00:00:01
so you've been out lately or what yeah we're going to introduce uh Keenan uh right now but I was going to tell you
00:00:06
this weekend I did some gigs and on my tour and um flu coach as always you know man of the people what I don't realize
00:00:12
when you when you apply like if it's Southwest you stand there and then they go almost any Airline I just hear them
00:00:20
go okay and I go to get on they go right now we're going to start we're just gonna start with like little babies and
00:00:25
people that need some help okay so they pile on now uh any veterans from the military so
00:00:34
that's good then they go first class or uh platinum gold members and they go on
00:00:40
and they're like people with anxiety or any stresses go on then it's people that really hate
00:00:47
flying go next people that sort of hate flying I'm like I think I'm the last person to get on
00:00:54
uh and then I got on and stuffed me big rump into a wheelchair and I go they say
00:01:01
they're going to clean the plane and just want to go for a breeze I guess anyway so then I uh okay bring them on
00:01:06
and then I go I think there's a dog tooth in my uh seat back they go we can't get every nook and cranny narc
00:01:12
why don't you Yelp it down a notch guy okay anyway that's the story I you know I
00:01:19
think they just they flatter all of us I used to fly coach you know I didn't I didn't I didn't have any
00:01:25
pocket change but now it's golden Platinum you know Five Star members and
00:01:31
you're like you're in the 40th row but my God you're walking on triple platinum man yeah nobody doesn't have a great
00:01:37
moniker I got first on one of the ways and they go there's a first class lounge and I walk up they go are you a member I go
00:01:43
well I'm flying first class they go what a joke you can't come in here you're not
00:01:48
a member yeah she said Pay downstairs I went to one of those she goes pay downstairs but there was no one there
00:01:53
like no one at the cash register so I went in had a couple pops yeah and then
00:01:59
snuck out and saving that 70 bucks was just oh I love it something about that
00:02:04
and I sneaking the one the woman that wouldn't let me in says to her friend as I'm leaving I love you and grown-ups I
00:02:10
go not enough this is the time when you do me a solid and go hey Higgins get in there but also when I left the plane I
00:02:17
said the stewardess because I'm a great guy I said listen I want to thank you because you know you showed up I said a
00:02:23
lot of people are calling in sick lately and planes are delayed but I made my show and I appreciate it and she goes I
00:02:29
know right I have covet and I came in I go exactly that's what I need you're trying and you're really doing all right
00:02:36
Keenan great guy I had a lot of fun with him yeah the longest
00:02:42
running cast member by far active we go over story you know he was a child
00:02:48
actor and then a child star on Nickelodeon he was doing a hamburger town he was on uh
00:02:54
um Keel and peel he was on peel and King then
00:03:00
well we're not good with names but uh he was on a lot of stuff on Nickelodeon good burger good burger and he was in uh
00:03:07
Keenan and Kel but Keenan um has his own incredible story and it
00:03:13
took him a long time to kind of get used to getting us now and being honest now and then he evolved and we go over how
00:03:21
he got some great I think Scared Straight is one of the hardest I've laughed at a sketch Scared Straight was
00:03:27
great he also does the uh what's up with that is that it what's up with that it's so funny it's hard to describe this but
00:03:34
look it up on YouTube if you don't know it and I will make I'll make I'll make an observation about Keenan he speaks
00:03:40
because I have a lot of Irish relatives he speaks in poetry and I hate this cliche but he's kind of an old soul he's
00:03:47
a laid-back guy and you always think of him as the kid kind of and he's still really young yeah
00:03:55
and he also is smart we were asking who we thought who he thought would take
00:04:00
over the show if Lauren ever left interesting answer um and I asked him what it was like
00:04:06
being famous at a young age if that's throws you off as a kid a lot of child stars aren't a thousand percent stable
00:04:13
understandably and I think he's got his head on he is a de facto producer in a sense that he he's been there had new
00:04:20
people show up go through their whole tenure they leave and he's still there we ask him what that felt like but he's
00:04:27
always likes when a new a bunch comes in because we've talked about on the podcast some someone comes in as a
00:04:32
single and then this last year they put four or five in you know and he likes to
00:04:38
see them evolve to see clumps come in yeah easier for your brain to have a new person with you I kind of came in with a
00:04:44
chunk it's hard to come in Midstream like by yourself December and then you're just fully lost in that place
00:04:50
yeah all right you have a song this is a riff I thought of for Keenan so um
00:04:56
oh let me get kind of a combo yeah get comfortable get comfortable [Music]
00:05:06
toe Tapper Keenan Keenan Thompson coming to the
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show gonna be funny don't don't you know
00:05:18
can't play the guitar when people are watching me yeah you kind of twice as
00:05:23
bad when people are watching me David
00:05:29
[Music] we can fix that sorry I have five people staring at me
00:05:36
with their jaws out like they're just no it's fun okay so yeah is it
00:05:45
I like Keenan Thompson
00:05:53
all right Keenan Thompson guys hope you like [Music]
00:05:58
Keenan [Music]
00:06:05
oh whoa whoa whoa not even a minute late
00:06:11
hey Alum what's up you're you're not we're we're alums you're not an Alum yet
00:06:17
right you're still on campus yeah I know I'm still fully on campus yeah once you leave campus yeah all the campus meals
00:06:24
are still free [Laughter]
00:06:32
my sleep schedule has just been crazy lately wait a minute in today's Busy
00:06:37
World with all the emails and all this stuff I I recheck I mean I don't I I can't I'm never anywhere I'm not even
00:06:43
sure I was supposed to be on this right now until you just showed up well you're here no worries there why are you what
00:06:51
are you broadcasting from the basement this is uh this is like uh undisclosed location in Northern California it's
00:06:58
kind of a basement area that oh right yours does look like a basement are you
00:07:03
okay there's stuff in there that we should not be seen so anyway it's a
00:07:09
little haunted house place uh there's definitely Poltergeist in this house built in 1912. but anyway back to you
00:07:15
Keenan hey Keenan when you eat down there on
00:07:20
the show night that's free right everything's still free it is free
00:07:27
um but you know you're also allowed to pay for whatever meal you would like so there's still freedoms there yeah I
00:07:34
would order in yeah do you give every season a a mental report card like or a
00:07:40
Vibe card like because it you've been there so many cats and so many ups and downs
00:07:48
and changes and people leaving that that was your favorite cast memory all this the normal drama yeah so right now
00:07:55
what's your Vibe card uh right now good super strong you know like we've been having a strong season I
00:08:02
think the new people all came in you know taking big swings together you know it's nice to see when they get to come
00:08:07
in in groups as opposed to like one or two's trying to figure it out you know what I mean and being kind of lost for a
00:08:12
couple years or whatever and being in the super duper background for a while you know I got to come in
00:08:19
at a time when we pretty much needed them you know what I mean so they've all kind of been pretty prevalent I think
00:08:25
this season as far as like getting introduced to America and stuff like that or whatever but we talked a lot of
00:08:31
to bridge cast members who came in and aren't really told anything because they're just alone they're at the show
00:08:37
and no one tells them you know where the bathroom is or what time is dinner and it's like I bet Keenan tells them more
00:08:43
than the higher up I would go to Keenan yeah I try to tell them whatever they want to know because you know I have
00:08:49
that same experience I was super like you said nobody explains it to you so like I showed up Tuesday at like 6 30
00:08:56
not knowing that I should have been there I mean early I was just like I don't I
00:09:02
don't know I'll just go when I get hired and you just show up yeah nobody told me a time you know the times didn't come
00:09:08
into play until like Wednesday or some [ __ ] like that and you were the only one coming in when you came in you were just
00:09:14
added in as a single or we had anyone I came in with uh finesse and JB was
00:09:19
writing and Jordan black was writing okay so definitely you guys are the new
00:09:25
ones you know keen and I did that when I came in I did you know I do like coming in with a clump I had a few people you
00:09:30
know we sort of had a chunk of people that are described from my era thank God
00:09:35
but when I came in I remember Schneider uh once uh
00:09:41
Schneider and Downey called me on a Thursday night from a rewrite meeting and said where the [ __ ] are you and I go
00:09:46
well I didn't get anything on right and they go you still got to be here well no
00:09:51
one tells me anything I go that's like a 16-hour rewrite day as you guys know and
00:09:57
I I didn't go the full week before no one said a word and this is the second week I missed and then they go get down
00:10:02
here down he goes get down here oh okay I don't I felt intrusive like if I went in they'd say why are you here
00:10:11
I love the mystery it's weird did Laura never say to you just as a non-sequitur
00:10:17
still with the show we are still here but still with the
00:10:24
show it's like season four and he walks by you oh look who's look who's still here
00:10:29
