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Bowen Yang Bowen Yang Bowen Yang has got a cool name and he's a great guest on
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our show um he fan favorite out there people really like bonang I think he's
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we go over it specifically I think he's had four em nominations like every season he's been on that show good God
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so he is a breakout star on that show he's officially yeah I think the first
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time I saw him because you know I watch more casually and I see it on Instagram and
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uh the Titanic update bit he's very creative he's got a lot of update bits that are very clever and creative um and
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that's sort of popped out and then now he's just known as a very reliable
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performer and he also pops up in movies because he's good so he's sort of covering the bases here yeah and he he
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talks about uh cringe comedy it's a very interesting discussion his process and
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uh about having fun really end of the day um on that show and he's got great
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timing when you watch him in a sketch he's very very confident out there and always always scores got we got some
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Lauren stories of course we talked about that doofus Shar Sarah Sherman because we laugh about her she's always so funny
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and they're very tight on the show and uh we don't want to give it all away but let's uh let's get to B Yang B and yang
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[Music] if there's a movie about me Dana I don't
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I don't want everyone beating me up they're like this is his life he was always getting beat up and so my
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descendants would not like that I hope the star of the movie is Chris Farley holding you over his head and throwing
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you across a basketball court that's the cold opening that's in between takes
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yeah that's real and what would be the sound that our sweet friend Chris would make then he goes that's good yeah he
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gets nervous it's great to have bow on because now we're talking to because when I went on Smart list I said oh I'm
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gonna make this easy I know how to I know what a guest is like so you do a podcast so it's already you get the
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whole thing as opposed to do can I ask questions or what do I say I might not
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but I think I think every show has its own Unwritten set of rules or whatever and you just got you just got to like
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learn how to get in there you guys are really good at it though thank you we
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like to send 200 episodes over to each guest just to get a feel for it yeah
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yeah so they can listen all the way what about Sarah Sherman what's wrong with her that's my first question what happened to her what's wrong with
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her are we all are we all like in this limerance phase with Sarah I think the three of us are all equally obsessed
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with Sarah Sherman yeah and we're coming at different angles she's a one-off and it's so so
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refreshing I mean you can't even I couldn't know I wouldn't know how to describe her she's so Charming she has
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this she has like an intergenerational appeal she has like an inter whatever gender appeal but I think like as a gay
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guy I'm obsessed with her and then in YouTu as straight guys are obsessed with her like she just has this
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Universal appeal that I I need to get to the bottom of and I would love to have
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this whole episode be about her we have to get to the bottom of it because she has she had me at
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and then she was funny and then she's bananas and then uh and and then she
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goes on the road and she's so funny because I just see clips and I'm like Sarah what's going on on the road she
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goes I don't know exactly but it's very funny and she's got a great show so but
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really enough about her um let's bring on our second guest today Sarah Sherman
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boom I would be so thrilled she would love she's she's a part she throws a party wherever she goes whenever I seen
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her and we invited and sort of like someone at least on the surface who's
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knows how to navigate life a little bit maybe not take it too seriously I don't know you know her so much better than I
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do at this point because you've seen her under pressure under stress sure how is
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she under stress and how are you on that freaking show uhhuh I think
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we're okay she is you know her and Dan bua bless them both but they will stay
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at 30 rock until like 2:30 in the morning on a Thursday trying to like get
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every page right and I am someone who is going to call it at like 9:30 and be
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like it's time to go home if you know the writer's table is what he's talking
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about probably the rewrite day they they read the sketches on Wednesday I'm telling our audience it doesn't know anything uh at 200 episodes they don't
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understand it at all so uh they uh and then Thursday they pick the sketches and then the writers would come maybe with
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one of the cast members whoever wrote it together and you the table rewrites is that sort of still how it goes they go
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sketch for sketch sketch by sketch um ends with I mean now now I'm sure people
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have told you like we usually don't have a cold open until Friday so the the cold
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open does not get a rewrite table usually oh does a cold open do a read
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through most of the time you don't get a cold open rether until Saturday at Saturday tables it's it's pretty it's
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pretty wild especially if it's political you want to wait as long as possible in case
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somebody some crazy crazy thing happens which is the Rhythm we're in now as a
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culture you feel like it's high hurdling this and now this and then what's next
