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Lorne Michaels (Part 1) | Full Episode | Fly on the Wall with Dana Carvey and David Spade

October 07, 2022 / 48:21

This episode features Lauren Michaels, the legendary producer of Saturday Night Live, discussing his career, relationships with cast members, and the evolution of comedy.

Dana Carvey and David Spade interview Lauren Michaels, who reflects on his long tenure at SNL, emphasizing his emotional connections with cast members and the show's history.

They discuss iconic moments from the show, including the creation of characters and sketches, and Michaels shares anecdotes about notable films like Tommy Boy and Wayne's World.

The conversation touches on the challenges of producing a show for decades and the importance of collaboration between writers and performers.

Listeners gain insight into Michaels' perspective on the current cast and the future of SNL as they celebrate its 50th anniversary.

TL;DR

Lauren Michaels discusses his SNL legacy and relationships with cast members in a candid interview with Dana Carvey and David Spade.

Video

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we have uh the Great and Powerful Oz on
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the show uh more Michael the became the
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unintentional star of the podcast
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because he's the Touchstone for all the
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Saturday Night Live people is Lauren
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Michaels the common denominator the yeah
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the touchdown the common denominator the
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touchtonator the thing that everyone
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talks about a lot that's more unwieldily
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than the Touchstone but we are thrilled
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to get him and um
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it uh he's our most commonly asked
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guest when will you have Lauren when
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will you have Lauren and he was very uh
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cool to do this because he doesn't do a
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lot of stuff and he doesn't like to be
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bothered and uh I wouldn't either you
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got he's got a lot going on yeah I took
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a chance I called him up at home and I
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said Lauren hi this is Dana we'd love
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you to come on the talk on our podcast
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and he goes I don't know who this is but
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uh no I don't know so I can't even no he
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was great so he comes in and he came to
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the house and did it and uh you know it
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really reminded me of being back at us
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now because me you him it's like sitting
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at read through or sitting in a meeting
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and you have that reverence form and uh
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you want to make him laugh he's like a
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father figure in a weird way you know
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a lot of pretty much everything I've had
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is based on SNL and him keep me on there
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so he's he's very interesting guy to
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talk to he's as smart as they come and I
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don't know I I probably should have
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brought up my Lauren impression but I've
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talked to him about it off Mike uh
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before at a restaurant how I then I got
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him at you know in 86 when he was in
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during the uh trying to pick the show I
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still have no [ __ ] First Act and that
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was the first time I got his rhythm and
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then we talk about laurenisms on the
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show you know you never leave a hit and
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he he's a brilliant guy I mean he really
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uh is fun to listen to you know it's a
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funny one I can't see who it was but
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someone we know did a movie and uh he
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was a pretty big star and
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and it opened very poorly and I was in a
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limo with Lauren and I go uh do you
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think he'll get another movie
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and he goes well not every Studio wants
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to lose 30 million and work with an
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[ __ ] some do
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not all of them well that's kind of his
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humor yeah that's exactly a good Lauren
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this is this is what Lauren would say
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his sense of humor so we're we're at the
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meeting and it's the last show and you
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go oh this is our last show we have a
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two-week break so it'd be like really
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really nice if the show was really good
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instead of a bad show you know I would
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do this one take a dive tonight we have
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we're being reviewed
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so you know he's a just a fascinating
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character we got to sit with him for for
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a long time and he proved to be very
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fascinating everything and I really said
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we hung up hey we didn't talk over keep
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talking okay Dana
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we didn't even so we didn't we
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referenced for not talking over the
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guests because uh he's a great
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Storyteller and uh we get into a lot of
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things we get into the current cast and
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and and his emotional relationship with
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cast members and how long he has been
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there 50th Anniversary never happened
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before in the history of Television a
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guy producing a show up for a half
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century
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so it's an amazing you were incredible
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in this interview David I have to say
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Dana you really sparkled
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all right here he is our uh main man
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main man Lauren Michaels
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[Music]
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Conan's got some money coming in um we
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first of all want to thank you for
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coming into your uh responsible for
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pretty much everything in my life yes in
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the uh course we have to embarrass you
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and thank you we had no plan for this
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podcast this meeting this won't be in
