Episode 1051 - Edi Patterson

Episode 1051 • Released September 5, 2019 • Speakers detected

00:00:00Marc:all right let's do this how are you what the fuckers what the fuck buddies what the fuckettes how's it going i'm mark maron this is my podcast wtf welcome well sit down welcome how are you everyone's welcome here okay i don't know

00:00:25Marc:How are you going to take it?

00:00:27Marc:But but you're certainly welcome to sit down and listen for a little while to what we do here.

00:00:35Marc:Why don't I tell you who the guest is before I start rambling?

00:00:38Marc:It is the amazing Edie Patterson, one of the most inspired comic actresses that I know of.

00:00:46Marc:You've seen her in the Righteous Gemstones.

00:00:48Marc:That's the new one.

00:00:49Marc:That's on HBO.

00:00:49Marc:But she was also in Vice Principles.

00:00:53Marc:She's done other stuff.

00:00:53Marc:But her performance in Vice Principles and now in this Righteous Gemstones, all the Danny McBride.

00:01:01Marc:It's just...

00:01:02Marc:She's the best.

00:01:03Marc:She's so funny, so raw, so emotionally present and so great.

00:01:08Marc:So funny in a very real way.

00:01:11Marc:I met her at years ago, a couple of years ago down in Highland Park.

00:01:15Marc:I was so excited and it took us this long to get her on the show.

00:01:18Marc:So she's here and I'm excited about it.

00:01:20Marc:We're going to talk about the righteous gemstones, but other stuff too.

00:01:23Marc:So that's exciting, right?

00:01:25Marc:I'm excited.

00:01:26Marc:Oh my God.

00:01:27Marc:I'm starting to be able to think again relatively clearly with some follow through since the, uh, the nicotine incident, since the incident of me stopping it day 11 this morning.

00:01:40Marc:And, uh,

00:01:42Marc:You know, it comes like there's still that moment where, you know, I eat something or I get done exercising or I wake up or I, you know, I'm about to eat something or I get in my car or I make a almost there's that moment after after and before I do anything where I kind of want a nicotine lesson.

00:02:01Marc:There's that moment all the time, every second of every day, where I kind of want a little bit of that thing that I like that's not great for me.

00:02:12Marc:I'll be at the Vogue Theater in Vancouver tomorrow night.

00:02:16Marc:I believe it might be sold out.

00:02:17Marc:Then I'll be at the Moore Theater in Seattle on Saturday.

00:02:21Marc:There might be some tickets for that.

00:02:24Marc:More importantly, ticket-wise...

00:02:27Marc:I'm at JFL 42 in Toronto on September 19th.

00:02:32Marc:I believe that's a Thursday.

00:02:34Marc:Could use some folks there just so I don't feel embarrassed.

00:02:39Marc:Look, I don't give a fuck one way or the other.

00:02:41Marc:Some of these halls are big.

00:02:42Marc:I know who I am.

00:02:43Marc:I have who... There are those that like me.

00:02:47Marc:There are those that don't know me.

00:02:48Marc:And there are those that don't get it.

00:02:50Marc:And then there are those that don't like me at all.

00:02:53Marc:So those that like me...

00:02:55Marc:You know, it's not most people in the world, but there's enough of them.

00:02:59Marc:And I just like them all to come that all those that like me that live in Toronto.

00:03:04Marc:I'd like you to come out on September 19th if you could.

00:03:07Marc:Thank you.

00:03:08Marc:Nice to talk to you.

00:03:09Marc:The Vic in Chicago on September 20th.

00:03:11Marc:I'm sure that is sold out.

00:03:13Marc:Now, this is the other one.

00:03:14Marc:The Masonic Temple in Detroit, Motor City on September 21st.

00:03:19Marc:That's a Saturday, I believe.

00:03:21Marc:That one needs a little, I don't know what's going on in Detroit.

00:03:24Marc:Could have something to do with the entire city was decimated and it is now slowly rebuilding into something amazing.

00:03:31Marc:I don't know what it is.

00:03:33Marc:I don't think the tickets are too expensive.

00:03:35Marc:I would think that I would have some fans in Detroit, but I don't know what's happened there.

00:03:40Marc:I don't know who's there.

00:03:41Marc:I don't know who my people are there.

00:03:43Marc:But again, there are those that like me, those that don't know me, those that don't get it, and those that fucking can't stand me.

00:03:51Marc:Just want the people that like me to come.

00:03:53Marc:And if they live in Detroit, a good night to do that or surrounding areas would be on September 21st.

00:03:59Marc:I'll be at the Pantages Theater in Minneapolis, one of my favorite theaters and favorite cities on September 22nd.

00:04:07Marc:Always love going there.

00:04:08Marc:OK, I think that's probably doing OK, but there might be tickets.

00:04:13Marc:I don't know.

00:04:14Marc:I told you what I need.

00:04:15Marc:Go to WTFPod.com slash tour for ticket info and all of my tour dates for the rest of the year.

00:04:23Marc:I'm very happy.

00:04:24Marc:I got a lot of emails about Buddy Guy.

00:04:26Marc:Buddy Guy, it was an honor for me to meet him as well.

00:04:29Marc:I'm so glad that so many blues fans reached out, shared their stories about seeing Buddy, about how wonderful it was to hear him share the old tales of the guys that us blues people love.

00:04:45Marc:I'm just glad that people got off on that.

00:04:46Marc:There was a couple questions.

00:04:48Marc:It's sort of like people asking, why didn't you jam with Buddy?

00:04:51Marc:You know, I don't I don't lean on that as much as I used to.

00:04:55Marc:It's not as easy to record people up here.

00:04:58Marc:But also, like, I started to realize, like, it's sort of a big ask.

00:05:02Marc:You know, he's sometimes the last thing these guys want to do is not not only play in the middle of the day on a thing, but have some stranger that they don't know anything about or if he can play or not play with them.

00:05:16Marc:So the ask wasn't put forward, and that's just the way it goes.

00:05:20Marc:I would have liked to have played.

00:05:21Marc:I would have been intimidated to play, but I certainly would have tried to rise to the occasion.

00:05:29Marc:Didn't happen, though.

00:05:29Marc:Nonetheless, great talk.

00:05:32Marc:Also, I'm very thrilled about the reactions to my Dale Buran conversation.

00:05:41Marc:That was an important conversation.

00:05:43Marc:It was a lot of important information.

00:05:45Marc:Some of you thought that I talked a lot.

00:05:46Marc:It was because I was excited about the book.

00:05:48Marc:And I do talk a lot when I'm excited.

00:05:50Marc:And I wanted to make sure to get a good arc in there.

00:05:53Marc:And basically, the impulse was to get engaged.

00:05:58Marc:And if you enjoyed some of that information and the nice narrative of it and the history of it, buy Dale's book.

00:06:05Marc:It came from something awful to get the full story.

00:06:08Marc:And that's that's really what the plan was outside of talking to the man that that did the research, did the journalism.

00:06:17Marc:But it's also, you know, we only went so deep and, you know, it is illuminated in that book, the entire history of the army of unfuckable hate nerds, but also just the place that fantasy plays, you know, in the minds of younger people.

00:06:34Marc:Some ill-equipped deal.

00:06:37Marc:Oh, that was another email I wanted to read.

00:06:39Marc:Hold on.

00:06:40Marc:And I think this is important.

00:06:41Marc:And I don't know that I thought about it or framed it like this, but I do think this is pertinent as well.

00:06:49Marc:And I think it is worth reading.

00:06:51Marc:a subject line, Dale Buran podcast.

00:06:54Marc:Hi, I'm listening to your podcast.

00:06:56Marc:Fascinating and terrifying.

00:06:57Marc:I have a son who fits the profile to a T of an otaku Hickok Mori.

00:07:02Marc:Something you both didn't really address is that there is not always a lot of anger with this group.

00:07:06Marc:In my son's case, he is painfully shy and lacks social skills.

00:07:11Marc:He's not angry.

00:07:12Marc:He is paralyzed with fear and anxiety.

00:07:15Marc:It's easier for him to live in a fantasy world.

00:07:17Marc:He is also on the spectrum.

00:07:18Marc:Many of these kids are likely on the autism Asperger's spectrum.

00:07:22Marc:I think an important message that is not addressed here is mental illness.

00:07:26Marc:There needs to be some sensitivity around this and not just focus on the hate and nihilism and anger.

00:07:32Marc:There is much more going on here.

00:07:34Marc:But thank you.

00:07:35Marc:I do look forward to reading the book.

00:07:36Marc:Thank you, Tanya.

00:07:38Marc:So I think that's I think that's right.

00:07:41Marc:I think that that was not something that was not where my brain was sinking.

00:07:46Marc:Obviously, we were characterizing this generation of people in a certain way.

00:07:50Marc:You know, in terms of social being socially ostracized or nihilistically compelled by their own, you know, community orientation towards the futility.

00:08:06Marc:of the modern world, if that sentence made any sense.

00:08:10Marc:But I do think obviously Tanya is correct in that there is clearly in a lot of cases mental illness and there are some, you know, benefits in terms of of of how fantasy works.

00:08:22Marc:Like my my nephew is a good example.

00:08:25Marc:He's he's a pretty nerdy kid.

00:08:27Marc:He has some issues.

00:08:29Marc:And he spends time, a lot of time, you know, in the gaming world and also in some fantasy, you know, platforms or boards where he engages with people.

00:08:40Marc:And it seems to be a fairly fun, safe, sociable way.

00:08:44Marc:It's got him out in the world a bit, meeting with people who enjoy making up, you know, animals and dressing up as things in, you know, a seemingly innocent and communal way.

00:08:57Marc:And it's helped him a great deal in terms of meeting people.

00:09:01Marc:So, yeah, I guess the framing of how we were talking about it was pretty awful and frightening.

00:09:10Marc:But I do think that this is right.

00:09:13Marc:Subject line, clarity at last.

00:09:15Marc:Dear Mark, I've never had clarity about my seven-year friendship that recently evolved into a failed three-month relationship until I heard your podcast today with Dale Baran.

00:09:26Marc:Jay is the textbook example of the hate nerd armies transition over time, in his case, a mutation from a gregarious libertarian leaning nerdy college student to right wing spouting white guy mad at the establishment for keeping him down.

00:09:45Marc:fucking miserable at his job the pseudo-intellectual alpha male nonsense the need to self-medicate with pot daily just to deal with reality the inability to leave the fantasy world behind for even one day all of that really hit home for me it explains so much about his stunted emotional maturity his inability to empathize and his ultimate refusal to

00:10:09Marc:to come to terms with his feelings for any of the women in his life.

00:10:13Marc:He is the product of parents who had no idea what their kid was doing, spending so much time in their room on the internet.

00:10:20Marc:I can't imagine I'm alone in this revelation.

00:10:22Marc:And to be honest, I'm kind of grateful for the company.

00:10:26Marc:Thanks again, V. Thank you for sharing this.

00:10:30Marc:I think this is an important side of it that, of course, there's more people out there like you.

00:10:35Marc:Of course.

00:10:37Marc:You know, talking about the nerd thing, about my own nerd.

00:10:40Marc:I've had to question my own nerdism recently because I've been, you know, after being a little bit hard on the nerd community, I'm going to use that word because they use it.

00:10:50Marc:And I'll say this and not in a bad way.

00:10:52Marc:And the nerd communities, the several different the nerd tribes, there are several nerd tribes of all different kinds.

00:10:59Marc:they may all fall under the broader umbrella of nerd, but you know, they're, they're more powerful, you know, nerd tribes and then others.

00:11:07Marc:And some of them are very specific, but I mean, the question is that the nerd fan, you know, am I one of them?

00:11:15Marc:And the last show I argued that I'm not because of my lack of follow through, which I still believe is true.

00:11:24Marc:Cause a couple of people pointed out my record obsession and,

00:11:27Marc:And then some people pointed out how I talk about guitars.

00:11:30Marc:Now, I understand that, but people who are saying that are clearly not real record nerds because a real record nerd would know that I'm kind of a fucking amateur record nerd.

00:11:42Marc:And a real guitar nerd would definitely know that I'm way not a guitar nerd.

00:11:47Marc:I know a few things about a few instruments.

00:11:49Marc:I don't know nothing about pedals.

00:11:51Marc:I don't know nothing about amps.

00:11:53Marc:I know the things that I have and like.

00:11:55Marc:Same with records.

00:11:56Marc:I buy things that I like and want to learn about, but it's really sort of a learning process.

00:12:02Marc:It's not a collector obsession.

00:12:04Marc:It's not a completist obsession.

00:12:07Marc:I am sort of a completist with things.

00:12:09Marc:Like if I like a band, I have been known in the past to buy all of their recorded stuff.

00:12:14Marc:But the reason I think I'm not fundamentally on the nerd spectrum is because it all kind of wears off, man.

00:12:23Marc:It wears out for me.

00:12:25Marc:I was pretty nerdy about cast iron pants for a while.

00:12:28Marc:It passed.

00:12:29Marc:The boots thing.

00:12:30Marc:I was pretty nerdy about boots.

00:12:32Marc:No more.

00:12:32Marc:I was pretty kind of weirdly obsessive about pants, jeans.

00:12:38Marc:That's gone.

00:12:39Marc:You know, and the record thing is starting to it's starting to to to sort of slow down and make me reflect and want to get rid of some of them.

00:12:49Marc:It just that never sticks.

00:12:51Marc:It's not a lifelong commitment.

