He's set his head on fire, backflipped off buildings, snorted wasabi and leaped off a bridge from a moving car. He even stuck a fish hook through his cheek and put fireworks where they should never go. Don't get me started on what he's done with a stapler.

Ever since he snatched a video camera from his father's closet at age 15, Steve-O has lived for attention. And the Jackass star learned early and often that public adulation escalated in lock step with the outrageousness of his behavior.

The equation was simple: the further he pushed the envelope, the more America's favorite prankster felt loved and alive.

Insanity ensues.

Still, it wasn't enough. It would never be enough. An insatiable hunger for wholeness that could never be sated. A spiritual hole he almost died trying to fill — first through external validation, then through substances. As insanely dangerous as his stunts had become, it was drugs and alcohol that ultimately brought Steve to his knees. To the brink of death. To the psych ward. To sobriety.

It was March of 2008. A moment that broke him. A moment that saved him.

Let's back up.

Steve-O knows how to play the idiot.

But Stephen Glover is no moron.

Growing up in five countries fluently speaking three languages, Steve has maintained household name status for almost two decades in an industry famous for it's flash in the pans and also rans. He's starred in a variety of television shows and movies, including (of course) three global blockbuster installments of Jackass. Sober since 2008, he wrote the New York Times bestselling memoir Professional Idiot*, then reinvented himself as a successful stand-up comedian. On the heels of his recently released Showtime special Guilty As Charged, Steve has taken his unique blend of comedy, stunts, stories and performance art on the road, selling out venues across across the globe.

I've known Steve for over seven years. When the camera is off, he's far more grounded than you might imagine. Surprisingly self-aware, present, generous and contemplative are just a few descriptors that spring to mind.

That's the Steve I'm interested in.

So this week we go beyond Steve-O to meet Stephen Glover — the human being behind the clown, comedian, stunt man and provocateur.

The best part? We're joined by Steve's dad. Not only was this Ted Glover's first podcast, I believe it's the first time Steve and Ted have ever been interviewed together (at least on audio).

The result is glorious.

This is a conversation about health, environmentalism and ethics. It's about the damage inflicted by addiction on loved ones. It's about recovery, forgiveness and spiritual evolution. It's about what used to drive Steve and what drives him now.

But most of all it's about the love between a father and son.

This one's special. Yeah Dude!

Peace + Plants,

Rich

Episode 107: Sara Benincasa