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SNL History w/ Jason Reitman | Full Episode | Fly on the Wall with Dana Carvey and David Spade

December 25, 2024 / 01:04:12

This episode features Jason Wrightman discussing his new SNL movie with hosts Dana Carvey and David Spade. Topics include the chaotic atmosphere of SNL, the accuracy of the film's set design, and personal experiences from the show's history.

Wrightman shares insights about capturing the essence of SNL, emphasizing the importance of the show's live nature and the unique challenges it presents. He reflects on his own journey, from being a fan to directing a film that pays homage to the show's origins.

Carvey and Spade contribute their experiences as former cast members, discussing the pressures of live performances and the dynamics of working with Lauren Michaels. They reminisce about their time on the show, including the intense atmosphere during rehearsals and the thrill of performing live.

The conversation also touches on the relationships between cast members, the collaborative spirit of SNL, and the legacy of iconic figures like Chevy Chase and Gilda Radner. Wrightman highlights the importance of authenticity in portraying these historical moments.

Overall, the episode provides a nostalgic look at SNL while offering a behind-the-scenes perspective on the making of Wrightman's film.

TL;DR

Jason Wrightman discusses his SNL movie with Dana Carvey and David Spade, sharing insights on the show's chaotic atmosphere and personal experiences.

Video

00:00:00
Jason wman Dana Jason wrightman who is a uh I would say a friend of mine and uh
00:00:06
smart guy director writer uh just did this SNL movie which sort of fell in our
00:00:12
lap because it's right up our alley what do you mean by that I don't understand well you used to be on SNL and
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1947 no yeah it was so we got a advanced copy of the movie or so we could watch
00:00:27
it at home because we're running around and um it was very very interesting having been in ADH for seven years and
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they they made a set that looked like I thought they were filming in 8h yeah me too it was so accurate yeah he did a
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great job with that staircases the actually hallway the page desk that whole and then then when we went back to
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the show where I did recently I just saw that again I was like God it was exactly right um he's he's done some great stuff
00:00:54
that movie is is very interesting Worth to watch and then he's done Ghostbusters
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Juno which was a smash up in the air with George Clooney I think maybe and Kendrick um and and so he's just high
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quality I I worked on something with him once at least we talked about something and love to get involved with this guy
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he's just uh smart good guy to hit your wagon to and you know I was interesting
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because of all his resume and all the stuff he's done very successful but just never lost his Fascination for this live
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w wacky crazy idea of a TV show that Lauren Michaels invented basically you
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know going on live at 11:30 under rehearsed under everything uh you know like Lauren's famous quote the show does
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not go on because it's ready it's because it's 11:30 so Jason has a
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fascination with it and he tried to capture the the spirit of that first
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show The Crazy chaotic spirit and so we talk all about that we break it down
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David we break it in a little microscopic pieces so here he is Jason
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[Music] wman David are you still around the
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corner for me no I actually moved from that Mansion to another one oh okay okay
00:02:18
no you live in the nice area and I listen I've hit the skids I was going to email you about this um oh I'm sorry
00:02:25
yeah I moved about a mile away it's not great okay it's not like okay should you should crowdsource something I think I
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think I think people would spend money on seeing you in a nice place see Dana
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doesn't care it's David's World we just live in it I'll just say it I know it's
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a hacky cliche so how are you today Jason here's the here's the most trite
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thing I could say to you are you looking forward to the
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holidays question are you actually I mean I'm I'm in that you know I'm in that place where the the movie is out
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and there's nothing left to do with it and now I have to like think of something else to do okay the good news
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is I saw it last night I was mesmerized by it and I thought oh thank God I love it I by the way this is the scariest
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[ __ ] podcast I could go on because I I haven't done anything yet with two snellers I'm on with two legends two
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Real Deal who know the [ __ ] show so I I'm like I'm not trying to shine you on
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I'm genuinely intimidated by this no I've never seen a movie like this where I was so uh you know it was so familiar
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and I got goosebumps at times I was got emotional at times uh so I I was
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realizing that David and I are in a different Lane we're experientially it's
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it's so familiar it's different but it's and uh you really captured it though the
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chaos of it it's still is just chaotic as [ __ ] so here's the common thing that
00:03:55
I keep on hearing back from par from anyone who worked at SNL I mean crew cast
00:04:00
anything the stairwell the stairwell between the eighth and ninth floor uh
00:04:06
and we we literally we got that down to like the exact details like the handrail everything where anyone who's ever
00:04:12
worked there has smoked in there cried in there broken up with their boyfriend in there uh because there's no privacy
00:04:19
at SNL and they every time this character would walk in the stairway they they said they would [ __ ] them up there there's a co-ed bathroom now
00:04:29
you know um and just one small bathroom for everybody and it's down the hall yeah so
00:04:35
you have where is it down by Lauren's office no the other way it's on 8 but just around the corner oh yeah yeah yeah
00:04:41
but yeah your point yeah there's no real privacy and um sometimes in the stairwell you'll see a riter that you've
00:04:48
been wanting to see for a sec and then you'll have a little powwow right there in the stairwell some writing happens
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there as well was that in the movie Jason oh on
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you know what Jason I will tell you just to bore everyone on 8 when you go down toward the elevators you can take a left
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and there's a men's room but it's bigger you know it's got a couple I would go into the stall close it in my suit or
00:05:14
whatever for Weekend Update and just go over it go over it during the commercial and then run back because I had to get
00:05:21
one minute minute of Silence cuz everyone's grabbing you and there's noise and there's music and there's crowds and there's other cast so you go
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I just have to focus so some you don't want to get out there and look at the cards and go oh my God I don't know this as well as I thought I did or something
00:05:34
you know same thing with sketches you go over there and cram and then come out and go okay more distractions but they
00:05:40
they did by I do the same thing while I'm directing you need a second I yeah because if you're a director everyone is
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reaching out to you at any given moment and they everyone has a question they're looking at you and they're always trying to measure whether this is a time to ask
00:05:52
you a question and they can't do that when you're in the bathroom so I I I use
00:05:58
my few bathroom breakes during the day as the moment to like I pull out the sides and I what the hell am I making here and you forget to go to the
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bathroom because I go wait wait why did I come in here I just came in study oh yeah but I will say because go ahead
00:06:11
yeah go ahead well just that Lauren Michaels in in the movie and in real life is just yeah he's that person you
00:06:16
want to get a moment with and so when kamla Harris was on the Sound Stage
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which was such an intense thing with all the Secret Service and all the energy around that moment a couple weeks ago
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um they they ran it and everyone was so uh there was ATT tension because Secret
00:06:35
Service and armymen were there you know Flack jacket helmet and night with machine guns and I came out of the the
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makeup room on eight and I saw them lined up like six or eight on both sides holding machine guns I said can I go
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yeah you can go and I'm I'm in the Biden outfit and I literally saluted
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them not as a joke it was just like kind of nervous energy but we just thought a
