1. So, we're looking for star potential.
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2. - Oh, wow.
- Yeah. So this is the room.
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3. You'll be sitting here at this desk.
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4. The singers are gonna come
into this room one at a time,
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5. and this is sort of
where they need to stand.
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6. - Okay.
- And they'll be singing
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7. from a list of public domain songs
we gave them.
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8. - Right.
- And that's just so...
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9. we don't have to pay the licensing rights
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10. for the song. It just saves us money.
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11. And then right away,
I just make my decision
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12. - at that moment.
- Yes.
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13. These are the tickets you give out
if you want someone to move on.
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14. You know, we really want
the best of the best,
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15. so you can't be
giving these out to anyone.
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16. - The standard should be star potential.
- Okay.
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17. That's what I was told
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18. - when I did it.
- What's star potential?
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19. Star potential is someone that you think
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20. - could be a star.
- Okay.
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21. Anyone that doesn't meet that threshold,
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22. you have to deliver the news
that they will not be moving on.
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23. You know, for a lot of these people,
they're coming in,
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24. and they feel like
their dreams are in your hands.
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25. You're delivering this hard news.
You're saying no to someone.
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26. You need to, you know,
assert yourself in that way.
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27. Are you okay with,
like, delivering bad news, or...
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28. Just life.
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29. When I was 23,
I got my first job in television
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30. as a junior producer
for Canadian Idol...
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31. Idol!
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32. The Canadian version of American Idol.
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33. The celebrity judges
you see on TV don't have time
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34. to consider everyone that shows up
to these auditions.
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35. So, what they don't show you
is that all the singers
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36. are first led into tiny rooms off camera
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37. where junior producers
like myself were tasked
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38. with thinning the herd,
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39. eliminating anyone
that didn't have star potential.
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40. All day long,
I told people no to their face.
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41. Some took the news okay, but many did not.
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42. They broke down in front of me, crying,
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43. pleading for another chance.
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44. But no matter what,
I had to hold my ground.
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45. It was a brutal experience for me.
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46. Every morning, I woke up
in a new Canadian hotel room,
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47. dreading what I would have to do.
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48. When you know that whatever you say
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49. is going to devastate
the person across from you,
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50. it makes you not want
to say anything at all.
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51. I was becoming convinced
that this was the reason
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52. some co-pilots have trouble
saying no to their captain.
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53. They just can't imagine a way
for the interaction to go well.
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54. But I've always wondered
if it could be done differently,
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55. to have someone leave feeling good.
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56. I could never figure out how to do this.
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57. But maybe there was a co-pilot
out there who could.
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58. Down in New Orleans
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59. I recruited a sampling of first officers
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60. from all the major U.S. airlines
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61. to participate
in a massive experimental study.
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62. All these co-pilots
had one unique quality
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63. that made them special.
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64. None of them have died in a plane crash,
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65. which meant there's a chance
that at least one of them
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66. may have unknowingly cracked the code
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67. to speaking up to a captain
without making them upset.
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68. Wings of Voice!
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69. I hoped this could be revealed
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70. with an aviation-themed
singing competition
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71. where any and all aspiring singers
from across the country
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72. were invited to apply.
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73. It's not a singing TV show,
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74. it's actually a singing competition
as part of another TV show
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75. that has nothing to do with singing.
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76. - Okay.
- Oh, cool!
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77. - Yeah. So...
- Is there like a prize at the end
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78. or kind of what's the setup with it?
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79. Okay, so the winner will get to sing
a song of our choice
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80. on national television
with a full backing band...
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81. - Oh, sick.
- ... in a partial recreation
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82. of the Houston Airport.
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83. - Wow.
- Wow.
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84. Sounds amazing.
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85. O'er the land of the free
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86. And the home of the brave
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87. That was great.
Unfortunately, you're not moving on.
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88. - Okay.
- Thank you for your time.
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89. You did good, baby. You did good.
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90. You did good, you did good. You did great.
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91. I'm always proud of you.
