"Fred Armisen"

Speaker 1 Wondering how you can invest in yourself and work towards a goal that will last? Rosetta Stone makes it easy to turn a few minutes a day into real language progress.

Speaker 1 Scotty and I are here in England still, right in London. And before we leave, we're talking about going to Paris while we're over here because it's like, when are we going to be over here again?

Speaker 1 And so we might take a day just to go over to Paris. And we talked about how great it would be to use Rosetta Stone to learn just a little bit of French before we go.
It's French, right?

Speaker 1 And now, Smartlist listeners can grab Rosetta Stone's lifetime membership for 50% off. Visit rosettastone.com slash Smartlist to get started and claim your 50% off today.

Speaker 1 Nobody wants to spend the holiday season clicking from one site to the next to get their hands on the best brands. But who knew Walmart has the the top brands we all love?

Speaker 1 Like the big names that your friends and family actually want, and all in one place: Nespresso, Nintendo, Apple, you name it. Get the brands everyone loves at prices you'll love at Walmart.

Speaker 2 Who knew?

Speaker 1 Go to walmart.com or download the app to get all your gifts this season.

Speaker 2 Hi, I'm Sean.

Speaker 2 And this

Speaker 2 is

Speaker 2 Smartless. By the way, no, there's not yet.
Sean, there's one in the middle of the time. I thought it was him.
Okay, just start again. Just do it one more time.
Go. Hi.
My name is Will. R.

Speaker 2 No. I was okay.

Speaker 2 You can't do it.

Speaker 2 I was here.

Speaker 2 And also that's my name.

Speaker 2 Syllables. Okay, so, okay.

Speaker 2 I.

Speaker 2 No. Oh, my God.

Speaker 2 No wonder they call this show Smartless. There you go.
Smartless.

Speaker 2 Smart.

Speaker 2 Smart

Speaker 2 Less.

Speaker 2 Will, before you hopped on, Jason and I were talking about timeliness and being on time.

Speaker 2 I said, you know, sometimes I go to the doctor's office 15 minutes late on purpose so that I can cover the 15-minute wait I would have had to do had I been on time. Right.
Do you do that?

Speaker 2 No? No, I don't really. Will doesn't go to the doctor.

Speaker 4 His religion doesn't allow him to.

Speaker 2 Here we go. Great.
Now we're going to get the letters. Here come the letters.

Speaker 4 Herbs, right? You just do it with herbs and

Speaker 2 herbs.

Speaker 4 You talk to the planets.

Speaker 2 And I do my crystals, as you know.

Speaker 2 And

Speaker 2 were you ever into crystals? You were totally into crystals. No way.
No, I was more of a Coke guy. Crystal was just too extreme for me.
Guys, we're having a blast. We're having a blast.

Speaker 2 No. Did you ever, do you believe in you? Ever had your

Speaker 2 fortune read, like with tarot cards? You ever done that, Sean? Oh, yeah.

Speaker 2 I think a long time ago. Wait, sorry.
That was for Sean, but Jason, go ahead.

Speaker 2 Insert story.

Speaker 4 Well, listen, if you must know,

Speaker 4 you know, I'm married to a wonderful woman. Let me just, yeah.
Yes, I love her. Let me just start with a qualifier.

Speaker 4 You know, she, she, and I, I will say, I, I, I'm not, I'm not allergic to this whole notion of astrology. And, uh, no,

Speaker 4 I don't, I don't let it guide what I do, but it, it's sometimes it's kind of a fun, helpful

Speaker 4 confirmer, right? Uh, potentially. Anyway, I believe.

Speaker 2 I don't believe that, though, because it's not, it's just, it's all generally speaking.

Speaker 4 Well, I was, I was very circumspect about the whole thing as a caveman like me.

Speaker 2 I got circumspect too, uh, when I was born. Yeah, no, I had a great doctor.
Just beautiful, beautiful work.

Speaker 4 And but the

Speaker 4 the

Speaker 4 woman that I was with, well, girl that I was with for eight years before Amanda,

Speaker 4 I should say young lady.

Speaker 2 We were in our teens and 20s.

Speaker 4 She went.

Speaker 2 You get a lot of pushback. I've seen pushback for using different terms.

Speaker 2 I've seen specifically us. And I know that you don't mean any harm by it.

Speaker 4 I'm just trying to keep up, you know?

Speaker 4 um so uh so she went she she would see an astrologist um and did so for the full eight years we were together now often my name would come up in her thing um and this woman and then i i consequently went in there you know because my my my girlfriend you know got me a session or two this woman's record as far as accuracy goes with forecasting the future and what and look out was 95% for eight full years.

Speaker 4 Now, hang on, here's the weird part. When When I started going out with Amanda, my current wife, which was only a few years after me and the young lady broke up, she was seeing the same woman.

Speaker 4 And so I now have been with Amanda for 20 years. Yeah.
Loved every minute of it. Sure.
I'm still seeing this woman.

Speaker 2 I know you said last Thursday. That's the first time.
Wait, wait, no, no, no, no, Will. When you called me frantically later,

Speaker 4 so I've still, so now I've got 30 years of this woman's record, still 95% accurate.

Speaker 2 Okay, but so of what? It's real. 95% right of prediction.
So you're saying,

Speaker 4 watch out for the middle of December. There's going to be a situation that, and there's some specifics to it that are indisputably non-vague.

Speaker 2 Well, like what? Like your chicken salad is going to come and the chicken's going to be overcooked, stuff like that?

Speaker 4 Well, no, no, but close.

Speaker 2 Because don't you think if there's somebody out there that's that correct all the time that we'd know about it? Like, why?

Speaker 4 Well, but that's why you know about astrology. I'm telling you.

Speaker 2 I think that they'd be richer. They'd be billionaires.
By the way, every time I see one of those, I drive by, I always go, I knew that was going to be there.

Speaker 2 So

Speaker 4 I heard a male laugh from our

Speaker 2 surprise. Because

Speaker 2 he loves/slash hates my terrible jokes and has for a long time. Well, who does that? Because I know that he's addicted to terrible jokes himself, which is just such a delightful quality.

Speaker 2 Right at my alley. Our guest today,

Speaker 2 I didn't know this. He was born in Mississippi.
He was born in Mississippi. I've known him for a number of years.
I did not know this.

Speaker 2 Grew up in New York State. And he originally started out in show business as a musician.
He was a drummer for many years.

Speaker 2 And then he parlayed that. He started to perform in a lot more comedies and sketch comedies, et cetera, et cetera.

Speaker 2 As soon as I name...

Speaker 2 I start listing his credits, you're going to know who he is. So it's a race to just getting it all out as much as I can.

Speaker 4 Okay, well, go slow because I want to guess.

Speaker 2 Put it this way. One of my favorite stories that, and

Speaker 2 I do want to talk talk to him about this, is that he had a brother who lived in East Berlin, and he used to told me stories about going to visit him, going through Checkpoint Charlie to visit his brother, A, which is a very young person.

Speaker 4 So, this is not a young guess.

Speaker 2 He's about our age. Jim Neighbors.
Is it Jim Neighbors? Is it Jim Neighbors? It's not Jim Neighbors.

Speaker 4 Reveal your camera.

Speaker 2 No, but do not reveal.

Speaker 2 He's been nominated for many Emmys for writing.

Speaker 2 He's nominated for, he actually received a Grammy nomination for Best Comedy Album.

Speaker 2 He was a Saturday Night Live cast member for 11 years. He's created a bunch of shows, one of which is one of the funniest shows

Speaker 2 in memory called Portlandia. It's one of my favorite people of all time.
It's Fred Armison.

Speaker 4 Comedy Royalty.

Speaker 2 Oh, there he is.

Speaker 2 He is our Fred.

Speaker 2 Oh, look, he's back in East Berlin. It looks like you showered.

Speaker 2 Did you shower today?

Speaker 3 I actually, I just did. I just did take a shower.
I'm in London right now. Oh, you are?

Speaker 2 Oh,

Speaker 3 yeah. What are you doing there? So we're only allowed to take showers at night here.

Speaker 3 That's how they're doing lockdown. They're doing lockdown with showers and with water and stuff.

Speaker 2 No way. What a weird.

Speaker 2 And there's no science behind it.

Speaker 2 They just came up with that.

Speaker 3 They just wanted a rule of some kind. Right.

Speaker 3 They were like, let's just make up the rule.

Speaker 4 This is just a real all-star booking here, Will.

Speaker 2 know you've really done it. It's fantastic.
Fred is one of my favorite people of all time. Likewise.

Speaker 4 You don't like him more than I do. You don't like him more than I do.

Speaker 2 Fred, you are universally known. Now, you're very well known as a comedian and as a performer and as a writer, but what people don't know is you're maybe the greatest texter, joke texter of all time.

Speaker 2 This is true.

Speaker 4 I want to receive.

Speaker 2 People who know Fred share stories of text they receive from Fred at various times. Yeah, I've read your texts out loud.

Speaker 3 i have not and i have not received it jason we just haven't we haven't kept in touch like that well come on well first of all you're all all my favorite people i i love this podcast i really do i love you guys i've worked with all of you are you saying goodbye right now i've worked

Speaker 2 we just started no because it's so late here it's so late well it's so great to have you late

Speaker 2 no but i've worked i've worked with all you guys yeah isn't it crazy is this past your bedtime late or no is it almost bedtime um it is and what are you doing there it's nine o'clock at night.

Speaker 3 I'm shooting a show here. You know, Matt Berry, the comedian Matt Berry?

Speaker 2 Of course, yeah.

Speaker 3 Yeah, so I'm doing that for like a week.

Speaker 2 No way. Yeah.
He's great. Matt Berry is a hilarious guy.
He had a really funny show called Toast of London, but before that, he was an incredible performer. He's done amazing things for years.