00:12:53Marc:And I think to really be truly.

00:12:56Marc:A nerd.

00:12:58Marc:And I'm saying this in a good way, not a bad way.

00:13:00Marc:I'm using the word in a proactive way.

00:13:03Marc:It has to be a lifelong engagement that does not relent until you're too old and tired to do it.

00:13:11Marc:It's a commitment.

00:13:13Marc:It's a grounding element, whatever your particular obsessive interest is.

00:13:20Right.

00:13:21Marc:I just don't think I'm quite that don't have the focus and I'm too much of a searcher in some ways.

00:13:27Marc:You know, if it doesn't work after a couple of years, I'm moving on.

00:13:30Marc:If it's not still filling the the widening guy or inside of me, the Falcon has lost touch with the Falconer.

00:13:38Marc:I just watched this Danny, Danny Houston movie called The Last Photograph.

00:13:45Marc:I'm going to talk to him next week about that.

00:13:47Marc:Danny Houston, the actor and director, son of John Houston.

00:13:50Marc:Also next week, I'm going to talk to Bruce Dern.

00:13:54Marc:Yeah.

00:13:55Marc:Yeah, I did do that.

00:13:57Marc:I did talk to Bruce Dern.

00:13:58Marc:Yes, I did.

00:13:59Marc:So listen.

00:14:01Marc:Edie Patterson is here.

00:14:03Marc:I love her.

00:14:04Marc:I also, for some reason, was not... I was talking about Danny McBride, but I was saying somebody else's name.

00:14:12Marc:Yeah, that happened a couple of times, and it took a couple of times for her to correct me out of politeness.

00:14:18Marc:So this is me talking to Edie Patterson about The Righteous Gemstones, which she is a star of on HBO.

00:14:25Marc:New episode, Sunday nights.

00:14:26Marc:I love her, and I got to talk to her.

00:14:29Marc:And here it is.

00:14:30All right.

00:14:32.

00:14:36Marc:How's that feel?

00:14:37Guest:Can you see me?

00:14:37Guest:It feels good.

00:14:38Guest:I think maybe these stay on because I have a giant head.

00:14:41Marc:I have a giant head.

00:14:43Marc:Has that been a liability for you?

00:14:44Marc:Have you been, uh, you just know it?

00:14:46Guest:I just know it, and then I've been to, like, Gorin Brothers or whatever.

00:14:51Marc:Oh, the hat place?

00:14:51Guest:The hat place.

00:14:52Marc:Yeah.

00:14:53Guest:And I figure out, like, oh, wow, I'm an extra-large at Gorin Brothers.

00:14:57Marc:Extra-large men's head?

00:14:59Guest:I mean, just a head.

00:15:01Marc:Seven-three-eighths kind of deal?

00:15:02Marc:Yeah, dude.

00:15:03Marc:Yeah, wow, that is a big head.

00:15:05Guest:Yeah.

00:15:05Marc:I have that head.

00:15:06Guest:Yeah, and there's a lot, there's a weird amount of hair on my head, but I just have a giant head.

00:15:11Marc:But the thing is, when I lose weight, I can see my big head.

00:15:14Marc:Like when I can, when I see pictures of myself and shit, or on TV, I'm like, that's not, I look like a...

00:15:20Marc:what is it, a bobble head.

00:15:23Guest:Right.

00:15:23Marc:But I get hung up on it, but no one seems to notice.

00:15:25Marc:I get hung up a lot.

00:15:26Marc:Do you ever do that?

00:15:27Marc:I mean, I'm watching myself on Glow and I'm like, ah, I got a little skinny and I don't know if that expression's not right.

00:15:32Marc:Do you watch yourself act?

00:15:34Guest:Yeah, I do.

00:15:35Marc:How's that go for you?

00:15:36Guest:It's weird.

00:15:37Guest:I would say the first time at least, I've got full horror movie fingers over my eyes.

00:15:46Guest:Because it's the same stuff.

00:15:47Guest:It takes me watching it once to then watch it again and go, okay, let me watch actually what I was doing.

00:15:53Guest:It's the first time I watch it like an asshole going like, oh, my dark circles.

00:15:57Guest:I look weird.

00:15:59Guest:It's so shallow and lame.

00:16:01Marc:Yeah, but that's the surface.

00:16:02Guest:Yeah, I hate it.

00:16:04Marc:And then you watch it again and you're like, no, I'm all right.

00:16:06Guest:Yeah.

00:16:06Guest:And then I dig it.

00:16:07Guest:Yeah.

00:16:07Marc:And then the third time it's like, I'm a fucking genius.

00:16:09Marc:Look at me.

00:16:10Marc:I'm a genius.

00:16:12Marc:Holy shit.

00:16:13Marc:I had no idea.

00:16:13Marc:It took me three viewings.

00:16:15Marc:Yeah.

00:16:15Marc:I've got to watch myself two or three times.

00:16:18Marc:So I ran into you in Highland Park at Cafe del Leche.

00:16:22Marc:I was very excited to see you.

00:16:24Marc:It was like a couple of years ago.

00:16:25Guest:That made my year, man.

00:16:27Guest:Come on.

00:16:27Guest:Honestly, I was like, holy shit, Mark Maron knows who I am.

00:16:31Marc:I was excited.

00:16:32Marc:I was like, I know you.

00:16:33Guest:That was really nice.

00:16:34Marc:You're hilarious.

00:16:36Marc:It was?

00:16:36Guest:Yeah.

00:16:37Marc:Really nice.

00:16:38Marc:It only took a couple years to get you over here somehow.

00:16:40Marc:How long have you been over there?

00:16:42Guest:At the end of 2013, we got replaced.

00:16:44Marc:Oh, so you're pretty new.

00:16:46Guest:Pretty new, yeah.

00:16:47Guest:You were there a long time.

00:16:48Marc:Well, I mean, I was there in 2014.

00:16:51Marc:Four, I guess.

00:16:53Marc:I started.

00:16:54Marc:I always liked it okay, but I just got to the point where I wasn't really fixing my house.

00:17:04Marc:It wasn't getting any younger, my house.

00:17:06Marc:It was haunted with a lot of emotional.

00:17:10Marc:No, I haunted it.

00:17:11Marc:It's not a previous owner haunting.

00:17:16Marc:It was just me and my life.

00:17:18Marc:There were different periods of my life haunting the place.

00:17:21Guest:So it just felt weird and heavy.

00:17:24Marc:All I know is I do not miss it.

00:17:26Guest:Yeah, yeah.

00:17:27Marc:I mean, the original garage was what it was, but after people came and they're like, this is cool, and then they'd leave them like, it's falling apart.

00:17:33Guest:I gotta get out of here.

00:17:35Marc:You came from Texas?

00:17:36Guest:Came from Texas.

00:17:37Marc:In 2013?

00:17:37Marc:Well, I came here early 2000s.

00:17:40Guest:So let's walk through it then.

00:17:43Marc:Yeah, let's walk through it.

00:17:47Marc:Let's do the thing, because I think you're very funny.

00:17:50Marc:You're one of those people...

00:17:52Marc:And I don't get this a lot.

00:17:53Marc:I don't know what it means.

00:17:54Marc:It's not a bad thing.

00:17:55Marc:But I just connected with you immediately.

00:18:00Marc:I got it.

00:18:01Marc:There was a rawness to it.

00:18:02Marc:And I'm like, that person, I don't know.

00:18:05Marc:You put it all out there.

00:18:07Marc:It's not a crush, but you know what I mean.

00:18:10Guest:Well, dude, I'll take it.

00:18:11Guest:Because honestly, that's why it made my year when you talked to me.

00:18:13Guest:Because I was like, oh, dude, I get where he's coming from.

00:18:17Guest:And there's a rawness in what you do that I was like, oh, my God, he sees me.

00:18:22Marc:I think that was it.

00:18:25Marc:There's not many people that happens with, but I'm always excited when it happens.

00:18:29Marc:I don't quite know what to do with it.

00:18:30Marc:I champion those people.

00:18:34Marc:Bamford's another one.

00:18:35Marc:I think I got a thing for people that can't help themselves but exude that.

00:18:41Marc:There's nothing you're going to do to stifle it.

00:18:45Guest:No, you know what?

00:18:47Guest:There's this, somebody gave me a coaster with this.

00:18:50Marc:A helpful coaster?

00:18:51Guest:A helpful coaster with this Janis Joplin quote on it and she's sort of hated on it.

00:18:55Marc:She's another one.

00:18:56Guest:But yeah, the quote on it says, if something like, I'm going to bastardize a little bit, but it basically says like, if I hold back, I'm no good.

00:19:04Guest:And I was like, oh, fuck.

00:19:08Guest:That's the stuff right there.

00:19:09Marc:Yeah.

00:19:10Marc:But it's weird because, I mean, that is the stuff.

00:19:13Marc:And she is one of those people.

00:19:14Marc:I have felt that same thing where you're sort of, you watch her and you're like, wow, this is amazing.

00:19:18Marc:But I'm a little uncomfortable.

00:19:20Guest:Yeah, totally.

00:19:21Guest:Well, I mean, that's my favorite stuff to watch, too, is like stuff that's kind of cringy that you feel like kind of scared for the person.

00:19:29Guest:Yeah.

00:19:29Guest:But, you know, they're still in control of it.

00:19:31Guest:That's my favorite.

00:19:32Guest:Yeah.

00:19:32Marc:Yeah.

00:19:33Marc:I don't know how in control she was, but yeah.

00:19:35Guest:But she was channeling for sure.

00:19:36Marc:Yeah, and those people like her, like, you know, whatever we see, they got a lot of road miles in, those people in the 60s that died young, like Hendrix.

00:19:45Marc:I mean, he was out there a lot.

00:19:46Marc:I mean, they toured the fuck out of this country and the world.

00:19:49Marc:But anyway, so where'd you grow up in Texas?

00:19:54Guest:I grew up in Texas City.

00:19:55Guest:What is that?

00:19:56Guest:Down by Galveston.

00:19:57Marc:Oh, down by the water?

00:19:59Marc:Yep.

00:20:00Marc:Wow.

00:20:00Guest:Yeah, like 40 minutes from Houston, but down by the water.

00:20:03Guest:But it's the brown water.

00:20:05Marc:Yeah, no, not good water.

00:20:08Marc:That whole area down there, I've only driven through there once and it wasn't great to me.

00:20:11Guest:It's weird.

00:20:13Guest:Where I'm from is, I mean, I'm happy I grew up there, maybe who I am, but it's full of refineries.

00:20:20Guest:Right.

00:20:21Marc:Yeah, just a lot of machinery off the highway.

00:20:22Guest:A lot of machinery.

00:20:23Guest:Yeah, it's one of those places that as you're driving in at night, it straight up looks like Star Wars.

00:20:28Marc:Right.

00:20:29Guest:Yeah.

00:20:29Marc:It's just lit giant machines, tanks, pipes, things.

00:20:34Marc:And I always look and go like, are there people there right now?

00:20:38Marc:And when you drive at night, is there someone working at stuff?

00:20:40Guest:Yeah, is there somebody like watching that flame that's burning chemicals into all of us?

00:20:46Marc:Is someone on top of the flame situation and they just let that go?

00:20:49Marc:Do you have brothers and sisters?

00:20:50Guest:We got one sister, yeah.

00:20:51Guest:Older?

00:20:52Guest:She lives in Denver, younger.

00:20:53Marc:Yeah?

00:20:53Guest:Yeah, she lives in Denver with her dude, and they're super into mountain climbing.

00:20:58Marc:Healthy people.

00:20:58Marc:They're Colorado.

00:21:00Guest:Yeah, they're just kind of badasses.

00:21:02Marc:Yeah, there's a fitness, there's a kind of very focused, seemingly enlightened bunch of fitness-driven white people in Colorado that you're sort of like, is this a Christian thing, or is this just a fitness thing?

00:21:17Yeah.

00:21:17Guest:I would say theirs is neither, but I know that thing you're talking about.

00:21:22Marc:I can't tell if I should be scared here or that these people are good people that are just in shape.

00:21:27Guest:And are they going to change me?

00:21:29Marc:Yeah.

00:21:30Marc:And then there's a whole other contingent of just shit-faced weed smokers.

00:21:35Marc:I've worked in Denver, man.

00:21:36Marc:Denver, it's like because of the altitude, it's just a shit show at night.

00:21:39Marc:There's just people falling in the streets.

00:21:41Guest:Yeah, dude.

00:21:42Guest:I've been a visitor twice, and I don't feel good when I'm there.

00:21:47Guest:I feel like the altitude messes me up mentally.

00:21:51Guest:Oh, yeah.

00:21:53Marc:Your brain gets fucked.

00:21:54Marc:Your brain farts, and you can't think of words, and you have moments where you're like, I can't talk right.

00:21:59Guest:Totally.

00:22:00Guest:Or I would have these weird moments of like, am I sad?

00:22:04Guest:Why do I feel sad?

00:22:06Marc:Well, that's every day for me.

00:22:08Guest:Yeah, well, fair enough.

00:22:09Yeah.

00:22:09Marc:What is this feeling I have?

00:22:11Marc:Is it a good one?

00:22:11Marc:I don't think it is a good one.

00:22:14Marc:Maybe it is a good one.

00:22:15Marc:I'm just not used to it.

00:22:16Guest:Mine are usually later.

00:22:18Guest:If it's the sads, it's usually like later I go, oh, fuck.

00:22:23Guest:I was pretty depressed that month.