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cast member and I thought well we should kind of laugh a little bit while they rehearsed this because everyone was dead quiet because it got last you know and I
00:07:10
said to him uh I don't know if we should ask Lauren I'm gonna ask him but Lauren was so deep into the whole thing he
00:07:17
didn't want to hear any notes at that moment right because he had a lot a lot of stuff to think about that was an
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intense night so you really I think you did a really good job capturing Lauren's
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obsession with the show you know basically especially then yeah but still now and not knowing
00:07:35
what it was and not you know I I thought you know you could have uh I had no idea what to expect um and there's not a lot
00:07:42
of just like set shot it really moves which is an understatement there's tons
00:07:47
of throwaway lines and there's laughs all the way through but they're so run over uh you got to pay attention and
00:07:55
there's just it's just all movement there's no like real static not that many static shots I did love William
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defo and Lauren in an elevator just a just a side two shot I like that
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sometimes when directors don't not waste time but go for like
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this shot there's just so typical over over closeup closeup close back and forth I like things playing like you
00:08:20
have to just pay attention because that's you're like really watching people talk and you can understand it you don't need to be closeup of them
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closeup of them so that I liked and I liked um just seeing every cast member
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played and who's playing him and sort of forgetting it and just thinking it's the real Chevy it's the real um Everybody
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very cool though very cool thanks I didn't know 90% of that you know that first show it all takes place if people
00:08:47
don't know what is it the hour and a half before the show how obsessed were you both with SNL before you
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auditioned finally a question for us thank you when I look on now like I met
00:09:01
Lauren in ' 86 so he done five years he had his sabatical and came back but it still seemed like it was 100 years in my
00:09:07
mind because of my college Years watching the original Saturday Night Live and so it was still like this
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Monumental thing to actually try to get on and I auditioned a couple times I
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auditioned once at The Comedy Store a cattle call with comedians doing five minutes with no MC and I followed Sam
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Kennis and at midnight in kennes Prime I God died a
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thousand deaths wasn't that special well I was going to sh you as a director you must you know it's very it's difficult
00:09:41
but you landed it you're doing actors or comic actors improvising throw away
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doing comedy for film you know there's that to try to get it integrated so it
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feels really poppy but there was some some ones that I really noticed that just like felt
00:10:00
real felt spontaneous that was all just the you yelling at them or just one camera I'll tell you how we made it and
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and and and and how we even got into this in the first place you know um I look I I I grew up obsessed with SNL and
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and I also grew up around some of those actors because my dad was obviously directing some of them and but when I was a kid and I would watch it every
00:10:19
once in a all there would be these bumpers where you would see the crew for a second a sketch would end the camera
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would pull back and uh sometimes it would even you would even hear the director from the control room and they
00:10:32
would be like you know this actor go here this actor go here and You' see the crew and you see them moving a set and
00:10:37
the moment that happened I went I want to know who the [ __ ] those people are like I want to how is this thing being made because I I was obsessed with the
00:10:44
concept that on Tuesday you start with nothing and by Saturday you have a finished show and uh and when I right
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after I directed Juno uh my agent asked me what do you want to do next and I told him I said
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look I had two dreams as a kid one was to one was to direct movies and the other was to be a writer for Saturday night
00:11:02
life and I said you ask Lauren if there's any chance he'd let me come and write even for like a week and Lauren
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was really kind and he said yeah yeah you can come to space camp and so I went
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I spent one week there and it was one of the greatest weeks of my life and I think it was coming off of that I
00:11:21
thought all right I want to I want to make a movie it's not it's not as much like a celebration of the the comedy but
00:11:27
like a celebration of how this show is actually made and the fact that it came so close to not ever existing yeah yes
00:11:35
it is I I'm doing it now just sort of a guest I suppose doing Biden and stuff
00:11:41
and yeah you just you still you can't prepare for it you can I'm gonna do a lot of standup or whatever you can't
00:11:47
really prepare for it because it's changing every second they throw you out there you're kind of like there's the
00:11:53
cards you're trying to be loose trying not to push trying to land it so it's
00:11:58
it's a it's em it's intense it's just still really intense well that I mean that's actually I was really curious
00:12:05
because when I was when I've been watching you do this recently I go I wonder if you feel like you're falling
00:12:11
back into how comfortable you were back in the day does it feel like day one for you or does it even feel further Out Of
00:12:17
Reach because it's something you used to feel comfortable doing and now you have to jump Jump Right In with a new cast
00:12:22
new set of writers um that's that's a good question I'm actually podcasting on my side I on
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your podcast no but uh that I'm I'm it if to me it's always solving the puzzle
00:12:35
in the moment if it's my character like what is the musicality or rhythms I have to hit what are the chops what are the
00:12:43
and um the first time I went out there it felt familiar but it still was right
00:12:50
as you're about to they're going to push you out you're going to enter scene there still is okay I'm not on camera to
00:12:56
10 million people I'll be on it in a second right I've got this little moment don't push have fun so I I fell into it
00:13:04
pretty pretty quickly but I still have um I'm not completely where I was when I
00:13:10
stepped off in 93 that was another level because you're doing four five sketches a show you know you guys ever get to the
00:13:18
point where yeah oh I can't even imagine like you have to go an hour waiting for
00:13:24
your one moment a week you know Dana's waiting like if you come back to host
00:13:29
it's the opposite you're in I think the first time I hosted I was in 13 I've never been in more than three sketches I
00:13:34
think when I was on the show or maybe four oh that's wild Dana was always packed in a lot but I was sort of used sparingly and so 13 overwhelmed me and
00:13:42
now Dana's waiting for one so all we you and it's maybe one paragraph you go
00:13:47
Jesus I got a nail there's no second take if that show I always say if it had second takes it would be so much better because if you if if you could just pick
00:13:55
from one of because you walk into a sketch and you're like like on a scene in a movie some you go you know what can I come in again you know I just I'm not
00:14:02
in the right space I came in a little early let me and on those you just go in and go oh [ __ ] it's not going right and
00:14:08
we just this is the one let me ask you so would you rather kill it rehearsal kill it dress
00:14:16
and know oh my God somehow I have to replicate how well that worked I don't know exactly why the magic happened or would you rather hit it at like 70%
00:14:24
address and go oh I know exactly how to take it to 100 now definitely the second one % it's a horrible feeling when it
00:14:31
goes just perfect at dress because you know is never going to be that good again it's more than horrible it's
00:14:37
sickening also you want to be good enough at dress to where you get on the show because you don't want to save too
00:14:43
much because then it gets cut you're like oh [ __ ] I I really laid down on that but you know some of these sketches
00:14:49
you know we going to get on there's some that just kill but you're like oh my God I just hope it does table read kill
00:14:55
rehearsal with the crew and then dress and then air and it's hard to keep it going every single one and have it work
00:15:03
and you know for me it's like I try to tell myself it's not literal the Q cards are just suggestions because when you
00:15:09
get out there and you have this part you have to do you can kind of just sort of rush just slightly and not really
00:15:16
connect with the audience it's it's it's sort of a ballsy move to take a moment or extenda a Beat Just just a little bit
00:15:23
because that keeps it alive and the audience senses it when you're having fun and surprising do you get to have
00:15:30
fun now when you're doing it Dana because I have to imagine first time around when you're a cast member and
00:15:37
you're you have no idea what the sky is like you don't know yet that you're going to have success in films you don't
00:15:43
know yet all the other things are going to Happ that you're going to be like an altim um so that's always going in the