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it could be good don't know but um I was just curious um about the how relaxed
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you seem I mean it seems like this is a trajectory of on on cam onam camera you
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know it's like I for our audience you were first a writer and then you became a feature player MH and you seem to then
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the audience discovers you and then there's this sort of massive leap that
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you make forward when they they know you here comes Bowen and you you've made them happy every time they see you what
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what phase of that are you in right now I think you're in the last one but
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maybe but I I did you guys ever did you guys ever like take this time let's say
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this time of you were recording this in in like late August like right before the season starts you you buckle down
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just a little bit and you're like let me like get stuff in the tank and it it never gets used but you're like let me
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just like make some of course whatever that's the thing for
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sure is that you start thinking of sketch ideas in August or anything you think of it'll never make it onto the
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show you just feel like you want to have ideas but then the week comes and there's nothing like that week um right
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but to answer your question I think I'm in the stage now where um and I don't know if this is me tricking myself into
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anything but I always want to go into each season as if it was my first year
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does that sound pathetic or something no no I think that's I think that's good to never not kind of worry a little bit is
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healthy you know I got this but you have to but like that that place will always
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knock you on your ass like no matter how developed you you feel like you are right like and especially like I I'm
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really curious about what'll happen if the show is still around for when I like return and just say hi to people or
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something just just to like visit the halls and like say hello like I wonder what that'll feel like cuz I I that'll
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be bizarre if you ever gone back to your high school um on a Sunday afternoon and
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walked around that's what it feels like okay when I went back I go everyone's so
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tiny these rooms are so tiny cuz I grew so much when I left and then I came back
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to host and I was like oh my God I fit in here um yeah I think there's when
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you're in the summer and you're trying to think of ideas and you're just really doing anything to get a head start
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that's that's kind of terrifying do you have a writer I I think Punky we just talked to Punky and she said yeah she
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had a writer or she she just great or she was a signed a writer or maybe or
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just one kind of gravitated do you have someone they let you bring on or you just work with everybody I I think I
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tend to work with everybody I I was working with suudi green who I went to
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college with and she got hired for she was like the first person in our little like codery of like comedians doing
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sketch at UCB like mid 2010s she kind of got like raptured up into that spaceship
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first and we were like oh my God like someone made it um and then she kind
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of shephered my like little lamb ass for
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the first season at SNL and then um and then she ended up working with Maya and
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um Marty a lot and then she helped Maya with her comma and so I think I think
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she'll be back for the fall um when Ma is back and then um I so it sui it was
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syi green and then she left and then um there's a writer celesty M who uh also
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works with Sarah but they were going to leave and but I I try to sort of like my my my my goal every season is just to
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like see like C like I don't know just throw a wide blanket on everybody sure you want everybody to write something
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you want to be available for every idea any anything exactly yeah exact and I think um oh this is just something I
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think you might find flattering or interesting it was for us so we first started this Tina F was like our fourth
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guest oh I so we got to discussing SNL and comedy yeah and then she just said
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have you seen Bowen Yang do the Titanic iceberg she just said I'm not saying it
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as eloquently as she did she said it's something new it's it's an angle that's just different and I thought that was
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cool I didn't I hadn't met you at that point I thought what what an interesting thing to say but it was um I don't know
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how you describe that coming about cuz that kind of that landed hard yeah and I you know I no one expected it to um but
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it was this thing that we did at read through and it kind of just happened and
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people were like oh that was cute um but it was this idea that Anna dresen who
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used to work there was the headwriter there for a season had where um we were just on a Hiatus and she was like maybe
00:10:57
in April for the anniversary of the T anic thinking you come on as the iceberg and you just want to promote your album
00:11:02
and I was like oh that's a that's funny but what would that look like I don't know like so weird yeah what what's
00:11:09
what's the attitude blah blah blah blah um but then April rolled around so a
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couple months had passed and then I was like hey were you still thinking about that Titanic idea I think that's I still
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don't quite know what it is but I think it's like I was like it sounds really funny so let's like just like put Clay
00:11:26
on the table and like get to the bottom of what it is and then with you it's also a good idea because you're like I was just
00:11:32
thinking about it yeah maybe that's maybe that's like one little secret