00:22:25Guest:But when I'm in it, I'm just like going.

00:22:27Marc:Well, yeah, because I'm one of those people where it's sort of... I think I've gotten so used to... I don't think I'm depressed.

00:22:32Marc:I think I'm anxious.

00:22:33Marc:But I don't know.

00:22:34Marc:Like when they told me I got this vaccine yesterday and she's like...

00:22:38Marc:It's going to hurt.

00:22:38Marc:You might need to take some aspirin.

00:22:39Marc:I'm like, how much could it hurt?

00:22:42Marc:You know what I mean?

00:22:43Marc:I'm not going to take aspirin for this, but I think my pain threshold is different.

00:22:48Guest:Got it.

00:22:48Marc:Whether it's depression or what.

00:22:49Marc:I can live with it.

00:22:51Guest:Totally.

00:22:51Marc:Because I rationalize it.

00:22:55Marc:I think this is the appropriate feeling.

00:22:57Guest:Yes.

00:22:58Yeah.

00:22:58Marc:I'm not suicidal, but things aren't great.

00:23:01Guest:This will end at some point.

00:23:03Guest:Yeah, right?

00:23:04Marc:Yeah.

00:23:04Marc:Are you a depressive person?

00:23:07Guest:I would say, weirdly, when I was in the fifth grade, I don't know what this was.

00:23:14Guest:I went through an adult depression that I didn't tell anyone about.

00:23:17Guest:In the fifth grade?

00:23:18Guest:In the fifth grade.

00:23:19Guest:How old are we in fifth grade?

00:23:20Guest:11?

00:23:21Guest:What, 11, 12, something like that?

00:23:22Guest:Yeah.

00:23:23Guest:And I used to, I still read, but I used to read all the time.

00:23:27Guest:Yeah.

00:23:28Guest:And I think maybe I was reading things that were too adult.

00:23:30Marc:Yeah.

00:23:31Marc:Oh, really?

00:23:31Marc:I don't remember exactly.

00:23:33Guest:Yeah, just like I remember reading a separate piece and reading Lord of the Flies and something about.

00:23:38Marc:Well, that right there, Lord of the Flies.

00:23:39Marc:I don't even know why they assign that to kids.

00:23:41Guest:Seriously, it sent me into like an existential like what is anything.

00:23:46Guest:I used to watch kids playing and go, how do they do that?

00:23:50Marc:Oh, yeah.

00:23:50Guest:I don't understand what they're doing.

00:23:52Yeah.

00:23:52Marc:Yeah, they seem to be forcing it.

00:23:55Guest:Yeah, or I was like, how do they feel like they're here?

00:23:58Guest:Like, what is, I mean, super existential, weird, and thank God I've never had that again.

00:24:04Marc:What did you tell your parents?

00:24:06Marc:I mean, did it just pass?

00:24:07Guest:No, I told them way later, years and years later.

00:24:09Marc:You just wrote it out?

00:24:10Guest:Yeah, I just wrote it out.

00:24:12Guest:I felt afraid to tell them.

00:24:13Marc:Yeah, and then what?

00:24:14Guest:Because I didn't understand.

00:24:15Marc:And sixth grade came, and you're like, I'm okay.

00:24:16Guest:Yeah, I had this weird methodology.

00:24:20Guest:I mean, this is going to sound so insane, but I used to do mantras in my head of things that I knew were real.

00:24:27Guest:Like my bike, I had a Kuahara, like a BMX bike.

00:24:31Guest:And I used to say like Kuahara in my head because I knew that was a real thing.

00:24:36Guest:I mean, this is so fucked up.

00:24:38Marc:No, it's not.

00:24:39Marc:It makes perfect sense.

00:24:39Guest:But I would go like, yeah, okay, that's in the world.

00:24:41Guest:I know what that is.

00:24:43Marc:Right, because you got lost in your head.

00:24:44Guest:Yeah, and I would, like, having the radio on was helpful because I would feel like, okay, people are alive in the world.

00:24:51Guest:This is happening.

00:24:52Marc:I miss that time because I don't have the confidence that that exists anymore.

00:24:55Marc:Like, it used to be like when there were three channels and you just, like, late at night.

00:25:00Marc:We had six.

00:25:00Marc:Yeah, you put the TV on.

00:25:02Marc:You're like, well, someone's got to be in the control room.

00:25:03Marc:So it's me and him right now.

00:25:05Marc:Oh, yeah.

00:25:06Marc:Or live radio.

00:25:07Marc:You're like, oh, that guy's all right.

00:25:08Marc:If I need to call somebody, I can call the radio guy.

00:25:11Guest:Yeah, like, okay, they're up and they're living.

00:25:13Guest:Yeah.

00:25:14Marc:But now I don't know.

00:25:16Marc:I don't know if anyone's operating anything.

00:25:19Marc:It makes me a little untethered.

00:25:21Marc:So you're growing up in Texas City.

00:25:23Marc:Is your dad in the oil business?

00:25:25Guest:No, my dad's a plumber.

00:25:27Marc:Did he work on oil pipes?

00:25:30Guest:Like every now and then they'd have a contract at one of the refineries.

00:25:35Guest:They still do.

00:25:36Guest:My dad's retired, but yeah, my uncle and my cousin still work at Patterson Plumbing and they'll sometimes have- Patterson Plumbing.

00:25:43Guest:That's right.

00:25:43Guest:In Texas City.

00:25:44Guest:Yeah, man.

00:25:45Guest:Shout out.

00:25:47Guest:Best dudes in town.

00:25:48Marc:Plumbers are essential.

00:25:50Guest:Yeah, for sure.

00:25:51Guest:And I feel like I weirdly inherited some, I mean, he never taught me to be a plumber, but there's sometimes stuff will happen in the house that I'm like, just let me look at it for a while.

00:26:01Guest:And I feel like I can figure it out because my dad's a plumber.

00:26:04Marc:Do you?

00:26:05Guest:Yeah, sometimes.

00:26:06Marc:Plumbing's dicey.

00:26:09Marc:It seems like it should be easy, but it's not.

00:26:11Marc:It's not.

00:26:11Marc:It's sort of like, well, there's where the water comes from.

00:26:13Marc:It just goes into all these pipes in the house.

00:26:15Guest:Yeah, it's very complicated.

00:26:16Marc:Yeah, there's noises that happen.

00:26:17Guest:Yeah, they have to go for like complicated certifications all the time.

00:26:21Marc:Yeah, but it's essential.

00:26:23Marc:Yeah.

00:26:23Marc:And what'd your mom do?

00:26:24Guest:Teacher.

00:26:24Guest:Taught first and fourth grade her whole career.

00:26:27Marc:Really?

00:26:28Marc:Yeah.

00:26:28Marc:And you had your existential meltdown in fifth grade.

00:26:30Guest:I did.

00:26:31Marc:And you couldn't go to your mom, the teacher.

00:26:33Guest:No, I just, well, I just didn't.

00:26:34Guest:I could have.

00:26:35Guest:She's very sweet.

00:26:36Marc:Yeah.

00:26:37Guest:Well, it sounds like you.

00:26:38Guest:I just didn't.

00:26:39Guest:It was weird.

00:26:40Guest:I used to also have this thing of, I don't know why I would get afraid to say certain things.

00:26:45Guest:Like if I, if something happened when I was in school, like if I got sick or something and needed to call my mom to come get me or tell her I was going home or something.

00:26:54Guest:I'd get that weird cry in my voice to talk to my mom on the phone from school.

00:26:58Guest:I'm like, I don't know.

00:26:59Guest:I was just a fucking weird, sensitive kid.

00:27:03Marc:That's it.

00:27:04Marc:That's why we know each other.

00:27:06Marc:But did the other kids think you were weird?

00:27:09Marc:No.

00:27:10Marc:Were you able to sort of move through the different things?

00:27:14Guest:Yeah, I was able to move through it.

00:27:16Guest:There was a point where there was a little chunk of like maybe somewhere sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, where I felt for sure very different.

00:27:28Guest:Right.

00:27:29Guest:Than everyone else.

00:27:31Guest:Yeah.

00:27:31Guest:And had sort of pulled away from the friend group I was in.

00:27:34Marc:Were you doing like, was there a music, was there a context to it?

00:27:37Marc:Did you model yourself a certain way?

00:27:40Guest:I just felt, I don't know, I just felt different and I felt like,

00:27:45Guest:I didn't want to be mean to anyone and I would see people be mean to people or blow people off.

00:27:55Guest:I just didn't want to be that.

00:27:56Guest:So sometimes that equals you have one friend for three years.

00:27:59Guest:Shout out Michelle McClellan.

00:28:02Marc:What's she up to?

00:28:03Guest:She's doing great.

00:28:05Marc:Oh good.

00:28:06Marc:You still keep in touch with people from fifth grade?

00:28:07Guest:No, no.

00:28:09Marc:I have a couple friends I grew up with.

00:28:10Guest:Yeah, one dude.

00:28:12Guest:Scott Elfstrom.

00:28:12Marc:Yeah, he's still in the life.

00:28:14Marc:I have a couple people that I've known since second grade.

00:28:16Guest:Yeah.

00:28:17Marc:Yeah, but I don't talk to them a lot, but I know them.

00:28:20Guest:Yeah.

00:28:20Marc:I grew up in Albuquerque.

00:28:21Guest:Yeah.

00:28:22Marc:Yeah, second grade, David Kleinfeld.

00:28:24Guest:Wow.

00:28:25Marc:He's still in the rotation.

00:28:26Marc:I haven't heard from him recently.

00:28:28Guest:Yeah, this dude I don't talk to a bunch every now and then.

00:28:31Marc:Oddly, he gets mad at me when I don't talk to him.

00:28:32Marc:I've known him my whole life.

00:28:33Marc:We've never talked that much over the last 20 years, but if I do fall out of touch to him, he's like, what the fuck?

00:28:39Marc:I'm like, what do you mean?

00:28:40Guest:Come on, man.

00:28:41Guest:I'm busy.

00:28:41Marc:So are you doing any performing?

00:28:46Guest:Yeah.

00:28:46Marc:When did the awkwardness turn into, look, I'm entertaining.

00:28:50Guest:Yeah.

00:28:51Guest:So, yeah, that was a weird morphing of a couple of things.

00:28:54Guest:Like seventh grade, I think, there was this thing called Class Day.

00:28:58Guest:And it was just a big variety show.

00:29:01Guest:And...

00:29:03Guest:Me and three other girls wrote like a dating game parody because there was a channel, I think channel 39 or channel 20.

00:29:11Guest:Showed the old dating game?

00:29:12Guest:Reruns, yeah.

00:29:14Guest:We didn't have cable, but we had like the main channels and then three upper channels.

00:29:18Marc:Yeah, yeah.

00:29:20Marc:There was only a few of them.

00:29:21Guest:Yeah, so we did this dating game parody and we all wrote our own parts.

00:29:27Guest:And three of us played the guys and there was one of us playing the girl who's picking from the guys.

00:29:33Guest:And there was a jock, a nerd, I was the nerd, and there was like a businessman or something.

00:29:38Marc:So these are like that kind of seventh grade perception of the archetypes.

00:29:43Guest:Totally.

00:29:43Guest:Pocket protector, glasses, like lame.

00:29:48Guest:But I noticed at that that everything I said was like really landing.

00:29:55Guest:Yeah.

00:29:56Guest:Like that thing where it's happening for the first time and you're like.

00:29:59Guest:The laughs.

00:30:00Guest:Almost your arms are going dead.

00:30:01Guest:Oh, yeah.

00:30:01Guest:Because you're like, what the fuck is this?

00:30:03Guest:Yeah.

00:30:04Guest:Oh, my God.

00:30:05Guest:The power.

00:30:06Guest:Yeah.

00:30:07Guest:So that's when I really thought, that's the first time I ever thought like, oh, maybe this could be my job.

00:30:12Marc:Yeah, really?

00:30:13Guest:Yeah.

00:30:13Marc:Making people laugh.

00:30:14Guest:Yeah, because before that I didn't know, I knew I liked that.

00:30:17Guest:I had always liked making my parents laugh.

00:30:19Guest:Yeah, yeah, yeah.

00:30:20Guest:But I was kind of a shy little kid.

00:30:23Guest:Yeah.

00:30:23Guest:And then when we did that, I thought like, oh, right, this is my thing.

00:30:27Guest:And I'll make this into what I do.

00:30:30Marc:Yeah.

00:30:30Guest:And then, yeah, and then did plays all through high school and stuff.

00:30:33Marc:Yeah, and did the same thing happen?

00:30:35Marc:Were you mostly comic or comedic?

00:30:38Guest:That was everything.

00:30:40Guest:Musicals?

00:30:41Guest:Yeah, that too.

00:30:42Marc:I don't know why I get hung up.

00:30:43Marc:I ask everybody about musicals.

00:30:45Guest:Yeah, that's funny.

00:30:46Marc:And I do, because to me it was the scariest thing in the world.

00:30:49Marc:It still is kind of scary, the singing thing.

00:30:51Guest:I thought you could sing.

00:30:52Marc:I can sing, but I can't sing proudly.

00:30:55Guest:Mm-hmm.

00:30:56Marc:I can't remove myself.

00:30:58Marc:I'm not going to be like, hello, and do a dance.

00:31:01Marc:When I sing, I'm usually playing guitar.

00:31:03Marc:I got my eyes half closed just so I can do it.

00:31:07Marc:Because I don't have a lot of control over it.

