Chiefs Heartbreak, SNL50, and Dinner Near Beyoncé | with Heidi Gardner

Summary

Casuals with Katie Nolan: Chiefs Heartbreak, SNL50, and Dinner Near Beyoncé Featuring Heidi Gardner

Release Date: February 13, 2025

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Introduction

In this episode of Casuals with Katie Nolan, host Katie Nolan welcomes comedian and Saturday Night Live (SNL) cast member Heidi Gardner. The conversation weaves through Heidi's passionate fandom for the Kansas City Chiefs, her experiences preparing for SNL50, and the unique intersections between sports and entertainment in her life.

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Katie’s Yap: The Importance of Dancing for Mental Health

At the beginning of the episode, Katie shares a personal reflection on the mental health benefits of dancing. She emphasizes how dancing serves as a therapeutic outlet, especially for those struggling with depression. Katie recounts a moment when dancing to a favorite playlist helped her feel better during a stressful time:

“I think we'll all be agreeing and believing what I have to say. And the thesis is we're not dancing enough.” [05:00]

Katie advocates for private dancing as a means to uplift one's mood without societal judgment, encouraging listeners to embrace movement as a form of self-care.

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Interview with Heidi Gardner

SNL50 Preparations and Experiences

Katie delves into Heidi's involvement with SNL50, the milestone 50th season of the iconic sketch show. Heidi discusses the logistical challenges and emotional excitement surrounding the special edition:

“Sunday's the show. Yeah. And Saturday is nothing. Recovery or between really big events.” [17:07]

She highlights the intense schedule, balancing rehearsals, live performances, and managing the pressures of being part of a cultural institution. Heidi shares anecdotes about her first week on SNL, including a memorable interaction with Beyoncé at an after-party:

“And then also, I think at the after party, I was just like, well, I've made it. And I'm at the SNL after party and the world is free now.” [49:34]

Chiefs Heartbreak: Navigating a Super Bowl Loss

Heidi opens up about the emotional rollercoaster of being a dedicated Chiefs fan, especially after the team’s unexpected loss in the Super Bowl. She articulates the deep connection and unwavering support she maintains despite the heartbreaking outcome:

“My job as a Chiefs fan is to love them completely. Absolutely. When they're down when they're up.” [18:32]

Heidi expresses frustration with negative narratives surrounding the team, defending star quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs' integrity:

“Patrick Mahomes is incredible and anybody that is like questioning his legacy is upsetting me.” [22:39]

She emphasizes the importance of positive fandom and the role it plays in supporting the team through thick and thin.

Interactions with Athletes on SNL

Heidi discusses her efforts to bridge her love for sports with her work on SNL, particularly her role in bringing athletes like Travis Kelce to host the show. She recounts the process of persuading producers to invite athletes who are not only talented but also personable and funny:

“I was a fan, and then I noticed or I saw Travis on award shows or bit parts and things, and I was like, oh, he's also really funny.” [42:14]

Heidi praises athletes like J.J. Watt and Peyton Manning for their ability to adapt and excel in a comedic setting, highlighting their professionalism and humor.

Personal Anecdotes and Superstitions

Heidi shares charming stories about her personal rituals and superstitions as a fan. From writing heartfelt messages to the Chiefs before every game to maintaining a collection of yellow wilted roses from past victories, her dedication is palpable:

“I'm manifesting amazing luck, love, and energy around you. I love you, Chiefs. You got this.” [69:06]

She also touches on how her mother's influence fostered her love for sports, viewing it as a powerful community connector.

Advice and Reflections

Heidi offers heartfelt advice to fellow fans and younger women experiencing their first major sports disappointment. She encourages embracing positivity and using sports as a means to connect and uplift one another:

“Just put on the headphones and try it one time. Just give it a shot.” [07:18]

She reflects on the similarities between the discipline of athletes and the resilience required in her demanding career, drawing inspiration from sports to navigate her challenges on SNL.

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Conclusion

The episode concludes with Katie and Heidi reflecting on the delicate balance between personal passion and professional obligations. Heidi expresses gratitude for her roles both on SNL and as a Chiefs fan, acknowledging the support from friends and the broader community.

Heidi’s genuine love for her team and her ability to maintain positivity in the face of adversity serve as inspiring takeaways for listeners. Katie wraps up by congratulating Heidi on her multifaceted achievements and wishing her success with the upcoming SNL50 festivities.

