Month: March 2026

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Michael Osborne, Great-Great-Great Grandson of Herman Melville

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Herman Melville – “Call me Ishmael,”

“It is better to fail in originality, than to succeed in imitation,”
“We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men”.

Moby Dick used to be required reading in school back in the day. Is it still? The Great White Whale that haunted Captain Ahab, becoming a tale of obsession for revenge on his leg. Of course Moby Dick has a much deeper context than I am paraphrasing, so go read it.

As you can surmise I am no Herman Melville, but I do get to have a conversation with his Great-great-great Grandson today. Meet Michael Osborne, a fellow podcaster and yep, the Gx3 grandson of Mr. Melville.

While at Podfest Expo 2026 I happened to mistake Micheal for someone I had met Friday night out at the cigar get-together. When I approached and mentioned the Friday night cigar club he replied, sorry, no I’m some other bald guy.

Yet somehow we started chatting about Podfest and podcasting. When I told him about Relatively Famous he shyly said he was related to Herman Melville, but due to the lineage he assumed I would not be interested. How could I not be interested? His great-great-great grandfather wrote Moby Dick and beside, Micheal hosts a podcast called Famous & Gravy that I find extremely interesting.

Michael lives in Austin, TX and is a semi-OG in the podcasting world. He’s been at it for a while and has had several successful podcasts. He still hosts a couple besides Famous & Gravy. Oh yeah, that’s gravy as in “They’re dead”.

Heck, I’m just going to give you the bio he provided…

Michael Osborne is the award-winning host of Famous & Gravy, and a veteran podcast producer and consultant based in Austin, Texas. He’s created three independent shows, all of which led to major media partnerships. He launched his first show, Generation Anthropocene, in 2011 during his PhD studies in earth science at Stanford University. The podcast later partnered with Smithsonian Magazine. After finishing his PhD, Michael developed Raw Data, in 2015, a narrative podcast that collaborated with PRX/PRI. In 2021, he launched Famous & Gravy, a dead celebrity biography podcast that partnered with Wondery in 2024. His work has earned multiple Webby and Signal Awards, including for Famous & Gravy, Black Women of Amherst College, and Stanford’s From Our Neurons to Yours. Michael has also delivered two TEDx talks. He operates 14th Street Studios where he manages production for multiple clients, and he also leads training and workshops. His clients include brands, universities, independent producers, and mission-driven organizations.

Bio aside, we have a fantastic conversation about LIFE and other subjects. So be sure to check out this episode with Michael Osborne, the great, great, great grandson of Herman Melville!

You can also find Michael and I having a lengthy conversation on an episode of Famous & Gravy after April 2026.

Generation Anthropocene
Raw Data
Famous & Gravy

#mobydick #hermanmelville #podfest #deadcelebrities #captianahab

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Jasper Coverdale, Son of David Coverdale

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It’s 1987, MTV Whitesnake music video of David Coverdale, big flowing blond hair singing “Here I Go Again” while Tawny Kitaen vamps on the hoods of 2 Jaguar XJs… MTV and Whitesnake at its peak, that is a Rock & Roll memory of a lifetime.

Well on this episode I have an incredible conversation with Jasper Coverdale, son of David Coverdale.

When his dad announced his retirement in 2025, I saw Jasper posting on social media about how proud he was of his dad and his long music career. Make no mistake David Coverdale retired from a long successful Rock & Roll career. Google him.

So what is it like standing in the wings watching 10s of thousands of fans scream and sing along with your dad? How do you as the son choose a career and make your own path when your father is a worldwide rock star? Those were some of my thoughts and questions I had as we talked.

We connected through social media because Jasper actually responded to a DM. I say that because sooooo many people (relatives) I reach out to through social media just ignore me. Jasper and I exchanged a few messages, had a phone call and locked in a recording date. Now, BAM you’re here to hear Jasper’s story.

Jasper is an actor, he’s not just a rock star’s son calling himself an actor, and a writer, he studies and hones his craft for stage, film and tv. He takes both acting and writing very seriously. He has also had the opportunity to sing onstage with his father before 10,000 people. A feeling he cherishes to this day.