00:31:09Marc:But I think I always envied people who could be fabulous.

00:31:14Guest:Yeah, that is a weird next level thing.

00:31:16Guest:Yeah.

00:31:17Marc:Be the showman singer?

00:31:19Guest:The showman singer, yeah.

00:31:20Marc:Like the musical people.

00:31:22Marc:Totally.

00:31:22Marc:Where you're just sort of like unabashedly doing those numbers.

00:31:27Guest:Yeah, and so committed that you're like, this is real life.

00:31:30Marc:Yeah, I don't know how they do that.

00:31:32Marc:Whoa!

00:31:32Marc:I'm so terrified of it.

00:31:34Marc:I think I got to get over it, but I don't know if it's going to happen.

00:31:37Marc:Right now I'm working on just playing with a small combo.

00:31:39Marc:I think that's the next step for me.

00:31:40Guest:Oh, that's awesome.

00:31:41Marc:I don't think doing musicals is going to happen immediately.

00:31:44Guest:What if you cover your face in some way like Sia does?

00:31:47Guest:Do a musical?

00:31:48Guest:No, just for your band.

00:31:50Marc:No, I think I can handle the band thing.

00:31:52Marc:I'm just like, I'm working towards it.

00:31:54Guest:Yeah.

00:31:55Marc:Yeah, I'm working on finger picking now, and I've got a blood blister on my thumb.

00:31:58Guest:I'm pretty proud.

00:31:58Guest:Oh, man.

00:31:59Guest:Look at that.

00:31:59Guest:That's awesome.

00:32:00Marc:I did some practicing.

00:32:00Guest:That's a real deal.

00:32:01Marc:Yeah, I'm working it.

00:32:03Guest:So now do you have to lay off so it doesn't pop on your strings?

00:32:05Marc:No, I'm going to keep doing it until it becomes a hard thing, a built-in pick.

00:32:09Yeah.

00:32:09Marc:All right, so you're doing all the plays.

00:32:12Marc:Are you popular now?

00:32:13Marc:Are you hanging out with the drama nerdy people?

00:32:15Guest:I'm kind of hanging out with everybody.

00:32:17Marc:But you're not a fucked up kid?

00:32:18Marc:You're not, you know, like, really?

00:32:21Guest:A real good kid.

00:32:22Guest:Real good grades.

00:32:24Guest:No drugs.

00:32:25Guest:No drinking.

00:32:26Guest:Very good.

00:32:27Guest:You avoided it.

00:32:28Guest:Yeah, I avoided it.

00:32:29Guest:I wanted to be good.

00:32:31Guest:Yeah.

00:32:33Guest:I don't know why.

00:32:34Guest:I mean, I guess my parents instilled something in me where I wanted to be good.

00:32:37Marc:Sounds like you have pretty nice parents.

00:32:38Guest:Yeah, I do have nice parents.

00:32:39Guest:Yeah.

00:32:41Guest:But I would say, like, I was doing okay.

00:32:45Guest:My friends in drama were... My main friends in drama were, like...

00:32:50Guest:Weirdly, you wouldn't think of this as being like the dudes in drama, but my main friends were like these metal dudes.

00:32:56Marc:No, that makes sense.

00:32:57Guest:That did plays and like were obsessed with Monty Python and all had long hair.

00:33:00Marc:Yeah, the metal nerds.

00:33:02Marc:Yeah.

00:33:03Marc:Python guys.

00:33:03Guest:Yeah, I loved those guys.

00:33:04Marc:They play at D&D too, maybe?

00:33:06Guest:Oh, for sure they did.

00:33:07Guest:Yeah, so that's a specific- And they used to ask me and I never went.

00:33:09Marc:That's a certain type of metal dude.

00:33:11Marc:That's not the sort of like, you know, we're going to do crank metal dude.

00:33:14Guest:Right.

00:33:14Marc:It's the sort of heightened smart metal dudes.

00:33:17Guest:Totally.

00:33:18Guest:Yeah, I hung out with those smart metal dudes.

00:33:21Guest:And then, like, the summer before my 11th grade year, I went to visit my friend.

00:33:28Guest:My friend.

00:33:29Guest:My friend and my cousin, Jamie.

00:33:30Guest:Yeah.

00:33:31Guest:In Corsicana, Texas.

00:33:33Guest:And she's like...

00:33:35Guest:I don't know she just always like from the time she was little it was really cool that every word kind of blends together she's like got full confidence like kind of like what I found out the rest of the interview in that voice yeah as Jamie but like even as a little kid before she even knew she was gay she had like almost like lesbian swagger yeah you know what I mean just like she was always fascinating to me because I was like how how are you that confident like what is this

00:34:02Guest:So I was at her house, we were hanging out, and we were making like- Is it in high school?

00:34:08Guest:Yeah, like the summer after 10th grade.

00:34:09Marc:Yeah.

00:34:10Guest:We were making tapes of like fake talk shows.

00:34:16Guest:Right.

00:34:17Guest:Where we would have a fake call-in show where people would call in with their problems, and we would do all the voices.

00:34:21Guest:And then I noticed like in between, she would just call people on the phone and just be like, what's up, what are y'all doing tonight?

00:34:27Guest:And I was like, whoa!

00:34:29Guest:Yeah.

00:34:30Guest:And just like something would happen.

00:34:32Guest:She'd go to some party or like she had all these friends.

00:34:35Guest:I was like, oh, fuck, that's awesome.

00:34:37Guest:I'm going to, you know, I'm going to be that.

00:34:40Guest:I'm going to act like her, my version of her and just see what happens.

00:34:44Guest:And I came back and I did it and it worked.

00:34:48Guest:And then like 11th grade and 12th grade, I was class favorite.

00:34:51Guest:Like I was just pretending to be my cousin.

00:34:53Guest:Yeah.

00:34:55Guest:But mainly I was just like faking it until it felt right.

00:34:59Marc:You got a tool, a socialization tool.

00:35:01Guest:Yeah, I got a tool.

00:35:03Guest:I was like, oh, that's how you do it?

00:35:05Guest:You just call people?

00:35:06Guest:Like you just talk to them?

00:35:08Guest:Oh, wow.

00:35:09Guest:You just talk to who you want to talk to and you just laugh with them?

00:35:11Marc:It's so funny how fucking uncomfortable we are in high school.

00:35:15Marc:And sometimes the only difference between the cool people and the not cool people is just that.

00:35:22Marc:It's just this weird fake confidence to be like, come on, let's go do the thing.

00:35:26Guest:It's all it is.

00:35:27Marc:My problem is I was sort of desperate.

00:35:29Marc:I'm like, are we going out?

00:35:30Marc:What are you guys doing?

00:35:32Guest:Were you the guy who would plan it all?

00:35:34Marc:No, but like I live further away because I was lying about my address and I had these guys that I really wanted to be friends with.

00:35:40Marc:This is the story of my life and like I've been thinking about it lately about certain behavior patterns.

00:35:45Marc:Yeah.

00:35:46Marc:Because I guess I was sort of uncomfortable and I would see people that like they seem to have it together like they seem fun or whatever and then I would just pester them until you know I could hang out.

00:35:56Guest:And was it people you had a connection with or you just thought I eventually did?

00:36:03Marc:I just I feel like ultimately I was just sort of missing a chunk of some sort of personality thing.

00:36:10Marc:And I just wanted to be part of whatever that was.

00:36:13Guest:Got it.

00:36:13Marc:You know, and then it was always sort of an annoying thing, but I didn't really know how to make friends otherwise.

00:36:21Guest:Yeah.

00:36:21Marc:Because I'm very intense, very thinky.

00:36:23Marc:You know, I guess I was high maintenance, but like it was some one of those things where I live far away and I make plans.

00:36:28Marc:Sometimes I wouldn't show up.

00:36:29Marc:That was the saddest thing waiting at the end of the driveway.

00:36:31Marc:All dressed up in my shoes and my Calvins or whatever.

00:36:36Guest:Man, there's nothing like that to just like, ooh.

00:36:40Guest:I had that happen once years and years ago in L.A.

00:36:44Guest:with a friend that I really love still.

00:36:47Guest:And like she just forgot we had plans.

00:36:51Guest:And you're all ready to go.

00:36:52Guest:And it immediately shoots you back to like whatever age you were when you last felt like embarrassed or alone.

00:36:57Guest:Yeah, like what am I doing?

00:36:58Guest:What the actual fuck?

00:36:59Marc:is this yeah oh god and you fester about in your head and then it turns out they just forgot you you build a whole story you build a whole story around like oh well cool i guess i'm not i guess i'm not cool enough to hang out with it right right and then they're just sort of like i just forgot you're like oh okay okay yeah yeah fucking idiot went back to high school

00:37:19Marc:All right, so now you're cool, 11th, 12th grade, queen of the school.

00:37:25Guest:Well, the cool thing was is that I still was friends with everybody.

00:37:29Guest:I still had my metal nerd friends and I still had all the drama friends and football friends and cheerleader friends.

00:37:38Marc:As a funny person, sensitive person, it's sort of what I evolved into.

00:37:41Marc:It's sort of like you can get along with everybody.

00:37:42Marc:Totally.

00:37:43Marc:Yeah, yeah, because you're not committed to an outfit or to a music ideology.

00:37:48Marc:She's kind of like, you're a funny person.

00:37:50Guest:Yeah, I was like the add-on.

00:37:52Guest:If the drill team went out and we're gonna wrap houses, I was the one that went, even though I wasn't on the drill team.

00:38:00Guest:You know what I mean?

00:38:01Marc:Yeah, because you were fun?

00:38:02Guest:Yeah, because we would laugh.

00:38:03Marc:What's wrap houses?

00:38:05Guest:Toilet paper houses.

00:38:06Marc:Oh, you could say that.

00:38:08Guest:The one time that...

00:38:10Marc:How many times did you do that?

00:38:12Guest:Probably two or three, but the one most fun time was the worst because they called the cops and then my dad was so mad.

00:38:21Marc:Really?

00:38:21Guest:Yeah, it was awful.

00:38:22Marc:Well, you could have been worse.

00:38:24Guest:Oh, it could have been so worse.

00:38:25Guest:That's probably why I wanted to be good is because I did not want anyone to be mad at me.

00:38:29Guest:If you got that mad.

00:38:30Guest:Yeah.

00:38:31Guest:If you got that mad at me putting toilet paper on a house.

00:38:34Guest:Yeah.

00:38:34Guest:so what uh so when do you decide like i'm gonna dedicate i'm gonna commit my life to uh was it acting is that what you were thinking yeah for a minute i thought i'm gonna be um an actress and i'm also gonna be uh an artist meaning uh um you know what do you do i thought i would also like draw and paint oh did you draw and paint

00:38:58Guest:Well, I started college going like, I'm going to double major in art and get a BFA in acting.

00:39:05Guest:And then you go to your first art class and they go like, okay.

00:39:09Guest:And now the, I don't even know what it's called after the lab or whatever.

00:39:12Guest:But every art class has like a five hour thing attached to it where you actually go and do art.

00:39:17Guest:And I was like, whew.

00:39:19Guest:Anybody got time for that?

00:39:22Guest:So then I became a single major, like within the first two weeks.

00:39:26Marc:You dropped it right away.

00:39:27Guest:Right away.

00:39:28Marc:You're just sitting there with an easel.

00:39:29Guest:Yeah.

00:39:30Marc:And a bunch of other sort of introverted people that know what they're doing already.

00:39:34Guest:Yeah, seriously.

00:39:35Marc:And you're kind of looking around going like, hey.

00:39:37Marc:yeah I like to draw too yeah no I didn't like it that much that's a worse feeling where you're like you know I'm just gonna try this and your parents encourage that shit you should try it and you get there and these people have been doing it their whole life you just feel like an asshole right away no way no way this is happening yeah it just showed me what I liked better for sure yeah so where'd you where'd you go

00:40:00Guest:I went to a place called Texas State.

00:40:02Marc:Where is that?

00:40:04Guest:It's in San Marcos, like half an hour from Austin.

00:40:07Guest:And yeah, I just kind of went where I got the most scholarships and stuff because we couldn't afford to go anywhere fancy.

00:40:15Marc:So it's a small school?

00:40:16Guest:It's a big state school.

00:40:18Guest:Okay.

00:40:18Marc:Yeah.

00:40:19Marc:But that's not, University of Texas is in Austin?

00:40:22Guest:Yeah.

00:40:23Marc:Right.

00:40:23Guest:I like it there.

00:40:24Guest:Do you?

00:40:25Marc:Yeah, you know, I do.

00:40:26Marc:I call it the hipster Alamo.

00:40:28Marc:There's a few of these Alamo situations where you're just surrounded by whatever the rest of it is.

00:40:34Guest:Yeah.

00:40:35Marc:No, but I do like it.

00:40:36Marc:It's gotten a little bit much as time goes on.

00:40:39Guest:Yeah, I've noticed that too.

00:40:40Marc:It's become sort of a capital of whatever.

00:40:42Marc:I mean, it's still cool.

00:40:44Guest:Yeah.

00:40:44Marc:I mean, I like Texas.

00:40:46Marc:I mean, I grew up next door to Texas, and I've grown to like it.

00:40:49Marc:I mean, there's decent people all over it.

00:40:52Marc:Yeah.

00:40:52Marc:And there's even some decent people that are actually shitty people.

00:40:56Guest:Oh, yeah, for sure.

00:40:58Marc:So a lot of decent, shitty people around.