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any way no we'll be we'll come it's not
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used or aired but you are a surprise and
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Delight everyone who was on the podcast
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started talking and saying nice things
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about you how much they love you so we
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just thought well can we get him to come
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on so here we are well I I haven't done
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anything else
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that's the amazing part yeah but as I
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said I have a background of radio
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chips
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getting snacks what will make the least
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noise because can we open the chips and
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make a lot of noise and then not as much
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noise do you like flaming hot I don't
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know I'm just reaching for you yes
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[Music]
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don't worry about the noise and we'll um
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I'm sorry
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and there's protein bars if you're stuck
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so if you're really stuck just grab
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those those are not too I'll just talk
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to Dana for a while are you staying at
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the Beverly Hills Hotel
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uh and the Margarita Road emergency
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there because they're doing the show Bob
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because oh okay
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yeah touchstones one is the Beverly
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Hills Hotel which you're a huge fan of
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in Aspen you stay at the what Aspen was
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more houses okay
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St Barts is another touchdown yeah and
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of course and my grandson I remember
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when I'm now Maine
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oh you did finally pull the trigger
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Maine Maine
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I wasn't cc'd on that so Maine I'll show
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you pictures that's pretty far out there
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I don't think you can't control them we
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talked about that last time as you get a
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little older you're pretty young you
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want to get into the country and you
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want to get in wide open spaces and you
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want to get to the landscape of your
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childhood yes and this is as close to
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Canada as you can get without going to
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Canada
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oh is that what it is nice okay sort of
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yeah you're Canadian so and what part of
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Canada just real quick uh Toronto what
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part is this near or what part but you
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were sort of Toronto am I right yeah I
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told you Dana
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but I I left in 1972.
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it's changed yes and is was the reason
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we did Tommy Boy in Toronto because of
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that or was it a tax no I think that was
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Paramount was just they would have done
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it in Budapest if it was cheaper yeah
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yeah that's usually where it moves what
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was the cost of Tommy Boy versus Wayne's
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World one I just want to know about we
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were 13-5 or something yeah yeah well
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Wayne's World 35 days of filming and
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which film is your personal favorite
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I think we're more like 25 oh it could
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have been it seemed like 35 million no
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no no 25 days of shooting oh yeah very
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quick one take Penelope spheris towards
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the end
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uh when Howard Howard Koch uh heart card
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was uh they were doing the board and and
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uh
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Paramount person that I was
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uh who's giving us directions and you
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know if you can make this movie for 12-5
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I'll leave you alone and that was sort
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of the whole idea of it and then we had
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an extra day or two and at one point the
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Rob Lowe character was gonna have Dennis
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Hopper as a father
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and uh so there was a dynamic between
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the two of them which would play off in
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the sense of the Counterpoint
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and then they said you have to
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don't have the extra two days so oh that
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went away use Mike Barro's phrase We
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smooshed it uh into one character and
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that was Rob
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oh okay he was great Kurt Fuller that
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was ended up ended up being lightning in
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a bottle I only saw the previews and I
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remember been told before where the
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Paramount guy came back we did the
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previews Mike and I are possessed while
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they're watching ourselves we're kind of
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depressed it's got Ghostbusters numbers
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let's eat right that's what is that
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right we were in the restaurant we were
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okay because I was older
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um
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we did for sentimental reasons a preview
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in Wayne New Jersey because it had I
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think that's where it was yeah and then
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we went to a restaurant that was
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happening in SoHo which had a tin roof
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and uh everybody was ordering Mike was
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in complete depression because it wasn't
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a movie he thought he wanted you know
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what it was all that and he said it got
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an 86 let's eat 86. okay
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for those of you at home is higher than
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80. there's two boxes so it means yeah
