean by that? So I can only tell you my little teeny experience, which doesn't compare with most people's. So they had NBC put out a movie of the life of Christ and they were looking for who were they going to have to play Jesus, and the person they picked was Portuguese. And I was like, yeah, portuguese, woo-hoo, because I'm Portuguese, I was all excited, right. So I was like, yay, tony's going to smack you.

Rick Costa: 8:42

I was like yo, we've never seen other Portuguese people ever, ever, ever, ever, because there's not a lot of us here. I mean, there's some of us Shut up, and then I was really happy about that. But it made me think what about other nationalities and ethnicities and all that stuff? How do they feel about representation, since now it's much better than it was years ago, but years ago it was pretty much white land. Let's be honest, it was pretty much white land. Everybody was pretty much white. Leave it to the beaver, the name of any old show is almost all white people. Now, of course, we've progressed. When you know better, you do better. Carmen, we're getting better now.

Carmen Lezeth: 9:16

That's not my quote, that's Maya Angelou.

Rick Costa: 9:18

Right, but I hear you say it all the time.

Carmen Lezeth: 9:19

I just want to make sure we're giving the right person a crack.

Rick Costa: 9:22

Rest in peace, Maya Angelou. Yes, amen, I'm not Catholic, but yeah, but anyway, I've always wanted to talk to people about that. What is it like for a little girl, even when I was a kid? Everybody has a Barbie doll. Where's the Black Barbie doll? Where's the Asian Barbie doll? Where's all the other ethnicities of Barbie dolls? Why is it all white, white, white, white, white, white, white, you know, and how does that make you feel? And I sent you a video, Carmen, if you saw it about you can play it if you want.

Rick Costa: 9:51

I think I could bring it up. Let me see.

Carmen Lezeth: 9:53

You should be able to. Yeah, no, I can't. I haven having a day with you today, Tony huh.

Tony D. : 10:06

I'm behaving. You've got 10 more minutes than is mine.

Carmen Lezeth: 10:09

Oh, okay, did you put it up there, Rick, because I don't see it.

Other: 10:13

I grew up on American movies and I've never seen characters like myself on screen. It's incredibly meaningful. It's incredibly important.

Other: 10:21

I mean, I've grown up looking at the Marvel comics and know a bit about the Marvel world and you know, I've never seen a superhero that looks something like me. And I'm really pleased because it truly is the right time for our little boys and girls to go and say oh look, we have superheroes too.

Carmen Lezeth: 10:37

When you see a superhero, you see yourself, and I think that's the really important thing that movies like this does for kids.

Other: 10:42

It allows them to feel the possibility and it's only going to add to that and hopefully will continue to open the door for more movies like this.

Other: 10:50

I hope Shang-Chi is another step. If Shang-Chi is the end, then we have failed. I could not be more proud of the way that this movie has allowed us to bring up more representation both in front of and behind the camera, and I think the world just is hungry for movies that reflect who we are in all of our colors awesome.

Carmen Lezeth: 11:14

Thank you for sending that clip and for showing it I think that I thought that was pretty, pretty good.

Rick Costa: 11:18

You know, and you know just goes to show, every ethnicity is probably thinking the same thing. Like why don't I see anybody that looks like me on the screen? And how would that make you feel if you felt like, oh, only one certain ethnicity is on the screen. Like well, we're not worthy to be on the screen with y'all. Like I don't know.

Carmen Lezeth: 11:35

But do you think that's what that's about? About us not being worthy. I don't know if that's really what it's about.

Rick Costa: 11:42

Well, I don't know what a kid thinks, I don't know, cause I didn't go through that, cause you know, again, I look pretty white.

Carmen Lezeth: 11:46

So I know, but I guess for me it would be more. It's just racism, right, it's always been this pushback of um. If it's part of what we're dealing with, even to this day, we take two steps forward and 17 steps back, right, like we're crawling our way through this process, and I think it's always been about racism. However, I will say on the flip side of it and this is just one instance this isn't like blanket all over the place. I wrote in my book about not having a Barbie, and as a little kid I was jealous and upset because we couldn't afford it. It was about poverty, right. It wasn't like, oh, how come they don't have a black Barbie? It was, I just wanted Barbie because everybody had it.

Carmen Lezeth: 12:25

What I will say is, now that I can look back on it, I'm glad I never had a Barbie, because I never had to imagine myself looking like that, and white women were on the covers of every magazine. There was no representation for any other ethnicity. But in a way, that is also why so many people ended up having so many issues about image and who they are and what they look like in their body and their. You know what I mean. And so, in a weird backhanded, stupid way. I'm grateful Now.

Carmen Lezeth: 12:54

I did say the other day I wish I grew up with Serena Williams as someone to look up to, because she is fierce and beautiful and the body of like just what I think is a strong, sexy, feminine woman. You know what I mean and I I can't imagine the person I would be today had I grown up seeing someone so powerful and looked more like me body-wise than someone like Gabriella Reese, who is if you guys don't know who she is, she's a big time volleyball player, right, so I was pretty athletic, so I always liked athletic people and Gabrielle Reese is also. She's married to that big time surfer guy. If you guys aren't into surfing, anyway, I don't know. Anyways, it doesn't matter, but that's the only plus I see for me personally, like not having a Barbie. But all the things you said about shows and stuff, I mean, course it sucked, but you didn't know any different either. You thought that the white way and this world and the whatever it was the way it was always supposed to be, and so you knew you weren't part of it.

Rick Costa: 13:54

but then you didn't have any choice, so you tried to find connection anyway yeah, I remember, um, when the cabbage patch dolls came out and then later they came up with the black ones, and I'm like, and everybody was like, oh, like some of you were happy, some were not. And then I'm like, why wasn't it in the first place? Like, why do we have to do this after? I know? I know now. I'm saying I know now, but then I was like what's what's going on here? Why is this happening? Like I was a kid, I didn't know, I didn't understand I'm curious what joy thinks about this.

Carmen Lezeth: 14:20

I'm not trying to put you on the spot, but you are the representative of all white women on the planet.

Joy: 14:28

Okay, you're talking about Barbies. Rick brought up Barbies. They actually just came out with a blind Barbie.

Rick Costa: 14:34

No way.

Joy: 14:36

Yep, Wow. Earlier this year they came out with a blind Barbie.

Rick Costa: 14:41

That's awesome.

Joy: 14:44

How does that make you feel it's kind of neat actually, actually, because there's never been, you know, a representation of a blind community. So it actually has a little white cane and a guide dog.