Speaker 2 He's a profoundly funny guy. I've only met him once, I think.
But yeah.

Speaker 2 So that's fun.

Speaker 4 Are you, pardon my ignorance here, but

Speaker 4 if you don't know already, I'm an Internet. Just in general.

Speaker 4 Yeah, I'm usually in a cave. What is the status of Portland here? Are you in the middle of that? Are you done with that?

Speaker 3 No, no, we finished it like a couple years ago. Okay.

Speaker 3 We did eight seasons.

Speaker 3 And

Speaker 3 that was it.

Speaker 2 We just. Man, that show was good.

Speaker 3 Thanks a lot.

Speaker 4 Thank you. Now, do you want to do another one like that? Or did you just like that was just too special, too great? I don't even want to try.

Speaker 3 Too special. I don't even want to try.
That was like a perfect mix of getting to work with Carrie and getting to be in Portland and all that stuff.

Speaker 3 So it was like, it was, it was just, it was just perfect. It's, it's, everything that I ever wanted.

Speaker 4 But that was, uh, you, you were, you, that was your baby. Do you want to continue making babies?

Speaker 2 Like, like, would you, you would never consider doing like Silver Lake Andia, right?

Speaker 2 No, no. Nice, nice.

Speaker 3 Maybe. Nice.

Speaker 2 Yeah. Thanks.
He's got a lot of things. Sorry, no, no, no.

Speaker 2 Sorry, it would be Eagle Rock Landia. Sorry.

Speaker 3 Or Highland Park, yeah.

Speaker 2 Highland Park, Andy, yeah, yeah, you're right. Sorry.
Sorry. Excuse me for my 2004 reference.
No, that's okay.

Speaker 3 But

Speaker 3 what feels nice, what feels good is that I felt so good about Portlandia that whatever the next show I get to do that comes along,

Speaker 3 I'll be psyched about.

Speaker 2 Right. But it's like, until then,

Speaker 4 you'll do Actor for Hire stuff, because that was a lot of heavy lifting that you were doing in that.

Speaker 4 And so it's probably nice to just sit in your trailer and wait for them to call for firsthand.

Speaker 2 Yes. Yeah.
You were so nice to have me on Portlandia. It's one of my favorite all-time shows.
It was such a, I laughed. Oh, you were going to be very hard doing that.

Speaker 4 Sean, you were on it?

Speaker 2 Yes, it was so funny. We did a sketch where we got bad art for coffee shop walls.

Speaker 3 You know how the coffee shops always have terrible art? Terrible course.

Speaker 2 So we had to look through a bunch of them to find the worst art. Jason, you and I are the only people that Fred knows who he never asked to be on Portlandia.
So it says a lot about what he did. No,

Speaker 3 I think Will, we did ask you. Couldn't make it.
And you couldn't do it.

Speaker 2 Yes, the one time I couldn't do it. So Jason was the only one who's not.
Yeah.

Speaker 3 Jason, I'm sorry. Jason,

Speaker 2 are you busy enough? Yeah.

Speaker 4 Well, how about you? Let's start with texts. How about just a text?

Speaker 3 I would love to text with you. I would love to.

Speaker 2 You know, by the way, Fred and I did this movie called The Rocker years ago, like with Bradley Cooper and Sudakis and Rain Wilson, a bunch of people.

Speaker 2 And we were there for like a week, two days, two weeks, something like that. And that was like, I don't know, 2005 or 6, right?

Speaker 3 Yeah, Toronto. We shut it in Toronto.

Speaker 2 When we were shooting in Toronto. So Sean, he sends me a text.
This is from Fred from like two years ago, like 2019. I'm in Toronto.
Hey, is the rocker production office still open?

Speaker 2 Maybe I'll go say hi.

Speaker 2 15 years.

Speaker 3 But isn't there like, don't you feel like that should happen? Like there should always be like some little office somewhere that's like, hey, just in case,

Speaker 3 if you have some receipts to bring back or something.

Speaker 2 We've got some of the props in case you need to get pickups. We're here.
Fred used to do this thing.

Speaker 2 Amy used to tell me all the time when they were doing SNL, Fred would, and the bigger the star, the better.

Speaker 2 They'd do like the read-through, like the first, you know, the first pitch in Lauren's office.

Speaker 2 And then Fred would go up to like, you know, Tom Hanks or Tom Cruise, whatever, and go, hey, can I get your cell number really quick?

Speaker 4 Right out of the gate.

Speaker 2 Right out of the gate.

Speaker 3 I think I tried to do it to Al Gore because, you know, he was like in the government.

Speaker 2 And then we gave him a number one.

Speaker 2 Fred, you seem to be like the most, the most calm. You're always so calm and collected and kind and generous do you have you ever raised your voice or screamed or yelled at anybody in your life

Speaker 3 yeah sure i have well then so so then you've caught it too i caught it i caught it it's a virus it's an anger virus um there was one guy walking a dog i was in chicago a guy was walking his dog a cat came out in front of it and he kicked the cat oh my god no way out of the way

Speaker 4 and i freaked out i freaked out yeah good so see now that guy deserved he had a kid yeah if somebody has it coming, I will make it very clear how badly you deserve this.

Speaker 4 I mean, I will at least articulate.

Speaker 2 What did you do? You just screamed your head off at him? Yeah. I talk about this idea all the time, though, with a buddy of mine.
We talk about this idea of having to go to anger management.

Speaker 2 And of course,

Speaker 2 the kind of the workaround is don't get angry in the first place because now you're just managing, you're just trying to manage those feelings.

Speaker 2 And if you can get to the other side of the equation so that you don't get mad in the first place, and people say, well, that's easy enough. But it's kind of true.

Speaker 2 I don't want to be in a position where I'm having emotions and feelings that I don't like, and now I have to manage those. I don't want to get there in the first place.

Speaker 3 I just want to say something really, really quick about anger. And I'm not saying this is a good thing to do, is that

Speaker 3 I sometimes, the most angry I get is if I have to wait somewhere too long. So say I go to a restaurant, and for whatever reason, nothing against the restaurant, they're too busy, they're understaffed.

Speaker 3 The way I sometimes express my anger is I just leave. So I'll just simmer for a while.
I'm like, oh, God, I'm so hungry. Right.
And then I'll go, I'm done. I'm just going to go.

Speaker 2 That's how you do that. What a monster.
What a monster. Take that.
What a monster you are.

Speaker 4 But if I may, that is something that's like, so that's your own thing. So you're getting frustrated.
You wish that they were on time. They are not on time.

Speaker 4 And so you're being accountable for your level, your short, your short level of patience, right?

Speaker 2 So I get that. Well, only during hunger, yeah.
Right.

Speaker 4 But if somebody

Speaker 4 does something that is wrong,

Speaker 4 are you supposed to pretend it didn't happen or ignore it or walk away? Like, I just, I don't know, I don't know how, what to do with that.

Speaker 4 I'm too afraid of violence to like, well, but I mean, let's assume somebody's not going to punch you out.

Speaker 4 I mean, I'm assuming that, you know, we're all civil and they need to be called out on something so they don't do that same thing to you again.

Speaker 3 Well, you're you're making me a little angry that you're

Speaker 4 I'm not letting this go.

Speaker 3 You're not letting it go. And I'm really trying to get, I'm trying to talk to these guys.

Speaker 2 Okay, Fred, Fred, okay, Fred, just cool it for one second, Fred, because Fred's getting visibly agitated. It's just, and sorry, go ahead, Fred.
I cut you off. It's all right.

Speaker 3 Let's just get through these questions real fast. Let's wrap this up.

Speaker 2 Let's just,

Speaker 3 contractually, we have to do this.

Speaker 2 Let's.

Speaker 4 We have to get to at least 45 minutes.

Speaker 3 None of us want to.

Speaker 2 Just let's stay civil. None of us.

Speaker 2 None of us want to.

Speaker 2 Wait, wait, wait, Fred. So Fred tells me, so years ago, we're working, and Fred goes, we're talking about East Berlin.
And he's like, yeah, I was in East Berlin. I go, what do you mean?

Speaker 2 He goes, well, my brother lives there. And I go, why not? And he goes, yeah, I went across and I was so crazy.

Speaker 2 I remember you told me the story, like going camping, and then they came and checked up on you, like the military or whatever.

Speaker 3 Yeah, this is like the 80s when like, you know, both sides were super paranoid. And so my dad had a son before he came to the States.

Speaker 3 He was in Germany. And

Speaker 3 my half-brother, Fabrizio, was raised in East Germany. So he couldn't leave the Berlin Wall and everything.

Speaker 3 So I went to go visit him, cross through the, you know, you go through Checkpoint Charlie and they

Speaker 3 go through your passport and stamp everything. I was a teenager.
And sure enough, when you're there, the Stasi really do kind of like keep an eye on you.

Speaker 3 They're polite, but they just, they're around a lot.

Speaker 3 And I was camping up in the northern part of East Germany, and

Speaker 3 they just, you know, open up this, you know, the zipper of the tent,

Speaker 3 and they sort of let me see your passport. Hello.
And what they do is they read your passport back to you. You are Fred Armison, you live in, you know, and that, and that's it.

Speaker 3 But I have another, I have another part of this story, Will. Yeah.
I might have told, you know what? I think I did tell you about this.

Speaker 2 Tell me, tell me, tell me.

Speaker 3 I went back to what used to be East Berlin, and I visited Fabricio's mom. All right, that's my dad's ex.