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two boxes yes and also that it added up
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to that it could be 88 it could be 91
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but it was something where he thought
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why would you want to keep talking oh we
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got like we won yeah
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and uh that was sort of it took me like
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a while to get used to it and then he
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went into the editing room and and uh
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but it was all there it was all there in
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that first cut and part of it was just
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how fast it moved and the exuberance of
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it and
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as I say most people in America when
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they're when they're choosing
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any kind of entertainment the phrase
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looks like fun is the most
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and I've figured out for myself later
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why so popular I thought the two
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so-called losers in town they dropped
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AMC Pacers parents are having way more
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fun yeah than anyone in the town so
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that's like who wouldn't want to live in
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that world Tommy Boy I remember you took
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me to Chili's after and um
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it wasn't quite Tommy boys paid for 35
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million no zombie boys probably around
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the same like same thing well it was
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always from the studio was always you
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know these movies have to be made for a
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prize you know 15 20 million dollars is
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a lot of money yeah yeah and then you go
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well we can do this for 20. no no I said
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15 to 20. we're gonna aim for for 15 but
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we may end up at 20. but
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um but once that happened you were left
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alone I think because nobody considered
00:10:01
it important which was a big plus yeah
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you know and I could watch Tommy Boy and
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be really comfortable because I'm not
00:10:07
wearing are seeing myself yeah and just
00:10:09
thought it was the start of David's film
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career but for Chris it feels to me like
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it captured Chris completely yeah yeah
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like his physical comedies like about
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the sentimental side which was kind of
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him fighting for the walk through the
00:10:22
factory and the scene in the boat and
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the bagpipes yes that was great it's
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like Three Amigos it just gets shinier
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and brighter as Paul and also they're
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meant to be fun yeah do you know what I
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mean and everyone I think when somebody
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asked me
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in an interview about Waynesboro what
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were you aiming for
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and I said you know uh really a
00:10:45
confection you know because I said uh
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in a Marx Brothers movie no one cares
00:10:51
for the Fredonia won the war you know
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it's gonna go it's it's gonna go 80 90
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minutes it's gonna be as funny as it can
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be and then it's gonna good night and uh
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and everybody's happy and so the idea
00:11:03
that you're going to be tied to a plot
00:11:05
and have to stick with scenes that
00:11:07
didn't work because they're going to
00:11:09
tell the story as opposed to
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you know Wayne's World's board or has
00:11:15
show boy lose the show appointments
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Tommy Boy we always say like if you went
00:11:20
and pitched a movie of two guys selling
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brake pads in Ohio yeah we got to do
00:11:24
this of course it just really I think it
00:11:26
was Lauren saying uh these two are kind
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of funny around the office and I think
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he told the Turners Bonnie and Terry
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Turner said can you write something
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about that and it was
00:11:36
around the office and then said if you
00:11:39
can and they did a good job of doing
00:11:40
that and then you kind of take a moment
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or two in Coneheads too yeah yeah which
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had already established yeah and Mike
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despite the best efforts of you know
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Mike and Dana was in Wayne's World and
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uh we had a bit we had a bit of a
00:11:56
competition I guess that's what Paul
00:11:58
would say you heard cheers of the
00:12:00
audience and then yeah
00:12:04
but we've lived long enough to be very
00:12:07
good friends and love each other
00:12:12
[Music]
00:12:14
the one thing I thought I of my notes to
00:12:17
ask you why did you cast me
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what was originally at the show yeah on
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SNL because there was no Garth there was
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only way but I mean why did you cast me
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on SNL
00:12:29
that was a huge spot you know and then
00:12:33
you took me and you didn't take a lot of
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brilliant people so Jim Carrey I'm very
00:12:37
grateful for it but I didn't see Jim
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Carrey
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uh of Frankie Davis oh there's someone
00:12:43
else from somebody else they said it's
00:12:45
too big for you yeah I mean I mean
00:12:48
looking back because you make the
00:12:49
decision well I think you did cast it I
00:12:51
don't know if like a situation comedy
00:12:52
but like it was different lovetts was a
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flavor Phil was a role and some I fit in
00:12:58
there and you rolled the dice and I'm
00:13:00
ever grateful for it but it seems at the
00:13:02
time I did not have a lot of confidence
00:13:04
I didn't know what was going to happen
00:13:05
you know well I think Lovitz was there
00:13:08
from the year before yeah
00:13:10
it's a cruel thing you've burnt the cast
00:13:14
yes exactly everyone's got burned up in
00:13:16
a fire I think that was Frank and then
00:13:18
as long as I started to skim that sketch
00:13:21
I didn't really
00:13:22
yeah yeah but um I sort of knew uh you'd
00:13:27
fit
00:13:27
from thank God uh what was the name of
00:13:30
the club you saw it yeah for people
00:13:33
don't know but now I'm here with Lauren
00:13:34
yeah I had auditioned other times they
00:13:37
said you were coming around I didn't
00:13:38
want to do at the comedy store and then
00:13:40
Rosie O'Donnell was there I got 40
00:13:42
minutes yeah I'm waiting to go on first
00:13:44
of all I'm terrified right because it's
00:13:45
a dream like everyone else you come
00:13:47
through the door there he is then
00:13:50
Brandon tarikov the head of the network
00:13:51
tartar sauce and then I'm like oh [ __ ]
00:13:54
I'm so nervous and then share and they
00:13:57
sat down in the club
00:14:01
that was probably my only night with the
00:14:03
children but I know but we were
00:14:06
somewhere and they I think sure said
00:14:08
where you're going and I said well I'm