yeah you get little aside like that it's more so like right before you're about
00:10:34
to perform a very personal sketch that you're terrified about you know he's done this literally to me he's like you
00:10:41
know this should be funny right okay have fun it's like [ __ ] is this not been funny
00:10:46
it'd be really nice if it really was funny yeah I know his dry sense of humor
00:10:52
but it does kind of relax you it does I like that it's a Jedi mind trick because then I go over perform basically what
00:11:00
was that in your early tenure there where this was there a sketch that you were particularly nervous about that
00:11:05
like if I land this I'm going to break through in a different way and then Lauren said something or what when did
00:11:11
you feel like you had a little bit of uh a foothold on SNL Mountain kind of was
00:11:17
or is it right away no it was not right away at all it took a while I didn't get
00:11:22
like my own personal ideas on to like you know Fifth Season kind of thing and
00:11:27
on you know I was servicing you know writers and stuff like that and trying to be a good you know performance cast
00:11:34
member but my writing was really slacking you know because I was kind of learning on the Fly I didn't have that responsibility at you know
00:11:40
Nickelodeon we were just kids you know and I I had you know good on camera presence
00:11:47
or whatever and that was enough to kind of skate me past not knowing how to write or I haven't knowing how to like
00:11:52
collaborate with like full adults you know what I'm saying I was 25 and you know there was like real adults in the
00:11:59
room with like real consequence if I wasted their time kind of thing you know so it took a while to like feel
00:12:05
comfortable you know asking people for their time or to take a swing on right you know an idea did
00:12:13
you find a confident or a writer or someone that you started to kind of talk to or vent to or yeah Brian Tucker came
00:12:19
in early you know like we didn't you know specifically write you know something that recurred necessarily but
00:12:26
we definitely had a rapport very early because you know he loves the the black Zeitgeist you know what I'm saying so we
00:12:32
get along with and me and Colin shared an office for like eight years so that was good times
00:12:39
nice so bro he became head writer or was he head writer when he came in no he he
00:12:44
graduated and I think you know I I had a hand in helping that without a little
00:12:49
what's up with that Venture what's up with that as a Crusher dude I just watched a few of them and uh thank you
00:12:56
man that's funny as [ __ ] I that's like an old school kind of just I start laughing and it you know you don't
00:13:02
really laugh at every sketch sometimes you look at a sketch and you go that was good right that was funny but to start
00:13:07
laughing and going what the [ __ ] is going on when something is funny with
00:13:13
the sound off or it's visual you go on the song and there's you've got Sudeikis does
00:13:18
that thing you're doing your thing there's no real joke it's a celebration and it stops it's it's what I would call
00:13:26
an irresistible sketch the only joke in it
00:13:32
but I love that by far is [ __ ] bill plan uh uh Lindsay Lindsey Buckingham
00:13:40
yeah thank you yeah and he's just he's got so much to say in the beginning and we're gonna get to it I swear and then
00:13:47
we never do and you know I always think he's mad at me and he's not mad at me it's my [ __ ] favorite
00:13:54
it's the Bill Hader is just funny you know without lines he's just fine one of
00:13:59
those I'm one of the greatest you know what I mean like it's not easy to perform in silence you know I mean you
00:14:05
have to be a great mind kind of acting like a Martin Short or something what's not what's nice about an ensemble
00:14:12
uh Dana knows this is like Keenan it takes a while to learn how to write a sketch I think people realize that
00:14:17
there's no class for it so you're really learning by watching and it takes a long time but the the if you're a writer you
00:14:24
have the respect enough when you're there to be able to say I have this sketch which pretty much Services me but
00:14:32
I'm gonna have Mike Myers come in and do two lines you get a guy like that and he
00:14:37
will come in and do his best two lines or understate it or say Dana come in and do this and they do it because it's an
00:14:44
ensemble and you go what a gift I get these great guys and they are just Pros walking boom boom what do you need for
00:14:50
the sketch play it under play it over what needs me and I'll get out and then that's that was sort of a Power Trip in
00:14:56
a way too you go wow I have all these guys at my disposal the same thing you're saying is that you get to bring Bill Hader who's so good and you go am I
00:15:03
wasting this guy's time but no he comes in it says
00:15:09
The Running Man he's the [ __ ] the biggest star of the sketch like after we rehearsed it the first time and he was
00:15:15
sweating harder than I was I was like oh this is going to be Dynamite you know what I'm saying because I could tell
00:15:20
everyone they are all all you guys are moving so much he's moving the most well it's just
00:15:26
[ __ ] working it's not overtly like a funny dance or something about it I couldn't really describe the riding a
00:15:32
bicycle yeah it's just something it's actually really good yeah of course he's playing it so serious so yeah that's
00:15:39
another it's like a technically black dancers that a white guy is doing very well basically yeah so good and he looks
00:15:46
funny you know I think Zach was in one of them playing the two-sided flute is that am I crazy yeah oh my God yeah yeah
00:15:53
exactly two-sided flute that's when it's just like what more like ridiculous stuff can we do and that was one of the
00:16:00
harder things to do was finding something for the host to do that would stand out you know so like that's one of
00:16:05
the detriments of writing at SNL you'll have this great idea that works for you and your friends and then you're like oh
00:16:10
[ __ ] like what is the host doing it and if they don't have much to do in it it might be on the chopping block you
00:16:17
know like right it's their night you know so they're not necessarily going to lean and also Lord sorry to interrupt
00:16:23
but Lauren also drops those subtle subtle notes you know maybe Fred Armisen is the guy or you know I could be you
00:16:30
know he's kind of guiding the show that way but uh it's always good to make friends with the host yeah well it just
00:16:37
gets a relationship with them like how what are you feeling how are you doing what do you want that's the that's the
00:16:42
game you know that and like of course you know satisfying the family like you were saying David like you have all
00:16:49
these people at your disposal in the cast but you also have these brilliant makeup people brilliant wig people like
00:16:55
you know our technical crew is insane I don't know if y'all saw Pedro Pascal's
00:17:00
episode but they did a you know Mario Kart thing that was insane the graphics were crazy crazy and this is a 24-hour
00:17:08
30 hour [ __ ] turnaround it was it was it's just magical up there so and then
00:17:14
yeah Kendrick Perkins yeah whenever they want you know yeah Kendrick was one of the
00:17:20
funniest things I just saw it's one of the best impressions of the last few
00:17:26
years or something so [ __ ] funny about that thing thank you how did that show every day and it actually feels
00:17:33
like we did it a couple years ago because you know it's weird when you have to do
00:17:38
Impressions before their household name you know like we tried Steve Harvey before he was doing Family Feud and it
00:17:44
just didn't work because you know not enough people like knew what was funny about Steve Harvey basically you know
00:17:50
what I'm saying like yeah right and then Kendrick Perkins was like he wasn't big enough yet like I guess he hadn't you
00:17:57
know burned enough people yet to become famous and I'm like after that race is
00:18:03
outburst like now everybody knows him and now they're looking back at like an old impression like oh my God it's
00:18:08
magical so there's so many ways to score and there's so many ways to get burned and I
00:18:14
don't know it's just a it's a crazy job experience like look who I'm talking to and like who I'm
00:18:19
family with you know what I mean like this is such a blessed existence to be a part of so you know a lot of the people
00:18:26
who've come on the show thank you I might be one of them but you just because it's there's no other experience
00:18:31
like it experientially and emotionally you know Rockefeller Center Laura Michaels that 8h a lot of people kind of
00:18:38
said I'm not quite sure why I left maybe maybe two more years would have been better or three more years so are you
00:18:46
the smartest guy in Show Business in a way like if this is kind of the
00:18:51
most intense things you can do on the planet and most overtly just created because you can think of something
00:18:57
Thursday and it's on live TV what what when did you your Forever plan when after when did you kind of go I think I
00:19:04
think I'll go over season seven I'll go wait how did it evolve it's 20 Seasons now right or more yeah this is 20. I
00:19:10
mean it just kept rolling you know a couple year deal after a couple year deal you know what I mean like it was
00:19:17
never more than two or three like all right and then all of a sudden you're at the end of that three years like all right should we extend like what else is
00:19:23
going on or whatever and it's like there's other stuff going on but it doesn't necessarily
00:19:29
have to take time away from us like there's a way to do both and it kind of just kept working like that it's like
00:19:35
that's like a new world yeah it was just a new you don't know way to do it you
00:19:40
can go do a show exactly either or before yeah I wasn't the first one you know Fred like did a whole Portlandia
00:19:47
run while he was still on the show you know and like that's right you know uh 80 did the same thing with shrill