00:41:00Marc:And, you know, it's hard to reconcile.

00:41:02Marc:But, you know, Texas does.

00:41:04Guest:God, that's a that is a weird thing.

00:41:06Guest:There are a lot of decent, shitty people.

00:41:08Marc:Yeah, they're good people, but they're mind fucked in one way.

00:41:12Marc:I don't know what to do with that.

00:41:15Marc:You'd have to make decisions.

00:41:17Guest:Totally, and I guess all you can do is just keep digging and going like, let me just dig again and find that decent part of you.

00:41:24Marc:The politeness thing, but yeah, but some people are good people.

00:41:27Marc:They're just a little, but who am I to judge?

00:41:29Marc:I can judge.

00:41:30Marc:I can judge.

00:41:30Guest:Yeah, go for it.

00:41:31Marc:Yeah, I mean, there are some people that's sort of like, that's some wrong-minded shit.

00:41:34Marc:You seem like a very nice person.

00:41:36Marc:Yeah, that's the wrong-minded shit.

00:41:39Marc:So you just studied the acting.

00:41:41Marc:Do you do stand-up?

00:41:43Guest:I've always done improv and sketch, but I've never done stand-up.

00:41:46Marc:And did you start doing that stuff in college?

00:41:49Marc:I started doing improv.

00:41:50Marc:Well, I mean outside of the cassette tape work you did with the lesbian.

00:41:55Marc:And the dating game.

00:41:58Marc:Those were early sketch endeavors.

00:41:59Guest:Great distillation.

00:42:02Guest:The cassette tape work with the lesbian.

00:42:05Marc:Which we'd all love to hear.

00:42:06Marc:Do you have it digitized?

00:42:07Guest:I don't know.

00:42:08Guest:Maybe.

00:42:09Guest:I'll ask Jamie.

00:42:09Guest:She really might.

00:42:10Guest:She really might.

00:42:11Marc:You still friends with Jamie?

00:42:12Guest:Yeah, yeah.

00:42:13Guest:Oh, that's good.

00:42:13Guest:We're homies for sure.

00:42:15Marc:Oh, that's good.

00:42:15Marc:Yeah.

00:42:16Marc:So what's the sort of curriculum over there at the university?

00:42:20Marc:What do you get to do?

00:42:22Marc:What's the training?

00:42:24Um...

00:42:24Guest:It's all the regular acting stuff, but you also have to do lighting.

00:42:30Marc:Oh, right.

00:42:31Marc:So it's more theater?

00:42:31Guest:I always thought that was so dumb.

00:42:33Marc:Or was it geared towards theater?

00:42:34Guest:Yeah, it was definitely geared towards theater.

00:42:37Guest:In my opinion, the best teacher that we had there was this dude, Larry Hovis, who played Carter on Hogan's Heroes.

00:42:43Marc:I remember that guy.

00:42:44Guest:Yeah, yeah.

00:42:45Marc:The blonde guy.

00:42:46Marc:Yeah.

00:42:47Marc:Yeah.

00:42:48Guest:Yeah.

00:42:48Marc:What was his, wasn't he the fix-it guy?

00:42:50Marc:Hogan Tiros, didn't he have a specific role?

00:42:53Marc:They all sort of represented something.

00:42:55Guest:Yeah, I feel like he was like a mechanic or something.

00:42:57Guest:Yeah, something like that.

00:42:58Marc:Yeah, yeah, yeah.

00:42:59Marc:He could, you know, come up with the device, the gadget.

00:43:01Guest:Totally.

00:43:01Marc:Yeah, yeah.

00:43:02Marc:Oh, he was the guy?

00:43:03Guest:He was the one that I think was the best one, for sure.

00:43:07Guest:Larry Hovis.

00:43:08Guest:By laps.

00:43:10Yeah.

00:43:10Marc:But isn't that interesting though?

00:43:12Marc:There are those people, these Hollywood people that had lives, and then this is how I frame it now, and then had the courage to leave.

00:43:21Marc:And then stay in it somehow.

00:43:25Marc:My buddy Craig,

00:43:27Marc:Anton, who was a great comic actor, he just realized this isn't going to be a life.

00:43:34Marc:And he's got to think about the future.

00:43:35Marc:Went to grad school.

00:43:37Marc:Got his doctorate, I think, in acting and teaching.

00:43:40Marc:And now he's teaching at a college in Georgia.

00:43:43Guest:It's crazy.

00:43:43Marc:I have such respect for that.

00:43:45Guest:It's awesome.

00:43:45Marc:Because you're helping people.

00:43:47Marc:You get the joy of...

00:43:49Marc:turning young people on in this world that's important and seeing them create.

00:43:53Marc:And you're not just this self-involved freak.

00:43:56Guest:Totally.

00:43:56Marc:Who's like, you know, waiting for someone else to make you something.

00:43:59Guest:Right.

00:44:00Guest:And you're not gripping anymore.

00:44:01Guest:Like, he just felt chill.

00:44:03Guest:And I don't know why he came to Texas.

00:44:05Guest:I have no idea why.

00:44:06Guest:Probably from there, no?

00:44:07Guest:Maybe.

00:44:08Marc:Who knows?

00:44:09Guest:Yeah, I don't know.

00:44:10Marc:Did you know him from Hogan's Heroes?

00:44:12Guest:I didn't know until he told us.

00:44:14Marc:Yeah.

00:44:15Marc:Maybe you know me?

00:44:15Marc:I mean, how does that work?

00:44:17Guest:Yeah.

00:44:17Guest:I mean, I think it was more just like a whisper network of like, did you know Larry was on this?

00:44:22Marc:Yeah.

00:44:23Guest:He was an old guy by the time he got to us.

00:44:26Marc:Good teacher, though.

00:44:27Marc:I mean.

00:44:27Guest:So good.

00:44:28Guest:The only one who sort of, actually, you know what?

00:44:33Guest:There was another dude who I never had, this actor G.W.

00:44:36Guest:Bailey.

00:44:36Guest:He was also awesome.

00:44:38Guest:But I never had him for more than a day.

00:44:42Guest:But they were the dudes who actually did it and knew what it was like.

00:44:47Guest:And his class was a TV film acting class.

00:44:50Guest:Hovis?

00:44:51Marc:Yeah.

00:44:51Marc:Oh, so you had one of those.

00:44:53Marc:Because a lot of the loftier institutions don't do any films.

00:44:57Guest:Totally.

00:44:58Guest:And I mean, that's all any of us wanted, really.

00:45:01Guest:Yeah.

00:45:01Guest:Not everybody.

00:45:02Guest:Right.

00:45:03Guest:But he would sort of famously say things to you that you were like, wait, what?

00:45:08Guest:That would sort of piss you off.

00:45:10Guest:And then years later, you go, oh, my God.

00:45:12Guest:Like what?

00:45:13Guest:I remember once he told me, he was like...

00:45:17Guest:You know what, Edie, you've got, like, what you have is, like, a throwback thing.

00:45:22Guest:It's, like, a Rosalind Russell thing.

00:45:24Guest:I was, like, in my head, in my, like, 19-year-old head or whatever.

00:45:26Guest:Did you have to go look up Rosalind Russell?

00:45:27Guest:Yeah, I was, like, who the fuck is that?

00:45:30Guest:I was mad.

00:45:31Guest:Yeah.

00:45:31Guest:And then I, like, found out she's from black and white movies.

00:45:34Guest:Yeah.

00:45:34Guest:And I was pissed off.

00:45:36Guest:And then years later, it took me years to, like, watch some of her movies because I think I was just, like, I'm not that.

00:45:40Guest:I'm not that.

00:45:41Guest:Yeah.

00:45:41Guest:And then I watch it, and she's the greatest thing ever.

00:45:43Guest:And she's kind of off the rails, and she's kind of a wild card.

00:45:47Guest:And I'm like, it's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me.

00:45:50Guest:And I was so mad at him for it.

00:45:53Guest:But he would tell people things like, he told one friend of mine, look, no one's going to understand you until you're in your 30s.

00:46:00Guest:And she was like...

00:46:01What the fuck?

00:46:03Guest:You know, she's standing there.

00:46:04Guest:She's 20 or whatever.

00:46:05Guest:It's the worst.

00:46:06Guest:And he was like, exactly right.

00:46:07Guest:Really?

00:46:08Guest:She's always has had like an old soul thing.

00:46:11Guest:People started to really understand her later.

00:46:13Guest:And like, yeah, he just knew stuff.

00:46:15Marc:I talked to Bruce Dern and I haven't heard these kind of stories.

00:46:18Marc:This seems to be a new thing.

00:46:20Marc:Bruce Dern, he's great, he's singular, but he was in the actor's studio in New York early on in the 50s, and he had been a runner.

00:46:33Marc:He went to the Olympics.

00:46:35Guest:Oh, wow.

00:46:36Marc:And Ilya Kazan took a liking to him.

00:46:40Marc:And he's training at the actor's studio because they think he's raw and they wanted to really make him into something.

00:46:46Marc:But Kazan says, you're never going to be a leading man.

00:46:51Marc:And Dern's like, I'm 25.

00:46:53Marc:Why would you tell me that?

00:46:55Marc:And Kazan goes, because you're a runner.

00:46:57Marc:And he's like, I don't run anymore.

00:46:58Marc:He goes, but you have persistence.

00:47:01Marc:Endurance.

00:47:01Marc:Wow.

00:47:02Marc:You have endurance.

00:47:03Guest:Wow.

00:47:04Marc:So, like, how do you frame that as a 25-year-old?

00:47:06Marc:Like, what does that mean?

00:47:06Marc:It sounds horrible.

00:47:07Guest:It sounds horrible.

00:47:08Marc:But he, like, you know, he realizes that, you know, if you look back at his career, that was it.

00:47:13Marc:He also told him he'd be, I don't know if it was the fifth or the seventh, he said, you're going to be the fifth cowboy on the right.

00:47:20Guest:Oh!

00:47:20Guest:Oh, that's brutal.

00:47:21Marc:Well, yeah, but it was sort of to encourage him to make it, you know, to make sure you stand out.

00:47:27Guest:Yeah.

00:47:27Marc:And he certainly does.

00:47:29Guest:Yeah.

00:47:29Marc:But it's weird.

00:47:30Marc:It's hard to hear that kind of shit when you're younger.

00:47:32Guest:It is because you don't know it's cooler to be the runner.

00:47:35Guest:You don't know.

00:47:35Guest:At that age, you're like, leading man is the best thing.

00:47:39Guest:Yeah.

00:47:39Guest:Why would you say I'm not the best thing?

00:47:40Marc:Right.

00:47:41Guest:It is cooler to be the runner.

00:47:42Guest:Oh, it's way cooler to be the runner.

00:47:44Marc:Yeah.

00:47:45Marc:Because you can keep doing that.

00:47:46Guest:Yeah, and you can keep being different.

00:47:48Marc:Leading men just eventually buckle and crumble.

00:47:50Marc:Everyone's gonna get old.

00:47:52Guest:Yeah, and it's so dependent on like, better do that same thing again.

00:47:55Guest:Right, yeah.

00:47:56Marc:And then next thing you know, you're William Holden in the Wild Bunch.

00:48:01Marc:and in network.

00:48:03Marc:But that was a good story.

00:48:05Marc:He was a huge leading man.

00:48:06Marc:Then he played these kind of flawed old dudes.

00:48:11Marc:I don't know.

00:48:12Marc:It's sort of nice to have access to a guy that... Because those TV actors from that era...

00:48:19Marc:It was still sort of the studio system.

00:48:21Marc:All those people were still around.

00:48:23Marc:All the lots still existed.

00:48:24Marc:It was still a small community.

00:48:26Marc:So, like, he probably had met Rosalind Russell at some point.

00:48:29Guest:Right.

00:48:30Marc:Yeah.

00:48:30Guest:Probably.

00:48:31Marc:Yeah.

00:48:32Marc:So, he, like, he gave you, like, you just liked the guy?

00:48:36Marc:You just, he just had, he was matter of fact?

00:48:39Guest:He was matter of fact.

00:48:40Guest:He was chill.

00:48:41Guest:He was funny.

00:48:42Guest:Yeah.

00:48:43Guest:He didn't seem to be trying.

00:48:44Guest:Yeah.

00:48:46Guest:I in the moment I knew I liked that but I didn't know how to articulate that and then like as my life goes on I'm like oh god it's the key to everything is to allow instead of to try oh man I just yeah I'm getting hit with that now yeah yeah it's it's a biggie

00:49:03Marc:I don't know if I ever really thought about it that way.

00:49:07Marc:Because my instinct is to, out of anxiety, to kind of like, like I did it yesterday, and it fucking pissed me off.

00:49:16Guest:With what?

00:49:18Marc:I was on Conan, and I'd done Conan a million times, and we have a dynamic that goes back like 25 years.

00:49:24Marc:But I'm really not quite that guy anymore in my life and stuff.

00:49:27Marc:But when you're in that dynamic, I felt it happening again.

00:49:29Marc:I walked out of it going like, why did I drop back into that?

00:49:33Guest:Right.

00:49:33Marc:You know, like I started to realize that, like, I'm not desperate anymore.

00:49:38Guest:Right.

00:49:38Marc:But the business is very desperate.

00:49:40Marc:All these shows that you do, you know, not, you know, no, I'm not saying like the shows you're on, but talk shows or that kind of stuff.

00:49:46Marc:They're all just sort of like, come on, would you look at it?