00:14:09
going to go see somebody I think is good
00:14:11
club oh I'll come and then Brandon went
00:14:13
well I want to go too or he was first I
00:14:16
don't remember the order but yeah uh and
00:14:18
they all laughed uh but that wasn't the
00:14:21
deciding factor it was just for me you
00:14:24
had uh clear I mean you were funny and
00:14:29
you could never much anytime you talk
00:14:31
about funny for longer than a minute
00:14:33
you're not funny it's not good it's
00:14:35
still Whimsical that I found myself to
00:14:37
that place at that time no and also I'd
00:14:39
never been there before probably since
00:14:41
and uh as I said I've been with those
00:14:43
people either but uh I do know Cher I
00:14:46
guess and but when I run into her she
00:14:48
says I was there when you were just
00:14:51
her life was so open yes and and nice
00:14:55
and uh she just wanted
00:14:57
everyone everyone to win yeah also if
00:14:59
Dana's doing
00:15:01
um told me to jump in but if he's doing
00:15:02
church lady chopping broccoli things
00:15:04
that literally in your head you could
00:15:06
probably just pluck and put right on the
00:15:07
show it's their first show nothing yeah
00:15:10
The Whimsy of the Church Lake because it
00:15:12
was part of the set it was probably five
00:15:13
minutes of the character and I remember
00:15:16
okay we'll try it who knew and I worked
00:15:20
with your ex-wife Rosie Schuster for a
00:15:22
month you you assigned me to a writer
00:15:24
she was the one who said Church chat
00:15:25
because we thought of a talk show yeah
00:15:27
and I remember bringing the two dresses
00:15:29
into you one was a little more feminine
00:15:30
and you just pointed to the one we used
00:15:32
yeah and then as it turns out it was
00:15:36
such a great thing for the show because
00:15:37
I had Phil and Jan coming in and being
00:15:39
brilliant and or Sigourney Weaver the
00:15:41
first show and Victoria Jackson
00:15:44
and then Sean Penn and then all these
00:15:47
religious scandals so again that was a
00:15:49
freaky lucky thing for for us I think it
00:15:52
was like very often with the character
00:15:55
uh you have to find at least my end of
00:15:57
it is you have to find the context
00:15:59
uh you know with with Mike and and you
00:16:03
in Wayne's World it was like
00:16:05
he had a very specific look in mind
00:16:07
which was the basement stairs coming
00:16:10
down Nora played the mother yes
00:16:14
um hair metal I think what didn't the
00:16:16
guard thing was I think you should do it
00:16:18
with Dana and and somehow that evolved
00:16:21
that was your suggestion yeah for sure
00:16:22
he and then the moment it worked it was
00:16:26
like on a ten to one and it played
00:16:28
played pretty well uh because it was
00:16:31
fresh and had energy and it looked like
00:16:33
fun and it was
00:16:36
um
00:16:36
and then after that
00:16:38
Mike had been with the show
00:16:41
three months four months oh yeah
00:16:43
something like that or but after that it
00:16:44
was like why are we in that corner right
00:16:47
yeah and you're in that corner because
00:16:49
you designed a set that had the stairs
00:16:52
you're as far for the audience as
00:16:54
possible so from that point on I think
00:16:56
it moved to home base yes and that was
00:16:58
like yeah we don't need the background
00:17:00
which is incredibly powerful
00:17:03
you can really time time the laughs
00:17:06
where the monologue is
00:17:07
where the monologue is I'm just telling
00:17:09
people at home yeah yes where it's like
00:17:11
because you can get the audience right
00:17:12
down there as the warm up which was was
00:17:14
designed a certain way and it's still
00:17:16
the same uh you're you're moving down
00:17:20
you know like somebody's somebody does
00:17:23
now it's it's Che right uh and then
00:17:26
Keenan comes out and sings the girls and
00:17:29
then you sort of the lights start to go
00:17:32
down and you know you're looking at that
00:17:34
spot yeah or you're looking where the
00:17:36
cold opening is going to be you're
00:17:37
trained and so you get a sense of where
00:17:39
the focus is it's just amazing Lauren
00:17:42
you're you're still there and I I've
00:17:44
come back a few times and did update or
00:17:46
whatever you can't get past it I mean
00:17:49
you'll never forget it and I think that
00:17:50
for all of us who are unknown go on the
00:17:53
show and for the audience to see Will
00:17:55
Ferrell do what he did see how David
00:17:57
evolved it's such an amazing visceral
00:17:59
experience there's nothing like it and
00:18:02
the music and the way you kept it the
00:18:04
same is extraordinary that you didn't
00:18:06
let any regime trick you out and change
00:18:08
it what's interesting is there's four
00:18:11
new people coming in and it's amazing
00:18:13
because of the pandemic we couldn't let
00:18:16
there was no place for everyone to go so
00:18:19
we kept adding people because you have
00:18:20
to add people every year and suddenly we
00:18:22
have like 23 people
00:18:24
yeah and everybody you're not playing
00:18:28
time and so uh and then
00:18:32
people left and and so it was so much
00:18:36
fun seeing these these new people
00:18:38
because they're they're exactly where
00:18:40
you should start they've never been on
00:18:42
television they don't know they don't
00:18:44
generally if they have representation
00:18:46
it's
00:18:48
primitive and uh you just sort of see
00:18:51
them and there's like that exuberance
00:18:53
and excitement and uh and there it just
00:18:56
shows and that energy shows and so when
00:18:58
you when you start with people who've
00:19:00
never been on television and the
00:19:02
audience gets to be part of that process
00:19:04
and live with them through it yeah then
00:19:08
I I used to say I'm going to say it now
00:19:11
again
00:19:12
um that the four longest years of your
00:19:14
life are high school yes you don't have
00:19:17
any money you don't have a car any girls
00:19:20
and so staying up late with friends or
00:19:24
staying up late by yourself to like one
00:19:28
o'clock in the morning it's like a
00:19:29
really exciting thing so when people say
00:19:32
the best cast that ever did it generally
00:19:35
it's when they were in high school
00:19:36
totally so if they you know and they go
00:19:39
oh well no the best was you know you and
00:19:40
Hartman and you you know when you go and
00:19:43
follow
00:19:49
and you talk about with your friends
00:19:51
that's the only game in town yeah
00:19:52
especially back then like that I mean
00:19:54
there's more competition now and it's
00:19:55
great that you're still crushing it
00:19:57
because with so many things to choose
00:19:59
from that was I think when you have a
00:20:02
transition kind of now where some are
00:20:04
leaving that you know more familiar
00:20:05
faces yeah uh it doesn't mean anyone's
00:20:07
not as good it's just some people get
00:20:08
more opportunities coming up and the
00:20:10
same thing happened it took me longer to
00:20:12
get my footing when we had Dana
00:20:14
unfortunately was just too good it was
00:20:16
oh no and also I think Ben Stiller came
00:20:18
in at the same time as Mike yes but he
00:20:21
sort of saw this could be a long wait
00:20:23
you know like because Sandler everybody
00:20:26
was there and it was killing it and uh
00:20:30
and what was interesting about that time
00:20:34
was the only people who liked it were
00:20:36
the audience
00:20:37
critically it wasn't
00:20:39
it's a golden age now yeah
00:20:42
Barstow Sports said we were a great we
00:20:45
were the best cast and then you back
00:20:46
then they were like this is the worst
00:20:47
bunch of [ __ ] untalented even when
00:20:50
we had on a given night back in the late
00:20:52
90s or early 90s sorry late 80s we would
00:20:54
have toonces I'm talking about just we'd
00:20:57
have a sprockets maybe I do Bush or
00:21:00
Perot or McLaughlin group Mike might do
00:21:03
uh talking lady whatever her name was
00:21:05
but we had so many women sing a song
00:21:08
David would do a Hollywood minute yeah
00:21:09
so there was a given moment in time you
00:21:11
must have felt like she hey I got a lot
00:21:13
of and you need to hit we're doing that
00:21:16
documentary on Jim Downey which yeah I
00:21:18
talked to him for four hours it's only
00:21:20
going to take 10 years
00:21:22
we're gonna use three minutes or
00:21:24
something like that but my son Eddie is
00:21:26
working on it right he grew up kind of
00:21:28
on the show Etc but uh but not doesn't
00:21:31
really know that period no and Too Young
00:21:33
it keeps showing me things from that
00:21:35
period that are like hilarious and one
00:21:37
of them you showed me recently was uh
00:21:40
parole on Larry King
00:21:42
and it's so funny here's a perfect
00:21:45
perfect Downy piece you're created it
00:21:47
will will was great Larry King doing it
00:21:50
she's not known for it and there was
00:21:53
Chris Catan in there it was people their
00:21:56
platforms were very exotic and Ross
00:21:58
Brown was the same old thing because
00:22:00
he's same old dribble every time we've
00:22:02
been doing this can I finish one time
00:22:03
are you gonna keep talking all ten
00:22:05
percent I mean the rhythm of that was so
00:22:07
infectious I never had more fun doing a
00:22:10
character you could do that speed you
00:22:12
always had that ability that was
00:22:14
something I saw in the audition
00:22:15
you could you could move something that
00:22:18
fast
00:22:19
if it if I can catch a wave with it
00:22:21
rhythmically in my head and I know that
00:22:23
it's like casting a line to the audience
00:22:24
can I finish one time yeah and I know
00:22:27
