Ana Gasteyer

Hello everyone. Welcome to another episode of Good Hang. This is our holiday episode. It's our Christmas episode and we have an incredible guest today who's going to celebrate Christmas with us. And you should know, we are off next week and then we are right back. So don't be scared. We just have one week down to give everybody a genuine break and then we're back in the New Year. But we are with Onigastire today and Onigastire writer, singer, Broadway star, sketch comedian, does so many things well and a sweet dear friend who went through the same SNL sausage factory as we all did. And we talk about that. We talk about being on the show and how fun it was to bomb. We talk about Christmas and our favorite Christmas songs and we talk about Annie. Annie comes up. Thank God. As it does once upon a mattress. And on a story about being in the White House. And we also, we talk about her record sugar and booze, a Christmas classic. So it's a great episode and we're starting this episode with another Titan, like a genius comedic legend, a woman who has written some of your favorite sketches at SNL. You know her from AP Bio from the maple worth murders from my country from Girls 5 Eva. She is the one the only Paula, Paula. I believe we're getting you in a car. This episode of Good Hang is presented by Walmart Express delivery, getting gifts to your doorstep in as fast as an hour. Who needs elves? When Walmart Express delivery can make an espresso machines magically appear on your doorstep. And if you do happen to forget something, no judgment. You can even order gifts up until 5 p.m. on December 24. Santa, you might want to take notes. Download the Walmart app or head to Walmart.com and get your gifts delivered fast. Subject to availability, terms, and fees apply. Paula, can you see me and hear me? Yes, I can see you and hear you. Oh, I need to. Can you hear me? I think I need. I hear you, but I don't see you. I think I need to hit the. I thought I hit the camera. Oh, hold on. Why isn't it working? Elaine. Yeah, canning it to Janine to see if you can find her. Hi, Janine. Janine, Brito, Paula's beautiful wife. I'm trying. There we go. There we go. It's my beautiful wife with a new haircut. Hi, Janine. It's Paula. It's so great that your beautiful wife is also your IT. For a person who just got off an airplane, you look beautiful. Well, I just did a, which Tina Fey is very familiar with in a, in a, in a car of full face makeup in about two seconds, because I did that in the cabs on the way to work all the time. Yep. We, we are all pretty good at, I mean, most women are at like getting. Growing it on. Yeah, throwing it on. I've gotten really good at just the feel. Like I can almost, it's like, it's like love is blind, but it's makeup is blind and you just have people do a full makeover without, by just feel. Well, it looks great. I'm also wearing my lesbian uniform in Los Angeles. Hmm. I love having you in Los Angeles, Paula. It's so nice. It's so beautiful here. We left so much snow. Well, you know, this episode with On A Guestire is going to be technically our holiday episode. It's going to air before Christmas. Yeah. And we are going to talk. You guys better carol. You better sing a carol. I was like, I wish we could have you in stewed. You love to carol, though. I do. I love to carol. I love to harmonize more than anything on earth. If I get, if someone said to me, this is your job for the rest of your life is just to throw in that alto line and just walk from group to group and throw in that alto line, lay down that base. I would do it and be the happiest human being on earth. Although I have also heard you have a very fierce soprano. You can also hit those high notes. Well, sometimes I do think lately in my 60s, I have had experiences where I thought I was nailing it and then I listened to it back on my video. Very mortified. Just a little sharp. And I like to sing a certain kind of sharp for Janine that really makes her put her face down in the cereal in the morning. Because it's just a little bit. It's just just a little overshoot. Um, could you give us an example of it? It's just like finding it. You're just, it's like a level and you're always just finding it when you finally get it. All only a good, as good of a singer as you, Paula Pell can do good bad singing. That's such a thing in comedy. You're always like, don't try to sing bad. Don't try to sing bad. It's, it's funny. I want to talk to Anna about it. Like, what is the difference between good singing and comedy singing? It's, it's, it's very, it's a very fine line. Um, so we're talking to Anna Gasdire today. What's great about Anna? Let's, let's talk well behind her back. Anna is so many things at once, speaking up. And she's such a multi, multi, multi-hyphenate. It's like every time you turn, she's doing a new job that something where it's like, oh my god, like just Broadway and writing and movies and, you know, she and Rachel writing that hilarious Christmas movie. And then she's on really funny television shows as really funny characters. And then she's like playing the violin in a video she sends us to crack us up. That's like incredibly skilled violin. Um, so I just, I admire that so much in her, but I also, she came and stayed with us to write this Bobby and Marty recently for the 50th. And we sat in our pajamas at my house, at our house. And we just sat and just really broke it down. She's so good and sitting and just really asking questions. She's a curious, present friend. She's really such pure medicine to my soul to just really talk about everything. We should talk. We've been on many trips together. A bunch of the SNL ladies have gone together on girl trips, Maya, you, me, Dratch, Tina, Anna, um, spivy and the wine country gang and the wine country gang. And we have been, we're kind of overdue for a trip. Very overdue. Yeah, we need to, we're going to all bring our grandchildren next time. It's just going to be a play date. We'll all be there with our grandchildren. And I'll have, Danine and I'll have our grand dogs because we cloned Barbara Streisand style. How are all the doggies doing? Can you name all the doggies names? Well, we have, yes, we have Ernie who used to have four buck teeth. And now he has nothing in no chin. Ernie is a very obnoxious little, um, Chihuahua with a penis the size of his legs. And then Gary is perfection. He's a poodle mix. He's perfect, perfect child. And then we have Dolly who's like a shitsumix who looks like she's wearing a wig and she's very tender and gives a lot of side eye. And then we have our only young dogs. We always adopt old dogs and now we've adopted a younger dog who makes us say about 30 fucks before 10 o'clock in the morning because she's so obnoxious is Bunny a Beagle Basset and she starts at about 5.30 and stares at you in the dark and you see her silhouette. She goes, "Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr her silhouette, she goes "errrr" and just does that until you just go "just get up and she, you get up and feed them." And then who's, who am I missing? And then Tallula is in a wheelchair, a little wheelchair, and she's an eight pound tiny tiny little mix. She looks kind of like a smoother and peeking ease a little bit and she has no feeling in her back half of her body and is faster than any of the dogs, even without her wheels. She flies through the air just running on her front two legs and she used to despise