"Kate McKinnon"

Hey guys, now is like the perfect time for me to do some vocal warm-ups because nobody's around so Hanging, pingy, pingy, pingy, pingy, hopcorn peanuts, get them if you want them Hey, I got some twizzlers over here and I got a little payday if you want to payday Hey, hey, hey, hey, whoo-hoo, welcome to Smart Last Smart Last Let me tell you something, this is why we don't have a video component on this show What's going on today on Top of My Head? Don't you dare, it looks, you look gorgeous See, I'd have to You look, you know who you look like? You look like the star of that very successful new streaming show called Black Rabbit that we all love That show's amazing You look like the star of Black Rabbit, Black Rabbit streaming now on Netflix Wait, it's not out yet, is it? Well, no, I think by the time this air is What's the date, J? Wait, when does it come out, J? September 18th Wait, Jason, that's really exciting, it's only like a couple of months Oh my God, the show is going to be so good, it's going to be what's so good I'm very happy with it, we don't need to talk about that, we don't need to talk about it I do think it's enough with the London thing and the Long Island thing, Los Angeles and me, my heart, my mind, my eyes, my ears, my chest Misses the feeling of your chest against it I know Please come home Were you at dinner last night? I was going to FaceTime, did you go to a FaceTime? No, there was no Sunday Funday I was going to FaceTime, you're out of the blue because I know you love it When's the last time there was a Sunday Funday? Two weeks ago, maybe three weeks ago? Oh man, because we were in New York I do miss that a lot Hot Fudge Funday? Well, I'd say one more time, still rolling Hot Fudge Funday Hot Fudge Funday, oh you did say it right? Because you would have a hot fudge there You brought your own fudge, isn't that correct? Well, around the corner, that's where it's made That's a shot Remember I brought my own fudge to my birthday party? You did, bless your heart You were out of town, no I brought my own caramel Toppings, yeah I brought my own caramel to my birthday party because we went to this place and they were like, oh they don't have the full arsenal of Sunday toppings on Sunday nights, whatever So luckily our friend Sean organized it very sweetly JB, you were in Atlanta No, and then I had it in my pocket and I did it a little bit for effect because I knew I was going to get shit for it I pulled it out, Sean, actually you didn't really give me shit, you kind of laughed Kimmel gave me a lot of shit and then sure as shit when the ice cream came out everybody said, hey could you pass it? Yeah, the caramel sauce Kimmel was first Was it caramel sauce? Yeah, it was caramel sauce I was like, oh do you want some now, Kimmel? Wait Sean, how do you say that word? Caramel I say caramel ice cream or caramel swirl, right? I kind of toggle between the two How's it spelt? How many A's are there? Spelt, spelt, spelt C-A-R-A-M-E-L, there's two A's, right? I said spelt, I said spelt You said spelt It came out as that, I meant spelt I know Sean, I know this guy Please, it spelt as that It's from the guy who says caramel Are you fucking joking? He's still, I still can't believe he was shocked that Beatles What are you saying that as you're getting thrown out of a moving car? Caramel! Wait, I have a crazy story I'd love a new dead joke too I've worn out my Hayes can I can do a lot of dad jokes ready Okay, hurry up, because my guess is probably falling asleep Alright, you want a long story or a short dad joke? Short dad joke A Mal and Juan are identical twins and their mom only carries one photo in her wallet because if you've seen one You've seen a Mal Boy, that's a long way to go for shit Yeah I laughed out loud when I heard that Alright Alright, we're going to get to our guests but real first I just want to say Saw Will's film, second time You did? I'm still, I can't wait to see it Little fucking starstruck when I'm looking at this guy now He's kind of ruined things It's kind of like when I saw you doing your Tony award winning play that you're now doing in London You guys, you've got real talent You know, you really dumb it down on this show but you both have a little something special in there Oh wait, ouch, boy that couple of it hurts Yeah, I like to balance it out but fuck me Arnett Listen, listener It's called Is This Thing On? Triple Dot Some people say ellipses but it's a great film It's coming your way, I think towards the end of the year Wait, so Black Rabbit comes out in September Is This Thing On? comes out in November December It's like December December This is like a big deal But if you're at the New York Film Festival you can see it there in October That's true, that's true Well, thank you, thank you, thank you It's fantastic And if you're in London right now, still even now, if you're in London you can go to see it At the Delacorte At the Delacorte Theatre You can go How about Oscar At the Chimichurri Sauce Chimichurri, at the Chimichurri Stage at the Delacorte Barbecan What about Oscar? What about that Oscar? What about Oscar? Oh, God, here we go What is it called? Leave it to Oscar? Leave it to Oscar Here comes Oscar Hey, what do you know about Oscar? Leave it to Oscar All right, listen to me Guys, quick reminder before the guests I just want to say tickets go on sale Friday, September 12th for our Hollywood Bowl We're very excited about that Very, very excited Saturday, November 15th, right? Is our show date? Saturday, November 15th, yeah It's going to be incredible Come enjoy the chat and go go under the stars in a very refined setting there in the hills of Los Angeles There won't be any fireworks But except on stage, huh, guys? There's going to be a lot of fireworks All right, let's get into the