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right it's like if if the idea is still if it's still sticky in a couple
00:11:44
months then it's probably worthwhile in some way like anything in life you think of something later you think of it again
00:11:49
and you're like that was kind of funny even though you don't haven't cracked the code yet you're like there's definitely something there there's
00:11:56
something there I think that you had to see it like once yeah see is the thing was on your head and the whole thing and
00:12:01
then y there's no wink or tiny nod to that you just are the iceberg and we the
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the qu how did you get there why aren't you freezing why are you on Sat life you know I mean I always say if you can get
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to five questions for a sketch then you're in this magic area wow that has a
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lot of questions yeah wait have you guys talked about this this five questions
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thing I think so Dana has beening I love it yeah Dana what the heck I love that how
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did he get there what is it Iceberg why is it yeah what is he on why is on update what is not another sketch so the
00:12:38
cast know the icebergs there I know it's something that hit me at one point I don't know if it's that profound but it
00:12:44
is fun to think of sketches that really crushed do it have five questions wait I'm I'm writing this down I'm writing
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this down analog I'm not even typing it everybody I'm picking up a pencil and I'm writing five questions that's hip um
00:12:57
no and then so we we did did a table read it it was fine um it was kind of in the mix throughout the week and then MH
00:13:04
I forget what it was like Pete might have like there might have been questions about like whether or not Pete was going to come back that week because
00:13:10
he was kind of like dipping in and out because you know that was his want and so um it was Pete and I think there was
00:13:17
just a question mark on what the lineup was going to be for the show and then Friday night at
00:13:23
midnight we get the call from one of the producers we get the text from one of the producers after the meeting with
00:13:29
Lauren on Friday night they were like okay I think Bowen's update is a go and then at that point Anna and I were like
00:13:37
texting each other pictures of like kids in Halloween costumes from 1998 like dressed up as the Titanic and
00:13:43
dressed up as the iceberg we're like maybe it's this maybe it should be like a dinner jacket no maybe it should be like a white leather jacket instead and
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then we when then we like lean on a dinner jacket and should have these like jewels on them and so it all came
00:13:55
together over the course of I don't know less than hour when can you tell Wardrobe when do you when's the
00:14:02
latest you could tell I think the the worst I've I've I've done
00:14:09
is day of but not before like meal break meal break so
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like like four like 4 or 5 p.m. but it's like God you know like the ask has to be
00:14:22
reasonable it can't be like get like a whole like right I want to come in on a horse you have an iceberg costume on you
00:14:29
actually super funny not just a regular one exactly but um it was yeah Friday
00:14:34
night at midnight and then God we went in like typical update length page length right now is like
00:14:40
seven pages to clock like three and a half minutes we wrote 11
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pages and the entire we were just it was so indulgent and like masturbatory we were just like this is never going to
00:14:52
make it on TV this is so crazy like what we were like we were just laughing at
00:14:58
each other um in this office next to script on on 9 like right across from Lauren's office
00:15:04
and we were like it felt Delirious it felt very fever dreamy we were like this is never
00:15:10
going to go like if it works from minute one that's what you want we were talking about this about one joke they get it
00:15:17
you push out they start laughing because you look funny then they get the idea
00:15:23
and then they're on board but if they're not that's a long 11 pages I think also I'm remembering it he
00:15:30
was Defensive didn't the character didn't want to really talk about the Titanic was kind of angry how do you
00:15:35
think I felt and all that and then wants to promote his Electro pop band so those things were kind of inspired you know
00:15:43
because it could have gone different angles there well that was that was all pulled from um when Paris Hilton went on
00:15:50
Letterman right after she got arrested and all Letterman wanted to to ask her
00:15:55
about was her getting arrested and all she wanted to talk about was her perfume line and so we were great that's good
00:16:01
analogy yeah yeah yeah there you go that's it that was it INSP but that was that was it like we just like
00:16:07
like Anna was like what like what what can we what is this scan on what is this map on to and I was like I think like my
00:16:14
favorite Letterman interview ever is him talking to Paris hton and so like let's
00:16:19
like just not drag and drop but it was just it was it was a nice one one so that that that's the whole story Dragon
00:16:25
drop [Music]
00:16:31
I have a question for both of you cuz I came in as a full cast member
00:16:36
m you guys came in feature writers and is there an advantage and or a
00:16:41
disadvantage because you're seeing the show you're seeing the cast members do their thing you're kind of being acclimated to the idea of it and then I
00:16:48
do want to know how it came about was it always pretty obvious that your goal was to be a cast member and it was almost
00:16:54
like a nod do you do one year you write all you you find your lane and and then
00:17:01
you play like a [ __ ] ass Iceberg on up to hey Finn golly David I'll let Bowen
00:17:09
answer this one bow what you mean oh okay but I would love to hear David's answer I'll do it my aners vary well
00:17:18
it's 22 minutes long here it is um I was born in Arizona o back too far um oh boy
00:17:26
here we go again I'm just going to take a little break Sandler when I tell him a story he
00:17:32
goes back too far speed it up uh so anyway I I basically was a writer
00:17:39
performing with Schneider but they didn't they said don't write yourself in they said for sure don't we got so many
00:17:45
people I didn't want to be a writer I didn't know how to be a writer so write yourself in maybe a line or two here
00:17:51
when they have Punky kids and then they would if you had too much they would
00:17:56
pull you out yeah they'd say that's five lines give that to Mike Myers and I'm like ah [ __ ] so you do that it's just so
00:18:04
hard to write for myself already and then write for someone else and writing a sketch so it did take a long time to
00:18:11
learn that stuff and then uh yeah and then we came back for the next year and Schneider put himself in copy machine
00:18:17
and I was flabbergast I'm like You're Breaking All the Rules and then it got
00:18:22
on and I was like wait um no one said it was fair and I was like oh it's it's not
00:18:29
fair you took it out of my mouth I was about to say that so so it's okay because I think that technicality I
00:18:35
Learned was it was something that they said if you do it the best you can write
00:18:41
it for yourself but if it's just a funny idea for a sketch give it away so Rob did that well yeah well that's funny
00:18:48
though because I feel like it you're lucky if you have someone like Rob there to show you that like the you can just
00:18:55
break the rules and if you do it well enough no one's going to say anything no one's going to take issue with it right