me the first year and then I left for four months to shoot something and I came back and she loves me now. Okay, so any question you think we should ask on the today? I have, I have a legit one and then I have just one quick little funny one. If you want to ask her this, the funny one is her dog Gloria speaking of dogs eats things all the time that she's not supposed to. I just wanted to know, I think we should all be updated on what the latest thing that she devoured and then has it come out yet. Great. And when it came out, was it recognizable? Great. And then, and then my real question is, because she's such a multi-highffinant, between writing when she's writing or when she's singing or when she's doing comedy. Which one of those makes her feel the most free, just glorious, untethered euphoria. Which one gives her the biggest shoulder that way? Perfect. Thank you so much. Paula, love you. I can't wait to talk to you in length one day. And so happy here. Love you, love you. Bye, bye. This episode is brought to you by Hotels.com. Make your next trip work for you. Hotels.com just rolled out a game-changing feature called Save Your Way. And it's as simple as it sounds. When you book a trip as a Hotels.com member, you decide how to use your savings. Choose to take the instant savings now or bank the savings as rewards for later. It's your call. Turn discounts on this week's stay into rewards for a luxurious beach getaway next year. No complicated math, no blackout dates, just you choosing how to make your travels work harder for you. Only at Hotels.com. Save Your Way is available to loyalty members in the U.S. and U.K. on Hotels with member prices. Other terms apply. See site for details. You guys, what are you wearing? I have my tartan. Oh, it's about Angle. There it is. Tartan show. That look natural. Yeah. This I wore my holiday pumps. Yeah, because I do try. I try to think about what the guest is going to season. This is our Christmas episode. I know. I got excited. So how many times do you think I can wear this sucker? Those are cute. Yeah, aren't they cute? Isn't it weird to wear it in like sunny Los Angeles? Yeah, I feel weird. And it's a sweatery texture. It's a sweatery tartan. I don't know if you can see the texture. So it's very holiday. Anyway, this is going to be your Christmas episode. And I have so many things I want to talk to you about today. Okay, very excited. Thank you for doing it. Never enough time. Oh, it's so much to talk about. Never enough time. I know. But it's very exciting that you are the Christmas episode because I do associate you with Christmas. In many ways, you have a Christmas album. You go on tour at Christmas. Yes. And you yourself love Christmas. Yes, I do. What do you love about Christmas? Well, I call myself the Duchess of Christmas. Actually a nice gay called me that and I took it, obviously. I love the holidays. It's so weird. It's like, but it's a I love the holidays. Be I mean, like the resume sort of leans in that direction because my my legacy moments at SNL were, you know, Schweddy Balls and the Martha Stewart Topolis Christmas was just my first thing that succeeded there. Right. And they run every year on the Christmas episode. So on that special. So it comes up for people. And then Dratch and I wrote that Christmas movie, which is a parody of the home art film. Tell everybody what it is called a cluster phone Christmas. And it is a parody. It's a perfect it's perfect. The goal was to make the perfect parody of the for the ultimate hallmark lover. Right. Of which you are. You are. I love the hallmark movies. I love a hallmark movie. And I love the holidays. I love the holidays. I like kind of decorations because we are on a we're in a text chain. We send each other like our prep. Yeah. What decorations do you have up right now? What are you looking forward to for like in the levels of what's going on? Right. So there's all sort of contingent upon how much I'm traveling and how exhausted I am by visual clutter that year. So which is fair, right? So I'm actually going full tilt Thunderhump on Friday. The boxes are out. I'm going to do New York for the first time in a really long time. I haven't done it in a long, long time. I've worked on Christmas a lot because during the Broadway shows. Because you're a pro babe. I mean pros work on Christmas. Christmas. Yeah. So you end up a lot of my things are which are so up your alley. I know like they're sort of hacks. They're like hacks to still be festive and still enjoy it and still be present in it. But maybe have it not be sort of enslaved by it. Do you know what I mean? So that so I have, for example, I can go full tilt Thunderhump, which I'm going to do this year. And I'm going to you know, what does that mean? That means like the trees and the lights and the garland and the swag and the you know, all the TikTok hacks like with the with the curtain rod in the, you know, garland going across it. And let's slow down woodland forest. Let's slow down. I just heard my one of my favorite TikTok hacks and the garland goes where? So you get yourself some like Walmart or you know, the tension rod and put it like in a doorway like where you would hang mistletoe and you can basically go to Trader Joe's or Costco or whatever and get your garland and you can make a really beautiful archway if you use that tension rod. So you get what you would put curtains. Right. So you have to go buy that hardware. But that's like four dollars and wrap it in garland. Yeah. And just put it in a doorway and then hang it down. Put a little T cup, a T cup hooks. Do you know this little T cup hooks that people, you can buy them at the five and dime also. Okay. You know, the five and dime and you will wear this five and dime. Woolworth's got Pat Dana Woolworth when you're doing your stockings and you can put your garlands down it and you could do lights. You can pre IKEA has or everybody now has, but I do it and I cure one every holiday because they've rolled you on a gas. I was here and she is honest about Christmas. I knew you would give me a stuffed brown paper. Just brown paper packages tied up in strings. That's that's the brown paper packages tied up in strings. That's how you wrap. That's how I wrap. I have a question about the brown paper. I find it a little heavy sometimes for tape because of the gauge. You've got to get a thinner gauge, a thinner gauge paper craft paper. It's called craft paper. What are we talking tree? I have a feather table top, table top. I have a tin sole like sort of medium. And then I finally am just going to do live or bust. You know what I mean? Yeah. And the one thing I'll say about live, I usually do a real Christmas tree. I like that we're calling it a live. Live. It's a live. It's a live. From Chris. Bring it alive. And I know there's ones where you can even have ones that they repot in California. Yeah. You can't really find that on the East Coast. I've tried. What was the thing that I always bamboozled me about a real Christmas tree, which I still do is I think it's going to smell so good and it never does anymore. Because they've been cut so long ago. Christmas trees used to smell better. Now they don't smell like they used to. Well, that's, you know, that's, that's genetic modification right there. It's so true. And I mean, sometimes you just got to do, well, I use the do you or do like a Roma therapy or I'll put in a pine can. Yeah. Pine can. You know, it's got