Off The Beat with Brian Baumgartner

Live and in person from their shared home course in Rancho Santa Fe, CA, Brian talks with his neighbor and friend PGA Tour pro Charley Hoffman about getting knocked down a peg by his excellent team at UNLV, stepping into a leadership role on the board of the PGA, and living in paradise in his hometown of San Diego. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In honor of the amazing writers of The Office, Brian shares a compilation of his favorite moments interviewing the creative minds behind the show. Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky talk about fan-favorite episodes: Dinner Party and Scott Tots, Mike Schur reflects back on the 2008 writers strike, and Jen Celotta remembers the love and passion every writer had for the show. See omnystudio.com/listen...

Baseball bad boy AJ Pierzynski remembers the days of waiting by the phone for important news, reveals how boos from the crowd actually made him play better, and gives his thoughts on the upcoming playoffs. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former NFL tackle for the Cincinnati Bengals and the LA Rams, Andrew Whitworth chats with Brian about his near-perfect game attendance record, helping develop the team culture at the Rams, and the most beautiful full circle moments of his career. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brian gains a new friend in Sarah Wayne Callies, who speaks about her homeland of Hawaii, the beauty of live theater, and opening new frontiers in the podcast world. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brian chats with a rule breaker, record breaker, and bone breaker Lindsey Vonn. The Olympic medalist and skiing champion talks about her first hole in one, the topography of Minnesota, and breaking her body for her sport. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kevin Reilly, the former network exec behind shows like Saved by the Bell, The Sopranos, The Shield, The Office, and more talks about falling in love with television and the palm tree silhouettes of Los Angeles, drinking Evian on Brandon Tartikoff’s sofa, and his perspective on the strike from a network insider. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sports reporter and NFL insider Peter Schrager talks to Brian about the best job in the world, managing his crazy schedule across two coasts, and running into celebrities in his neighborhood - plus his top pick for all you fantasy football players this year. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Entrepreneur, philanthropist, and golf enthusiast Bob Parsons is on the podcast today, talking about how he came up with the name GoDaddy, using psychedelics to heal PTSD, and the best golf clubs on the market. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brian catches up with his old colleague, former writer on The Office and co-creator of Jury Duty, Gene Stupnitsky. He talks about his childhood as a Ukrainian immigrant, getting fired from every assistant position he ever had, and the secrets of getting kids to say dirty jokes without ruining their innocence. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, Brian sits down with Crash and Narcos star Michael Peña (or as we like to call him, the King of Hilarious Callbacks.) The two chat about everything from the double-life Michael lived as a child to the confidence that Sidney Poitier instilled in him and the embarrassing moments on set of Jack Ryan that didn’t quite make it to final cut. This episode was recorded on July 6, 2023. See omny...

For the second time on the podcast, Brian gets to pick the brain of the brilliant Ben Silverman, visionary executive producer behind The Office, Ugly Betty, Jane the Virgin, The Biggest Loser, and many more. He talks about his childhood being raised by theater and television in Manhattan, the disappointment of attaining his childhood dream, breaking into new fields in media, and he even gives Bria...

On today’s episode, Brian speaks with the greatest US soccer player of all time, Landon Donovan. He talks about moving to Europe at 17, seeing the sport gain popularity in the US, and the influx of soccer teams coming to San Diego.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brian’s golf buddy, former Green Bay linebacker and current co-host of The Pat McAfee Show, AJ Hawk is going off (the beat) today, talking about his career in football, becoming a fixture at the American Century Golf Championship, and what he is (and isn’t) giving up as The Pat McAfee Show moves to ESPN. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of Brian’s favorite people (and everyone’s favorite HR rep) Paul Lieberstein is on the show today. He talks about his early, terrible spec scripts, his excellent new show Lucky Hank, and the real reasons behind the writer’s strike. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brian meets a new friend today, the talented and omnipresent Jake McDorman (he’s everywhere!). He shares his experience moving to Hollywood by himself at 17, the NSFW first scene he shot for What We Do in the Shadows, and how he stays in the zeitgeist by being in multiple shows at once. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brian catches up with the hilarious writer and comedian Amber Ruffin, who tells him all about making a career in professional improv, working with her sister, and her lifelong love of (not) learning. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Off the Beet [Farm], Brian catches up with his dear old friend Rainn Wilson. Instead of talking about The Office, they go much deeper into how he harnessed his childhood struggles to play some of the weirdest characters out there, traveling the world for his new show Rainn Wilson and the Geography of Bliss, and okay fine, they do talk about The Office a little too. See omnystudi...

On today’s episode, star of stage and screen Garret Dillahunt talks about the whirlwind of creativity on the set of Deadwood, the third director on the set of No Country for Old Men, and never being too proud to take a paycheck. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Famously Canadian actor Tom Cavanagh gets what he’s been waiting for - to be a guest on Off The Beat. He uses the opportunity to tell Brian about his screen-less childhood in Africa, being the worst singer in every musical he’s ever done, and playing the same character many different ways on The Flash. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brian’s fellow Southerner, high school debate team champion, and friend of John Krasinski John Hoogenakker is on the podcast today. He shares how he managed to be a big-time actor without ever living in New York or LA, traveling the world for beer commercials, and balancing his resume of extremely dark stories (like Dopesick and Waco: The Aftermath) with lighter fare (Dilly Dilly!). See omnystudio...

Best friends and TV/radio legends Jason Alexander (Seinfeld) and Peter Tilden (Writer/Producer) sit down with Brian to chat about everything from how Jason found out he couldn’t cut it in magic, the ways Jason may be more like George Costanza than he admits, and their brand new podcast “Really? No Really?”, an iHeartPodcasts series that you can listen to now at https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-...

It’s always a great episode when Brian meets one of his idols - and today’s guest is not only a legend in her own right but the daughter of one as well. Star of stage, screen, and ABC’s new dark comedy Not Dead Yet, Angela Gibbs sits down to talk about breaking into Hollywood alongside her mother Marla Gibbs, moving to Africa and changing her name, and helping Michael Keaton win an Oscar. See omny...

Brian is joined today by the legend who “met everyone there was to meet”, the incredible actress and comedian Rosie O’Donnell. In a beautifully candid conversation, the two discuss everything from the hilarious way Rosie got her start in show biz to the unbreakable sisterhood she formed with Madonna and why the “Queen of Nice” title was never quite right. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy in...

This week Brian is joined by 9-1-1 and Into the Badlands star, Oliver Stark. The duo dive deep into Oliver’s early acting days in London, the time Idris Elba did (and didn’t) recognize him, and what it’s been like playing a firefighter on the small screen.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.