show, please For your listening pleasure today we have for you a woman with a real handle on how to make you laugh But she's not a joke teller She's an actor of the highest level Her ability to play characters that are so odd and eccentric It's something you end up watching with amazement and shock as you dab the laugh tears from your eyes It's why she's been nominated for every single year she was on Saturday Night Live I think I've got that right I could not be a bigger fan of her talent and for just being around her Very cool of her to come hang out with us today Please welcome one of the greats Great McKinnon Yes! Well he got it She was still awake Oh wait She's in the criteria closet Oh she's got the criteria collection behind her Are those DVDs behind you or just a bunch of one-out? No they're books I'm in a hi Oh hello I'm in the offices of the publisher of the book that I'm here to promote. Okay, let's start right off with it. But we don't have to talk about that right away, but we should at some point. And like we're not, let's let it come up organically. The name of the new book is Purple Pearl. It's about a deep sea diver. Tell me, take it from there. Jason, that's her volume. Okay, this is the set. Oh, she's putting her glasses on. That means she wrote a book. These are fake glasses that I wear to feel more comfortable. They provide a barrier between me and my interlocutores that I need in order to feel safe. I can see you, but you can't come close to me. Wait, are you reading from the book right now? Is this the first chapter of the book? Wow. I have never been on a podcast before. No, truly? Are you serious? Is this your first podcast? I've never been, yes. And I'm afraid. Don't be, we're super safe. We're just doing it in a safe way. And no one can see you, they can just hear you. Even though you look incredible. Even though I have these glasses on to protect. Are you literally in a closet? Is that why you're whispering? No, no, I speak in dulcet tones. This is my real voice. And the presence of the microphone in my mouth is also making it easier for me to speak in my most dulcet tones. You just have a deep deep mouth. You know what's really powerful, Kate, is when you can bring it down and you can bring, you control the tone and the volume. Like that, that's real power. They lean in. They come to you. They come, they pulled over. They pulled the car over. Or they leave. No. They could leave. But if they can't see you. If they can't see you in the glasses, at least they can hear you now. Mm. Hey, listen, purple pearl. Purple. Is about somebody who dives for pearls. They're only purple if they're super deep. So this is a diver that is particularly talented at diving deep. I think I've got it right. It's a diver named Natalie. Okay. And she has lost her costume jewelry and she gets in trouble because it's her mother's costume jewelry. This really is. And no, it's not. But I think I've just plotted my new series. So I am gonna go because I'm inspired. By the way, if you open a show with somebody losing costume jewelry, I'm always. Me too. Me too. Me too. It's a destructive show. Have you ever lost something that you weren't supposed to lose? My phone. That's the worst. That is about the worst feeling. That is about the worst feeling. You know what you lost a few years ago, Jason, but you found? Dignity? Yup. Yup. Yup. And I just hit my head on the wall behind me. My phone. Hey, listen, I wanna get right to. Kate McKinnon. Can I just say, I think you're so funny. You know, you are so great. No, this is part of the podcast. You have to put up with this on the podcast. Yeah, yeah. So sit here. Praise for an hour. You're so funny and you're so original and cool. I just, I don't know you at all. And this is, no. You've never met her. We've, Kate, we've never. I feel like we have, you know, a lifelong fan. Have you ever met our guest? I'm passing. We've said hello. Yes, yes. But never like spent time on the road. Yes. Yes, we were, I was driving. I was at a red light. Yeah. It's a red light. Try. You drive an 88 Volvo station wagon, right? That's me. But Kate, I remember the first time I was doing the My Rudolph show. It was like, it was gonna be a thing. It was only one episode. Undeniable. Undeniable. Undeniable. Here it comes. And it was your first year, I think, of San Antonio Live. And Lauren was at this shoot that I was doing with Maya. And I turned to Lauren. Lauren, my friend. Lauren, Lauren. And I said, hey, that new girl, Kate McKinnon. And he said, he goes, isn't she special? I go, she is such a superstar. And he's like, I know we all, we all know, we all feel it. And I was just like, so everybody knew it, right when you came on. Lauren said that? My son. Lauren, my son said that. Yeah. That's beautiful. Thank you for saying that. But now, Kate, when was the first time you heard that? Like how old were you when you privately, because you're a very humble person, you didn't like go out and say, hey, everybody thinks I'm great. You just internally, you thought, hey, you know what? I think I can make people laugh. And I like the feeling and I wanna do a little bit more of it. How old were you? Were you like 12? It's a ASMR episode. Were you like 20? When did it start happening for you? Wow. Oh my God, this is the first intimate smartness ever. Is it? Okay. Well, I know, I, gosh, you know, what it was, okay. I was in a Christmas, I was in a pageant at church, a play. Really? I was playing. What's the nomination? Methodist. Okay. But like Northern Methodist. So like everyone is like just gray and of like Dutch descent. And, gray. You know, chalky skin. And we were doing a play, Daniel and the Lion's Den. Sure. And I believe I was playing Cyrus, King of Persia. This one I don't know so well. Yes. Yes. So you're playing Cyrus, that's the