I'm always proud of you.
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92. I had really done it.
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93. I had brought Canadian Idol back to life.
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94. - I love you.
- I love you, too.
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95. Because the experience can be so brutal,
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96. I found some co-pilots
would try to get around
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97. upsetting the singers by giving out
endless golden tickets.
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98. So, yeah.
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99. Well, congratulations, you're moving on!
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100. Oh my goodness!
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101. It was a byproduct
of this being a real competition.
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102. - Congrats.
- Thank you.
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103. But ultimately,
this was all about rejections.
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104. Hey, I was a little surprised
about that one.
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105. Yeah.
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106. You feel she was good?
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107. - Yeah.
- Yeah.
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108. You've sort of given
a golden ticket to everyone?
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109. I know, I know, I know.
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110. That's why I was like, okay, okay.
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111. We only want to give
to the best, remember?
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112. - The best, all right, the best.
- Yeah.
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113. You do have to do
the hard work of saying no.
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114. - All right. I got you.
- Yeah. Okay, great.
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115. Okay.
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116. The holy grail I was looking for
was a method of rejection
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117. that left everyone happy.
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118. Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
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119. It was fascinating
to watch the different ways
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120. these co-pilots would say no to people.
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121. You're doing great, buddy.
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122. Just keep focusing on
the donut and not the hole.
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123. That's what they always told me.
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124. But I was curious to see
which of these techniques
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125. would make the singers feel the best.
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126. Sorry, thanks for coming.
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127. People are very good
at hiding their true emotions.
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128. That's why I didn't want
to evaluate anything
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129. by the singers' faces.
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130. Hi, would you be willing
to rate your judge?
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131. - Yeah.
- Okay, thank you.
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132. So, I put ballot boxes
outside of each room
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133. so after every rejection, the singers
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134. could rate their co-pilot's likability
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135. on a scale from one to ten.
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136. - Thanks.
- Thanks.
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137. - Have a good one.
- You too.
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138. After a day of heartbreak and tears,
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139. me and my Canadian Idol colleagues
would go to a local bar to unwind.
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140. I found that talking to people
who were going
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141. through the same thing as you
helped me realize
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142. that it wasn't so weird what I was doing.
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143. So, I wanted this experience
for the co-pilots too.
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144. And it was important enough
that I had the bar I owned
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145. transported once again across state lines
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146. and added to my Los Angeles set
of the Houston Airport.
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147. Well, that was fast.
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148. - Yeah, thanks a lot.
- Awesome.
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149. These people are gonna think
I'm so mean, but...
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150. - It is. It is.
- Yeah.
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151. And she just started crying,
and I was like,
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152. "I'm sorry."
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153. - Did you have a crier?
- I had one crier.
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154. - I'm so sorry.
- And I was like, "Oh no!"
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155. But when I started going
through the singers' ratings,
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156. I was surprised by how likable they found
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157. these co-pilots.
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158. One co-pilot, a first officer
from Southwest Airlines
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159. named Mara'D,
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160. had an average score of over nine,
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161. which seems suspiciously high.
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162. Thank you so much. I like your rendition.
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163. - I like the change.
- Thank you.
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164. I think for me, it's not quite
the sound we're looking for today.
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165. When I looked at her footage,
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166. nothing she was doing
seemed that notable to me.
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167. I am going to pass today.
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168. But people, for some reason,
were leaving happy.
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169. I was starting to wonder
if these L.A. singers
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170. were just a different breed
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171. than the ones I used to reject
back in Canada.
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172. Maybe they were just so used to hearing no
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173. that it didn't affect them.
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174. So, I decided to sit in for a bit
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175. and see for myself.
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176. Amazing grace
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177. How sweet...
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178. It was cool to be back
in the seat again.
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179. I felt like I was in my element.
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180. So, there... you know, there's a lot of...
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181. Like, I'm not gonna be able
to put you through to the next round...
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182. - For sure.
- ... because there's a lot of,
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183. you know, people coming in.