a nice pine candle this year. Who? Trader Joe. I stopped by yesterday because again, California Trader Joe's are like, I said it's single. Trader Joe. Trader Joe has invested and it's at his, his eponymous shop. I love it. I love it. I love it. I love it. I do love Chris. But I like, I like, I do love Christmas. But again, I will not be overrun by it. Of course. I love them. I like, this is why I made a holiday album. I love my holiday album. It's very old fashioned. It's a little winky. You've seen my show. It's very like low back. You're a holiday album. Sugar and booze. Yes. Sugar and booze. So great. Thank you. And your shows that that you do to support it are so fun. It's a holiday spectacular. Yes. Tell us about them. Well, I like to do, we, well, I like to perform with a horn section. So that's for starters, because I have a loud voice. And I like to wear a tartan and get dressed up. And I like, it feels very like, so my, how do I answer this succinctly? Do you have to? I don't know. I mean, it's actually, do we want to spend the whole hour on this? But I mean, this is a real, this is a real good question, which is like, talk however you want, babe. Okay. You're right. It's called good hang. Yeah. Good hang. We don't have to get it right. We don't have to, you don't really have to be succinct. No, we don't. You're right. We can cut it. Yeah, we can cut this shit out of it. We can cut it. This cut the shit. We can make this podcast six minutes. And wait in the name of this podcast should be called cut the shit. We should do a clip show where we'd you call it cut the shit and it's all the stuff that we cut. And so kind of in the, the 1959 early 60s entertainers era really spoke to me because it was a time when a gal, you know, Rosemary Clooney would probably be like the idol. Like a gal who could tell a good story, could, you know, belt to the rafters, play in front of a big band, carry a band, an, an evening of entertainment. So when we set out to make the holiday album, it was really to create a record that, you know, wasn't kitschy or like, you know, it's not a calm, it's not a comedy record. It's not a campy record, but it has, you know, it's me. So it's, there's fun to it. But really I wanted it. The goal was to have it play seamlessly with, you know, a Frank Sinatra Christmas record or, you know, a classic Christmas record while you're making cocktails and wrapping presents and it's a perfect record for that. Tree, tree, tree trimming. Tree trimming. It is so good, tree trimming a live tree. It's a tree trimming a live tree, a live tree. Or a ball somehow. Or a ball somehow. I don't want to, you know, it is, it's such a good record. And it, it, it is, it's just the right amount of like whimsy combined with really, really good singing and many original Christmas songs, which is hard to do to make an original Christmas song. Really hard. And I love Christmas, I love Christmas songs, but they're really, really hard. What Christmas songs do you love? Well, I like a lot of the ones that are on the record. I love Slayride. I love Man with the Bag, which I just think is a structurally high. It's, oh, it's on your record. Yeah. It's on the record. It, there's, there's some bad Christmas songs that we listen to every year just because they're out there over and over again. There's, I have to say, Deck the Hall is not my fave. No. And wish, and we wish you Merry Christmas. It's boring. It's boring. It's boring. There's a lot of, a lot of them. I mean, even walking around a Christmas, the Christmas tree is kind of a boring song, structurally, in the kind of carol canon. I think God Resty Mary Gentlemen has a really great rhythm. We actually have a new arrangement of it this year, which we're doing on stage. God Resty Mary Gentlemen, let nothing you dismay, remember, Christ I save you was born on Christmas day. It's got a nice, you save us all from savings, but when it was gone straight, old tidings of comfort and joy. It's a good song, it's a good tune, but also, we tried to write a few songs that would fit into that. I wrote the title track, Show Grim Booz, with that in mind, because I wanted it to feel like an old fashioned song. When you were growing up, and now, what are your Christmas albums that are on? My parents are classical music people, remember. There's a lot of Messiah jams, a lot of ceremony of the carols. Oh, wait, if you do that, I remember my part from choir. If you do the Dundalog, ready? Dundalog, Dundalog, Dundalog, Dundalog, Dundalog, Dundalog, Dundalog. Dundalog, Dundalog, Dundalog. Dundalog, Dundalog. I was the old, I was the old, I was the old, Dundalog. Dundalog, Dundalog. Dundalog, Dundalog. Dundalog. Dundalog. Can you rock a desk, can? Oh, yeah. Rock a desk, can. What's the hallelujah one? That, oh, come on, you faithful. So I was just doing that's the, okay, so it starts singing, okay, and I'll do the desk, can. Oh, come on. You can go up a lot higher. Oh, come on. Oh, come on. Oh, come on, you faithful. Joyful and joyful. And thankful. Oh, come on. You can go up a lot. Okay. Oh, come on. Okay. Oh, come on. Okay. Okay. Okay. Oh, come on. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Oh, come let us adore him. Okay, now you have to decide. Am I going to the next level? name was Amy. So I'm like blown away. And she was just like this girl in the White House. I'm very exciting. And she was normal probably for you too. I imagine you, I know you are a reader. Now you're probably a child, a childhood reader. I was too. She was a violinist. I mean, boom. And she was a violinist. Yeah, we were in an after school like GT program together. And we came front. I mean, it was just an instant like whatever books, books, books, glasses and violins. Am I right? And come on, guys. Come on. Let's party. And everybody would get invited to these, you know, group events at the White House. Many of which were in the beautiful East Ballroom, which has now been leveled by or made more beautiful, depending on your point to your point. It's going to be gorgeous on a, you know, I stand corrected. Let's wait and see how it comes out. I have a feeling it's going to be gorgeous. And I just saw the Christmas decor and you're right. And it's gorgeous. It's gorgeous. It's always so warm. It's so warm and inviting. You're right. I wonder if it smells like French onion soup or waffle when you walk in gorgeous. Okay. So, but you're going, you go in like multiple parties and things. And one of my early memories, this was such an extra double brain blow of like early synaptic development. The cast, the original Broadway cast of Annie was performing at the White House Christmas party. Exactly. Exactly. Like the whole thing. It was too many things. I don't think I knew that. Like four feet away from us. It was like her little friends from her, you know, gift and talented program and her friends from school and various White House people's children. Yeah. And then like, Andrea McCartle and actual Sandy right over there. My heart knock life in it. Buckets. And then I did Annie at the Hollywood Bowl, like five or six years ago. What? And it was there. It was during, I was right after wine country. I think you were probably buried in. And who you miss Annie in? Match. What a party. I was Annie. I was Annie. I thought, why not? Well, there is that other part. We've got to, you know, this is Anne Ranking part. Oh, yeah. Oh, god. Lily. I mean, my mind is so mind blowing wise. When