00:19:01
that's what happened that we I was like what are you doing dude and but he's very like [ __ ] that [ __ ] he would always
00:19:07
write himself in and make them take on Adam wrote himself in so fast and I was like this this is the way we do it here
00:19:13
because I was brainwashed but and when it worked I'm like well what am I doing but they had hookie stuff so it was
00:19:18
harder for me so but I could see it like Adam's stuff was so a little nutty a little left to Center and it was really
00:19:25
him and I'm like [ __ ] I am not really like that I'm more dry jokes and whatever the [ __ ] I do so it took a more
00:19:33
it took longer to get a foothold but it was they kind of skipped some of the rules and it worked out and I I have to
00:19:40
True Confessions remember when you came to my office that one night you were a feature writer and I said first thing
00:19:46
you never do is write yourself into a sketch and I regret that well it's true
00:19:52
though my point is that my other point is that we all had seen you we knew you were funny me and Dennis and Kevin we
00:19:58
knew you and Schneider were standups we'd seen you kill at Club so when I saw Schneider out there doing the copy
00:20:04
machine yeah that's something Rob would do yeah Bowen yeah
00:20:10
I I screen tested four times by the time uh Lauren was like they saw you at UCB
00:20:18
really yeah is that where they saw you in New York or where in New York it was New York I sent I sent in a tape on a
00:20:25
lark I was like they're never going to hire like an feminite Asian guy like like like why would they there's no need
00:20:30
for that like let me let me let me think the way Lauren Michaels thinks not they
00:20:36
have so many they've got Leo there they've got Rob um I was just like that
00:20:42
this is just never going to happen so I'm just going to have fun with it and then uh tape was kind of was went went
00:20:50
just clear to each stage G stage gate and so I did like the the UCB showcase and then um did screen test call back
00:20:56
one year then they Lauren just decided to throw another round of screen tests in March of The Following season and
00:21:03
then holding deal until August and then that was the fourth timeing deal so holding deal so yeah that was like it
00:21:09
was the first time I was on one like it felt so special holding deal at home
00:21:15
that means what you get paid to do nothing until they decide little bit of money and you're might be on television
00:21:22
wet theak y wet the beak it was it was like it was peanuts and like but at the time it just SNL it's big deal right
00:21:29
right right so it's $78 a month but you if you stretch it it'll it'll last sry
00:21:37
and a movie pass yeah it's from my personal checkbook and did you have a breakthrough uh one live with everyone
00:21:44
did you have to do that thing or was you just gradually all of a sudden they called you and said you're a writer um
00:21:50
no it was so it after the tape it was the live thing at UCB so they just did like a live Showcase with a bunch of
00:21:55
people um and then at from then on it was just screen tests
00:22:01
and then I remember my first meeting with Lauren I I I [ __ ] it up because the first thing I the first thing I said
00:22:06
was I also grew up in Canada and I can speak French like I like that was and he he saw through that immediately and was
00:22:13
like who is this yeah totally how how did you dig yourself out
00:22:18
of that hole I didn't I stayed in the hole I I I stayed in the hole and then
00:22:24
thought I was done um then the second meeting he was in LA uh it's always so
00:22:31
crazy it's never e it's never normal situation never normal no he was at the
00:22:37
Beverly Hills Hotel because he was doing the emmies that year because Chay and Chay and Colin were hosting and so in
00:22:43
room 31 it it's it's a sweet I always get that yeah that's his
00:22:49
hotel he's a creature I have of course walk uhhuh he loves his walk in
00:22:55
Beverly Hills we're we're revealing I'm like Jesus I thought we were lost I go
00:23:01
Lauren where's the Beverly Hills Hotel we walked and walked I'm like I thought this is a cute little Jaun but it was
00:23:07
honestly it was it's exactly five miles I'm like no this is I have to prep a lunch he was getting his 10,000 steps I
00:23:14
I had a long hike with him with a bunch of people on Long Island and eventually at one point I believe he did say oh
00:23:21
trees are violent think about it Dana root systems
00:23:27
and there's this it's a bio evolutionary thing look into it please and I need another hit [ __ ] character
00:23:35
no I think I think Dana's got Dana's got the most like tamber perfect Lauren
00:23:41
impression I think so good love Bill haters I love different incarnations of
00:23:46
them bills is very laidback and sort of right here um but um so so you get hired
00:23:54
I was curious just for a second at UCB when they would do showcase were you kind of did you knew you had something
00:24:01
were you killing it eventually on stage at UCB
00:24:06
prsnl we were doing assuming you were doing you know yeah we were doing like monthly shows like we had like a monthly
00:24:13
sketch show there like they called them Spanx and then it turned into like a monthly show and so a half
00:24:18
hour um little sketch thing and uh we were doing stuff at the pit and I was
00:24:24
doing like I went to I went to school in the city and met a lot of like
00:24:29
cohort people there and it was nice and like I like did you audition with anyone that made it all the
00:24:35
way did I audition with anyone that made it all the way I so my the first year audition was the same year as Heidi and
00:24:41
Chris rad and Luke null so they so they were people and then Andrew dismukes was also that year and um he got hired as a
00:24:49
writer first as well then the next year I came on to write for just one
00:24:57
season and then when Lauren called me to like give me give me cast he was like this was the plan all along I I had to
00:25:03
let you I I had to let you cook and if I threw you out there without a paddle it would have been irresponsible because there's going to be a lot of eyes on you
00:25:09
and I was like okay great I mean I I I it was a really stressful year because I I like David was like I don't identify
00:25:16
as a writer I don't know how to write for myself or other people let alone um
00:25:21
but then I'm but I'm glad I had that time though that gestation cuz like I would have like I saw how the sausage
00:25:28
got made you know and like it kind of demystified it so I literally only
00:25:33
figured out how sausage was made but not how the write a sketch but you know also I don't think you have like I wrote a
00:25:39
sketch about house sausage um write it up Dana we had three episodes but I when you see these other
00:25:46
guys go byy you on a rocket ship that's the hard part on my own I could just sit there and learn like school but every
00:25:53
two weeks someone else is getting hired and then on the show I'm like wait and then the the ins was I think after 2
00:26:00
years he was like we're going to keep you on as another feature player I'm like I'm the only one left am I just I'm
00:26:05
not full so that was humiliation but again I walked out it
00:26:12
when it all is said and done it feels like I was on there and did what I us should do but it was never when I was
00:26:19
there I never walked away nailed it I was like [ __ ] walking like with a limp going I don't know what happened
00:26:26
it's just hindsight it it only like it only comes in yeah I mean do we think that that's like character building or
00:26:32
do we think that that's traumatic it's been trauma since yeah I
00:26:39
mean I feel like it was really tough yeah and but I got a lot out of it I think it depends I mean some people you
00:26:46
don't hear from again and that's just how it works and that's probably what happens and so you leave there I
00:26:52