00:15:49
back of your head of like oh like is this going to work or not I'm wanting for both of you like to go back now does
00:15:54
it feel like I am who I am now I can go out and have fun uh or is it just as high
00:16:01
pressure I need to get a win I need to crush it uh I would say it's both it's a little bit I'm playing with house money
00:16:08
I understand that uh in the beginning I didn't know I was with Phil Hartman the Phil Hartman or the Jan hook they we
00:16:14
didn't know where it was going by 93 it was feeling pretty good but now it's
00:16:19
still the thing if I'm doing Biden I'm trying to get the language and the um
00:16:26
and sort of ride the wave if it comes to me if I'm doing no joke I'm not getting around here my eyes get big and I hold
00:16:32
that then it's still kind of the same process so both things are true playing with house money no I'm way down the
00:16:38
other side of it it's kind of like you would say to Stephen Spielberg is it any better now or is it any easier now he's
00:16:43
still just trying to Sol solve problems isn't that what directors do how David how often do you miss
00:16:51
it uh you know everything is so different than SNL that I liked uh I
00:16:58
liked it cuz I had a good fun batch people and I I'm glad I kind of stayed
00:17:03
close with them but I don't miss as much because it was it just I just remember
00:17:09
sort of the hard parts and I also remember the great Parts you know you forget it's like surgery you're like happy after but during it you go God it
00:17:14
was tough but I'm just happy it it happened and I got six great years out
00:17:21
of it and then it got me on something else and I then trying to stay afloat is the next big challenge you know because
00:17:27
you could do your own show and it doesn't work and then suddenly all your heat's gone and you're not doing anything and it just it's tough It's
00:17:33
hard not to fall off a cliff after how often are you talking to current cast members about that how often do they
00:17:39
reach out and go hey it's all going well I'm on the show I feel confident I'm getting on every every week what happens
00:17:46
from here I think Dana gets it more because they ask him about Impressions and what to expect and the these kind of
00:17:53
things but when we have on the show people that are really young right now he's with people that are really young
00:17:59
that are yeah some haven't even been on a sketch yet they're just like what what am I doing here because there's so many
00:18:04
casts you know it's very very frustrating for sure I'm sure I feel for them sometimes 50 years in you know you
00:18:12
got 200 cast members before you or whatever when I was on it was really it was the original which is probably the
00:18:18
best or whatever the best means or the most potent and then of course Ed's years in Piscopo and then the Billy
00:18:25
Crystal year then the stranger and then so well it seems young and it's it's
00:18:30
history when I was there now
00:18:35
but I was going to ask you like because what's interesting to me is okay now we got to cast these people you know yeah
00:18:43
and I wonder when what when was it down to like three people or was it instant
00:18:48
like the gentleman I you know it's hard for me to connect the names like a gentleman who plays Dan Arro yeah yeah
00:18:54
landed so well a lot they all did really I mean I was laughing that's Billy Crystal yeah that's I was laughing the
00:19:02
whole time you know so I mean look a few things are happening I mean one I'm approaching this as a movie and um and
00:19:10
I'm thinking about this as this this is a movie specifically about the 90 minutes leading up to the first episode so the movie like the a concept from the
00:19:16
the original concept was was always the movie starts at 10 pm with Lauren Michaels out on 50th Street looking for Andy Kaufman the movie is going to end
00:19:23
last line of the movie 11:30 live from New York on Saturday night so in knowing
00:19:28
that it's not about how do we tell the whole history of SNL it's not oh how do we recapture chvy Chase it's going okay
00:19:35
who is Dan akroy at 11 PM how vulnerable he is how scared is he how confident on
00:19:40
the first show where is he Right In This Moment In Time right before the world changes there's a moment where SNL
00:19:45
doesn't exist and then there's a moment where it does exist it's like a it's a shutle launch it's like it's the first walk on the moon um where is everyone's
00:19:52
hard at where is Lauren Michaels when he's actually vulnerable for maybe the last time before he becomes as confident
00:19:59
as he is and what is this strange group of people some that worked some that
00:20:04
didn't I mean Geniuses like Jim Henson that have like you know it's not going to click it's not going to work are in
00:20:09
the same room as people who are literally just they like I always said
00:20:15
this is a this is a shuttle launch like that's what we're watching so with so with Dan akroy it becomes a question of
00:20:21
you know not can you do bassomatic but rather Can you capture his energy and
00:20:27
his verbosity as and his intelligence and his vulnerability and Dylan O'Brien
00:20:32
who you know Dylan O'Brien's like a heartthrob Dylan O'Brien was you know in like ma Runner and Teen Wolf and like
00:20:38
you know I don't think people think of him as a com as a comedian but understood that acro's on the Spectrum
00:20:43
and understood how Acro spoke and um and also understood Acro sex appeal which I
00:20:49
think no one else did no other actor came in and understood that like acred could get it like women
00:20:56
loved him that's part of who he was and and so tall goodlook and charming and
00:21:04
talented and so smart and and kind of willing to play both ends of the spectrum of comedy of being like uber
00:21:10
confident but also weird uh so uh that we interviewed every
00:21:16
living person who was in the building October 11th 1975 so uh not only the
00:21:21
cast not only the writers but uh costumers production design members of Billy Preston's band we interviewed
00:21:27
Tower Shore Paul schaer like it any there was NBC Pages we literally got a hold of who
00:21:33
could just give us a taste of like what was it like how were people acting um how confident or unconfident were people
00:21:39
and that's what leads to the casting not can you nail the chubby Chase fall or
00:21:45
can you nail Gilda rner doing rosan you know or you hear a random story that
00:21:51
actually did happen and no one knows about it just some page tells you oh I don't know if you know this but over by
00:21:57
the elevators then you're like oh we should put that in it's great texture it's just something that did happen it's weird and then CU you're moving the
00:22:04
camera through this whole there's always you know everyone has to be good because you know you got to know when the
00:22:10
camera's hitting you for the movie not the show but you know when you're going through the hallways and you go into
00:22:15
makeup then you pan in you're going to the host dress room then George Carlin walks past and you're like trying to catch people going oh my God this is
00:22:21
sort of the chaos of it all it's hard to be uh uh the idea was to drop you in it
00:22:26
like we wanted the audience to feel not like they were being presented a movie but rather I just remember the first
00:22:33
time I was there it just felt like holy [ __ ] I'm here and everyone's moving past me and it's people I recognize people I
00:22:39
don't recognize and being at SNL no one sits down like you're not allowed to sit
00:22:45
down it's just constant movement and that's what I wanted the audience to feel is like layers of action and so we
00:22:52
tried to give 30 different characters actual arcs but sometimes
00:23:00
backs s day there's no trailers you're just there and we rebilt the entirity of
00:23:06
ADH uh eighth floor ninth floor it's all 136 looked great looked exactly I
00:23:12
thought I thought it was real I'm like oh they must have built this but there's so much [ __ ] they'd have to put in here
00:23:17
like those makeup rooms and the and the Wardrobe and everything and all the things in the walls and I'm like godamn
00:23:23
because it was like in real time one time you moved and I go they're on that side okay oh they're coming by where we
00:23:29
used to put catering along the wall oh they're coming back so it was real in that in that respect like it didn't even
00:23:34
matter I guess but it does that if someone knew it they go because I would see like herb Sergeant yeah was still
00:23:41
there was still there with us he gives he lays out didn't realize that herb was there when you guys were there certainly
00:23:47
yeah we took his office the update update Rider he's in charge of update yeah and he was like kind of gry but
00:23:55
after about a year he moved out of that office and me and barley moved in oh yeah and then Sandler and uh Rock took
00:24:02
the back part it's like a small two little offices with with the door between them but you have to go through
00:24:07
ours so that was four of us crammed where he had all these papers and [ __ ] just doing update and newspapers but
00:24:14
yeah I saw him I think I told Dana before this I saw Audrey per Dickman yeah was working with because she was
00:24:20
there with me and she was there with no kid yeah right and uh I was like oh my God was she there from the beginning cuz
00:24:27
you could see was Joe dixo in that was Jo dixo is day one in fact uh is great
00:24:33
um Acro so we were finishing up this last Ghostbusters movie that I produced
00:24:38
with Acro and I showed him the model of the whole set and I you know I interviewed Acro a bunch of times and
00:24:44
finally I was like hey can you give me an impersonation of Joe dixo for the actor who's going to play him and a just
00:24:50
like just jumps right in that Doom minutes and he like just starts doing the whole thing and then I was like what
00:24:57
about Davey how about Davey Wilson can give me Dave Wilson dve Wilson and he starts doing like Davey Wilson and like
00:25:03
this isn't going to work what you want to put what where you want to use I
00:25:08
don't know yeah how about that between dress and air meeting Davey Wilson's got his script out right next to Lauren's
00:25:13
desk and it's that binder script that says s alive in a circle and he's like this and he goes well we're gonna have