I did Annie at the Bowl, the same animal. There's one animal trainer on Broadway. He does all all animal training and then we've probably done played her or him on SNL. He's the most delightful person. Okay. Bill Burloney. And he does. He he adopted the original Sandy from animal control. And he trained her for the good speed production. And then like traveled with every anti production ever. And then now has become like sort of the Broadway. He does all Broadway animals. But he's a wonderful person. And he's a big advocate for animal rights and, you know, whatever. He's not the type that we had at SNL that would be like, I got to get going to van if you need it. You know, like, you got to hit it with a stick to let heaven let you go. I mean, I can Alama do that. I don't know. She's got the 17 out of it in her. So I don't know what's going to happen to Jay. Dude. This dog is going to bite you if you hold it in the wrong way. That's the right way. Hell if I know. There was a donkey sketch right there for the donkey sketch. No, I wasn't there yet. But it was, you know, like, the donkey's like going down those floors. It's just the worst. Oh my god. And then they doped them. And then like, by live, they're like, I'm not moving. I was nightmare. Nightmare. Anyway, Bill Barlowne has these beautifully trained show dogs. All I think show, like, it's funny. Even even like showbiz children who I'm afraid of and we all should be are wonderful on Broadway. Because again, it's all work ethic on Broadway. Everything is routine and work ethic. And so a lot of the sort of like crazy. There's different kind of crazy. But it's different. It's more like a proper OCD crazy, which I'm comfortable with. So, but just getting back here in the White House, Annie's performing. So Bill Barlowne had a picture. That's why I brought Bill Barlowne up because he had a picture from the 1977 White House Christmas party. With me, all these people, it's mind-blowing. You're in the picture. It's insane. Do you have a copy of it? No. But he shouldn't even take it with you. No, I shouldn't have brought it up now that I think about it. I also got a picture once with Paul McCartney and then lost my phone and don't have it. Oh, well. So, yes. So, the Amy Carter story. Okay. That's the most might. So, all of it gets munched together into this kind of crazy, like, there was a movie theater in the White House. And you would go and be like, please join us, you know, on the president for a viewing of Pete's Dragon with Helen Ready. You know, like, yeah, things like that. That would be like, because nobody, we didn't have the H.S. or anything like that. It was like the olden times. Yeah. Sure was. And then that's the crazy, crazy story is that I went to the Camp David for the Camp David Accords with the Carter's and we played the violin, which was crazy. And for the very first United States Middle East treaty. So, you played violin for-- For Amor Sadat and Menachem Bagan and Jimmy Carter. Wow. And me and Amy. And it was all in just one room and we played Suzuki violin. Do you remember when you played? She cut Nado. I mean, it was literally like, yeah, lightly row or some, you know, minuet and G or, I don't know, something. Oh, that must have been so tender. Right? Maybe. That's what I've said before. Maybe that was a little harder to make the Middle East piece. Yeah, it was said on the right row. It didn't work. And then you-- And I write that you watch Star Wars there too. Yeah, we watched it with the Siddats. True story. Star Wars with the Siddats. Yeah. And then you also watched SNL in the White House. That is the most interesting of all the stories because-- So, President Carter was the President. You rarely saw him. There were, you know, a little bit, but we were there a lot though. Kids were at that house a lot, you know, her various friends. So, I have a very, very-- That's my first memory of Saturday Night Live because we went to get a snack in the middle of the night. And it felt like the middle night was probably 11, 45. Yeah. And we went to-- And we walked by in the President who we hadn't seen very much was sitting in a chair with a-- I remember he had like a snack in a beer and Acroid was playing him on TV live on Saturday Night. And he was laughing hysterically at the impression of him. And to me, that was the most powerful, whatever you call that, early building block or core memory of putting in place the power of parody and the power of comedy and the importance of being able to laugh at yourself, you know, all of those things, which obviously were in a really different time around, but super, super, super impactful. And so, you get to Northwestern, we talk your voice major. What makes you go from Northwestern after you graduate to LA? A very bossy gay. Great. I mean-- Yeah. Followed online. Wherever you tell me to go. My friend Peter was like, you're gonna-- So I knew, I mean, the other-- I went to go see the second city. And there were two women in that cast and they both played girlfriends at the time. And I remember being like, I want to see the girls do something fun. And then I came out here to LA and I went to a groundlings show. And it was like literally Coolidge. Jennifer Coolidge. Jennifer Coolidge, Kathy Griffin, Lisa Kudrow, this girl, Heather Morgan. I mean, there were so many crazy, funny women wearing like wigs and glasses. And I, you know, in the improv scene in Chicago and like those, you know, Northwestern, it was same as it ever is, which is just a bunch of smart, quickwits guys that were like-- I remember the like main, big improv guy was, you know, star guy was like, you're more character. That's what he said to me. You do more like characters. And I knew that that was an insult. Like that they thought of that as an insult. And then I came out here and I saw these like wigs and glasses. That seems really fun. And who did you meet in your early years at the rallies? We had an insanely talented group. So I was right behind Will and Sherry. Will Ferrell, Sherry O'Terry. Yeah. And Will is who suggested me for SNL. And I had, in my group, I had Stephen Craig, Chris Parnell, Scott Wainio, a lot of writers that came from our era as well. And then right behind me was Maya Forte. Will Forte, my good off. Like yeah. I mean, it was, you know, and then I, I'd be friended a bigger collective of, you know, Tim Bagley and my Kitchcock and Sterling. And then we always love to talk about SNL audition stories on this show. I know we like to. I know. We don't have to. But it is, it is interesting like, you know, with the 50th anniversary and like us looking back and all of it. Do you feel any differently about that like the story that you tell yourself about your audition? Like, do you feel badly about your audition? You know what? I even never feel bad about it. I'll tell you why because there have been a couple of times in my life. And Wicked was one of them and Saturday Night Live was another. And they were both incredibly challenging jobs in their, in difficult workplaces in their own ways. Both just in terms of physical demand and artistic demand and just complicated creative workplaces, as you know. Both times, SNL being one of them, I left no stone. unturned because I felt, and I really believe this to this day, if you so sort of to totally double back on the lazy thing, like if you give everything you're all, if you give something you're all, you don't have regret. And if you don't