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184. So, sorry about that.
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185. Sure, you're the judge.
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186. I just put forth
my best performance, so...
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187. Okay, you did good. Thanks.
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188. Okay. Thank you.
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189. Confrontation is... is not...
doesn't come naturally to me at all.
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190. I mean, you're doing something right.
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191. You're delivering bad news to these people
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192. and they are leaving happy about it.
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193. I mean, I don't understand how that works.
I'm happy to hear that.
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194. Do you have a technique
that you're doing or...
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195. No. Look, not really.
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196. - Should I?
- No, no, I don't know.
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197. - Okay.
- I mean, I don't know what it is,
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198. but yeah, okay.
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199. Well, keep going.
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200. - Yeah, okay.
- Okay.
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201. I decided to spend
some time watching Mara'D
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202. to see if there was anything
I was missing.
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203. - Hi!
- Hi. How are you?
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204. - I'm good, how are you?
- I'm fantastic.
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205. And the only thing
that really jumped out to me
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206. was how often
she used the word "fantastic."
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207. Hello, how are you?
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208. - Hi, I'm well, and yourself?
- Fantastic.
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209. - Your volume control is fantastic.
- Thank you.
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210. You have an absolutely beautiful voice.
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211. - Thank you.
- Fantastic voice.
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212. It's not quite the right sound,
but your sound is fantastic.
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213. So, for the next singers that came in,
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214. I adjusted my approach.
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215. - Hi.
- Hi.
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216. - Hi, I'm Austin.
- Fantastic.
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217. - All right.
- All right.
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218. What are you gonna be singing today?
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219. So, "The Star-Spangled Banner."
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220. - Fantastic.
- Yeah.
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221. Okay, whenever you're ready.
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222. And the home
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223. Of the brave
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224. - Wow, fantastic.
- Great.
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225. I'm gonna have to say no for today.
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226. - Okay. Okay.
- But that was so good.
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227. Thank you.
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228. But yeah, great stuff.
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229. - Okay.
- Good stuff.
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230. All right. Well, thank you so much.
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231. - Thank you.
- And, yeah.
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232. - Thanks again for the opportunity.
- Yeah. Fantastic.
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233. - What is your name?
- Adore.
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234. Adore, that's beautiful.
What are you singing today?
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235. - What's your name?
- My name is Darian.
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236. Darian, beautiful. What's your name?
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237. - My name is Isabella.
- Isabella, beautiful.
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238. - What's your name?
- My name is Danny.
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239. - Danny, that's beautiful.
- Thank you.
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240. Hey, the last couple of guys
who were in my room,
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241. are they still here?
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242. Do you know... if they're still here?
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243. Hey, this is Nathan from Wings of Voice.
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244. Have you left yet?
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245. If you're still close,
do you wanna come back for a sec?
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246. I just had a quick question.
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247. - Thanks for coming back.
- Yeah, of course.
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248. I was just curious as to why you gave me
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249. such a low score.
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250. I don't know. I was just like,
I was nervous
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251. and I didn't know really
what was happening.
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252. I showed him a video of Mara'D
and told him people loved her,
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253. even though she delivered them
all bad news.
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254. 'Cause I said a lot of the same things
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255. like she did and... but she would get,
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256. you know, she gets pretty high ratings.
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257. So like, what's the difference?
What do you think?
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258. She just... I think that
she just kind of came off
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259. a little bit more...
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260. I don't know what word to use.
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261. The way that she did everything,
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262. the way that she was, just her aura,
her general aura, I would say.
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263. - Okay. Her aura.
- Yeah.
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264. And how do you change that?
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265. I don't know, I don't think that it's...
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266. - I mean, I really don't know.
- Okay.
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267. I don't know if that's, like, you know,
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268. I don't know if that's...
you can really control like
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269. what your natural energy is, you know?
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270. - All right, well, thank you for...
- Okay.
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271. - Yeah, thank you for that.
- Yeah.