Speaker 3 She went to the Stasi center to see what they you know what information they had on her i think i told you this and she showed me she made photocopies of pages of books of what they had about her it's you know it's like us going to the cia or something and they had photos of the inside of her refrigerator when she wasn't home no way no way photos of just people coming and going and all that stuff but also like she's like look what they took pictures of why so you know what so as you know know, and right, and Fred, sorry, we talked about this because then I read that book on the Stasi.

Speaker 2 I read one that you, you told me about, and then I told you about one. No, I told you about one.

Speaker 3 You told me about that one that I read, yeah.

Speaker 2 Yeah.

Speaker 2 And so what they would do is when the wall came down, if you were East German, you were allowed to, whatever files they had not destroyed, you were allowed to go and requisition them and look at your file.

Speaker 2 And what people found out was friends, neighbors, family were spying on them. So remember Katarina Witt, the skater? I saw this documentary.

Speaker 2 She looked at her file finally, and in it, it said that her training partner, who is her lifelong friend, this guy, had been informing on her all her life. Oh, wow.

Speaker 2 And it divided them, of course, and they haven't spoken since. It was very controversial.
And so, that's not surprising that your mom, I didn't, you, I don't think you did tell me that.

Speaker 2 That's now you're starring in the single-camera comedy version of that, aren't you?

Speaker 4 Yeah, it's so funny. Yeah, it's isn't it called At My Vit's End? Or is

Speaker 2 that not clear? Yeah, yeah, at At my bits end.

Speaker 2 That's nice.

Speaker 3 With a shrug.

Speaker 4 You know, I wonder, I don't want to get political here,

Speaker 4 but

Speaker 2 like.

Speaker 3 Oh, let's do it.

Speaker 2 Yeah. No, let's do it.
Do you want to debate?

Speaker 4 We've covered anger, and now let's do this. And then we're going to do religion right afterwards.

Speaker 2 Take a position, and then Fred, you take the other position. Go.

Speaker 4 Wouldn't it probably be very healthy for

Speaker 4 everybody in this country to know how crazy it is in a lot of parts of this world so that they would appreciate, you know, for as oblong as stuff in our country is sometimes, it's still friggin fantastic and we're all one, even though we don't, like maybe it would just be a nice unifier.

Speaker 4 I know at least me just going out of the country and vacationing and having a great time. I, when I come back, America's never been more beautiful to me.

Speaker 4 But like when you hear stories about like, how did governments get to a point where they actually recruit your family members to spy?

Speaker 4 I mean, granted, that was back in the Cold War, but, you know, it's still, it happens around the world.

Speaker 3 And it's in my lifetime. It's not, you know, it's a long time ago, but not, it's in my memory.
And also, I couldn't meet my half-brother because he couldn't leave. There was a wall.

Speaker 3 They had a physical wall that he just, you know.

Speaker 2 Wait, so you never met your brother?

Speaker 3 Oh, yeah, yeah. No, now we're, now we're in touch.
Now I've visited him and stuff.

Speaker 2 Now you wish there was a wall. Now you wish they put the wall back.

Speaker 2 Am I right or am I wrong?

Speaker 2 This guy believes you. I was thinking about being political.
I was thinking, Freddie, about your character. What what was his name? Nicholas Finn?

Speaker 3 Oh, Nicholas Fane. Yeah.

Speaker 2 Nicholas Fane. Oh, my God.
Do you remember that character Freddy used to do on SNL where

Speaker 2 he was a political comedian?

Speaker 2 Yes.

Speaker 2 So funny.

Speaker 2 Oh, my God.

Speaker 2 And he was just, he couldn't finish a sentence. And

Speaker 2 he'd like pull out the New York Times and

Speaker 2 the Wall Street Journal. And he'd go like, here we go.
Here we go. People,

Speaker 2 New York State says to adjust the budget. I was thinking about you guys when I saw that.
And then he would just nervously

Speaker 2 say, no thought was ever going to. You know, and then it would, and then it would taper off and do, you know, I had an uncle, and it had nothing to do with what was being said.

Speaker 4 And we will be right back.

Speaker 1 This is an ad by BetterHelp. Have you ever had someone that you haven't reached out to in a long time? And you're just like, you know what, just do it.

Speaker 1 I just did that recently and it was such a wonderful experience. We had a great lunch, a lot of catching up, and I'm so glad we did it.
It was great.

Speaker 1 As the seasons change, shorter days don't have to weigh you down. This season, BetterHelp encourages you to reach out, check in on friends, reconnect with loved ones, and remind them you're there.

Speaker 1 Just like it takes a little courage to send that text or grab coffee with someone you haven't seen in a while, reaching out for therapy can feel difficult too, but it can be worth it.

Speaker 1 It can leave people wondering, why didn't I do this sooner? With over 30,000 therapists worldwide, BetterHelp is one of the leading online therapy platforms. BetterHelp therapists are fully qualified.

Speaker 1 BetterHelp does the initial matching work for you so you can focus on your therapy goals. This month, don't wait to reach out.

Speaker 1 Whether you're checking in on a friend or reaching out to a therapist, BetterHelp makes it easier to take that first step.

Speaker 1 Our listeners get 10% off their first month at betterhelp.com/slash smartless. That's betterhelp.com/slash smartlist.

Speaker 1 Nothing goes with football like Sonic's new pretzel bacon, Sonic Smasher.

Speaker 1 Two hand smashed Angus beef patties, crispy bacon and onions, plus pub sauce, all on a buttery soft pretzel bun.

Speaker 1 It's perfect for watching beefy linemen, crispy corners, saucy receivers, and buttery smooth quarterbacks. Geez, did they write this for me?

Speaker 1 And together with the original Sonic Smasher, they're forming a new dynasty of burgers. The pretzel bacon Sonic Smasher.
Try it for a limited time.

Speaker 1 Sonic!

Speaker 5 The family that vacations together stays together. At least, that was the plan.
Except now, the dastardly desk clerk is saying he can't confirm your connecting rooms.

Speaker 2 Wait, what?

Speaker 3 That's right, ma'am. You have rooms 201 and 709.

Speaker 5 No, we cannot be five floors away from our kids.

Speaker 5 The doors have double locks, they'll be fine. When you want connecting rooms confirmed before you arrive, it matters where you stay.

Speaker 2 Welcome to Hilton.

Speaker 5 I see your connecting rooms are already confirmed. Hilton for this day.

Speaker 4 Now, I'm sure you get this question a lot, so I apologize, but just hearing that story, it made me think: like, do you, you have to miss

Speaker 4 the sort of the lab, the factory of, you can just think up some crazy character like that, and you can get it on its feet and maybe even make it to national broadcast by Saturday, and then it's gone.

Speaker 4 Like, do you, do you, do you, do you miss being in that weekly environment and opportunities?

Speaker 2 Yeah. Yeah.

Speaker 3 You know, I mean, I did it for long enough that I'm not like pining to go back in time in that way. But yeah, I do miss not having that immediacy of just like any dumb idea

Speaker 3 all of a sudden was being,

Speaker 3 also

Speaker 3 not just it being produced, but you're getting to do it with your friends. Right.
And then they're adding to it and they're laughing. And

Speaker 3 yeah, I mean, that was just like right away.

Speaker 2 What was that process for you, Fred? Because Because I'm a little unclear. So you,

Speaker 2 I'm right that you were, of course, you still are a musician and you were a drummer. And then you,

Speaker 2 how did you start doing sketch? Like, where did that come in?

Speaker 3 I just started doing, I played drums in bands for a long time and wasn't getting very far. It was a lot of work and we'd go on tour and not that many people would come out.

Speaker 3 But when I started doing comedy, like making these little videos and stuff, this is pre-internet,

Speaker 3 I just got asked to do more and more stuff. And then I would do like some kind of stand-up where, like, I would do a character at Largo or something.
And then, and then I had enough tape to

Speaker 3 audition for SNL. Part of that, by the way, was a pilot that Bob Odenkirk did

Speaker 3 called Next, a sketch show.

Speaker 2 And who was in that with you?

Speaker 2 Remember?

Speaker 3 Nick Swartson, Jay Johnston,

Speaker 3 Bob.

Speaker 3 Dave did a couple things on there.

Speaker 3 So, because of anyway.

Speaker 2 And was that because of like Largo? Like, you were doing stuff and Bob identified you and said, hey, would you come and do this pilot with us? Yeah.

Speaker 3 Yes, that's exactly. He's the one who really got me on TV.

Speaker 2 Oh, man. Oh, man.

Speaker 4 And so when you say you were doing videos before the internet,

Speaker 4 what does that mean? Like you'd literally make short little movies on VHS tapes and send them around?

Speaker 3 Yeah, of me as different characters interviewing bands.

Speaker 2 No way.

Speaker 4 And then you'd make a bunch of copies of those tapes and send out multiple tapes.

Speaker 3 Yeah, just like records or something.

Speaker 3 I'd make dubs of these videos.

Speaker 2 Do you have an agent or anything like that at that time?

Speaker 3 No, no, no, no.

Speaker 3 I was just a drummer. Oh, yeah.
Nobody.

Speaker 4 Nothing. I love that you are a drummer.
I'm such a drum fan and freak. I wish I knew how to play.
I play my steering wheel all the time, but I can't.

Speaker 2 Well, what is that?

Speaker 4 It's called independence, right? Where the bass drum goes at a different time as the hi-hat and i can't separate those

Speaker 2 first of all it's never too late and it's supposed to be a fun instrument so all that stuff about it being like so precise and stuff it doesn't matter fred it's it's not you're surprising you're a drummer because you you do have the maybe the the best one of the better timings of of anybody around so it it always added up to me i mean that in a way like that i've always thought that like oh yeah there's something musical about sean you're the same way You're very musical.

Speaker 2 Like, you understand rhythm and you know, all that kind of stuff. Well, they're very closely connected, music and comedy.
Explain it to me.

