The Joe Rogan Experience

#2445 - Bert Kreischer

January 29, 2026

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  • The conversation highlights that viral negative moments often serve as unexpected catalysts for a good comedian's career growth by driving massive new viewership to their existing body of work. 
  • Bert Kreischer admitted to passively agreeing with a false narrative on Shannon Sharpe's show about losing and rebuilding his career because he was caught off guard and avoided confrontation. 
  • The hosts agree that avoiding the consumption of negative online commentary, especially regarding one's own work, leads to a significantly better mental state, as the negative voices are often disproportionately loud compared to genuine support. 
  • Bert Kreischer described an intensely realistic, frightening dream involving tall, thin, non-human beings communicating telepathically, which profoundly disturbed his sleep patterns. 
  • The conversation shifted to a detailed discussion about the historical context and alleged conspiracy surrounding Richard Nixon's resignation, suggesting it was a deep state operation orchestrated by the FBI and CIA. 
  • The hosts concluded that mainstream media is inherently biased due to corporate and advertiser influence, recommending independent journalists as the only source for objective reporting, citing examples like the doctored photo of a shooting victim and the historical framing of Watergate. 
  • Vaccinating during a pandemic, especially with a 'leaky vaccine,' can encourage the development of new variants because the immune response does not stop transmission. 
  • The speaker strongly advocates for using supplements like Vitamin D3/K2 and magnesium, and treatments like IV vitamins and monoclonal antibodies, based on personal experience and anecdotal evidence regarding COVID-19 recovery. 
  • The mainstream media's narrative is compromised by pharmaceutical advertising budgets, leading to the suppression of alternative health discussions, such as the benefits of vitamins, and the shaming of figures who promote them. 
  • Success in any field, particularly comedy, is attributed to consistent hard work, objective self-analysis, and surrounding oneself with high-caliber peers who inspire improvement, contrasting sharply with the negativity found on social media. 
  • Interacting with unhealthy people on social media is detrimental because one absorbs their atmosphere, leading to unproductive behavior like 'crabs in a bucket' mentality. 
  • The perceived level of disability for historical figures like Helen Keller and Stevie Wonder is questioned, suggesting that partial abilities or exaggeration may have been leveraged for financial or inspirational gain. 

Segments

Red Light Therapy Benefits
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(00:00:12)
  • Key Takeaway: Powerful red light therapy beds can significantly improve vision and aid in whole-body recovery.
  • Summary: Red light therapy is confirmed to help with eye issues, with one user noting it immediately changed their vision. Powerful red light beds are available, though expensive, and offer benefits for the entire body’s recovery. Less expensive, non-bed versions can also fix vision issues with daily use.
AI Tool Adoption
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(00:01:23)
  • Key Takeaway: Joe Rogan transitioned from resisting AI to heavily using Perplexity by asking it complex follow-up questions instead of traditional online searching.
  • Summary: Rogan now uses Perplexity by asking direct questions to the app, bypassing traditional typing and searching. He utilizes the AI to quickly list benefits and cons of topics, such as red light therapy. This shift occurred after Perplexity became a sponsor, overcoming his initial resistance to AI tools.
Generational Comparison and AI Check
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(00:02:03)
  • Key Takeaway: Gen X believes it had the greatest run by experiencing both pre-digital childhoods and the rise of the internet, but AI identified the ‘Greatest Generation’ (grandparents’ generation) as having the most technological transition.
  • Summary: Rogan argued Gen X had the best run, experiencing childhoods before cell phones but embracing the internet’s takeoff. When he asked ChatGPT, it identified the generation that saw the transition from horse and buggy to the moon landing as the true ‘Greatest Generation.’ Millennials and Baby Boomers were deemed to have been ‘fucked’ by technological shifts they couldn’t fully adapt to.
Nostalgia for Old Tech
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(00:03:53)
  • Key Takeaway: The transition from VHS tapes to answering machines and the introduction of Caller ID and Star 69 marked significant, memorable technological shifts for their generation.
  • Summary: The experience of VHS tapes and answering machines preceded the impact of Caller ID, which allowed people to selectively avoid calls. The subsequent arrival of Star 69 enabled users to call back prank callers, a feature unavailable to younger generations accustomed to modern communication norms. Prank calls, like those by the Jerky Boys, were a significant part of this era.
Comedians and Prank Call Humor
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(00:04:38)
  • Key Takeaway: Greg Fitzsimmons created a legendary, elaborate prank call involving a rental car catching fire due to passengers filling pots and pans with gasoline.