choice part. I forget that. Yeah, no, it's really good part. And I decided to do it in a British accent to make myself feel more comfortable. And those Methodists, they got to kick out. They thought it was a hilarious choice, yes? Yeah. They weren't offended. Because he's the King of Persia. Why would he have a British accent? No, no, I, well, I know I was doing a British accent and they were laughing and I, I just always liked to do different voices other than my own because my own, you know, you're hearing it, it's like. So it was a choice. It was a choice. It was a way to reach out. One of the things is there was a Methodist to your madness. But did you think it was going to be funny or were you doing it to like kind of protect yourself and then the laughter was a bit of a surprise or were you trying? That what you just said. Really, so it was a surprise. You were like, oh, if I kind of bend things a bit, A, it protects me and B, I get laughter and that could be nice social capital. Yes, exactly. Yes. Yes. And how old were we? I wanna say 10. 10. And, but there were always in, you know, growing up in my family, there were, everyone was doing voices. You had to do voices or you got kicked out. No, wait, so the family, you guys are, around the dinner table. Kicked out, yeah. No, I didn't have a brother. Where is this? Around the dinner table, you know, waking up, going to bed, just the voices, Long Island. People are funny people. What part of Long Island? You know, the North Shore. The North Shore. Like what we're talking about. Suffocate, we're talking Suffocate. We're talking Suffocate, right? Nassau, Nassau. Yeah, people are washed. Nassau, Nassau. Yeah, very good. What about you? Oh, he's all the way. You were talking like Douglisten? What are we talking about? No, not quite Douglisten. Did you see that documentary about that guy who killed all those people? Hey, Kate, hold on one second. Yeah, we have Sean. The Gilgo Beach guy? Yes, yes. I just wanted him. It was crazy. Quick hot take from Sean on the documentary Cruiser Crime series. It was unbelievable. Hey Sean, why don't you mention the mass murderer? Anything else from 2022? You want to hit the audience too? Uh-huh. How about Barbie? Have you seen that? Hey, that Ted Bundy. How about Barbie? Now, what about that weird Barbie? I'd love to go for it. Yeah, by the way, Kate was in Barbie. She was fantastic. Wait, what? Did she play weird Barbie? Stupid ass. Back to you, Kate. We growing up, you know, our big thing. Oh, well, take it back down. No, no, sorry, gosh. The big thing growing up. I mean, the microphones, my mouth is. No, no, it's right there. You don't need to throw. I'm licking the microphone. I feel like I don't need to project. No, you don't. The big thing growing up was the Amy Fisher, Joey Butifuco incident. Joey Butifuco was my grandfather's auto mechanic. No way, no really. And it was exciting because it was ours. Yeah, of course. It was Long Island to a T. And you know, I didn't know. Was your grandfather deposed? Was he deposed? Was your grandfather deposed? I suppose not. Mm-hmm. He would have said, but we, it was just, we, you know, and my friends and I, we would play, we would play that. We would play, we would enact the saga. Oh, really? And I didn't realize at the time that Amy Fisher was being trafficked. Amy Fisher was being trafficked? Oh yeah, you didn't know that? No, of course not. I didn't know that either. I mean, not of course. She was 17, he was 35. It was, you know, yeah, she was being trafficked. From Suffolk to NASA. Well, there's a ton of traffic. Yeah, especially, especially as you get into Great Neck. If you're, if you're on the Northern Parkway, forget it. Will, what do you, you know your stuff? Yeah, I do. I'm showing off you. You've been on the Meadowbrook, man. What is this? Of course I've been on the Meadowbrook. I'm not the main actor. You're from there? What is this? I said, well, I'm on Long Island right now. Yep. Wow. We'll be right back. This is a paid ad by BetterHelp. You know, you've heard me talk a lot about my mom and how funny she was and how much we love her, but boy was she a huge inspiration to me. She gave me the tools I needed for the work ethic I have and the funny bone in my body. She's one of the best human beings, if not the best human being I've ever known. Women deserve to be celebrated, but we should also recognize that many women carry emotional weight at work, in relationships, in families, and in the roles they play for others. Whatever you're navigating, career expectations, parenting, caregiving, or more, Therapy with BetterHelp can help you check in with yourself, unpack what's feeling heavy, and build healthier pathways forward. 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There you are, you're done playing the cello, right? You've played Amy Fisher, you've played Mary Jo, you've played... No, I was Joey. Oh, you were Joey? You were Joey, but okay. Who was trafficking? You was okay, you was trafficking. Okay, so then what'd you do? You go to NYU, what'd you do? How'd you, what'd you do? Columbia, she's a smarty. I went there, but I, you know, I did the plays in high school. Sure. And I did sketch at Columbia, and then I auditioned, I went to an open call for a show, The Big Gay Sketch Show, which was on the now defunct logo network. That's right. And... These are the refs, they're very talented at that. Groundbreaking! This is an Italian critic we have stuck in the back of the theater. It's been in the process of getting thrown out for over 100 episodes. It's never, never gets old and never gets funny. Okay. Ha ha ha. Ha ha ha. Wait, so Big Gay Sketch Show, was that the... So that was the first thing I ever auditioned for, and I got it. Wow, you got it. And I thought... How old were you? I was 22, and I