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272. Even though it was hard to hear,
I disagreed with this man.
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273. I believe that any human quality
can be learned,
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274. or at least emulated.
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275. Sometimes, it just takes time.
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276. - Hey.
- Hey.
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277. - How's it going?
- Good.
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278. But the more I got to know Mara'D,
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279. the more I learned
about her life in the cockpit.
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280. He was making
a lot of inappropriate jokes
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281. and whatnot. You know,
"Does your boyfriend satisfy you?"
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282. - Kind of weird questions.
- This is the captain saying this?
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283. - This is the captain.
- How do you respond to that?
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284. I would blow him off
or change the subject.
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285. Just kind of chuckle and just kind of,
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286. - you know, like, hope it goes away.
- Okay.
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287. I mean, at this point in my career,
I'm very skilled at that.
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288. It was a little more rough then, but...
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289. Holy crap.
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290. I was realizing I had still
never witnessed a real captain
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291. and first officer interacting
with each other.
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292. So, I invited some airline captains
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293. to join the first officers
at our nightly hangs at Nate's,
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294. as I was curious to see
how they got along.
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295. Okay.
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296. With the captains in the bar,
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297. the energy in the room seemed to change,
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298. but I couldn't tell what it meant.
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299. Is that the female pilot table over there?
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300. I see a bunch of female pilots.
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301. - I guess there are, yeah.
- I'm gonna talk to them.
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302. Mara'D got into a conversation
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303. with a captain named Jeff,
who worked for American Airlines.
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304. I got hired in 2013, and I've been there
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305. - for about 11 years.
- Right on.
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306. Yeah. So, life could be worse, right?
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307. - You wide body or narrow?
- Narrow. Airbus.
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308. - Okay.
- Yeah.
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309. But I couldn't tell
from watching any of this
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310. if captains were aware
of how hard it can be
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311. for their co-pilots to speak their mind.
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312. So, when I invited Jeff
to sit down for a chat,
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313. I was surprised when he claimed
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314. that he was the one who felt the pressure
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315. to stay silent.
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316. I mean, you know,
especially being a male captain
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317. and a female first officer,
you always have to also kind of,
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318. you know, walk on eggshells or whatever,
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319. - if you will because you...
- Why?
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320. Because something you may think
is a joke and try to be funny,
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321. - she might get offended by, right?
- Sure, yeah.
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322. You know, I've been doing this
for a long time. I feel like...
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323. I'm not a psychologist, but I feel like
I know how to read the room pretty well.
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324. - Doing what for a long time?
- Just, well, flying.
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325. - Not only flying but also just...
- Yeah.
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326. like interacting with people,
being single.
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327. I've been banned from pretty much
every dating app known to man.
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328. - Banned?
- They kick you off...
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329. - For what?
- They don't give you reasons.
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330. So like,
I've been banned from Tinder,
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331. Hinge, Bumble.
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332. And I think that's it. And Seeking...
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333. Seeking Arrangements,
it's where you go meet girls
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334. that are looking for, like, more like...
Copy !req
335. like a mutually beneficial arrangement.
Copy !req
336. How is that even possible,
to be banned from so many sites?
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337. You don't have to do anything illegal.
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338. It could just be like you offended someone
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339. based on something you said.
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340. - Sure.
- I don't remember saying
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341. anything too offensive.
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342. - I just don't know, right?
- You don't know?
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343. They don't give you a reason of why.
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344. So, you have no clue why you got banned?
Copy !req
345. No. I got kicked off of Instagram too.
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346. For like three months.
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347. If a captain can be banned
from five different dating apps
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348. and still not know what he's done wrong...
Copy !req
349. They don't believe
in second chances either.
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350. I tried to sign up with
my mom's phone number and stuff,
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351. but Bumble has an algorithm, I think,
where it recognizes your photos.
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352. it might be the perfect opportunity
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353. to see if something emerges
in a cockpit scenario
Copy !req
354. that would reveal Mara'D's special talent.