00:19:53
[Music] um
00:19:58
and yeah I think it's a newer you know concept for people to allow for you know
00:20:04
an actor to be in two places at once basically it's generous and also if it's very generous part of the Broadway video
00:20:11
or the you're part of the show even when you know Lauren is producing and you're you know it makes allowances for that
00:20:18
and Lauren when I was there was just starting with SNL Studios or his production company so it's kind of a
00:20:23
whole big ecosystem I just wanted to ask you about like so you're there you're
00:20:28
you're you're doing really well someone comes in stays seven years and leaves
00:20:34
and you're still there like emotionally you must get really attached to people because it does Bond people yeah so hard
00:20:41
and then uh who is probably a lot of people who's like you're sorry to see
00:20:46
them go because you had so much fun with them and then now when and then you meet the next person you're gonna love I mean
00:20:52
all of them you know like in the beginning like I you know Jeff Richard uh is not
00:20:58
Jeff Richard Jeff Goldblum no Jeff
00:21:05
I'm [ __ ] blanking on his name it might have been no Jeff Richards is Tina's husband
00:21:11
right no temperature was a performer right so it was just blonde hair dude
00:21:17
yeah the impressionist yeah so Jeff Richards was there and then he wasn't in
00:21:23
my first season and I like it you know what I mean yeah you know and like just because we had like a backstage Bonnie
00:21:30
used to make me laugh and stuff like that but he had a a rough go at it and like you know I even missed him you know
00:21:36
what I'm saying in the beginning and it just never got easier I think it was like Jimmy's last season or something too so just like
00:21:43
I didn't necessarily build that strong of a friendship with him but he was always nice and then all of a sudden
00:21:48
there was a it was a different show you know without you know a Jimmy Fallon presence or whatever that dude was like
00:21:54
a rock star and I was like oh man yeah you know I wish you were with us I can't remember yeah I was there I was I wasn't on
00:22:02
camera yet I left it I left in 93 were you there yeah I was still doing yeah I
00:22:07
was driving actually I drove you several nights Dana yeah
00:22:13
uh but yeah it sucks every time you know because
00:22:18
you know we're in the trenches together for so many hours you know so many different emotional experiences and
00:22:23
stuff like that and I've been lucky enough to like be you know in some cash with some very cool
00:22:29
people you know so you just develop strong relationships and then all of a sudden they're not there anymore and it's very
00:22:34
sporadic when you see them again [Music]
00:22:41
I got a hard question Dana who's his start who's his starting five from when you were on the show since you've been
00:22:46
on the show well starting five he probably had a few bit but you did have
00:22:51
we'll go ahead for all time starting five that's a lot of casts for 20 years no since he's been on oh that's a tough
00:22:59
one I just don't think it might be all ladies
00:23:05
because I've my sisters have been insane you know like hate Cecily
00:23:11
you know Amy Amy Tina Maya like that's over you know Kristen that's you exactly
00:23:19
like just with five is not fair so that's five or used up right away that's what I'm saying so yeah it's just been
00:23:25
some Powerhouse performers and I don't know man like
00:23:31
it's such a great front row seat to the ceiling I like I'm always laughing on camera or off camera like I can't take
00:23:38
it seriously especially 20 years later it's like it's not a job anymore you know what I mean like I don't care what
00:23:44
happens well you do which is is is uh so enticing is that you don't break but you
00:23:51
have there's that sense of Joy underneath everything on your face yes and we are where you're in some way
00:23:57
we're doing something crazy you know but to your point about the women I I talked with Lauren about that because there
00:24:03
were issues around or the women get enough parts then the women in recent times started playing a lot of the men
00:24:09
as well also being dominant on that front so we definitely it was a very
00:24:14
enlightened show that way but the the women you've mentioned yeah are just absolutely brilliant and then of course
00:24:20
we all have our other favorites too Bill Hader who uh you might be nice to hear
00:24:26
just we put him on the spot you know it was the greatest guy you know just because it's a fun game like
00:24:31
the NBA who's better this and uh Bill Harrison Keenan
00:24:36
Keenan that's crazy as the best cast member of all time that's flat that's
00:24:43
interesting well there's different ways of looking
00:24:49
at this but you know you're you're there and it seems like when did you meet
00:24:55
Peak relaxation because it seems like it's been a while since I call it the comfort factor I think Bowen Yang has it
00:25:02
already like they come in it's crunchy it scores if there's a Cavalcade of
00:25:08
people doing a a thing Landing some [ __ ] crunchy I think you landed yeah I think
00:25:14
Peak was around scared straight when I like you know had an idea that was coming from me and was working on the
00:25:22
show as far as you know intelligence or you know are the jokes heady enough or
00:25:28
new enough or not just for you know for Black Culture whatever kind of everybody is like broad enough and that one was
00:25:36
like the first one where we really nailed it down and thanks to Colin man because you know I brought the black
00:25:42
side and he brought you know the structure side basically on just yeah
00:25:48
kind of like how me and Brian were Brian Tucker so I was going to bring that up because I do think that's another one of
00:25:54
yours that just really pops off the television because you have the jokes
00:26:00
and you're going I don't know if people for people are just hearing about it it's it's juvenile delinquents kind of
00:26:06
getting scared by a hardened criminal you know verbally to make them not become criminals or something like that
00:26:12
using the facts of 80s movies and within it yours you're so committed that on the
00:26:19
air show with the adrenaline like you're grabbing people and you're sewing their face and they're tilting back there's a
00:26:24
sense of danger almost like did anyone get hurt because you really I think your arms were hurting for sure because like
00:26:31
I was hollering and like I wanted to be like right close to where you know you could see my face and their face next to
00:26:38
each other so I would like circle around behind them so I know I was yelling in
00:26:43
their ears what would be like the the the entree into that you think you're
00:26:48
cool I mean can you just do one of the lines maybe even half speed like when you first show up it's like he he
00:26:56
is like on your feet all right well he says all right here it comes coming through the door
00:27:02
all right here it comes
00:27:13
yeah just chaos from from the jump and shout out to suzakis once again because
00:27:18
another nothing ass role that he would just make a meal out of like at the end of the sketch you know he hops back up
00:27:24
on the desk and like you know settles in or whatever and just made a meal out of being that kind of Keystone cop or
00:27:30
whatever just [ __ ] so much fun man because you're not right
00:27:35
yeah I'm sorry but it's too sedakis you're knocking down all these boundaries and being inappropriate hey
00:27:42
hey hey yeah yeah you can't take that my bad Chief show me where your mind is at yeah sorry what are you gonna say Dana I
00:27:48
have him I have this SketchUp because I was watching before a game and I have a freeze frame and it's it's on you and
00:27:55
sudakis and Sudeikis looks like Phil Phil Hartman he's got his hair back he's got glasses got a mustache something
00:28:02
Phil would have put he can play The Regular Guy and make it so far yeah yeah
00:28:08
he's like Phil that way yeah man and we're good looking every man yeah you
00:28:13
guys laid out such a amazing template for us to follow the everyday man the
00:28:18
impressionist The Voice The Quirk the physical the this so like by the time we
00:28:23
got there you know we kind of knew if we could protest possess any of those talents and
00:28:30
then someone else in the cast could be you know another person like that we knew we had like a full you know flange
00:28:36
kind of force basically because we were covered everything uh those aspects of society you know I mean there is like
00:28:41
you know a dad kind of a character there's a you know game show called yeah there's a guy that's like tearing the
00:28:48
house down you know what I mean and there's this that and the other and then of course there's women you know
00:28:53
women you know what always kind of I I sometimes have a sense of memory about when you you're doing the sketch all
00:29:00
week and you have the practice show it's the air show and then the band's playing everyone's psyched up and you're going
00:29:06
behind the slats and you got whatever your goofy thing is and then you might see Bill Hader or Amy Poehler come over
00:29:12
and they've got their Goofy costume on and you're just all waiting to go on and do it for the live there's it that's
00:29:19
kind of those bonding moments like you're you're scared you're excited but when you get into a rhythm with a cats
00:29:24
and you've been through several incarnations it gets really fun everyone's getting very playful because
00:29:30
the audience is loving the cast and everyone's getting more confident so
00:29:35
there was nothing I enjoyed more than watching other cast members scoring
00:29:41
especially in their earlier years like I remember when Kate used to do uh
00:29:46
whiskers or we and it was like always in that last 10 minute window so a lot of us would be done for the night and we
00:29:52
could just like so you can watch her just [ __ ] destroy with the wildest