Joy: 14:59

Oh, that's cool, that's really really cool, everything that, and I'm gonna try to find one. I can't, I've not found one yet, but I'm gonna try to find one. But yeah, I mean I grew up with barbies. Personally I didn't have the real barbie because it was all about the money, right. Yeah, you know a little imitation barbie, but I don't know to me, especially with the barbie dolls, I was very much a tomboy, so I didn't play with my Barbies a lot. But it's like the TV shows. Growing up One of my favorite shows was Sanford and Son and Good Times.

Rick Costa: 15:40

Yes.

Joy: 15:43

You know, that's what we always watch. Yeah, yeah, but you know, and, and to me, I didn't think a lot about it because one, I didn't get to watch a lot of tv or watch a lot of movies or whatever, you know it, just we were always outside doing stuff that was also our generation, though you You're so right, you're right, you know.

Rick Costa: 16:07

So if anybody finds one, a Barbie for visually impaired, please let us know so we can get it to Joy.

Carmen Lezeth: 16:12

But let's not say that you know like there isn't a lot of representation also for the disabled community.

Cynthia : 16:18

That is true. And actually Disney just started making costumes for children in wheelchairs, so they have a whole costume that goes over the wheelchair, so it'll look like the Millennium Falcon, it'll look like the Cinderella carriage, so now they're including all these kids in wheelchairs or, you know, with disabilities, which I think is great, but, like you were saying, with the whole in, you know, inclusion with film. Now it's like, yeah, it's great that you know they have Asians and Spanish and Blacks and being represented, but there's still a stereotype, there's still a certain way they want you to look whether you're Spanish or Black or Asian or from any ethnicity. So that's still kind of tough and you know it's still kind of racist in the industry too.

Cynthia : 16:57

So it's like yeah they're trying to go the right way, but there's still have those limitations.

Carmen Lezeth: 17:02

Let me just give a shout out to Mario. I know we all haven't waved, but hi Mario, Hi Mario, Go ahead. Rick, I'm sorry.

Rick Costa: 17:09

So Carmen, the world famous actress, she could probably tell us better. But if somebody's looking for a person of color, could it be possible to be like somebody who looks a little more lighter, a little more not so dark might get the part. Unless they're specifically looking for, like a really, you know, dark type person? Is that more likely to happen or depends? You're asking me the question yes, yes, you're the.

Carmen Lezeth: 17:31

You're the famous actress in here. I don't even do any acting. Look at here's what I'll say about hollywood before we start dissing hollywood. You know, I'm a big fan of this industry, um, and I hate when people not you, but just in general when people kind of try to blame a lot of things on Hollywood. The problem is, hollywood is always ahead of the game, right? So any issues that are happening within the industry always end up being still ahead of the game as they're trying to move through it.

Carmen Lezeth: 17:56

So, yes, as I said, last week or whenever it was, we talked about it in Hollywood, and this is also changing, especially like on 9-1-1, lone Star in Hollywood, and this is also changing, especially like on 911 Lone Star, there are actors who are definitely being brought in who are Latino and Afro-Latino. So there is now a distinction. But before they used to say, oh, we need somebody who's a Latina you know this age blah, blah, blah can do this and whatever, and you'd go into the audition and what they really meant was European Latino person. So a white person who's Latino, like Selma Hayek or Jennifer Lopez, or they're only looking towards these types of women as being Latina, whereas the world of the Latin ethnicity whatever it is you want to call it goes from being very blonde and blue eyed to being very, very dark skin and with African features, features, and that's what's the beautiful part of basically every ethnicity, but especially the Latino community.

Carmen Lezeth: 18:50

And so, to me, I'm being biased, but I am Latina and I am of African descent. So I think that, yeah, hollywood has had problems with a lot of things. I mean now we're seeing, especially again sorry, I'm talking so much about 9-1-1, this show, but but 9-1-1 Lone Star, like I thought it wouldn't work. But there is like there's gay, there's transgender, there's black, there's Asian, there's oh no, asian. I don't think there's an Asian person, muslim, right Muslim.

Carmen Lezeth: 19:18

My apologies, and it works yeah.

Carmen Lezeth: 19:22

It's also an interracial oh, that's right, that's right, they're both right. So I mean, we're getting there, but sometimes it's been so forced that it hasn't worked. You know what I mean? I'm curious to see what uh tony who I guess has just left us said. The crazy thing to me is that they actually cast j-lo as an italian in the wedding planner.

Carmen Lezeth: 19:43

So sometimes hollywood can just be hypocritical. Okay, I'm gonna explain something to you because I I I'm not defending j-lo. I'm going to explain something to you because I'm not defending J-Lo. I'm going to use a different example. The problem is because people do not know what it means to be Latino. Right, because Hollywood is growing as well.

Carmen Lezeth: 19:59

So many people in this industry from back in the day and I'm talking Martin Sheehan is a great example. I've talked about him in the past. He was on the West Wing, he was on so many movies. He's Latino and most people don't know that. But when you get work and you can pass, you're going to pass and you're going to do what you need to do. So it's not that they were like, oh, let's cast J-Lo as an Italian wedding planner. They said, hey, she can pass as Italian to people who don't know any better. And let's be honest, we are so ingrained with racism Half the time people don't get what's happening. And then, on top of it, they're like j-lo has a name, so let's use that to bring her, you know, I mean, they can bring more of an audience. So, and again, also back with this. We talked about the gay character in a sitcom. What was it?

Carmen Lezeth: 20:42

he's not gay, uh oh, yeah, yeah, well and grace well and grace, he wasn't gay, um, but you know he did it and he passed. And and I'm not he did it and he passed, and I'm not saying he did it and lied at all, but I'm saying then he was able to bring a different group of people and he could do something with his name. Eric McCormick could do something with who he was and his name and bring an audience and get us all more comfortable with gay characters. So that's why I'm pushing back on that Cause you know I have a lot to say about JLo on a whole other level.

Joy: 21:11

but Now I will say this one of my friends who used to be in the industry oh gosh, years ago, and he was an actor, but he was also a makeup artist and they needed a Latino on the set. So what he did instead of they did not cast a Latino on the set. So what he did, instead of they did not cast a Latino, he actually put makeup on a white guy.

Carmen Lezeth: 21:37

That's very common, that's not I mean that happened.

Joy: 21:41

Oh gosh, when was Moonlighting on?

Tony D. : 21:44

The late 80s.

Joy: 21:47

Yeah, billy was on Moonlighting, but that's the kind of era that he was in.

