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Episode

#3596: Mike O'Drama

Mike O'Meara, Robb Spewak, Josh Sroka

August 18, 2026 · 1 hr 24 min

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Mike makes the biggest announcement in TMOS history: after 46 years behind a microphone, he’ll retire from the daily show following one final episode aboard the January cruise. Naturally, Robb and Josh respond with Titanic music, “Final Voyage” branding, and several jokes that force Mike to clarify that he is retiring—not dying. The boys look back at the podcast’s unlikely 17-year run, thank the listeners who kept it alive, and tease the next chapter while carefully avoiding words like “farewell” around Mr. O’Drama. Then Mike reviews an unbearably self-important movie, Robb explains how he sliced his finger with a razor blade, and everyone agrees that asking “How was your Summer?” should never invite an actual answer. Plus: gas-station kratom, a birthday Charleston, screaming Huskies, and the shocking discovery that every restaurant is apparently just Chili’s wearing a different hat.

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[SPEAKER_04]: This episode of the Michael Marasio is brought to you by the T.M.O.S.

[SPEAKER_04]: Amazon Portal.

[SPEAKER_04]: Remember to click the Amazon link at T.M.O.S.

[SPEAKER_04]: podcast.com before you shop.

[SPEAKER_04]: It's that easy.

[SPEAKER_04]: Thank you.

[SPEAKER_04]: Now, on with the show.

[SPEAKER_01]: Hi, I'm Larry King.

[SPEAKER_01]: Do you spend your days rushing to the nearest bathrooms?

[SPEAKER_02]: Michael Mara, radio entertainment.

[SPEAKER_02]: Do you?

[SPEAKER_02]: You can listen to the Michael Mero Show at TMOS5cast.com or anywhere find podcasts or fun.

[SPEAKER_02]: Welcome to our show.

[SPEAKER_02]: We're going to start with the race.

[SPEAKER_09]: It's got to be fucking, look what I found.

[SPEAKER_02]: There's plenty for everyone.

[SPEAKER_02]: It's the Michael Mero Show with Michael Mero.

[SPEAKER_02]: Bye!

[SPEAKER_02]: Josh Rooka.

[SPEAKER_02]: John!

[SPEAKER_02]: And Rob Speedway.

[SPEAKER_02]: It's only the beginning.

[SPEAKER_04]: And now, here's Mike.

[SPEAKER_04]: Hi, this is Larry King.

[SPEAKER_04]: Do you find yourself struggling to go to the bathroom?

[SPEAKER_04]: Hi.

[SPEAKER_04]: You have to find the bathroom first, Larry.

[SPEAKER_04]: I find the bathroom.

[SPEAKER_04]: The late Larry King.

[SPEAKER_04]: Where is he?

[SPEAKER_04]: He's dead.

[SPEAKER_04]: He passed.

[SPEAKER_04]: That's sad, right?

[SPEAKER_04]: He's thrown off the mortal coil.

[SPEAKER_04]: He's gone to the hear after.

[SPEAKER_04]: He's no longer, he is a dead parent.

[SPEAKER_03]: He's a dead king.

[SPEAKER_04]: A dead king.

[SPEAKER_04]: Whoa!

[SPEAKER_04]: Morn the bias, children, and chance.

[SPEAKER_04]: And canon.

[SPEAKER_03]: What about Kaya?

[SPEAKER_04]: Kaya the older daughter.

[SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, I'm a previous from one of many previous.

[SPEAKER_04]: Many previous merges.

[SPEAKER_02]: There you go.

[SPEAKER_04]: I Larry King.

[SPEAKER_04]: Hi.

[SPEAKER_04]: Hi, how are you?

[SPEAKER_04]: Hey, welcome to the Michael Marisho for a Tuesday ladies and gentlemen.

[SPEAKER_04]: We uh,

[SPEAKER_04]: We mentioned on yesterday's show that we would have a major announcement and I guess that's on me to do the announcement because I do major announcements on the show and I have a significant announcement for listeners of this show and also for myself.

[SPEAKER_04]: on January the weekend of January 21st.

[SPEAKER_04]: That will be our last podcast as the Michael Marasho and I know this might come as a bit of a shock.

