thank you so much for inviting us into your home on this christmas eve. merry christmas to haul our celebrating. that's it for this "special report." will be back for this live 6:00 p.m. tomorrow. merry christmas and good night. >> the objects people choose to keep in their homes define who they are. this is "objectified": dr. phil. >> '57 chevy. >> oh, my god! this is my dream! >> i'm harvey levin.ul this is the story about a small-town kid who would become one of the biggest namesyo in >> you should be sorry. you cannot be that shallow to make that idiotic comment. >> harvey: dr. phil grew up poor with a father who terrorized the family. >> he would get drunk and tear the hood out of the kitchen and threw it through the window. >> harvey: still became a psychologist and put the very institution of marriage at risk. >> i was the worst marital therapist in the history of marital therapy. >> harvey: he would open a

successful jury consulting business and then came the life-changing client, one oprah winfrey, who was being sued by the cattle industry. >> i said, these old boys are getting ready to hand you youre, ass on the platter. you need to wake up, girl, and become present because they aree for you. >> harvey: phil became oprah's go-to expert in his ratings soared. why not give him his own show?tw >> when that happened, with their competitiveness between you and oprah? >> harvey: dr. phil mcgraw, the man who turned the oprah's seal of approval into a media empire of his own. >> harvey: dr. phil. g >> how are you?. >> harvey: it is so good to see you. thank you so much for this. >> welcome, welcome to our home. >> harvey: this home is incredible. it is palatial.ob >> thank you. robin is quite the decorator. >> harvey: i want to learn about your life. i have read a lot about you but i want to hear it from you. because there are twists and turns. >> there are. >> harvey: ready?

>> i will answer anything you want to know. >> harvey: i will be like the therapist in this one. >> okay, i ned it. >> harvey: let's do it. tell me what this is. >> well, this is a pilot logbook. this is from -- we see it is from cooks flying service. >> harvey: yep. >> this is a little town called iowa park, texas. i got my pilots license. >> harvey: how old? >> i was 18. >> harvey: but you had been flying since 12. >> i had. my dad sold drilling bits and that sort of thing, he would put it in the back of the airplane, and fly it into the rocky mountains, and so i was flying when i was 11. when i say i am flying, he is letting me hold on, but you learn. >> harvey: i want to take you back to your childhood. and having read a lot about you now, i feel like i see this small town with tumbleweeds all over the street. >> yeah, that's pretty much- i. >> harvey: tell me about it. >> we were poor.vi i was born in oklahoma but we spent most of our lives in texas. and the truth is, my dad was a

pretty bad alcoholic. and so we never knew if we were going to have money for food. we never knew of the electricity was going to be on that day or whether it wasn't. >> harvey: you know what one of my favorite dr. phil lines is? can i do a dr. phil impersonation? >> let's do it. >> we were so poor, we couldn't even pay attention. >> [laughs] that's it. that is pretty bad. >> harvey: i'll do better in a few minutes. >> i grew up with a father thath was drunk. i grew up, i wouldn't bring my friends home because i didn't know if my dad was going to be drunk in the driveway naked in denver in january. >> harvey: you mentioned your dad was an alcoholic. there were episodes of violence between the two of you. that is pretty extreme. >> yeah. he was an animated drunk. [laughs] some are kind of quiet or they go off or whatever but my dad

was a big, powerful guy. we would have conflict. the kind of thing where he would get drunk and tear the hood off of -- out of the kitchen, and throw it through the windows. it was that kind of thing. when you live with that, it changes who you are. i mean, you are a kid, and you see violence between he and your mother, you see all of that kind of thing, and you are the only boy in the family. i had three sisters and aan mother. and when dad is like that and you are the only boy in the house, you stand in the gap, right? you step in to protect the women. and that lead to a lot of conflict. >> harvey: how did that affect you? >> again, i got to the point of realizing you rely on yourself.

