Bill Burr, Billy Corgan address whether they’re half-brothers

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    Bill Burr

    Bill Burr, Billy Corgan address whether they’re half-brothers

    Portrait of Brendan Morrow Brendan Morrow

    USA TODAY

    Bill Burr’s latest podcast appearance turned into an unexpected (alleged) family reunion.

    When the comedian, 56, was a guest on Tuesday’s episode of the “Howie Mandel Does Stuff” podcast, a surprise special guest entered: Smashing Pumpkins guitarist Billy Corgan, 57, who previously theorized that he and Burr may be half-brothers.

    Corgan revealed on “Howie Mandel Does Stuff” in November that about 10 years ago, his stepmother told him she believes Burr “might be one of the children that your father sired in his days being a traveling musician.”

    “My father did once tell me that I had a half-brother named Bill, who was born around the same time as me,” Corgan said. He insisted at the time that he was not joking, though he clarified that after sitting on it, he doesn’t actually think they’re related.

    Bill Burr was surprised by Billy Corgan, who previously speculated they may be half-brothers, on the "Howie Mandel Does Stuff" podcast.

    So during Mandel’s Tuesday interview with Burr, the “America’s Got Talent” judge revealed he had a surprise planned and brought out Corgan. The moment the musician walked in, Burr cursed at Mandel and expressed frustration over the situation, though in a playful way.

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    “Did you ever think the fact that I never told that story, that maybe you shouldn’t?” Burr jokingly asked Corgan, who expressed surprise that Burr wasn’t aware he would be coming.

    Billy Corgan previously revealed he was told that he and comedian Bill Burr may have the same father.

    The comedian laughed as he asked Corgan why he felt “the need” to float the idea that they might be related before roasting him for being a fan of the Chicago Cubs. Burr later clarified he wasn’t mad at Corgan, but he jokingly tore into Mandel for setting the encounter up for “ratings,” calling it “rude” and saying a podcast wasn’t the appropriate venue for them to meet.

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    “What was supposed to happen? Are we going to go play catch?” Burr quipped. “We’re both in our 50s.” He went on to add, “At some point, we will hang out. I don’t think on a podcast.”

    Mandel eventually left the room so the two could have a conversation alone, while emotional piano music played the entire time. With the host gone, Burr asked Corgan about his “relationship with dad,” which the Smashing Pumpkins star described as “difficult.”

    “At some point, it did become funny to me that he had multiple families,” Burr said, noting that “my dad told us he was a dentist” and “didn’t do the whole musician thing.”

    Though it seems the two were only playing along with the idea of them being related throughout the conversation, Burr acted like he was convinced by the end of the interview, declaring definitively that “we have the same father.”

    Still, Corgan jokingly suggested, “The fact that he said he can’t sing, I think that sort of disproves that we’re related.”

    Burr and Corgan aren’t the only stars who may or may not secretly be half-brothers. In 2023, Matthew McConaughey revealed on Kelly Ripa’s “Let’s Talk Off Camera” podcast that there’s a possibility that he and Woody Harrelson may have the same father. “His dad was on furlough at the same time that my mom and dad were in their second divorce,” he explained.

    But McConaughey said that he has some hesitation about getting a DNA test to confirm it.

    Woody Harrelson, left, and Matthew McConaughey speak onstage during the Emmy Awards on August 25, 2014 in Los Angeles.

    “It’s a little easier for (Harrelson) to say, ‘Come on, let’s do it!,’ because what’s the skin in it for him?” he said. “It’s a little harder for me, because he’s asking me to take a chance and go ‘Wait a minute. You’re telling me that my dad may not be my dad after 53 years of believing it?'”

    Burr’s latest comedy special, “Drop Dead Years,” will hit Hulu on March 14. He’s set to team up with comedian Shane Gillis for “A Night of Comedy to Benefit Those Affected by the LA Fires” on Monday in Los Angeles, with proceeds going to the Wildfire Relief Fund.

    Contributing: Charles Trepany

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