Joe Rogan takes on Bigfoot, UFOs on SyFy show
Joe Rogan is hosting a new TV show about Bigfoot, UFOs and ESP, and he says the show is teaching him “a lot about crazy people.”
“The same pattern exists in people who believe in UFOs, or who believe in ghosts, or who believe in psychics,” says Rogan — who performs stand-up on Friday at the Hard Rock Hotel.
The pattern is: True believers risk looking foolish, even if they are telling the truth, so they can get pretty defensive.
“If you really saw a UFO, and you tried telling people — how crazy would you sound, even if it really did happen? It would (mess) with your head because nobody would believe you,” Rogan says.
Rogan is open-minded but values facts and truths over ideology. He gave me a five-minute primer on gigantopithecus and Homo floresiensis.
“There are real, legit anthropologists who believe in Sasquatch,” Rogan says.
But some true believers in Sasquatch and UFOs ignore contradictory facts and evidence of hoaxes.
“They only see things that confirm their idea. It’s called ‘confirmation bias.’ It’s a real problem with people and ideas,” Rogan says.
“Some people just get it in their mind there is a bigfoot, and then every time some dude in a monkey suit takes a blurry picture, they’re convinced it’s the best Sasquatch footage ever.”
“Joe Rogan Questions Everything” debuts July 24 on SyFy.
“The show is becoming as much about psychology as it is about the ideas themselves.”
On Friday, Rogan will perform at the Hard Rock Hotel with comedian Joey Diaz, “the funniest human being that’s ever lived.”
Earlier Friday, he and UFC broadcaster Mike Goldberg will do a Q&A at the UFC Fan Expo.
On Saturday, he will provide commentary during UFC 162 at the MGM Grand.
And if you are like me, you listen to his popular podcast, “The Joe Rogan Experience.” Rogan is a fun and fascinating interviewer of people as diverse as scientist Neil deGrasse Tyson, Van Halen’s David Lee Roth, psychedelics researcher Rick Doblin and UFC chief Dana White.
Rogan says the power of the podcast is freedom.
“I don’t have a boss. I don’t have a production company. So I don’t have anybody telling me what would be best for ratings. I pursue only things I find interesting.”
OCTAGON GIRL
Exercising regularly and eating more healthfully doesn’t sound sexy, but it makes you sexy. That’s the bottom line for UFC octagon girl and magazine cover model Arianny Celeste, a Vegas native.
Celeste was studying fitness and nutrition at UNLV until the UFC hired her. So I asked her: If a woman wanted to look like her, how would she do that?
Celeste is not blessed with great metabolism, she says.
“I’m always conscious of what I’m putting into my body.”
She doesn’t even drink soda. And she works out routinely.
“Exercise is very, very important. It’s something you have to be dedicated to, and work toward.”
She trained herself to love healthful food. She doesn’t miss fatty meals.
“If I go to a restaurant, I’m not going to order a big steak with buttery mashed potatoes on the side. I’m going to order a lean fish with vegetables. To me, that’s delicious.”
For more specific health tips, read her fitness blog at AriannyCeleste.com.
You can see Celeste from 1 to 3 p.m. today at Aria’s Liquid pool; 4:30 p.m. today at Fight Shop in Planet Hollywood Resort; 7 p.m. today at Golden Nugget (with the UFC’s Cain Velasquez and Urijah Faber); noon Friday at the UFC Fan Expo; 10:30 p.m. Friday at Aria’s Haze nightclub; and noon Saturday at the UFC Fan Expo.
Doug Elfman’s column appears Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. He also writes for Neon on Fridays. Email him at delfman@ reviewjournal.com. He blogs at reviewjournal.com/elfman.