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Notable Quotes

• “We're not dancing enough.” — Katie Nolan [05:00]
• “Sunday's the show. Yeah. And Saturday is nothing. Recovery or between really big events.” — Heidi Gardner [17:07]
• “Patrick Mahomes is incredible and anybody that is like questioning his legacy is upsetting me.” — Heidi Gardner [22:39]
• “I'm manifesting amazing luck, love, and energy around you. I love you, Chiefs. You got this.” — Heidi Gardner [69:06]
• “Just put on the headphones and try it one time. Just give it a shot.” — Katie Nolan [07:18]

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Final Thoughts

This episode of Casuals masterfully intertwines the worlds of sports and entertainment, offering listeners an intimate look into Heidi Gardner’s life as both an SNL star and a passionate Chiefs supporter. Through candid discussions and heartfelt anecdotes, the episode underscores the universal themes of resilience, community, and the pursuit of joy.

Transcript

[DSW Advertiser]

Where'd you get those shoes? Easy. They're from dsw. Because DSW has the exact right shoes for whatever you're into right now. You know, like the sneakers that make office hours feel like happy hour, the boots that turn grocery aisles into runways, and all the styles that show off the many sides of you, from daydreamer to multitasker and everything in between. Because you do it all in really great shoes. Find a shoe for every you at your DSW store or dsw.com.

[Katie Nolan]

Hello, and welcome to Casuals, the podcast that's sports but not boring. It's sports, but, like, in a cool way. I'm Katie Nolan. I'm your host. Today on the show, we have a big guest. We got Heidi Gardner in studio. Very excited to talk to her. I. I feel really bad because much like our Stavros episode, I just think our batting average isn't great here in terms of booking someone who's a fan of a team, and then right before they come on the show, their team loses in a big way. But we do have Heidi Gardner, big Chiefs fan, in studio today. We're going to talk to her about the Super Bowl. We're going to talk to her about SNL50 and all the exciting stuff happening around that. Um, and, yeah, that's pretty much it. A quick reminder, if you want to reach out to us on the interwebs or on your phone. Our emails, Casuals with Katie Nolan, gmail.com. our voicemail box is 646-801-0043. And on IG and TikTok, we are at Casuals, the podcast. But of course, as we always do, we start this podcast off with a yap where I just yap at you. And now, here's the deal. I'm gonna break the fourth wall a little bit here. It's Wednesday where I am, and it's Thursday where you are. So today's yap had to be a little bit evergreen. It had to just be kind of something that I was thinking and feeling. And I don't know if everybody does this, but I certainly do. I keep notes apps of any thought I've ever had. They're just indexed in my notes app. So I guess, first of all, let me say, when I die, publish the drafts, you know, go through, find the good stuff, put it out, monetize. But I had an old little yap that's like, half formulated, and it's. It's a silly idea, but I really do think by the end of it, we will all be Agreeing and believing what I have to say. And the thesis is we're not dancing enough. There's not enough opportunity for adults to dance. I think. Okay, so I saw. Let me just pull in all the disparate thoughts I've had about this into one big pile and then we'll look that pile and we'll decide if it was a good yap. I saw an article in February, Dancing may be better than other exercise for improving mental health. Now look, that is written for me. That article title is written for me. A lady who's constantly told she needs to work out more if she wants to be less depressed and who looks at the gym and cries. It's just not a motivating place for me. It doesn't make me feel good or happy. It makes me feel sad. Sad and bad. And you know, if you have depression, sad and bad is like you're supposed to try to go away from that. So I understand the hurdle of like, if you work out, you will eventually feel better. But that mount, that molehill looks like a mountain to me. But this was saying that actually dancing is better than regular old exercise. I don't know if you know this about your girl, but she was a dance minor in college dance. Used to be, believe it or not, my entire personality. I was a big dance's life. The rest is just details. I had that shirt. It was kind of the whole thing about me. So I was like, is this real? And then I thought about it actually. The night before the election, I had made this like playlist of songs that feel good. And I put on these headphones. I got some of those. Well, Dan got those Apple, you know, the ones that aren't connected to anything. I'm usually a wired headphones girly, but I got those. Dan got those as a gift from Bert Kreischer for going on his tour. He got those like Apple over the head wireless. And I put those on and I put on this playlist that I liked and I like, did chores while dancing around the house. And guys, I'm telling this was the night before the election and I somehow slept like a baby that night. I somehow was like, I felt happy and okay. And then I was thinking about it and I was just like, we as a society, where would we be dancing? Where is dancing happening? Because it used to be the club, right? That's where you would go out and you'd dance. But I'm not, I don't know about you, I'm not going to the club anymore. You know, stuff about the club sucked. Like wearing high heels and having to keep your friend from talking to that guy for too long. But the dancing part of it was sick. But now that's gone. Weddings, I guess you can dance at, but you have to be mindful of, you know, someone's grandma. You don't want to pop. You don't want to both pop and lock it. And you certainly can't drop it in front of somebody else's grandmother. You don't know. You don't know what she's seen, what she's survived, what hardships she's been through. I guess another place you could dance, if you've got a husband who has friends who date 20 year olds, you could go to one of their Halloween parties. You can dance there, they'll have a dj. Unfortunately, that does happen a little pretty often for me, but I don't imagine everybody else has that experience. So I, I just feel like as a society, there's nowhere to dance and just like dance because dancing feels embarrassing, but it is, like not doing it for other people. You do it for you. You do it to like, feel the music. And like, that's. I'm like, we're not a video podcast and we will not be posting this clip. But as I'm talking, I'm like wiggling and still going like, I, I don't want to be perceived. So I guess what I'm saying is we need to be dancing more. And if there's no like, societal solution, which I know we got bigger fish to fry, I think I. I'm recommending that if you are sad like me, on just a kind of a constant basis, if your baseline is sadness, you should get a cheap pair or go on tour with Bert Kreischer. Get a cheap pair of wireless headphones, make a playlist of songs specifically that you're like, that's a fun little groovy. And then just like, when nobody's home, go for it. And I mean, go for it. Don't like, care about what it looks like. You're in your own little music video. Just go for it. And I think you'll be surprised. I think you'll find that it actually rules.

