Connect With Mike
Mike can be found on several sites on the web, which are linked below.
Difference Between Weather In LA and NYC
Los Angeles and New York City are not just distant geographically, they also differ widely in climate and weather. New York City has a humid subtropical climate, which is characterized as a temperate climate that features hot, humid summers and cool to mild winters. Los Angeles has a mid-latitude cool steppe climate, which is characterized as a semi-arid climate with cold winters, hot and dry summers, and low rainfall.
Overall, LA has more consistent, warm weather, while New York City has more distinct seasons, with a wider range of temperatures. The average low temperature in LA ranges from 48-66°F while the average high temperature ranges from 67-84°F. In contrast, the average low temperature ranges from 29-71°F and average high ranges from 40-84°F in New York City. Because of the wide variability in temperatures, it is very common in New York City to see snow during the colder months, while the consistent warmer temperatures in LA make it very unlikely to ever see snow there, even during the winter season.
LA also gets considerably less rainfall, averaging about 12.8 inches of rain per year, while New York City averages about 39.4 inches of rain per year. This lack of rainfall in LA also means that they have more sunny days on average compared to New York City, with the average number of sunny days in LA being 284 and in NYC being 233.
To compare, Pittsburgh averages 160 sunny days a year.
Sources: Weather Spark, Skybrary, Britannica, and Best Places
Volume Of Traffic In NYC & Percentage Of Resident Cars vs. Taxis
People in The Big Apple spent an average of 101 hours in traffic in 2023. While that seems like quite a lot of time to spend in the car, those numbers are actually down compared to pre-pandemic numbers, where the average NYC driver spent closer to 140 hours in traffic. This has led NYC to be ranked the world’s most congested city, beating out other heavily-traveled cities like London, Paris, and Chicago.
Sources: The Hill, New York Post, Fox, and INRIX
According to census records, about 1.4 million households in NYC own a car. There are about 3.1 million total households, meaning that about 45% of households in New York City own vehicles. According to DMV records, there are 2.2 million cars registered throughout the five boroughs, and according to the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission, there are 13,587 taxis currently operating throughout the city. Because the number of cars in any area of the city can fluctuate day-to-day and is also affected by time of day, it's hard to determine the ratio of cars to taxis. Using the numbers from above, if there are 2.2 million total cars and 13,587 taxis, then the number of taxis in the city make up about 0.6% of total cars.
Sources: Park NYC, Yellow Cab, and NY Times
What Is Chopped Cheese?
Mike mentions that one of the things he misses from New York City is the chopped cheeses, and describes them as a sandwich similar to a burger that you can get in bodegas throughout the city. Below are some pictures of the sandwich if you are interested in what a chopped cheese looks like.
Photo Sources: Yelp and Indulgentism
Dan Peluso the Astronomer
In this episode, Chris mentions a friend that lives in San Francisco that is an Astronomer. His name is Dan Peluso, and his instagram handle Astropartydan, can be found here if you are interested in astronomy content.
Hudson Valley In New York
The Hudson Valley, also called the Hudson River Valley, is an area in the southern part of the state of New York that comprises several counties that surround the Hudson River. About a two and a half hour drive from New York City, the area boasts beautiful landscapes and historical landmarks as well as a remarkable farm-to-table culinary scene.
Sources: Wikipedia and Travel Hudson Valley
Mike’s Commercial with Tom Brady
During this episode, we discussed a recent commercial Mike did featuring Tom Brady. If you would like to watch it, it is currently being aired during NFL games, or can be found here.
“Lights” Short Film
Mike mentions during the episode a short film he did with a friend called “Lights”. Directed and written by Dale Thomas Cizmadia, this short film is about a grieving school teacher facing the anniversary of his wife’s death. The trailer for the film can be viewed here, and the instagram for Dale’s film studio can be found here. It is currently not available in full online.
Sources: IMDb
Mike’s Episode on “The Blacklist”
Mike played US Marshal #2 in the 96th episode of the tv show “Blacklist” that aired March 26th, 2021. If you are interested in watching the episode/show, it can be streamed on Netflix here.
What Is a Day Player Contract?
A day player is a background actor on a film or TV show that is hired to a short-term contract (usually a day or two) and usually has a few lines and is in a couple of scenes. Unlike most background acting roles, in order to secure a day player contract, or any role with lines, an audition is usually required.
Sources: City Headshots
“Unsane” by Steven Soderbergh
During this episode, Mike discusses the movie “Unsane” by director Steven Soderbergh and his experience working on the film. The flick, released in 2018 is about a young woman confined to a mental institution after she is pursued by a stalker. Mike plays the character “Steve”, one of the police officers in the film. The flick was also shot entirely on an iPhone 7 Plus, which was discussed during our previous episode with Franklin Carpio.