00:29:58
weirdest characters you know or concepts you know kind of ever and it was just
00:30:03
like man I'm so like it's like being a proud parent but like or being a proud
00:30:08
sibling you know what I mean like look at my little sister out there scoring you know like as as big as anybody you
00:30:14
know it was always really a lot of fun so I like to to root for everybody on
00:30:20
the team you know what I'm saying because I'm gonna get mine like I get mine you know what I'm saying I want them to get there he was in
00:30:27
roughly 1500 sketches what are your favorite 200
00:30:34
um any alien you have 10 seconds
00:30:39
aliens were always a lot of fun to play because it's like impressive how they
00:30:45
can throw an alien head on you in like three minutes or seven minutes whatever it's never super long and then it comes
00:30:52
right off and you can go be somebody else um but yeah I don't know man staying
00:30:58
live from New York the first time was [ __ ] exhilarating you know it's been exhilarating each time after you know
00:31:04
it's just get the party started but also recognize where you are you know what I'm saying you just said live from New
00:31:11
Yorker Saturday night and people are clapping and now the show is happening and like all these cameras are dancing and like that [ __ ] famous person has
00:31:18
been behind that wall for four minutes waiting for their moment yeah yeah they're listening to you yeah it's crazy
00:31:23
yeah they're waiting for their cue yeah [ __ ] I used to see it I didn't say it I don't think till I came back and hosted
00:31:29
but I remember saying it going this is what Chevy Chase said this is like when you're a kid going live from New York
00:31:35
and sometimes they'd yell at sometimes they just say it yeah but it's turned into sort of a yelling exciting
00:31:44
it's iconic yeah that's the the host part of it
00:31:50
um I know you guys have favorite host but a host that pops to mine uh for you
00:31:55
I mean for me it was Charlton Heston or you know these yeah like symmetrical
00:32:00
people I always say like Hanks and Chappelle you know those are the two guys that usually come in and like have
00:32:07
really really big shows you know as far as like the behind the scenes people that show up to kind of want to witness
00:32:14
the night you know like people here like yeah yeah and Hanks was like that in the
00:32:20
80s or early 90s when he's been back with us yeah yeah he came in with yeah the nicest guy in the world but like a
00:32:27
[ __ ] strong strong artist you know like real
00:32:33
meticulous like damn near method um as far as like his approach to Comedy even you know like comedy should be very
00:32:40
specific and it's like it's supposed to be this Rhythm and this reference is supposed to you know what I mean he's always like fishing and trying to keep
00:32:45
that old you know world of like us ad-lib in 24 hours a day to find funny
00:32:51
moments and plug them in or not but just to kind of like push through the day you know entertaining each other
00:32:58
and that that feels very like old school you know what I mean like the new kids are just in their phones basically
00:33:03
everybody's like as soon as we're done you know you take a break from rehearsal everybody picks their phones up well Tom
00:33:09
Hanks says no movie star ego at all and he's crazy he loves coming into SNL and
00:33:15
being part of an ensemble and he uh Mr short-term memory was one of his iconic
00:33:20
skills he's probably the only one could land it because it was about commitment you know Will Ferrell there's there's
00:33:26
certain commitment freaks but yeah he's he's up there and uh yeah I'm he was
00:33:31
always fun and I told him I I said I felt we had a new another cast member coming not not necessarily a host when
00:33:38
he was around yeah just his whole vibe yeah and it's great when cast members
00:33:43
host the show it's like a week off for us because they know the whole drill yeah
00:33:48
yeah it's funny because you go when they leave and come back you're like it's like an all-cast show
00:33:54
it is it's the best it's the best week ever it's like there's no ego telling
00:34:00
Dana there was times when we were having a run of hosts that weren't quite as
00:34:05
famous like it's the second lead from a TV show or the thirdly and I was like looking around there and going I think
00:34:10
Mike and Dana are more famous for a beat for a run there it's like
00:34:15
everyone's there's some people getting very famous on the show and you thought oh my God the host must feel crazy
00:34:21
coming in here sometimes they just sit down and go I want to do Wayne's World and you go oh okay do you have a star
00:34:27
struck host for you at all um struck by me I know that you would go a
00:34:33
little star struck like that Iowa star oh yeah all right I mean Eddie was crazy
00:34:40
um yeah anyway that was just crazy you know what I mean yeah Sandler was like
00:34:45
that too you know I'm I'm always enamored by that guy like even when we're like shooting movies or whatever
00:34:51
and like it feels like I should be more comfortable because it's not my first time around him but I'm just such a fan
00:34:57
you know and it's the same with you guys you know what I mean like it's it's off-putting you know for you guys to
00:35:03
like really be in people's presence because it's like you know we we hold you in such high regarding you bring us
00:35:09
so much joy it's like oh [ __ ] now this person is like in front of me what do I say to them like I hope I'm not wasting
00:35:15
their time or I hope I can make them laugh you know I mean because like if
00:35:20
you talk to Seinfeld he doesn't want to like talk he wants to like be entertained you know what I'm saying he
00:35:26
wants to find jokes you know what I mean so he's like he's always on a joke hunt a thousand percent so he's like let me
00:35:32
not waste his time I like it yeah it's the same for you guys like that 40th was crazy just like watching people you know
00:35:39
come in in different interims and like do their bits and [ __ ] but these are all people that I you I just grew up you know
00:35:47
idolizing or whatever but never feeling like I would ever meet or you know be Bros with or alumni or any of that you
00:35:54
know what I'm saying so it's a it's a lot to take in so I understand what it is for the you know the general public
00:36:00
to like bump into you guys and not know what to say it's like holy [ __ ] like what what are they living to get a
00:36:06
picture or you know I don't know what to do I always tell people ask me what should I say to a celebrity and I said
00:36:13
be very very specific yeah you know they they ran into you they go I love and
00:36:18
scared straight when you and sadakis have that little pow-wow after yeah yeah on the guys and then you're like oh that's a real fan but you're a thousand
00:36:25
percent in the club you know you're not only just on Saturday Night Live now everyone you know you have these
00:36:31
sketches that are you know part of our history but I had the same thing with Dan Aykroyd I was copying his impression
00:36:38
with a little tape recorder to do Jimmy Carter in college and then I walk into Lauren's office I know it's ever
00:36:44
happened to and there's Dan Aykroyd I didn't know what to say to him at all yeah have you had a celebrity I walked
00:36:51
in there once and Mick Jagger was sitting there Lauren never gives you a warning we don't walk into Lauren
00:36:56
Lauren's office and have somebody famous sitting there or a cast member or just yeah I want to say it was like McCartney
00:37:02
in there one time or somebody like that it was like Jesus Christ you're not ready no what am I going to say
00:37:08
beautiful I love all what's up you know because he keeps dancing and singing he's absolutely interviews the people
00:37:14
yeah they want to talk but they never get to talk it's good it's like oh my God
00:37:21
was it poor writing they never talk yeah and the dancing man you know with the
00:37:27
boys suit and everything is it's a long suit
00:37:33
it looks great one time Dana Lauren called me out of the blue which why would Lauren call me but I was on the
00:37:39
show and it was toward the end of my run and he goes David uh you're good on your
00:37:45
feet do you think you could think of jokes uh if Mick Jagger won something and he has to think of things to say and
00:37:50
I'm like I don't know words or something goes hang on he goes hello and I go he puts Mick Jagger I don't even I'm not
00:37:56
even getting my head around what the what's going on and then I go oh hey and
00:38:01
then he goes he's like basically like go I'm like yeah go what give me give you my jokes I don't haven't thought of yet
00:38:07
it's too much pressure did you watch me one time when we were doing what's up
00:38:13
with that and like a guest dropped out so like the second seat is usually just someone that really just
00:38:19
sits there and doesn't say anything at all and it's like reserved for any kind of famous person that wants to be there
00:38:24
or yeah and then like that person dropped out so like Robin Williams was just around
00:38:31
and he was like you should ask Robin I was like I should ask Rob I should go ask Robin Williams to just
00:38:37
sit in my sketch and not say a word like Jesus seriously and he was like yeah I
00:38:43
was like [ __ ] and I really would have been cool with it yeah no I went and talked I didn't even finish my sentence
00:38:48
he was just like absolutely like whatever he was just an anger so yeah that was crazy
00:38:55
yesterday my brush was famous yesterday Dana was a guy uh when I'm walking around goes uh he comes up behind me hey
00:39:02
and I see him Chase running up with his camera and he goes are you David Bowie
00:39:07
and I go yes and then he goes okay and then I go okay go tell it when you met David Bowie but he he knew me why
00:39:15
this guy was like 23 and even knew who David Bowie was to say the wrong name but it was kind of funny a blossom don't
00:39:22