remember one time we were doing movies and I said I think I want to leave and they go where are you going to go I you
00:26:58
leave SNL then what happens I'm like you'd already done Tommy Boy which was a smash I think I was like I don't want I
00:27:04
don't want to leave because I'm getting more stuff and they go but that stuff dries up if you leave because I didn't
00:27:09
have time to do it all and I was like never quite got that and then later you go oh if you work you usually get more
00:27:15
work and I but that didn't make any sense and then it did later but I was like I I to your qu I would just say it
00:27:22
you it puts armor on you you'll never be in another thing like this live unprepared it's in the cards all the
00:27:28
nonsense all your relatives watching they're not using you so much this week he you know um so you get resilient I
00:27:35
mean um you are coming out in a huge movie I don't want to jump ahead because
00:27:41
I have some sketches I want to get to yeah um wicked wicked um and
00:27:47
so that and then SNL I mean it's a little bit of a and then your podcast is
00:27:54
it's huge I mean it's it's it's right in the top 20 out of 4 million
00:27:59
so there's a lot of success happening to you right now and I had a phase like that with Wayne's World and so forth and
00:28:05
so on so what are you I am a licensed therapist but how are you
00:28:11
feeling are you you're in your six season as a cast member or going into your six season going six going into six
00:28:19
yeah and feel have just for the audience I think three or four Emmy
00:28:25
nominations oh like stacked in a row it wasn't it's not it it wasn't I didn't do
00:28:30
the Dana thing of consecutive but yes um is that what Dana did Dana I I think
00:28:36
Dana has like five consecutive and consecutive years six Jesus crial six oh
00:28:41
boy and then seven for the win um yes we we'll get this online for people
00:28:47
listening it'll be no but um go to a side chat for that I'm just I'm going
00:28:52
around on my head cuz I'm watching your stuff and it's like as you know Lauren loves people well he loves comedians
00:28:58
basically he loves us he loves funny people he also loves funny people who
00:29:04
can go and score and make the audience really happy consistently and that's
00:29:10
where you're where you are I me I've watched all your St it's like you're Landing constantly on that show I my hit
00:29:17
rate is average like there's there's some Duds I'm also I'm also an attorney yeah
00:29:24
I uh um the doctor sketch with gosl oh
00:29:29
God stop stop stop stop Boney Yang is straight was Sydney Sweeny George Santos on update in the
00:29:37
cold opening you know just things that are kind of killer viral stuff now I'm going to let you talk it doesn't it
00:29:43
doesn't feel like you're asking me how it feels like someone asked well it was
00:29:48
sure totally surreal but someone asked and I'm not comparing myself to share or anything but someone asked Sher recently like what does it feel like to be an
00:29:54
icon and she goes it doesn't feel like anything like when you guys don't you guys agree like like when when someone's like what did it feel like or what does
00:30:00
it feel like to have been on SNL and I'm like I don't know feels like doesn't
00:30:06
feel like anything right most of the time people in life unless you're unless you're on a chain gang or or building
00:30:13
things most of us just hang out most of our Lives an easy so you're even at SNL you're hanging out then in between shows
00:30:20
you're hanging out right now we're hanging out which is a miracle um and
00:30:25
so yeah I remember the first time I got recognized and my wife said you're
00:30:30
famous it really shocked her and then it made her see other famous people as just
00:30:35
people so yeah we've been behind the the curtain so we kind of understand right
00:30:40
you know but it's but but that but that that's still feels like a mystifying thing to you like if you if you see
00:30:46
someone else go through it is that is that fair to say um I I relate to it I'm
00:30:52
interested in it when I watch um because I can get satai live which is great on
00:30:57
PE talk at 8:30 on on the west coast on the west coast so I'm watching it live a lot more I get the YouTube clip so it's
00:31:04
kind of fun and I watch um you know I notice cast members getting confidence a
00:31:10
sketch they're breaking through that Satur Night Live is unintentionally I think unless Lauren is more brilliant
00:31:16
than people give him credit for that it's a reality show you you take
00:31:21
unknowns you put them on this show and see how they go or you take a football
00:31:27
player hey maybe that guy can do sketch comedy so the the show is all always
00:31:33
entertaining and interesting to me because I'm kind of watching it from this other perspective yeah and I think
00:31:39
like I get caught up in the the The Meta narrative sometimes especially now I'm
00:31:45
like oh like there's like um like I'll get ripped into like a headline like or
00:31:50
like into like some pickup every now and then I'm like oh God this is so unfair this is so stressful this is not what I meant or this is not what I was doing
00:31:56
like yeah you know while like Chappelle was standing on stage with me but it's like but but it ends up I think Lauren
00:32:02
understands that it ends up being this thing that like is what the show is which is like the way that
00:32:09
like people's emotions are on display for this and the way that like the
00:32:15
culture changes or the pendulum swings one way and then back the other and you know I think like it's
00:32:21
all I I think Lauren has an awareness of it I think Lauren knows that it's a reality show well Steve Higgins said
00:32:27
that he he wrote the Constitution basically and it's a a liquid you know
00:32:32
it changes with the G I come from the analog era I mean you know basically
00:32:38
landlines and fact maches and I think laen likes pickup yeah pick would like
00:32:45
pick if you make some noise you're coming back I think that's what he wants he just doesn't want anybody flatlining
00:32:50
sure and if they are I Remember by the way just to go back I just saw the Sydney Sweeney one I like when Heidi at
00:32:58
the beginning actually goes he just plays gay as a shortcut to jokes shortcut to laughs I was like shortcut
00:33:04
to laughs a shortcut to laughs and and then uh there was a couple other Burns it was
00:33:09
pretty funny but that was a good one um she was she was great in that she was great she's such she seems like what a
00:33:17
score I think Kim Kardashian did a nice job sort of surprisingly I don't think Sydney is a surprise that she was good
00:33:23
but it's just good when people everything kind of Falls in their in in the right way on a show because it can
00:33:29
go the other way so easily totally I think she's an example of a host who came in and understood how she
00:33:37
was being consumed and perceived already like she she came and she was like
00:33:42
please everyone make jokes about my boobs like she was she was practically begging everybody to write say no more
00:33:49
say no more like I and then and then she um like went down a went down to her
00:33:54
dressing room on Thursday right before the the tape I was like just so you know like we're getting an in intimacy
00:34:00
coordinator and uh if you're at any point uncomfortable um you know you can tap
00:34:05
out like if you know if we make out and you hate it no problem we can cut it and she goes Bowen I'm on Euphoria but then
00:34:11
she also said but then she but then she also said um she goes you're you're
00:34:18
you're you're living every gay man's dream by like having sex with me and I'm like how do you know that like she knows
00:34:24
that like she is so she's so Raw sexual power that like anyone would be thrilled
00:34:30
to like simulate sex with her it's so crazy were like were there hosts like
00:34:37
that when you guys were there where like it was just like some like just had I
00:34:42