Speaker 2 Make sure we're rolling one second while I get this.

Speaker 2 So, with the rhythm, just like one, two, three, four. Yeah, sure.

Speaker 2 So boring. Oh, okay.

Speaker 4 Fred, a favorite drummer of all time? John Bonham, great choice.

Speaker 2 Great choice. Good, good.
Oh, yeah, that's a great choice. And favorite band, The Beatles, right? I mean, what the fuck, man? Come on, what the fuck? What is this?

Speaker 4 Sorry, guys. I'm really not asking great questions.

Speaker 2 What is this?

Speaker 2 Favorite movie.

Speaker 3 Favorite movie, The Godfather.

Speaker 2 What? Godfather, what? Yeah. So what? Guys, I apologize.

Speaker 3 This is non-information. This is non-information.

Speaker 2 Wait, Fred. Citizen Kane's the greatest movie of all time.
Okay, well, thanks a lot, man. And there's our show.

Speaker 3 Favorite director, Scorse Azey. Oh, wow.

Speaker 3 I didn't expect that.

Speaker 4 Hey, listen, not a lot of people know John Bonnet is.

Speaker 2 Do you play something

Speaker 2 other than the drums or no?

Speaker 3 Just drums? My favorite drummer, I would say,

Speaker 3 I have to ignore your questions, Sean. I have to.

Speaker 2 No, I get it, Sean. You gotta shut up.

Speaker 2 That's okay. I'm crossing them off as I don't, they don't need to be answered.
I just have, I'm legally. I like that you really have a

Speaker 2 pencil. Yeah, no.

Speaker 3 My favorite drummer,

Speaker 3 I would say it's Clem Burke from Blondie and then Keith Moon.

Speaker 2 from

Speaker 2 Keith Moon. Keith Moon from what?

Speaker 4 The Who, you Philistine. Yeah.

Speaker 3 And also, do I play anything else? I play some guitar and some bass. Sure.

Speaker 2 Okay, that's great.

Speaker 2 See, you answered the question. Will Arnett?

Speaker 4 Will Arnett plays the air bass? You ever seen Will play the air bass?

Speaker 2 Really well.

Speaker 3 Really well. Are you guys musicians? You guys are musicians, right?

Speaker 2 Sean is. Sean is.

Speaker 3 Sean is. Go ahead, Sean.
Sean, what do you play?

Speaker 2 Sorry, do you consider musical theater to fall in that category?

Speaker 3 Hey, you sang in the movie. You sang in the rocker.

Speaker 2 Yeah. I know.
I sang. I did.
I sang in the movie. How about that?

Speaker 2 I think I should have

Speaker 2 a total sing. Well, I want to hear.

Speaker 4 Will, I've never heard you sing it. Let me just do happy birthday for a second.

Speaker 2 It's terrible. But Fred would came in and he plays the bassist in the rocker, and he kept doing this gross move that all those bands used to do where he would spin around with the fucking bass.

Speaker 2 And it would make me, it would always take me out of it because it would make me laugh so hard.

Speaker 4 My favorite thing that you do, Will, when you do air bass is not only will you tune it, right? So you bring the hand up on top and tune, and then back on,

Speaker 4 but then you do this thing where you go, okay, and then you know how the bass player always catches the eyes of the lead singer,

Speaker 4 and then it's a double double knee band.

Speaker 2 So he's just chilling, right? He's chilling, right? He's playing bass with the band, and then all of a sudden the lead singer happens to kill the middle song, give him a line, and he just goes,

Speaker 2 Yeah.

Speaker 2 And then he does basically like a curtsy, double knee curtsy.

Speaker 2 So, Freddie, so you get it, so you get, you do this schedule with Bob and those guys, and then you get enough tape together to submit to SNL, and you audition in LA for SNL, or you go to New York first?

Speaker 2 New York. So you go to New York.
Lauren doesn't see you in LA. You just go to New York.
Go to New York. And had that been a dream of yours to be on the show?

Speaker 2 Like, had you always been like, oh my God, I killed to be on Saturday Night Live, or was it just like another audition?

Speaker 4 Or did you have sexy indifference?

Speaker 3 No, it was more like I always loved SNL. I loved it.
So it was just like, it was so mind-blowingly crazy of an idea that I was thrilled, but it wasn't even in my

Speaker 4 no pressure because it really, like, this, this, this, this ain't gonna happen.

Speaker 3 That's exactly what it was like.

Speaker 3 I was like, I was thrilled enough to be in at that studio auditioning because I, you know, I was still kind of like, I was only a couple years away from having been a drummer in a band.

Speaker 3 So I was like, oh, I'm at NBC. They paid for my plane ticket.

Speaker 2 This is crazy.

Speaker 2 I got a free plane ticket.

Speaker 3 And then I think it really did help me relax in the audition.

Speaker 2 Yeah. Where

Speaker 3 I felt like this is incredible. But the first one was at UCB,

Speaker 2 and

Speaker 3 then it was at the studio.

Speaker 2 UCB on 26th Street under the tennis bubble that was? Yeah.

Speaker 3 No, no.

Speaker 3 It was the one before that one.

Speaker 2 Oh, the one on 22nd. Yeah.
Before they got kicked out of there. Oh, no kidding.
Yeah. I guess that's right.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 2 Because you were one of my favorite things about when Fred was on SNL, apart from just being a delight and being hilarious, and I loved seeing him all the time. Well, you're so nice.

Speaker 3 Thanks, buddy.

Speaker 2 But I was, was, Fred knew all the musicians, too. And so they all knew Fred.
So that it would always be like, Fred would be like, oh, hey, do you know Jeff Tweety? And I'd be like, no, I don't.

Speaker 2 And, uh, but I'm really happy to be talking with him from Wilco, or you knew all the guys from like the Shins, or you knew the, you know what I mean? Like, you knew all those guys.

Speaker 2 That was kind of your world a little bit. And you kind of, it was, and SNL was like a weird sort of crossroads of kind of both, you know, your past and your present in a way.
Yeah.

Speaker 4 Did you ever get involved in the booking of those of the bands did they ever did they ever take your suggestions or your advice at all oh only um

Speaker 3 later just like in in mentioning a band to them but um not i don't think during my run there really it was only like towards the end where it was i was a little more loose about recommending bands and stuff i wonder what that process is i wonder how much of that is like influenced from labels or what like how they go about picking it's really weird i it's it's a lot of it is like mysterious but some of it is just like a weird timing thing of like, this seems right right now.

Speaker 2 Yeah, like the hosts, right?

Speaker 3 And it's not even necessarily having a hit. It's just like a weird timing thing of like, they are in the ether right now and in just the right way.
Yeah. About to break or something.
Yeah. Yeah.

Speaker 2 And then you learn, a lot of people learn about them from that show. Yeah.

Speaker 3 I always did. I always watched SNL.
And I still do. I watch it all the time.
I never miss an episode. I love it.
Wow.

Speaker 2 That's right.

Speaker 2 Is there somebody on there right now that you particularly find extra talented?

Speaker 3 Oh, man. I really love this cast.
I think Beck Bennett is really funny. Heidi Gardner.

Speaker 3 It's such a cliche thing to say, but they are all great. Yeah.

Speaker 3 You know, someone on the cast will come up with some sketch or something on update that is just is

Speaker 2 incredible. I love it.

Speaker 3 I love that show.

Speaker 2 Was that your favorite part doing getting to kind of, because you did a lot of sketches, but going to do characters on update, that's where you

Speaker 3 I feel like you were not a lot of people can pull it off and it was something that you seemed to enjoy a lot like it looked like you really enjoyed doing those characters on update yeah it was that was kind of like it was just an easy way in where I didn't have to explain it and also where a whole sketch didn't have to lean on me right um and I think that's also like I also don't think I have that kind of energy to be the center of a sketch like that.

Speaker 3 You know, some people have that energy where they can really like hold it together.

Speaker 3 But I think for me, it worked out a little better on update where it's, it's a shorter amount of time and it's just the character being, you know, crazy and his own.

Speaker 2 Have you always wanted to be that? Have you always wanted to be kind of like part of an ensemble and something, never like the leading guy out in front all the time? No, no.

Speaker 3 No.

Speaker 3 It's like a really comfortable spot for me.

Speaker 4 It's the drummer mentality, right?

Speaker 3 And it is very much like being a drummer. It's like the same kind of thing, you know, in the back, but still making a lot of noise and hitting cymbals and stuff, but

Speaker 3 you know, nothing without the rest of the band. I just prefer it.

Speaker 2 But then you leave, so then you leave SNL after like 11 years, I want to say. Yeah.

Speaker 2 And you, and you and Carrie Brownstein create Portlandia, which was kind of,

Speaker 2 first of all, a phenomenal show. We talked about it at the top of the show here, but it's such a phenomenal show.
So funny, Fred.

Speaker 2 Thanks, man. Yeah, you got, I mean, you got to, it was a great way for you to kind of, it was almost like a natural progression of doing your characters that you do on update and then going and,

Speaker 2 I guess, just kind of beating them out a little bit more and giving them a little air. And,

Speaker 2 but it does go sort of counter to that thing. Like you, you, you and Carrie carried that show together, but it was really important for you were front and center.

Speaker 2 Like you, you know, every virtually every scene of every show for the most part.

Speaker 3 Yeah, but we split it. At least we split, as opposed to it just being like just me.

Speaker 2 Talk about your relationship with carrie in in that so how did you how did you and carrie sort of come together yeah because she carrie uh carrie brownstein of of course fantastic musician in uh you know she's been in the band sleeter kinney for a long time an incredible band and then how is it that she all of a sudden how did you guys meet yeah how did you guys create well in the 90s uh Sleeter Kinney, or they still are my favorite band, and I knew the drummer, Janet Weiss.