  • Summary: Greg Fitzsimmons is praised for creating hilarious, detailed prank call recordings, including one where he convinced a rental car agency the vehicle was on fire. Rogan considers Fitzsimmons and Mike Gibbons’ podcast, ‘Sunday Papers,’ essential listening for true comedy fans. Rogan sought Fitzsimmons’ critical feedback when preparing his special ‘Lucky’ to eliminate any perceived laziness in his material.
Comics Discussing Fatherhood
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(00:06:05)
  • Key Takeaway: Greg Fitzsimmons and Louis C.K. were pioneers in making personal material about fatherhood acceptable and funny in stand-up, breaking away from previous taboos.
  • Summary: Fitzsimmons was the first comic Rogan saw successfully discuss his family on stage without sounding ’nerdy,’ using shocking but funny material about his son. Louis C.K. further normalized this by openly discussing his daughters, using blunt language like calling his daughter a ‘cunt’ when she wouldn’t put on her shoes. This marked a shift from stand-up that avoided domestic life to material that embraced it.
Brendan Walsh Prank Call
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(00:07:14)
  • Key Takeaway: Brendan Walsh executed a complex prank call on a phone sex line, escalating the absurdity by introducing a dog barking, a baby crying, and finally, a full marching band playing ‘Aloha Oe.’
  • Summary: Walsh, known for his performance art comedy, created an incredible prank call where he kept the operator on the line despite escalating background noises. The humor derived from the contrast between the operator’s suggestive prompts and the chaotic domestic sounds. Rogan contrasted this pure, giggle-inducing comedy with the current trend of self-promotional podcasting.
Shane Gillis’s SNL Incident
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(00:12:22)
  • Key Takeaway: Getting kicked off the SNL hosting process was the best thing that happened to Shane Gillis, as it prevented him from being buried on the show and allowed his authentic comedy to flourish via specials.
  • Summary: Rogan recounts a story where Gillis ratted out Rogan’s daughter for sneaking beers at a festival, showcasing Gillis’s unfiltered nature. Gillis’s subsequent firing from SNL, after controversial podcast comments surfaced, led to massive attention. This controversy, coupled with his strong special, allowed audiences to discover his genuine comedic talent.
Career-Defining Viral Moments
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(00:19:23)
  • Key Takeaway: Most successful comedians experience a singular, often accidental, viral moment (like a rant or incident) that exposes them to a massive audience, leading to a subsequent deep dive into their established body of work.
  • Summary: Rogan posits that comics like Bill Burr (Philly rant) and Jim Jeffries (getting punched) achieved massive career leaps via viral incidents that forced people to investigate their existing material. Tom Segura benefited from Netflix having only two specials available at the time, leading to cross-promotion with Bill Burr’s audience. Rogan believes his own career reinvention following his Comedy Store expulsion was his defining moment.
The Impact of Online Criticism
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(00:30:27)
  • Key Takeaway: Bert Kreischer actively removed news apps from his phone because reading negative articles about his appearances, even when the overall experience was positive, ruins the memory of the event.
  • Summary: Kreischer shared that reading a negative article about his appearance on the Shannon Sharpe show ruined his positive memory of the event, despite his daughter advising him to ignore external opinions. Rogan noted that negative comments are often amplified by human nature, causing one detractor to outweigh many supporters. Kreischer now avoids reading comments entirely, recognizing that engaging with negativity is counterproductive.
Lucid Dreaming Communication Study
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(00:42:51)
  • Key Takeaway: A California startup, REMspace, claims to have achieved the first two-way communication between two people while they were lucid dreaming in separate locations using earbuds and coded words.
  • Summary: Researchers monitored participants remotely, and when one entered a lucid dream, a random word was sent via earbuds to the dreamer, who then repeated it within the dream. This recorded response was then sent to the second participant, who confirmed receiving the message upon waking. While not yet independently replicated, this experiment builds on existing research suggesting interaction during lucid dreams is possible.
Bert’s Realistic Alien Dream
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(00:49:42)
  • Key Takeaway: Bert Kreischer experienced an intensely realistic dream involving four tall, thin, non-human beings with oversized heads and eyes, communicating telepathically.
  • Summary: The dream felt so real that Bert woke up at (3:30) AM and could not return to sleep, leading him to work out for two hours at 4 AM. The beings seemed to be trying to make him comfortable with their presence, suggesting a possible encounter rather than just a dream. The setting was described as a corridor with strangely lit, almost organic-feeling walls.