had crushes on host for sure sometimes you see someone that's really like an actress that's great and they come on
00:34:47
and then like anything in the world their personality or their talent during the week just shoots them even higher
00:34:54
you're like oh my God they're either super cool or they roll anything or they're just good in the sketches
00:34:59
they're nice to everybody and then you're like it goes up or some people they can lose of course points of course
00:35:06
I think Sweeney seems like a good one and Dana worked with a lot of lot of great people too yeah this goes back it
00:35:12
was Dolly Bon Phil and Jon her talking to Dolly
00:35:17
and um she's got a little cut the thing whole thing and she goes all right well I'm going to look away so you boys can
00:35:23
look let's get it over with and you know her monologue was great cuz camera just kept going over to her to her her cleave
00:35:30
Edge that was a great monologue yeah she had a sense of humor about the whole thing and and when you talk to her she's
00:35:36
really just kind of This brilliant songwriter I mean she created Dolly Parton but you know the um themed to
00:35:43
bodyguard I She'll always was Britney Spears the one that had the boob monologue where her boobs mov the moving
00:35:48
tits yeah that was what a great easy not easy idea just
00:35:54
a good idea that U worked MH yeah you had to buy into
00:36:01
[Music] it oh yeah you were about to tell us that the host that was mean to everyone
00:36:07
yeah I'll tell you I'll tell you guys off M you're trying to trying to we were
00:36:13
going to be on my no but this was we got in trouble for saying Steven zagal
00:36:18
wasn't I mean we all everyone gets in trouble for saying but that's what everyone asks and then you right can
00:36:24
only Dodge it for so long or you just try to explain why they weren't great I heard Paris Hilton was not great but
00:36:30
that was after I left and then you go why or Bieber I've heard so many people but some it just doesn't work out and
00:36:37
some are fighting it and and there's a reason but it's scary it's scary place it could be some people deal with stress
00:36:43
by lashing out I've seeing that and being kind of overly angry and it's all
00:36:49
just anxiety and fear you know it was just I I think I think the the layer on
00:36:55
my little quote my little which by the way like I was like it was like it was like on Andy Cohen Show and they they
00:37:01
play this game and so like it's a game called get pickup it's it's a game
00:37:07
called stay on another season or but you didn't say the name of the person so I felt it was pretty benign when I watched
00:37:13
it just saying there was this one but then at the game of because of all the I think it was the game I think I think it
00:37:19
was me saying that that this person made multiple cast members cry and I think that is more about that's that is more
00:37:25
about the environment of the place well that that's like Wednesday like some like a SK like imagine like you stay up
00:37:31
till 4:00 a.m. writing a sketch and then the host is like I [ __ ] hate this like you're going to have some your your
00:37:36
nerves are frayed you're going to have some weird bizarre emotional response I'm not saying I was the one who cried
00:37:42
you're exhausted spent I get it I mean tear up at
00:37:49
all fade in on Bowen he's he's dressed as a Irish potato um
00:37:59
Irish potato update could use a potato an Irish potato I don't know I don't
00:38:04
know where I was some of those shows like Andy Cohen I'm saying is that the questions are like whatever you answer
00:38:11
is going out there because totally who did you hate the most and who did you like the most it's like who do you like
00:38:17
who's the funniest then it's like click here to hear who is the funniest just
00:38:23
set it up for horrible um but you gossip is in our DNA I mean the homo
00:38:30
sapiens from 200,000 years ago Goss excuse me
00:38:36
the gay the gay sapiens yeah by the way I mean in the gay community because
00:38:41
you're the first person to really have so many sketches around someone being
00:38:47
gay I mean the gay Oompa Loompa is especially hysterical oh thanks did I
00:38:52
mean are you embraced are you iconic or they is it because it or are ridicule
00:38:59
how How does it go over I think there's a healthy I think I think a gay audience
00:39:04
is always going to be a little lery and they're always going to be like well I could have done it better you know like there's there's there's a there's um
00:39:10
what a drag it's a it's a it's it's I think but I think it's healthy I think it's like a fine like I can't get I just
00:39:17
like us I think yeah I mean it's just I was told they're jealous yeah
00:39:23
yeah the closest I got I I was from San Francisco stand had gay friends and they
00:39:29
said uh the church lady would play at the gay bars of course San Francisco they would play the sketches and I go I
00:39:36
just thought it was flattering you know oh my God no church lady is very gay gay
00:39:41
iconic and and David I will say I think I think no and this is not something SNL
00:39:47
related honestly I think just shoot me is like very queer
00:39:53
Cannon what is it queer Canon I love just shoot me is
00:39:58
I think like there's there's something about like you and like Wendy Malik and like
00:40:03
Laura what's her name Laura sanom yeah like I think like there's something like it's it's like it was like a the first
00:40:09
sitcom that was like at a magazine and so I think like I think gay people of magazine model magazine so it was all
00:40:16
that that World um and then well yeah and then that was that that was honestly how I first discovered David I was like
00:40:21
it was it was pre it was before I was aware of what SNL the history of SNL was right I was like I was like like I I was
00:40:27
like I I just moved to the states I started watching TV all the time from Australia from Canada it was Australia
00:40:34
then Canada then Canada the states yeah you know what's funny is that uh for for
00:40:40
a model magazine there was no gay person on the show unless it was me I don't
00:40:45
know I mean is that what you're telling me your character was gay the whole time you were like the gay Finch was our
00:40:52
favorite I'm like that's yeah I don't know maybe but I loved Wendy on that
00:40:58
show she was so I mean I well I had I had a blast with everybody and I thought Wendy every read through was so funny as
00:41:03
nah fantastic such a blast that was a lucky break of leaving SNL and doing
00:41:09
something else it's I was just say that next move is terrifying I was going to say I feel like you landed really on a
00:41:15
nice sort of padding [ __ ] yeah I was just luck you know that the way this
00:41:21
businesses it's you think you're good bad but if you are in the right place and you get on the right show and
00:41:26
there's right and a network loves it and all those people were good around me it just it just really really helps and
00:41:33
then you just try to tread water for the rest of your [ __ ] life this is I will say it's easier bone it is well well
00:41:39
this is how I feel like you guys are asking me like how I feel going into my six season like I okay I completely
00:41:45
completely abide by this thing that it's it's it is just luck like if I was and I think even Tina mentioned this like on
00:41:51
on on her episode where she was like this would never have flown like the iceberg would have never been on the
00:41:56
show like even 10 years before like I I got very very lucky I feel like it's
00:42:03
like I feel like the Mars rover landing on that square inch of Martian soil that
00:42:08
they have to land it at that exact spot on land like that that's me like I I I
00:42:14
like I couldn't have I could not have been any kind of even like yeah I I I
00:42:21
just couldn't have made it to the show period had it not been for like a very specific set of yeah alignments you know
00:42:27
