Episode 16: Bob Menery

LIFE ON TOUR

Not many can say they went from sleeping in a car, barely scraping by, to hosting the #1 sports podcast on iTunes, Ripper Magoos—but Bob Menery is not like many people.

“I was always trying to be the funny guy in school,” Bob told us when we caught up with him in Hollywood. “I got sent to detention for trying to make people laugh, farting in class, throwing shit at the teacher—I was an idiot.”

If you’re familiar with the Instagram star, you already know Menery gets a kick out of making people laugh. But over the years, Bob has graduated from fart noises to perfecting his fake broadcaster voice, a schtick that has become his trademark. What most don’t realize is that only two years ago, the Boston native was living in Los Angeles, trying to find his footing and make it as an actor/comedian.

After several tough years, culminating with two months of sleeping in his car, Bob made the difficult decision to move back to Boston, giving up on his dream. “Of course, I felt like a failure after four years in Los Angeles—28 years old, nothing going on.”

Once in Boston, with no solid prospects on the horizon, a friend asked Bob if he wanted to be an extra in a music video. Always up for a good time, Bob agreed. After the shoot wrapped, Bob was hanging out, doing his signature sports broadcaster voice when a new acquaintance heard Bob’s routine and recorded it on his iPhone.

“So, I wake up the next morning and my phone was like, ‘Bling! Bling! Bling! Bling!’ And I was like, ‘Who died?! What happened?!’” Menery laughed, still a little incredulous. “I had 316 missed calls.”

Bob’s new friend, David Justin, had posted his sports announcer impression all over social media. For Menery, the results were nothing short of life changing.

“I had never really used [social media],” Bob admitted. “I didn’t know what Instagram was or any of that stuff… But I created an account and then it all sort of began.”

Bob’s social media account became an overnight success after he took sports clips and dubbed his own “broadcast voice” over the action, enthusiastically spewing jokes, cursing, and crafting hilarious commentary. Many on the internet mistook Bob for a real announcer, accidentally cursing from excitement.

“Everyone on the internet went wild,” Bob said, shaking his head with a smile. “Snoop Dogg and a bunch of big accounts reposted it. People thought an announcer had been fired for using inappropriate language.”

Menery has parlayed his social media success into a sports podcast Ripper Magoos, where he conducts off-the-cuff, hilarious interviews with star athletes and celebrities like Shaq, Doc Rivers, and Michael Peña.

“I’ve never seen one person have such a reach for athletes and celebrities, all through Instagram,” Ripper Magoos co-host Timmy “Bounceback” ripper told us.

“I’m the only person in Los Angeles to become an actor/comedian and not do one audition, one stand-up comedy show, one anything,” Bob said with a bit of disbelief. “An iPhone can literally change your life.”

To see Bob Menery in action, check out his Instagram account @bobmenery and his prodcast Ripper Magoos.