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355. All right, so yeah,
you guys can just do your thing,
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356. - and I'll be watching.
- All right. Sounds good.
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357. - Generators one and two.
- On.
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358. - Probe heat.
- Auto.
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359. - Wing anti-ice.
- On.
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360. - Engine anti-ice.
- Auto.
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361. - Positive rate.
- Landing gear up.
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362. Gear up.
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363. And JetLine 56, we are cleared ILS nine.
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364. Set maintain 2,000 feet,
turn left heading one-three-zero.
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365. Yeah, so...
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366. So, you've been five years flying, huh?
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367. - Seven-three?
- Yeah.
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368. - Five years on the seven-three.
- Wow.
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369. - You single?
- Yeah.
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370. Married before?
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371. - No. Never married.
- No? Wow.
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372. - No kids?
- Nope, no kids.
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373. Wow.
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374. - Is it hard, dating?
- I don't date.
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375. - You don't date?
- No.
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376. But when Jeff started asking
about her romantic life,
Copy !req
377. I couldn't tell if she was enjoying
this conversation or not.
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378. - You're just too picky?
- No, just, you know, ten years ago,
Copy !req
379. it didn't work out with a situation,
and I really haven't wanted to.
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380. - I have a completely full life.
- So you're just,
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381. you're not dating or anything?
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382. - You're just celibate?
- No. Yeah.
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383. - Wow. That's crazy.
- Yep.
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384. Yep.
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385. It can be like that.
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386. If she was trying to steer Jeff away
from this topic,
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387. he wasn't getting the hint.
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388. I should hook you up with my dad.
He's been celibate for like four years.
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389. - No, I'm good.
- I tried to sign my dad up
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390. - on eHarmony...
- But what I was witnessing
Copy !req
391. between Mara'D and this captain
felt eerily similar
Copy !req
392. to a situation in my own life,
where I couldn't figure out
Copy !req
393. the right way to express my true feelings.
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394. "Deny nothing."
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395. - That's our slogan.
- Yeah. I love that.
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396. I'd gotten in the habit
of giving away jackets,
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397. sweatshirts, and socks
to the pilots I've been working with.
Copy !req
398. You can wear them to bed too.
Like pajamas, too,
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399. - if it's cold.
- Yeah.
Copy !req
400. This brand had a special meaning to me
Copy !req
401. as it began a decade ago
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402. as part of a comedy series I used to make
Copy !req
403. called Nathan For You.
Copy !req
404. As part of the show,
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405. I launched a real outdoor
apparel line called Summit Ice
Copy !req
406. that has gone on to raise millions
of dollars for Holocaust awareness.
Copy !req
407. It's been my proudest achievement
Copy !req
408. and served as my only proof
to these pilots
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409. that a comedy show
can actually make a difference.
Copy !req
410. These things that start off
as like maybe a little silly
Copy !req
411. can actually have an impact
in the world so...
Copy !req
412. It does. It really does.
Copy !req
413. But this is where
the story gets complicated.
Copy !req
414. Okay, sit here.
Copy !req
415. So, I was at the computer just like this.
Copy !req
416. And this is my exact correspondence.
Copy !req
417. Okay, so I want you to type
the same words I did.
Copy !req
418. Okay.
Copy !req
419. In late 2023, I discovered
that the episode of Nathan For You
Copy !req
420. featuring the Summit Ice story
mysteriously went missing
Copy !req
421. from the Paramount Plus streaming service.
Copy !req
422. It's season three, episode two.
Copy !req
423. You can see right there, it's gone.
Copy !req
424. But everything I did after that point
wasn't captured on camera.
Copy !req
425. Are you supposed to be at home,
or in the office?
Copy !req
426. I don't remember where I was,
Copy !req
427. but it could've been one of those. Yeah.
Copy !req
428. Okay.
Copy !req
429. Which was frustrating,
because my headspace
Copy !req
430. in that moment might be the key
Copy !req
431. to understanding
how to get through to a captain.