>> harvey: your dad was a big influence in your life. >> he was. both negative and positive. negative in that he was about alcoholic and that i haven't had a drink in 50 years. i saw what it does, and i don't do it. he was also the hardest working man i have ever seen in my life. he was a trojan. i mean, there was nothing the guy would not do. he gave me a tremendous work ethic. i really thank him for that.if something you work for it. no one is going to give youwe anything. >> harvey: you were an athlete. athlete. you were on the football team. >> i was. >> harvey: my understanding is, you may not have even graduated high school if it weren't for sports. graduated. >> harvey: football, in manyer ways, is why you are here today. >> i certainly wouldn't have graduated high school, i would tell you that. >> harvey: you were a middle linebacker. >> [laughs] worst job i ever had. let me tell you, every [bleep] job, that's at the top of the

list. >> harvey: because? >> i was a middle linebacker and i was a really poor one. it's really hard job anyway -- >> harvey: you got hit. >> if you are not really good at it, it is really tough. there is a tendency for those who mix psychology and religionc who know just enough to be dangerous, to use psychology as a weapon to judge. >> harvey: you, in many ways, got interested in psychology got interested in psychology because of football. when you guys lost to the salvation army team -- >> that's it. >> harvey: and you started thinking that there is a psychology of success on these teams. >> you have done your homework. we had a really good team and we had really good equipment, and we had really good coaches. shiny helmets, and the salvation army had a team, these kids, ii mean, they are falling out of the back of these pickups. blue jeans and set of football pants. loafers.

just slip on shoes. and none of their helmets matched. i mean, they just looked like ragtag. harvey, they beat us so bad. i can't even tell you how bad they beat us. it was -- we were watching them run up and down the field, it looked like a track meet. >> harvey: [laughs] >> those guys wanted it. those guys had the eye of the tiger. they wanted it, man. and i got focused at that point on what makes people a champion. and i got focused on why people do what they do and don't doan what they don't do and i have been focused on that since that day. that is why i'm sitting here today.pl ♪ >> harvey: tell me about this. i have seen a gavel or two in my life. >> my son, jay, gave this to me actually. and this is the actual gavel

from the first wrap in the pilot for "bull," which is a drama on cbs. >> harvey: which is really about your life running that jury consulting service. >> this is. this is inspired by my career as a trial scientist before i did the "dr. phil" show. >> out of this jury pool, you are going to get three not >> is that right? >> harvey: you got your degree. why practice with your dad? because you had a problematic relationship. >> i did. and it was very important to him. he just had this dream of a father and son, doctor and doctor working together. and frankly, my mother asked me to do it. >> for you to be fighting and yelling and screaming in front of these kids, they don't deserve that. >> they don't. >> that means the two of you need to grow up and behave yourselves. >> harvey: you talk to

millions of people now. but when you practiced, it was one was one-on-one psychology.ma did you like it? therapist in the history of marital therapy. >> harvey: [laughs]ly >> i was absolutely the worst. honest to god. >> harvey: why? >> because i had no patience for it.rt a couple would come in and they would start arguing back and forth, 10 minutes in, and i'mle like, my god, no wonder you people can't get along. i'm with you 10 minutes and i can't stand either one of you. you should definitely get a divorce. >> harvey: [laughs] >> you should definitely get a divorce.me i can't imagine going home with either one of you. and i would say that. >> harvey: [laughs] oh, my god. so what was the divorce rate like? >> very high. >> harvey: [laughs] >> i think people came to me to let me get rid of this [bleep]. it was dr. mcgraw, not dr. phil.t >> harvey: you didn't like whiny?n' >> no. people don't want to own what

they didn't want to own and they want to blame somebody else and i don't have much time for that. >> harvey: the trial company you started was courtroom scientist inc. csi. i'm a lawyer and i am fascinated by your services because i think honestly, in the o.j. simpson case, i think that trial company won the case for them by the jury they picked. you said something so interesting. there is a huge difference between telling the truth and telling the truth effectively. explain that, because i think that is profound. >> here's the thing. i would rather have a weak fact pattern well told then a great fact pattern poorly told. in any case, you've got a universe of 1,000 facts. and out of those 1,000 facts, there is a subset of ten or 12 facts that are going to be

outcome determinant. that is what the jury is going that is what the jury is going to resolve this case and you have to figure out what those ten facts are. what the combinations to that lock is, and you need to present that in a clear, concise, compelling way to the jury. and if you do, they are going to bring you home. and if you don't, they won't. >> harvey: why did you seem to favor representing defendants rather than plaintiffs? >> i think we are way too litigious. and so my kind of heart was just in defending the targets. >> harvey: because you think a lot of cases are bogus or because you liket helping peope who go in the underdog? >> i think a lot of cases are bogus. and i definitely like helping the underdog.id >> harvey: you said once, "i feel about litigation the way patton did about war." >> yeah. god help me, i love it. >> harvey: your company was