00:25:18
to jump we're gonna have to put Gap girls right after and he's like I don't think we can get Cam I don't think we
00:25:24
can do it and he would laugh and smile I go yell at come on baby he's like why
00:25:30
you're asking too much but I didn't know Davey was there from the beginning how stupid am I the
00:25:36
well I think uh there's something about Lauren's I'm not sure if part of it is
00:25:41
loyalty and you guys know this better than I do but uh someone told me once Lauren has the
00:25:49
same routine every day because he thinks if he did it differently tomorrow morning he wouldn't wake up Lauren
00:25:56
Michaels and uh I thought that was really interestingly said and when I the
00:26:01
first time I went to SNL I was probably a teenager and just as an audience member
00:26:07
and I remember the fear I felt and I couldn't even understand why I'm like I'm just sitting in the audience why am
00:26:13
I scared but then I started checking with other audience members and everyone felt the same thing we were all scared
00:26:18
as it started a countdown but then I went years later uh to write for a week and I got
00:26:24
to wander around and it started to hit me I was like oh nothing's changed and the more people we would interview
00:26:32
nothing physically nothing changes the the the turnover of people I mean there was people that we were interviewing
00:26:39
that had literally been with the show since pretty much the beginning like like art Department people had worked back from like at least like episode two
00:26:46
or three so I think there's a consistency that there's a recipe that
00:26:51
Lauren seems to believe in and I think it's the reason why every other sketch show that's been
00:26:58
popular is is comes down to the few people that were at the core of the cast
00:27:04
and yet there's something about the DNA of the show that allows brilliant people to come in and out of it writers actors
00:27:11
musicians like anything but the recipy remains I think that Lauren Michaels
00:27:18
never never wavered you know there was it should be an hour it should be pre-taped we should change the theme we
00:27:24
got to get rid of that song we don't need the you know for years multiple administrations of
00:27:30
overlords um he has stood the stood the test of time he really does believe in
00:27:35
it and these are the off Lael things that I don't know you would know but basically when you take unknown people
00:27:43
and you put them on a show which right now there's unknown people who just got on Sat Night Live it's a de facto
00:27:49
reality show you're watching them grow and get confident that's so I I believe
00:27:55
or putting a football player Joe Montana is going to host a live 90 minute sketch show doing so there's a reality element
00:28:03
to it so it's so compelling and then the band plays and they break big bands and
00:28:08
I got to see roon and Neil Young standing there W and so then you have those moments so I think you're right
00:28:14
it's the DNA of it and Lauren never wavered he's right now because I'm watching your movie and then I'm just
00:28:20
flashing back to last week when Lauren would suddenly appear at ADH and was you could tell he's uncomfortable way the
00:28:26
rehearsals going he's trying to think how to fix it what should we change so it's an extraordinary thing that it's a
00:28:32
50-year and going going going explos my mind yeah I I think people like Jason
00:28:39
you're right about when I like when they pull the camera back and they go to Commercial and and they start ripping
00:28:44
down a set you're like the set's that small or you know anything you just look it's more you're learning you're like oh
00:28:50
it's right there in the front or oh that set was over in the corner and they all get up and Sprint out and that part is
00:28:57
very cool to watch oh I just I it's funny so I grew up on sets and I grew up
00:29:06
just wanted to be on the trucks like I wanted to be one of the crew I wanted to be one of the dudes I love that they would say off-color jokes and I just
00:29:11
wanted to hang and when I watched SNL I I got a very early feeling that there is
00:29:18
a brilliant ensemble in front of the camera we're all aware of that but there must be a brilliant Ensemble behind the
00:29:24
camera that's performing some sort of chaotic ballet that allows this show to exist and when I got to see it in person
00:29:32
I just I couldn't fathom how you write all night Tuesday you do
00:29:38
the table read Wednesday and then in the middle of the night on Wednesday there's already someone painting a wall Heming a dress
00:29:45
creating a wig and then it goes right up to the last second and it's the most
00:29:51
thrilling thing I've ever been present for and that's what I wanted I wanted an audience to
00:29:56
experience like because it's very easy for people at home to go like I'm going to turn around at 11:30 and see what
00:30:02
they do and then after be like yeah they did a good job they did a bad job or like whatever and it is an extraordinary
00:30:09
piece of choreography in front and behind the camera to pull off that show and they are constantly bending the
00:30:16
boundaries of what can be done on live television and and that started literally with the first
00:30:21
episode and I I think there are two things you captured really well what one is to your point about the crew by the
00:30:27
time the read through you got some laughs there and maybe you're not blocking Thursday but you're blocking Friday and you're just kind of you're
00:30:35
kind of going by the crew and and the crew is often just casually kind of right yeah they're America just you're
00:30:41
running the lines and they're either there's silence or there five or t uh
00:30:47
Teamsters or just regular people laughing and it gives you a little boost you know and the other thing was
00:30:53
watching the film I want to give it away for the people going to watch it you can't give it away because it's tactile
00:30:58
experience you actually can't give this movie away like I already told everyone what the last line of the movie is and that's kind of the beauty of it yeah I
00:31:05
Lov the buildup watching the buildup to the tension is it gonna go on or they
00:31:10
GNA show a Carson rerun I just love that I love the Johnny Carson phone call whether it's real whether it's real or
00:31:17
not I don't know but at the last second they're either gonna go to Carson or go to that what now has gone for 50 years
00:31:24
so you built that so beautifully I was right in the moment even though I knew what the answer was going to be I was
00:31:29
like godamn are they gonna put Carson on I'm riding that I'm riding that train emotionally also every single person is
00:31:36
so invested on the show and the cast and crew to something that doesn't really
00:31:41
matter yet it's it's nothing it's also everyone's pretty defeated in a weird way because most people are saying this
00:31:48
is some dumb thing we're going to do in two weeks we're going to look for new another job and so you couldn't say to
00:31:54
someone now when you're working on the show you go well at least we have a job at least this is picked up at least it's there's a different vibe but then it's
00:32:01
like why are we working this hard for this [ __ ] and I love seeing the board of how many I love when Billy Crystal
00:32:07
caught the board right he's like holy [ __ ] what do you you can just eyeball it and say that's a three- hour show like
00:32:13
just for the audience the board today is where the sketches go up and they're honed down there might be 10 or 12 of
00:32:20
them and and and in Jason's movie there's a board in the hallway on 8 not
00:32:26
up in Lauren's office with like 50 sketches three musical acts a magic show
00:32:31
they're like wait who the [ __ ] is getting cut cuz you know who's getting cut before you go in but you're like oh wait that guy was there and they all
00:32:37
treat Jim Hensen like [ __ ] which is funny he's such a genius and everyone's like get the puppet guy out of my way
00:32:43
and then you know and then they they stop putting them in compromising positions you know they Bend Big Bird
00:32:50
over you know Elmo or whatever yeah that was funny one thing I wanted to ask you is like the you know when you're
00:32:58
watching it and so they're they're right now they don't know they're on Saturday Night Live yeah like I did 10 years
00:33:05
later yeah they know it's late they're getting paid they were they be obviously
00:33:10
they were found by each other and they're smoking weed and and and rabble
00:33:15
rousers and they were sort of they were sort of more aggressive than people would be now in a way they'd be more
00:33:21
differential because it wasn't a hit show and they knew Lauren Lauren was younger than Chevy Chase he was a
00:33:27
contemporary appear so you captured that too I mean how much of that Vibe was
00:33:33
part of your thinking Rebel the rebellious thing especially especially Belushi you know
00:33:39
uh I think it was Rosie Schuster who told us that what it felt like every night was that feeling if you broke into
00:33:46
your high school that if you broke into your high school over the weekend or overnight and you just running around
00:33:52
and like you own the place and and that was that was echoed by everyone we talked to that during the day
00:33:58
Rockefeller Center is a is an office building with people in suits and then all of a sudden it's Thursday and it's
00:34:04
two in the morning and Acro Acro somehow stole a set of keys and had literally a
00:34:10
key to every door in the building and and it would just go and like just in the middle of the night You' go find fun
00:34:16
places to go fun find places to smoke out um he had found this one uh shaft on
00:34:22
the eighth floor that if you open it he could like exhale into it and uh and that was his way of smoking but
00:34:28
um I I what I what I love is actually the the
00:34:34
idea that they they were a bunch of kids and and how young they were that akro was 23 and Lorraine was 21 and Belushi
00:34:41
was 26 and like they were genuinely kids and you know I asked Acro it's like you
00:34:47
know what were you GNA what were you thinking right before you went on and he said you know I was thinking I still have a snow plow up in Toronto so I had
00:34:53
a job waiting for me like yeah he still likes that stuff he's still very real