have regret, you can face any consequence. For me, so I knew that if I did the best audition I could, I would feel fine if I didn't get the job. Because I wouldn't have left something on the table, you know. And so Will Farrell had told me famously that they don't laugh and we always, people whisper that to one another in advance. Did you know that? Yeah. I knew that they, there's, it would be absolutely silent, which it was. Which it was, yeah, me too. And I told Parnell, and so Charlie in my now husband and I were engaged at the time I got the job, and he, I would, I wrote my, I wrote the whole thing out as a monologue, and I would just run it relentlessly. And he would sit like Mount Rushmore. Oh, in practice not laughing. Repeatedly, because it was all stuff I would have been doing at the groundlings. So I, I needed to know what it felt like. The cadence is so different. If you have a character that you're used to landing in a certain way. Yeah, that's actually a really good point. I think a lot of people don't know a lot of stand-ups and sketch performers when they come in audition, they're doing stuff that has succeeded somewhere else. Right. And there's a rhythm to it and laughs that you're used to. Correct. Yeah. Exactly right. So, I just rehearsed it in front of him. And I knew it, you know, six different directions as well. What characters and, or people, did you do in your audition? Do you remember? Yes, I did the NPR lady, who I ended up doing on the show. And I, and I did kind of a ridiculous pantyhose wearing woman. And I did who did not end up on the show in a shocking twist. She was, she ended up on cut the shit. She was on cut the shit. Did you do any impressions? Also, so many, of course, was like, they're going to ask you in the 11th hour to do impressions, but I didn't do impressions, right? But I kind of knew that it might come because I'd heard that the people that were involved were never particularly organized around the advance prep, shall we say? Yeah. So, I just had it up my sleeve. So, I went and I knew that I liked Martha Stewart. I thought she was funny and interesting, even though the ground links doesn't really do impression-based comedy. And so, I wrote an introduction as Martha Stewart. And I got a Martha Stewart wig. And this was so funny to me. I did Koki Roberts. Oh, yeah. I remember her. But like nobody, it was like an NPR reference, literally, but she was on ABC News. And so, I did Koki Roberts on shit. For Lauren, there's a good French with Koki. Yeah, I had dinner with her last night and it's very, it sounds just like. And then Koki liked the impression. Talk to Koki. Talk to Koki. I talked to Koki. Koki thought it was a runner. On Koki thought it was a little mean. Martha, your Martha impression is so good. Thank you. What do you do vocally to get into Martha? How do we do a Martha? So much of Martha, it still is. She's so rehearsed in front of the camera. There's, you'll never have her do this. Martha Stewart does stuff with Ms. Piggy. And she's a little thrown by Ms. Piggy. Yes. Because Piggy, Ms. Piggy is improvising. Yes. Martha doesn't love to improvise. No. And they've, I've had a few situations with her. In fact, where I've had to dress up as her and be with her. Yeah. Which is that's a very unique thing about SNL. I had that with Hillary Clinton where you are dressed exactly like them standing next to them. So I have had a few events with Martha. And recently I did the Drew Barrymore show and showed up as her. And she, it's just the worst. And you're just sitting there fully dressed like a person. Well, that's why, listen, this is why I love our people. This is why I love sketch comedy. Sketch comedy is embarrassing. So embarrassing. Stand up is cool. Yes. You get, you go outside, you wear leather jacket, you smoke a cigarette, you put it out, you go and do your set. Yeah. Sketch, you have a friggin wig and you're schlep in a box with a weird bow tie. Yeah. And you got it. And it never ends. And it never ends. And you don't think that I'm not still doing that. Like there are days where I'm like, I still have a wig area in my house. Yep. I one time got pulled over for speeding and had a wig in my glove compartment. That could be, I mean, considered dangerous. It could be. Yeah, it could be. Do you remember what the wig was? Was it? No, it was during growling stays in fairness, but just to have one around. It's just the schlepping. It's the amount of props. It's just so uncool. And that's why I love people who do it because they're, to me, the coolest people because they sit in the embarrassment and the commitment of it. You have to be really committed, which is why the bombing is the funniest thing in the whole world, which is why Will Ferrell sitting into a bomb. Yeah. Is one of my favorite things I've ever seen in the world. It is, um, at SNL, we used to watch old sketches that bombed. Yeah. Just like love it in a way. It's what the kids would call cringe, but it's even post cringe. It's like beyond cringe. It's almost like a delicious. Yeah. What would you call this heritone and boost? It's like, um, I don't know. It's the closest you feel to. What's it like a community therapy experience? Really is what it is. I mean, it's like a primal scream. Yeah. For sketch, sketch performers. What are some fun sketches that you used to watch that you loved watching that bombed? So we did a zoo crew sketch once, which is like a day morning, morning DJs. And we wrote, I mean, it was the loudest sketch ever. I mean, it was just literally like every single thing was just like, everybody like, don't be so horny. Don't get them rock. Like non-stop everybody. It was me and Pernell and somebody and the host. I can't remember and will and it was this basic premise really loud zoo crew. And then the, um, the, the weather chopper goes down like crashes. Okay. Really basic. And then everyone's like, we lost with their chopper five. Anyway, people at the table were screaming with laughter so funny. And then we set it up at home base. The, I mean, a dramatic play. A 20-winning Pulitzer Prize winning dramatic play about a zoo crew. I mean, definitely silent. Like a wall, like the audience and age looked like a painting. And the whole time you're, you're like screaming in there. It was all the wall of sound. Did you get giggles? And I mean, yes, because it was so embarrassing. And it was also just hilarious because it was like the whole time, you're like, they don't think this is funny. They listen to morning zoos. Right. There's nothing, this is what it sounds like. If you like driving to work and listening to that, then that's just kind of a pleasant thing for you. Right. Um, that was embarrassing. Do you remember the stuff that we called shit canally? Yes. So there's all these little areas at SNL that where you get to perform home-based is like right in the middle. And it's kind of a prime spot. It's where our date is. And then there's some areas that like where sketches go to die. Right. Because you have the audience and you have the balcony. Yeah. So the main three sets, you know, where the musical guest plays and whatever, you usually are going to play things. Okay. There's one that's like way in the back that has no immediate audience in front of it. And really sketches go there to die. I mean, nothing ever comes out of that. And it's also a real vote of no confidence when your sketch is put there. You're like, I see. I see. This