even correct him David I used you used to sign autographs as me when we yeah certain age in my boy's stage uh that's
00:39:30
Lauren always says that I I never went boyish boyish boyish but uh and then I would sign
00:39:38
autographs for a period of time as David and now why not just kidding now they
00:39:44
just come up and say to me you're you're no David Spade and walk away and that's Marcy Klein okay you guys
00:39:52
ever like bumped back into people that you did that to you oh that they realized yeah sometimes
00:40:00
but they don't even know they're saying it when they say it sometimes they just think they're saying the right thing right so they don't even know they did
00:40:06
anything wrong yeah were you there for Margot Robbie when she hosted yeah she was so nice we did this sketch
00:40:13
that Bobby wrote Bobby Moynihan shout out um and it was like you know that that song
00:40:24
I love that oh was it was she a teacher yeah
00:40:29
taking layers off and just getting like grocer and grocer yeah that was a lot of fun when I was watching this day and I'm
00:40:35
thinking okay first of all Margot Robbie seems like a really good uh you know fun good spirited person that would go along
00:40:41
with whatever and when you go on that show of course it's better if you just say sure let me try this but you know
00:40:47
being pretty and then I go oh they're mate she's just like a stripping hot teacher that you dream would strip yeah
00:40:52
and so she starts tripping I'm like I'm kind of weird how she would do this you know right but of course the joke comes
00:40:58
in where she starts she lets her hair down and then she starts pulling out the extensions and then she's basically
00:41:04
she's bald with like little strings of hair and then it just gets worse and the
00:41:10
guys go from being excited to going oh oh gross it's all like kind of slow motion yeah yeah slowly turned off by her uh very
00:41:19
fun I I like to see when a big star like she's a pretty big star and to come in here
00:41:26
and it took a while like that was not a quick shoot yeah well she's a bald cap
00:41:32
on which is already Dana used to wear them all week just to get ready for Saturday but sometimes I had him on so
00:41:38
much I would keep keep it on I keep it on the whole week I had a wig for my own hair so I didn't have to get one on
00:41:43
Saturday yeah I just kept it all week Dana you could have it taken off and put it on again no Lauren it's so [ __ ]
00:41:49
painful with the pins and the glow do they do it Keenan like if you anybody does a bald cap today or a host let's
00:41:55
say it's it used to take about 45 minutes so if they do it after dress do
00:42:01
they take it off to make their hair nice for the monologue or they just put their own hair as a wig on
00:42:07
the host I feel like the host would they'll usually take it off so they'll have that Network it's a lot
00:42:15
of work on those makeup guys like they're nervous you're sitting in a chair with the energy going [ __ ] I want
00:42:20
to get out of here I want to go over my lines and they're like just sit tight scrub it on your forehead scrubbing the
00:42:27
glue off and ripping your hair out you're like [ __ ] it's sophisticated because you can do it on a
00:42:32
movie yeah it's grinding and glue and pins how's it feel you need to say fine
00:42:37
it's fine any pain no it's all right
00:42:42
let's go do this all right
00:42:49
let me bore akina with one more sketch uh passing out on the slingshot I think
00:42:55
I was right before we were going to talk to you last it was the night before it was maybe Woody Harrelson uh-huh yeah
00:43:01
was it you what was that one that was yeah that was me and Woody I think yeah
00:43:07
that was that woody house I think so yes it was yeah you were excited to go on this it was
00:43:14
very physical and very uh yeah I was like oh come on you guys we gotta ride the slingshot can't back out now you
00:43:20
know don't look like a like a scaredy cat in front of your girlfriend like oh that typical old dumb
00:43:27
misogynistic kind of tone like come on you know the fellas will handle this kind of thing or whatever but yeah it
00:43:33
was just an homage to all those slingshot videos because what happened you black out right away right yeah it's usually the guy that's like excited
00:43:40
about it that Huffs and toughs too much in the beginning and it just passes out yeah because all I kept thinking is how
00:43:46
do you see the cue cards because you're you got yeah my squint game was on
00:43:52
man you look like your eyes are closed to be reading the cards that's a good one yeah yeah yeah and then like when it
00:43:59
was time to talk like I could I was awake so I could like actually look but I was squinting to see the the monitor
00:44:05
so I could tell like when you wake up again yeah yeah yeah and when I'm like bouncing up and down if that's matching
00:44:11
or whatever kind of thing can we uh here's a little uh side thing uh you're singing on the show and you're in
00:44:18
collaborations with Chris Redd who I was doing a couple laugh factories with just knew him very casually and I didn't even
00:44:25
know he's trying for SNL and also sudden he's on SNL but it seems like you guys had I was Boys to Men come back Barack
00:44:33
he had some great songs did you sing from the beginning or because I can't sing at all I can fake sing you seem
00:44:39
like you can sing No I was you know a musical theater kid necessarily so I sing with others you know a lot more or
00:44:46
a lot better than I would say I sing by myself but you know for some reason like
00:44:51
I involved myself in the warm-up even so like I have to sing a warm-up song before the shows but besides that like
00:44:58
yeah I'm more of a singing for the sketch as opposed to like you know I got a single coming out like joke like joke
00:45:06
skiing kind of yeah when the audience is sitting there waiting for the show sometimes I stand up or you know what
00:45:11
Dennis Miller would tell jokes so what what song do you sing generally obviously it's upbeat or I'm just
00:45:17
curious yeah here it comes the show will be on in 10 minutes we sing A Change Is Gonna Come
00:45:26
you know I was born by the river
00:45:34
him going to his death was the song that they chose in that movie so now we sing
00:45:40
uh it was give me some loving for a long time but now it's just like other like Teddy Pendergrass song [Music]
00:45:46
yeah it's very upbeat and Michael Chase starts it off with some jokes and then introduces us and I go up there with you
00:45:54
know Heidi Echo and Chloe now but it's always been the version of Lady cast
00:45:59
members to sing with me or something yeah that's before before the show started the show yeah
00:46:06
so you've already got them on your side you know I think me and Norm is used yeah I like your I like your idea better
00:46:12
I didn't want to be seen in the crowd before I went up but uh I'd go up there and Marcy would come pound my door and
00:46:17
go Lauren wants you to go up do some stand-up go and I'm like it's a little trickier than that they never give you a
00:46:24
warning David they never give you a warning go now
00:46:30
uh put the wig on and get on the [ __ ] stage and yeah and would you do it or
00:46:35
would you push back [ __ ] I never pushed back once yeah
00:46:41
in America yeah I went out there and then I do it and Lauren's like can we count that as a sketch I'm like no
00:46:48
you weren't one thing no it was before the show started do you do a Lauren impression
00:46:54
everybody does everyone in this oral history of Saturday Night Live even because I've never met anyone like that
00:47:01
you know what I'm saying no one has and I was I'd seen Austin Powers a million
00:47:07
times before I actually got the job so then I went there and I'm like so wait he's not admitting that this is that
00:47:13
because this is totally that that sounds like a new sketch this is
00:47:19
that this is totally that this is totally that yeah well did you have any Lauren isms we'd
00:47:26
sometimes collect you know things that he says to people you know I the the initial one was never never
00:47:33
um never underestimate the value of water is a kind of a touchstone for a lot of
00:47:39
people yeah and he also like has a way of like summing up large
00:47:45
occurrences in in the world it's like because yeah because you know Elvis was a twin so it's that it was like what
00:47:51
what exactly what does that mean yes um yeah Hitler was a painter and so it's all
00:47:57
that so it's it's that World War II I never know what that is yeah yeah I don't know I don't know what you mean we
00:48:04
should take over for Lauren uh Keith did you have any ideas any who's good enough to handle that job Higgins hands down
00:48:10
Higgins I have him on a list here Steve Higgins yeah I mean Higgins is a no-brainer
00:48:17
um but Eric Kenwood is out there you know like Aaron Doyle you know the people that have been there for a longer
00:48:24
period of time I think Colin you know myself I don't know check like we can
00:48:30
all handle it like if we all wanted to do entertainment if they if they approach you oh yeah like why not it'll
00:48:37
keep me in New York it'll keep me you know in a stable environment which is hard for an actor I'm just gonna write
00:48:43
write your name down for a second I'm just keeping it down put it in the universe thank you that's great I I
00:48:48
think you um uh we don't have pins I don't have I'm disorganized Seth Myers and Tina Fey
00:48:55
yeah all of them you know what I mean anybody that's especially being a person
00:49:01
with a pencil in their back pocket for a week you know just fishing for jokes and like knows the structure of the show so
00:49:06
Seth Tina and any one of them I think you know that have had a good run at it
00:49:11
and enjoy it they can get it you know you're interesting because you're 20
00:49:17
years you know every in and out you know what's going if you just perked your ears up to like budgets and stuff you
00:49:24
could figure it out pretty but there's also like the other element where Lauren is such a rock star and he has so many
00:49:30