Copy !req
432. I wrote an email
to some contacts I had at Paramount,
Copy !req
433. asking them why the episode was removed.
Copy !req
434. The thing that made this tricky was,
Copy !req
435. Paramount is currently airing
a different series of mine,
Copy !req
436. a scripted drama
that hadn't yet been renewed.
Copy !req
437. How I spoke to them
could have career repercussions,
Copy !req
438. just like it did for co-pilots.
Copy !req
439. I remember wanting to convey
how urgent this was for me.
Copy !req
440. And yet, my email
was extremely cordial,
Copy !req
441. using phrases like "forever grateful"
and "happy holidays."
Copy !req
442. The network confirmed in their response
Copy !req
443. that it was taken down intentionally
Copy !req
444. and gave me
a one-word explanation as to why.
Copy !req
445. "Sensitivities."
Copy !req
446. How does that response make you feel?
Copy !req
447. Frustrated.
Copy !req
448. Right, yeah. I think I felt that way too.
Copy !req
449. Okay, now type my reply.
Copy !req
450. I was frustrated, but my reply, again,
Copy !req
451. didn't communicate my level of concern.
Copy !req
452. I used three friendly exclamation points
Copy !req
453. in just two sentences.
Copy !req
454. What was I so worried about?
Copy !req
455. I think you didn't want to be too pushy.
Copy !req
456. Which was strange
Copy !req
457. because I remembered
my emails being very pushy.
Copy !req
458. But I'll never forget exactly where I was
Copy !req
459. when I finally learned the truth.
Copy !req
460. What I discovered was so shocking
Copy !req
461. a tornado of emotions
began spinning inside my body.
Copy !req
462. The email said in late 2023,
Copy !req
463. a decision was made
by Paramount Plus Germany
Copy !req
464. to remove the episode in their region
Copy !req
465. after they became uncomfortable
with what they called,
Copy !req
466. "Anything that touches on antisemitism
Copy !req
467. in the aftermath
of the Israel-Hamas attacks."
Copy !req
468. But it didn't stop there.
Copy !req
469. This act by Germany
triggered the attention
Copy !req
470. of other European Paramount branches,
Copy !req
471. and they in turn pulled the episode too.
Copy !req
472. Before long, the ideology
of Paramount Plus Germany
Copy !req
473. had spread to the entire globe,
Copy !req
474. eliminating all Jewish content
that made them uncomfortable.
Copy !req
475. This is real, by the way.
Copy !req
476. Currently, on the Paramount app,
there are 50 results for "Nazi,"
Copy !req
477. ten for "Hitler," and zero for "Judaism."
Copy !req
478. We've been erased.
Copy !req
479. I wanted to urge Paramount
to reconsider their decision.
Copy !req
480. But what could I say
that wouldn't annoy them?
Copy !req
481. That's what I was worried about.
Copy !req
482. That's what I was thinking about
in the shower that day.
Copy !req
483. I remember now.
Copy !req
484. Why did I expect them to get the hint
Copy !req
485. when I didn't even say what I really felt?
Copy !req
486. Here you go.
Copy !req
487. But if the right girl came along,
Copy !req
488. - I would definitely wife her up.
- Yeah.
Copy !req
489. If she was okay with non-monogamy.
Copy !req
490. Okay. Yeah.
Copy !req
491. But unlike me, who stopped
communicating altogether,
Copy !req
492. Mara'D kept engaging with her captain.
Copy !req
493. Lots of beautiful Latina women there.
Copy !req
494. - Right on.
- Right.
Copy !req
495. I need to brush up
on my español a little bit.
Copy !req
496. - Yeah.
- That's cool.
Copy !req
497. Yeah, I mean, I downloaded
that Duolingo app.
Copy !req
498. - Yeah.
- Yeah, I've been practicing.
Copy !req
499. - Right on.
- Acting interested
Copy !req
500. in his perspective,
whether she agreed with it or not.
Copy !req
501. Gotta impress
all these girls all the time.