thought, well, this'll be easy. Sure. And then I learned it became clear that it was a difficult career. And so then I did UCB in New York, the Upper East Citizens Brigade Theater for many years. Was that 26 street days? Yes, exactly. And then I auditioned for what? Say again, what? I just wanna stop for one second here at UCB. We're on 26, we've got people coming in and out. Will probably, you didn't meet her there, Willie? I didn't see her there. I was there every Sunday night at Askat for about 12 years. I was so afraid to even go to Askat. Wait, what's the difference between Askat and UCB? But you know Askat. This is the Sunday night show that we used to go to. Yes, like an Infratracie, it's an improv show. And Ian Roberts used to do it. What is the difference between that and UCB? UCB's the theater. Askat was the Sunday night show, which was like a big, long Herald. The name of the show. Anyway, so you were too afraid to go to Askat, but were you on a comedy team or like with a... I did sketch and I did a lot of one woman shows. And I had... No, never. And I... But that involved a lot of like, I would have... I did one where I had to... It had a cake in it and a full rotisserie chicken and seven wigs. And so I would have to bring all the wigs and then I would stop at the Gristiti's grocery store above and buy a cake and a full rotisserie chicken and bring them down. And so I was lugging those days of... Those days were exciting days and just lugging a lot of props and wigs. I had a massed a collection of 45 or so wigs that were gross and had chicken juice in them. They got all chickeny and they got all cakey. But when you went back really quick, sidebar, I had an audition for In Living Color when I was like 21. So it was like break up, sidebar. Sean, go ahead. I had audition for In Living Color when I was 21 years old to replace quote, the white guy. This is what I'm writing, it was Jim Carrey. And I go in with a bag of tons of wigs and I sit down and the woman in the cast director sitting right across from me and I go through all these characters that I put together in like 24 hours. And at the end of it, not one laugh, not one laugh. And she goes, wigs are fun, aren't they? Oh, fuck. And that's it. Oh, Shawnee. Wait a second. I had to hold, no. How did we not know this? I had no idea that you had a bag of characters to match a bag of wigs. I was just thinking, can we meet one? Yeah, just give us your best one, Shawnee. Just meet characters. Sorry, Kate, one sec, this is gonna be good. I want this too. Give us your best. I made them up in 24 hours. I don't even remember what they got. What the shit you doing? Hello? What's your go to? Good night, mate. There he is. There he is. Hello, mate. That guy's probably got severe bangs, right? Yeah. All right, back to you, Kate. Back to Kate. So Kate, you said that you said when you were in Big A Sketch Show you said, oh boy, this is really hard not what I thought it would be. What did you mean by that? What was hard? Oh, just being a comedian, being an actor. Auditioning, stuff, getting jobs. Very, very difficult and finding your voice and developing material. This is a life long craft, practicing the craft. I thought I was naive and it turned out to be a whole thing but glad. It's hard. It's not easy to navigate. It's harder to navigate than the Van Wick between four and six, am I right? Oh, yeah. Oh, man. Hey. Am I right? Are we talking about the Van Wick or what? Whoa. Kate. You take the Southern state all the way, what do you do? I'm not a maniac, but I will sometimes think the Bell Parkway, I'm not lying. From JFK, I'll take the belt. Oh, the belt's great, but you can't put a semi truck on the belt. You can't put a semi truck on the belt and then I'll take the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel. True, oh my God. No, but really you take the LIE all the way out? Obviously I take the LIE, I'm not a fucking maniac. Well, I don't know you. At some point you're switching. Kate, the plan going to Columbia, the plan going to Columbia since you majored graduated with a degree in theater was to be an actor as you're living, correct? This was how you're gonna feed yourself. No, I did not, I never in my wildest dreams imagined that that was possible. I can't believe that you're a smart person by virtue of going to Columbia. You majored in theater, you come out with a degree there. How were you planning, you were gonna attack to a completely different industry to feed yourself and provide shelter? My plan. The summer I graduated from college, my plan was that I was going to dress up as Pippi Longstocking and sell popsicles in Union Square. And my gimmick would be that I would be dressed as Pippi Longstocking. And so everyone would buy my popsicles. So that was my professional plan that summer. Great markup, tension on popsicles. I also was really wanting to teach English in Romania or one of the Balkan states. Or Romanian in England. Yes. Wait, wait, so you didn't imagine it? I find that so, I mean, you must have known that even Sean Hayes thought he could make it in show business. With his wigs. I got one on now. I never did I ever think that that was possible, no. Okay, so how did the audition for SNL happen then? You were at UCB, you did like Lindsey Shookas came down and saw you, what happened? I was doing a showcase in LA and I, they invited me to audition and then I did. And how did that audition go? You were very nervous, I would imagine. I was horrifically nervous. I was going to The restroom often. The restroom often. No, I was horrendously nervous, but then Bobby Moynihan, I guess maybe had seen me at UCB doing a one woman show and he came up to me and he said, hey, you're funny. And then I could breathe and that was it. So I do credit him with everything. Giving you a little