like you know pick up the phone favor kind of you know moments that he can make yeah
00:49:36
the network or the studio just deals with them yeah and keeps them away from
00:49:42
us you know Keeps Us protected like he's just an OG so someone that can continue
00:49:48
that kind of thing and like make it a safe space for us and then also make a
00:49:53
phone call and get a legend in there at the last minute if it if it needs to to be that yes there's a lot of off-label
00:49:59
things that he's doing that go beyond executive producer and I think he does always develop a fondness for his cast
00:50:07
members you can feel it you know I mean he's talked very nicely about you almost in a paternal way with other cast
00:50:12
members he becomes the de facto dad that no one ever had or something even though
00:50:17
I'm three years older than him he's still kind of my dad now yeah that's so crazy yeah but that must be a crazy
00:50:24
dynamic because yeah he's the one we all kind of turn to because if he's not
00:50:29
happy like you know the shit's not getting on you know what I'm saying like if he's not [ __ ] with it then that's that's the end-all be-all so I've gone
00:50:35
to him for a lot of different you know nothing pertaining to the show kind of advice
00:50:42
because he just gives that air basically like you know if you have a question or you know if you have a situation we can
00:50:48
help you with it you know nothing's too you know go ahead too terrible that we
00:50:54
can't fix it yeah oh yeah and when I was sort of you call it Wilderness years or
00:50:59
raising a family whatever I want to call it but then I ran into Lauren he's just like he said um everyone knows who you
00:51:05
are you know it's just Lauren in a very supportive little like you know whenever
00:51:12
you're ready you just can do it some more um but yeah he's brilliant at those kind
00:51:17
of um just been there seen it all and then he was like a stepdad to me because he
00:51:22
used to ground me and hit me
00:51:36
David's like a little boy and we you have to take care of him Dana will you bounce him on your knee
00:51:43
David need a Spanky David David he needed a little Spanky and he's in a
00:51:49
Timeout don't talk to him I'm not going to use any sort of object or or a
00:51:54
spatula I'm gonna go full hand yeah but it'll be just on the bottom skin on skin
00:52:00
[Laughter] for Lord skin on skin I have a question about
00:52:07
when you were on Nickelodeon is is being a Nickelodeon like a is it like kind of
00:52:12
a little bit of a rock star because is it different kind of Fame right is it harder is it hard to handle when you're younger and a lot of people know you
00:52:19
no I mean I don't Nickelodeon wasn't as popular as it is now I don't think back in those
00:52:25
days so we were damn near off the network before we were you know super
00:52:30
duper popular from it because it was cable and you had to have cable you know what I'm saying to even watch the shows
00:52:36
type things so it wasn't like a bunch of kids that were able to like just request
00:52:42
what's on their cable build every month so Nickelodeon was still kind of breaking out and then while we were
00:52:47
there it built into this you know kind of worldly thing because they started putting channels in like all these
00:52:53
different countries and stuff like that so that took a while for it to grow and then by the time we were like in our
00:53:00
mid-20s we were like pretty famous from it but the work was four or five or six years
00:53:06
old at least oh I see just for people who don't know who are listening just so we can just touch on it for a second
00:53:12
because no one ever knows everything you think everybody knows that you were an actor uh right yes Keenan Thompson and
00:53:21
you first uh your social security number is four five three failing from Full
00:53:27
Atlanta Georgia when you first performed on television on television to I did my first
00:53:34
commercial like I said 12 ish but I never saw it but it was pretty awesome it was for a fried chicken restaurant
00:53:41
I'm very proud of that do you remember your line yes that's delicious damn near close so
00:53:48
I was fishing I was fishing with my granddad and I said Grandpa the fish
00:53:54
ain't biting today and he handed me a piece of chicken and I'll bite it and I say um I like
00:54:00
this kind of bite me
00:54:05
[ __ ] classic Keenan is putting his hands yeah fingertips mouth and the
00:54:11
chef's kiss that is a classic that's just about our research Kanan says on a research he was
00:54:17
you were a fan of The Price is Right yeah but you called your first love and it shaped your acting style
00:54:25
come on people are taking some serious Liberties there I just said I like the
00:54:31
show I didn't say anything about it shaving like there's no way your entire life yeah it's not like oh boy it
00:54:38
started my obsession with the television that's what it was you know what I mean
00:54:43
[ __ ] yeah and I was having sons that were walking watching Nickelodeon in the
00:54:50
90s so you were famous to them I'd heard about you before then SNL Keenan and Kel
00:54:56
I think was one of the shows you did that's right and all that and so you're doing sketch
00:55:04
comedy on Nickelodeon like before you do sketch comedy on Saturday Night Live so
00:55:10
you have a unique path very unique and very like you know Kismet we because we
00:55:15
would say we're like oh yeah we're the Saturday Night Live for kids or whatever but we never thought any of us would actually make it to them yeah like that
00:55:24
[ __ ] was like in New York we were in Florida and never thought about like how we would ever like you know let's let's
00:55:31
go pack it all up and move to New York in hopes for a chance at the at the shot at the audition for Saturday live is
00:55:37
like no not even everywhere to come up you know what I mean that would be a miracle so yeah I just never think it's
00:55:44
too far away it's too big yeah it's just it's too two famous two Infamous you know like
00:55:51
it's just one of those things that's existing in the background of your life that you never think you'll be a part of
00:55:56
like it was hard for me to associate myself with it being the same show for years
00:56:01
you know what I mean I'm like I don't know it's just it's like another world or like another dimension or something
00:56:07
like is this Bizarro Saturday Night Live do you remember the first time you walked into 8h one on like um
00:56:14
yeah what was your audition like horrible
00:56:19
um I had to do stand up for the first time um because it was like cattle called all
00:56:26
the black guys and a lot of you know black Comics were mostly stand-ups because you know Tracy and you know
00:56:31
Jerry left and so it was like you know time for some newbies and uh yeah the
00:56:38
the pool of you know black comedians are you know mostly stand-ups pretty much like and at the time and uh so yeah I
00:56:47
was I had to do stand up you know I didn't I didn't know that I could like opt out of that or whatever like being
00:56:52
like no I'm an improver or whatever I was just like an actor so I was like all right I'll do what everybody else is doing and you know it was my first time doing
00:56:59
stand-ups it was awful had to come up with five minutes and know how to like talk to the crowd at all I just like
00:57:05
started with a [ __ ] ringing telephone and went into Impressions and [ __ ] so it didn't go over well at all
00:57:12
but it was fine because I got the call back and that was on the stage which was much more comfortable because it was
00:57:19
just you know to the camera basically so it reminded me of like playing in my room to myself kind of thing you know
00:57:24
what I mean so that was much more comfortable for me and you know when I was used to being on Nickelodeon and
00:57:31
stuff but yeah that that call back was when I first walked into 8h and I remember like walking underneath the you
00:57:38
know the bleachers and just seeing all the wiring and the structure of it all and like the bare bones of the studio
00:57:43
basically you know scary very scary because it's like oh it's way smaller
00:57:48
than that is what I thought too yeah yeah way smaller and like how did they do all this [ __ ] in here because there
00:57:54
was nothing and there was no sets there was no like the I don't think the music stage was even nothing you know set for
00:58:01
That season yet or something so it was just like a blank studio so I was like oh and yeah it's not sparkly you know
00:58:07
it's no it's not like a modern it was nitty-gritty so I was like okay cool let's get down to the nitty-gritty
00:58:16
[Music] so well I know about your resume and now
00:58:21
you're branching out I was just uh fascinated by your per your company artist for artists yes shout out yeah
00:58:30
Johnny Ryan when did that start your own it's a it's a management company
00:58:35
production company or kind of it's a it's a Mothership of a lot of different things but yeah it's a production
00:58:42
company um but also like you know we want to be able to like be the bank eventually you
00:58:48
know what I'm saying and fund a lot of different projects or whatever um but yeah you know my partner's been
00:58:54
producing for 20 30 years and I've been doing what I've been doing for 20 30 years so we met each other 20-ish years
00:59:00
ago and then reconnected like four-ish kind of years ago like all right so where are we both at with this whole you
00:59:06
know career as far as like working with others is concerned and what we really want out of life and
00:59:12
you know he became like a free agent right around when I became like a free agent-ish you know because I've had
00:59:17
another production company but you know it was kind of living in its own kind of
00:59:23
I don't know altitude like it was kind of peaking basically without
00:59:28
breaking through the ceiling kind of thing so it's like maybe start something fresh you know and
00:59:34
you know since I'm starting it with somebody who has such a great background in it you know kind of let him run with