insanely successful. and you became rich. you were a poor kid and a rich adult. did you worry, when you were rich, that you might be poor again or was that in your past? >> i don't now. i don't worry about now. i've done poor, i know how. it doesn't scare me. i know how to do it. give me a good pair of tennis shoes and a warm coat, i'm good. >> the way i met oprah, she had been sued in the mad cow case. they were suing for billions of dollars. >> harvey: she was constantly talking to you about "why me." >> i remember one night, i >> i remember one night, i said, you need to wake up, girl, and become present because they are after you. i'm sick. with zicam. zicam is completely different. unlike most other cold medicines... ...zicam is clinically proven to shorten colds.

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♪ there's no place likargh!e ♪ i'm trying... ♪ yippiekiyay. ♪ mom. ♪ ( music playing ) "princess magna." what is this? ♪ >> harvey: princess magnet? what is this?it >> it's a yacht. >> harvey: i bet it's a fancy yacht. >> it is.nc very. >> harvey: what is significant? >> well, as i'm sure you know, the way i met oprah was at csi. she had been sued in the mad cow case. >> harvey: i think i heard about that. >> in amarillo, texas.

>> texas ranchers claimed she slammed beef on her show, costing them millions. they claim oprah set out to do them wrong. >> we won a great victory. we zeroed them out, they were suing for billions of dollars. i get a package, a box, from oprah. i open it up, and there is a little note in there, and it says, "i just don't know how to say thank you, but i do know how to say yacht." [laughter] we picked the boat up, i think we picked it up in nice, and we went all up and down the coast over there, and went to capri and the amalfi coast and st. tropez and all over there for a couple of weeks ande. just had a terrific time. >> ten years ago, i was accused of saying bad things about hamburgers, and because of that, i was put on trial in texas. and that is how i met phil. >> harvey: she said mad cow disease stopped her cold from

eating burgers. when you first heard that, and he knew that was the basis l of the lawsuit, what did you thinks >> i thought it was absolute [bleep]. i thought it was absoluteti frivolous, thought it was exploitive, opportunistic, and somebody trying to pay, get their name in the headlines, an trying to bully somebody with money into giving them some of hers. >> seriously, though, it was a very vulnerable time for me. and from the moment i met phil, i felt he was a person who could take the lead and get us out of that hot mess. >> harvey: she was constantly talking to you about "why me, why am i being sued, this is unfair." you had a come to jesus with her >> i remember one night, she does knock onan my door in the middle of the night. we go into the game room, and she said, what the hell is going she said, what the hell is going on here? i cannot wrap my head around this. i said, i will tell you what is going on. these old boys are getting ready

to hand you your ass on a platter. i said, you need to wake up, girl, and come present because they are after you. >> harvey: did she wake up? >> did she ever. >> harvey: you did some mock trials and it didn't go well att the beginning. >> it did not go well in the beginning because oprah was very irritated, annoyed, angry at being sued. as anyone would be. and she was very hostile. she was not the oprah people see on television. one of the jurors said, why are you mad at us? we didn't sue you. and she looked at me, and she said, oh, my god. she talks about light bulb moments. that was a light bulb moment. and when it came time for trial,

she owned that courtroom. and the difference between telling the truth and tellinge the truth effectively was never more evident than when oprah winfrey took the witness stand. >> harvey: you kind of make it >> harvey: you kind of make it a first amendment freedom of speech case. >> at the end of the closing argument, we pose the question to the jury, what kind of america will you wake up in tomorrow if you muzzle oprah winfrey? oprah winfrey? and take away her right of an open debate about something of public concern? and that, i believe, struck a chord and carried the day. >> harvey: there was some pressure to settle this case. you were against it. >> i was. >> harvey: that is risky. >> harvey: that is risky. >> she had a group of lawyers in chicago that is telling here. straight up to settle this case. and she asked me straight up, she said, why would you not to settle a case? and i sent, because if you don' settle this case, if you take