Copy !req
502. - Wining and dining 'em, you know?
- Poor thing. You want kids someday?
Copy !req
503. - One day, yeah.
- You gonna keep them alive?
Copy !req
504. I'll try. Well, I'm gonna hire a nanny.
Copy !req
505. And when she eventually did shut him down,
Copy !req
506. it felt like there was no tension at all.
Copy !req
507. I'm aiming to retire at 60.
Copy !req
508. Financially, I can retire at 60 right now.
Copy !req
509. How many years you got left,
if you don't mind me asking?
Copy !req
510. Not enough. I don't... Or too many.
I don't know, depends on the day.
Copy !req
511. - I'm not gonna try to guess.
- I'm not gonna answer.
Copy !req
512. - You're not gonna answer? Okay.
- No, we're not answering that.
Copy !req
513. I couldn't tell if this was a strategy
Copy !req
514. or what I was even looking at.
Copy !req
515. But maybe there was more I could try
Copy !req
516. with my captain to get my point heard.
Copy !req
517. I didn't know what the Paramount Plus
Germany offices looked like,
Copy !req
518. so I sort of had to take a guess.
Copy !req
519. I tried to make the environment
feel hostile to me,
Copy !req
520. as a reminder to not go soft on them
like I did in my emails.
Copy !req
521. Mr. Fielder, it's a pleasure.
Copy !req
522. - Hi, nice to meet you.
- Yeah.
Copy !req
523. So what brings you all this way
to our humble offices?
Copy !req
524. How rude of me.
Copy !req
525. Fritz, will you bring our guest some tea?
Copy !req
526. Hospitality is what separates us
from the animals.
Copy !req
527. - Don't you agree?
- Sure.
Copy !req
528. I guess I'll just get right to it.
Copy !req
529. You guys removed
an episode of a TV show I made
Copy !req
530. called Nathan For You,
Copy !req
531. and I was told
the reason was sensitivities
Copy !req
532. related to antisemitism.
Copy !req
533. That's right.
It's something we take seriously.
Copy !req
534. In Germany today, we have no tolerance
Copy !req
535. for any images that may evoke hate
Copy !req
536. or incite violence towards
any group of people. You know?
Copy !req
537. But, look, I know you guys are...
Copy !req
538. You know, probably feel a lot of shame
Copy !req
539. about what you did in the past,
Copy !req
540. and now you're trying to overcompensate
Copy !req
541. by being the world leaders
in fighting antisemitism.
Copy !req
542. But when it comes to art,
I think you have to know your place.
Copy !req
543. And you have to let us Jews
express ourselves,
Copy !req
544. because honestly,
Copy !req
545. the way you're approaching
this whole thing, it...
Copy !req
546. You know, people might get the wrong idea
Copy !req
547. about what you actually stand for.
Copy !req
548. I'm on your side,
Copy !req
549. believe it or not,
we're on the same side.
Copy !req
550. You take sugar?
Copy !req
551. Sure.
Copy !req
552. Okay, let's start over. Let's do it again.
Copy !req
553. Let's do another one.
Copy !req
554. - Want me to go out there, or...
- Yeah, you can start outside.
Copy !req
555. But as I began rehearsing,
something felt off.
Copy !req
556. Mr. Fielder. It's a pleasure.
Copy !req
557. The actors were very good,
Copy !req
558. but I felt they were being constrained
Copy !req
559. by the direction I had given them.
Copy !req
560. Fritz, will you bring
our guest some tea, please?
Copy !req
561. Hospitality is what separates us
from the animals.
Copy !req
562. Don't you agree?
Copy !req
563. Try something else. Just...
Copy !req
564. So, I encouraged them
to speak more freely,
Copy !req
565. whatever came to their mind.
Copy !req
566. Well, tell me this. Is there...
Copy !req
567. Did you get any complaints
about the episode?
Copy !req
568. If we did have complaints,
would you be open to hearing them?