Rasputin’s Genitals and History
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(00:57:05)
  • Key Takeaway: Rasputin’s alleged genitals were reportedly sold for $8,000 in 2000, though experts suggest they might belong to a bull.
  • Summary: The discussion covered Rasputin’s influence over Tsar Nicholas II due to his perceived healing abilities for the hemophiliac son, Alexi. The Tsarina’s letters to Rasputin were described as sounding ‘sketchy,’ leading to rumors about their relationship. European royalty often suffered from hemophilia due to generations of inbreeding.
Game of Thrones and Joffrey Actor
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(01:00:52)
  • Key Takeaway: The actor who played Joffrey in Game of Thrones delivered an incredible performance, making it difficult for audiences to separate him from the villainous character.
  • Summary: The hosts are rewatching Game of Thrones from the beginning and praised the show’s quality. The actor playing Joffrey was highlighted for his amazing transition from a spoiled child to an evil king. The actor has notably omitted mentioning the viral cancellation incident involving him in his published book.
Kramer’s Public Cancellation Incident
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(01:02:03)
  • Key Takeaway: Michael Richards’ first public cancellation occurred after he began yelling the N-word at hecklers during a stand-up set at the Laugh Factory.
  • Summary: Witnesses reported that Richards seemed ‘speedy’ and ’elevated’ during sets the weekend prior, even falling and cutting himself on broken glass. He reportedly bombed at the Comedy Store before going to the Laugh Factory where the incident occurred. This behavior followed the long cancellation of Seinfeld, prompting him to start stand-up without established material.
Chevy Chase’s Alleged CTE and Behavior
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(01:03:38)
  • Key Takeaway: Chevy Chase’s notoriously mean behavior may be partially attributable to years of repeated, violent physical comedy falls resulting in potential CTE.
  • Summary: Chase frequently performed aggressive pratfalls, throwing himself down stairs and off stages onto tables, suggesting he sustained repeated subconcussive trauma. This type of repeated impact can cause CTE, where the brain bounces off the skull walls. Bill Murray reportedly stated that the portrayal of John Belushi in the book Wired was wildly inaccurate regarding his drug use.
Watergate as a Deep State Coup
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(01:08:16)
  • Key Takeaway: The Watergate scandal is presented as a deep state operation where naval intelligence officer Bob Woodward and FBI Deputy Director Mark Felt (Deep Throat) conspired to remove President Nixon.
  • Summary: Nixon was the most popular president in history when he was removed, and the break-in team consisted mostly of CIA employees. Woodward, a former Nixon White House intelligence officer, was given the lead story despite being a rookie reporter, which is unusual in journalism. Nixon reportedly knew who killed JFK and intended to investigate, providing a motive for his removal.
Media Bias and Vaccine Injuries
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(01:20:04)
  • Key Takeaway: Mainstream media outlets actively manipulate visuals, such as doctoring photos of victims, to control public sympathy and push approved narratives.
  • Summary: The hosts argue that media outlets are tools of power, not objective watchdogs, citing an MSNBC example where a victim’s photo was digitally altered to look more sympathetic. Due to corporate advertising, particularly from pharmaceutical companies, mainstream news never covers vaccine injuries like strokes or myocarditis. The only reliable source for truth is independent journalists like Glenn Greenwald and Matt Taibbi.
UFC: Early Fighters vs. Modern Era
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(01:25:56)
  • Key Takeaway: Early UFC pioneers like Tank Abbott and Royce Gracie would struggle against modern, well-rounded fighters, though elite foundational skills like powerful striking or grappling remain relevant.
  • Summary: Tank Abbott, a powerful brawler, might succeed in the shallow heavyweight division’s lower ranks but would likely lose to modern elite strikers. Royce Gracie’s superior jiu-jitsu would still pose problems if fights went to the ground, but he would lack modern striking defense and would not have the advantage of fighting without a gi. Modern fighters benefit from specialized training that early pioneers lacked, leading to a higher overall skill floor.
Identity Detachment and Sobriety
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(01:30:17)
  • Key Takeaway: Bert Kreischer maintains his identity outside of his career by centering himself through brutal workouts, which humble him and prevent his self-worth from being tied to fame.
  • Summary: Bert credits brutal workouts for centering him, allowing him to break himself down physically so that external success feels less defining. He recognized the pitfalls of fame, noting that people who love you often do not truly know you, referencing the ‘Ellen position’ where public adoration masks private toxicity. His recent health scare (blood clot) forced him to confront how fragile life is, contrasting with his previous durability that allowed him to ignore poor health habits.