these guys to trial, you take them to verdict, the line at this sue oprah wind is going to get a lot shorter. >> harvey: because if she settles one, she'll settle a hundred? >> you go become an atm. don't do it. >> harvey: did she continue to call you afterwards for advice on other things, too? >> we talk constantly until today. and we've become in other cases, we've become involved in other crises. >> harvey: i'm talking about even personal things. did she call you for advice? >> as you do with any trusted friend. >> harvey: she lives at such a higher level than just about anybody.be yet the way you describe it, she has some of the same insecurities that everybody has. >> everybody has insecurities. i think of her more as having sensitivities.an that woman cares about people. she has what i call a health engendered personality. you feel better about you for being around her.

♪ >> harvey: you were teased in college for being a hick. there were a lot of people who thought you were abrasive, andth there were even producers who felt that she should never have you back again. >> i talked to oprah.tu she said, phil, i want you to come back and turn up the heat. chicken?! chicken. chicken! that's right, candace-- new chicken creations from starkist. buffalo style chicken in a pouch-- bold choice, charlie! just tear, eat... mmmmm. and go!

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>> hello, everyone. live from america's news headquarters, i'm anna kooiman. the president and melania trump spending christmas in washington, d.c., they arrived at washington national cathedral for a late service. would've preferred to attend christmas services in his estate in palm beach, florida, but he's battling lawmakers over funding for his proposed border wall. the president wants $5 billion. democrat saying that's not going to happen. heavy losses rippling around the

world are japanese stocks plunged 5% one day after the dow jones lost more than 650 points. fell more than 2%, analysts say president trump's twitter attack spooked the markets. i'm anna -- merry christmas, everyone. ♪ >> harvey: so tell me what that is. >> well, this, i've held onto because i was -- this was special to me. when i show up at harpo studios, i get this badge, harpo got my picture on it, and -- >> harvey: phil, you look like a longshoreman. >> i know. i look like a linebacker, don't i? >> harvey: [laughs] you do. >> on the back it said harpo studios incorporated, access all areas. and understand, i am from texas. so i'm not hollywood, i'm not a

tv guy. and so starting to get into the tv arena and tv world, it was really an interesting chapter for me. >> my next guest is here to help lead you in the right direction. i've chosen him because he is the person who helped me the most getting through my trial in texas. >> so this is now 21 years ago. >> harvey: so when you went there for the first time, did you view that as an audition? >> i never had any desire to be on television. it wasn't something that i was really interested in doing. i was very engaged with what i was doing, i was very happy with what i was doing.u >> harvey: yet here you are with the number one show on daytime television, where the host, who now bonded with you, says, come on national platform and let's see what happens. i mean, and you weren't intoxicated by that? >> no, not really. >> harvey: you were teased in college for being a hick. you have an accent.

were you self-conscious? >> no. no. i get up for it. anything i do, i get up for it but i don't get nervous. >> harvey: the first show did not go great.re there were a lot of people who thought you were abrasive. they weren't used to it.nd >> if you have a need, you find a way to deal with it. don't you? the problem is that we don't use food, we abuse food. >> harvey: and there were even producers on the show who felt y that she should never have you back again. >> everybody but you said it won't work. >> yeah, that's true. everybody told me this wouldn't work, my producers said, this guy, and the audience had a really strong reaction to you. and it wasn't good. >> harvey: did you know that at the time? it went good from my perspective. it went great from oprah's perspective. it shocked a lot of people.

and a lot of people were like, oh, my god, what did he say? what is he saying? and so i talked to oprah and said, it seems like some people were back on their heels. what do you think? she said, oh, i wanted to come back and turn up the heat., she said, you didn't tell them like it is the way you do me. you held back. >> harvey: and you turned up the heat? >> i did. >> can i be honest with you? i didn't believe a word you said. i believe you said what you think you are supposed to say. i believe you said what you think the goals are supposed to be because that is what getting better means. but what i am telling you, if you can't change what you don't acknowledge. >> harvey: there have been thousands of experts on the "oprah" show over 20 years. i'm going to ask you to be

immodest for a minute because i think it is undeniable, why do you think you soared higher tha all of them? >> i think it is a different voice. i think the whole thing is -- you have to rise above the noise. it's being distinctly different. if that distinct difference is positive, then that works. i came on the show and the ratings spiked. and a lot of the mail that came in was about to those episodes and a lot of the transcripts that were ordered were about those episodes and all. a lot of people could have been threatened by that. oprah just kept pushing me to the forefront. just kept pushing me to the forefront. just doing everything she could to edify me instead of her.