Carmen Lezeth: 21:54

Well, I mean, that's part of what theater's gone through too, and even most recently with what is that beautiful man's name, Bradley Cooper, the movie last year. That was fantastic. I mean, he's not Jewish, so they made him look Jewish and he used a prosthetic. I don't think they were trying to make him look Jewish. Let me back up. They were trying to make him look Jewish. Let me back up. They were trying to make him look like Mr Bernstein, right, and he had a very pronounced nose because he actually is Jewish.

Carmen Lezeth: 22:15

But there was that big controversy right there. You know what I mean. And Bradley Cooper was saying it made me feel more like the character and they weren't doing it to be disrespectful, they were doing it so they could really embody the character itself. So now I'm not saying I'm okay with blackface and all the foolishness around that crap, but I'm not surprised that back in the day and even now that they do, these things, like you know, darken people's skin and I mean that's what the whole blackface. It's like Shakespeare. If you read Shakespeare, you heard about any of the plays. You know women were played by men because they wouldn't let women do it. You know what I mean.

Tony D. : 22:46

It's kind of the same thing that Tony I mean it's kind of the same thing Go ahead, tony, I'm sorry, Rick, I just wanted to get this oh no, I'm good Latoya how you doing?

Tony D. : 22:53

How are you doing, mario? What's good? It's not new that white men have played most characters, anybody of another ethnicity. There was a bit of an issue, which you said about the Portuguese man playing Jesus. Okay, cool. The only problem that I have with it is the demographic of where they had Jesus from. The people from that area should be the ones playing it.

Tony D. : 23:13

If you remember Ten Commandments, most of those characters were white but they were supposed to be Egyptian. The movie Egypt faced a little bit of criticism because they didn't have people of the ethnicity of the area, even though they had a diverse cast as far as black folks, white folks and all that other craziness and I say craziness on purpose, because you just didn't have the people that were supposed to be there in the first place. There was a real big stink about that, even though it was a good movie. It really was a good movie, but there was a big old protest about it. I don't think I heard it with the Last Temptation of Christ or the Passionate of Christ. I'm not going to talk about Black Jesus, that was on Cartoon Network. That was ridiculousness. I you're going to play if you're going to have characters, if you're going to do a story about an area. Try to find the people of that demographic who are actors and actresses who play those roles honestly.

Carmen Lezeth: 23:55

Because there are plenty of them. Thank you, Tony.

Tony D. : 23:57

Yes, as far as the Barbie situation, the black Barbie thing, I know that came out. That was an issue in the 80s. They about it, but it did announce that they were going to do one and it was being sold the cabbage patch dolls. I do remember that. Black heroes in the 80s. I remember black voting off the super friends.

Tony D. : 24:15

I remember the brown horn we're talking about cartoons again I'm just saying as far as different cultures and different demographics being represented. The blind barbie is very interesting to me. I did not hear about that at all. Yeah, that was pretty good. So and the people with disabilities I think they did something with the Cabbage Patch Kids, some of those cars I think a couple of them might have had limitations, for lack of a better term, to be more sensitive to the situations. I think they had somebody in a wheelchair, they had somebody on crutches and all of that.

Carmen Lezeth: 24:40

So I understand what you're saying, joy, they do not represent the, I hate to say disabled, but the physically impaired community, if you will, in any shape or form. You know what's so weird? Though they would make so much money, the thing that kills me all these companies are all in it for the profit. Let's just be honest. Why would you not include as many people as possible to buy your stuff? I'll tell you that's why it's racism, because why wouldn't you be like? You know, I'm a business person. Let's tap into that black group over there because I'm sure they'd buy some barbies. Do you know what I mean? I'm not buying one. Okay, if you had a daughter, you would you know what I mean. Like that's what I'm saying. It's like I'm not saying boys can't play with barbies, I'm just saying it doesn't matter what he would buy barbie not. That's not the point. Doofus. You know what he says. He behaves, but he does not I do too.

Tony D. : 25:26

You see me, I'm sorry, it's your show.

Carmen Lezeth: 25:28

Go ahead, baby.

Rick Costa: 25:29

Well, I was going to say, tony, when you were a kid, did you ever think, ever like, why aren't there many people that look like me on TV when you were a kid?

Tony D. : 25:36

No, because they actually were. I will For the teenage African-American males in the 80s I'll say for me we had JJ on Good Times and then after that it was Theo on the Kyle B Show, then after that it was Dwayne Wayne on Different World, then it was the first Prince of Bella. Those are pretty much our similarities, black characters. You had the Jeffersons, you had, I just had somebody else on my head. Who else was it? I forgot. The Jeffersons was pretty much it. Diane Carroll faced a lot for being on Dynasty. They gave her a lot of praise for being on it because I think she was the only Black character on that show, if I remember.

Carmen Lezeth: 26:10

Are you saying there was no problem when you were growing up? No, I'm not saying there wasn't a problem.

Tony D. : 26:16

They had some form of representation. I'm not going to say there wasn't a problem, but there was some form.

Carmen Lezeth: 26:20

It wasn't like you didn't have a couple who were Black or you didn't have a, you know like. I mean there's the tokenism part of it to kind of make sure we're doing what we need to do. Did you say Family Matters?

Tony D. : 26:34

I didn't say Family Matters because Family Matters was after me. Family Matters actually came out when I was already like in college I wasn't really watching Family Matters. I'm really personally, I'm 80s television. I'm seriously a lot of 80s television. I can do True Repursal, pursuit, avc Television. I used to be a beast at it because I watched all of those shows. Moonlight and Dusa has a better star galactic than Buck Rogers, matt Locke, jj Starbuck. You probably know.

Carmen Lezeth: 26:53

All those are white predominantly. That's the point, right? Isn't that the point?

Rick Costa: 26:57

That's what I was just thinking, because every show you mentioned was black shows.

Carmen Lezeth: 27:02

And the shows that you watched and that I watched growing up, it's because they, first of all, I wasn't like let me find a black show. That wasn't what I was doing. Right, that wasn't. But, we were gravitating toward what we could relate to and since there wasn't that much, we related to certain shows that had characters that looked like us. But there were other shows.

Carmen Lezeth: 27:21

We always talk about shows we loved and watched, and they were mostly white. Yes they were what inclusivity means and what I think. I'm not speaking for Rick, but when Rick sent me the clip and the topic you want to talk about, it's the breadth of feeling equal. Agreed.

Carmen Lezeth: 27:36

We should be able to name. I was thinking about this today. I was like, I know, if I asked anybody not just you guys, and I'm not trying to test anybody can you name five Asian actors? And you cannot include the one guy everybody who I don't even know what's his name, the one that did all the action stuff, jackie Chan. There's another one. This is the guy who is Without naming him. Can we name five? No, it's not a test, I'm saying maybe you do.