Fun Fact: The actor who plays David Strine in this film(Joshua Leonard) was also in The Blair Witch Project
Kate Winslet's Yinzer Accent
Kate Winslet stars in the 2021 HBO Miniseries “Mare of Easttown” where she plays a detective investigating the murder of a teenage mother. The show is set in a fictional suburb of Philadelphia called “Easttown” so she had to learn an eastern Pennsylvanian accent for the show, specifically, a Delco accent. A Delco accent is a variant of the Philadelphia accent, also known as Hoagiemouth, that's spoken in the Delaware Valley. To the untrained ear, it might sound similar to the Yinzer accent, however they are both their own distinct dialects.
Sources: IMDb, Vanity Fair, and Wikipedia
Was the New “28 Days Later” flick filmed on an iPhone?
“28 Years Later”, the sequel to the films “28 Days Later” and “28 Weeks Later” is a post-apocalyptic horror film set to be released in June 2025. Directed by Danny Boyle and starring Cillian Murphy, the film was shot entirely on an iPhone 15 Pro Max, making it one of the first blockbuster movies to be filmed on a smartphone.
Sources: Wikipedia and Y.M. Cinema Magazine
What is ADR audio?
ADR stands for “automated dialogue replacement” and is a process used typically in post-production to improve the quality of the audio in a scene. Sometimes during filming there are sounds that interfere with the dialogue in the scene that cannot be controlled, like a plane overhead for example. These noises are unavoidable and come with the territory of filming in certain locations, but nonetheless compromise the quality of the audio within a scene. To fix this, film makers use ADR to re-record the audio for a scene after it is filmed, and then replace the audio with the newly recorded track.
Sources: Backstage
Director Tony Scott
Several famous directors were mentioned in this episode, one of which was Tony Scott. Born Anthony David Leighton Scott in Tynemouth, England in 1944, Tony is the younger brother of famous director Sir Ridley Scott, whose works include “Alien”, “Gladiator”, “Bladerunner”, and “Prometheus”. Tony had several famous works as well, including “Top Gun”, “Beverly Hills Cop 2” and “Enemy of the State”. Unfortunately, Tony reportedly committed suicide in 2012.
Source: Wikipedia
Fun Fact: Tony Scott also directed the music video for the Kenny Loggins tune "Danger Zone".
Joe Manganiello’s Dungeons & Dragons Game
Joe Manganiello has hosted and served as “Dungeon Master” for a weekly Dungeons & Dragons campaign (AKA game) with several notable celebrities since around 2018. Coined “The War of Dragons”, Joe hosts the game in his own basement, which he has decked out for the ultimate D&D experience. Some of the celebrities that participate in the campaign are D.B. Weiss, Vince Vaughn, Tom Morello, and Paul Wight, known in the professional wrestling community as “The Big Show”.
Mike’s Agent - Carole Ingber at Ingber & Associates in NY
Mike’s agent when he lived in New York was Carole Ingber at Ingber & Associates. They don’t have a website, but if you are in the New York City area and looking for an agent, they are located at 1140 Broadway, Ste. 907 New York, NY 10001 and their phone number is 212-889-9450.
Sources: Casting Director's List
Which title is correct: “bellhop” or “bellman”?
Technically, both are correct. A bellhop or bellman is a hotel employee that helps guests with opening doors, moving luggage, valeting cars, calling cabs, advising directions, and other basic concierge work. They can also be called bellboys, and internationally are usually called hotel porters.
Source: Wikipedia
What Do FBI Special Agents Do?
Anyone that works for the FBI will have the title of “FBI Agent”, but agents that have arrest and investigative authorities are called "FBI Special Agents”. FBI special agents are responsible for enforcing federal laws and investigating cases where these laws are broken.You can kind of think of them as detectives for the federal government. The tasks an agent will do vary from day-to-day; they may spend their day “in the field,” working on cases or executing a search or arrest warrant, but they also might spend their day in the office completing paperwork related to investigations. They might even spend the day in the courtroom.
Sources: FBI, FBI Special Agent FAQ, and The Best Schools
Qualifications To Become An FBI Special Agent
Because this role is crucial for the protection and safety of the country, there are several eligibility requirements that must be met in order to become a special agent, and the hiring process can take up to a year. These requirements include all eligibility requirements to join the FBI, which are quite lengthy and include:
Be a U.S. citizen
Public record must be in good standing with no felony convictions
Adherence with FBI drug policy and be able to pass urinalysis and background investigation
Student loan/child support payments must be in good standing, and you must have filed all required annual federal, state, and local taxes
No engagement with organizations designed to overthrow the U.S. government
In addition to the requirements listed above, FBI special agents must meet these requirements:
Have a bachelor’s degree and at least two years of full-time professional work experience, or have an advanced degree and at least one year of full-time professional work experience.
Be at least 23 years old.
Apply before your 36th birthday unless you have veteran’s preference or federal law enforcement experience. You must complete the Special Agent Selection System (SASS) process and enter on duty no later than the day before your 37th birthday.
Possess a valid driver’s license.
Meet our physical fitness requirements.
Be able to obtain a Top Secret Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) Clearance.
Once all hiring requirements have been met and you receive your conditional appointment offer (CAO), you will complete the 18-week Basic Field Training Course (BFTC) at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia in order to officially join the FBI as a special agent and be assigned to your first office.
Sources: FBI Eligibility and FBI Special Agents
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