[SPEAKER_04]: Doesn't come as a shock to the boys because we discussed this week or so ago and we were talking about what comes next and all that but I wanted to, I was doing crunching some

[SPEAKER_04]: for in one form or the other in one medium or the other for 46 years.

[SPEAKER_05]: Oh, since I was born.

[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah.

[SPEAKER_04]: I was going to say that job is great, right?

[SPEAKER_04]: About what month?

[SPEAKER_04]: This episode of the Michael Marasio is brought to you by the T.M.O.S. [SPEAKER_04]: Amazon Portal. [SPEAKER_04]: Remember to click the Amazon link at T.M.O.S. [SPEAKER_04]: podcast.com before you shop. [SPEAKER_04]: It's that easy. [SPEAKER_04]: Thank you. [SPEAKER_04]: Now, on with the show. [SPEAKER_01]: Hi, I'm Larry King. [SPEAKER_01]: Do you spend your days rushing to the nearest bathrooms? [SPEAKER_02]: Michael Mara, radio entertainment. [SPEAKER_02]: Do you? [SPEAKER_02]: You can listen to the Michael Mero Show at TMOS5cast.com or anywhere find podcasts or fun. [SPEAKER_02]: Welcome to our show. [SPEAKER_02]: We're going to start with the race. [SPEAKER_09]: It's got to be fucking, look what I found. [SPEAKER_02]: There's plenty for everyone. [SPEAKER_02]: It's the Michael Mero Show with Michael Mero. [SPEAKER_02]: Bye! [SPEAKER_02]: Josh Rooka. [SPEAKER_02]: John! [SPEAKER_02]: And Rob Speedway. [SPEAKER_02]: It's only the beginning. [SPEAKER_04]: And now, here's Mike. [SPEAKER_04]: Hi, this is Larry King. [SPEAKER_04]: Do you find yourself struggling to go to the bathroom? [SPEAKER_04]: Hi. [SPEAKER_04]: You have to find the bathroom first, Larry. [SPEAKER_04]: I find the bathroom. [SPEAKER_04]: The late Larry King. [SPEAKER_04]: Where is he? [SPEAKER_04]: He's dead. [SPEAKER_04]: He passed. [SPEAKER_04]: That's sad, right? [SPEAKER_04]: He's thrown off the mortal coil. [SPEAKER_04]: He's gone to the hear after. [SPEAKER_04]: He's no longer, he is a dead parent. [SPEAKER_03]: He's a dead king. [SPEAKER_04]: A dead king. [SPEAKER_04]: Whoa! [SPEAKER_04]: Morn the bias, children, and chance. [SPEAKER_04]: And canon. [SPEAKER_03]: What about Kaya? [SPEAKER_04]: Kaya the older daughter. [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, I'm a previous from one of many previous. [SPEAKER_04]: Many previous merges. [SPEAKER_02]: There you go. [SPEAKER_04]: I Larry King. [SPEAKER_04]: Hi. [SPEAKER_04]: Hi, how are you? [SPEAKER_04]: Hey, welcome to the Michael Marisho for a Tuesday ladies and gentlemen. [SPEAKER_04]: We uh, [SPEAKER_04]: We mentioned on yesterday's show that we would have a major announcement and I guess that's on me to do the announcement because I do major announcements on the show and I have a significant announcement for listeners of this show and also for myself. [SPEAKER_04]: on January the weekend of January 21st. [SPEAKER_04]: That will be our last podcast as the Michael Marasho and I know this might come as a bit of a shock. [SPEAKER_04]: Doesn't come as a shock to the boys because we discussed this week or so ago and we were talking about what comes next and all that but I wanted to, I was doing crunching some [SPEAKER_04]: for in one form or the other in one medium or the other for 46 years. [SPEAKER_05]: Oh, since I was born. [SPEAKER_04]: Yeah. [SPEAKER_04]: I was going to say that job is great, right? [SPEAKER_04]: About what month? [SPEAKER_05]: Yeah. [SPEAKER_04]: You go back to what year were you born? [SPEAKER_04]: You were born in 1980. [SPEAKER_04]: 1980. [SPEAKER_05]: I probably started commercial radio in 1980 myself. [SPEAKER_04]: I have been on the air as long as my wife has been alive, as long as you have been alive. [SPEAKER_04]: I started at American University. [SPEAKER_03]: I was dying when you started my early... [SPEAKER_03]: I'm the old timer. [SPEAKER_03]: Yes. [SPEAKER_05]: I was on TV, not the radio. [SPEAKER_05]: That's true. [SPEAKER_04]: I started when I was a junior in college in earnest, where that was my first technical real commercial. [SPEAKER_04]: that I did, and then I did that junior and senior year at American University, and