00:34:59
dude like that I mean oh my God he'd rather talk about ghosts and things paranormal he lights up by the way tell
00:35:06
me about it uh but um the uh when those guys come by the show Jason when I was
00:35:12
there he'd come by like I had I interviewed aid for Spin Magazine or something they like a collab but first
00:35:18
of all couldn't be more generous and sweetheart but it's such a a legendary
00:35:25
thing when you're on the show and someone that used to be on that you'd watch comes through the hallways and he comes in the office oh yeah oh yeah this
00:35:33
one this is old herb Sergeant you know don't be in a hurry to leave the show surf fair enough surf yeah he has an
00:35:40
extraordinary memory and he can and he everything's right on top for him and that was an interesting thing between
00:35:45
people because some people didn't remember anything or they they clearly would you know had made up 50% fabricated of their history um Acro has
00:35:53
an exceptional memory and and will hold to it oh yeah uh but it's weird now because now we've shown the movie to
00:35:59
them you know like all these folks like that we interviewed have now watched the movie and watched themselves be like
00:36:05
Port guy sat in a screening with like Billy Crystal revisiting like the worst night of his life um oh wow wow what was
00:36:12
that like I'll just I mean it's what's interesting is you know so Billy obviously gets cut on
00:36:19
opening night and Billy Crystal's had as about as successful career as a human being can have sure and he talks about
00:36:25
that night like it happened yesterday he get sting it has to sting wow wow wow uh
00:36:32
yeah I mean so we we were looking for a script from opening night we kept on asking everyone everyone we interviewed
00:36:38
CU there was stuff there was like a sketch that got cut that we always wanted to read and we just want to know what it looked like nobody had it not
00:36:43
Lauren not anybody finally we asked Billy hey is there any chance you have a script from opening night and he goes I
00:36:49
think I could find it an hour later I found it so we go to his house he pulls
00:36:54
out the script and he starts leafing through it and he goes there that's where I was supposed
00:37:01
to be deeply emotional I would kill me so we scan the script and anytime someone
00:37:09
has a script in the movie it's Billy script oh like a physical like the physical script like anytime a
00:37:15
character's like going through pages on scene in our M that's Billy's script that we actually that we scanned and he
00:37:21
went back three years later and then had this killer year with Christopher gon
00:37:26
you look all that stuff you know yeah but still that moment
00:37:34
[Music] s did he did he ask to see the movie or
00:37:40
did you ask if you could show it to so this is what happen so I've done two movies about real people and this is
00:37:45
what inevitably happens like uh you you interview the the original person all
00:37:51
they want to know is who's going to play them and if they're attractive and how tall they are and then and then they
00:37:57
watch the movie and they just can't they can't figure it out like it's just
00:38:03
silence after they're just freaked out by it they're freaked out by watching themselves um it's emotional thrown back
00:38:11
in time it's like yeah Billy was really into it Lorraine loved it um Garrett
00:38:16
loved it I think I think for Garrett it really was I think lamorn did an extraordinary job as him and really I
00:38:21
did too he really kind of sounded like him he kind of that was like yeah he was
00:38:27
on this podcast and is very memorable as one of our favorite he I mean he's he's amazing I ran him two days ago with that
00:38:33
thing and he was sitting there oh this guy he was super super sweet still you know I do impressions of people and I
00:38:40
and I do kind of have empathy uh for the in in terms of you
00:38:45
with these actors and watching people play them it's like is that is that how people see me you know it's a little
00:38:52
vulnerable is that way am I missing the way the world sees you
00:38:58
know I thought Lauren wasn't very pushed I liked it he wasn't like no you know
00:39:03
they didn't you guys didn't do that it was very kind of thrown away because he's a little Canadian you know he's a
00:39:09
little he's got something you know that's a little uh unique to Lauren and back then it was a little softer so I
00:39:15
did like the guy that played him I thought he did a great job he's the kid who played you know Gabriel LEL played Spielberg in the faan and so he's now
00:39:24
played two the most iconic Jews of all time and I think there's something about Gabriel where he has this look in his
00:39:31
eyes where if he has a vision you know somehow he's going to accomplish it and I I don't think that's something you could teach somebody I think he just has
00:39:38
that and that that tracks so beautifully throughout the whole film La wears Waldo
00:39:43
of the film The Lauren character like oh what what is he thinking right now and you know nonverbal acting is just a
00:39:50
skill set that some people have I think Michael Keaton's you know naturally gifted at it and Gabriel he is too no
00:39:57
lines just looking at a board and thinking you know you really wrote it with him that character I think for each
00:40:03
character at the end of the day we I tried to identify just one thing as far as the casting so you know with Chevy
00:40:09
was an ego that needs to be humbled you know with Belushi it's a guy who thinks
00:40:16
that somehow going on television will be the end of his life you know uh for Gilda it's obviously the overwhelming
00:40:22
empathy you know for Garrett it was uh
00:40:27
who am I like what's my identity who the hell and by getting down of that one idea instead of it being an
00:40:33
impersonation it became all right this is this is the one thing this is what the one thing he want in this film and it just gave him son to chase did
00:40:40
Belushi really I mean I I heard Belushi didn't like the bees that's true right but did he really have a problem with
00:40:48
that he's s sort of a bigger actor than the show I wouldn't think that of him I would think he's just a goofball this is
00:40:55
what I understood is one you know he he wouldn't sign his contract and and he
00:41:00
went missing on on opening night and he definitely had animosity with Chevy and
00:41:06
I think the reason was really clear you know what was brilliant about that first show is that no one looked like anyone
00:41:12
on television like Belushi didn't look like someone who should be on television you
00:41:17
know Gilda did not look like someone who should be on television and Chevy did
00:41:22
and CH did I think what upset balushi was that when you look at who balushi was on stage at Second City and in the
00:41:29
National Lampoon show he he was a star and he had found a place where he could 100% be himself and people would respect
00:41:36
his genius and now he was going to be on television and Belushi knew chev's going to be a star and and and the network
00:41:42
kind of identified that from moment one and and Chevy knew it and Chevy was like this is where I'm going to get my win uh
00:41:50
that's why you know we have this line in the movie where uh he's like oh is this an ensemble you know he yeah so I think
00:41:57
also it was revealed obviously later on I guess people it was obvious in the beginning that you're at home base in8
00:42:05
that means you're in the center of the studio you really can play to the audience and the camera it's the perfect
00:42:10
position to be in where Chevy was and then you're going right to the audience and you can drop little ad libs in you
00:42:16
can break at character a bit stuff like that so and then you know obviously he broke so hard I was just going to ask
00:42:23
you quickly about two subsidiary characters that people wouldn't be household name Michael oon who yeah and
00:42:29
and Rosie Schuster who helped me put together Church chat so I was interested how what a big part of U that year she
00:42:38
was as Lauren's wife their relationship was shaky or something I found love with Rosie as everyone does you know I all
00:42:45
I'd been hearing was that everyone falls in love with Rosie and then Gil and I Gil is my writing partner we got on the phone with Rosie and and you know we
00:42:51
wanted to fight after her you know after the the call we just felt so head over heels for her and she was so funny
00:42:59
of all the heavy we spoke to she was easily the funniest we spoke to who like just consistently made us laugh and said
00:43:05
things out of nowhere they were highly original and and I think really intered about also about her was that look I
00:43:12
mean look this cast is and right this group of writers and casts are challenging all these social mores and
00:43:18
the way that they're doing television the way they do comedy and but also for Lauren and Rosie who their marriage is
00:43:24
coming apart they're seeing other people they're still married to each other they're working with each other that
00:43:30
they were taking this 1970s nuanced look at love where it's like she's [ __ ]
00:43:35
Danny they're still married but they respect the fact that they make each
00:43:41
other better and that's all that counts like they make each other funnier they make a better show together they support each other they understand each other
00:43:47
and who gives a [ __ ] and Lauren didn't give a [ __ ] and that was really clear and speaking to everybody that was that
00:43:52
yeah the hippie day or whatever the new new kind of looking at everything basically days including comedy and I
00:43:58
think that's what what's so cool about that moment is you have a young people who are going we don't have to do it the same way that anyone else has done it
00:44:04
before and like that's kind of what the movie is about it's about the moment where one generation just rips television out of the hands of another
00:44:11
because they say your time is done like that's why we have Milton Burl in the movie like Milton Burl is there representing an entire generation of old
00:44:18
TV that this group goes no I'm sorry we're done with you yeah that was a
00:44:25
brilliant because I read it wasn't exactly true um J K Simmons as Milton
00:44:32