Speaker 3 So I knew Janet in the late 90s and would stay in touch with her and stuff and then when in the early 2000s Sleater Kinney came to play in New York.

Speaker 3 I couldn't go to the show because of SNL but I was like why don't you come to the party instead and I met Carrie at this party.

Speaker 3 We already knew each other kind of like we knew a lot of the same people. You know the band is from Portland and it was just this immediate thing.
where I just knew we were going to be friends.

Speaker 3 I was like, this is going to be, I just know it. And it turned out to be true.
Like, we just, it was an immediate thing. And I would go visit her in Portland.

Speaker 3 And it was a thing of like, I didn't want to be like, let's start a band. It's such a, you know, it's so expected.
Like, yeah, we put out a single.

Speaker 3 So I was like, let's, why don't we just shoot some videos and just put them online? And that's how we started doing it. So we would do them in Portland.
And we just put them up on this site.

Speaker 3 And all of a sudden, we had enough of these videos. Some of it was like the feminist

Speaker 3 and all kinds of stuff. And

Speaker 3 those sort of they ended up being on the show. We had enough to like make a pilot.
So when my manager was like, what's the next thing you want to do? Is I was like, I have enough of these videos.

Speaker 3 Why don't we just turn this into a show? And then we pitched it.

Speaker 4 Was that the first time she was on camera acting and stuff like that? Like, how did, was she comfortable with all that stuff?

Speaker 3 She's done a couple little things, little. I mean, like, she did a commercial once,

Speaker 3 but I guess a sketch comedy was like her first thing.

Speaker 3 yeah yeah she wasn't looking to be an actor she was she was she was a musician and so like when you said let's let's do something on camera did she did she balk at all at that or no she for some reason it just seemed it made sense yeah also that we were in portland you know you're in portland you guys have good chemistry i guess so that probably made her feel at ease right in that way like yeah there was also there was like no pressure on it it was there was no goal it was just like let's just make these videos that that we think are funny and that'll be enough

Speaker 2 and then you guys were like let's make this show and let's give half of the money to Lauren.

Speaker 3 Let's give half of the money to Lauren.

Speaker 3 I still try to pay him. I still try to send him whatever.

Speaker 2 Way. Hell yes.

Speaker 3 Always help. Always help.

Speaker 4 So when you started on SNL, was that the first time that you were spending significant time in New York City? And if so,

Speaker 4 how did you like the city? How did you like that life?

Speaker 3 I'm originally from Long Island where

Speaker 3 I was close enough to the city that I would go in, you know, or my family would go in. Okay.
But living in Manhattan was great. I lived up on the Upper West Side.
And

Speaker 3 that's where I am right now. I thought you lived in LA.

Speaker 2 And by the way, by the way, he's on the Upper West Side and I'm on Long Island. True story.
There you go. Are you really? Yeah, yeah.
What are you doing on Long Island?

Speaker 2 In your childhood at home, we're making a documentary about your life. Oh, wow.
And it's so funny. So that's why we're doing the, yeah, and it's so fucking, we were just in your room.

Speaker 2 We do really long takes where we just let the film roll out. And we let the film roll in.
And it's a lot of like, and it's just a lot of slow pans around your room because it's still intact.

Speaker 2 So it's just a lot of like slow pans, right? And we're going to have very little score. It's just going to be quite dry.
It's going to be quite dry.

Speaker 3 Yeah. By the way, how great are documentaries in general? Can we talk about that? Sure.

Speaker 4 Well, let's just go ahead and go into that subject.

Speaker 4 What's your favorite documentary? Yeah, huh?

Speaker 2 They're all great.

Speaker 3 I don't have, I don't do favorites with documentaries. I think they're all.

Speaker 2 Oh, but then you did that other series that you did documentary now, which shows how much respect you really have for documentaries. How dare you, Fred?

Speaker 3 But, Jason, I feel like I skipped over. You were asking me a real question, and then I just did a bit.

Speaker 4 Well, you know, because Will started with obviously shitty research saying that you were born in Mississippi, and so I thought, well, New York City will probably be.

Speaker 3 No, that's true.

Speaker 2 Okay. Oh, that's true.

Speaker 4 Yeah, we'll cut that out. No, we'll cut that out.

Speaker 3 We'll cut that out. I was born there, then my parents moved up to New York.
So then I was raised on the ground.

Speaker 2 It's called moving, Jason. It's called,

Speaker 2 people don't just stay. You're not like born here.
Now you got to stay here forever.

Speaker 2 In Germany, you do yes in East Germany'd be nice you can look over if you if your window's high enough all those dirty American Levi's you have on oh where'd you get them oh she got some Levi's that's what we used to have to bring as presents jeans Levi's sure

Speaker 2 yeah get some cool jeans man

Speaker 2 hey look at look at this guy's got some cool jeans and he's kicking and he's got some some really nice dracard noir okay here we are spitting out all the hits he's germany's favorite record station falco Hamadaz.

Speaker 2 Uh-oh, yeah, did you hear me? I was playing Rock Me, Amadeus. I heard, yes.

Speaker 2 I heard.

Speaker 3 And you were talking about waiting rooms and doctor's offices.

Speaker 2 I know.

Speaker 2 Sean wants to get back into the waiting room. Sean doesn't like to waste time in waiting rooms.

Speaker 3 He likes to be able to. I know, but what I don't understand is that Sean says he goes 15 minutes early, but like 15 minutes later.

Speaker 2 Or late.

Speaker 3 But how do you even time that out? Because it's so difficult parking and like getting the right elevator and all that stuff. How do you time exactly that 15 minutes late?

Speaker 2 Really carefully.

Speaker 3 Don't you feel like every doctor visit is like, where am I going?

Speaker 2 No, because I go so frequently. Yeah, are you guys sick? What's going on? Do you go to a lot? Do you go to the doctor a lot? I do.
I do.

Speaker 2 I like to check in all the time. How's my blood doing? How's my foot doing? How's my back doing? Well, how, how, what?

Speaker 4 So are you, Sean? Are you one of those guys that gets your annual physical every year?

Speaker 2 I don't wait probably that long. I probably go a couple times a year.
Come on.

Speaker 3 No, are you being serious? Are you being totally serious?

Speaker 4 You're talking about full blood panels and you're on the fucking

Speaker 2 treadmill and you got the hoses on you.

Speaker 2 How about this? I went and he goes, have you been feeling tiredly? And I go, yeah, your thyroid level is low. Oh, no.

Speaker 4 This guy knows he's got a live one on his hands. That's all.
He's just going to train you.

Speaker 2 Talk about second home. This guy built a fucking

Speaker 2 thing.

Speaker 4 You know, my next patient, he's actually got a podcast called About Fucking Hypochondria. And just, this guy is a cash cow.

Speaker 4 Make him wait 15 minutes and then bring him in to see me.

Speaker 2 It's unbelievable. Uh-huh.

Speaker 3 You're feeling tired?

Speaker 2 You get hungry? Take some of this. You get hungry, huh? Yeah, that doesn't sound right.

Speaker 2 Are you finding yourself breathing a bunch?

Speaker 2 In through your nose and out through the mouth, it doesn't sound right.

Speaker 2 Yeah, sit down.

Speaker 2 Fred, are you not a hypochondriac, I don't think.

Speaker 3 I don't think I am, no. No.

Speaker 4 You don't strike me as well.

Speaker 4 What's anything wrong with you at all, Fred?

Speaker 4 Anything you'd like to change about yourself?

Speaker 4 Things that are bothering you?

Speaker 3 I think I'm a people pleaser.

Speaker 3 That would be a good change.

Speaker 4 You'd like to care less.

Speaker 2 Yeah.

Speaker 2 Show me one people that you've pleased. One that you've pleased.
I would love to meet them. I would love to meet them.

Speaker 4 One that feels satisfied.

Speaker 2 It's like when people go, like, I'm a people pleaser. I'm like, no, when are you going to start? What are you talking about? You haven't pleased people.

Speaker 2 I don't know if you've ever feels safe to vocalize that. I also hate it when people say this.
People go, you know,

Speaker 2 believe me, nobody's going to be tougher on me than myself. And I always think, let me have a crack at it.

Speaker 2 Let me have a fucking crack at it.

Speaker 3 Let me try. Let me try.
I'll do it.

Speaker 3 Knock your bow.

Speaker 2 We'll be right back.

Speaker 2 Today's episode is sponsored by Ashley. They don't just sell incredible furniture, they're also making an impact in vulnerable communities.
Here's a tough fact.

Speaker 2 Over 7 million kids are affected by the welfare system and over 368,000 are currently in foster care.

Speaker 2 So together with Ashley and SiriusXM, we made a donation to four others, an organization working to end the child welfare crisis in America.

Speaker 2 You know, partnering with Ashley in our live show, First of all, they just made our set look really good.

Speaker 2 They made us really comfortable and they kind of made us look legit because otherwise it would have been, you know, milk crates and, you know, cardboard boxes.

Speaker 2 And Ashley made it look like a real, kind of looked like a living room, made it really comfortable, made our guest, John Mayer, really comfortable. And then he thought that maybe we're professional.

Speaker 2 We're not just a bunch of clowns. To be honest, there was a point where I got so comfortable, I forgot that I was in front of an audience.
I was sitting back on that nice Ashley couch.

Speaker 2 And I was just hanging out with my buds in my living room. Anyway, Ashley offers timeless, well-crafted furniture with white glove delivery right to your door.

Speaker 2 Visit your local Ashley store or head to ashley.com to find your style.

Speaker 1 Some like it hot, but for most, a little spice goes a long way.