Copy !req
569. I mean, that's the reason I'm here,
is to understand your perspective.
Copy !req
570. Yeah? I have a hard time believing that.
Copy !req
571. Why? I'm here. I'm asking you questions.
Copy !req
572. You designed this office
to look like a war room.
Copy !req
573. Dressed me to look like a Nazi.
Copy !req
574. - I mean...
- Pretending to want feedback,
Copy !req
575. but you don't actually want to get
the Paramount Plus perspective
Copy !req
576. or the German perspective.
Copy !req
577. Look at you, pretending to be serious.
Copy !req
578. This is not sincere.
Copy !req
579. You're just a man with a grudge
Copy !req
580. using his television show to smear us...
Copy !req
581. instead of trying to understand us.
Copy !req
582. I've always felt
that sincerity is overrated.
Copy !req
583. It just ends up punishing those
Copy !req
584. who can't perform it as well as others.
Copy !req
585. Joe S, 7.02!
Copy !req
586. Michael S, 7.17!
Copy !req
587. 8.03!
Copy !req
588. - Wow.
- 7.25!
Copy !req
589. 9.07!
Copy !req
590. Some people are born great performers.
Copy !req
591. They have the talent
to effortlessly convince others
Copy !req
592. they're more than just a number.
Copy !req
593. But for the rest of us, no matter
how sincere we are inside...
Copy !req
594. Hi.
Copy !req
595. - How are you?
- I'm good.
Copy !req
596. it'll always be a struggle.
Copy !req
597. Beautiful dreamer
Copy !req
598. Awake unto me
Copy !req
599. Thank you so much
for sharing that, Sophia.
Copy !req
600. Thank you.
Copy !req
601. Can I ask how old you are?
Copy !req
602. - I'm 15.
- You're 15.
Copy !req
603. What do you want to do
with your life, Sophia?
Copy !req
604. - What do I want to do?
- Yeah.
Copy !req
605. Well, I wanna go on a stage
and, like, sing my own songs.
Copy !req
606. Like, I'm a songwriter and I love singing.
Copy !req
607. Okay. So, I need to tell you
that I can't put you through
Copy !req
608. to the next round
because you're not quite
Copy !req
609. at the level we're looking for, okay?
Copy !req
610. But can I tell you why I think
you're going to succeed?
Copy !req
611. Why?
Copy !req
612. There are millions of people
in this country
Copy !req
613. that are your age
that want to be singers, okay?
Copy !req
614. And I'm sure a lot of them saw
the same ad that you did
Copy !req
615. to come out and audition today.
Copy !req
616. But you actually
got out of bed this morning.
Copy !req
617. You drove here, you waited in line,
Copy !req
618. and you stood in front of me right now
Copy !req
619. knowing that there was a chance
that you might fail, right?
Copy !req
620. Yeah, right.
Copy !req
621. I've been in this industry
for a long time and...
Copy !req
622. the number one thing that shows me
that someone's gonna succeed
Copy !req
623. is if they're willing to take that risk,
Copy !req
624. to put themselves out there
and to give it a shot,
Copy !req
625. even though it might not go their way.
Copy !req
626. And you have that ability, Sophia.
Copy !req
627. And it's very rare and it's very special.
Copy !req
628. - Okay?
- Okay.
Copy !req
629. And all the other singers
Copy !req
630. that are still in bed right now,
they don't.
Copy !req
631. - Okay?
- Okay.
Copy !req
632. How do you feel right now?
Copy !req
633. Well, I'm a little disappointed.
Copy !req
634. You're talented and you have a nice voice,
Copy !req
635. but you're not at the level
that we need right now
Copy !req
636. for this competition. But you're so young,
Copy !req
637. you have lots of life ahead of you, okay?
Copy !req
638. - Okay.
- So, just remember that.
Copy !req
639. Keep going. Don't give up, okay?
Copy !req
640. - Thank you.
- Okay.
Copy !req
641. - Okay, good luck out there.
- Thank you.
Copy !req