Burl is Magnificent the characters hilarious well Milton exposing himself is true he he may not have exposed
00:44:39
himself to Chevy but he exposed himself to a bunch of other people I think he constantly exposing himself to people
00:44:46
it's hysterical I mean so the first person we heard about was Z Bell and he
00:44:51
had exposed himself to Su Bell in someone's CH in someone's dressing room
00:44:57
and then the more we talk to people the more people I would find out you know even Jeff Ross Jeff Ross came to our
00:45:02
Premiere and after he goes oh yeah yeah Milton showed me his dick I didn't get made to I got made 22 that's how big it
00:45:11
was well I mean the uh to have him in there and also I I wasn't quite sure I
00:45:17
may have lost I love when Spade doesn't like a joke he's like oh no I'm gonna
00:45:22
I'm gonna let you know how much I don't like that joke me just now no I like that the guys with the big dicks want to
00:45:28
show everybody that's so funny my friend used to accidentally send his huge dick picture to girls and go oh my God sorry
00:45:34
not for you like no that's okay well I just think of hydraulics I mean there was a prosis in your show and it's like
00:45:41
you're extrapolating War how does that really get to a place of of excitement
00:45:47
it seems like it's just too much weight uh to it's very funny we uh this is a very naturalistic movie we shot on 16 mm
00:45:55
we tried to do everything old school there's two visual effects in the film and one of them was retouching Milton's penis to make sure that uh the skin
00:46:02
color and shine match JK's skin only only in the movies and as far
00:46:09
as Rosie Schuster being there in 86 and being assigned to me I had a church lady
00:46:14
character for my standup to develop it I I didn't know she was his ex-wife and I noticed that she would always call him
00:46:21
dear in meetings yes dear I love that oh dear yeah she called him good in the
00:46:27
movie oh well Rachel Senate is actress is great she's off the charts Ian I don't know of another actor who's had as
00:46:34
strong a debut when you think about her first three films you know uh Shiva baby bodies bodies bodies and bottoms I mean
00:46:41
they just lights out good and she's yeah she's a killer yeah she was Charming
00:46:48
yeah she seemed just in the pocket totally natural and Michael Adon who you brought up earlier obviously is one of
00:46:54
the reasons why the show is genius from day one is that again I think that's this other thing about Lauren is his understanding that a show could hold the
00:47:01
tone of Jim Hensen and kind of the Delight of like a comedian like zel with the dark
00:47:08
nastiness of odonahue and knew that that somehow this is a show that's going to
00:47:14
occupy enough space where all these voices can live together and and Tommy D is the guy who played odonahue and
00:47:21
that's a really tricky role I think that's one of those things where from the outside You Don't See hard it is to
00:47:28
be able to say that kind of nasty [ __ ] and still be a likable character and there's very few actors like like Billy
00:47:33
Bob was someone you know Billy Bob thoron was a guy who like he could literally say anything you still like the guy and it's just it's such a tricky
00:47:39
thing to do yeah interesting we heard well Lauren is very clever about that I
00:47:44
don't really know how his brain works but it's it's at a high level of really absorbing I was the thing I say as I
00:47:51
came back at the young people but Lauren's an AI who's downloaded the show so it's gener
00:47:57
so he can blink stuff he can look at something and kind of go well if they're
00:48:03
supposed to be older we have to make them older or whatever there's the essence of things very quickly we'll
00:48:08
figure out what's wrong what might be better and you see him I've been there many times when the show's a little flat
00:48:16
and and I can tell he's a little wounded but gonna go on to the next one and then when it goes well he's just a little
00:48:22
lighter but it's an intense life to do what he's done and is still doing it and
00:48:29
is going to keep doing it after the 50th what news flash I was about to I you just dropped that like it was
00:48:35
nothing um I'm curious with both of you do you remember early
00:48:42
moments where you understood why Lauren picked you like uh where like did it
00:48:47
ever become clear it's like oh this is what he saw in me and this is why he knew I was special David I'll let you go
00:48:54
first you know it was I wasn't a big character guy I just did standup and I
00:49:00
think uh he liked the way it was written even though I wasn't even a headliner um
00:49:07
and when I got there I was a little over my head more than a normal over your head because I wasn't writing sketches
00:49:13
for characters and I wasn't doing crazy stuff and that wasn't something that was on my even radar that it was so high
00:49:20
above me that from Arizona I couldn't think oh one day I should be on SNL it didn't cross my mind it was I was saying
00:49:25
I should be like a man manager at benan you know that was like the ceiling and so when you get to you get at the
00:49:33
highest place and you're the lowest level it was hard and I was always feeling about getting fired and getting
00:49:40
when obviously was having some troubles especially first couple years but when we had Lauren on he goes and by the way
00:49:45
David you were never in danger of getting fired and I was like it's just weird to hear him say that because
00:49:50
that's all you're thinking for six years and is to have them say it out loud because it was a it was a Little Rock
00:49:56
wrad but got through it but [ __ ] I was just like oh I I don't know what he saw
00:50:02
maybe it didn't look like everyone you know you just you don't know what I wasn't a huge jumping off the page guy
00:50:08
but he he he did say also during the podcast I I always I always knew you were funny just H PR from the guy was
00:50:15
it's nice to hear just that simply that knew followup question is there a person
00:50:22
who makes you more nervous when you answer the phone and the someone goes I have Lauren Michaels for you is there is
00:50:28
there any person who would actually make you more or is that the person who would make you the most nervous hearing oh
00:50:34
he's on the other line um um it definitely is something
00:50:39
that you might avoid especially if you're there if you're there and you're part of it it's the ultimate boss going
00:50:45
oh my God the Godfather's calling or when to this day though I'm saying even to this day I see they go want you to
00:50:51
come up I feel like Lauren's um emotional interface I'm just making up these words I'm just more used to it
00:50:58
this time around so I kind of want to give him a hug and tell him a joke and be silly uh but for years when I was on
00:51:06
the show you know because Lauren had this thing walking down the hallway still with the show you know that kind of stuff and uh you're still here he was
00:51:13
in he was intimidating I mean he had told somebody recently or that he had to
00:51:18
create sort of a wall between himself and the cast or else they would have eaten eaten him alive right um you know
00:51:24
so yeah he's an intimida character but you know if you go to the Yankee game you know he's kind of I mean yeah he's
00:51:30
he's he's an Eclectic personality they're sort of The elusive Lauren and arod Lauren and then there's the guy
00:51:36
wants to get a hot dog and go to the game so also that's stuff you're not as fearful now because it's you did it and
00:51:42
so now I just like to see Lauren and laugh with him and try to make him laugh and goof around as much as as much as
00:51:47
possible but you feel like he's so observant and so smart that he can just see right through you right and he kind
00:51:54
of knows where you're going wrong um never leave a hit you know he always has
00:52:00
these lessons never leave a hit uh on what happened to me was so unusual and
00:52:05
bizarre and just happen since that I had done the church lady character in my ACT but I was doing 70 minutes to standup
00:52:11
and it was just a few minutes of it and um so then decide to make it into a talk
00:52:17
show with Rosie Schuster you know and then it just scored huge and it was an
00:52:22
accident I didn't know it was great that it was a talk show on home base I didn't know it was great that my characters
00:52:28
funny and also Phil Hartman and Sigourney Weaver could come on and be funny and I had Jan Hooks and Phil
00:52:33
Hartman scoring so I figured out at some point that's what Lauren loves it's a sketch that at home base a reoccurring
00:52:40
character with a catchphrase and then guests can come on and be funny as well
00:52:46
right yeah and so and then I did shop broccoli that show and a few other things so I didn't have ground leads up
00:52:53
in San Francisco so I just was a sketch player doing standup and in the small rooms it would
00:52:59
work and the bigger rooms be harder so I didn't really know I was a sketch player but when I got on there I figured out well this is where I belong you know
00:53:05
doing characters and sketch but I was trying to do it as a standup so so that
00:53:11
was a freak itude to have that right up
00:53:18
front is there anyone these days that you fight for to laugh more than Lauren
00:53:23
like is there a person that you want that you try to make laugh more than Lauren you feel the win more when they
00:53:30
laugh more than Lauren no um my first show back doing these little sets of
00:53:35
shows um I was reading Biden in the in the read through and I didn't really have it but it was kind of coming on to
00:53:42
me this um Biden nonse thing and guess what and by the way the fact of the
00:53:47
matter is and so I was throwing it in it wasn't in the little draft of the script I just throwing it in and I saw Lauren's
00:53:54
shoulders going up and down in the corner of my eyee and so that was
00:53:59
that was a big when the shoulders go you know yep the read Lauren is unreal like
00:54:05
when you're on the show and everything matters and you're read through and oh you wrote a sketch and it's your lines
00:54:11
and you're saying it and then you see him just buy into the sketch and start cracking up or slap the table you're
00:54:16
like holy [ __ ] oh my God this is God the week I was there I wrote three
00:54:21