prop up right beforehand. No, but seriously, like, you know, just when someone reaches out to you in the dark, here she comes, you know, and some, all it takes is one. Get it. Because when someone has the kindness to see you, preach it, then you get a little bit taller and you can fly. Yeah, we're gonna be right back. And they flew. No, but no, if he had not done that, honestly, I would be in Romania. And they received you well. Was it, was there generous laughter and warmth from the people in the dark? I heard some titters, mild titters, which was so encouraging because I had heard that there would be dead silence. So I was prepared for dead silence. And then when I got a single titter, I thought, okay, I'm flying. But I had also practiced it a lot. Like I like to wing stuff. I don't know about you guys, but that I thought. Have you ever listened to the shout out there? And we heard the shout out. I'm all out of questions. Now, do they, they don't let you know on the spot there, right? Do they call you? Does your agent call you? Are we represented at that moment by an agent? What, how did it all come together? I don't think I did at that point have represented. I think I had, no, that's not true. I did, I did have, I did have an agent and a manager at that point. Bless them. And so, and so you get the call, you're related, you're nervous, you go, you go to, you go, what was the first day like over there at SNL? Was it what you thought it might be? Who? It was, I got guys, I just was really, really nervous. Yeah, sure they all were. Oh, well, so the thing was, it was just me. I was hired alone. What? Five, at the last five episodes of a season. Oh my God. So I just, it was like, here's your computer and bless them, I had known a few folks there from UCB who rescued me from the choppy, choppy waters of my own nervousness and really helped me out. Were you writer or performer? Performer. Performer, right out of the gate. I just want to say, like with that audition, like I practiced so many times. I must have said that out loud 50,000 times and I felt okay about it because I had done that. But usually I'm winging it. I feel like the performers that really stand, I mean, you tell me, because I only hosted once, I've never been a cast member, but from what I see is the people that really stand out on a center night live really do their homework and really work on characters or the dialogue. Because a lot of the times I can't see you reading the cards. Like you're so in it, I don't see you reading the cards. A lot of people, I do see reading cards. And both, you know, everybody does both, but is that any of that true that you memorize a lot of the stuff as opposed to relying the cards? You personally? I cannot memorize dialogue. I, whatever ability I ever had left with my reliance on those cue cards and now I cannot memorize. And I forget, I'm just, I can't remember stuff anymore. I'm not gonna give another shout out to Wally. We've done it too many times on this show, so I'm not gonna do it. I'll do it. But he is an incredible card. He is an incredible, no, we love cards. Wally. A card artist. Do you miss it, Kate at all? I do. I miss the people. I miss Wally. I miss Jenna and Chris, the stage manager so much. I miss all of my friends. I miss Lorne, Michaels, and yes, I miss it. I miss being able to participate in commenting on current events. But I also am so happy to be going to bed at 10.30, which is when I would normally go to bed. Yeah, right, right, right. Did it get harder or easier as your talent, confidence, popularity increased? You'd think it would get easier, but maybe it gets harder because you know people are watching you. Expectation. It was a lot of fun. It was always hard and always fun. Yeah. And I... It's the way people often describe Sean, you know that, right? Yeah. Yeah. Often hard. Always, always hard and always fun. Always. Always hard and always fun. Always hard and always fun. That's me. That was his... That was his handle in high school, I think. I mean, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It was hard. I know, sorry, it's just like, It's just a fucking crap shoot over here, Katie. Look, we don't wanna take you down memory lane, but we have to because we wanna get to know you. We wanna know. Let's shuttle all the way through SNL now. Let's get to the end of SNL. Let's bundle it. We make the decision to move on. Frightening, but great success right out the door. And now you're flying high, but I bet it was a little nerve-wracking at the beginning, right? Oh, just, I don't like change. And so it was just terrible. I just, I hate goodbyes, I hate change. And so it was not a decision made lightly and I was just so sad. I just was so sad. And really do miss everybody that I worked with because it's a beautiful, it's such a family and it's wonderful. And I... It's like Olive Garden, that place, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Good, like Olive Garden. But then I wanted to, when you're there, you are eating breadsticks. Plus they do have also like unlimited bread. What about, were you writing books at wall you were doing this? Where does the writing come from? Oh, that was just, that was something that I started doing to when I like wasn't at SNL, I just, I always loved, I love characters. I love big hair and I love funny names. Sashimi. And we will be right back. And now back to the show. Can I ask you a serious question? Yeah. What about, what about... What the fuck are you saying? Yeah, I gotta come in, I gotta get in there. So the big gay sketch show, you were obviously gay and out because you're on a show called the big gay sketch show. But then when you went into SNL live, did you have, were you out and proud or was it something you struggled with keeping a secret or am I an idiot and you