Ian Talks Comedy

Ted Wass joined me to discuss watching horror movies as as a child; Lakewood Ohio; going to the Goodman School of Drama; going to NY; getting the role of Danny Zuko in Grease; being in the pilot for Handle with Care; reading the Soap pilot and wanting the role; his character arc; finding out Soap was cancelled while on Broadway; Soap protests; Danny with Chuck & Bob; playing a rabbi; recasting; working with Charles Lane, Eugene Roche, Richard Mulligan, and Billy Crystal; Triangle Shirtwaist Factory TV movie; doing made for TV movies with Valerie Bertinelli & Phoebe Cates; getting cast and shooting Curse of the Pink Panther; Oh, God You Devil with George Burns; Long Shot with Tim Conway and Harvey Korman; pilot "Mickey & Nora"; short-lived show "Men" co-starring Ving Rhames; turning down Blossom until he is allowed to direct; shadowing Bill Bixby and Jay Sandrich on "Soap"; directing himself; Blossom wins a Humanitas prize; his late wife, Janet Margolin; directing Norm MacDonald, Spin City, Less than Perfect; not wanting to be a "celebrity"; directing former TV son in Melissa & Joey; 2 Broke Girls; directing 3 John Leguizamo pilots; acting for the first time in almost 30 years playing Blossom daughter Mayim Bialik on her new show Call me Kat

Marlene Weisman joined me to discuss props she created; Steve Martin's Penis Beauty Cream; SNL Rerun Pills; Chris Rock's Guide for White People to Survive the Apollo; props done for Howard Stern; her diary; being remembered at the 50th ; growing up and watching Bewitched; going to college to be a graphic designer; Monty Python; being in a Xerox show with Keith Haring; working with Thomas Dolby; working for Stiff Records; Phil Hartman; taking a Graphic Design for TV class from SNL's Bob Pook; getting hired; Mike Myers and her bonded over That 60's Movie sketch; creating Wayne's World logo; her co-graphic artists Doug Zider, Ira Rappaport; and Kevin Frank; learning Paintbox; working Letterman Monday through Wednesday, and SNL Thursday through Saturday; getting the SNL graphic list on Thursday; Davey Wilson's Thursday production meetings; graphic coordinator Steve Koren, then Davey Wilson's son Tom; Natalie Cole's Unforgettable Album Cover; drawing the pictures for Simon; doing Night After Night with Allan Havey on three summer breaks; creating look of Sprockets; Jim Signorelli; Chris Farley's Folgers Crystals sketch; working from 9 am Friday to 1 am Sunday with a nap break; designing post-show party invites; creating logos for Happy Fun Ball, Nat X, Massive Head-wound Harry, I'm Chillin, and Bullet Hole Tampons; drawing the More to Come pictures on the Tonight Show sketches; importance of Polaroids; creating graphics and voicing a caller to Coffee Talk; her work with Al Franken (Stuart Smalley); Crystal Gravy; having to draw the Scream offstage during the live show in a game show sketch with Christopher Walken in 1990

Ian Maxtone-Graham joined me to discuss remembering the moon landing; Batman; writing humorous articles in high school and at Brown; getting hired on Not Necessarily the News; Motown Review; being head writer for Comedy Central game show Clash; getting hired at National Lampoon; asking Jack Handy to submit Deep Thoughts leads to him getting hired on SNL; Fred Wolf; Fetal Abuse Laugh-a-Thon with Victoria Jackson, Woody Harrelson, Phil Hartman & Jon Lovitz; Glenn Close Christmas monologue; working with her again on the Simpsons; best comedies also are dramatic; creation of the Hanukkah Song; working with Norm on Update; getting three pieces on Jason Alexander episode; favorite hosts; Bob Newhart; Norm's Charles Kuralt; leaving SNL to go to The Simpsons; becoming the Tall Man character; "Burns, Baby Burns" original idea; hard to write for Rodney; "City of NY vs. Homer Simpson"; donated a cel to the 9/11 Museum; 70's NY; "Trash of the Titans"; policy wonk vs. populist; "Blunder Years"; Paul Newman guest voice; Smithers back story; How I Wet Your Mother w/ David Byrne and Glenn Close; Dads; importance of graphics on SNL