Carmen Lezeth: 28:08

I was struggling and I was like, okay, I remember Lucy Liu because she was in Charlie's Angels and then afterwards she was on Elementary. She was like the Watson of Sherlock on Elementary and I follow her on, yeah, bruce Lee, thank you, melanie. That's what I think about. That's everyone's go to Right. And then I thought about Lisa Ling, and the reason why I know who Lisa Ling is is because I used to mess up her name all the time. And she's not an actor, she's a journalist who was on the View, but she's actually a journalist. And then she had a show on CNN or whatever she does it, on National Geographic stuff. Yeah, she does the in-depth reporting stuff and whatever right. And then I was thinking and I was really struggling. All Asian Michelle Yeoh, is that how you say her last name?

Tony D. : 28:50

I was getting ready to say her name because she was on Star Trek and the guy from Goonies, I can never remember his name.

Cynthia : 28:54

Who?

Rick Costa: 28:55

The Asian kid from Goonies.

Cynthia : 28:57

I forgot his name.

Rick Costa: 28:58

Oh, he's the one that was in the Loki show too.

Cynthia : 29:00

Yes, yes, yes.

Carmen Lezeth: 29:02

I remember Awkwafina.

Tony D. : 29:12

Awkwafina was the name I was going to bring, but you see, if I said let's name five, can you name five white actors? It doesn't take long.

Carmen Lezeth: 29:14

You're correct, that's right, but we, even though I think we're very aware and very knowledgeable about the situation, that's how you know we're still not there yet. So I'm going to say this I will, I will.

Cynthia : 29:25

Here's the thing.

Carmen Lezeth: 29:47

I will, I will. Here's the thing. It doesn't mean anyone's doing anything bad. It just means it's so ingrained in us that the only thing that matters, or that is right or correct or the best way to be, is if it's white and everything else we're like, oh my God. That is why Black Panther was an amazing movie, because you got to watch people of color and everyone watched it.

Carmen Lezeth: 30:08

That's right, right, oh, it's right over left. So here's the thing you got to watch a movie where, joy, we're doing the Wakanda Forever hand signal thing.

Carmen Lezeth: 30:17

So I said right over left, but here's the thing is that was a great movie because, for the first time whatever it is for the first time we watched a movie about a story with people who happened to be black. Right, it wasn't like oh my God, finally, a rom-com with black people. No, this was actually a story about people that we were all intrigued by who happened to be black. It was fantastic.

Tony D. : 30:43

It was a story of black people who had control of where they were and they were in their own power.

Carmen Lezeth: 30:48

Oh yeah, that's the deeper part of it, though I'm just saying the reason why I think white people enjoyed it so much is because they could relate to the story and they didn't have to try to connect to black folk.

Tony D. : 30:59

I think they were the white people that I know, and I will say that just on purpose.

Carmen Lezeth: 31:05

I can't leave out a few.

Tony D. : 31:07

I'm not saying that, but I mean there were some people who did not like the movie. They didn't get as much out of it as others.

Carmen Lezeth: 31:11

Okay, but most people in the world loved it, so I don't know who your white friends are.

Tony D. : 31:14

Can you let me finish, thank you. People I was talking to and dealing with. They enjoyed the movie for the story. They enjoyed that it wasn't negative against Black folks, which is the one thing Black folks were emphasizing. We finally looked like we were in situation, we had control of our situation, we showed some force of power, we weren't submissive. I think we talked about this last year on the show too, when I spoke on Black Panther. We finally looked like we had some respect, we had some dignity, we had some control, we had some power. Of course, they were the more dominant with what they had, but it wasn't negative, it wasn't stereotypical, it wasn't jigaboo-ish All of that craziness, I think you're giving white people a lot of credit.

Carmen Lezeth: 31:50

I would like to give them that much credit.

Tony D. : 31:51

No, these are the people that I was talking to.

Carmen Lezeth: 31:53

yes, your people, okay, but this is what I'm trying to say and this isn't a bad thing. White people get upset because they think like and I'm not saying all white people, I'm not saying all white people, I'm just saying in my experience, certain white people that I know or have been around or there is a they have in their head what a black man is supposed to look like. Right, we've all grown up with the idea of you're supposed to be scared from black people when they're walking down the street or whatever. Right, the gangster guys, all black men, are gangsters or whatever. Right, that's what we grew up in the eighties and nineties thinking. So the idea that a black man with dark skin and dark features, not mixed, could be a doctor, could be a lawyer.

Carmen Lezeth: 32:28

That was the Cosby show. You know what I mean, like when you can see people who are affluent and doing well. And no offense to Sanford and Son, but the reason why that show worked is because he was still doing the gesture Joel, right, he was doing the comedy. No offense to whatever his name was, I forgot Red Fox, but right, that was his name. Red Fox, right, but that's what I'm trying to say.

Carmen Lezeth: 32:56

Still, in that place, where a black man. I said this last week it still kills me to this day that a black man was tap dancing for Shirley Temple. It will always kill me. This man was an exquisite dancer, but the reason why he got the role or whatever is because he played basically the kind of I don't know what the word is, I don't want to say it, but I mean I know what it is. I want to say clown to Shirley Temple, a little white girl and like he was there to serve her, and I will always hate that and I, growing up, that's what pissed me off those things.

Carmen Lezeth: 33:15

So I agree with you with Black Panther to a certain extent, but I also think I want to get to that place where we can watch movies about people Like the Color Purple is another one. You watch a movie that is a story and Black people are bringing their culture their thing, but it's not a dismissive movie about being whatever it is. That's why everybody got so upset when Oprah's character was put in jail for doing exactly what any white person would have done. That's why people got upset. You know what I mean. Okay, let me read these. I'm sorry, rick, I'm now going to shut up for the next 25 minutes, that's it, I am, I am.

Carmen Lezeth: 33:46

I'm going to do it. I'm going to do it. I wound up in Spanish-speaking homes. They had Spanish channels, so I saw people who spoke my language, but even then the big roles were played by European-looking actors, Of course. And then she continues. She's letting us know Skinned actors were always the help, the villains or the comedic. Comedic relief yes, Colorism is very prevalent. Mario said John Chu Daniel Day Kim him. Mario said john chu daniel day kim, he's just naming asian people.