a lot of fluky things I mean I auditioned twice uh as a standup and it
00:42:32
wasn't for Lauren but for you know pass pass you know y y and then going back to your share analogy the night that I I
00:42:40
was in a club and Ros o' Donald uh was playing there I'd not met
00:42:45
her and I said I think I have a Lauren Michaels is GNA come see me at this little Club on the west side of
00:42:53
LA and so she agreed and we flipped a coin and we both got see what happened was I'm nervous as hell Lauren comes on
00:43:00
the head of the network and then share so I just when you said share oh share and when I run into share very rarely
00:43:07
she would go I was there the night you you know that's incredible I was there I just David's got
00:43:16
a I've never tried to do sh I'm 74 you should do share I would love to
00:43:24
do share I've got a good share impression I bet you do can we give you five five
00:43:30
seconds of share sure if I want to put tits on my back that's nobody's business but mine pretty
00:43:39
good lot of people just go half breed they do the limp that's it you know boom they they
00:43:46
go too low they go too like snap out of but she did she she was never that low she's got a pretty high like literal
00:43:52
pitch she pitches her voice out pretty high I love her the funest [ __ ] person met her when I was 11 or 12 at a
00:43:59
theater near where I grew up in the peninsula it was sunny and share and we waited outside to get her autograph so
00:44:06
to your point about the Kismet and the weirdness of getting on or any of this
00:44:11
happening I happened to be in the right place the right time over and over again and then you know like Mike Meer said uh
00:44:19
cha would you like to play G well okay what is it you know and then it goes to
00:44:24
that so I I agree but um you know there's one sketch that I your
00:44:30
your look who the the design of your look really stood out for me as instantly funny and that was uh the
00:44:37
doctor sketch with Ryan Gosling oh you had this white suit long straight black
00:44:43
care it was such a cleverly written sketch and then just about first of all
00:44:48
nothing went wrong you're talking to the relatives you know yeah yeah yeah and Ryan gossing comes out I mean that whole
00:44:55
show I have to say just did exude joy for whatever reason it had the Beavis and butt head and you know yeah
00:45:01
something about Ryan Gosling on that show he's a star just yeah uh and
00:45:08
someone who like you know you know every time like there's like like anytime like an actor would come on like a serious
00:45:13
actor would come on like they would just like they just ask not necessarily the right questions they'd be like well what's like where's he coming from
00:45:19
what's his motivation you're like it's just just just say the line read the card um but he he I think he
00:45:27
at that point that was like his fourth time hosting he was asking those same questions but for some reason like there
00:45:34
was an endearing quality to it and I think he really was that's his way of maybe that's some people's way of just
00:45:39
finding the comedy of it like it's it's it's just their process it's not a comedian's process at all but it's it's
00:45:46
an actor it's like an Oscar nominated actor's process for sure like you know that's that's what is your because we
00:45:53
were writing pen and paper a lot of the time I mean we the back in the early days sometimes I would write a sketch I
00:46:00
would just put a check mark for either something funny or an actual laugh and I would try to in read through well and if
00:46:07
in read through or even ahead of time and afterwards like okay there's a gap here H what what can I put maybe a funny
00:46:14
physical move or what's your methodology do you and I sat with a lot of writers
00:46:20
as well or I write alone but I liked I was a standup I love working with
00:46:25
writers and balancing you know love that process so me too you probably are you are you riffing with with some of these
00:46:31
writers in the room yeah ends up being that ends up being the best method um there's always someone like on Keys just
00:46:38
like typing everything everyone's saying and then we just oh really and then what and then what what I've started to do or
00:46:45
what I learned from suudi was you know you would just type out everything everyone would say in a big old document
00:46:52
and then you'd print out there's something important about printing it out and holding it in your hands and
00:46:57
then Circle it and then you would have your selection Circle the jokes that yeah t yeah very tactile process it
00:47:03
works and then you just and then it's just a matter of rearranging then and then doing filling in with connective tissue cutting out the fat Y and then
00:47:09
you get it tighter and then you cut out more fat Y and this I need this line I need this we need this right yeah yeah
00:47:15
yeah um I would do the check mark thing that J Dan said it read through like you do a sketch and you're and you're it's
00:47:21
read through and you're hitting what worked yeah and then you look after if it didn't get picked you go well I only
00:47:26
had three check marks on eight pages that's it um I think Higgins even like told us one time like what you do is you
00:47:32
set up the thread You Yank at it loosen yank again harder bring in another thread cut both threads pull one again
00:47:38
like it it was just like such a like that is I don't know that that's such a complicated way of like doing it but I
00:47:44
mean it's it's a nicew stand colorful vernacular would be
00:47:50
like just well we beat the [ __ ] out of it yeah we took the idea and we just went beat the [ __ ] out of it you know
00:47:57
just like how about this how about this how about that but what is the what's the easiest one that you've had that was
00:48:03
a big score that just sort of came together really fast you know some of them just sort of fall together and
00:48:09
others are just um are really fixed George George Santos
00:48:17
George was fun that was that was mostly that was mostly Jo I mean the Weekend Update one was me and uh Allison Gates
00:48:24
and K blet but um Jo would do C opens and that Candle in the Wind thing was Jo
00:48:30
um but there's one called Sarah Lee with Harry Styles where um yes I saw that we
00:48:37
it was that was me and Julio and that was that was just the two of us kind of a one like it's like a
00:48:43
oneandone straight line path and that was it and basically that went to TV and
00:48:49
that was another thing where we were like I can't believe this is going on air like I can't believe and and that
00:48:54
makes you go every now and then like oh like Lauren Lauren does just kind of get when to like he understands when
00:49:01
something is just ready to be out there even though you as the person who wrote it might not agree with him even though
00:49:08
you as the person who wrote it like even you have doubts about whether or not this is meant for a wider audience than
00:49:13
the people internal at SNL Lauren is like no like America's ready to see this you know which is crazy can you imagine
00:49:19
sometimes oh sorry go ahead David saying just sometimes Monday meetings you pitch something and he goes this is the week
00:49:26
or he'll or he'll say it's not ready yet yeah yeah yeah and then he goes that feels like two weeks from now and then
00:49:31
he goes this is the week and then this is when we need it and uh it's usually
00:49:37
right I when it's supposed to be I know it's pretty amazing how yeah he's he's
00:49:43
he's right I think he's downloaded I Lauren is almost like a human AI when it comes to that show because a half
00:49:49
century of downloading everything what will kind of work instincts around it in
00:49:55
that room all filtered through his gigantic brain he's incredibly bright and then um yeah it's all intuitive at
00:50:02
this point I mean just like because he's never look he's never sweating well
00:50:07