you're gonna laugh right now because you
00:22:29
can't not laugh because that's why I'm
00:22:31
talking can you figure it that way I
00:22:32
know it is exactly like a song yeah it's
00:22:35
extrapolate but you were you audition
00:22:38
with music
00:22:39
I did have I did have a little piano
00:22:41
thing and stuff but I'm not recommending
00:22:44
that because it's really time to tell
00:22:46
it's about to say for that reason the
00:22:48
other night just I was at the Improv
00:22:50
doing a benefit and I'm kind of bombing
00:22:52
I mean I'm not I'm doing okay yeah and
00:22:54
then I go [ __ ] it I go I did a thing on
00:22:57
SNL called Chop and broccoli it's packed
00:22:59
so I do it and give it all my all on the
00:23:01
piano so Innovation so I should never go
00:23:04
on and do anything else it killed yeah I
00:23:06
thought that story was I only did it
00:23:08
once they think it is because people ask
00:23:09
me all the time it was we gave him a
00:23:12
name to me it was just random rock star
00:23:14
what was he called Derek something yeah
00:23:17
so it's Brit it's rich but it's not my
00:23:20
cart no no it's not McCartney and then I
00:23:22
buried it by we did a sketch where the
00:23:25
record company it was a little too
00:23:27
sophisticated tells him he has to die
00:23:30
because his record sales will go up and
00:23:32
look what happened to Jim Morrison and
00:23:34
Hendricks but I don't want to die it was
00:23:36
one of those and it laid it laid there
00:23:37
but broccoli lives on you know Lauren
00:23:39
when you when you watch these auditions
00:23:41
it's interesting because I was newer to
00:23:44
Comedy all I want to do is kill and
00:23:47
because I my audition was different
00:23:48
we've interviewed a lot of these people
00:23:50
and I'm hearing a lot of more at 8h
00:23:52
which would be just horrifying but uh
00:23:55
and it's dead silence you know and
00:23:56
everyone's out there and shoemaker's
00:23:57
eating peanuts you know no one it's like
00:23:59
hey come down for the audition it's
00:24:01
tough to audition but when I also
00:24:04
weren't you brought in a little bit as a
00:24:06
writer well the thing was I came in and
00:24:09
Dennis right before I walked on people
00:24:11
were catch Rising Star you might have
00:24:12
been there I don't actually don't even
00:24:13
know if you were there it was you know
00:24:14
some writers came down a handful was me
00:24:16
Rob Schneider and Tom Kenny and we were
00:24:18
just doing stand-ups so we do it and
00:24:20
Dennis Miller comes up before and he
00:24:22
goes hey spuddling he goes you're gonna
00:24:25
bring the a game and I go I mean that's
00:24:27
all the a I got I mean I don't know it
00:24:28
might be a b but it's not saving
00:24:30
anything my besties might be B and he
00:24:32
goes uh yeah I'm saving it for another
00:24:33
audition
00:24:35
for America uh Idol so I go listen um
00:24:39
yeah and he goes you don't want to kill
00:24:41
too hard throws a red flag with these
00:24:44
guys they don't want to get some Road
00:24:45
hack and I go so don't do good they're
00:24:47
like David Spade I go Dennis don't do
00:24:50
good so good but I realized now when I
00:24:53
watch comics and stuff I look at writing
00:24:56
so I can tell someone has game and
00:24:58
two lines you know what I mean it's like
00:24:59
Name That Tune I go first line might be
00:25:01
a fluke and then they do the next joke
00:25:02
and I go there's something going on here
00:25:04
yeah and it's like um
00:25:06
you get an eye for it so I think you
00:25:08
guys all had that and it and I can watch
00:25:10
someone and not see if they kill or not
00:25:12
I don't almost hear it I just go oh
00:25:13
that's a good one oh that's a good one
00:25:14
so Dennis said later or maybe down he
00:25:17
said no we liked your writing so I don't
00:25:20
even know I don't think we did that well
00:25:21
but that didn't matter it was more like
00:25:23
oh I like the way you put that together
00:25:24
or that thought or that and that I
00:25:27
appreciate you to describe that that
00:25:28
sensibility that you look for well what
00:25:31
I think was happening then was we had to
00:25:34
cut a murderer's row of people yeah that
00:25:36
we're gonna be dominating for a long
00:25:38
time so you're gonna get to be Ross
00:25:41
Perot but in the other day
00:25:48
do both parts I saw David sitting in the
00:25:52
corner and he looks so sad but it was
00:25:55
just for the wide shot it was a fluky
00:25:57
thing but yeah that was you did well but
00:25:59
what I'm getting at is that there's you
00:26:01
were Perot there's a thing which I've
00:26:04
done a bunch over the years which is
00:26:06
I'll bring someone in as a writer you
00:26:08
know they're you know they're going to
00:26:10
be cast eventually you buy some time but
00:26:12
they won't go through that self-doubt
00:26:14
why am I not getting on and people say
00:26:17
I'm on but I you know I don't see enough
00:26:19
whatever I added that though to my
00:26:21
stress I'll talk to comedians who've
00:26:23
auditioned and they tell me what they've
00:26:25
auditioned with in the last five or
00:26:27
eight years yeah and I won't tell them
00:26:28
but I'm thinking to myself not going to
00:26:30
get it yeah and whether it was like
00:26:33
you're not afraid of any kind of humor
00:26:35
if it was something that's got a logical
00:26:36
but it wasn't funny and I could just
00:26:39
tell it didn't fit
00:26:40
kind of the frequency of you Lauren
00:26:43
Michaels and your lieutenants there's a
00:26:46
certain thing and I it's hard to
00:26:47
describe it because it's it's got a wide
00:26:48
bandwidth but there is something you can
00:26:51
see it at read through when someone new
00:26:53
puts in something everyone goes oh Jesus
00:26:57
an honest room yeah there's no Bernie's
00:27:00
not there you know like so there's not
00:27:02
that and the Network's not there there's
00:27:05
no booming laugh you know from so it's
00:27:07
got yeah it's yeah it didn't play and
00:27:10
same with the show when something
00:27:12
doesn't work there are no laughs on the
00:27:14
air so yeah who do you blame that's the
00:27:16
highway that's the fairest thing in the
00:27:18
world yeah really and also you feel you
00:27:20
burned it yeah but there are people like
00:27:23
Bowen I brought in as a writer he's
00:27:25
great oh and there's you want people to
00:27:28
see how the process works because it's
00:27:30
figuring it out those first few weeks
00:27:33
that you know that's it and that's
00:27:34
caught you know like that and how fast
00:27:37
it goes and costume changes and uh while
00:27:41
he's pointing at it yeah a line that
00:27:43
changed or the writer forgot to tell you
00:27:45
I think Chris Rock ran into that problem
00:27:47
of you know we were stressed that we in
00:27:50
frustrated we were getting on fast
00:27:52
enough but Chris Rock comes in and
00:27:53
they're like you're Eddie Murphy now and
00:27:55
you're on in seven sketches and
00:27:57
franken's screaming at him about a
00:27:59
Confederate he's playing in general and
00:28:00
he's going no and I'm like poor Rock
00:28:03
he's in too much like it's too much
00:28:05
right away yeah and here's the cards and
00:28:07
here's this well and I think it got him
00:28:09
off it was a tougher situation for the
00:28:11
guy who's one of the funniest yeah but
00:28:12
you knew at least I knew he was really
00:28:16
good yeah of course but normally you get
00:28:18
to develop in the background right
00:28:20
because you watch a little bit Phil and
00:28:22
Jan and I were in the cold opening and
00:28:24
I'd never done sketch comedy just stand
00:28:25
up so my first show and I wasn't I
00:28:28
didn't realize later I guess I knew I
00:28:30
was before the mall alarm I didn't I
00:28:31
didn't know I was in the coal opening
00:28:32
right that's how green I was we were
00:28:34
just in the first one it was Game Show
00:28:36
psychic I don't know if it was Jack
00:28:37
candy is that what it was
00:28:40
Jack Handy sounds funny you know I would
00:28:42
answer the questions and Phil was a
00:28:43
perfect in Jan and so we had no time to
00:28:47
really acclimate but it was kind of nice
00:28:48
everyone was really involved but this is
00:28:50
something Higgin said and I don't know
00:28:52
if he made it but that you basically
00:28:53
wrote the Constitution of Saturday Night
00:28:56
Live and then you see all these
00:28:58
incarnations so I'm a baby boomer I'm
00:29:00
doing late 80s stuff and then you you're
00:29:02
the constant and then you're seeing what
00:29:04
kind of Will Ferrell stuff or Bill Hader
00:29:06
humor and then Kate mcginnon and so
00:29:08
you're adaptive in a sense you're
00:29:10
observing so these new four people are
00:29:12
you seeing something just a little 2022
00:29:15
one of them by the way is from Arizona
00:29:17
shut the [ __ ] up and I said yeah and he
00:29:21
said yeah that's where David Spade's
00:29:22
from famous they told you
00:29:28
but and also the changing culture of
00:29:31
Comedy but you're still there and you're
00:29:33
adapting right I mean yeah and and I
00:29:35
think
00:29:37
the room is great you know and and uh
00:29:42
you know oh yeah
00:29:44
and it's a safe space so you kind of
00:29:48
people relax into it I mean it's scary
00:29:50
for the auditions of course yeah but
00:29:52
it's also at some point you have to bat
00:29:54
at Yankee Stadium if you're gonna be the
00:29:56
major league so pretending that that
00:29:58
won't exist and you go right from a club
00:30:00
to on the air wouldn't work no passing
00:30:04
through that threshold because it's
00:30:06
scary
00:30:09
[Music]
00:30:11
and for you personally because I always