Carmen Lezeth: 34:13

Okay, show off, he's googling, I'm just kidding. He played the minstrel, that's right that he did to shirley temple and and because I was a dancer, I'm sorry, because I am a dancer, I'm not gonna let that go. Um, I remember watching that in the reruns or whatever, and being completely disgusted, not by him, but that the work he could get was doing that. Bravo to him because he broke doors, broke ceilings and whatever to help other people. But you know what I'm saying. All right, it is 48 minutes. I'm not talking for 20 more minutes at all. Go ahead, rick, your show. I'm done.

Rick Costa: 34:46

Yeah, right, bye Latoya. Good to see you. Thanks for coming, latoya. Be quiet. Yeah, right, bye Latoya. Good to see you. Thanks for coming, latoya. But um, cynthia, I think you were starting to say something before and then I started talking over you a little bit, do you remember?

Cynthia : 34:59

I really don't remember.

Rick Costa: 35:02

But like I don't have a, I think it's cool and I love it actually, that there's shows that, like Tony ran down a list of you know all the shows are black shows. My thing is why can't we have a mix like Star Trek? Why don't we have more of that? Why isn't that just considered normal, like real life?

Carmen Lezeth: 35:18

It always comes back to sci-fi.

Tony D. : 35:19

See.

Rick Costa: 35:23

Oh my gosh, why can't we be more Real life? You're going to encounter all different kinds of people. Why can't?

Tony D. : 35:29

we have shows, look at this show.

Rick Costa: 35:32

Hello.

Cynthia : 35:34

Come on, we got a great group of different people, different backgrounds.

Tony D. : 35:38

One of the more diverse movies that had the mix of races and race wasn't an issue. The Warriors which one? The Warriors, the movie about the gang that had to go through New York. After that. They were a diverse crew, which was reality. It really was reality. Exactly, Maury, I already know.

Tony D. : 35:56

But the diversity, we've been talking about it for a while. They've been trying to push it forever. Sometimes it was true, Sometimes it worked, Other times it didn't. I mean, when they tried to put it on Beverly Hills 90210, they didn't last three episodes. I don't think other than that. That's pretty much it. They've been trying, they're going to make the effort. It's going to be about whether or not the audience gravitates to it or not. Honestly, Some people want to see what they want to see and you don't want to necessarily see a mix without having some type of controversy. Like you said with Star Trek when they had the interracial kiss biggest thing in the news man. It's out there and it's been there In the real, has been there In real world. It's only an issue because people have made it an issue. Kids don't care. Teenagers will not care. People that get around each other and enjoy being around each other will not care. It's only an issue if they make it one, and that's the truth.

Rick Costa: 36:38

Yeah, there was literal channels. When that show came out with Uhura, kiss and Kirk, they were like we're not showing that episode unless you take that out. And they didn't. They wouldn't show it. Wow, what's up.

Tony D. : 36:49

Joy, how you doing mom is biting her lips. She's gonna blow a gasket.

Carmen Lezeth: 36:53

Look at her that's not even true, like not even true at all, let me see.

Tony D. : 37:05

I did want to ask joy how she was doing, because we haven't talked to her in most.

Joy: 37:07

If you all didn't mind oh goodness, I'm doing a lot there. I've actually got my voice back so, yeah, how about cynthia?

Rick Costa: 37:15

when you were little, did you ever feel like you know where's the spanish people at besides the telenovelas?

Cynthia : 37:20

and already it's pretty much the only place I ever saw them yeah to be honest, and you know, I only watched them when with my mom, when I was little.

Rick Costa: 37:28

So and did it make you feel a certain type of way Because it was either white or Spanish?

Cynthia : 37:33

No, because I mean it was a different time, so she'd go and watch her novella. Sometimes I'd watch it, sometimes I'd be outside. I didn't really pay attention to any of that growing up, you know, because I grew up in Jamaica Plain, which was mostly Latinos at the time.

Carmen Lezeth: 37:48

Remember they used to call it Jamaica Spain.

Cynthia : 37:52

And you know I'm always outside playing. So yeah, that's true.

Rick Costa: 37:55

The eighties it's different time, for sure, different time for sure. Do you all think that we're getting a lot better now as far as representation in media?

Joy: 38:05

I think it's better than it was. It definitely has room for improvement. And, going back to the actors and the movies and stuff, a lot of people with disabilities that you see on TV or in movies, those are able, able-bodied people playing people with disabilities, except on 9-1-1.

Carmen Lezeth: 38:27

No, no, there's a show 9-1-1. I was shocked. I looked up the entire cast and he actually is. It's a show 9-1-1. I was shocked. I looked up the entire cast and he actually is. It's. What's his name? Son he's actually I don't know what his, oh, he has. I don't know what his thing is. Cerebral palsy, cerebral palsy.

Cynthia : 38:44

So you know, he obviously has it in real life, so in the show they put it in. Yeah.

Carmen Lezeth: 38:52

He's a very good actor. Amazing actor, that's awesome yeah.

Tony D. : 38:55

I definitely see the representation but I agree there is room for improvement. But it's being done Based on that clip you had with that movie Shang-Chi. That was very big in the Asian community. A lot of the Marvel shows recently have been representative of the Asian at Ms Marvel. You look at Shang-Chi. I think it was when they were over there in Asia what's the name that's? Over there she started the organized crime. You know what I'm talking about. Rick, wasn't Ms Marvel? No, a Marvel show.

Rick Costa: 39:19

I mean it was a Marvel show. Oh, that reminds me too. Echo, that was a deaf woman, was the main star of the show. She's for real deaf. I never watch Echo. She's for real deaf. That's the word, right there. I'm sorry. She's for real deaf, not for fake deaf. She's for real deaf.

Tony D. : 39:36

That's going to be a clip, and I'm going to live that down never. You have never lived that down, you have never lived that down.

Carmen Lezeth: 39:41

Come on, that was a good one, like you didn't mean to be, but you were.

Rick Costa: 39:45

That's cool too, because I love watching the making of type stuff. Everybody on the set, like everybody, not just the actors they all learn sign language for her, so I just communicate with her. So I was like that's so cool, that's really really cool wasn't there a movie coda that was oh yeah, didn't it win?

Carmen Lezeth: 40:02

yeah, it was nominated, but I thought it won the oscar they did win.

Cynthia : 40:04

They did win, yeah, and it was mostly sign language and the cast had to learn sign language and everything so again, okay, okay, that's great.

Carmen Lezeth: 40:13

I'm just going to say this again Can we name five movies that were made about politics, right? Or can we name five movies that were made about the Holocaust or war or whatever? We could all figure it out pretty quickly right? So again, it goes back to that thing that we remember these because there were specific things about them that made them noticeable. And what I want to get to and I don't think we will in my, in my time I want to get to a place where there's so many, you know, I mean that we're not talking about color or disability or ethnicity, we're just talking about oh, my god, that movie was so great. We're not saying, oh, but he was deaf, a for real deaf person, oh God, I'm going to say that all the time, oh man.