Speaker 1 Dorito's Golden Sriracha Flavor Tortilla chips are the perfectly balanced blend of yellow and green srirachas for a chip that's tangy and sweet with just the right amount of heat.

Speaker 1 Dorito's golden sriracha are spicy, but not too spicy because Doritos knows bold flavor doesn't have to mean just heat. Try Doritos Golden Sriracha for yourself.

Speaker 1 Look for them wherever Doritos are sold or find a store near you at Doritos.com. Doritos for the bold.

Speaker 1 Having people in your corner makes all the difference. Big moments like moving into a new house, getting a new car, or celebrating milestones are better with the right support.

Speaker 1 With the right people in your corner, you can focus on what matters, like taking that new car out for a spin.

Speaker 1 State Farm has coverage options to choose from to help best fit your needs so there's support when it matters most.

Speaker 1 That means being able to talk to your agent to choose the coverage you need knowing there are options to help protect the things you value most.

Speaker 1 Filing a claim right on the State Farm mobile app and reaching a real person whenever you need to talk to someone.

Speaker 1 Whether it's your car, home, boat, motorcycle, or RV, you can choose the right amount of coverage for you.

Speaker 1 And anytime, you can simply go online to statefarm.com or use their award-winning app to get help. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.

Speaker 2 Fred, I have a really, really boring question. Oh, thank God.
Who did you find funny when you were younger?

Speaker 4 Is there a pamphlet you use, Sean?

Speaker 3 Benny Hill.

Speaker 2 I thought Benny Hill was funny. Benny Hill, really? Yeah.
Huh.

Speaker 3 When I was a kid, I'm saying, when I was a kid.

Speaker 2 Oh, yeah, when you were like seven.

Speaker 3 But then...

Speaker 2 When you were a teenager, when you were like 1985.

Speaker 3 When I was a teenager, I watched SNL, so it would be the Eddie Murphy years where I was sort of

Speaker 3 a teenager. And then, but there were still reruns from like, you know, the Dan Aykroyd years and stuff.
So it was like right in between.

Speaker 2 How about when you were like in your 20s and those years where you're like thinking, maybe I want to do this? Who are the people who are working? Like for me, for instance, I'll give you an example.

Speaker 2 When I remember in the 90s when I was living in New York and I saw Bob and David doing Mr. Show.
Yeah. And I thought, fuck, that's great.
I wish I could do that. Really?

Speaker 2 I wish I could be funny like that, like those guys.

Speaker 4 Wait, so were you all super starstruck when Cross came on Arrested Development?

Speaker 4 Yeah, or had you met him before?

Speaker 2 No,

Speaker 2 we had met before. I kind of knew him a little bit already.
But yeah, I mean, I was such a, he knew that. I was such a huge fan of his and Bob's.
And yeah, of course, man. Like, I was.
Very cool.

Speaker 2 Yeah.

Speaker 3 Larry Sanders was like that for me. Yeah.
Where when that started when I'd start seeing that, I'd go what what are they doing? What is that? What is this even called? Yeah, yeah, you know, it was just

Speaker 3 so great like that.

Speaker 4 That whole no winking kind of thing. Yeah, just like it was no one was asking for a laugh at all.
And if they heard you laugh, they'd be offended.

Speaker 4 Like, this is serious shit.

Speaker 2 I don't mind if somebody winks at me, though. You know what I mean? I'm just saying, like, on a train.
Sure.

Speaker 3 I don't mind like if somebody on a train. Yeah.

Speaker 2 Like if someone.

Speaker 3 I'm going to do it right now.

Speaker 2 Wink at me, Fred.

Speaker 2 Fred's winking it. By the way, you can really put people off if

Speaker 2 you say something and then you just start, and then you wink a little bit. And then just like

Speaker 2 I have, because I do, I will wink at people and my buddy Josh will go like, don't fucking wink at me. Yeah.
Man.

Speaker 3 I wonder if winking died already. I wonder if it's about to die.

Speaker 4 You know, I go through phases of it. I'll end up, I'll wink for like a week or something like that.
And then, and then I'll stop for a while.

Speaker 4 But I'll just involuntarily do kind of what you're talking about, Will.

Speaker 2 Sean, you you were just practicing. Sean, we just practiced.
I was practicing because, you know what?

Speaker 2 God, you're so stupid, Sean.

Speaker 4 Just trying to see if you can do it with both eyes.

Speaker 2 Just practicing quite a lot. I was really in my own head.
I was like, do I do that? And I do do it.

Speaker 2 I do it to Scotty all the time, my husband Scotty, and I'll do it in the most gross, disgusting, despicable way possible. He'll be like, Give us some example.
God, you know what?

Speaker 2 Like, if we get an argument in the middle of the argument, I go, everything's going to be okay.

Speaker 2 And he fucking hates it.

Speaker 2 Oh, yeah.

Speaker 2 So you do that.

Speaker 2 Most people don't wink to enrage people. Yeah, go ahead.

Speaker 4 I've been working on for on-camera is the half-wink, where the lids never actually touch.

Speaker 2 It's just a little bit of like a, it's just a little, it's like a little fissure that happens. That's exactly what you mean.

Speaker 3 Both eyes or one eye.

Speaker 4 No, no, just the one. It's, it's, it's, it's the cheesier cousin of the wink, actually.

Speaker 2 If you can get cheesier, and Jason, it's usually accompanied by like a mmm.

Speaker 4 Or just like a

Speaker 3 you know what I mean? Is it ever done not sarcastically like without irony?

Speaker 4 I don't know how to do non-sarcastic humor.

Speaker 2 That's what I mean. I want it.
That's what I don't mind if somebody winks. Like a real wink, I think.
Like a real wink on it. If you're on a train and somebody gives you a real wink.
Ew, what?

Speaker 2 Did you say wank? Does that happen? A real, no, in England, you get a real wink, and in here you get a real wink, yeah.

Speaker 2 But if you, no, I'm saying if you get a, like, if, if you're like on a bus, always on public transport. I'm just saying.
Or like,

Speaker 2 but if you, but if you're in a, imagine if you're in a restaurant and you looked across and you're having dinner with somebody you're having Jason you're having dinner with Amanda and you're sitting there and then you looked across and then there was another couple and they're having dinner and the guy just looked over at you and winked.

Speaker 4 Oh, would you what would you I would check my plate I'd say what the fuck is this guy talking?

Speaker 4 No, but have have any of you actually ever winked at somebody to hit on them the original purpose of the wink?

Speaker 2 No.

Speaker 4 I've never used it.

Speaker 2 No, that's so gross. No.

Speaker 2 Would that even work?

Speaker 4 And if so, what year did that work last in?

Speaker 2 I feel like winking went out right after the release of Rod Stewart's Blondes Have More Fun. It was right after that.
As soon as that record came out,

Speaker 4 a lot of people can't wink with both eyes.

Speaker 2 Only one eye works for the winking. That's called blinking.
No, no, sorry.

Speaker 4 I mean, they can only wink with one eye. The other eye does not work for winking.

Speaker 3 I think it's made up.

Speaker 2 Fred, do you love working?

Speaker 4 Boy, that was smooth. Thanks, Sean.
Thanks.

Speaker 2 Let's move on.

Speaker 2 Do you love working? Because you work all the time. Do you love it? Fred, are you a workaholic?

Speaker 3 I do. I'm a workaholic, and I love working.

Speaker 3 I like my calendar to be filled.

Speaker 3 If there's empty dates, I'm like, okay, what can I figure out for the next day?

Speaker 2 Are you being serious? Yeah.

Speaker 3 I prefer to be working.

Speaker 2 When was the last time you took

Speaker 2 a vacation?

Speaker 2 I can't remember.

Speaker 2 Vacation.

Speaker 2 Go on. Take a vacation.

Speaker 2 What just happened?

Speaker 4 What happened? Serious, lay down, Sean. Elevate your ankles.
Get them up over here.

Speaker 2 I literally thought somebody had hijacked our show.

Speaker 2 I'm like, what the fuck is going on? I was trying to do my work. That was so weird.
Sean, how long did the guy say the mushrooms were going to last?

Speaker 2 I was trying to do my will.

Speaker 4 I was supposed to be micro-dosing, not macro-dosing.

Speaker 2 I can't do impressions.

Speaker 4 I like to work all the time too, but I do really like my family and

Speaker 4 I do like to do zero as well.

Speaker 2 There's nothing in between.

Speaker 4 Yeah, same. So I got problems.

Speaker 3 What about traveling? Yeah, traveling. Jason.

Speaker 4 You mean for vacation?

Speaker 2 Yeah.

Speaker 4 I don't, as well,

Speaker 4 the boring answer, I apologize, is that my mother was a flight attendant when I was a kid growing up. So we flew everywhere.

Speaker 4 I've been all over the world, but at an age before I could appreciate the cultural value of it. So it was just, wait, so we're going to fly away from my toys and my friends again?

Speaker 4 And I got to sleep in some weird place.

Speaker 4 So I kind of a bad taste in my mouth about travel and wander lust and all that stuff um so i'm not i'm not the i'm not the best person to ask about that yes you are yes you are

Speaker 3 yes you are don't ever let anyone say that to you jason

Speaker 3 you're the best person to ask

Speaker 2 um do you like the traveling will i do i certainly sean uh i don't i do not love it no Sean travels. I feel like the last few trips, I had to make him travel.
Yeah, I have to.

Speaker 2 I'm going to a trip to see Will tomorrow, actually. And it's an actual trip.

Speaker 4 Well, I'm going at the end of next week, Sean. You've been threatening to be there at the same time I'm going to be there.
Are you going to? I can't. What do you mean you can't?