00:49:48Marc:Stay here.

00:49:49Marc:Don't change.

00:49:50Marc:You know, we got and I'm not like I'm not.

00:49:53Marc:You're entering a desperate environment.

00:49:54Guest:totally you know what i was thinking about this because i was listening to um i was listening to you with steven root yesterday and you were talking about that you were like i'm gonna go do that yeah um i don't feel stressed out i don't even know what i'm wearing it's gonna be what it's gonna be and i literally was on a run listening to it and out loud going yes ah yes that was recording probably yeah that was recording not great

00:50:20Guest:Because, man, it's the ideal mindset.

00:50:23Guest:But, yeah, when you're around the thing where everyone else feels like it should be pressure-y and trying, it's hard to convince your brain, like, oh, wait, I know better than this right now.

00:50:33Marc:Yeah, but there's no breathing room, and that's just the way it is, and I know that, and I can do those things.

00:50:37Marc:Yeah.

00:50:38Marc:Yeah, I just kind of, I was loose.

00:50:40Marc:But then you get out there and there's this like, you know, before you go on, they're doing, you know, human bar tricks.

00:50:45Marc:So they got someone blowing milk out of their tear duct.

00:50:49Marc:And then they got someone juggling.

00:50:51Marc:And then let's bring our guests on.

00:50:52Marc:I'm like, oh, God.

00:50:53Marc:And there's two of you sitting there and you're trying to be casual, but there's no way.

00:50:57Marc:And I'm so used to doing this.

00:50:58Marc:And there's no way in their minds they believe or can do.

00:51:03Marc:Even Conan now with his new format, where it's just kind of like you're just hanging out.

00:51:06Marc:There's no way to execute a real conversation.

00:51:10Marc:So the trick of it is, how do you compress who you are?

00:51:14Marc:Even in acting, it's hard for me because I'm waiting.

00:51:18Marc:I've got a whole lifetime of like, let's do it.

00:51:22Marc:And it takes a couple takes.

00:51:24Marc:So when I get out there, usually I'm like, and then it's sort of like, okay, all right, now that's out.

00:51:30Guest:Yeah.

00:51:31Marc:Yeah, I don't know.

00:51:33Marc:I'm done with it.

00:51:35Marc:I did all this press for this movie and for GLOW, and I'm like, I don't need to do it for a while.

00:51:41Guest:Yeah.

00:51:42Marc:Are you doing the shows?

00:51:43Marc:Are you doing Conan?

00:51:44Guest:I'm doing my first one ever later in September.

00:51:48Guest:That'll be fun.

00:51:49Guest:I'm doing Seth Meyers, yeah.

00:51:50Marc:Oh, really?

00:51:51Guest:I've heard it's a good first one.

00:51:52Marc:No, it's great because he's a very interesting guy because at first I was sort of like, what's he going to do?

00:52:00Marc:But he's very kind of grounded and he's pretty effortless with funny, but he's not all about funny.

00:52:07Guest:Yeah, I like that he seems to actually look in someone's eyes.

00:52:10Marc:Yeah, no, he's great.

00:52:11Marc:Yeah, yeah.

00:52:12Marc:Oh, good.

00:52:12Marc:That'll be fun.

00:52:13Marc:How come you're not doing the other ones?

00:52:14Guest:Well, that's my first one I've ever done.

00:52:16Guest:And I think most of them have a thing of like, well, once she's done one, then we'll take a look at her.

00:52:24Guest:Yeah, totally.

00:52:25Guest:So I think that'll open up.

00:52:26Marc:And then the ones that are in the same time slot, they're going to be mad.

00:52:29Marc:Sure.

00:52:30Marc:Yeah, like if you do Fallon, you got to choose.

00:52:32Marc:You can do Fallon, Colbert, or Kimmel.

00:52:35Guest:Right.

00:52:35Marc:And if you do one, then you got to wait a year, six months.

00:52:38Guest:That's what I've been being explained about.

00:52:40Guest:It's crazy.

00:52:41Guest:Oh, wow.

00:52:42Guest:Interesting.

00:52:42Marc:It's just crazy though.

00:52:43Marc:Yeah.

00:52:44Marc:Like there's not enough people that you can't, like you can't, no, I mean like you can't really, you can't put someone on that.

00:52:50Marc:You just do a different thing.

00:52:52Marc:Anyway, it doesn't matter.

00:52:53Guest:But yeah, I think I'll probably do a couple more.

00:52:56Guest:The season of the show just started a couple days ago.

00:52:59Marc:I watched all of them.

00:53:00Guest:Oh, you did?

00:53:01Guest:I did.

00:53:01Guest:Well, you watched the first six, probably.

00:53:03Guest:The first six.

00:53:03Guest:Great.

00:53:04Marc:How many are there?

00:53:05Guest:Nine.

00:53:06Marc:There's nine.

00:53:06Guest:And wowie, wowie, do they get intense in those last few.

00:53:10Marc:Well, yeah, I want to get to that.

00:53:11Marc:So, okay, so you hang around, what, you move to Austin?

00:53:14Marc:What do you do after college?

00:53:15Marc:When do you, like, I'm going to Hollywood.

00:53:19Guest:Yeah, I wasn't in Austin very long, just a minute.

00:53:21Guest:And then I kind of always knew you have to move to one of the places to do it as your job.

00:53:27Guest:New York or LA?

00:53:28Guest:Yeah.

00:53:29Guest:And so, yeah, I moved to LA in like 2001, I think.

00:53:34Marc:Wow.

00:53:34Guest:Yeah.

00:53:35Marc:You've been out here a while.

00:53:36Guest:Yeah.

00:53:37Guest:And, yeah, just started immediately doing stuff, improvising with Impro Theater, which we now do, like, full-length improvised plays.

00:53:49Guest:Oh, yeah?

00:53:49Guest:Like the Broad Stage and plus like that.

00:53:51Guest:Right, right.

00:53:51Guest:With sets and costumes and stuff.

00:53:53Marc:Wow.

00:53:54Guest:So we'll do certain styles.

00:53:55Guest:We'll do a run of, like, Jane Austen unscripted.

00:53:58Guest:Right.

00:53:58Guest:Or we'll do Twilight Zone unscripted.

00:53:59Guest:Yeah, yeah.

00:54:01Guest:And then, yeah, we'll get a suggestion and do an hour and a half play.

00:54:04Guest:Yeah.

00:54:04Marc:That's great.

00:54:05Guest:Yeah.

00:54:06Guest:It's cool.

00:54:06Guest:I think you would dig it because it's not it's very story and acting based.

00:54:12Guest:It's inherently funny because it's it's asinine to make up a play.

00:54:17Guest:But everyone's just meaning what they say and trying to make a good story happen.

00:54:21Marc:That's great.

00:54:22Marc:Yeah.

00:54:23Marc:And sometimes it works and sometimes it's hit or miss.

00:54:26Marc:I mean, usually you nail it.

00:54:28Guest:Luckily, it almost always works, and I think it's because there's a weird ESP with that.

00:54:34Guest:Sure.

00:54:34Guest:Yeah, and you can always, like, I don't know.

00:54:37Guest:I think that ultimately always the truth is the funniest thing.

00:54:40Guest:So, yeah, if you just know what your character is and you stay in it.

00:54:44Guest:You don't know what your character is until the play starts because nothing's set.

00:54:48Guest:Yeah.

00:54:48Marc:I mean, I just improvised a movie, and I love it.

00:54:51Guest:Yeah, I haven't seen it yet, but I... The story to trust?

00:54:53Guest:Yeah.

00:54:54Marc:It's funny.

00:54:54Guest:Awesome.

00:54:55Marc:Because there's something about improvising that is real in the moment.

00:54:59Marc:So the whole flow of it feels different.

00:55:01Guest:Totally.

00:55:01Guest:And if you know, like, I mean, I'm sure you felt this.

00:55:04Guest:If you know who that guy is that you're playing, you could kind of go forever.

00:55:08Marc:Sure.

00:55:08Marc:Yeah.

00:55:10Marc:And also that you have the story structure, but you kind of can just move through it and you go deeper with the guy as it goes along because you get to know him almost.

00:55:21Guest:Yeah.

00:55:22Guest:Yeah.

00:55:22Guest:That's the greatest when you say something and you go, oh, I guess that's who he is.

00:55:27Guest:Oh, I guess I guess I have that trait.

00:55:29Marc:Him being that.

00:55:30Guest:Yeah.

00:55:31Marc:So you came out here in 2001 and you were just you did you have an in or did you do did you just sort of like I'm here now what?

00:55:39Guest:Yeah, I had two friends who lived here.

00:55:41Guest:Yeah.

00:55:42Guest:My friend Kendra and my friend Christy.

00:55:43Guest:And I stayed on their couch for a month.

00:55:45Marc:Yeah.

00:55:46Guest:In Burbank.

00:55:46Guest:And then we got a place.

00:55:47Guest:Perfect.

00:55:48Guest:In Studio City.

00:55:49Marc:Did you hear McGuire's story about coming out here?

00:55:52Marc:On here?

00:55:53Marc:Did you hear me talk to Danny?

00:55:55Marc:It's insane.

00:55:56Guest:Yeah, it's insane.

00:55:57Marc:It's insane.

00:55:58Guest:And then, yeah, there was a chunk of time where he was back and bartending and like, yeah, it's awesome.

00:56:06Guest:But yeah, and then we got a place in Studio City and then we had a weird like house in Studio City that four of us lived in that we would have.

00:56:15Guest:I don't even know how it happened, but we would, each of us would invite everyone we knew.

00:56:20Guest:We would have a party and invite everyone we knew.

00:56:23Guest:So I would invite everyone I'd ever met in any improv class ever.

00:56:28Guest:My friend Kendra was like cocktail waitressing, so there would be like giant, giant amounts of people from like, I forget, I think she was working at either the Ice House or the Comedy Store or something.

00:56:42Guest:Oh, really?

00:56:43Guest:Yeah.

00:56:44Guest:The other two would invite, and so we would have these giant like,

00:56:48Guest:90s movie style parties.

00:56:51Guest:Yeah.

00:56:51Guest:Where like it was wall to wall in this weird house.

00:56:54Marc:It happened to those, yeah.

00:56:54Guest:Yeah.

00:56:55Guest:I don't even understand how it happened.

00:56:57Marc:And there'd be like one celebrity there?

00:56:59Guest:Maybe.

00:57:00Marc:And you'd just see the one celebrity head.

00:57:02Guest:Like, who knows that guy?

00:57:03Guest:But it would be like something weird.

00:57:05Marc:Right, right.

00:57:06Guest:This guy was never at our party, but I remember we saw him somewhere once.

00:57:09Guest:The guy who played Mr. Belding from Saved by the Bell.

00:57:11Guest:It would be like that.

00:57:12Marc:Yeah, yeah.

00:57:13Marc:I was once at a party where it was all packed out and I just saw John C. Reilly's head.

00:57:17Marc:I'm like,

00:57:17Guest:Oh, who's that guy?

00:57:20Marc:Years ago.

00:57:21Marc:I think it was like Dave Cross's house or somebody in Westfield.

00:57:25Guest:Oh, man.

00:57:26Guest:But yeah, I lived with them and was improvising and doing stuff.

00:57:28Guest:And right when I moved here, I also started at the Groundlings and then was working my way up through there.

00:57:34Marc:Did you do that?

00:57:35Guest:Yeah, I'm in the main company.

00:57:36Marc:Now?

00:57:37Marc:Yeah.

00:57:38Marc:You're a Groundling.

00:57:39Guest:Yeah, yeah.

00:57:41Marc:Wow.

00:57:41Marc:So you started, so you were doing the improv, the other thing, but you got into the Groundlings.

00:57:45Marc:You knew that was a thing.

00:57:47Guest:Yeah, I think I knew that was a thing, like, maybe from high school, just from online, you know, looking at stuff.

00:57:55Marc:I didn't realize that.

00:57:56Marc:So you went through the whole thing, the whole process?

00:57:58Guest:Yeah, you got to go through all the stuff and get voted on.

00:58:01Marc:I don't know what generation are you.

00:58:03Marc:Like, who was in your troop?

00:58:05Guest:So my generation is...

00:58:07Guest:like my sort of senior group when I was in the Sunday company before I became a groundling were me and my pal Drew Droege and my pal Mikey Day, who's at SNL right now.

00:58:19Marc:Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

00:58:20Marc:He's good.

00:58:20Marc:Now, were you ever looked at for SNL?

00:58:23Guest:Yeah, I went and tested in like...

00:58:27Guest:Maybe like, it was either, maybe 2009 or something like that.

00:58:31Marc:Good experience?

00:58:32Marc:Bad?

00:58:32Guest:Oh, like so weird.

00:58:33Marc:Yeah, it's weird.

00:58:34Guest:Because I found out like a day and a half before.

00:58:36Guest:Oh.

00:58:37Guest:And everyone else knew they were going like two weeks ahead of time.

00:58:39Guest:Yeah.

00:58:39Guest:And so it was that weird thing of like.

00:58:41Marc:So you had to pull the characters together.

00:58:42Guest:Yeah, which I had a ton of, but I was like riding on the plane.

00:58:45Guest:Yeah.

00:58:45Guest:And then like trying to memorize in a hotel room.

00:58:48Guest:Yeah.

00:58:48Guest:And like, yeah, it was just very, very weird.

00:58:51Guest:And then I went and guest wrote.

00:58:53Guest:They came to like a showcase.

