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Papa John Says He Didn’t Actually Eat All Those Pizzas

Photo: H3 Podcast/Youtube

Last November, “Papa” John Schnatter — erstwhile founder and CEO of the pizza chain of the same name — gifted the internet with a completely unhinged local TV interview. Over five minutes of sweaty discourse, he gave viewers a lot to digest, but what stood out the most was his claim that he’d “had over 40 [Papa John’s] pizzas in the last 30 days,” and found that the quality had seriously fallen off.

Now, Schnatter has stepped forward to explain exactly what he meant in a new interview on the H3 podcast. “Well, I didn’t say I’d eaten 40 pizzas in 30 days,” he says. “I said I had 40 pizzas in 30 days. When I said I had a pizza, it means I’m inspecting. I’m not eating every pizza. I may be eating parts of pizzas.”

When host Ethan Klein asks him how many slices he eats per week, Schnatter says, “Eight or nine,” which, to be honest, is still a good amount of pizza to consume in a week, especially if you’re living in Kentucky as Schnatter does. “Pizza’s actually very nutritious, very healthy,” he concludes. “You just can’t eat a bunch of it.” Mm-hmm.

Papa John Says He Didn’t Actually Eat All Those Pizzas