Speaker 2 They're both coming to see me in the next week. Are they, really? Sean and Scotty are coming out tomorrow, and then Jason and the kids and Amanda are coming next week.
Sean,

Speaker 4 why are you not going to be there when I'm here?

Speaker 2 I have to go back for work to L.A., so I can't stick around. Because of work, you see?

Speaker 2 Now, Freddie, so like you go to New York, you go to London for a week, which right now is a pain in the ass because I'm sure there are a lot of protocols and shit you have to go through before you start work, I imagine.

Speaker 2 Yeah, I mean. It looks like you're still at the airport.
Are you still like in a room in an airport? No,

Speaker 3 I'm at my hotel.

Speaker 2 Okay.

Speaker 2 I swear to God, I'm not at the airport.

Speaker 2 Oh my God.

Speaker 3 I'm not, why would I lie? I'm at a hotel.

Speaker 3 Believe you. I'm in quarantine.
I'm not allowed to leave. They're still in quarantine here.

Speaker 4 You're not allowed to leave the hotel for a little while?

Speaker 3 I'm not allowed to leave the hotel.

Speaker 2 For how long?

Speaker 3 Five days.

Speaker 4 Wow my God. So what do you literally have to stay in the hotel room for five days?

Speaker 2 Yep.

Speaker 4 Tell us what you've been doing.

Speaker 2 You can't even go outside.

Speaker 3 I'm trying to memorize my lines.

Speaker 2 Huh.

Speaker 4 You need five days to memorize a week of lines?

Speaker 3 It takes me a little extra work.

Speaker 4 You're not good at that, huh?

Speaker 2 I think I'm not.

Speaker 3 I think I'm okay. I'm okay if I keep practicing it, but I am not like, I don't pick it up that easy.

Speaker 4 So you would always use the cards on SNL. You'd never get off book at all?

Speaker 3 No, we're not supposed to.

Speaker 4 Not supposed to.

Speaker 3 You're supposed to look right at the cards so that you look like you're looking at the other person.

Speaker 4 Right, but what if you learn your lines and you can look at the person?

Speaker 3 It changes too often. Yeah.
It changes too often. From dress rehearsal to air,

Speaker 3 without fail, everything just gets changed.

Speaker 2 Right. Wow.
Yeah, Jason, you know less than Tracy from Wisconsin.

Speaker 4 No, I'm just, I am, I'm just thinking back to the, the, when I was there at.

Speaker 2 How many times you've hosted SNL

Speaker 2 and how many times have we gone to SNL together?

Speaker 4 You're right. It does change quite a bit.

Speaker 3 Yeah, it changes and then.

Speaker 2 What do you want to do? You want to put Wally? You want to put Wally out of work? You want Wally? Oh, Wally, come on. Oh, Wally's kids don't need braces.
Okay, that's cool.

Speaker 2 Oh, Wally doesn't need to pay his mortgage. Where did it go? He didn't need a house.
No, Wally. Why would Wally need a house? It's only raining.
It's only rain, Jason. Does rain brother?

Speaker 2 Why would rain brother him?

Speaker 2 He's a living organism on the planet. Rain should give him nourishment.

Speaker 4 that place is such a special spot my god

Speaker 2 yeah it really is love it yes i love it so much i do text with wally sometimes by the way you do yeah i thought you made that name up that's a real pain no oh no he's the he's the guy okay

Speaker 3 he's got like a whole system that like now his the people who worked for him do seth's show or

Speaker 2 you know um fred did i miss what did we talk about at the top what what why are you in london what is the project you're working on there i'm working on a show uh that Matt Berry does, the British show.

Speaker 3 Oh, that's right, you said that.

Speaker 2 Sorry.

Speaker 3 And it's a show called Toast of London.

Speaker 2 Okay, Toast of London. Oh, so you're, oh, they're doing another season of this.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, I didn't know that.
That's great. It's so funny.

Speaker 3 It's so funny.

Speaker 2 Oh,

Speaker 3 who else? Yeah, who else is in?

Speaker 3 I've just been reading my lines. Who else is in it? I'm not sure.
I think Rashida's doing something.

Speaker 2 I was actually going to say, who else are you going to see when you're there? Like, once they break you out.

Speaker 2 Oh,

Speaker 2 I don't know yet.

Speaker 2 I don't know yet.

Speaker 3 But I really love it here, for real.

Speaker 2 I really, really love it. Same.
I love it. Same London.
Same, same, same.

Speaker 4 So you're in the room for five days. So it's all room service and

Speaker 4 learning your lines. And is there some TV watching or is there some reading?

Speaker 3 You know, I tried and I watched a little bit of TV and

Speaker 3 it just made me sleepy. It was great, but it was like a lot of reality TV.

Speaker 4 So then what are you doing? Are you a reader? Do you read books or are you making music?

Speaker 3 That's such a good question. Why do I feel like I've, I feel feel like I've been communicating a lot.
I feel like I've been emailing and texting. So a lot of that kind of stuff.

Speaker 3 This was like my big event for today. No joke.

Speaker 3 My whole day was like, this is my thing.

Speaker 4 Okay.

Speaker 4 Build a day around that.

Speaker 3 I did bring my guitar.

Speaker 2 I brought my guitar. Okay, great.
You want to play us a little something?

Speaker 2 Working on anything?

Speaker 3 I have this like little travel guitar that I have.

Speaker 2 And then I

Speaker 3 took it out of the room because I was like, does any, like, is there anything worse than seeing that someone's got like a guitar in their room?

Speaker 4 Yeah, it's always in the background of it's always in the background.

Speaker 2 Yeah.

Speaker 3 But I have this little travel guitar that I brought with me.

Speaker 2 And

Speaker 3 it looks like this, but then there's like no head to it. Yeah.

Speaker 2 So it's a little teeny.

Speaker 4 So it's always in tune.

Speaker 4 There it is. Okay.
So we've got, we've got, we've got a great theme song for Smartless,

Speaker 4 but if we were to have a second best theme tune for Smartless,

Speaker 4 it probably would go like.

Speaker 3 You probably want,

Speaker 3 you know, your audience, you want them on their feet. Yeah.
You want them jumping up on their feet.

Speaker 3 You want them clapping their hands. Energy.
So it's very sort of, you just want the rhythm. Yeah.

Speaker 2 Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, get up.

Speaker 2 Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. Get up.
Get up. Welcome, listener.

Speaker 3 Get up again, again, and again.

Speaker 2 I say, get up, get up.

Speaker 3 Again, and again and again. Jump up and down.
And then that's it.

Speaker 2 That's great. I think you just need, yeah.

Speaker 3 No melody, just

Speaker 3 a little

Speaker 4 where it's just like your ears are bleeding and you're like, God, I just, no matter what they're talking about on this podcast, it's going to be better than this.

Speaker 2 Yeah. What music are you listening to right now,

Speaker 2 Freddie? What are you listening to?

Speaker 3 There's a band I really love called Deaf Rain.

Speaker 2 Oh, man, they're terrible.

Speaker 2 It's so funny you brought them up. Oh, go to hell.
You know what? No, no, no. Let's hear it.

Speaker 2 Let's hear it. Deaf Rain.
I've never heard it. D-E-F-R-A-I-N, like Rain, like what Will was talking about before.

Speaker 4 Deaf Rain, and what kind of music do they make?

Speaker 3 They're a duo from Dallas, and it's like spooky.

Speaker 3 I'd say kind of electronic, but it's very spooky. That's cool.

Speaker 2 And I love it. I'm going to look him up.
Deaf Rain.

Speaker 2 Fred,

Speaker 2 where do you fall on Duran Duran? I'm a big Duran Duran guy. You sure are, Will.

Speaker 3 I think

Speaker 3 they were really

Speaker 3 revolutionary in bringing new romantic music to MTV, to the masses. There we go.
Like no other, I don't think any other band succeeded like they did. They were a real new romantic band.

Speaker 3 I think John Taylor is a great bass player. Yep.
I like that most of their, the band members are like sort of intact. They have like most of the guys.
Yeah.

Speaker 3 And I think that like the early, like early days of synth, like they are the ones who like brought it to top 10.

Speaker 2 Oh, God. I just want to go sailing with Simon LeBon.
Who's kidding?

Speaker 2 Who's kidding? Yeah. It can happen.
Make that happen for sure.

Speaker 2 So, Freddie, so now you're there doing this show with Matt Berry. You've done, you kind of, it kind of want to get back to what Jason was saying.
Like, you did Portlandia, you killed it.

Speaker 2 Like, what, what for you would be the thing that you feel like you haven't done yet in comedy anyway that you would that would be like oh that's something i i really want to go and and tackle i would say doing something in a foreign language

Speaker 3 but uh but really doing something in a foreign language.

Speaker 2 Like really doing like

Speaker 3 in Farsi, something in Farsi. Wow.
Where it's not like

Speaker 3 not, you know, it's not like the joke of it isn't that I'm speaking Farsi.

Speaker 3 It's like a something that's not.

Speaker 2 And why do you want to do that? Because of the challenge of it? Yeah.

Speaker 3 Like something that takes place in Tehran and because, yeah, because of the challenge of it.

Speaker 2 Yeah.

Speaker 4 Well, assuming that's serious.

Speaker 4 okay. Aside from that, though,

Speaker 4 just generally

Speaker 4 with your career, with the acting, with the writing, with the producing and stuff,

Speaker 4 are you looking to

Speaker 4 escalate things?

Speaker 4 Like,

Speaker 4 is your internal clock going, okay, what could be now? Or are you happy to just kind of just live, keep things as is? I want to be fed. I want to be housed.
I want to be happy.

Speaker 4 I always want to cruise along.

Speaker 2 Or

Speaker 4 are you the type of person that's looking to this could lead to this, could lead to that?