00:58:54Guest:Yeah.

00:58:55Guest:Later and I went and guest wrote.

00:58:57Guest:I don't know when that was, maybe like 2015, whatever Seth's last year as a head writer was.

00:59:03Guest:I did like a two week thing and got something on both weeks, which was cool because I felt like I got to have the whole experience of like a live thing and a film thing.

00:59:12Guest:But they didn't keep you or how'd that go?

00:59:13Guest:Well, they called back a few times to like check my availability.

00:59:17Guest:Right.

00:59:18Guest:But one of the times I was...

00:59:21Guest:Still under contract, I think, to this sitcom I had done with Kelsey Graham or Martin Lawrence.

00:59:27Guest:Which one was that?

00:59:27Guest:It was called Partners.

00:59:29Marc:Yeah.

00:59:30Guest:It was the last of those weird 1090 things.

00:59:35Guest:Yeah.

00:59:35Guest:Where they would do 10 episodes instead of a pilot.

00:59:38Guest:And then they would go like, well, if this goes, we'll make 90 of them.

00:59:42Marc:Yeah.

00:59:43Guest:It was that thing.

00:59:44Marc:Oh, oh, oh, the syndicated weird.

00:59:46Guest:Yeah.

00:59:46Marc:Right, right, right.

00:59:47Marc:Yeah, yeah, yeah.

00:59:47Guest:So we just did 10 of them, but I think we were still waiting to know what happened with that.

00:59:52Marc:That's the worst feeling, though, to be stuck in something that you just took, and then you have the other thing that you really want to do, and it's like holding you.

01:00:01Guest:Well, it was weird because I had such a strong feeling of everything happens for a reason.

01:00:07Marc:Yeah.

01:00:08Marc:You do.

01:00:09Guest:Yeah.

01:00:10Guest:Well, sometimes I do.

01:00:11Guest:Sometimes I don't.

01:00:12Marc:Because then it's like, well, this is a bad reason.

01:00:15Yeah.

01:00:15Guest:Yeah, sometimes you feel that.

01:00:17Guest:The second time they called to check my avail, I was doing the second season of Vice Principals, and that, I was like, oh, fuck, does everything happen for a reason?

01:00:28Guest:Because I was so happy doing that.

01:00:30Guest:Vice Principals?

01:00:30Guest:Yeah.

01:00:31Marc:Oh, that's great.

01:00:32Guest:Thanks, man.

01:00:33Marc:That's great.

01:00:34Guest:Yeah.

01:00:34Marc:So you're like, fuck SNL.

01:00:36Guest:I don't know if I was like, fuck SNL, but I felt like, oh, that's fine.

01:00:42Guest:I'm so happy doing what I'm doing.

01:00:44Marc:That's great.

01:00:45Marc:Because you know after a time and after you've had some experience and you seem to have done a lot of episodic work and everything else.

01:00:52Marc:You were no stranger to it.

01:00:53Marc:That, you know, entering the SNL world is its own thing.

01:00:57Marc:Yeah.

01:00:57Marc:And it's not it's not it's not always a great experience.

01:00:59Marc:Sure.

01:01:00Marc:And you're sort of at the whim of, you know, Lauren and whatever the situation is.

01:01:06Marc:It could be it could really work out or could be horrible.

01:01:08Marc:It's a hyper competitive environment.

01:01:10Marc:Totally.

01:01:10Marc:And you're already doing this show where you can you're taking comedy to a level they could never take it.

01:01:15Guest:And, like, yeah, you get to do things on a show like that that, yeah, you would never get to do anywhere else.

01:01:21Marc:I mean, that show is, like, it's almost incomprehensible.

01:01:25Marc:You know, Eastbound and Down is another thing.

01:01:28Marc:It seems that that crew...

01:01:30Marc:McGuire and what's the other guy's name?

01:01:33Marc:Green and Jody Hill.

01:01:35Guest:Sorry, every time you say that, I'm pausing because I'm like, oh, is he talking about someone I don't know?

01:01:40Guest:Oh, who is it?

01:01:41Guest:No, but it's because when you say McGuire, I know you mean McBride.

01:01:45Guest:McBride, I'm sorry.

01:01:46Marc:McBride, Danny McBride.

01:01:48Marc:I'm sorry.

01:01:49Marc:I'm an idiot.

01:01:50Marc:I'm sorry if my eyes are sort of like... You should correct me because I'm old.

01:01:55Marc:Now I feel bad.

01:01:56Guest:No, I don't.

01:01:56Marc:McBride.

01:01:58Yeah.

01:01:58Marc:Now I'm going to have to put a correction in for the earlier mistake.

01:02:02Marc:Danny McBride.

01:02:04Marc:So it was McBride, Jody Hill and what's the other guy's name?

01:02:07Guest:David Gordon Green.

01:02:08Marc:David Gordon Green.

01:02:10Marc:Because they like they seem to do with what, you know, like Breaking Bad or what or what in the other show, like these sort of like groundbreaking shows that take the medium a different place with comedy.

01:02:22Marc:Where like you're seeing things that you've never seen before.

01:02:24Marc:There's situations where it's like, what the fuck is this?

01:02:27Marc:Where does this come from?

01:02:28Guest:Yeah.

01:02:29Marc:So it has no, it's its own context that what they do.

01:02:34Guest:Oh man, I totally agree.

01:02:36Marc:So before we get to that though, how, so what do you do?

01:02:38Marc:You kick around, you get an agent, you're doing the groundlings and it looks like you did a lot of episodic stuff.

01:02:44Guest:Yeah.

01:02:44Guest:Like, you know, just getting whatever I could.

01:02:47Guest:Yeah.

01:02:48Guest:You know, I had some really lame agents.

01:02:50Guest:And then I did, I weirdly did this movie.

01:02:55Guest:I had done this sketch and improv show on and off for a year in Vegas.

01:03:01Marc:Yeah.

01:03:01Marc:Oh, really?

01:03:02Guest:Kind of back and forth.

01:03:03Guest:This thing that Rita Rudner and her husband produced.

01:03:07Yeah.

01:03:07Guest:Called Boo.

01:03:09Guest:And it was this late night.

01:03:10Guest:I like her.

01:03:10Guest:Yeah, she's so nice.

01:03:12Marc:But it was a live thing?

01:03:13Guest:Yeah, it was this live thing that we would go on after her and do like this weird sort of like almost scary improv and sketch show.

01:03:21Guest:Like on and off for a year.

01:03:23Guest:It was this thing where they were like, come do this for six weeks.

01:03:25Guest:Yeah.

01:03:26Guest:And we're like, great.

01:03:27Guest:Every night?

01:03:29Guest:I think we had Mondays and Sundays off.

01:03:33Guest:Yeah.

01:03:34Guest:For a while, it was just Mondays off.

01:03:36Guest:It was very like Broadway style.

01:03:38Guest:Yeah, in Vegas.

01:03:39Guest:And then it just kept like it was selling well.

01:03:42Guest:So they were like, do six more.

01:03:43Guest:So it was that kind of thing where you would sometimes have subs for a while.

01:03:47Guest:Yeah, it was decent.

01:03:50Guest:And it was the first thing that I was like, oh, cool.

01:03:53Guest:Now this is how I make my money.

01:03:55Guest:Even if I need to like make this stretch.

01:03:57Guest:Yeah, yeah.

01:03:58Guest:and I'm living so frugally, this is how I'm gonna make my money.

01:04:04Guest:So that was super cool in that way.

01:04:06Guest:But anyway, we made this movie with them after, this very indie movie about a family over three or four Thanksgivings.

01:04:17Guest:And yeah, I went and met Rita's agent at the time through that.

01:04:21Guest:And then from then on had like really nice, awesome agents.

01:04:26Guest:But I had terrible ones before that.

01:04:29Marc:So you went with him?

01:04:31Marc:That agent?

01:04:32Guest:Rita's agent?

01:04:33Guest:Oh wow.

01:04:34Marc:Well that's great, cause she's great.

01:04:37Guest:I'm not with him anymore, but I love him forever.

01:04:39Marc:But it got you into the game.

01:04:40Guest:Yeah man.

01:04:42Marc:There's something on here that I've never seen before that you did a bunch of episodes.

01:04:46Guest:What?

01:04:46Marc:Was it an animated thing?

01:04:48Guest:Oh, yeah, maybe.

01:04:49Guest:Yeah, I've done a bunch of episodes of this thing, We Bare Bears.

01:04:52Marc:Yeah, that one.

01:04:53Guest:Yeah.

01:04:53Marc:What is that?

01:04:54Guest:It's this really cool Cartoon Network show.

01:04:57Guest:It's one of those that's for kids, but it's actually really funny.

01:05:01Guest:Yeah.

01:05:02Guest:Yeah, I do this other one at Cartoon Network now called The Fungies.

01:05:06Guest:And same thing, the guy who writes it is so funny.

01:05:08Marc:They're fun.

01:05:09Marc:Yeah.

01:05:09Guest:Yeah.

01:05:10Marc:Anything that you can just do voices on.

01:05:11Marc:Oh, man.

01:05:12Marc:Because it's so weird.

01:05:13Marc:I'm doing a movie, and...

01:05:15Marc:It's amazing how physical you get when you're just doing voices.

01:05:18Guest:Yeah, totally.

01:05:19Marc:It's wild, and it happens naturally.

01:05:21Guest:Are you an animal or a person?

01:05:23Guest:Animal.

01:05:24Guest:Yeah.

01:05:25Marc:I've been at quite a few animals.

01:05:26Guest:Yeah.

01:05:27Marc:I was a person once on Metalocalypse.

01:05:28Marc:I was a squirrel on Adventure Time, and I think I was a hermit crab.

01:05:35Marc:on the Tony Hale's new show.

01:05:38Guest:What animal are you in this?

01:05:39Marc:Can you say or no?

01:05:41Marc:Yeah, I'm a snake.

01:05:43Guest:Yes.

01:05:44Marc:Yeah, but you know, it's not like Disney.

01:05:45Marc:You don't have to go, hey, how's it going?

01:05:49Guest:So it's not full Jungle Book.

01:05:51Marc:No, no, you know, they want you to be you.

01:05:52Guest:Yeah.

01:05:53Marc:So how does that happen?

01:05:54Marc:Because that's really, I think, the first time I...

01:05:56Marc:really saw you was with Vice Principals, and I'd watched most of Eastbound and Down, but Vice Principals was just too fucking much.

01:06:05Marc:Like I had to watch all of those.

01:06:08Marc:You know?

01:06:09Marc:And so how do you get, because there's a very specific bunch, I don't know how he chooses people or what the process is,

01:06:16Marc:or how he found you, but like in this season, your character, like I'm at a point where you just start singing.

01:06:22Marc:I won't spoil it anymore, because that's towards the end of the ones I have.

01:06:27Marc:But, you know, and he's got Goggins in there, and Goodman, and Adam Devine, and him, and McBride himself, but then there's always these ones where you're like, where'd they find the ex-Satanist guy?

01:06:41Guest:Oh, right, yes.

01:06:43Marc:How that guy owns the screen, it's sort of like, what's happening?

01:06:49Guest:That's crazily, that's my friend Tony, who is a groundling with me, who weirdly, I went to a dinner with Danny after he had done all the casting stuff.

01:07:02Guest:Yeah.

01:07:03Guest:And we were at a dinner with like eight people or whatever.

01:07:07Guest:And he was like, oh yeah, I think we figured out who Keefe is going to be.

01:07:10Guest:It's this dude, Tony Cavallaro.

01:07:12Guest:And I was like, what?

01:07:15Guest:I mean, how random is that when someone you know gets cast unbeknownst to you on the show you're on?

01:07:20Marc:So he's not like that at all.

01:07:22Guest:No, he's he's a pretty like high energy dude.

01:07:25Marc:It's crazy.

01:07:26Marc:That's kind of a crazy character.

01:07:28Guest:But I think he I think he got that role in a similar way to that.

01:07:33Guest:I got vice principals, which is just went and auditioned.

01:07:36Marc:So that's how that's how you met those guys.

01:07:38Guest:Yeah, I went.

01:07:39Guest:Sherry Thomas was casting it, and she had me in.

01:07:42Guest:And I didn't know Danny and Jody Hill were going to be there.

01:07:44Guest:Yeah.

01:07:45Guest:I just thought it was a regular, like, go in, get on tape.

01:07:47Guest:She'll send it to them.

01:07:49Guest:And they were there, and I had done this weird commercial, like the tiniest thing in a Toyota commercial years before that Jody directed.

01:07:58Guest:Yeah.

01:07:59Guest:And I walked in.

01:08:01Guest:He was like, oh, hey, Edie.

01:08:02Guest:And I was like, what?

01:08:05Guest:You remember that thing?

01:08:06Marc:Yeah.

01:08:07Guest:But I didn't know Danny at all, and I only kind of knew Jodi.

01:08:12Marc:Had you watched Eat's Found?

01:08:13Guest:Yeah, I loved all their stuff.

01:08:16Guest:Yeah, loved it.

01:08:19Guest:So yeah, I came in and I assumed I would be reading with Danny since he was there.

01:08:22Guest:And I was like, okay, so cool, so we'll read it together.

01:08:26Guest:And he goes, no, and you'll be reading with Sherry.

01:08:29Guest:So I just did the scene with Sherry in front of them.

01:08:32Guest:Yeah, I improvised a little bit, and...

01:08:36Guest:Yeah, that's how that happened.