then I went to work on right out of college, I started working in radio, and it's, you know, it's as the very [SPEAKER_04]: In our medium, just like in a lot of broadcasting, radio and digital, been extremely tough, very, very difficult. [SPEAKER_04]: I have said to our listening audience, we need this, we need this, we've been doing it together with a bailing wire and duct tape, and we have, you know, even with all of that, it has been a joy. [SPEAKER_04]: to do this show and I can talk about that down the rub because we've got lots of shows planned between now and the way we have structured this is that the last podcast we do and this is what I always said to myself when I end my career I want I want it somehow associated with Jimmy Buffett. [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah. [SPEAKER_03]: Well, I mean, you've been planning it for years. [SPEAKER_04]: I mean, Mike, so often you and Jen, and I like to call him Jim. [SPEAKER_04]: You and Jim Buffett. [SPEAKER_04]: Right. [SPEAKER_03]: The late Jim Buffett. [SPEAKER_03]: Your careers have really worked in parallel with you, like when you own the restaurant. [SPEAKER_04]: What were your busiest days, except when Jim Buffett would play the Nissan Favillium with the jamming up root 66 when he was at it. [SPEAKER_04]: The pinnacle. [SPEAKER_04]: Yeah. [SPEAKER_04]: We were a restaurant full of what were called parrot heads. [SPEAKER_03]: Overman, right? [SPEAKER_04]: It's also the perfect symbol for retirement. [SPEAKER_04]: Yes, it is. [SPEAKER_04]: It is indeed a parent. [SPEAKER_03]: Mike, if I see you hanging around in a Hawaiian shirt, I swear I'm gonna hit you on the head with a bottle. [SPEAKER_04]: Well, don't do that. [SPEAKER_04]: Sure, we will have some of those. [SPEAKER_04]: So it's been challenging in radio and digital. [SPEAKER_04]: Anybody that pays attention to the business side of things knows, cumulus has been, you know, Samara, Samara, what's the word I'm using? [SPEAKER_04]: Samarily, you know, laying off people on a regular basis. [SPEAKER_04]: Methotic. [SPEAKER_04]: it's been terrible for them. [SPEAKER_04]: The support that we have received over the years for this incarnation of the show has been nothing short of fantastic. [SPEAKER_04]: We have been thrilled with it. [SPEAKER_04]: It has been a delight to have the intimacy. [SPEAKER_04]: I always thought radio, [SPEAKER_04]: was the most intimate medium and then i found out no podcasting is because you have a captured group of people that have been part of this and uh... and that i will never be able to properly thank everybody that's uh... that's done that the support is kept us checking along [SPEAKER_04]: And we're talking about not collective support, individual support. [SPEAKER_04]: People like Kathy Fyfer, who is now battling her own demons as she's in a cancer fight, and I wanted to say much love to Kathy, you know, hang in there, hang tough. [SPEAKER_04]: We love you, and good luck with all of that, and Kathy was instrumental in keeping this thing going at the very, very, very, very beginning. [SPEAKER_04]: people like Dirk Vastrick who has they've been so gent in generous. [SPEAKER_04]: And then in the list goes on and on and on. [SPEAKER_04]: I talk about people that have reached out to us at different times when we needed the most. [SPEAKER_04]: And even as recently as doing our auction where we had that and people kept this thing chugging along. [SPEAKER_04]: It really is appreciated by every single one of us. [SPEAKER_04]: And I'm thrilled that I've been able to do this as long as I've done it. [SPEAKER_04]: But when I realized, when I was thinking to myself before I was, when I was contemplating this move of retirement. [SPEAKER_04]: And I don't consider it early retirement. [SPEAKER_04]: I consider it retiring at the age of 67. [SPEAKER_04]: That's actually a little late, isn't it? [SPEAKER_04]: to his brother's brothers. [SPEAKER_04]: I would have done it when I was in my mid 40s, but that didn't work out that well. [SPEAKER_03]: But I love how close did you ever get? [SPEAKER_03]: Did you ever