Andy Robin joined me to discuss being "Penske material"; Candid Camera; Emergency; crooners; Paul Anka; being a Mets fan; writing for and editing Harvard Lampoon; rally for Dan Quayle;submitting for SNL; a sketch he wrote is similar to one going on that week; he gets hired by Jim Downey; writes a Godfather / George Bush sketch for Joe Mantegna; Dennis Miller disses Vanilla Ice; writing copy guy sketches with Robert Schneider; on air appearances; Jeremy Irons; cut for time Steven Seagal sketch; Sandler gets a spec Seinfeld script to Seinfeld; Larry Charles works with him on stories for "Junior Mint"; not knowing he was hired becomes an episode; raisins disappearing after his interview becomes part of an episode; Dolores; The Barber comes from his life; The Jimmy sneakers were worn by Alec Berg; "The Bottle Deposit" leads to a real life crime; "The Comeback" came from Peter Mehlman; The Slicer; "The Nap" came from prop masters indecisiveness; The Martin Short Show; Nathan Thurm; "The Puerto Rican Day Parade"; Martin Short's Bette Davis impression; Michael Richards Show was ruined by the network; original pilot by Michael Ritchie was really good; going into pyschiatry

Brent Forrester talks about writing for "The Ben Stiller Show", "Daddy Dearest", "The Simpsons", "Mr. Show", and "The Office"

Ken Lerner joined me to discuss growing up in Brooklyn as a Yankee fan; being in the peanut gallery on Howdy Doody; his brother, the late Michael Lerner; studying with Stella Adler; Hot Tomorrow with Oingo Boingo and Herve Villechaize; being on the Happy Days episode "Richie Fights Back"; "Fonzie Love Pinky"; playing 3 characters of Happy Days; being a member of the Coney Island Whitefish; demolition derby stunt drivers took liberties on him; Roz Kelly fights with Winkler; being in Grand Theft Auto; Ron Howard mentored his son about being a child actor; Laverne & Shirley; Jerry Paris; Gas Pump Girls; did not know how to ride a motorcycle; Any Which Way but Loose; playing doctors, lawyers and rabbis; "Don't Shoot, I'm a Lawyer"; new character on Happy Days; worked throughout his 40's and 50's; Buffy the Vampire Slayer; Irreconcilable Differences; working with George C. Scott in Exorcist III; Love on the Run; The Feud; The Goldbergs asked his son if his real dad Ken can play his TV dad; The Running Man; Family Ties; Lafayette High School; Gravesend; Sledge Hammer; Adam Schiff fan of his on West Wing; Fabulous Baker Boys; Marc Maron and his brother; supposed to be in cast of Chicago Hope but given four episode run; auditioning on Zoom; Marty Brest; coaching on Zoom; loaded dreidels

Morgan Fairchild joined me to discuss not being allowed to watch Dobie Gillis; improv and acting training from Larry O'Dwyer; being in the Junior Players; Happy Days; seeing Robin Williams rehearse Mork; getting called to be a recurring cast member on Mork & Mindy; David Letterman; Robert Conrad; doing a Bob Hope special with George Burns, Tony Randall, and Danny Thomas; Milton Berle shows up for shop talk; Jack Lemmon saves her on the dance floor; working with Rodney Dangerfield; hosting An Evening at the Improv and befriending Pee Wee Herman; being in Pee Wee's Big Adventure; Night of 100 Stars; "killing" Lee Strasberg; meeting Rosa Parks and Paul Newman; introducing Billy Crystal to Esther Williams, wife of Fernando Llamas; introducing Pee Wee to Willie Nelson; catching a bullet in her teeth on Circus of the Stars; guest starring on The Bob Newhart Show; co-hosting Battle of the Network Stars with Howard Cosell; Jon Lovitz and the Liar; being booked to host SNL and not knowing or in the country; Lorne wouldn't take her call to apologize; Blondes vs. Brunettes; going on Friends and realizing she knew Matthew Perry as a child; earning an Emmy nom on Murphy Brown; guesting in the lesbian kiss episode of Roseanne; The Simpsons; her podcast with her sister, Two Bitches from Texas; Anson Williams; and love in your 60s and 70s