Most of all, Jasper does not take his life and the experiences he’s been able to have with a grain of salt. He is a blast to talk with, articulate, funny and ready to make his on sunshine under the Coverdale name.

https://www.instagram.com/jasper_coverdale

#deeppurple #whitesnake #tawny #davidcoverdale #rock&roll #rockandroll #hairband #tahoe

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Julie Rogers Pomilia, Granddaughter of Roy Rogers and Dale Evans

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We were introduced to Julie Rogers Pomilia, the granddaughter of Roy Rogers and Dale Evans, by past guest Cindy Mitchum Azbill, the niece of actor Robert Mitchum. It’s so cool when a guest will call a friend and tell them about the podcast and suggest they come on.

Why was I double happy about Julie coming on the podcast? One, she is a recommendation and two, I was the kid at Christmas that wanted Santa to bring me the fancy Roy Rogers cowboy outfit. It had to have either a red or blue shirt with white or black fringe, Roy Rogers gloves with fringe and RR branding, big cowboy hat and a two gun holster. I would tuck the fancy fringed pants into my shiny boots and pretend I was a famous cowboy like Roy Rogers with a horse as beautiful as Trigger. I did not however pretend to be a singing cowboy, because as my wife says, I am NOT known for my singing.

With Julie, I find talking to grandchildren a treat, because they have 2 generations of tales to tell. And Julie has some fascinating stories about the Rogers / Evans household and life with famous grandparents. She recounts many of these in her book “Your heroes My Grandparents”.

The Rogers were and still are a large close family. They are a blended family and include many adopted children. Roy and Dale were very open and advocates of special needs children because their daughter Robin was born with Down Syndrome. They did not shy away for making sure she was seen and a vibrant part of the family even though she died just shy of her 2nd birthday.

Julie has taught elementary school for over 30 years, has a talent for calligraphy, loves her palomino horses and like her grandparents, she too has a large family of her own.

We talked about the values that Roy and Dale personified not only on screen, but carried them into daily life. How the western movies went from the good guys win without killing the bad guys, to how the bad guy good guy line has blurred in western films over the years.

Julie has lived a fantastic life stepping in and out of the Hollywood spotlight. She is always doing what she can to keep Roy & Dale and the human values they exemplified relevant in a changing world. She has the joy of having had loving grandparents who made sure all the children in their lives enjoyed the ranch, the horses, the limelight and personal one on one time.

Julie, thank you for your time and amazing conversation. I am going to borrow your grandfather’s famous signature signoff – “Happy trails to you, Until we meet again. Happy trails to you, Keep smiling until then.”

https://julierogerspomilia.com

#royrogers #daleevens #trigger #palominohoreses #happytrails #westernmovies #singingcowboy #tvwesterns

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Will Neva, Nephew of Randall Morris

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Randall Morris played five seasons in the NFL with the Seattle Seahawks and Detroit Lions. Like our past guest Craig Colquitt, Randall also played for The University of Tennessee.

I met Randall’s nephew Will Neva at Podfest Expo 2026 in a roundabout conversation. He was sitting there in his Chef coat (because of his podcast) waiting on his Uber while I was chatting with another potential Relatively Famous guest. During that conversation and because it was Podfest, where everyone just talks to everyone within earshot, Will heard that I was Vanna’s brother. That opened the door for him to tell us, “I’m a comedian and I just wrote some new Vanna White material.”

Will did the bit for Micheal Yonkura and I. His material was funny so jokingly I gave him the White Family seal of approval, not that he needed it, we just thought it would add to the humor of the story.

Turns out Will is the nephew of a former Seattle Seahawk and has a cool life story to tell. He’s a personal chef, a comedian, writer and podcast host. He was also part of the 1994-95 classes from Woodrow Wilson High School in Long Beach that inspired the film “Freedom Writers” starring Hilary Swank.

In honor of the Seattle Seahawks winning the 2026 Super Bowl let’s have a conversation with Will Neva about his life and his time with his Uncle Randall Morris of the 1984-88 Seahawks.

#freedomwriters #comedian #longbeach #Podfest2026 #superbowl #seahawks #Vols #UofTennessee

https://www.tiktok.com/@friedlaughs?_r=1&_t=ZT-93ME12fylqA
https://www.instagram.com/comedian_will_nave/
https://randallmorrisfoundation.org/