get close enough of the thought you could you could just say I'm done now? [SPEAKER_05]: No, I bet two less wives than you could. [SPEAKER_05]: Oh, a hundred percent. [SPEAKER_03]: And you know what? [SPEAKER_03]: I think it's also, it should be mentioned that both wives have retired. [SPEAKER_04]: And doing quite well. [SPEAKER_04]: The, no, I never thought about it after, I wrote this down. [SPEAKER_04]: I wanted to make sure I got it right. [SPEAKER_04]: When we started this enterprise, the podcast, and I mentioned Josh Robinite because Rob was part of it. [SPEAKER_04]: at the beginning. [SPEAKER_04]: We started it in 2009. [SPEAKER_04]: I really expected it to be a side hustle and that side hustle has continued for 17 years, which blows me out of the water that this thing continued. [SPEAKER_04]: This was a long time ago. [SPEAKER_03]: You were at WJFK. [SPEAKER_04]: longer than I was at JFK was a backup plan to being back on the radio. [SPEAKER_04]: I started this podcast and took another job after I was at CBS radio for a very long time and that format changed and then it was the podcast and at that point I went, it's just the podcast. [SPEAKER_04]: That's what I want to focus on. [SPEAKER_04]: With that in mind, I did not perceive that podcasts would be the way people consume this kind of medium. [SPEAKER_04]: Well, it was so early in the morning. [SPEAKER_03]: If you go back to December 7th, 2009, podcasting was so foreign to everybody then. [SPEAKER_03]: We were real early on the boat. [SPEAKER_03]: And I remember we had a lunch together, Mike, with some other people. [SPEAKER_03]: And they had to explain to us really what a podcast was. [SPEAKER_03]: Right. [SPEAKER_03]: And I mean the whole notion and the way that it was really the first thing that's sunk into me, it's like radio DVR. [SPEAKER_03]: It's going to be there for you whenever you want to listen. [SPEAKER_03]: And while we were accustomed to doing four hours a day, every day, the hard thing was wrapping her head around the fact that no one was listening to all four hours. [SPEAKER_03]: Right. [SPEAKER_03]: We were just leaving a four hour window. [SPEAKER_03]: They could listen. [SPEAKER_03]: Now we're giving them an hour or so. [SPEAKER_03]: That they could listen to on their schedule and it made perfect sense, but that doesn't mean anyone outside of podcasters knew what podcasting was No, I believe my he went into famous words. [SPEAKER_05]: I'm not one of you. [SPEAKER_04]: I got one of you first episode of that. [SPEAKER_04]: I remember saying that because some guy I don't even remember the guy's name said welcome to the family. [SPEAKER_04]: This is a guy that really was You know, did it out of the mother's basement and it was just a I wanted to make sure that you know I was still in my heart and I always have been a radio person [SPEAKER_04]: that's what I think of myself as. [SPEAKER_04]: And, you know, it's just something that I never really wrapped my head around until we were well into it. [SPEAKER_04]: And then it just grew around us. [SPEAKER_04]: And I was looking at that saying, wow, okay, this is a thing. [SPEAKER_04]: And then, [SPEAKER_04]: everybody started doing it. [SPEAKER_04]: And that was only in the last seven to 10 years that everyone started doing it. [SPEAKER_04]: And because of that, it's been a challenge because so many people do it. [SPEAKER_04]: And like radio, very similar to radio, certain personalities, [SPEAKER_05]: dominate and that's always the way it's been it's been that way from for broadcasting as well certain people dominate and the other people struggle that's kind of the way it goes go ahead John. [SPEAKER_05]: I think there was a change in podcast and through the pandemic where that's where you saw the celebrities move to the podcast and of oh I can just do this from my home. [SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, there was a lot of affected things. [SPEAKER_03]: You know, even, I believe Saturday night live didn't episode that was essentially podcasts from the people's homes during the pandemic. [SPEAKER_03]: It was became