00:30:13
saw you kind of as a coach in a way that
00:30:17
so everybody everybody
00:30:19
you're always doing sports metaphors I
00:30:21
mean you complimented me once third
00:30:23
person said uh Lauren said you reminded
00:30:26
him of Don Mattingly
00:30:27
so I was like that I looked it up take
00:30:30
it but you you you see all these
00:30:33
personalities come and go and have you
00:30:35
gotten more studer that you surprised
00:30:36
you you kind of go well this cast member
00:30:38
will be like this I think this one's
00:30:40
going to do well later I mean you must
00:30:42
have some intuitive sense
00:30:44
or is it all just sort of surprising
00:30:46
sometimes I mean like of these four
00:30:48
you've just hired right you know do you
00:30:49
have a sense of maybe 10 years ago uh
00:30:55
somebody who's new to the network but
00:30:57
you know like uh was a senior person we
00:31:00
were having dinner and he said can I ask
00:31:02
you an SNL question
00:31:04
well that's nice sure no it was great I
00:31:06
don't he said you know the update with
00:31:09
Joe's and Shea
00:31:11
uh do you think that's working
00:31:13
and I said no they said oh you know
00:31:17
and I went yeah no no it's a it's a
00:31:21
thing of like
00:31:23
the way I say it which is unpleasant is
00:31:25
that all babies are ugly unless they're
00:31:26
your baby and after three months people
00:31:29
say what a beautiful baby and you have
00:31:31
to live through that period of people
00:31:34
not being good somebody blows a line
00:31:36
somebody comes in on a wrong foot
00:31:38
somebody gets accumulate well he doesn't
00:31:41
the card doesn't come up it's all that
00:31:43
and people go I don't think that guy's
00:31:45
that funny and you go no he is
00:31:47
and I think when you see chemistry and
00:31:50
you sort of know they're going to work
00:31:52
well together
00:31:54
you and Chris yeah you know it was just
00:31:57
there from the beginning it was their
00:31:58
off stage but it was also very clear on
00:32:01
camera well it seems like the audience
00:32:02
starts to discover you and like you
00:32:04
because you get enough base hits and
00:32:06
then you as a performer and David we
00:32:08
just get more confident and that feeds
00:32:10
on itself also you go from however
00:32:14
successful you thought you were to
00:32:16
famous
00:32:17
and that transition is just different
00:32:19
suddenly and if in the first season we
00:32:23
had a limo for the host that was that
00:32:26
was the extent of our budget but uh and
00:32:29
at the party
00:32:31
uh
00:32:32
John Belushi would quite often go and
00:32:35
sit with the hose towards the end and
00:32:37
then as they're getting into the limit
00:32:39
say you know so John would say I'll drop
00:32:42
you off and uh about the host at the at
00:32:46
the hotel and then he would just drive
00:32:48
around all night with his face like
00:32:50
people limos are rare then so who is
00:32:54
that and then he'd just be you know hand
00:32:56
on the roof yeah I like when we first of
00:32:59
all we didn't have cars back then it
00:33:01
wasn't that far long ago but to this to
00:33:03
the set which probably was better be to
00:33:05
have because it's snowing and they're
00:33:07
like Marcy's like spit are you here I'm
00:33:09
down at Manny honey and I'm like well I
00:33:11
I'm trying to get there I live on the
00:33:13
west side but in snowstorm and then I
00:33:15
get there and then afterwards we got to
00:33:17
share like you know made sense Cass gets
00:33:20
a car I'd share one with any feature
00:33:23
player whatever and then uh and Norm
00:33:24
would take one to Atlantic City anyway
00:33:27
where he did very well
00:33:30
Marty's like
00:33:32
um I'm telling Lauren immediately uh but
00:33:35
I was going to ask you about you just
00:33:37
said something about Farley do you
00:33:39
remember this stupid story where Farley
00:33:40
was dating uh Aaron at work and uh
00:33:43
remember that this is just someone that
00:33:46
worked at the office very a nice uh very
00:33:48
cute girl and then on the break they
00:33:50
broke up and and they came back and she
00:33:52
started dating Steve Martin and so
00:33:54
Farley comes back from Wisconsin and uh
00:33:57
Sandler and I are in the office and he
00:33:59
goes so uh smoking I hear uh Aaron's got
00:34:03
a new fella and I go yeah but he doesn't
00:34:05
know and he goes well he might be richer
00:34:09
but he's not funnier and he's not better
00:34:12
looking and he's not more famous we're
00:34:15
like
00:34:16
whoops all three and he's like shut the
00:34:20
[ __ ] up when I got
00:34:22
you can't get better than Seymour that's
00:34:24
a tough one yeah so so Lauren yeah so
00:34:27
Lauren I have a lot of questions yeah go
00:34:29
ahead look at this
00:34:31
um it seems to me like you love it when
00:34:34
the cast and the writers are melding you
00:34:37
don't want either side to really
00:34:38
dominate completely I think I made the
00:34:41
choice because when I worked on the show
00:34:43
Laugh-In which was a number one show it
00:34:46
was to which I contributed almost
00:34:48
nothing
00:34:50
writer yeah but we were never at any
00:34:53
read through mm-hmm
00:34:55
we we didn't go to the studio
00:35:00
and other people would rewrite it and
00:35:02
whatever it wasn't what I thought
00:35:04
working at a comedy show would be and so
00:35:07
the idea of elevating the writers
00:35:10
because every every person from the
00:35:12
network in particularly everyone in the
00:35:13
control room goes oh the writers can do
00:35:15
no wrong
00:35:15
[Music]
00:35:17
but the point with it is it's
00:35:20
that collaboration between a performer
00:35:23
and a writer is and then the performers
00:35:26
all learn how to write do you remember
00:35:28
or at least how to recognize because the
00:35:30
survive no rhythm and timing you know
00:35:33
that's too many words cut that back yeah
00:35:35
you know what I mean and the the writers
00:35:38
theoretically thinking about content of
00:35:40
some sort they don't like to trim yeah I
00:35:43
would tell Al and Jim I go with a bush
00:35:44
cold opening you got to cut some words
00:35:46
out because I feel like I'm doing
00:35:47
homework I feel like I used to get
00:35:49
through it and they they did it but yeah
00:35:52
and and they do it immediately because
00:35:54
they never talk back they never ever
00:35:56
argue with you or whatever I didn't
00:35:58
realize how much they all wanted to be
00:36:00
on camera
00:36:02
and then you saw change bank with Jim
00:36:06
is great Silvertones man commercial
00:36:09
parodies were another secret weapon I
00:36:11
think there's just a thing of watching
00:36:14
people on a stage really enjoying
00:36:19
themselves feeling uncomfortable when
00:36:21
that level of confidence is there and
00:36:23
you know that you got it it's just a
00:36:26
different thing and it comes through at
00:36:28
home you just can tell it's exhilarating
00:36:30
on the 40th because Mike and I were
00:36:33
closing the show yeah which I want to
00:36:34
talk about the 40th because I think it
00:36:36
was sort of magic but I said we should
00:36:39
either be very offended or very
00:36:40
flattered because it's a four-hour show
00:36:42
and there we come as Wayne Garth hey and
00:36:45
we so happen to land it so beautifully
00:36:47
and Kanye West was there and we kept
00:36:50
going to him and I felt so in the pocket
00:36:52
but God you had to fight the nerves
00:36:54
because everyone was a famous person
00:36:56
yeah and that was a tough room and yet
00:36:59
and worse uh because the seating was
00:37:02
screwed well
00:37:04
the 40th was just a fly by the seat of
00:37:07
your pants I mean it wasn't a normal
00:37:08
people were still coming in and you know
00:37:11
and I had to send to Jimmy and and uh
00:37:14
Justin out so they really took a bullet
00:37:17
you know like because people were moving
00:37:19
in still seating and they're performing
00:37:21
because the audience was only
00:37:23
celebrities right yeah and they're only
00:37:24
live at eight o'clock yeah former hosts
00:37:27
music and then you had a spillover room
00:37:29
and people were mad there in the
00:37:31
spillover room that room
00:37:35
and by the way I don't think there's any
00:37:37
plus ones yeah it was just and the 50th
00:37:41
will have no plus ones so what do you
00:37:43
think of the 50th I mean isn't it
00:37:44
surreal yeah I I mean and then uh uh I
00:37:49
was gonna I have to give an enemy's
00:37:51
speech and I hadn't planned on it oh
00:37:52
that's right congratulations we win
00:37:54
again yeah no it was like seven years in
00:37:56
a row or something yeah six six still
00:37:59
I'm thinking about next year you have to
00:38:02
write this stuff down there
00:38:03
uh I think I was gonna say you know like
00:38:09
I don't want to say well I'm getting
00:38:10
ready for season 48.
00:38:13
because it's insane it's just you know
00:38:16
what I mean yeah and yes it was five
00:38:17
years I wasn't there you know after the
00:38:19
first five but it's you just sort of go
00:38:23
uh and the other thing that's familiar
00:38:26
to people who are joining the show is
00:38:28
the school year you know that that we
00:38:32
come in in the fall take Thanksgiving
00:38:34
off or take Christmas off uh you know
00:38:37
Easter whatever and spring break and
00:38:40
then it's summer and you go away and uh
00:38:43
the original plan was not the network
00:38:45
just wanted us to do three shows a month
00:38:46
all year round and I went
00:38:48
the seasons are going to run into each
00:38:50
other and also it's so
00:38:55
such a pressurized environment you have
00:38:59
to get away from everybody I mean for me