she's just that generous in spirit. >> i thought that what you were offering me was good enough toth share with other people. and i'm really proud that you have been able to do that in a way that has affected millions of people throughout this country and throughout the world. >> well, i thank you for saying that. >> i mean, not ever was there ae time that she had an opportunity to advance the dr. phil brand that she couldn't take it, double it, and take it again. that is just what she has done, to this day. to this day, she's done that. ♪ >> harvey: you were enormouslypr successful with oprah. but when you decided to do it on your own, was there competitiveness between you and oprah because suddenly you have these gigantic shows? she was the only game in town until you came along.

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we all want our kids to grow up safe and healthy. so we show them how. and we tell them with honest conversations that let them know what we expect. that's especially important when it comes to alcohol and other drugs. kids need to know the dangers and how to avoid them. and when it comes to pain medications - opioids - they need to know that they should never be taken without a prescription and never shared with friends or family. it's dangerous and illegal. so, talk with your kids. because when you talk, they hear you.

♪ sic playing )

levin: oh, my god! >> harvey: oh, my god!- oh, my god! [laughs] this is my dream! >> okay. what does that tell you? >> harvey: oh, god!pu >> does this push you the edge oris what? >> i'm over. holy smokes! oh, god. this is amazing! tell me about it. >> you got to admit, huh? >> harvey: this is my dream. i used to go to dealerships when i was a kid. this is a '57 chevy. >> '57 chevy. >> harvey: this is beautiful. >> belair. >> belair. this is my dream car. i told you i didn't have a lot of money but i have a lot of dreams.

>> harvey: do you drive it? >> i drive it all the time. >> harvey: do you drive into the studio? >> all the time. >> harvey: jeez! [laughs] oh, my god. you are driving down sunset boulevard in a convertible '57 chevy that goes 200 miles an hour. you are not going to bee, inconspicuous, are you? >> you got a head like a nickel beer, they can spot you from anywhere. you got to put your hat on so you can hide. >> harvey: okay, let's talk about the show. so you were enormously successful with oprah. but when you decided to do it in your own, someone said, right before your show aired, he's basically dr. laura with a mustache.we she failed on tv, so it's not going to work for him. were you nervous? >> well, people ask me, do you

miss oprah? do you think it will make a difference that she's not there? and i'm like, let me think. we are going to eliminate the most clarion voice in the history of television from equation. you think that will matter? um, yes. yeah, i think there's a good chance that will matter. oprah really believed in it. she said, this is going to work and there are reasons why. >> harvey: was she grooming you? >> there was no question. we planned it that way. >> harvey: it was an immediate hit. and you have just been enormously successful. when that happened, was there a competitiveness between you and oprah because suddenly what you have two gigantic shows and she was the only game in town until you came along? >> not at all. i will tell you why.

my mama didn't raise no fool. we both agreed, when they went out to sell the show, that they could never sell it where we were head-to-head, ever. ever. >> harvey: was that to protect both of you from human nature? >> i don't know what it was for her, but i didn't want to get my ass kicked. [laughter] their responsibility to support you as an adult is no more than your responsibility to do what they tell you. >> harvey: when you were doing the show, do you view yourself as a talk show host or a psychologist? >> neither. i view myself as an educator. because, as i say, they are teaching tools. and i don't consider what i'm doing as therapy. but i do think it's educational. >> harvey: i have been doing tv for a long time, as you have, and i think i have a sense of

what makes certain people click. in my opinion, you are a great entertainer. do you view yourself as an entertainer? >> well, i hope so. and i have had people ask met. that. you are not asking it as an insult, some people do. >> harvey: i'm not asking it as an insult. >> that's what i mean.nt i realize you are not. some people say that what you do is a lot of entertainment. and i hope so.te what i try to do is tell a compelling story and then resolve it in a way that people can use. my father died without ever one time in my life ever sayingv he was proud of me. don't you do that to your boy. >> harvey: finish the sentence. as a boss i am... >> demanding. yeah, i think when people write in, are willing to put in their lives out there, get out an airplane, fly all the way out

here, come out there and lay it all out, they deserve our absolute, undivided attention. they deserve for us to have done our homework on their situation, on the research, the history, resources, the whole thing, and i think we should do that and we are. ♪ >> harvey: when you met robin, she broke up with you because you wouldn't commit. u >> she didn't break up with me. she kicked my dog ass to the curb. [laughter] november is noshaver month at city of hope.