Catlin Adams joined me to discuss immigrating for Israel; Our Miss Brooks and The Gale Storm Show; 1950s anti-Antisemitism; being in acting class taught by Anna Mizrahi; auditioning for The Actor's Studio with Margaret Sherwood; her 60 years of friendship with Ellen Burstyn; taking class with Stella Adler; acting was about the craft; demystifying acting as making choices and sense memory; first TV role on He & She; parents let her stay in Actors Studio if she could pay for it and have a B average; her first film Up in the Cellar; getting cast; having to have stunt breasts; doing a McMillan and Wife; meeting Christopher Guest on The Fortune; shooting movie Katherine with Sissy Spacek and an unsure Henry Winkler; The Jerk is a smart dumb comedy; Theodora Van Runkel created her character's look; learning how to ride a motorcycle; improv in scenes with Steve Martin; her son watching it in school; Stanley Kubrick being a fan; getting the part by tackling Steve Martin and biting him on the nipple; Steve stood in lobby at premiere because of nerves; Jazz Singer is a great soundtrack; Neil Diamond was not a good actor; read for both female parts; changed scene to Neil turning her down for sex; her character kept changing; Olivier's acting was terrible; admitted doing the job for the money; quitting Square Pegs after being told teachers were going to be just as important as kids; going to AFI to learn directing; not knowing what to do; Obsession; Parasite; film waves; becoming friends with Melanie Mayron; writing Sticky Fingers for her and Rae Dawn Chong; Rae Dawn drops out and Helen Slater takes role; after movie, taking time out to have children; becoming an acting coach; Danitra Vance; Christopher Guest; SNL; Ellen Burstyn at 93; Lee Grant at 100; theater is for the rich now; directing Carol Kane

Bill Nuss joined me to discuss watching Off. Joe Bolton as a child; writing to Johnny Carson; his love of Honeymooners; going to film school backward; creating the Mee-Ow show at Northwestern with partner Dusty Kay; Seth Myers crediting it with his pursuing comedy; meeting Brandon Tartikoff; auditioning for SNL; Brandon gets them a pitch at Eight is Enough; going with Brandon as an exec to NBC; creation of Diff'rent Strokes; being in the room when the cancellation of SNL was discussed; worked on Cannell and Larson series; asked to write for A-Team & later 21 Jump Street; casting Johnny Depp; writing the Hulk Hogan A-Team episodes; "Lease with an Option to Buy" w/ Della Reese and worst episode of A-Team; writing a Psycho homage for Knight Rider and a The God's Must Be Crazy takeoff for the A-Team; creating the Booker character for Jump Street; favorite Jump Streets; Raven; guesting on his shows; The Hat Squad; Renegade; directing was easy for him; favorite episode of Booker; creating Pacific Blue; WWE & Mario Lopez; PB episodes "Stargazer' and "59 Minutes"; creating North Shore and having young Jason Momoa in the cast; NCIS; Hawaii 5-0; his passion project, the musical version of The Honeymooners

Melody Anderson joins me and discusses having a crush on Tonto; going into radio journalism; hearing a radio broadcast of Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf and wanting to go into acting; moving to LA and modeling to pay bills; getting gigs of Welcome Back, Kotter, Pleasure Cove, Elvis, and BJ in the Bear quickly; starring in Flash with Max von Sydow; playing it straight; meeting Queen; co-starring in Dead and Buried with a sick Jack Albertson; getting great reviews as an undead school teacher; going against type on Bunker's Place; wanting to be like Jean Arthur or Carole Lombard; guesting on Fall Guy and with Dirk Benedict on A-Team and Battlestar Galactica; CHiPs; Police Woman Centerfold; starring in movies of the week; Manimal; loving the animals; show is made fun of but was a fun job; playing Edith Adams to Jeff Goldblum's Ernie Kovacs; High School USA; Boy in Blue with Nicholas Cage; St. Elsewhere; Murder, She Wrote; going to NYU to get her masters in social work; being a trauma treatment specialist; wants to be known for doing good; EMDR treatment; sees patients 20 hours a week; Zoom therapy; www.counselingbymelody.com; calming techniques; what she does if patients recognize her