When Joe Rogan revisited tragic death of 'NewsRadio' co-star Phil Hartman - It opened my eyes to the real dangers of bad relationships

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Joe Rogan (left), Phil Hartman (right) [Images courtesy of @morbidpodcast on Instagram]

Joe Rogan was good friends and a former co-host with Phil Hartman. On one of the Nerdist podcast episodes in 2014, Rogan reflected on Hartman's tragic death. Not only was it a major shock to the UFC commentator, but he also said it "opened his eyes" to the effects of negative relationship dynamics.

While speaking about the incident, Rogan stated:

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"It was awful. Everything about it was awful. I mean, the fact that his kids were in the house. It was awful. [Brynn Hartman] killed him and then killed herself. It was awful. It was like something you never thought would happen to someone you know… especially not two people you know. I knew both of them. It opened my eyes up to the actual real dangers of bad relationships."

Rogan claimed that Hartman's wife, who murdered Phil Hartman, was on Zoloft and other drugs. The podcaster stated that the combination of the substances caused "some kind of psychotropic effect" and that Hartman's children apparently got a court settlement from Zoloft.

The UFC commentator then went on to say that Hartman's wife "deeply resented" the success Phil Hartman was getting via his acting career and that they would often have "ugly" fallouts.

However, in 2019, Joe Rogan would again discuss Phil Hartman and this time discuss some of the happy memories and experiences the two had with each other.

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"Everybody liked that guy [Phil Hartman], he used to like to get high and go to strip clubs."

Rogan said that Hartman and himself often went to strip clubs together and that his former co-host was a unique character. He explained that Hartman had a childish appreciation for the dancers but would never appear creepy.

Watch Rogan speak about his memories of Phil Hartman below:

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What did Joe Rogan do before joining the UFC commentary team?

Many Joe Rogan fans know the charismatic and controversial podcaster for his UFC commentary career and JRE podcast. However, Rogan had a successful career before taking up both roles.

After considering a kickboxing career, given his martial arts background, would have been a logical move, Rogan instead decided to turn to stand-up comedy. The UFC commentator was a big fan of comedy from a young age and did his first gig in 1988 in Boston.

Rogan also had various other side jobs to help fund his comedy career, including martial arts instructing, delivering newspapers, and construction work. He would continue his comedy career until around 1994 before moving into television.

The podcaster appeared on Hardball and NewsRadio between 1994-1999. As mentioned above, Rogan was the co-host of NewsRadio with Phil Hartman on NBC. The JRE host played Joe Garrelli, an electrician at the show's pretend news station. He even famously became the host of the popular show Fear Factor.

After his successful spell on these shows, Joe Rogan's love for martial arts and presenting would come to the perfect conclusion when joining the UFC commentary team in 1997. Rogan's first event was UFC 12: Judgement Day in Alabama, and the 54-year-old is still working for the organization today.

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