Speaker 2 How strong is your ambition?

Speaker 3 It's a combo of the two in that none of my aspirations as I was going along were ever that grand anyway. Portlandy was always like, this is fine.
It doesn't have to be on a huge network.

Speaker 3 But it still was very satisfying. So it's like a combo of the two of like, I like this pace.

Speaker 3 This is feeling really, I'm, you know, every day, every day seems to be something exciting. I'm in London or, you know, Italy or something.
And then,

Speaker 3 and then I do, I just, I honestly do like the idea of something completely

Speaker 3 foreign to me. Yeah.
Something like in another language, something,

Speaker 3 something that like I haven't done before. So like a mix.

Speaker 4 Let me ask it a different way. What if a mat, if you were part of something that became uncontrollably massive

Speaker 4 and you couldn't walk down the street but you had you don't mean like elephantitis yeah

Speaker 4 you mean a project yeah i'm just saying how would you if you had a massive of amount of uh

Speaker 4 what what what people would call success how what what what would that be a happy thing would would that make you happy would you be like god damn it i can't go to the market anymore No, I'd be like, oh, how nice that things turned out this way.

Speaker 3 Who knew?

Speaker 3 Who knew? I sometimes think about that with Bob Odenkirk, with the fact that Better Call Saul was so huge, it had nothing to do with what his plan was.

Speaker 3 He was doing sketch comedy and all this other stuff. And it seemed, I like that, that sort of surprise.

Speaker 4 Right. And do you think you'd be able to adapt to that?

Speaker 2 Yeah, sure. Yeah.

Speaker 2 Are you kidding? Fred can't wait to not be able to go to the market.

Speaker 3 I hate markets.

Speaker 2 He hates fucking.

Speaker 2 Fred, I just figured it out. I figured it out.
We have to do a comedy and we both have to do it in Germany where we play guards, Stasi,

Speaker 4 it's all in subtitles.

Speaker 2 Right? It's like Checkpoint, and it's called Checkpoint Charlie's. Oh, yeah.
Yeah. And we're just two border guards and we live in East Berlin.

Speaker 3 Maybe we could do it where like

Speaker 3 we both find out that we're supposed to spy on each other.

Speaker 2 Yes.

Speaker 3 You're like, oh, you're my guy? Oh, I'm your guy. Okay.

Speaker 4 I got to look in your fridge. Send me some shots of your fridge.

Speaker 2 That's actually really funny. That's really good, right? I mean, if if you're listening out there, feel free to call either of our reps and Fred and I will take a meeting.

Speaker 2 And then the scene would be like, where are you going? I don't know where you're going.

Speaker 2 I don't know.

Speaker 2 Yeah.

Speaker 3 Apparently, you seem to know where I'm going. It seems to be so important to you.
What do you want? A map?

Speaker 2 What's on your sandwich?

Speaker 2 You have plenty of mayo at home. I'm surprised you didn't use any.

Speaker 3 There are camera over the fridge? There's a camera here, camera there.

Speaker 2 No, camera there.

Speaker 2 One take one camera.

Speaker 3 By the way, for a police force, that's pretty cool. Stasi.

Speaker 2 How come we don't have that?

Speaker 4 It's not as good as Checkpoint Chaz is.

Speaker 2 Why don't we have a domestic intelligence network? You know what I mean? I mean, it's like we get kind of like robbed of all that kind of shit over here. You know what I mean?

Speaker 2 We don't have like cool, like, like domestic intelligence services that are like watching us and stuff. You know what I mean? No.
One of them. No.
I know.

Speaker 2 It's like, it's like, because we talk about the American experience, but we've been like, give it to us. Like, let us have it.

Speaker 2 So anyway,

Speaker 2 Freddie, Freddy, fucking so great to have you on the show, man. No,

Speaker 2 yeah,

Speaker 2 let's talk.

Speaker 2 We just did bits.

Speaker 2 Let's talk.

Speaker 2 When's your birthday? You got any pets? No pets. No pets.

Speaker 4 How about favorite colors? Sean, Sean, did Sean, you didn't get to the favorite color question.

Speaker 3 I did see there was a beautiful color I saw maybe a month ago.

Speaker 2 Where were you? Where were you? Jesus Christ.

Speaker 2 You guys should check it out.

Speaker 2 So beautiful.

Speaker 2 Fred, I want to say something. I don't know when I'm ever going to see you again.
Hopefully soon when you're back in LA or something. I hope you're not.
Are you dying, Sean? Holy shit.

Speaker 2 What's going on? I always wanted to say this, that you are truly, truly one of the funniest people. And I just think you are so incredibly talented.
Good. Sean.

Speaker 3 Oh, well, it's mutual, Sean. That's really, really nice.

Speaker 4 You are the tip-top, Fred.

Speaker 2 You really are, Fred.

Speaker 2 Fred used to do this bit down on

Speaker 2 at 8H at SNL, and he'd walk around and he'd pretend he was like an intern, and he'd go, I'm the only one that's normal around here.

Speaker 2 It used to fucking make me laugh so hard.

Speaker 4 Normal.

Speaker 2 Freddie, you're the funny you.

Speaker 3 I love you guys. I love you.
I love your show.

Speaker 2 You're the comedian's comedian. You're the comedian's comedian.
You really are. Everybody loves you, and you're the for good reason.
You're the fucking funniest, and you're such a lovely guy.

Speaker 2 And thank you for saying yes. Yeah.
And I can't wait to see you again soon, hopefully. And thanks, you guys.

Speaker 3 And hope you have a good visit with each other.

Speaker 4 Yeah. Thank you.
Thank you, Pal.

Speaker 2 Have fun, Freddie. We love you, Freddie.
We love you.

Speaker 4 What a kind, funny, talented man.

Speaker 2 He really is. I I mean, like I meant when I said.

Speaker 4 Nice going, Will.

Speaker 2 Nice going.

Speaker 2 He's one of those, I love.

Speaker 2 He was on my list, too, to be on the show. He's always got a really great bit, too.
Like he'll come.

Speaker 2 You can have not seen him for three years, and he'll come up and go, hey, can I ask you something really?

Speaker 2 It's just like, no time has passed. Yeah.
And he's always got a bit, but he's such a sweetheart of a guy. Yeah, he is.

Speaker 2 Fred did this thing when we were doing that rocker thing. He walked up one day.
They had a bunch of bottles of water and he just grabs a bottle of water and he goes, nice budget, and then walks away.

Speaker 2 But he always, and he's got, you know, when he was on SNL, he did, I don't know, 30 different characters that he would bring onto.

Speaker 2 I loved when he did Prince. He would always,

Speaker 2 he would always whisper.

Speaker 2 Prince. I do love Nicholas Fane, that political, God, that thing made me.

Speaker 4 It's stuff that he would do with Kristen Wigg all the time, too. It's so clear that they had just this great, great, this chemical reaction together, you know, that would just.

Speaker 2 He's going down in history as one of the greats from Saturday Night Live for sure. I agree.
All of the decades. Yeah.
I agree.

Speaker 2 He did a sketch about a guy who's got a one-man show that is one of the most cringeworthy and slash hilarious sketches. Oh, my God.
Immediately look up Fred Armison one-man show.

Speaker 2 It's one of the funniest things you'll ever watch. For me, it is.
It absolutely destroys me.

Speaker 4 Well, that's why I was asking. Like, do you miss being in

Speaker 4 that weekly lab?

Speaker 4 I feel like

Speaker 4 I'm mad we don't get to see that every single week.

Speaker 2 Well, that's kind of what I was saying, though, but I don't think he misses it because he does it all day. So he does it with everybody else's.

Speaker 4 I guess I was saying, I miss it. Yeah.
I miss seeing what comes out of his head each week.

Speaker 2 Yeah. Yeah.
Of course, because it's brilliant. I remember him one time texting Amy saying, hey, I can't make this stand-up.

Speaker 2 I'm supposed to do a a stand-up gig in Dallas next week and I can't, or Austin. I can't make it.
Here's the thing.

Speaker 2 And he sent all the details, including the travel times, the person to meet, here when the shows are. And then he writes, thanks so much.

Speaker 2 Super detailed flight numbers, everything. I can't make it.
Can you do it for me? Thank you.

Speaker 2 Fuck. Hilarious.
That he is so funny.

Speaker 4 Oh, my God. I just got a text from him.
Oh, my God. Guys, I just got a real life text from Fred.

Speaker 2 You did?

Speaker 2 Yeah. Oh, now I'm floating.
Oh my God. And that, you know what? You got a text from me.

Speaker 2 You know why that is? Because that's a

Speaker 2 product. Product of the show.

Speaker 2 Bye.

Speaker 2 Smart.

Speaker 2 Smart.

Speaker 2 Smartlist is 100% organic and artisanally handcrafted by Michael Grant Terry, Rob Armcharf, and Bennett Barbico.

Speaker 5 There are millions of podcasts out there, and you've chosen this one. Whether you're a regular or just here on a whim, it's what you have chosen to listen to.

Speaker 5 With Yoto, your kids can have the same choice. Yoto is a screen-free, ad-free audio player.
With hundreds of Yoto cards, there are stories, music, and podcasts like this one, but for kids.

Speaker 5 Just slot a card into the player and let the adventure begin. Check out Yotoplay.com.

Speaker 1 You know those moments when you're trying to work through a complex problem and you can't stop until you've found the answer?

Speaker 1 That's where Claude comes in, the AI for minds that don't stop at good enough.

Speaker 1 Whether you're planning something big, researching a topic you're curious about, or just trying to work through a problem, Claude matches your level of curiosity.

Speaker 1 Try Claude for free at claude.ai/slash smartless and see why the world's best problem solvers choose Claude as their thinking partner.