Carmen Lezeth: 41:00

Creed 2 and 3. What's Creed 2 and 3?

Tony D. : 41:02

Creed 2 and 3. That's the one they redid, the.

Carmen Lezeth: 41:05

Stallone movies yeah.

Tony D. : 41:07

Right, michael B Jordan was playing out Apollo Creed Good story, Real good story.

Rick Costa: 41:14

And the Eternals movie that Mario brought up too. That was great. That was very representative All over the board.

Tony D. : 41:20

I was just watching that last night.

Carmen Lezeth: 41:22

I remember going to that movie With my goddaughter Juliana, and I don't even remember it. No, it was the one with Angelina Jolie, right? Yeah, I really I wasn't impressed by it either. It was okay, what, hmm? No, it was the one with, um, angelina jolie, right? Yeah, yeah, I just, I, I really we just I wasn't impressed by it either.

Cynthia : 41:36

It was okay what I wasn't impressed by it either.

Tony D. : 41:39

Yeah, every time I watched it, I was catching something. The second time I was catching something else. The third time I see what they're doing. They're they're continuing the story. You don't?

Carmen Lezeth: 41:49

have to watch it that many times to see what they're doing.

Tony D. : 41:51

I'm just saying you get the original premise of it, but there's a key to what they're doing with the whole Marvel franchise as they go through. It's another phase.

Carmen Lezeth: 42:00

I like watching movies on their own and not having. I'm just saying like if I have to do that much work watching a movie, it's not doing what it needs to do for me. You know what I mean? Wait, I want to ask Joy, are you a Marvel fan? I've never asked you that question.

Joy: 42:12

I'm real hot. You're what my daughter?

Carmen Lezeth: 42:16

is there's no crime in it. I just don't want us talking about it. I want any reason to stop these guys from talking about it.

Joy: 42:25

Let me totally change the subject Wait, wait, wait.

Carmen Lezeth: 42:28

You can change the subject if you talk into your speaker, because you keep going in and out.

Joy: 42:32

I don't know why it's doing that.

Carmen Lezeth: 42:34

It's kind of weird, but now you're better because you moved a little closer and you still look fine in the frame. But I'm just saying, maybe it's because when we talk we go in and out like we move around, you know.

Joy: 42:50

But go ahead.

Rick Costa: 42:51

Change the floor.

Joy: 42:52

Rick, the cruise that I was on was on the carnival celebration. It was the May 5th cruise and if you watch any type of travel stuff, you heard about our group, because I was on a group called all pause on deck Pause.

Tony D. : 43:11

Pause Like for pause, I was on a group called All.

Joy: 43:12

Paws on Deck Paws Paws Like four paws. This was a group for blind people and a lot of the people on the cruise. There was 37 guide dogs, so in total we had 67 blind people on this cruise.

Rick Costa: 43:26

Wow, oh my God, that's awesome.

Joy: 43:29

So, and normally you may see one or two people you know every few months on a cruise that is blind, but there was 67 of us on this cruise. Carnival did an absolutely amazing job. I completely changed my mind about Carnival, because you hear all these things and see all the crazy videos of everything going on on a Carnival cruise. There was no incidents. There was a few people that did not like the guide dogs being on the cruise, but because Carnival has to be ADA compliant, they did an amazing job of including us in everything the staff, the crew members. They had several meetings on training their staff. The crew member would stop and ask us if we needed help, if we needed assistance and come up, grab our arm and say, hey, come on, I'll show you where it is. They asked if we needed assistance. If we did, we said we did.

Carmen Lezeth: 44:31

If we didn't, everything was fine, okay, but, joy, can you explain for people like myself who don't have someone in their life, who has a disability, with somebody who's blind, why is that so important? You said it so emphatically and to me I wouldn't have even thought any different. Like if I saw you walking and I thought you were going the wrong way, I would come up to you and say, oh, excuse me, let me show you how to do it. You know, I grabbed you by the elbow, which is what I was taught, or whatever, but can you explain to people why it's more important to ask before just doing, even though they mean well?

Joy: 45:00

Right, and a lot of people do mean well. However, if you would come up and just grab someone's arm and say, oh, you're going the wrong way, or let me help you cross the street, I don't know you and you don't know if I need help or not, you assume, because I'm blind, that I will need help, but a lot of blind people don't, and we are all different, all different abilities. We are all versed in travel and when we use our cane, that's our eyes. Now, granted, my poor cane is beat up on the bottom because I've run into stuff. That's why my cane is there.

Tony D. : 45:44

I'm sorry, joanne, that was funny. I'm sorry the way you said that was funny.

Carmen Lezeth: 45:46

She said it, it was kind of funny, but it's also real and something we don't hear about.

Joy: 45:50

We need to know, so if you think someone is blind and you think they may need assistance, just simply ask them. Don't touch them, don't grab the cane, which I've had people do. Oh my God, yeah, and it's funny because there's been times I would have had to stand and do just training and listening for traffic and people would just naturally assume that I needed to cross the street and I would say, no, I'm just waiting on someone. And sometimes I was just waiting on someone or waiting on an Uber. But you know, people a lot of times do mean well, but if I don't know you, please don't just come up and grab my arm, because I don't know who you are, where you're trying to take me. So it's just nice to say hi, do you need assistance?

Carmen Lezeth: 46:40

Can I ask you or can I make a statement and you tell me if I'm wrong?

Carmen Lezeth: 46:44

I feel like, even though people mean well, they're still thinking about themselves more than they're thinking about you, because when I say you, I mean people who have a disability, whatever the disability is. I think that people sometimes want to have that savior feeling. It feels good to help people, right. We, like people, pretend that helping people is really about other people, but it's really about us. We feel good when we can help another person, right. But when you do that and you're not being considerate of the person you think you're going to help, it can go the other way and I think we do that, and I'm including myself in that we do that because we really do want to help and we think we're helping, but we're doing it really because we think we should and we're not thinking you know what I mean Like we think, like that's, we're supposed to help the poor, needy, disabled person, and the fact is, any disabled person that I know or I don't is that the right terminology, by the way, to say disabled?

Joy: 47:34

Challenged it can. And I'll tell you this in the disability community people's going to get offended if you say disabled, handicapped.