Vaccination During Pandemic Risks
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(01:40:02)
  • Key Takeaway: Vaccinating during a pandemic with a leaky vaccine encourages variants because the body’s antibodies are targeted against an outdated virus strain.
  • Summary: Vaccinating during a pandemic is cautioned against by virologists because it encourages variants, especially with leaky vaccines that do not stop transmission. A leaky vaccine provides antibody protection but allows infection, leading the virus to evolve around existing immunity. This results in people getting infected more easily due to original immunity being specific to a now-obsolete wild virus.
Geert Vanderbosch and Swine Flu Severity
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(01:41:09)
  • Key Takeaway: Vaccine specialist Geert Vanderbosch was an early voice against vaccinating during the pandemic, citing conventional thinking against the practice.
  • Summary: Geert Vanderbosch, a vaccine specialist and virologist, was among the first to state that vaccinating during a pandemic goes against conventional thinking. The speaker contrasts this with his personal experience of the 2009 swine flu, which he described as the sickest he has ever been, causing shallow breathing and near-death feelings.
Immune System and Alcohol Consumption
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(01:42:02)
  • Key Takeaway: Drinking alcohol while sick is detrimental to the immune system because it forces the body to fight a new substance while already engaged in fighting an infection.
  • Summary: Drinking alcohol when sick is strongly advised against because it burdens the immune system with fighting the alcohol while it is already focused on the illness. The speaker recounted getting severely ill after drinking on a flight while feeling sick, highlighting the negative impact on recovery.
Vitamins and COVID-19 Narrative
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(01:42:27)
  • Key Takeaway: Discussions about the documented impact of vitamins on the immune system during COVID-19 were suppressed, leading to the perception that anyone raising the topic was a conspiracy theorist.
  • Summary: The speaker noted that while many people recovered from COVID-19 without severe outcomes, the narrative focused on universal danger for the unvaccinated. When the speaker brought up the well-documented impact of vitamins on immunity, he was immediately labeled a conspiracy theorist, leading to shortages of supplements like Vitamin D3/K2.
Ivermectin and Rosacea Cure
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(01:43:31)
  • Key Takeaway: Ivermectin, often derisively called ‘horse tranquilizer’ by media outlets, was suggested as a cure for the speaker’s rosacea.
  • Summary: The speaker mentioned that ivermectin was suggested as a treatment for his rosacea, contrasting the media’s portrayal of it as ‘horse paste’ or ‘horse dewormer.’ He noted that CNN focused only on this one item when he mentioned several effective treatments he used.
COVID-19 Treatment Protocols
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(01:43:58)
  • Key Takeaway: Effective COVID-19 treatments utilized by the speaker included IV NAD, IV vitamins, and monoclonal antibodies, which were later made difficult to obtain.
  • Summary: The speaker detailed using IV NAD, IV vitamins, and monoclonal antibodies to treat COVID-19, noting that monoclonal antibodies became harder to access after people realized their effectiveness. He personally arranged and paid for nurses to deliver these treatments to at least 100 people, including friends and acquaintances.
Personal COVID-19 Experience and Health
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(01:46:25)
  • Key Takeaway: Despite close contact, the speaker’s consistent routine of cold plunging, sauna use, vitamins, and working out helped him avoid contracting COVID-19 until a specific instance where exhaustion lowered his defenses.
  • Summary: The speaker avoided COVID-19 for a long time due to his rigorous health routine, even when his family contracted it. He eventually tested positive after a night of heavy drinking and playing pool, suggesting exhaustion made him vulnerable. He recovered quickly after implementing his usual regimen of medications and supplements.
Media Bias and Health Information
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(01:49:09)
  • Key Takeaway: Mainstream media attacked the speaker for recovering quickly from COVID-19 because his recovery contradicted the narrative that the virus was a plague requiring radical experimental medicine.
  • Summary: The media criticized the speaker’s recovery because a healthy person in his 50s recovering easily undermined the fear-based narrative surrounding COVID-19. This highlights the media’s compromise by pharmaceutical advertising, which prevents criticism of vaccines or drugs and suppresses information about effective, non-pharmaceutical recovery methods.
Sleep Apnea Machines and Mouth Taping
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(01:50:24)
  • Key Takeaway: The speaker distrusts sleep apnea machine diagnoses due to potential kickbacks, preferring non-CPAP methods like mouthpieces and mouth tape for better sleep quality.