sketches that's a lot no no no they didn't make it I did for the for that's a lot of writing though you know it's
00:54:28
hard to do yeah but I've been like I've been wanting to do this for decades and this is my one chance like I trust me I
00:54:33
had stuff in the so I I just I made so many rookie mistakes not realizing oh
00:54:40
[ __ ] like that's never gonna work at the table read and he's going to be reading the all the all the all the stage
00:54:46
directions and there's multiple locations why did I do that all these things sets oh yeah I made that mistake
00:54:52
God I I wanted so many doovers I got to sketch on but oh my God that who was
00:54:58
your host that week Ashton Kutcher was the host narles Barkley was the musical
00:55:04
guest and now you know exactly when it took place sure it's great though well
00:55:10
howun what's your point Lauren is like a coach you know and if did you were a high jumper right in high school how the
00:55:17
hell do you know that who just who slipped you that weird I wasn't it must be you I just I just at least had a
00:55:24
prefunc look at your Wikipedia page I assume we would mostly talk about this but I I love track and field and I
00:55:30
remember dick fosbery and stuff like that but uh Lauren is like a coach that you want to please and I had a
00:55:36
button-down coach when I was in high school very not not big with the praise you'd have to just go vantastic but
00:55:43
Lauren he would just give you a little if you dismantle the room like really
00:55:48
scored he might walk by him and he would just tap your shoulder and give a little Pat yeah and kind of Nod his head and
00:55:55
that was like a oh you know a huge huge win right David if you kind of ackn I
00:56:00
think three years and I did one Hollywood minute at readr and he goes he turns the sketch he goes next sketch he
00:56:06
goes I think you found your voice all right we're going to do Wayne's World and I was like and then two weeks later
00:56:12
in the hallway he goes maybe Hollywood minute this week I go [ __ ] you're asking me to do a sketch oh my God [ __ ] oh dud
00:56:19
that must have been extraordinary oh man by the way I was just talking about
00:56:25
the rare gift to say cruel things and for people to love you for it and it's
00:56:30
like you're literally one of the handful of human beings on Earth who can do that and you can say these things and people
00:56:36
love you for it and like like you can't teach that it's just like it's just in the DNA I'm not really a mean person
00:56:43
that's the the funniest part of the whole thing is like you just think of these jokes and goes oh that'd be funny but you're not like I [ __ ] hate these
00:56:49
people you just isn't that the truth like when you think about the few people who do this like the few greats who are
00:56:55
like they know how to just cut you to the Bone and be funny most of those people are not mean
00:57:01
people like Don Rickles is not a mean person Jeff is not a mean person yeah yeah no both yeah uh like the real
00:57:09
[ __ ] are not funny they're just yeah yeah you're right yeah yeah it's because
00:57:15
you always have to find the fine line where it's not too rough and sometimes I would go too deep and caught myself a
00:57:21
dress or something going no I don't think they're going to buy that that's that's well when Chevy came on this podcast I you know I'd seen him in I
00:57:29
know I I knew enough of seeing him over the years and he was very generous to me when I was at Lauren Michaels house
00:57:35
before I got on the show but I was out there and he loved my addition tape saw something in me but um Chevy loves to
00:57:43
say the thing you're not supposed to say yeah to the extreme where it can go wherever it wants to go I have an
00:57:50
example for you uh and I've known I've known CH my entire life I grew up you know right like with with his kids and
00:57:57
stuff and like funniest Americans ever created and so so Chevy comes in to
00:58:04
watch the movie and he's there with Janie and they watch the film and he's in the group and he comes up to me after
00:58:10
and he Pats me on the shoulder and goes well you should be
00:58:16
embarrassed what a exact Chevy thing you couldn't even write it better yeah how
00:58:21
funny well he knows that's that's funny like okay that's the most that's the
00:58:27
roughest thing you could say to a director in that moment right up there and all right you know and I'm trying to
00:58:32
balance it well I'm trying to bounce because I at my head I know all right I'm getting a Chevy Chase moment
00:58:39
that's 1,000% only for me right now and in from a comedy point of view that's really pure and that's kind of that's
00:58:46
kind of cool but also I just spent like two years of my life recreating this
00:58:52
moment so that and trying to capture Chevy perect Al and also even in the ego
00:58:57
find the humanity and give him a moment to be loved no none of that [ __ ] play
00:59:04
he's not talking about that stuff it's a it's a a funny thing to say but then you got to look at the meter and go what
00:59:09
percentage was real was it all a joke or was there a little bit he's not happy but you just don't know when he leaves
00:59:15
and you go ah well he saw it I think the key the key is if you can when we I just
00:59:23
say yes to everything he at one point he goes I had a way bigger career than you guys we both went of course you did so
00:59:31
if you go back in time he says you should be embarrassed I'm completely humiliated and then the air goes out of
00:59:37
the ballue then then he's more like hey it wasn't that bad you know but you always say Yes um have you seen my [ __ ]
00:59:44
and he would go like this like was it a hundred times yeah then he would go like that he went on video which is horrible
00:59:49
because everyone would he was so funny with all this visual craziness you know Dana we we're gonna let we we have to
00:59:57
wrap up with Jason who's a [ __ ] stud but mention his great other things he
01:00:03
does we won't go into him totally but we just just so the Jun knows the up in the air was great when you do it at the end
01:00:09
of the show you like you're like oh by the way this is who this guy was no we well I no we're going to introduce you
01:00:15
we separately we're going to introduce you and say all this but but I want you to hear that I love young this went full
01:00:20
Saturday Night Live I thought we could it could have been about your high jumping in high school um apparently
01:00:26
could have been how you frequent STK in Hollywood but we didn't want to spend the whole time on that that's in your
01:00:31
Wikipedia also by the way William def loved every minute of William defo as
01:00:36
Dave tibit I've I don't think I've ever been to SDK that's that's kind of that's exciting frequence Los Angeles take out
01:00:43
STK as does Channing Tatum does it really references swear by
01:00:49
the way that's a really interesting way to do advertising I never thought of that but anyone can update a Wikipedia you could just go to the most famous
01:00:56
your restaurant so if you own a restaurant you're just going to be like and Beyonce
01:01:01
you know you know at chees factory yeah the problem
01:01:07
which I've said before is if people hear something they have a hard time thinking
01:01:12
it's utterly untrue so on the Wikipedia page it said I had a previous wife named
01:01:17
Leah it's probably still there so people go so you were married before Paula to a
01:01:23
woman named Leah no no it's all made up well you must have known someone named Leah nope it's all made up but you must
01:01:31
have had someone before you know no it's a 100% some nerd in a room and it's
01:01:36
still there you know so I did it to myself D I said I collected Geral we just put it in one time and then it was
01:01:44
such a mistake because in the middle of heavy interviews they're like you know my son has a Geral and I go I don't give
01:01:49
a [ __ ] and they're like but don't you love you now when did that start I go what I forget I go oh right right I got
01:01:56
to get that out of there was like for one laugh that's Richard Gear remember the durable up the butt and people would
01:02:02
go well he must have exct R he must have sat on a Jal no it's all made up no but
01:02:09
come on D this is not going to turn out well I know right I just did it again Dana thank you Jason your stud aside
01:02:16
from everything else you've done nice hanging out I love talking about SNL like that and uh what a fun movie to
01:02:21
watch and just be thrown back into the that crazy world did a great job one
01:02:27
last thing before we go the Franken and Davis characters really made me laugh you know what's great so those two
01:02:32
actors uh they did something I hadn't experienced before they auditioned together and that's what made it work
01:02:39
they already knew each other and so they just did the bit together and it was like oh I believe them is a Duo and I
01:02:45
was like why don't more actors do this that was so smart now that's Julia Child B did you see like I don't know if you
01:02:52
saw the movie but at the beginning there you know it's chaos and they show on the side nice David they show on the side
01:02:59
Franken and Davis just one of the crazy things is one of the most memorable sketches of all time Julia Child yeah
01:03:05
they just walk by we got this thing we just want to do it's blood and Lauren's like sounds great moves on and you're
01:03:10
like oh my God that's everyone knows there's a lot of detail so for the for a big SNL fan which I'm presuming like
01:03:17
your listeners are you know way bigger fans than I am yeah uh they like like we have col and blow in there like there's
01:03:23
all sorts of little details you start actually if you start looking in the
01:03:28
background and stuff there's all kinds of fun stuff and then obviously oh Easter eggs cuz col blow was 10 12 years
01:03:35
later that was when I was there with Phil God damn what a great watch it again yeah okay thank you the what a
01:03:42
stud what a stud I'll talk to you later enjoyed it by this has been a
01:03:48
presentation of Odyssey please follow subscribe leave a like a review all the
01:03:53
stuff smash that button whatever it is we you get your podcast fly on thewall is executive produced by Dana Carvey and
01:03:59
David Spade Jenna Weiss Burman of Odyssey and Heather Santoro the show's lead producer is Greg Holzman

