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JONATHAN COULTON, BYLINE: This is NPR's ASK ME ANOTHER. I'm Jonathan Coulton. Here's your host, Ophira Eisenberg.
OPHIRA EISENBERG, HOST:
Thanks, Jonathan. We're playing games with the hosts of the podcast "Couples Therapy," Naomi Ekperigin and Andy Beckerman. Are you ready for another one?
NAOMI EKPERIGIN: Oh, yeah. ASK ME ANOTHER. I'm fantastic.
COULTON: Here we go.
EISENBERG: Here we go. OK. So this is a fun, quick game. This game is called Real or Fake Chia Pet.
EKPERIGIN: (Laughter).
EISENBERG: OK. So as you know, a Chia Pet is a terra cotta figurine that is used to sprout chia seeds to give it sort of hair. They come in all fun shapes, and there's celebrities. There are pop culture characters. There's landmarks, etc. So this is called Real or Fake Chia Pet. We're going to give you a Chia Pet. You just tell us if it's real or something we made up. It's a speed round, so you'll answer eight in a row. And you'll have to be very quick because we're going to put an amount of time on the clock.
ANDY BECKERMAN: Wow. OK. OK.
EISENBERG: OK. So we're going to go - well, I'll just start with Andy. And we'll do your eight, and then, Naomi, you'll do the next set. Here we go. Andy - RuPaul.
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BECKERMAN: Fake.
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EISENBERG: Sorry. That is real. Joe Biden.
BECKERMAN: Real.
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EISENBERG: That is real. Bernie Sanders.
BECKERMAN: Fake.
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EISENBERG: That's real. Pope Francis.
BECKERMAN: What? Fake. That's irreligious.
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EISENBERG: It is fake. Statue of Liberty.
BECKERMAN: Real.
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EISENBERG: That's real. Disembodied zombie arm.
BECKERMAN: Real.
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EISENBERG: Yeah. Pennywise the evil clown.
BECKERMAN: Fake. They're not letting that IP go to Chia.
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EISENBERG: Oh, that's real.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: The Golden Girls.
BECKERMAN: Real.
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EISENBERG: Oh, yeah. That's real.
BECKERMAN: I know that for a fact.
EISENBERG: OK. OK. Well done. Well done.
COULTON: All right. So Andy, that's five that you got. Naomi, five is the score to beat.
EKPERIGIN: All right. All right.
COULTON: So we have eight for you right now.
EKPERIGIN: Focus.
COULTON: You ready?
EKPERIGIN: All right.
COULTON: Real or fake Chia Pet - here we go. Yoda.
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EKPERIGIN: Fake.
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EISENBERG: Wow, this is dramatic. Jonathan just froze. Well, guess it's not a speed round, so...
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: Let's see if he comes back. OK. I'm going to - Naomi, let's do yours and while we're waiting. OK. So we've established five is the one you're going to beat. OK. You have a chance to start fresh. Here we go. Yoda.
EKPERIGIN: Fake.
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EISENBERG: Sorry, that is real. Baby Yoda.
EKPERIGIN: Fake.
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EISENBERG: That is also real.
BECKERMAN: Yoda was real.
EKPERIGIN: Hush. Hush. I have a system.
BECKERMAN: If Yoda was real, why would Grogu not be real?
EKPERIGIN: Hush.
EISENBERG: David Hasselhoff.
EKPERIGIN: Real.
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EISENBERG: Yes. Richard Simmons.
EKPERIGIN: Real.
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EISENBERG: Yes. Poop emoji.
EKPERIGIN: Fake.
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EISENBERG: Real. But I get it.
EKPERIGIN: What are you saying?
OPHIRA EISENBERG AND NAOMI EKPERIGIN: Where is the hair?
EISENBERG: I'm with you. I am with you. Anyways, but it is real. Podcast microphone.
EKPERIGIN: Fake.
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EISENBERG: Fake. The Predator.
EKPERIGIN: Fake.
(SOUNDBITE OF BUZZER)
EISENBERG: Oh, that one's real.
EKPERIGIN: What?
EISENBERG: Yeah. Some random stuff. And Abraham Lincoln.
EKPERIGIN: Real.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
EISENBERG: That is real.
EKPERIGIN: Don't you have to have hair? This is why I didn't think Yoda or the baby would be because I said, there's no hair. What is it growing on?
BECKERMAN: They have wisps. They got wisps.
EISENBERG: Wisps. He has some weird - but you're right. Baby Yoda doesn't have as many wisps, just maybe on the ears. But unless it's a whole face, we...
EKPERIGIN: I'm planting a wisp? These chia seeds aren't making any sense to me.
EISENBERG: (Laughter).
EKPERIGIN: Oh, my God. Jonathan, so good to see you.
COULTON: Guys, I had a complete and total tech meltdown. I had - my internet went out, and my camera overheated all at once.
EKPERIGIN: Overheated.
EISENBERG: All right. Jonathan Coulton, you're back. I want to let you know what happened because we're excited to...
COULTON: Yeah. What happened?
EISENBERG: So I think by 1 tiny point, Andy won.
COULTON: Wow. Close game.
EISENBERG: Close game. OK. Well, we have one more game for you.
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