[Chris]

Katie, there's an extremely important question here.

[Katie Nolan]

What's that?

[Chris]

What's on the playlist?

[Katie Nolan]

Oh, I can tell. I mean, these are just. This was just. It was like a product of the times. It was like the songs that I liked at the moment.

[Chris]

No, no hedging. No couch.

[Katie Nolan]

No, I'm not. This is. I was just saying Is this deeply personal? It was just a lot of groovy songs. Don't worry about my playlist. Maybe I can. Maybe what we can do. Maybe we'll crowdsource a good dance through your house playlist. Look, I know this is embarrassing and silly, but I'm worried about our mental health. And I know men especially aren't out here dancing. I know you're not out here dancing. And I don't. I'm not even necessarily saying do it in public because I don't want the ramifications for your careers or whatever is going to happen when you finally let you know what's inside of you out. But I think, like, in your houses, maybe you're laughing at me, maybe you're calling me crazy, but just put on the headphones and try it one time. Just give it a shot. And then see, because I really just think we are a society. We are people who are built to move like that. And our society does not encourage it.

[Chris]

Isabella, one seed for dancing around your house song.

[Katie Nolan]

What? She. You think Isabella knows what one seed means?

[Chris]

Is that a sports only term?

[Brady]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

What do you mean, is it a sports only term? When else are we seating?

[Chris]

I don't know.

[Heidi Gardner]

I thought it was.

[Katie Nolan]

I like any, like, Azealia Banks. Okay.

[DSW Advertiser]

As a dance song.

[Katie Nolan]

Okay. Okay.

[Brady]

Chris, I'm not dancing.

[Katie Nolan]

Yes, you are. That's the point of the yap. You have to dance.

[Brady]

Not me. The only time I will dance. Actually, as long as I'm dancing with my daughter, I will dance to anything. I'll dance to the Wiggles. I'll dance to whatever she's.

[Katie Nolan]

I will dance to anything. Names, children's songs. Songs.

[Brady]

Because that's what my daughter listens to.

[Katie Nolan]

Sure. But as your daughter gets older, once she wants. Once she turns 25 and dates a comedian, okay, she's gonna have a lot of different things she wants to dance to.

[Brady]

Then I will dance to those songs. But not with her.

[Katie Nolan]

I guess probably for the best. Yeah.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah. Why?

[Katie Nolan]

Brady, you seem to. You're asking the question because you want to answer it.

[Chris]

I mean, I have answers all time. Like, top seed for dancing around your house alone is September by Earth, wind and fire.

[Katie Nolan]

This is. You're so old. You're actually not even, like, physically that old. But your soul, you are. You're an old soul in a backwards world.

[Chris]

Any generation, any person, give them 10 notes of September.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah.

