Child Star of "Bad News Bears," Dead Kennedy's Frontman and Surfer Brandon Jak Cruz on Studio 54, Wandering the Playboy Mansion at 8 Years Old, Shooting Acid, Smuggling Cocaine & Refuge Recovery episode artwork

EPISODE · Jun 24, 2026 · 1H 57M

Child Star of "Bad News Bears," Dead Kennedy's Frontman and Surfer Brandon Jak Cruz on Studio 54, Wandering the Playboy Mansion at 8 Years Old, Shooting Acid, Smuggling Cocaine & Refuge Recovery

from Chasing Heroine: Addiction Recovery and Sobriety · host Jeannine Coulter

At 8 and 9 years old, Brandon was a fixture on Hollywood sets - a child actor with credits on Bad News Bears and The Courtship of Eddie's Father - and somehow, that was the tame part.What followed was decades of living at full volume. Lead singer of the Dead Kennedys. Smuggling cocaine out of Bali. Shooting acid and landing in a psych ward. A heroin addiction that stretched on for years, fueled by a life that had never once asked him to slow down.The moment that finally cracked him open wasn't a near-death experience or a legal consequence. It was a letter. His wife left it in a hotel room in Santa Barbara. Simple message: get sober, or lose his son.He got sober.Nearly 30 years later, Brandon has surfed the world clean, worked as a sober companion, and spent years as an editor for South Park. He came up in Twelve Step and eventually added Refuge Recovery.to his program.Connect with Brandon on InstagramDM me on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Message me on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen AD FREE & workout with me on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Connect with me on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Email me [email protected] you next week!

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Child Star of "Bad News Bears," Dead Kennedy's Frontman and Surfer Brandon Jak Cruz on Studio 54, Wandering the Playboy Mansion at 8 Years Old, Shooting Acid, Smuggling Cocaine & Refuge Recovery

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