00:59:40
it if it's just going to be me and him running a company together like that's a you know very like exciting thing
00:59:47
because I know the communication will be there you know what I'm saying because we're friends and we hang out all the time you know I mean and to like build
00:59:53
something where you need to be checking in with somebody on a daily basis why not do it with like a friend but also a
00:59:59
friend that knows what the [ __ ] they're doing kind of thing so it just it's a layered kind of a company you know what
01:00:05
I mean it's just a really cool kind of venture so I'm excited to see what it does I saw not to interrupt but uh Mike
01:00:11
Tyson you're doing something with him and what what are you doing with Mike Tyson uh he's one of our uh investor
01:00:18
like early investors he's like one of our partners I think but also like whatever he wants to do you know he's a
01:00:23
you know kind of like friend of the family basically at this point and uh you know my partner was producing his
01:00:30
podcast and a couple of other things with him he produced his fight the last Roy Jones you know what I mean so he did
01:00:37
that in the middle of covet like kind of by himself you know with a small team and you know so he's you know he's a
01:00:43
prolific producer like he knows sure so many different people he's been doing it for so long and still under the radar
01:00:49
you know what I'm saying so it's like yeah this is time to like but both of us kind of you know jump
01:00:57
into the next I don't know Milestone search of Our Lives of you know career it's hard to
01:01:02
think that way I think it's I think it's great you're you're still really young and you can build that as big as you
01:01:07
want to build it it's just one step at a time yeah so if you guys got projects you guys got projects you know what I'm
01:01:14
saying or like I like your boy I have a few yeah for sure oh good you can make
01:01:21
deals with Keenan he likes to make deals yeah yes make the deal with Keenan he'll handle
01:01:27
it I gotta say Dana that Keenan comes off as pretty uh uh together guy and uh for
01:01:36
in a business of being famous for someone but maybe do you think it helped that your Fame like you were saying
01:01:42
about Nickelodeon was a little more gradual and not overnight so you could sort of absorb it yearly
01:01:49
and take it mine was a little like that where it just took so long that by the time I got sort of well known I was like
01:01:54
yeah it wasn't overnight like Jim Carrey that stuff would would throw you off throw me off
01:02:00
it would because there's too many things happening at once you know what I mean it's like all of a sudden you have you
01:02:06
know all the attention in the world that maybe you didn't have you're getting like attention from certain you know
01:02:11
people or you know Sexes you know what I'm saying um what do you mean by that okay yeah
01:02:19
yeah like the ladies are starting to look at your certain way whatever um your finances are all like
01:02:25
skyrocketing and [ __ ] you know what I mean so their friends are different like yeah everyone gets weird you just have
01:02:31
carte blanche kind of to to everything your your heart could ever desire and you know it ain't a lot of people that
01:02:37
have handled that well you know what I mean no matter who they are they go through their ups and downs and they bump their heads and blah blah and you
01:02:43
can't imagine it doesn't stay up here see the bottom yeah of like Friends the
01:02:50
TV show like I I know some of them and they're they're pretty cool people because if if the first thing you do is
01:02:56
that's Sky High I don't think it's in your head to realize it can go down or anything you do after that will be just
01:03:03
as big it's just impossible so everything feels like a little bit of a a a of a Nick you know like it just
01:03:10
can't be all great maybe that's a bad example but you know what I mean so if you're out there
01:03:16
you do something then you do something doesn't really work then you get a little better then you do something then you start to realize oh I'm really lucky
01:03:22
where I am or I'm really lucky that something worked appreciate it more and try to keep your head screwed on
01:03:28
straight which is almost impossible it really is and the younger the worse I feel like you
01:03:35
know what I mean like if you like not to harp on Pete but like Pete is a
01:03:40
perfect example he's a great kid you know what I mean but he had it all dumped on him at 19. and he just [ __ ] around and happened to be good you know
01:03:46
what I'm saying so that's what really adds you know fuel to the fire you know like when you have all these things that
01:03:51
you know people want to clamor on to and you have the talent to back it up as well it's just like all right [ __ ]
01:03:58
you know the world is your Smorgasbord like have whatever you want this kind of thing or whatever and we've literally
01:04:03
had to watch him grow up through that and you know come out on the other side you know thankfully still intact you
01:04:10
know with his family being close to him and stuff like that and you know good friends but it it looked like a [ __ ]
01:04:16
nightmare you know what I mean because it looked like such a whirlwind of everything happening all at once
01:04:22
and you think it's all good and then certain bad things happen but you know you just keep going because you know the
01:04:29
industry keeps pushing you along through whatever but unfortunately these are the times where everybody knows everything
01:04:35
about everybody so we've like had to you know watch directly or indirectly you
01:04:41
know our our little brother like fall down and scrape his knees and get back up you know I mean and heal himself and you
01:04:48
know keep trying to keep ahead on yeah basically yeah you know in a world where
01:04:53
there's just a lot of eyes on every thing and also inspired you know what I mean with so much [ __ ] talking out there
01:04:59
you know what I mean like to still want to create things that people might talk [ __ ] about is you know very brave you
01:05:05
know so I give him his credit you know we just saw him this weekend he did he did a good job Dana we just did this
01:05:11
Mark Twain thing and he can't man he did uh he had some good jokes there so that you know it's tough I mean I would
01:05:18
rather if I was in his position wish eyes were off he let things settle for a second just because it's it's too
01:05:24
much for too long where you go you can't make a move everyone's got an opinion it's just a tough situation yeah it's a
01:05:32
lot of good in it but it just can be tough well yeah we had a bulletin board this is uh old-timey stuff you know with
01:05:39
like five or six handwritten or hand-type letters and that was our only interaction there was no you know
01:05:45
anything and some of them said we suck but I do think for a lot of the people that I
01:05:51
know who are very talented there's the fame the money the power the glory whatever the private jet all of it
01:05:58
and then there's kind of like Landing a bit Landing a joke having something you do and having your peers
01:06:05
go that was cool yeah you know that that that lasts a long time that Vibe you
01:06:12
know because all the rest is just distracting you know and it doesn't get easier like you said Dave you just not
01:06:17
coming from The Mark Twain thing having to come up with new bits you know what I'm saying and like every if if everyone's gonna come as comedians
01:06:25
descend on a new moment you still got to deliver you know what I mean like there's no Mission yeah there is no like
01:06:32
oh remember what I did in my last okay I didn't use that you know what I mean no no
01:06:37
you want to go because it was a hard one I mean it was a big reunion but it was fun and you're performing makes it more
01:06:42
nervous because yeah forget Ted surrandos and Scott steuber from Netflix are in the crowd also you know they're
01:06:48
all buddies but it's still work and it's still who did good who you know you're
01:06:53
going on after cone in and after uh and we're an hour in I think David and I there's like 10 comedians before us and
01:06:59
you got your notes you go oh they're gonna do the Sandler show about truth thing okay so that's good right Chris
01:07:05
Rock was sitting next to me goes I got two minutes at this point yeah it's just getting whittled down watching Comics
01:07:11
but you're right you always have to prove yourself there's a never-ending thing in show business because you feel
01:07:16
like if you ever rest on your laurels and just I showed up I hate that I knew
01:07:22
that it's funny Keenan when I left uh the show there was an opportunity to maybe be on a show or do a show but when
01:07:29
my last sitcom stopped I said I think I want to take a year off and they were like don't don't I don't care what you've done what
01:07:35
you think they will forget and just you've got to jump on another one I'm like God damn it's like a cattle prod in
01:07:40
your back going go I go so I'm gonna go in my last show of air on a sitcom I'm playing a new character in the fall on a
01:07:46
new one they're like yes it's like that Seinfeld joke like people would ask him
01:07:52
like do you ever get tired of like you know telling the same jokes over and over again like another comedian would ask him that he was like how many people
01:07:58
do you think have seen your act yeah you're not that famous you know what I mean you have to like yeah true keep
01:08:05
[ __ ] performing just keep winning on the things that are silent yeah the things that are solid yeah exactly
01:08:10
there's always the first time someone saw you like Mark Twain Dana there's definitely people the first time they've
01:08:16
seen me or you is on that they're like oh they just don't watch a lot of [ __ ] but that thing they like and they go oh
01:08:22
these guys oh that guy I've heard about is he any good I'll decide right now finally step to toe in their world I was
01:08:28