were out and I just didn't know or was it that planning back then? Oh, bless your heart, bless your heart. No, I was out, I was, it was on the internet. Okay, great. So it must be true. It was on the internet in 2006. So there it was and I'm glad, I'm glad it was because... No pun, no pun on the glad thing. Mm-hmm. I'm glad it's a LGBTQ organization. Because it was already done and I, so I, you know, I am a coward and I don't know if I would have had the courage to do it if I had not already done it. I would have, I would have had to. But then did you, did you, did my Wikipedia research accurate? Did you, you confirmed all when you gave Ellen an award and thanked her for blazing the trail of kicking the door down? Question? I did, I think it was pretty obvious the whole time. I did give Ellen that award, yes. Okay. And... Wickey really framed that as a pivotal moment. Wow, okay, okay. I thought I was gay before that, but that's cool. No, that's interesting. No, they're trying to claim it. Beyonce was at my table that night. Beyonce? Yes, and she was wearing a dress that was so... Nice, nice shot. The shoulders were so tall. And I don't know how she saw to her left or to her right. Oh, wow. I guess she didn't need to. She was, it was so resplendent. She was so, I couldn't look at her. Well, the confidence to just know that you only need to look forward, that really speaks to a level of confidence. You're not worried about what's on either side. It's all smooth sailing. It's, everything's wide open, wider than the Grand Central Park and it's a great Monday at 10 p.m. Just nothing. It's great, it's great. These callbacks, you gotta keep your knees bent, Kate. He'll keep coming. Do you think, do you think... It's so stupid. I mean, before it turns into the Northern State, sure. Obvious, obviously. Obvious. Now, do you think that... The tri-barrow is my favorite bridge. I don't know about you. I do, I like the tri-barrow. Not the GWB. No. Trash. That's way too far north. What's in that called Cuomo now? You know what's kind of underrated is the Queensborough. I love, I also love the Queensborough. The Queensborough Bridge is pretty good. Also referred to as the Midtown, or Bridge, or the 52nd Street Bridge? No, never referred to as that. So Kate, I don't know what he's up in. He's up in Midtown. It's the one that MPs out right there. I can talk parkways with you all day, Will. I really could. This is fun stuff. You love the Cross Bronx. Expressway? Yeah. Oh, I do like the Cross Bronx. And what is the name of the Polish bridge, Kajanowski or whatever? Kajanowski. Kajanowski. Kajanowski Bridge that's on the BQE. Yeah, but wait, she's got the first word. Oh, is that right? Yeah. She's got the first name, you've got the last name. Oh, I'm sorry, this Kajanowski is into Greenpoint. Am I thinking of the wrong bridge? No, I think you're thinking of the wrong one. Say it one more time. Kajanowski. Will, you know what I'm talking about? Help me out. It's all lit up now. They got nice colored lights on it. Reach in and rescue me. Oh, oh, oh, oh, wait. Is it not a bridge? It is a bridge. But it's an inter Brooklyn bridge though, right? This is chaos. Yes, yes, yes. Or in a four wheel slide here on the Kisyskios. This is pure chaos, you guys. Hey, you know, you don't care here on my question list. No, you're right, it's the Kisysko Bridge. No, that's on the BQE. Sure. That's the Kisysko. That's the one that's on the BQE, the Kisysko Bridge. Thank you, because I thought I had to cost my marble. You're right, when you come off, anyway. All right, so guys. On the Pulaski, where, you know, I was there all year long. Let's take a look at the live track of traffic. If we could, we got some of the swimmers chopper up in here. Get me on the Veritons. By the way, a little sidebar here. I'd like to start a side hustle. I'd like to see Will Arnett host our night live. I would too, man. You never have, Will? I know, would you love to see. Jesus, I thought it would be perfect. What about for the movie coming out? Yes, for the movie coming out. It's been too long. Who's running things over there now? Lindsay, is she still there? No. No? Well, whoever is in there. Let's get Arnett over there. At least as a musical guest. It's too much, the history is too storied. You don't even have anything that they need. No, they love that over there. Makes it for a great story. Anyway. The bongos, Will, and just play the music. Kate, if you couldn't be... Who told you about the bongos? I gave you those. Hey, if you couldn't... You did give me those. Kate, if you weren't a New York Times bestselling author or America's sweetheart on the TV or film, let's not forget about the film jobs, what would you be doing? Carpentry. Truly? Truly. You and Nick Offerman. Yeah. Really? And John Stewart, they say. No, it's a thing that, yeah, folks are doing carpentry and so am I, and I'm doing it and that's what... But I always said, I have always said... I know you have. That I would make cabinets, that I would wanna make cabinets. It's true. And... You threatened the world with that. No, with the whole Wikipedia it starts with that. I've said that and now I have made a cabinet. Is it true? Is it real? Yes, I have. Do you do an Amish style with no nails? No. Not that good. I'm not a carpenter. It sounds like we're upstate when we're making cabinetry. Sure thing. Sure. So you got like a handsome old farm, like a barn up there that you've kind of refurbished. It's fine. Sure, no, but it's good. I've got a garage and I got a bunch of stuff in there. Tools. Bunch of stuff going on, yeah. So that's my new... So when I... Workshop, you got a workshop in the garage? Yeah, I got a workshop. Yeah. Wait, truly. You got a workshop? You've got a bench and you got a bunch of power tools and things like that. I bet