right before air show is when Lauren is really the most Hamed up we'll lose the wig um we'll play that after update can
00:50:15
we uh the wine glasses could it be a little shorter all right you know I mean you couldn't there's never been a camera
00:50:21
on that meeting has there like has anyone ever just taken a video and put that I picking the show at like
00:50:29
10:45 that's on live to the world at 11:30 I think they finally did put a
00:50:34
camera in the room so they're they're releasing all they're releasing all these do no because they're releasing all these documentaries for there's five
00:50:40
documentaries y are you in any of the documentaries I don't think so I think they just sat me down to just talk I
00:50:45
think so there's one I don't know what they're like but each one is about a different aspect and like one's about
00:50:51
Lauren one's about the musical guest one's about like the PRI it's like one one's about cowbell
00:50:57
sketch there's a whole documentary on it yeah incredible so I I I'm I'm just
00:51:03
excited to see how they cut it together I have no idea one time Lauren grabbed me by the Q cards and he went
00:51:10
I'm scared and then I go he goes no one will believe you and then he walked
00:51:24
away by the way Bowen while I'm waiting for this idiot um when I do stand up I
00:51:29
do I try to joke out uh or I put it on a voice note just off top of my head yep
00:51:35
yep get it typed up Heather helps me with that and then I go through and underline what I need it's the exact
00:51:40
same thing so funny you said that that's great and then I do it at a club tape it and then go what because I try to
00:51:45
memorize I go what did I miss tighten and brighten and then you go this is the this is what I this is what works this
00:51:51
part what you need go ahead well no I just I you know I kind of do my own sort
00:51:56
of research so this is from you uh I don't know some oh [ __ ] oh no you just
00:52:01
said and I I understood what you were talking about it's not it's not is this the cringeworthy thing yeah yeah okay so
00:52:08
I was stoned off my gourd last month on my podcast thought yes no I'm kidding no
00:52:15
you were Stone really well yeah yeah no but we were I was my my friend Matt and I were just talking about like this
00:52:20
concept of like pushing past like a feeling of cringe cringiness like pushing past this feeling of like
00:52:27
embarrassment or humiliation or shame like RuPaul has this thing like your fear of looking stupid is holding you back and he like says this to so many of
00:52:34
the drag queens on the show he's like your fear of looking stupid is holding you back I'm like that it's so it just applies to so many things and I was I
00:52:41
was saying that we were I was like making this larger point about how SNL is like the the biggest arena for
00:52:49
looking stupid for like trying out an idea that you think is brilliant and it is like all week it's this idea that has
00:52:56
been great and then it [ __ ] bombs on Life television and you have to like you
00:53:01
got to you got to develop your coping mechanisms faster else you're going to go crazy yes so so that's that's the
00:53:08
context it bombs it makes you and in the middle of it you're thinking how is this not working what are we doing wrong this
00:53:15
everyone loved this everyone loved this but like you you never know and yeah it's weird kills it read through and
00:53:22
vice versa and it's the opposite live on air and you know we I think Phil and I
00:53:28
and Victoria used to say we're just clowns and really think of ourselves as clowns you know because it can get high
00:53:33
flu and these sophisticated comedians who are commenting on society you know
00:53:39
so you know put a dress on me put a wig put me in a big diaper I was in a big
00:53:45
diaper once with Matthew broadrick and the sketch bomb we were be chested in
00:53:51
giant diapers with bonnets on and it played the dead silence and then the commercial break this is my first season
00:53:57
we walk by the bleachers we kind of trying to wave to the audience as they look away you know they're like [ __ ] you
00:54:04
yeah you they're like we it's like if you're not you know I mean do you have sketches in your head that are you feel
00:54:11
like are too far not ready or that are sort of fantasy if I could get that to work you know do you play guitar kid
00:54:19
yeah oh but no funnily enough I like I've always wanted to write like a Yacht Rock sketch or something like musical go
00:54:27
musical thing but like I don't know like it's just not that seems that that's not even
00:54:32
like I can see it it's just it I feel like there's just I've got a million steps to that but but what you're saying
00:54:38
is so is so real it's this thing of like this is what this is what I mean by SNL being the cringe the most cringeworthy
00:54:45
place in Show Business it's like it is you need to learn how to push past that embarrassment or else you will you
00:54:52
you'll you'll die yeah or you'll pull your next good idea and go I don't know yeah exactly and and this is this is the
00:54:58
beauty of Comedy is that it's no one agrees on what funny there's no Universal definition of what funny is
00:55:05
and that's that's that's the amazing thing about it there's like not no one
00:55:11
agrees and and and for something to be funny all it has to be is funny to two people that is the smallest unit of
00:55:16
measurement for comedy and that's all that matters like the political [ __ ] that gets attached to it doesn't really
00:55:22
matter like it's it's just about that and um I agree with this whole clown thing like we're just clowns I never
00:55:29
want to comment on society I just wanna number one you want you want it what
00:55:34
they say kill you want people to be helpless and you also want and I'm sure you've had this people see you at an
00:55:40
airport or whatever man me and my friends just went crazy for you know the iceberg C whatever you would get and
00:55:47
that's also your that's a that's really fun I mean that is very satisfying when
00:55:52
people you know they've seen it multiple times in their quoting lines you know that's the best one thing I was going to
00:55:59
ask you because I'm curious for myself like why do I love when people because
00:56:04
I'm pre-ra and Hip-Hop I've been exposed to it massively when there is a a sketch
00:56:11
where people are rapping together it always entertains the hell out of me Timothy shalamay and I guess marello was
00:56:18
it the baby face one uhuh uhhuh and then Keenan came in and syncopated movement
00:56:23
and it's just always is entertaining to me I don't see it as anything other than just I'm immediately entertained
00:56:29
especially when it you don't expect it all a people are well I I'm just saying
00:56:35
I'm kind of curious how there'd be people you know real purists a long time
00:56:40
ago oh it's it's hack you know rapping rhyming you know but I'm entertained
00:56:45
every time so that's all I think it's just I think it's just like a a a structure I don't want to get too about
00:56:52
you think what if what if sh what if Biden did a w
00:56:58
I think people would go crazy whoops all right let's
00:57:06
wrap bow you're a stud we got to know you we got to know a little bit about the iceberg we got to know all everybody
00:57:12
we appreciate it 2200 on his sat uh he's Highly
00:57:19
Educated I know I'm just throwing this out at the very end but I was like damn
00:57:24
he taught himself Adobe Photo shop I read that earlier men so much he went
00:57:32
just talk about him thanks Bowen I know you got to run I appreciate it and we'll see you at the show at some point this
00:57:39
has been a presentation of Odyssey please follow subscribe leave a like a review all the stuff smash that button
00:57:47
whatever it is wherever you get your podcast flying the wall is executive produced by Dana Carvey and David Spade
00:57:52
Jenna Weiss Burman of Odyssey and Heather Santoro the show is lead producer is Greg Holtzman