isn't going to make the show. It's sort of quiet. And as of like, it's in shit canally. Yeah. We're not going to call my parents. It's not going to make it. But you had so many hits. And an ampere, that ampere, though, that sketch remains. There was no confidence in that sketch. That sketch was supposed to bomb. And I knew because I'd played at the ground links at the quietness of it. That was the comedy of it. Yeah. It's, it was, it's so, so funny. And I should circle back just quickly to Martha. When we're doing Martha, what are we doing with our lips? And how do we talk? Well, one of the things she does was so many of what the things that she says and does are things that she has learned to do on camera. And she is very aware of how the camera is going to look. It's a very barely moving mouth. Almost nothing moves. Why should it? And nor should it. We're going to make a Christmas meal and barely nothing is going to, and nothing is going to move. She, she's, I am obsessed with her. Me too. I'm obsessed with her. I mean, I mean, Martha is, Martha, I, she said, I'm not going to buy you on the show because I'm too scared. But, but please listen and know that you're something else. She also says, I love rules. Amy, her rules are so comforting. Her rules are so comforting when you talk to her. Her rules. She's just got, she's like, I don't take, I don't take alcohol alone. I don't take drinks if I'm alone. That's what she told me. I don't take. Do you remember when she briefly took over the apprentice? And it was that we were, but we're so obsessed with this. She, she, she would, and the zoom at the end, but she was always handwriting a termination note. It's a little touch of class. You're fired. Mm-hmm. I so enjoyed your contributions to the apprentice. But I'm here to tell you. I sent her flowers. I sent her flowers one of her birthdays many of the years anyway. Cut it. Cut the ship. We'll cut the ship. Cut the ship. I want to talk about Bobby and Marty for a second. The best. In the cops. Because those two characters that you you and well did, I think are perfect. example of, like, kind of combining all of your talents. And before we get into them, what is the difference between good singing, like singing and then comedy singing? Ooh. And is there one, I guess? Well, it is interesting. It's an interesting question. I definitely think the training and forms what's fun about the characters, meaning she's, you know, their quintessential choir teachers. So her technique is very important to her. So I probably lean more into that that quality of the of the of the voice. And I've met people over the years that are like music people. I hit notes as her that I would be very worried about trying to hit as me. And I know this is true because my friend Seth Rudewski, who has the series XM Radio Broadway show, who I met because he wrote for the Rosie O'Donnell show at the same time as I was in 8G. A lot of people don't know when we were doing SNL. Rosie was in her studio right next door. Right next door. Yeah. So we met in the NBC gym. And he was like of a certain part of my life. Like I instantly recognized him as a person who understood what that music part of me that I didn't even talk about was. And he he said he was like, Oh, I love how consistently you go from a B flat to a C. Like again, I wouldn't have thought about it. And I wouldn't have even thought that Bobby sings that high, but she does all the time, which is kind of wild. Like, if you wanted to tell me to hit a C, I would get like my butt hole and tighten up. And I probably wouldn't be able to do it. So there's something really fun about that. And I think there's for me, I can't speak for other people like I would never, there's a freedom around it and a chance taking that I will play in character any day of the week till very recently, I wouldn't have done it as a vocalist. So cool. Absolutely. And that is what you guys do as as characters. Also, I just love Bobby and Marty's look. They're a lot of fun. Excellent. They're looks are fantastic. And we knew early on. Oh, so they were disparaged by some of the men by the cool guys. People thought it was a medley bit and thought it was dumb and hacky. But we had so much fun rating their passive aggression as characters. Like the dynamic of the two of them that people gave them the finger all the time and just the the inherent bummer of having those people perform at your prom or whatever. We always loved, that's what was so joyful about it. And the music was fine. Like the music was a super fun component of it, but it wasn't the point. Yeah. The point was why are these people performing at my, you know, sobriety birthday? You know, we was always like finding the premise. And so that's what made it so fun. I have to say honestly, like at the 50th, which was so special because that was always my favorite thing to do at SNL. It was the most fun writing it with Will and with Paula. We would, we would infamous, infamous as the term because we would, as you know, not start writing until four o'clock in the morning. Yeah. And we would finish at 10 a.m. And it was always like a laugh fest that was, that's so heavily featured procrastination. It was extraordinary. And well, it's, it's very, very funny that you say that because we do a thing on the show where we talk about, we, we talk to people who know our guests. We talk well behind their back and we get a question to ask them. And so I spoke to Paula Pell. Uh-oh. And for people that didn't see the, the SNL 50th music special, which was amazing, you, there was like sketches in between acts and a lot of musical sketches. And Bobby and Marty came out and crushed. And that was not an easy audience. It was an audience of truly every single person was either performing or a performer or like it was a cynical audience. Yeah. You guys crushed. It was, was that feeling to do that, that night? It was so fun. For lack of a better word. Like it was so for, there was something, you know, as you go back to these reunions and you bring all of your kind of history and baggage and whatever with you. Um, again, kind of speaking to your point of the fact that this is all just so embarrassing. Because first of all, like, it's a radio city music hall. It's 6,000 seats. I mean, it's, it's a huge epic space. Yeah. We followed Lauren Hill. Sure. That's who you want to follow. So you have to understand that in the wing. That's right. There are like thousands of cool music people. I mean, like, I, my dressing room is next to Jack White in his band. And I'm dressed as Bobby Mohan Kulp. Okay. I've got the giant glasses and my like, striped dress and Will's got his bald paint and his, you know, we were rehearsing in the keyboard. So already, we're like the losers in the wings. Yeah. I mean, the winners for me, but it was, it was fantastic. I mean, actually, you're like, you've got the violin and you've got the eye patch. 