this is fun to buy. I do, I have a lot. You love a Home Depot? I go to Lowe's. I have a local Lowe's. And yeah, that's what I... So when I left SNL, I needed to know that I was jumping to something which was making cabinets. And that's what I have done in my spare time. And you've just done the one so far? I've done a bunch of stuff. Okay, you don't need to scream. What's your favorite... What are you most proud of the cabinet? Lowe's, we nailed it. Sorry, go ahead. That was just a quick word from the gang over at Lowe's that just came through on my text. I'm so sorry. I'm fucking ashamed of this guys. I'm sorry, I just made 4,200 bucks. Wait, Kate, do you have a certain thing in woodworking that you feel like your best at? You know? Trim, molding, peeling. Keep it clean, please. Okay, sorry, different. Sorry, okay. Hey, Kate, by the way, this book, so I have a five year old. Is this book gonna be appropriate for my five year old? Okay, so the books, okay. So I was joking before about the book being about a diver named Natalie. That's not true. The book is the second in a... It's the second book in a series of books called the Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science, okay? And it's a middle grade novel, which is for ages, you know, eight to 14. Harry Potter is a middle grade novel, heard of it. Okay. Anyway, so... I went at it. Raul Dahl was a middle grade author, heard of him? Yeah. Any horse. So this, no, so I started writing this book. I came up with this idea with these characters like 10 years ago. And whenever I wasn't at SNL, I would be writing this thing. And then, so when I finished at SNL, finally I had time to complete. It would happen to when she starts talking fast to you guys? The novel. She's never alone. And so the secrets of the Purple Pearl is the second in the Millicent Quibb series. And it's about a mad scientist who starts a school for girls in a repressive turn of the century town. And then in the second one, the Purple Pearl, you know, they're at a hotel and they're having an adventure and they're looking for a Purple Pearl. No, I do like those, I do like those books. Middle. What? The middle, what's it called? Middle grade. Middle grade. Middle grade, middle grade books are very important. I still read them. I read Harry Potter when it first came out in the 90s because I was like, what's going on with all this? I want to kind of know. In between your Holocaust books? In between. In between. Any questions on World War II bringing to the willy-aye? That's a true story. You know what, I'm not reading World War II stuff anymore. Oh, what did you, what did you move on to? Some sort of a. I just finished. Who knows the ending? I do, that was the, I just read this book about the Siege of Mecca that was a couple of weeks ago. And then I read Freedom by Jonathan Frenzen. That was really good. It's a little, it's older, but I just read it recently. That's fiction though, yeah, Frenzen? Yeah, yeah. So it's really sort of brought to my horizon recently. Thank you. Were you writing, were you writing when you were like at SNL and stuff, or did you have designs on writing literature in this way? Yes, I wanted to. I really, I wanted to be a YA, no, a middle grade novelist. Oh, why? Okay, so middle grade. So the thing about YA is it's like monsters and making out, love that. Middle grade is fantasy. It's discovering your identity. It's grappling with questions of do you want to be, how do you wanna appear in the world? Who are you? What are you for? Right, right. What are you fighting for? What are you willing to sacrifice to fight for it? These are the questions of middle grade. And so I'm very drawn to the genre. Also, these books can be really funny and people, characters can have really good, funny names. And I think names and hair and funny voice are the most important that does a character make. Now, what about the illustrations then in these books? How involved with you with that are you? I would say that I was involved. The illustrator is a beautiful artist named Alfredo Casaris and he did such a beautiful art. I did have like ideas of what the stuff, because it's imagination. And I could see it in my mind. So I made little doodles and then he made beautiful art. Right, so you had some notes and it was Alfredo amenable to your notes or was that an interesting creative negotiation? He was a beautiful collaborative process and it was wonderful. I described and he created. Kate McKinnon, it's a Monday and you have to talk to us, Donkeys. And then you hang up, you leave the publishers and you go to the house, whatever. Donkeys, Kate. Okay. You're some of my favorite comedians. Yeah, what's the rest of your day? Why are your eyes closed? You keep closing your eyes when you say that. Kate, when you leave the publisher's office, where do you go? What do you do on a Monday like today? Had you not been doing this, what are you doing? Well, it's hot in New York. She's going to Union Square to sling popsicles, right? No, but I mean, are you going to the movies? Are you going to a bookstore? Are you going for lunch? What are you watching reality TV? What are you doing? This is the thing we want to know about Kate McKinnon. Okay, let's get inside the mind. What are you doing? I do, well, I'm going to be doing some stone masonry later, but that's another story. I do watch a lot of reality television. Oh, what's your favorite? Wait, are you a Love Island girl? Or are you an alone girl? I have done all of that. Try Outlast on Netflix. Outlast? Jason Scho. Yeah, listen, I mean, you know, I'm totally fine. Oh, you did that? Yeah, it's fun. It's like a combo between alone and survivor. I really like that. That's an aggregate show. Yeah, that's cool. That's an aggregate joint. Yeah, yeah, we got a new one coming. Wow, you got your