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tell me about that. ♪ >> harvey: tell me about that. >> well, you know, robin and i got married in 1976. we've been married 41 years. >> harvey: gosh. >> if you can believe that. when we got married, i said, what you want to do for honeymoon? she said, i want to go to "the price is right." >> harvey: [laughs] you came to los angeles -- >> we flew out here and went to "the price is right." and i am standing in line, over here at television city, and we actually got picked. we didn't get on the show but

you know, they pull certain people and robin was so energetic, and these were our name tags. >> harvey: when you met robin, you dated for four years. she broke up with you because you wouldn't commit. >> she did not break up with me. she kicked my dog ass to the curb. [laughter] she said, you are either in or you're out. you had enough time. i was like, what have i done? she's part of my life. so i said, you know, i really can never thank her enough for that wake-up call. because if i had let her get away, i would never have forgiven myself. >> harvey: one of the things that surprised me was something you did for her for your 20th anniversary. something you wrote for her. >> i wrote her a book of poems. one for each year that we had been married and i actually -- this was the hard part -- i actually collect pictures from

each year and made her a book, and i called it "the 20 year spin." and i gave it to her and she has treasured that greatly. and i'm not a great poet but i did like the last, because our member the last one, i said "if life were a garden i could walk through again, you are the flower i would pick for another 20 year spin." we have now gone another 20 years. >> harvey: when jay was born, he had a medical problem, and that really impacted you. >> each of the boys has had one medical problem that has impacted me as much as anything in my life. with jay, just four weeks old, he had pyloric stenosis, his valve here, he could not get any nutrition to his stomach.to so we had to go into surgery.

>> harvey: he could have starved to death. >> he could have starved to death. anytime you put a child under anesthesia, at four weeks old, high risk. and i was on staff at that hospital and the doctors were fans and i was actually able to carry him into the operating room. >> harvey: you insisted on it, i understand.t >> yeah, i did. i just -- i wanted to take them in here. >> harvey: how did it change you? >> i realized, it's not just about you anymore. do you now have the responsibility of a child. >> harvey: let's talk about jordan for a minute. how did that happen? because you got a vasectomy. >> i did. i got a vasectomy. because we agreed we were just going to have one child. and then about six years later, we were in this big meeting.

she was on the other side of the room. but the ceiling was a parabolic reflector. and i heard her whisper as though she was right in my ear, and i heard her say, "i regret ever having agreed to just have one child." and i thought, wow.t and the next morning, i was at the hospital making rounds, and our ob-gyn who had delivered jay, joe miller, i was telling him about this. and he said, well, we can reverse that. i'm walking into the operating room, taking my shirt off. >> harvey: [laughs] oh, no. no [bleep]! >> i'm walking in, take my shirt off, they are looking around, looking down here, he does a four and a half hour surgery under a microscope, puts it all

back together, so they stand up. >> harvey: this is like "weekend at bernie's." >> they walk me out, i can't move, they pull up in front of. my house at, like, 8:30. they get me out of the car, stand up, he puts pink wrapped presents with baby clothes under presents with baby clothes under one arm, baby clothes are under the other arm, stand me at the curb and blow the horn and pull off. and leave me standing there. and i tell her, i have heard what you said, in that room, and have had my vasectomy reversed. and she just starts crying, and they say, it's a 50/50 chance it will work. she's pregnant in seven weeks. >> harvey: way to go. >> the mcgraw boys can swim. >> harvey: [laughs]