100%. And so we're already just like, what is happening? What is happening? Why are we here? And who invited us? You know, and then we just started to giggle because we, we, it was so cute because we're doing the sketch and doing the, like, we just, it was very easy to imagine how excited Bobby and Marty would have been the people would have been to be at Radio City. And what was it like, Max? What was it like, Max? Did you see Jack White? Who else were you seeing? I mean, mayhem, like posse and people with like, you know, music people. So they got, yeah, they're so cool. They're big, cool hair and glasses and fur, like Lauren Hill's a fur coat and an afro. And like, everybody's got like floral pants that come up to here. And there's posse's and, you know, weed everywhere. You know, Chris Martin's in the corner, like cool people, actual cool people who just looked right past us. Like they were, they did not know that we used to be on Saturday night. They were just like, who brought granny and Gramps? Like just right past us. That actually probably was fun. It was so fun. That's fun. And then going, and then we like, you know, going out there and all that stuff just suddenly worked. You're right. Now that I'm remembering, Lauren Hill had a surprise, incredible performance. Insane. And then it was like, smoke. And it was like, and it was like, and test, test, test. And you guys cried. And that's what I mean. I knew it was streaming. And I also knew, I mean, it was really funny because we were like, they just, and all of their stuff was about how they'd come to New York for an ophthalmology appointment. You know, I did say we're just lucky to slip in and just everything about it was so fun. And so we're sitting there. And yeah. And I did have the feeling I was like, this is streaming. Because one thing about SNL for me, again, I don't know if you ever had this, but it's a little bit of an A student girl, you know, nerd girl thing. I was always my greatest regret about this show. Not that you would go back in time is that I couldn't, I never like settled into it and enjoyed it. Because I was always so aware of the time and of running somebody, running down the clock, somebody else's sketch is going to get cut. Like I was always, and when we were there, it was such a, you know, like explosive surfate of talent that there were always three sketches a night that might not make it. Yeah. So I always felt like I had to like keep it moving, keep it moving. So I was suddenly very aware that it was streaming. And that I was not going to be rushed. And I was like, I'm going to be bobby about the funniest thing in the world to me is this woman and this man, these, these choir teachers, getting people to settle. Because there's just nothing funnier. So that's what they did is just telling people to settle. I need you to settle. I need quiet in the back. Hand goes up, mouth goes shut. Just this idea. I was like, I'm going to keep going until they settle. I'm not going to worry about it. And if I had been at eight age, we never want to done that. Right. Very good point. But we just, we took a full, I probably 45 seconds to, you know, get people to pipe it. David spade pipe down. That's right. You guys called them out. I don't want to hear it. Pierce Brosnan. So stupid. Okay. We have so much more to talk about. I'm sorry. But Paula, Paula had two great questions. Uh-oh. One was a funny one, which was your dog, Gloria loves to eat things. Yes. Um, and you often keep us updated as to what she eats. What is she eating lately? And has it come out already? And was it intact when it came out? It never comes out. I don't know where it goes. It's upsetting. Like you're like, it was a full hairbrush. Where did it go? And honestly, because she's also like many dogs. Like it's the more personal, the better, you know, so it's a retainer or I mean, she would eat my IUD if she could pull it out. She could get it. Yeah. Sorry. But it's true. Dogs are gross. It's, it's gross, bras, all that kind of thing. Most recently, to answer the question, um, it was a massive thing of cheese. I mean, it was a manchego. It was a Costco manchego, which, you know, those are big ones for a party. And Charlie, Charlie sent it to me. I was out here. And he sent, he's, he'd taken out the cheese. He was going to have himself a little snack. Came back. The cheese was gone. He felt crazy. That's always part of the story. I'm like, I swear to God, I brought the cheese out. Where's it just? And then hours later, there was like this much left, which also I find upsetting, because it means that she has eaten to the point of physical discomfort, which for a dog is a long time. Yeah. I just, I want to know what happens in her dog brain, or she's like, maybe there's some kind of evolutionary thing where they show you just a little to be like, just to be like, and I, and just just a nice, yeah, just a tiny bit of like a trophy. And here's what I did. She's such an asshole. Okay. And then Paula's real question was, and it's kind of what the theme of our interview today, which is basically like, such a sweet Paula question, which is, you know, between writing and singing and acting, which one makes you feel the most free? It's an interesting work. It's a great question. I think that inherently, I'm the most natural singer. I mean, I think that's like my first gift, meaning that it's just sort of beyond me. And as I've gotten older and more into it, like, even in the last couple of years, I feel more comfortable just accepting that it's something that came from somewhere besides me. I've got lucky to have a career that kind of nurtured the muscles of it all literally. Writing is the most in the flow, I probably feel, but I hate writing and I hate having to write. I love having written. Yes. Having had written is the best feeling in the world. I feel like you're a more confident writer than I am. Oh God, no. No, that's not true. You're very good at it. Okay. I've got it on. No, I've got it on. What? Your rubbers here? My rubbers. I'm so sorry. My rubbers here. First of all, you are a member of the wicked verse. You opened wicked in Chicago. I was the fourth overall alphabet, so now, when you go last year or two years ago, it was the 20th, and again, I have people in my wicked life that are like, "I'm not going back. It was torture." Because it is trauma bonding. It's a really hard job. It's a really, really, really, really hard job. It's a hard role to play. It is physically demanding, and it's incredibly hard to sing. And I'm actually, in retrospect, I was so, I'm going to actually take a minute to tell a story. Yes, please. That's okay. Of course. Because I actually think it's so life less than important. I am so hard on myself, and again, I realize this about myself recently. I'm not competitive. I'm a perfectionist, so I actually hate competition, but I want to be really good at things. So it's a weird mix. But when you do a Broadway show, everybody comes at the end. Because all your friends are whatever. People want to see you before it closes or you leave or whatever. And, you know, whatever. Here's Adina Menzel, the most incredible vocalist, originated this incredibly demanding vocal score. Yeah. When you take over in a role, you're thrown into their tracks. So there's a lot of things that were designed around Adina's instrument that other people have a harder time with, her phrasing, her lung capacity, things like that. So I was sort of mercilessly hard on myself, and I also just didn't have the Broadway credits that other people did. So I felt like I was proving myself, and especially then on Broadway, I think people felt like, who's this TV bitch? She just thought she could show up and sing Elphaba. You know, there was not like a, I didn't feel like warmly welcomed into the Broadway community. I felt like I was proving it, you know? Sure. So every day. Yeah. And you know, that role is very, very challenging. So my last like three weeks, because I did