hands in a lot of pies. Yeah, well, that got him in so much trouble. Obviously, back in the day. So then, so you're going to sort of- You're licking cherries off your stuff. Wow. So wait, so we're driving back upstate in your Volvo stage? The Volvo stage. Prius. And a Prius. Prius hybrid. Okay, good for you. And you'll be there by, you'll be there- You'll be there for four, 35. Well before dinner. Well, that depends on the traffic on the G-Dub. Are you a cooker or do you like to order in? I cook every day three times a day. This is an honest podcast. Is that true? I cook every day three times a day, I must. What's the most, what's the most, what's the thing that you cook the most frequently? Yeah, what you go to for yourself. Yeah, you go to. What you go to. I cook, I've become a gardener, big gardener. And I- You got veggies, you got veggies. So I make, I just chop up whatever I've got. And I just- Bust a primavera. I do it, yeah. You can plant parmesan here. Yeah, that's what I do. Oh my God. A melange, a vegetable melange over whatever I got. Listen, I got a question for you and I want you to be honest with me on this. Yeah, yeah. Okay. White stone or Throg's neck bridge. If you're going to Westchester- To get off Long Island? I'm just saying, yeah, to get off Long Island. Throg's. Be fucking honest, no, be honest. Throg's neck, Throg's neck. Throg's neck, Throg's neck. Throg's neck. Oh, shoot, it'll land slide. Hey, you know what? We're gonna take it out on a high note right there. I don't touch the white stone. Kate McKinnon, you're one of the all time greats. All time greats. You're a fucking comedy, fucking heavyweight. I swear to God. You know your way around the Tri-State area. Oh my God. You can coax a laugh at a people. She can hammer a nail, she can pick a carrot. You know how to coax a laugh. You're the best. I can pick a carrot. Yeah. And I think you could too. By the way, you just bought yourself a little discount. Next time you go into Lowe's, that's guaranteed. Yeah, they nailed it. Lowe's, we nailed it. And you know what else? Kate, you nailed it today, huh? You did nail it. Oh, thank you boys. I know you don't like abys. So when you're done, you can just slam that laptop and just blow us a little kiss and we'll pretend it's not over. And we love you. Yeah, I love you all. Can't wait to see you again. Did you get the script yet for Office Christmas Party 2? Just check your inbox, okay? We'll see you on set. I will. I thank you. I thank you. I'd like to play a different carrot. No, no, no. Yeah, we're all gonna rotate. I'd like to play a desk. Oh, so you two knew each other from that? A little bit. We. Yeah, we go so far back. We go back. Barry the lead much? We go back. No, I don't like talking about my own stuff. It's Blackrabbit, September 18th on Netflix or Outlast if you like reality. Do you guys shoot that in Hiram, Georgia? Is that what you shot at Office Christmas Party? Well, all I know is a lot of night shoots on a soundstage. Thanks everybody. Love you, mean it. Thank you so much. Bye, Kate. We'll see you soon, Kate McKinnon. You were very gentle with me. Everybody read the purple pearl. The purple pearl. And get ready for the next bit of acting from our miss here, cause she's the tip top. Thank you so much. All right. The great Kate McKinnon guys. Thank you for doing the show, Kate. All right, catch you later. Bye bye. Bye, slam it. Are you just leaving it? There it is. Yeah. Well, now that is, it's just a nice person there with incredible levels of talent and creativity all packed in one brain. She's made so many people laugh. Yup. You know, on that wiki page, they've got all of her impressions listed that she did on Saturday Night Live. Incredible. It must be like 50 or 60 names there. And I didn't even start clicking on them cause I would have been late for the record, but good Christ. Do you guys do any impressions? True. Hey, Arnett, stop trying to Google a good bye. I'm not. I got one. Do you really? All right, keep it, keep it warm. Any impressions from either one of you? Or actually, Sean, we've heard your British cab driver, was it, earlier? Yeah, something like that. Okay. Wait, what's an impression? An impression of like a famous person. Like, what about like... Remember, did you ever see that show? Take your time. Wait. Do you ever see that show, The Night Of? Do you ever see that show on HBO? The Night Of? Yes, yes, sure. And the older woman who played the prosecutor. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. What is her name? What's her name? She's such an incredible actor. Yes, she's so good. I used to imitate her. That's very good. All the time. And she was... Boy. We have to, I have it all on my shoulder here. Wait, by the way, you just reminded me of something. I saw over the weekend, Amy Madigan plays a character in a movie called Weapons. Oh, I wanna see that movie. This movie is so goddamn good. This guy, Zach Kregger, writer, director, holy shit, is he talented. I just want to see it. Julia Garner's into Josh Brolin's. This movie is so fricking good, you guys. I'm serious. It's incredible. No, I heard it's got 100% of rotten tomatoes. Amy Madigan plays somebody very disturbing and has got wigs and teeth and a voice. I'm all in. Oh my God, is it good? Wigs and a teeth, oh my God, I love wigs and teeth. It's no, is this thing on, but it'll do until it comes out. Okay? And Oscar's keeping things, what does it keep it, keeping it tight, keeping it right with Oscar? Let's ask Oscar, is that what it's called? Let's ask Oscar. No, it's actually called Good Night Oscar, but I wish it was called Good Bye Oscar. Oh, Lord help us. Cue the music. Smart. Nice. Smart. Nice. SmartLess is 100% organic and artisanally handcrafted by Michael Grant Terry, Rob Armjalf and Bennett Barbico. Smart. Nice.