00:39:01
because I want to kill everybody by the
00:39:02
end oh yeah and you're just a little
00:39:04
more to get out yeah and so you go
00:39:06
weighing around the end of July you go
00:39:08
yeah I could go back start the message
00:39:10
yeah now when the network or the whoever
00:39:13
the people you talk to about the show
00:39:15
try to convince you to do something how
00:39:17
do you I mean if you how do you navigate
00:39:19
that I mean have you ever lost an
00:39:21
argument because it seems like you've
00:39:23
have a winning percentage of keeping the
00:39:25
show
00:39:26
quality or or it's it's it was anything
00:39:30
to do with religion particularly in the
00:39:33
70s there was Jim used to write this uh
00:39:36
thing called what if
00:39:38
uh and it would always be
00:39:41
written in by a 10 year old paper boy
00:39:43
from out to Illinois and uh anyway what
00:39:47
if Spartacus has a had a piper cup you
00:39:49
know it's like those kind of right and
00:39:51
then we do a redactment of it okay and
00:39:53
at the time uh
00:39:56
state senator in New York in arguing for
00:40:00
capital punishment said that if the
00:40:02
Romans hadn't believed a capital
00:40:04
punishment there would be
00:40:07
know Jesus and the Reno Christianity
00:40:10
which seemed insane to me but I I
00:40:13
understood how you could get there
00:40:14
logically and uh the movie straight time
00:40:19
which was Dustin Hoffman coming out of
00:40:21
you know on parole and the his yes
00:40:26
friends trying to get him back into
00:40:28
crime so we did it as Jesus does you
00:40:33
know gets off with three to five and
00:40:35
then he uh is some of the Apostles are
00:40:40
going to come on one more Miracle no one
00:40:42
gets hurt
00:40:43
you know now to me it was just comedy
00:40:47
you know but it really got uh okay and
00:40:50
it uh and it because you'd have to know
00:40:54
the relationship between me and Howard
00:40:55
because in the first five years you'd be
00:40:58
like well we can't just do pop and I go
00:41:02
well I'm you know we wanted this and so
00:41:05
that week we had Keith Jared and it was
00:41:08
like jazz piano and it was brilliant but
00:41:10
it was like now this sketch which was
00:41:13
nine minutes we're arguing up until air
00:41:16
really at 11 o'clock which point it's
00:41:19
like I'm going uh really yeah you're
00:41:24
denying the Divinity of Christ which I
00:41:26
go we're not really it's you know uh
00:41:30
yeah and maybe that's the Canadian part
00:41:31
but all I'm getting at is it was like uh
00:41:35
an absolute no
00:41:36
no no not even that and I said to one of
00:41:40
the network people who was in the room
00:41:42
who all spare uh
00:41:44
does this offend you and he said listen
00:41:48
Lord I'd let you put [ __ ] sucking on the
00:41:50
air we'll get a 40 share so I'm the
00:41:52
wrong guy to ask oh this is really
00:41:54
helpful thank you
00:41:59
[Music]
00:42:00
well we had Mr clockworthy I think yeah
00:42:03
in the in the age and in church chat I
00:42:06
initially had penis in there a lot and
00:42:08
he wanted some of those cut out and so I
00:42:11
substitute for penis I put in more your
00:42:13
throbbing bulbous area it was way more
00:42:15
pornographic but that's good no penis
00:42:18
yeah and I think that for us you know uh
00:42:22
because it's live and because we were on
00:42:25
the honor System at the beginning we're
00:42:27
still on it you know I was at the Emmys
00:42:30
the other night
00:42:31
a bunch of people you know uh said [ __ ]
00:42:35
and you go yeah you're gonna get a laugh
00:42:37
you know but is that it's not an age
00:42:40
well
00:42:41
you know and uh but it is that move the
00:42:44
temptation to do it and for us we would
00:42:47
lose Affiliates if we lose right I don't
00:42:49
think you lose anything anymore but but
00:42:51
it there's something about and when we
00:42:55
were doing Wayne's World I'd been in
00:42:58
1990 I was in
00:43:00
Edward I was on something that a trip uh
00:43:05
and uh yeah and I was with people that I
00:43:08
wasn't normally with and they they
00:43:11
talked about watching the show with
00:43:13
their kids
00:43:14
now no you know in the 70s it was no not
00:43:19
supposed to trust anyone over 30 right
00:43:21
and it was like we were doing it for the
00:43:23
people we knew and we didn't think the
00:43:25
rest of the country cared and it really
00:43:27
didn't until Mr Bill showed up but uh
00:43:31
and
00:43:32
they were talking about sitting there
00:43:34
with their teenage daughter and how
00:43:37
uh how
00:43:39
great it was to both be laughing at the
00:43:42
same things as a family anyway I didn't
00:43:43
have kids so I it was kind of I thought
00:43:46
oh that and that was Schwing and sphinct
00:43:49
herself we were doing that oh the
00:43:51
Madonna the Madonna oh yeah with the
00:43:54
Avion bottle right what was the movie
00:43:56
Truth or Dare yeah yeah Truth or Dare
00:43:59
look at the thing on that guy or
00:44:01
whatever yeah I was it was and uh they
00:44:05
were doing the Avion bottle like like
00:44:06
that and she wanted to do it if I had a
00:44:09
16 year old daughter that'd be like
00:44:11
really cringed off and uh we do lots of
00:44:15
things that are shocking but I think you
00:44:16
can't just be shocking I think it's
00:44:19
great to have hard rails and so it's you
00:44:21
can be a little naughty but you can't
00:44:22
just full-blown I mean the penis sketch
00:44:25
where we're all at a nudist colony
00:44:26
fantastic piece fantastic piece really
00:44:29
holds up didn't it take a year or two to
00:44:31
get it on we lost Toyota we lost two
00:44:34
three big sponsors because people would
00:44:38
boycott a dealership
00:44:40
um and then because of that sketch yeah
00:44:41
and because people would say uh you know
00:44:46
Whoever has the dealership in
00:44:48
Mississippi is getting is calling
00:44:50
Central headquarters going there's
00:44:52
people outside here protesting and why
00:44:56
are you sponsoring that show guys at a
00:44:59
nudist colony we had a slot so you'd see
00:45:01
our legs I think Hanks was on it I think
00:45:03
it was smuggle right yes it was nice
00:45:06
penis how you doing how's your penis and
00:45:08
we said penis like intentionally like
00:45:09
300 times or something
00:45:12
missed that one I don't know yeah
00:45:15
it was where the laughs were yeah I
00:45:18
don't think it got great laughs
00:45:21
right no no I don't think so but there
00:45:23
are certain writers who never don't hear
00:45:25
laughs so you never don't hear that yeah
00:45:28
I know they're going to kill actually
00:45:30
but like old old ones like uh
00:45:32
cheeseburger cheeseburger Pepsi Pepsi
00:45:34
those I don't think kill the first time
00:45:36
around I don't think it's kills the
00:45:37
first time around and you train the
00:45:39
audience this is good and they and then
00:45:40
later they go oh those are the best and
00:45:42
you go yeah very often the first one's
00:45:44
not not a hit yeah but uh yeah we did uh
00:45:49
the very first show we're still trying
00:45:52
to find out what areas of the studio had
00:45:53
sound and we were on there there was a
00:45:56
piece that Rosie wrote uh called b b
00:45:59
hospital
00:46:00
and uh it was a maternity hospital for
00:46:04
bees and to be the apparently they did
00:46:06
the costumes and they were great to be
00:46:07
costumes and uh every now they're just
00:46:10
men pacing and then every now and then
00:46:14
the nurse would come out and say it's a
00:46:16
worker no it's a worker you know so and
00:46:20
it was just that
00:46:22
it's a worker oh yes work and then it
00:46:24
was it's a drone oh it's a drone yeah
00:46:26
anyway it played to silence because you
00:46:29
couldn't hear it it was in the barcode
00:46:31
it was just terrible so the only note we
00:46:34
got from the network was the bees thing
00:46:38
didn't work so don't do that anymore so
00:46:39
the second show the bees came on right
00:46:42
and tried and then Paul Simon was
00:46:45
hosting he said no no the bees is cut
00:46:46
because it didn't work
00:46:49
the third show they snuck on uh in a
00:46:54
sketch with uh Rob Runner and Penny
00:46:56
Marshall and then there was a long
00:46:59
more and more they're taking their
00:47:01
people are in the back or bees you know
00:47:03
it's like yeah yeah that's like a big
00:47:05
thing and then Rob went into long speech
00:47:07
about how the bees didn't work how funny
00:47:10
and then and then Belushi did that A
00:47:13
variation on that speech from Billy Jack
00:47:16
of like you know you have Hollywood
00:47:18
writers you have this you come here and
00:47:21
we okay you know like that and they kind
00:47:23
of walked off to One Tin Soldier you
00:47:25
know like and so that was then the bees
00:47:28
were there that's what we loved about
00:47:30
that show yeah it was Anarchy and it was
00:47:33
so different yeah and also don't tell us
00:47:36
what's funny
00:47:37
all right guys that was part one with
00:47:39
Lauren and we're gonna do the whole part
00:47:41
two next week
00:47:42
[Music]
00:47:44
this has been a podcast presentation of
00:47:45
cadence 13. please listen then rate
00:47:48
review and follow all episodes available
00:47:51
now for free wherever you get your
00:47:53
podcast no joke folks
00:47:56
fly on the wall has been a presentation
00:47:58
of cadence 13. executive produced by
00:48:00
Dana Carvey and David Spade Chris
00:48:02
Corcoran of cadence 13 and Charlie finan
00:48:05
of brilstein entertainment the show's
00:48:07
lead producer is Greg Holtzman with
00:48:08
production and Engineering support from
00:48:10
Serena Regan and Chris Basil of cadence
00:48:12
13.