01:08:37Guest:And then we got on set and had such a weirdly instant comedy chemistry.

01:08:44Marc:You and McBride?

01:08:45Guest:Yeah.

01:08:47Marc:Were just annoyed and, you know, kind of like... Yeah, like...

01:08:52Guest:It just was so immediate that he, yeah, he morphed the whole second season.

01:08:58Guest:I was supposed to do, I think, three episodes in the first season.

01:09:02Guest:And then, yeah, he just kept morphing it, which was the best thing ever.

01:09:07Guest:It's the best thing ever in life.

01:09:08Marc:He just built, there was a big arc in the, what was it, the second season with you?

01:09:13Guest:Yeah, for sure.

01:09:14Marc:Yeah.

01:09:15Guest:Yeah.

01:09:15Marc:Just because you guys were so fucking funny together?

01:09:17Guest:Yeah, we just had such a good time together.

01:09:19Guest:He's such a fucking funny, smart dude.

01:09:22Marc:I know, it's crazy.

01:09:23Guest:Yeah.

01:09:23Marc:And it's very unique and it's very, you know, he's one of the few guys that can be, you know, the most colossal asshole and still be endearing.

01:09:30Marc:Yeah.

01:09:30Marc:That's always been my favorite kind of comedic character.

01:09:33Guest:Oh man, me too.

01:09:35Marc:They're such assholes, but you know at heart they're their own worst enemy and there's no way they're gonna get out of their own way.

01:09:40Guest:Yeah, they're just so hurt.

01:09:42Guest:Like deep down they're so wounded.

01:09:45Marc:So how much improvising is involved with that, with like vice principals really?

01:09:51Guest:Like a fair amount in the doing, like we oftentimes would get how it's scripted, but then, you know, if it was Danny and I in a scene or whatever, it would usually open up a little bit into other things, but it's, you know, as you know, it's not the kind of improvising where it's like, let's think of funny jokes.

01:10:12Guest:No, no, no, yeah.

01:10:12Guest:It's just being that person and letting the truth happen.

01:10:15Guest:Yeah.

01:10:17Guest:Which every now and then, yeah, it would.

01:10:19Marc:But mostly scripted.

01:10:20Guest:Yeah.

01:10:22Guest:Yeah, there was always room to find stuff, though.

01:10:24Marc:I think what's very funny about the characters, like in this one, too, in the Gemstones, with the Righteous Gemstones, is that there's some sort of bizarro sexuality going on.

01:10:37Marc:Like your sexual drive shaft is somehow like...

01:10:41Marc:way fucked up in a good way.

01:10:44Marc:But just like in Vice Principles, it was just the obsessive kind of like hungry thing.

01:10:50Marc:And in this one, it's like a little more angry somehow.

01:10:54Guest:Yeah, it's a little more angry and frustrated.

01:10:57Marc:Yeah, and you've got this weird kind of like impotent-ish husband who doesn't quite, and you're kind of ass-obsessed somehow.

01:11:07Guest:Ah!

01:11:08Marc:Ha!

01:11:09Marc:Ha!

01:11:09Guest:Yeah, weirdly ass obsessed.

01:11:12Guest:Yeah, I feel like they're probably into some kink, Judy and BJ.

01:11:19Marc:Yeah, but I don't get, yeah, right, right.

01:11:21Marc:But it happens spontaneously.

01:11:23Marc:It just happens fitting their characters.

01:11:25Guest:Yes.

01:11:26Marc:But when you saw this group, what did you, they just called you up and offered you this thing?

01:11:31Guest:Yeah, so after Vice Principals, Danny and I had written a movie and then kind of wrote another one.

01:11:38Guest:Yeah.

01:11:39Guest:We wrote this thing for me, actually, that he'll direct at some point.

01:11:43Guest:We just haven't figured out who's going to make it and when to do it.

01:11:47Guest:Right.

01:11:48Guest:And just discovered we wrote really well together.

01:11:52Guest:Yeah.

01:11:53Guest:And he, kind of in the process of us writing stuff, he had thought of the gemstones.

01:11:58Guest:Yeah.

01:11:59Guest:And...

01:12:00Guest:Yeah, asked me to play Judy, his sister, and then later asked me to come write for the season.

01:12:05Marc:So you're writing too?

01:12:06Guest:Yeah, yeah.

01:12:07Marc:Oh, that's great.

01:12:08Marc:Yeah, because I watch, it's weird because I'm watching the first one.

01:12:10Marc:You've got pretty high expectations comedically out of this crew.

01:12:14Marc:And I was like, this is pretty matter.

01:12:15Marc:This is kind of like just setting up a story and like, when's the weird shit happen?

01:12:19Marc:And then it happens, you know?

01:12:21Guest:Yeah, then it happens.

01:12:23Marc:Yeah, then it happens and it keeps happening.

01:12:26Marc:I just like the idea that these stunt men are just, these stunt people are just unkillable.

01:12:30Marc:I know.

01:12:32Marc:Like, you know, after the first time, I don't want to give away anything, but after the first encounter where they get, you know, killed.

01:12:40Marc:It's so violent.

01:12:41Marc:Yeah, it's just horrendous.

01:12:42Marc:And then they're like.

01:12:46Guest:I mean, they're messed up.

01:12:48Guest:They're bloody, but it's like.

01:12:50Guest:They made it?

01:12:51Marc:Yeah, but there's just this attitude they have.

01:12:53Marc:Sort of like, I'm all right.

01:12:54Marc:Yeah, yeah.

01:12:57Marc:It's a very funny kind of world to have characters from.

01:13:02Marc:Hollywood stunt people.

01:13:03Guest:Yeah, totally.

01:13:04Guest:That used to make us laugh a lot.

01:13:06Guest:Oh, what is that like?

01:13:08Guest:What's the mindset of that?

01:13:10Guest:There's bound to be a ton of great people in it, but there's bound to be some douches as well.

01:13:16Marc:Let's highlight some douches.

01:13:17Marc:They're real...

01:13:18Marc:They're kind of crazy people.

01:13:21Marc:I read a book about the Wild Bunch, Peckinpah's Wild Bunch, the making of it.

01:13:25Marc:And there's a whole crew there.

01:13:27Marc:They're crazy.

01:13:28Marc:Motorcycles are jumping off of things.

01:13:30Marc:The life they live is hard.

01:13:32Marc:I don't want to generalize, but it seems like you've got to be a certain ilk.

01:13:36Guest:Totally.

01:13:37Marc:And who's the guy that plays that guy?

01:13:40Guest:Scott MacArthur.

01:13:41Marc:He's funny.

01:13:42Guest:Yeah, he is.

01:13:43Marc:Where's he from?

01:13:44Guest:He did a bunch of seasons on the Mick and was a writer for it too.

01:13:49Marc:Yeah.

01:13:51Guest:Yeah, I mean, I'm sure he's done a ton of other stuff, but that was his main thing before this.

01:13:55Marc:Yeah, I love it.

01:13:55Marc:I love it.

01:13:56Marc:It's really getting good.

01:13:58Marc:And I saw the coming attractions for it, and then I thought, did they re-edit some of the press screeners or no?

01:14:03Marc:I didn't realize that there were three more that I got to wait for, like everyone else.

01:14:08Guest:Yeah.

01:14:09Guest:I think they get really, really good.

01:14:11Yeah.

01:14:11Marc:Yeah?

01:14:12Marc:Yeah.

01:14:13Marc:And I'm excited about it.

01:14:15Marc:So now you've got this movie written and waiting to do with McBride.

01:14:21Guest:Yeah, we'll do it at some point.

01:14:23Marc:And what else are you working on?

01:14:25Guest:I did Rian Johnson's new flick that comes out on Thanksgiving, that Knives Out, that murder mystery thing.

01:14:33Marc:Oh, okay.

01:14:34Guest:Yeah, which is a crazy, like, old-school, full-on murder mystery.

01:14:41Guest:Oh, wow.

01:14:42Guest:Yeah.

01:14:43Guest:And I did a thing in the new Between Two Friends movie, and I did this movie, Troop Zero, that I think is coming out soon.

01:14:54Guest:What is that?

01:14:55Guest:It's this thing, Allison Janney and Viola Davis are the leads of it, and it's...

01:15:03Guest:Sort of a...

01:15:06Guest:Kind of a Bad News Bears Girl Scout troop.

01:15:09Guest:Oh.

01:15:10Guest:Yeah, the movie revolves around a ton of kids, but the woman who wrote it, Lucy Alibar, also wrote Beasts of the Southern Wild.

01:15:20Guest:And so it's got this almost Spielberg-y vibe.

01:15:25Guest:Oh, wow.

01:15:26Guest:Where it feels like, oh, this is a cool movie for adults.

01:15:29Guest:Oh, good.

01:15:29Guest:Yeah.

01:15:30Marc:That sounds cool.

01:15:31Guest:Yeah, yeah.

01:15:31Guest:It's kind of magical.

01:15:32Marc:And you're still doing the improv and everything?

01:15:33Yeah.

01:15:33Guest:Yeah, did an improvised one-person show last night.

01:15:37Marc:How was it?

01:15:37Guest:Yeah, it went great, thank God.

01:15:40Guest:I get so jacked out nervous before that show, and that's not my-

01:15:49Guest:No, no.

01:15:50Guest:This one is one I do at the Groundlings sometimes that's just literally a one-person show that's improvised with one person.

01:15:58Guest:And I play all the characters.

01:16:01Marc:I've got to come see this shit.

01:16:03Marc:How come I don't go to the Groundlings?

01:16:05Guest:I don't know.

01:16:06Guest:I'll tell you when to come.

01:16:07Marc:Yeah, do.

01:16:07Marc:Do you have my number?

01:16:08Marc:I think you do.

01:16:09Guest:I don't know.

01:16:09Guest:Let's write it down.

01:16:10Marc:Well, we can do it off mic.

01:16:12Guest:Great.

01:16:12Guest:Actually, can you write it with that Sharpie so we can hear the numbers on the page?

01:16:16Marc:Yeah, absolutely.

01:16:18Marc:God forbid I have a regular pen.

01:16:19Marc:Now, is your husband in show business?

01:16:21Guest:Yeah, he's the AD of that group, Impro Theater.

01:16:24Guest:Oh, okay.

01:16:25Guest:And he is a writer.

01:16:27Guest:He wrote a book that's out recently about how improv integrating into your life and how it can help your life.

01:16:36Guest:Oh, yeah.

01:16:36Guest:Because, you know, basically it's just like.

01:16:38Guest:People skills.

01:16:39Guest:Get your people skills.

01:16:40Guest:Yeah, it's a cool life philosophy.

01:16:41Guest:Yeah.

01:16:42Guest:To like, just be in the moment and want what you have.

01:16:47Guest:And speak up.

01:16:49Guest:Be open.

01:16:49Guest:Yeah, be open to what's happening instead of like going way into your head.

01:16:53Marc:Allow as opposed to, what would you say?

01:16:55Marc:What did you say?

01:16:55Guest:Yeah, allowing as opposed to trying.

01:16:57Marc:Oh, yeah.

01:16:58Guest:That man, oh man, I have to do so many mental gymnastics before that show I did last night, that improvised one person thing.

01:17:05Guest:To get into it?

01:17:05Guest:My brain goes fucking crazy.

01:17:08Guest:What does it do?

01:17:09Guest:Just awful nerves of like, oh my God, it's sold out.

01:17:13Guest:There's so many people here.

01:17:14Guest:I don't know what this is going to be.

01:17:16Guest:I'm about to make this up.

01:17:18Guest:What am I doing?

01:17:19Guest:Why did I agree to this again?

01:17:22Guest:What am I doing?

01:17:23Guest:And then I literally have to go to a place in my head where I go...

01:17:28Guest:I thought of this, like the second or third time I did it, I had been home in Texas for like a month and a half because my dad got sick.

01:17:40Guest:He had a couple of strokes and it was a fucking hard time.

01:17:44Guest:And I came back because I was scheduled to do that show.

01:17:46Guest:And I remember driving there and going like, oh my God, like almost out of my body, so nervous.

01:17:52Guest:And I remember the only thing that calmed me down was thinking, well,

01:17:56Guest:Nobody knows when they're going to die.

01:17:57Guest:I could die later tonight.

01:18:00Guest:All I have is this, let it rip.

01:18:04Guest:And I've found that that's a very helpful philosophy in most of life.

01:18:09Guest:Because then you can just be where you are and whatever happens, happens.

01:18:12Guest:Let's see what happens.

01:18:13Guest:Nice.

01:18:13Guest:And usually it's better than you thought.

01:18:15Guest:Yeah.

01:18:15Guest:Whatever thing, whether it's going to get coffee, doing this, doing a show.

01:18:21Guest:If you just go like, fuck it, I don't know.

01:18:23Guest:Let's see.

01:18:24Marc:Well, I think you've probably always had this, and it's probably what got you through that existential crisis in fourth grade.

01:18:29Guest:Maybe.

01:18:30Guest:I don't know.

01:18:32Guest:Thank goodness.

01:18:34Marc:It's great talking to you.

01:18:35Guest:Yeah, you too.

01:18:40Marc:Edie Patterson, what a sweetheart.

01:18:45Marc:So funny.

01:18:46Marc:I just, big fan.

01:18:50Marc:The Righteous Gemstones on HBO, new episode Sunday nights.

01:18:53Marc:And now I will play my Stracticaster for you.

01:19:01Stracticaster

01:20:06Marc:Boomer lives.