♪ >> harvey: one of the reasons i wanted to do this with you is that i'm just fascinated that you have succeeded in so many different areas. you have succeeded in psychology, in jury science,in television, business. what is your secret? ♪ i joined the army after 911,

cuz, um, i thought that was what i needed to do. we got our orders to go overseas and i went to baghdad, iraq. we were transporting a bomb sniffing dog to the polling stations. we rolled over two anti-tank mines, it blew my humvee up, killed my sergeant. after the explosion, i suffered a closed head injury, um, traumatic brain injury, loss of a limb, burns to 60% of my body. when the doctors told me i reached my plateau, i did not want to hear that because i do not believe i have a plateau. so, i had to prove 'em wrong, which i am doing to this day and i will still do until the end of my days. i've gotten to where i am at because of my family.

and, the wounded warrior project has helped me more than i can ever imagine. they have really been there to support me in my endeavors. my number one goal, basically, is to get close to where i was. i am more than ready to work hard to get to that goal. i am living proof to never give up and i will never give up.

( music playing ) well, this is fantastic. how often do you play? ♪ >> harvey: well, this is fantastic. how often do you play? >> every day. >> harvey: do you really?

>> yeah.s >> harvey: this is an old racket. >> this was given to me by the mother of my dear friend, bill dawson. marge dawson played with this racket in texas and her senior year, 1938 in texas. can you imagine hitting the ball with that? >> harvey: wow. it is such a small hat. can you actually hit a ball with that? >> yes, one of the top-rankedst american players who just retired has played me with this racket. >> harvey: did he beat you? >> like a drum. >> harvey: [laughs] okay. i want to talk about room full >> we'll see. >> harvey: one of the reasons is that i that i am fascinated that you have succeeded in so many different areas, you succeeded in psychology, in jury science, you've succeeded in television, business, what is the secret?of

>> for me, i think it is really a matter of knowing what you want and knowing what you are willing to do to get it. i know what i can do and i know what i can't do. >> harvey: you stay in your lane. >> i do, i stay in my lane. >> harvey: how do you take losing? >> not well. >> harvey: do you throw that? >> no, i don't. >> harvey: ever? >> i just come back harder the next time. >> harvey: until you win? >> darn right. >> harvey: you talk about creating your experience a lot. i'm not sure i understand what that means. >> i think you get what you i think if you go through life really negative and a chip on your shoulder, and pessimistic, that is how you engage the world. you are going to get negative, pessimistic, a chip on your shoulder responses from people. if you go through life where you have an expectation of success, and you have an expectation that people are going to accept what you are offering, then you are so much more likely that you are going to get that result.

i was a person with a damaged truth. so i know that. like i say, i lived with an alcoholic father.in i go to school knowing that the windows in my kitchen got kicked out last night, that we didn't have any utilities. and i am sitting next to a kid and i compare my reality with his social mask.yo that is what kids do. and as a result, you feel second-class and so you generate the results you think you deserve. >> harvey: you don't believe in victims. >> i don't. i don't. that doesn't mean that people can't transiently be preyed upon.th but i tell people that have been molested in their childhood, you have zero responsibility for that happening in your childhood. you have 100% responsibility for what you do about it as an adult. >> harvey: we are the same age. and i have a fear that if i stop working, i'm going to drop dead. do you have a fear like that?

>> i do. i think if anybody loses passion in their lives, if there is not something that they feel a purpose for, i think it really takes away a life's drive. i think if you don't have a reason to get up tomorrow, if you don't have something thatri you think is a meaningful contribution to this life, i think your whole purpose, your momentum, your whole drive, goes away. and i am starting to make changes in my life now that anticipate what i know is coming. >> harvey: what is coming? >> [laughs] well, i wasn't exactly eye candy when i started television. >> harvey: [laughs] >> as each day goes by, i'm looking more and more like an old catcher's mitt. >> harvey: [laughs] >> so i'm starting to do things behind the camera.

>> harvey: i got to tell you, i have really enjoyed this. you are one impressive guy. thank you so much. >> well, i am really flattered that you wanted to do this. >> harvey: i am honored. >> thank you so much. e. this is... these are the dice from "high rollers" on which you - were a contestant... - i was. who did not do particularly well. harvey: i'm harvey levin. this is the story of a man who's been welcomed into millions of homes across the globe for more than three decades. >> this is the story of a man who has been to boarding scho,