Carmen Lezeth: 47:45

Right, right, right. Okay. So you know I mean no disrespect, but my point is we always think there's some weakness in people who have any impairment whatsoever, any disability whatsoever. And the fact is, from my personal experience, any person that I think has a disability is usually far better off than I am, because they know the world in a very different way and understand it better, and they're not like this isn't their first rodeo. They know how to cross the street, they know like and they'll ask, ask, just like I will ask for help.

Carmen Lezeth: 48:16

People who have disabilities or impairments will also ask for help. So if they're going to go up to any random person and be like, let me grab you by the arm and walk you through, then don't do it to someone you think you think is blind or whatever it is. You know what I mean like and's. I learned that lesson the hard way, cause I did the same thing. I went to try to help someone cause I thought they needed help, and who did? They give me a learning lesson, never forget. Cause he was not shy, he was in the wheelchair. He was not shy, I mean, he was like bitch. I don't need your help. You know what I'm grateful for it. It was great because it was like okay, sorry, sorry, you know what I mean like I wasn't even mad at him, but I'm sure he had gotten his full so many times of people thinking he needed help.

Joy: 48:59

Oh yeah, yeah I know one one for me is like public restrooms, and especially in large airports any as a large restroom. Don't if you, if you don't ever go to my new restrooms in the airport. Just I was trying to find the sinks and this sweet little lady grabs my arm and leads me out the door oh my god, I'm sorry. Like okay, I'm not cleaning, I am sanitizer. But to give a little different, perspective any.

Rick Costa: 49:33

Any woman that's been pregnant? How many women I'm sorry, Like okay, I'm not cleaning, I hand sanitizer To give a little different perspective any woman that's been pregnant? How many women hate it when somebody just thinks they could put their hand on their stomach? Yeah, I did not tell you you could do that and it's the same thing. You don't just grab me. Who are you?

Carmen Lezeth: 49:46

That's a weird thing I've never understood why people think they could touch anybody's body without permission. I've never understood why people think they could touch anybody's body without permission. I've had people I'm just gonna say straight up, white people go and be like touching my hair. That happened in grammar school and it happened in college. Like thinking they were like, oh my god, your hair's so pretty. But then, but like doing it as they're touching my hair, like what the hell is wrong with you people. Let me just say hi to bobby stamps.

Tony D. : 50:09

Bobby Stamps.

Carmen Lezeth: 50:12

Great group here. Wow, flashbacks. Yeah, I guess there's half the people in the house. We're not doing word of the day, because we're talking about joy.

Rick Costa: 50:22

And Alma said earlier, you can't assume they want your help. You have to respect them and their personal space, exactly.

Carmen Lezeth: 50:27

She also said that's a lot of dog poop.

Tony D. : 50:29

I was going to skip that one.

Carmen Lezeth: 50:33

We have to tell Joy about that, because that's when you were talking about the cruise and people being upset that they were dog. What's the right terminology?

Rick Costa: 50:39

Service dogs.

Carmen Lezeth: 50:42

Yeah, service dogs right, she said that's a lot of dog poop. Go ahead, Cynthia.

Cynthia : 50:47

Good Joy. I actually saw videos of certain cruise lines that have specific areas for people who have service dogs to use the restrooms and stuff like that. You know, do they have certain areas for your dogs?

Joy: 51:00

They did. A lot of us on the cruise actually had balconies. So what they would do? They actually removed some of the furniture on the balcony and put a litter box on the balcony and put a litter box on the balcony. Different decks, especially deck seven, had, I think, two or three large litter boxes.

Carmen Lezeth: 51:18

Okay, I'm confused by the litter boxing. You guys had cats For the dogs. When the dogs have to go, Will they go? Do the dogs go in the litter box?

Joy: 51:26

Reluctantly, but yes Okay.

Carmen Lezeth: 51:28

I'm just saying clearly I don't have a dog, so I was confused, but okay got it. They were looking for trees Right. They should have planted a tree in every area. Yeah, so this was what cruise line Carnival? Did they have a bad name or something? Because you seemed emphatic about saying you were happy. I don't cruise. Cynthia's going on a cruise in two weeks, or one week, two weeks, three weeks. I don't do cruises, so I'm confused. Is Carnival a bad cruise company? Clearly not.

Joy: 51:57

Carnival had a reputation of a lot of drug use, a lot of pot smoking and a lot of fight.

Carmen Lezeth: 52:03

Joy, hold on one second. We lost for some reason Rick I guess he's like it was my show. Hold on, I got to find them. I don't know where he is. He got kicked out of his own show. He said it was my show. Bitch, hold on, I got to find him.

Cynthia : 52:19

I don't know where he is.

Rick Costa: 52:20

What happened? Am I here? Am I here? Hello, is that gone for real, for real.

Carmen Lezeth: 52:26

Joy, I'm so sorry, but somehow he just jumped off Like ultimately it is my show. It's hard.

Rick Costa: 52:33

I didn't do that on purpose, I didn't know what happened I have no idea what happened. But no, I agree with Joy that the thing that I've always heard was they were a big party, party, party, cruise line. If you want to party hard, you ride a carnival. That's what I always heard. Well, I don't know. Carmen's 10, 12.

Carmen Lezeth: 52:50

It's an hour and four minutes, I'm letting you do what you need to do. Now that we know what's done, look at him. He's like bitch, please.

Rick Costa: 52:58

I did not say that.

Carmen Lezeth: 52:59

I know, because you would not.

Tony D. : 53:03

I was waiting for Rick to say.

Carmen Lezeth: 53:04

I did not use that word. He'll use a different word for that word. He'll say some other word. Instead of mother effer he'll be like mother flower or something that's a whole nother topic. That's a whole nother topic, but all right, so I'm not going to jump off yet because I have some other things. I want to ask, tony, how was your week? Did you find a piece of joy this week at all?

Tony D. : 53:25

My week was good. Don't let me know he's going to sleep, okay, so you know what's happening right now. You talking really loud.

Carmen Lezeth: 53:28

You put the thing next to you and you talk even lower. I can't hear you. You can't hear you.

Tony D. : 53:37

I took my volume up. How was that?

Carmen Lezeth: 53:40

I think he thinks he's sexy or something when he's talking.

Tony D. : 53:42

I've been told that.

Carmen Lezeth: 53:46

Let me fucking talk, bitch. I want to go up and speak it on him.

Tony D. : 53:49

Let's get it on him. He got that Barry.

Carmen Lezeth: 53:49

White.

Joy: 53:50

He wanted to be Barry the stage I want to be on the stage.

Rick Costa: 53:52

Let's get it on.

Joy: 53:53

He got that Barry White.

Carmen Lezeth: 53:54

He tried to be Barry White, but Barry White would let his bravado show. You know what?

