How We Made Your Mother

In this bonus episode, Josh Radnor, Craig Thomas, and producer Alek Lev answer your General Questions—rapid-fire style! From the origin of the “major problem / general question” salute, to behind-the-scenes memories from the pilot, and how Ted’s infamous blue French horn heist was conceived, this episode dives into your burning curiosities.

They also reflect on what older Ted would say to younger Ted, how Bob Saget became the voice of future Ted, and the surprising story of how Carl the Bartender ended up on the show.

Questions Answered in This Episode:

What line from the pilot became Josh’s personal mantra and the name of his corporation?

What’s the origin of the “general question / major problem” salute joke?

What advice would older Ted give to younger Ted in the pilot?

Why did you cast Bob Saget as the voice of future Ted?

When did the cast start to realize the group chemistry was special?

Did you film all the future kids’ scenes at once?

Do you remember watching the pilot for the first time?

How much did test audience reactions and executive notes influence the show?

What did the actors know about what was coming for their characters?

What inspired the blue French horn?

Did anyone keep the blue French horn? (Hint: Yes, and it’s in Josh’s house.)

What’s the real story behind casting Carl the Bartender?

What were your biggest writing influences for the pilot?

What movies helped inspire Ted as a character?

Will the podcast be filmed? (Yes—check YouTube!)

What was the biggest challenge in transitioning Robin into the full group after the pilot?

Why would Robin, who lives in Brooklyn, be hanging out on the Upper West Side so much?

CONNECT WITH THE SHOW:

Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages)

Substack (Join the mailing list, get announcements, and read more from Josh and Craig)

Instagram

HOW YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE

Donate to our ongoing campaign to support congenital heart disease research

AND MORE:

Josh’s “Museletters” on Substack

Josh’s Official Website

Josh on Spotify

Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing)

Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack

Advertising inquiries:

[email protected]

This week, Josh Radnor and Craig Thomas kick off the official rewatch of the PILOT episode of How I Met Your Mother! They reflect on the origin of the series, the narrative complexity of the show’s storytelling, and the way the pilot sets up the entire series—from Ted’s romantic optimism to Barney’s legendary schemes.

They also revisit memories from filming, discuss the impact of the show’s themes on fans, and answer the big question: If they could rename the first episode, what would it be?

CONNECT WITH THE SHOW:

Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages)

Substack (Join the mailing list, get announcements, and read more from Josh and Craig)

Instagram

HOW YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE:

Donate to our ongoing campaign to support congenital heart disease research

AND MORE:

Josh’s “Museletters” on Substack

Josh’s Official Website

Josh on Spotify

Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing)

Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS:

BetterHelp: How We Made Your Mother is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at https://betterhelp.com/yourmother

Mint Mobile: If you like your money, Mint Mobile is for you. Shop plans at mintmobile.com/yourmother

Advertising inquiries:

[email protected]

AND IN CASE IT HELPS:

03:10 Antidote to Loneliness

08:59 Character Dynamics and Relationships

15:03 The Hero's Journey of Ted Mosby

21:00 The Art of Storytelling in the Pilot

27:02 The Cinematic Quality of the Pilot

39:31 Editing and Narrative Structure

43:57 Character Development and Themes

49:22 Fan Reactions and Expectations

01:01:44 The Impact of the Show on Fans

When we sat down with Carter Bays to talk about the development of HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, we just couldn’t stop talking. And by the end, we found that we had two episodes on our hands: We had HOW WE GOT IT MADE, detailing the ins and outs of pitching, selling, casting, and finally making HIMYM. But we also have our first bonus episode, HOW CRAIG MET CARTER, about the legendary meeting at Wesleyan University of the HIMYM creators, their musical and comedy collaborations through their work at THE LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN, right up until the moment they first pitched HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER to their agent. (Read more in our Substack post.)

CONNECT WITH THE SHOW:

Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages)

Substack (Join the mailing list, get announcements, and read more from Josh and Craig)

Instagram

HOW YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE:

Donate to our ongoing campaign to support congenital heart disease research

AND MORE:

Josh’s “Museletters” on Substack

Josh’s Official Website

Josh on Spotify

Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing)

Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack

ADVERTISING INQUIRIES:

[email protected]

AND IN CASE IT HELPS:

00:00 The Unexpected Journey Begins

03:11 From College Friends to Comedy Partners

06:01 The MTV Internship Experience

12:08 The Power of Collaboration

14:59 The Suit Connection: Identity and Choice

17:49 Breaking into the Industry

20:56 The Letterman Experience

23:56 Lessons Learned from Late Night Writing

On this week's episode of How We Made Your Mother, we welcome the most special of guests: The co-creator, co-writer, co-showrunner and Executive Producer of How I Met Your Mother, the legendary... Carter Bays!