Badges

This episode stands out for the following:

  • 90
    Biggest cultural impact
  • 85
    Most iconic moment
  • 80
    Most iconic
  • 80
    Best performance

Episode Highlights

  • A Chance Encounter
    Dana recalls his unexpected call to Lauren Michaels, who initially didn't recognize him.
    “I don’t know who this is but uh no I don’t know.”
    @ 00m 57s
    October 07, 2022
  • A Father Figure
    Dana reflects on Lauren Michaels' role as a mentor and father figure in comedy.
    “He’s like a father figure in a weird way.”
    @ 01m 18s
    October 07, 2022
  • Lauren's Humor
    Lauren shares his witty take on the film industry and studio decisions.
    “Not every studio wants to lose 30 million and work with an...”
    @ 02m 20s
    October 07, 2022
  • Nostalgia for High School
    The discussion turns to how high school memories shape perceptions of comedy.
    “The four longest years of your life are high school.”
    @ 19m 14s
    October 07, 2022
  • The Golden Age of Comedy
    Reflecting on the current golden age of comedy and its evolution.
    “It's a golden age now, yeah.”
    @ 20m 39s
    October 07, 2022
  • Broccoli Lives On
    A humorous anecdote about a past SNL sketch that still resonates today.
    “Broccoli lives on, you know.”
    @ 23m 39s
    October 07, 2022
  • Auditioning for the Big Leagues
    The pressure of auditioning for SNL compared to performing in clubs.
    “You have to bat at Yankee Stadium if you're gonna be in the major leagues.”
    @ 29m 54s
    October 07, 2022
  • The Comedy of Capital Punishment
    A state senator argued that without capital punishment, there would be no Jesus. It seemed insane, but there was a logic to it.
    “It seemed insane to me, but I understood how you could get there logically.”
    @ 40m 00s
    October 07, 2022
  • The Bees Sketch
    A sketch about a maternity hospital for bees played to silence, but the bees became a recurring theme in the show.
    “The only note we got from the network was the bees thing didn’t work.”
    @ 46m 34s
    October 07, 2022
  • Anarchy in Comedy
    The show thrived on anarchy and unpredictability, challenging norms of what was considered funny.
    “It was Anarchy and it was so different...”
    @ 47m 30s
    October 07, 2022

Episode Quotes

Key Moments

  • Unexpected Call00:57
  • Father Figure01:18
  • Golden Age20:39
  • Broccoli Sketch23:39
  • Major League Auditions29:54
  • Comedy and Religion39:25
  • Sketch Challenges41:10
  • Network Notes46:34

Words per Minute Over Time

Vibes Breakdown

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