Chicago, and then I came and I did the three penny opera on Broadway, and then I did Wicked Up on Broadway. So my last like two, three weeks Wicked, all these people, you know, come out of the wood works. Composers, I admired people. I admired people to see one to see me in the role before I left. And I was so mercilessly cruel to myself every day. I would come backstage and I messed up the bridge on Define Gravity, or oh my God, I hate it way that I, you know, I didn't, I didn't like the, my upper register here there. I was screaming in this part. It was such an interesting experience because the sound engineer gave me, like snuck me, I hope I'm not getting fired, recordings of my last 12 shows. He had just like stuck in a thing and recorded them. I didn't listen to them for 15 years because I was so mortified, I was like, I don't want to hear myself. And then I cracked one open one day and I started, I wanted to listen to Define Gravity to see like if I could like Frankenstein, the perfect version together, whatever. And it was so chilling, how similar they were. Oh, wow, Anna, that's wild. To listen to them in a row, it was like, it took my breath away because I, and I tell my kids this all the time now because you know, you listen to my son is such a, he's such a perfectionist. The difference between 98% and 100% is imperceptible to anyone but you. And if you're hitting the general ballpark of being able to, oh, I don't know, sing alphaba, you're probably cool, you know, so you are not a reliable witness about yourself. Oh, never. And that's why I give 75%, I don't need to get. But honestly, most of, or it can apply to anything. Oh, absolutely. And that decision of being like, did you show up? Were you nice to people? You know, did you know your lines? Okay. The way that, and also the way the lovely way in which you circled back and you were able to kind of like go back to that younger version of yourself and be like, oh my God, I can't believe how unnecessarily relentlessly mean I was to myself. Yes. I mean, I don't know if I'm able to take it now in everyday life, but it's such an important, I don't know, it felt like such an important lesson. Obviously, like that's the SNL wisdom pearl, I'm like, I wish I could have enjoyed it, just enjoyed it. It was a great experience, you know. Yeah. I mean, the fact that you had physical evidence that they weren't that different. It was mind blowing. Is something else, isn't it? Yeah. The mind is a terrible place. A real dick. It's a terrible, terrible place. Yeah. The mind is a dick. The mind is a raging dick. Okay. Mean girls. So what are your memories about us? Do we mean girls together? I remember being on the plane with you. We were on the plane. I remember sitting in the eye. Yeah, you got in the fight with the guy. And the baby. Baby Francis was early in powering. Baby Francis was on the plane with us. Do you remember that? Your baby Francis. My baby Francis. My baby Francis. My baby Francis. Yeah. She was on the plane. And I still got in a fight with the guy with the baby around. Yeah. Hope so. Yeah. Because the guy got mad that you were swearing in front of the baby. Yeah. Right. I was. Yeah. It's a long story. But what happened was a very, a guy who, like a first class guy, you know, we were in first class too. Excuse me. It was so much fun. I'm trying to, you're being too loud in first class and I, uh, my Boston came out. Let's just say that. It was the best thing I've ever seen. Okay. But, but the shooting of, of mean girls, what do you remember of it? I remember hanging out with you in that hotel one night and having drinks. I remember, um, I remember one Tina. I have a memory of her sitting at the table on 17 and saying, I think I'm going to try to option this book. Me too. I, I have an image of her sitting at her computer and being like, oh, and having the book. Yeah. And, and just like working on it, being like, I'm writing this movie. It's incredible. And I was like, good luck with that. I'm going to go right to sketch about a lady who is a snake around her neck. I've never heard a fart mouth. And last question is, what are you listening to watching? Where do you go to laugh these days? I am like, I am not very, for, for all my quiet comedy. Like, I, I am like, Mel Brooks is what makes me laugh, like, it's big. Okay. What's your favorite Mel Brooks? I mean, let's Google it. Is it Mel would go on? Should we go to the producers? Young Frankenstein. Should we do it? Should we? I mean, when Dratch and I write together, it feels like Mel Brooks is, you know, the, the Dratch is, has you, yeah, Dratch is of the Mel Brooks world. Yeah. So writing with her is a very goofy and very fun. You know what I love? And I know it's underrated. I love me. Spaceballs. Oh, not deeply underrated. Yeah. God, Spaceballs made me laugh. My friend Philip Tarotila is doing, does this character called official Pam Goldberg on Instagram. He plays a member of Actors Equity since 1968. I know my Uber is here, but I have to see this. Yeah. You do. Official Pam Goldberg. Yeah. Pam Goldberg here. And I really, really want to bring with you to tech. So here we go. We're live on other people's snacks for anyone else bringing snacks for you. These are crazy. I don't think they're organic. Pam's telling us what to bring to tech. I like this from fairway. They didn't miss me, but one copy themselves, but left you short for photos. Again, I recommend Banana Grams, because it's short. Banana Grams are short and cordial. Also on Pam, it's got a real severe haircut. Real severe. And a real squinty eye. She's been a real theater actress for a long time. But anyway, Merry Christmas. Thank you, friend. Thank you, friend. Merry Christmas to you. Anna Gasdair, thank you so much. That was so fun. And that time went by so fast, and I love talking to you. And, you know, this is our holiday episode. And for those of you celebrating the holiday in all different ways, I just want to say, thank you for giving us the gift of listening to this show. It's meant a lot to us, and this has been an amazing year that we've launched it. So thank you. We cannot wait to make more, which we will be doing for you, and it has been a real gift to do it. So I'm going to end this episode and dive into the polar plunge by sharing my favorite Christmas movie with you. And that is a little known classic Emmett Otter's Jugban Christmas. I don't know. A lot of people that know it, but it's -- it was -- look, I don't love puppets all the time, but this one has the Muppet Puppet family, Jim Henson's workshop made it. And it is the cutest, most tender, best music movie, Emmett Otter's Jugban Christmas. Back it out, it is basically the gift of the Magi. There is an incredible bunch of villains called the River Bottom Nightmare Band. That is basically a snake. in a weasel and they are incredible. So do yourself a favor and I don't even know where to find it. I think I have it on VHS. But Merry Christmas, happy Hanukkah, whatever you celebrate. Thank you for listening and we can't wait to see you in the new year! Bye! You've been listening to Good Hang. The executive producers for this show are Bill Simmons, Jenna Weissberman and me Amy Poler. The show is produced by The Ringer and Paperkite. For The Ringer, production by Jack Wilson, Kat Spalane, Kaya McMollan, and Alayah Zeneres. For Paperkite, production by Sam Green, Joel Lovell, and Jenna Weissberman. Original Music by Amy Miles.