During his interview on “Bertcast,” Matt Rife said that his dad suffered from depression. “He was living with his dad at the time who was a massive alcoholic. I guess the story is, my dad came home drunk to his dad’s hotel and was talking about killing himself, and apparently, his dad was egging him on, like, ‘You won’t do it,’ is the story, I suppose. I don’t know,” Rife said, candidly.
Although Rife’s mom did get remarried, the comedian told Numéro that he never really “had a connection” with his stepfather. Instead, his maternal grandfather became his biggest role model. He explained that he and his mom lived with his granddad until he was 5 and they remained close. Rife said, “Even through being a teenager. I would go to his house every weekend … Our big thing was watching movies together every weekend.”
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Those movie nights, Rife says, introduced him to his greatest comedic influences, outside of his grandfather: Adam Sandler, Rob Schneider, and Jim Carrey.
“Watching those films and being around him all the time, helped me develop the sense of humor I have now,” Rife told the outlet. In November, however, Rife’s grandfather died. He shared a touching tribute to him on Instagram shortly after his passing. “The greatest man I’ve ever known. I’ve never loved someone so much. I’ve ever made you laugh — it’s because of him,” Rife wrote.