Badges

This episode stands out for the following:

  • 80
    Most chaotic
  • 80
    Best direction
  • 75
    Funniest
  • 75
    Best performance

Episode Highlights

  • The Chaos of SNL
    Jason captures the chaotic spirit of SNL in his new movie, reflecting on the show's unique energy.
    “He tried to capture the spirit of that first show, the crazy chaotic spirit.”
    @ 01m 46s
    December 25, 2024
  • Memories of the Stairwell
    The stairwell between the eighth and ninth floors holds countless memories for SNL cast and crew.
    “Anyone who's ever worked there has smoked in there, cried in there, broken up with their boyfriend in there.”
    @ 04m 00s
    December 25, 2024
  • A Dream Come True
    Jason shares his childhood dream of directing movies and writing for SNL, which he achieved after years of hard work.
    “I had two dreams as a kid: to direct movies and to be a writer for Saturday Night Live.”
    @ 10m 57s
    December 25, 2024
  • The Chaos of SNL
    The constant movement and energy at SNL creates a unique atmosphere for both cast and audience.
    “It's just constant movement and that's what I wanted the audience to feel.”
    @ 22m 39s
    December 25, 2024
  • Lauren's Routine
    Lauren Michaels has a daily routine that he believes keeps him grounded and connected to the show.
    “Someone told me once Lauren has the same routine every day because he thinks if he did it differently tomorrow morning he wouldn't wake up L”
    @ 25m 41s
    December 25, 2024
  • The Emotional Impact of SNL
    The fear and excitement felt by audience members reflects the show's intense atmosphere.
    “I remember the fear I felt... everyone felt the same thing.”
    @ 26m 07s
    December 25, 2024
  • The Unique DNA of SNL
    The show's ability to adapt while maintaining core elements is a key to its longevity.
    “There's something about the DNA of the show that allows brilliant people to come in and out of it.”
    @ 27m 11s
    December 25, 2024
  • Billy Crystal's Opening Night
    Billy Crystal reflects on the sting of being cut on opening night, a moment that still resonates.
    “Billy obviously gets cut on opening night... it has to sting.”
    @ 36m 19s
    December 25, 2024
  • The Evolution of Comedy
    A discussion on how a new generation of comedians is redefining television and comedy.
    “We don't have to do it the same way that anyone else has done it.”
    @ 43m 58s
    December 25, 2024
  • Milton Berle's Hilarious Reputation
    J.K. Simmons portrays Milton Berle, who had a notorious reputation for exposing himself.
    “Milton exposing himself is true; he exposed himself to a bunch of other people.”
    @ 44m 32s
    December 25, 2024
  • The Intimidation of Lauren Michaels
    David Spade reflects on the intimidating presence of Lauren Michaels during his early days on SNL.
    “Lauren had to create a wall between himself and the cast or else they would have eaten him alive.”
    @ 51m 18s
    December 25, 2024

Episode Quotes

Key Moments

  • Capturing Chaos01:46
  • SNL Memories04:00
  • SNL Energy22:39
  • Audience Fear26:07
  • Nuanced Love43:30
  • Comedy Revolution44:04
  • Intimidating Presence51:18
  • Coach Lauren55:10

Words per Minute Over Time

Vibes Breakdown

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