If you’ve ever wondered how you get a show on the air, especially one that is all framed as a flashback, or one that is framed as a flashback and uses even more flashbacks (and flashforwards) in that flashback, or one that is framed as a flashback and uses flashbacks and flashforwards that also has its characters evolve and change, oh and also has maybe 65 or 70 scenes per episode and sometimes will take a few minutes break from comedy to go full drama, oh and has a really long, bizarre title, oh that is being written by two guys who look young enough to be their own kids…

… well this is the podcast episode for you. This is How We Got it Made.

Later this week, look out for a bonus episode, where Carter and Craig talk about how they met, played music together, were hired by Letterman, and all their stops on the road to HIMYM.

Spoilers: In this ep of the pod, we don't dive into a specific HIMYM episode juuuuust yet. NEXT week, we begin our official episode rewatch, starting with the How I Met Your Mother pilot. Rewatch with us and subscribe so you don’t miss an episode!

CONNECT WITH THE SHOW:

Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages)

Substack (Join the mailing list, get announcements, and read more from Josh and Craig)

Instagram

HOW YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE:

Donate to our ongoing campaign to support congenital heart disease research

AND MORE:

Josh’s “Museletters” on Substack

Josh’s Official Website

Josh on Spotify

Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing)

Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS:

Nutrafol: Start your hair growth journey with Nutrafol at nutrafol.com and enter the code YOURMOTHER

ADVERTISING INQUIRIES:

[email protected]

AND IN CASE IT HELPS:

00:00 The Impact of 'How I Met Your Mother' on Personal Lives

04:46 The Journey of Pitching the Show

14:54 Creating a Unique Narrative Structure

20:05 Casting Challenges and Triumphs

30:14 The Audition Experience

35:48 Creating Robin Scherbatsky

44:09 The Pressure of Network Tests

49:30 Listener Stories and Reflections

Welcome to How We Made Your Mother, a new weekly podcast, rewatching 208 episodes of How I Met Your Mother. In our inaugural episode, Josh Radnor (“Ted Mosby”) and Craig Thomas (co-creator) discuss the origins of this podcast, and lay out some of the questions and themes they look to explore.

EPISODES MENTIONED:

Return of the Shirt (Season 1, Episode 4)

The Pineapple Incident (Season 1, Episode 10)

Drumroll, Please (Season 1, Episode 13)

CONNECT WITH THE SHOW:

Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages)

Substack (Join the mailing list, get announcements, and read more from Josh and Craig)

Instagram

TikTok

AND MORE:

Josh’s “Museletters” on Substack

Josh’s Official Website

Josh on Spotify

Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing)

Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS:

Betterhelp: How We Made Your Mother is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at https://betterhelp.com/yourmother

Quince: Get free shipping and 365-day returns at https://quince.com/yourmother

Surfshark: Go to https://surfshark.com/yourmother for 4 extra months of Surfshark.

Advertising inquiries:

[email protected]

It’s been 20 years since How I Met Your Mother premiered, and just over 10 years since the finale. With so many round numbers in the air, it’s time to look back at this groundbreaking show. Josh Radnor, who played “Ted” for nine seasons teams up with series co-creator Craig Thomas for this episode-by-episode rewatch podcast. For the superfans, HWMYM (listen to the trailer to learn how it’s pronounced) will get into all the secrets, theories, and pineapples, but we'll also use HIMYM – and our relationship to it two decades later – to talk about life and love and art and everything in between. How We Made Your Mother… a flashback podcast for a flashback show.

Connect with the Show:

Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages)

Substack (Join the mailing list, get announcements, and read more from Josh and Craig)

Instagram

And more:

Josh’s “Museletters” on Substack

Josh’s Official Website

Josh on Spotify

Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing)

Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack

Advertising inquiries:

[email protected]

Follow the show today and be sure not to miss the full PROMO, dropping on MARCH 3rd, and our first FULL EPISODE just a week later on MARCH 10th. Make sure to go to

www.HowWeMadeYourMother.com to join our Substack mailing list, get links to all our social media sites, learn more about the show, and send us an email or an audio message with your questions or to tell us what HIMYM means to you.

Advertising Inquires: [email protected]