  • Summary: Nasal breathing during sleep filters and conditions air, reduces snoring, and improves oxygenation by boosting nitric oxide production. The speaker finds that using mouth tape and a mouthpiece to ensure nasal breathing results in feeling significantly better, even with less sleep, compared to mouth breathing.
Podcast Awards and Subjectivity
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(01:57:12)
  • Key Takeaway: The speaker views industry awards, like the Golden Globes for podcasts, as meaningless contests driven by corporate interests rather than objective artistic merit.
  • Summary: The speaker refused to submit his show for a Golden Globe nomination, viewing the process as an unnecessary competition among industry insiders. He believes true success is demonstrated by consistent high listenership and genuine positive feedback from respected peers, like Ron White and Luke Combs, rather than official accolades.
NewsRadio Success and TV Ratings
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(02:01:11)
  • Key Takeaway: The cast of NewsRadio learned to ignore low initial ratings, recognizing that being on television at all was a massive success, with the show later finding popularity in syndication.
  • Summary: The NewsRadio cast experienced constant schedule changes and low initial ratings, which caused internal frustration among the writers. The speaker realized chasing the number one spot was foolish, as the show was already financially successful and enjoyable to make, eventually gaining recognition in syndication.
Non-Episodic Storytelling Structure
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(02:06:14)
  • Key Takeaway: Bert Kreischer’s Netflix show, Free Bert, was intentionally structured as a continuous, six-part story arc, similar to Slow Horses, to encourage binge-watching.
  • Summary: The speaker pitched his Netflix show to be non-episodic, aiming for a continuous narrative arc that compels viewers to watch the entire run immediately. The success of this format is validated by audience feedback indicating they binged the entire series, fulfilling the goal set at the end of the first episode.
Healthy Struggle and Happiness
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(02:14:26)
  • Key Takeaway: Physical struggle and subsistence-level work, as seen in the documentary Happy People: Life in the Taiga, appear to correlate with greater human satisfaction and less mental illness.
  • Summary: Documentaries like Happy People suggest that constant physical struggle, such as that faced by Siberian hunters, satisfies innate human reward systems that modern comfort often leaves unfulfilled. This lack of necessary struggle can lead to anxiety and mental illness, manifesting as unproductive online complaining among those who are physically inactive.
Competitive Drive and Focus
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(02:17:22)
  • Key Takeaway: Physical exertion, like intense workouts, effectively silences the negative internal chatter and anxiety that stems from an underutilized human reward system.
  • Summary: The speaker notes that the happiest moments follow intense physical exertion because it fulfills the ancient human need for struggle and threat assessment. Unhealthy competitiveness, often seen in critics online, stems from failure and a lack of productive physical output, leading to negativity directed outward.
Work Ethic vs. Social Media Toxicity
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(02:28:30)
  • Key Takeaway: Sustained professional success is achieved through dedicated work and objective self-assessment, while social media engagement often devolves into unproductive, negative arguments.
  • Summary: A successful female performer maintains her success despite criticism because she has put in the necessary work and objectively analyzed her performance. Conversely, spending hours on Twitter arguing and saying mean things is described as a ‘crabs in a bucket’ behavior that pulls others down. Surrounding oneself with unhealthy people online means absorbing their negative thoughts, which is detrimental to personal well-being.
Surrounding Yourself with Excellence
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(02:51:51)
  • Key Takeaway: Associating with top performers in any field forces an individual to elevate their own skill level, using peers as a benchmark for improvement.
  • Summary: Hanging out with the best comics in the world compels one to get better, using their material as a benchmark for what is possible on stage. The best comedians are rarely found in isolation but rather in hubs like New York, LA, or Austin, where they are constantly exposed to high-level talent. This principle applies universally; for example, aspiring pickleball players should surround themselves with other dedicated players to push each other forward.
Helen Keller and Stevie Wonder Rumors
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(02:33:09)
  • Key Takeaway: Conspiracy theories suggest Helen Keller’s profound achievements may have been exaggerated or fabricated by her handler, Ann Sullivan, for financial gain.
  • Summary: The conversation pivots to questioning the extent of Helen Keller’s disability, citing unverified claims that medical records suggest she responded to light and sound. The theory posits that Sullivan controlled Keller’s finances and that Keller’s eloquent writing mirrored Sullivan’s, suggesting Sullivan was the true author. Separately, rumors about Stevie Wonder’s vision persist, with anecdotes suggesting he might only be legally blind or that he can perceive light, though he claims his vision allows him to see people’s spirits.