terrified on that because I haven't done a lot of stand up recently and then I changed the whole thing the morning of
01:08:34
the show and I sent the notes in to the producer and he didn't get it and then the rehearsal because I was playing the guitar everything was so hectic and
01:08:41
weird I had nothing on the teleprompter and so I was just doing jokes to the my driver Gata from Senegal it was awesome
01:08:48
they paid to have a guy driving me around I was trying everything out on him he's like you're my favorite passenger come on thank you but I was uh
01:08:57
he told me he bombed first time doing jokes you know Dana killed and they the funny
01:09:03
thing is you do these things and then they still have to cut it and so you're still hurt by going who the [ __ ] got
01:09:09
that show like yeah so that one sucked is that the one everyone hated I mean the loudest laugh is being cut just yeah
01:09:15
I just want to check in on that right that's the great thing about live television going full snls like whatever
01:09:21
you say out there you say and it is beaming out to the world and then you walk away you shed it like
01:09:29
a skin and you you go to a party you start the party at 3 30 and morning and
01:09:34
I think that's where 20 years goes like that you know what I mean like if I was locked in the same character I think
01:09:39
it'd be a much you know much more slower mundane but right you know we go from
01:09:45
idea and Let It Go like you said it's it's hard but it's a gift if you're on you see people I remember when that
01:09:51
uh Julianne Margulies she quit ER at the top of the game we're all like what or the girl before her quit and and then
01:09:58
when you realize an hour drama is a never-ending movie with the hours of
01:10:03
getting up at five and just cramming lines I mean ER lines forget it they
01:10:08
just just for psychological reasons they have to stop doctor
01:10:13
Dr gibberish for our stocks
01:10:22
ringers lactate they put their mini sides in someone's guts
01:10:30
damn it that's a chip cut back to the top
01:10:36
I know they go when they go going again you're like [ __ ] I finally got it right once move on to exit Troll full not dexa
01:10:44
train reset okay dexa troll one
01:10:50
just keep moving it doesn't sound like a language I'm Jerry Seinfeld all of a
01:10:56
sudden for no reason
01:11:04
Seinfeld who's a genius I think he should do a vinyl album and go back and it should be a picture
01:11:11
Jerry and all we'll say on the album is paper clips why [Laughter]
01:11:20
so let's do that only Jerry could do an hour on that have it be great so 139 Impressions
01:11:30
why so few I don't know that's what it says here on the piece of paper you know
01:11:36
what I mean so it must be true you were there with Daryl Hammond did he coach you at all on Impressions oh yeah
01:11:43
he coached by doing I used to watch Daryl like a hawk only because he doesn't say much you know what I mean he
01:11:49
just kind of shows up does his thing goes in his room comes out destroys yeah
01:11:55
and then kind of just disappears back into his trench coat and I used to watch that and I'd be like this is a machine
01:12:02
right here and then I heard him tell the story of like somebody asked him like well how do you
01:12:08
nail down your your impressions like so solidly and he's like some are easier than others but he went and sat with
01:12:16
Bill Clinton one time to like really just capture him you know in person or whatever and he was like within two
01:12:22
minutes he was like I know exactly who this guy was and I'm like now that's a real dedication you know he actually was
01:12:27
possible though I don't think well it's kind of Hillary Hillary Daryl Hammond's coming
01:12:33
by wants you to sit with us for a while that's okay Dana knows that I have 1.39 Impressions
01:12:40
Wait a Minute Tom Petty was your was your mind I have Michael J fox and then
01:12:45
half of Tom Petty and then that's it okay we've done it before but give give us 10 seconds of Michael J fox and
01:12:52
casualties of War a movie no one ever saw okay hey Sarge uh hey what are we doing here exactly oh
01:13:00
my God you gotta give me a minute on this here Sarge oh Christ we love you
01:13:06
Michael yeah that was good really good yeah get it really good man
01:13:13
this is one of our touchstones we've probably done that at least nine times I always makes me laugh can I ask who is
01:13:21
this guy the world
01:13:30
we did that sketch I was just doing Mickey Rooney for Bonnie and Terry
01:13:36
Turner I was not there was no writing and he was he was the biggest star in the world in 1937. This Is 40 years
01:13:43
later and every day he wanted to remind us you'd be coming down the hallway and you would hear it I was the number one
01:13:49
star in the world you hear me bang bang
01:13:55
it was a beautiful pie I like his scratchy voice because he's getting older the number one tell you with
01:14:02
someone at catering he was in a broke alcoholic for decades so he would pull out five thousand dollars because he was
01:14:08
doing a Broadway show while he was doing this he goes think I can afford lunch
01:14:15
[Laughter] oh man he was the original Floyd
01:14:21
Mayweather he'd carry five thousand dollars around hear me
01:14:26
all right well he wasted his time enough you're very you're very beloved and I
01:14:33
want I say this for the end because I think it was me but sometimes history is funny that way I think I was the one who
01:14:39
named Phil the glue that's my memorance and then I forgot to tell Will
01:14:46
Ferrell that I was I I nicknamed him the straw after Daryl strawberry and then
01:14:53
when I was thinking when I was thinking about this interview with you and watching you all these years this is my
01:14:59
nickname for you uh-oh the mailman always delivers oh man that's so
01:15:06
gangster thank you man that's a good one okay do you have one yeah no we can't I
01:15:11
really mean I'll jump in on that one I just got meditate on these guests you being one of them is like he's the
01:15:17
mailman thank you man shout out to Carl Malone I appreciate that I know I know it's that's where I was processing but
01:15:23
sorry he also always delivered with Johnstone uh you know I'm bad with you
01:15:28
know accolades especially coming from you know people that I admire so I only send
01:15:34
that energy right back to you guys like it's so great to see you guys you know having these conversations together and
01:15:41
like to be a fly on the wall listening to your fly on the wall it's it's so great so I'm just happy that you guys
01:15:47
get along and you know set the example for everybody else that it's possible you know what I mean like we don't know
01:15:54
very good very good friends and knowing each other before SNL he's probably right out of high school but uh I can
01:16:01
say that when you see any of your peers and just going back to Scared Straight
01:16:07
you see someone in the pocket Landing in control knowing you know all the it's
01:16:13
hard it's live TV and what happened the moment before and don't try too hard and to see someone in the pocket once you
01:16:19
see it once you're like a fan you're like okay that's all I got to see and then you see everything else it's like
01:16:25
damn but you were in the pocket on that thing and it it pops off the screen so anyway thank you I mean I'll try to live
01:16:32
up we all try to live up to our siblings you know like I Come From You Know by
01:16:38
the time I got there the show was 30 years old you know so we were all anybody that I've ever worse come behind
01:16:44
me we're all fans of the show first you know you guys were all you know performers in your own right you know
01:16:50
coming to build something but you know we get to walk into an already shiny Lobby you know what I'm saying and like
01:16:56
you know continue it from there so no one really had the attitude of I'm
01:17:01
bigger than the moment or you know I'm writing the most ingenious [ __ ] so we
01:17:07
never played around with not wanting to deliver you know what I'm saying it was like how dare you not in the temple of
01:17:13
Comedy guides [ __ ] try to hit it out of the park with whatever you're doing if you get the chance so and also how do
01:17:19
you it's so it's harder for you because we've done everybody in Sno before he's
01:17:24
done x amount of sketches you just have to do new ones and new ones and it's just so hard to think of a new mouse trap it really is bits man fishing
01:17:32
for bits I like a I like your your the way you
01:17:37
talking a shiny Lobby I know there may be a character in there yeah just the way you you express yourself but like
01:17:45
take it someplace exactly yeah it's interesting yeah uh poetry basically I have a lot of Irish relatives and they
01:17:52
talk in poetry oh I like that it's not half bad oh he's a genuine article yeah
01:17:57
or just that you know just kind of like brilliant staring out
01:18:05
how far can you go what is highly imaginative but I mean that that's what writing will
01:18:11
teach you to make your references very clear so you can give the image to others kind of thing like Clarity is
01:18:18
King yeah well originality I love you both I won't hold you miss you already
01:18:24
thank you we won't hold you but we will see you uh I like this figure speech someone said may see you around campus
01:18:30
yeah we'll see you at the 50th or not sooner and we wish you all the best artists for artists let's do it oh man
01:18:36
you guys are the best thank you man all right appreciate it absolutely see you later
01:18:42
this has been a podcast presentation of cadence 13. please listen then rate review and follow all episodes available
01:18:50
now for free wherever you get your podcast no joke folks
01:18:55
fly on the wall has been a presentation of cadence 13 executive produced by Dana Carvey and David Spade Chris Corcoran of
01:19:02
cadence 13 and Charlie finan of brillstein entertainment the show's lead producers Greg Holtzman with production
01:19:08
and Engineering support from Serena Regan and Chris Basil of cadence 13.