Tony D. : 53:59

I mean he tried to be low. I know why. Can't get enough of your love, baby, we know you can't sing but A$AP. I bet you're the part of people who love my karaoke.

Carmen Lezeth: 54:10

Oh, remember, you guys used to do karaoke on whatchamacallit. How come you don't do karaoke, tony, on?

Tony D. : 54:16

your show. I remember on the other half of it on. I didn't do it a lot more because as I watched the replay I was not satisfied with my voice. I don't talk about it too much anymore.

Carmen Lezeth: 54:24

Oh, you touched a nerve there. Okay, you don't like your voice.

Tony D. : 54:29

No, I thought I sounded it. I thought I sounded it and then I watched a week out with Jesus. That was terrible, but we did have a good follow. We had fun doing it. Everybody told me not to take it so serious, but I was trying to and I see my flaws, I see my age. I've heard a change in my voice since I thought I had one.

Carmen Lezeth: 54:49

Why don't you?

Tony D. : 54:49

just embrace it Because I lips, lips etc. I love it when she licks her lips. See me jacking her little lips with her hips because I'm watching Conversations on the phone until the break of dawn. Now we all know A lot of lights on. Turn them off, kind of set it off, kind of wait until something's on your mind.

Carmen Lezeth: 55:07

Let it off of my offices and I was like I heard the first tone of something and it reminded me. I thought it was hip hop, hip it to, the hip it to the hip, hip hop one stop. Rock it to the bang bang.

Tony D. : 55:18

Look at me right. Yeah, we love Scooby Doo, but guess what?

Carmen Lezeth: 55:22

America, we love you. We can rock and roll, I forget. Anyway, I was singing it and all these millennials and people were like Mike you know that song.

Tony D. : 55:34

I remember when it came out. That's how old I am.

Carmen Lezeth: 55:36

What, what, what.

Tony D. : 55:37

I remember when the song came out.

Carmen Lezeth: 55:41

They made it sound like there was something that like a miracle that I knew the words or whatever. It's like any song that you grow up listening to and loving you. Just you know what I mean. That's when I knew I was. I'm just old.

Rick Costa: 55:52

How is that oh?

Carmen Lezeth: 55:52

my God. Okay, but Tony, I hate to bitch about the mic thing, but somehow this still is not working. Am I the only one being like why is this not working?

Cynthia : 56:02

No, he's talking low on purpose because he's got the mic up to his face.

Carmen Lezeth: 56:06

Because he's behaving.

Rick Costa: 56:07

Because Jason went to bed.

Joy: 56:08

Is that what you're?

Carmen Lezeth: 56:09

doing.

Cynthia : 56:09

Yeah, okay, well, all right, whatever?

Carmen Lezeth: 56:13

Cynthia, we already know what happened to you this week Fabulous. Does everyone in the office know Joy wasn't here. Joy Cynthia interviewed for a job that she's always wanted. That's in the death field. That's all I'm going to say. Okay, what is it? It's a pathology, a death person like personal stuff. That's what I call it. So this is a step in the right direction. So she got the job today. So she's very excited. Does everyone in the office know some people?

Cynthia : 56:37

know, I haven't, I haven't told everyone yet yeah, okay.

Carmen Lezeth: 56:41

Well, we know they watch the show, so they'll hear it anyways um, joy, what was great that happened this week to you.

Carmen Lezeth: 56:48

I got my voice back. Are you gonna come on the show more often? I want to. Yes, okay, good, because you know. That's the only reason why I don't bother you, because I know you've had a lot on your plate and you've been traveling a lot, and your mom. You know what I mean, so you're always welcome. You just text me, let me know and I'm not going to send you a link all the time to me why you can't come on. And I'm like girl, please, you know what I mean. Like it's all good, you don't need to answer to me for nothing. Like when I start paying you, then we might have some issues. It's not today, baby. Thank you, mario and Alma.

Cynthia : 57:21

Wait, what did they say? They're congratulating me, oh yeah.

Carmen Lezeth: 57:25

They were here at the beginning. Oh, Alma said Tony, you sound muffled. Okay, whatever you know what you can hate on me and Cynthia, but don't mess with her, She'll kick your ass, Rick. What happened to you this week, baby? We've liked being the host of the show the entire time.

Rick Costa: 57:42

Well, that's the highlight of my life, my God. I've been looking forward to this so much. My cousin brought over some slamming food. It was a combination of Italian spaghetti and chicken, but then meatballs also with like two separate meals, and I said, no, we're going to put this together and it was amazing.

Carmen Lezeth: 57:59

Ooh, okay.

Rick Costa: 57:59

That happened today. That made me happy.

Carmen Lezeth: 58:01

Oh, that's good. So for me this week, just I told Cynthia when we were in the green room talking a little bit earlier like I'm really tired and as I always am, and I had just gotten in like 20 minutes before I logged on and I'm trying to be very grateful I got my paycheck today from one of my clients and I realized like I need to stop complaining. I have to find grace in all of it. So I have finished three designs for our swag. I have to do at least five for the place that I'm trying to use it. So I'm hoping next week we'll have some swag for everyone.

Carmen Lezeth: 58:38

I'm not hoping I'm going to commit to it right now that next week we'll have swag available and hopefully you will help us so that we can continue to grow. We're doing a great job and I think that's the one thing that gives me joy is seeing that it's not just that the podcast is fun and the live stream is fun, and it's also that we're growing, even if it's a little by little by little. You know what I mean. It's it's nice to see it's not getting less. Uh, mara said my promise. Joy this week is that our niece was on the prices right? Wow, I didn't know that. She didn't tell me.

Rick Costa: 59:11

That's cool. Were they able to pronounce her name? Were they able to pronounce her name? Come on down.

Carmen Lezeth: 59:17

You know who you are? No, no, no. You know what? I've been in touch with her and she told me how to say her name and I just forgot about it.

Rick Costa: 59:23

So I didn't want to say her name, no, you would think it's that, but it's pronounced differently. She's a wonderful, wonderful. Mario's going to have to come on and pronounce it properly.

Carmen Lezeth: 59:32

No, she told me like five times. I'm just so tired I'm not going to say but it's A-M-Y-L-A for people listening to the podcast later. So, okay, Thank you all for being on the show. I appreciate you all so much. That was a fun time. With that said, we're at the 1.30 mark. I got to jump off because it's going to be too long to edit. I adore you all. I appreciate you all. Thank you for being here and everyone remember it's always all about the joy. Thanks for stopping by. All about the joy. Be better and stay beautiful folks, have a sweet day.