[Chris]

And they will be moving their ass.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah. It's true. It's true. You can really cut a rug to anything. It's Just about what resonates with you internally. What song makes you go like, ooh, I'm insert any emotion other than sad, and then just like, rock with that for a little bit. Anyway, I think you should try it. I think everybody should try it. Chris, you gonna try it?

[Brady]

Fine, I'll try it.

[Katie Nolan]

Just one day, no one's home and you just. Or you're in a room by yourself and you just headphones and like, you cannot do the thing where you have to like pop your headphone half off to listen if anybody's gonna. You have to be fully immersed. You have to fully immerse yourself in it. Nothing matters in that moment but you and the music.

[Chris]

Hugh Grant in love, actually.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah. Yes. Except not that it's a bad example because he gets caught and that's. Then he's embarrassed. That's. You have to live without the fear of that.

[Chris]

You have to chase Matt Smith in Morbius.

[Katie Nolan]

I don't know that one, but I. But I believe you dance. I really do. I know you guys are laughing, but in 10 years, when the world's over, you're gonna look back and go, sure wish I used those wireless headphones while the technology existed.

[Brady]

Truly, I'm jealous of people who love to dance and who don't care about what people think of their dance moves.

[Katie Nolan]

We all care. Everybody cares.

[Brady]

But enough that you still dance regardless in public.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah.

[Brady]

This has been a big issue for me in my life and in my relationship.

[Katie Nolan]

A big issue?

[Brady]

Yeah. Cause I don't dance at weddings or anything like that. I just do not enjoy the physical act of dancing.

[Katie Nolan]

What don't you like?

[Brady]

But I just feel uncomfortable moving my body in that sort of way. I don't know what to do. I don't know what the next step is when it comes to dancing.

[Katie Nolan]

I want to go here to there.

[Brady]

But I don't know, there's just. And here's what made it worse, right? The first time I was at a wedding with my now wife. She tried to convince me to get up on the dance floor and dance. And I didn't want to do it because I was self conscious, but she convinced me. I went up and then my father in law, my now father in law said, that's not how you do it.

[Heidi Gardner]

And tried to teach me how to dance.

[Brady]

I'm like, all right, that's just scarf. Like you think you're helping me, but this is actually much worse. And now I know never want to do it again.

[Katie Nolan]

Oh, no.

[Brady]

Like I said, the only time since then that I've danced at a wedding, was at a friend's wedding with my daughter, and she was on the dance floor for, like, the entire night, like, three hours. She was one and a half at the time. She went nuts. It was awesome. And I actually danced because everyone was looking at her. I was standing next to her, but everyone was looking at her. I knew they weren't looking at me, and that that was what I liked.

[Chris]

Is this a cultural issue, or can you not blame that on this one?

[Brady]

No, it's definitely not a cultural issue. This is. This is a me issue.

[Chris]

2024 was a big year for Australians dancing in.

[Brady]

Yes, it was. But at least she.

[Katie Nolan]

Oh, of course. Reykjava.

[Brady]

Yeah. She might not have been fantastic at that point in time, but she was confident enough to actually participate in that.

[Chris]

She had dance around your house energy.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah.

[Brady]

You see how happy she was. She was enjoying herself until all the backlash.

[Katie Nolan]

I feel like do it at home first. Don't necessarily bring it to the Olympics. Right. I'm not. I feel like now they're gonna be like, oh, Katie Nolan advocates for dancing. And everybody shows up to the Olympics and doesn't know what they're doing. Chris, I think you can find it. I really believe. Because it sounds like your experience of dancing is always in public. You've never experienced trying to dance alone. It's very different.

[Brady]

I'll sing alone. Like, I love singing on my own.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah, that's. But it's different. There's no articles about singing change in mental health. There's no articles about singing making you feel better and being better. Do you like exercising?

[Brady]

Yeah, I like going for runs. Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

See, I envy that. I don't. I wish. I hate hurts.

[Brady]

I like running.

[Katie Nolan]

I'm tired.

[Brady]

Chuck the earphones in. Listen to a podcast and.

[Katie Nolan]

Just a podcast and running.

[Brady]

Yeah, I don't listen to music when I. When I exercise. I listen to podcasts.

[Katie Nolan]

What?

[Brady]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

Huh.

[Brady]

I tried listening to music for a little bit, and I just. I got bored.

[Katie Nolan]

I need people that doesn't like music.

[Brady]

No, I love music.

[Katie Nolan]

Okay, good.

[Brady]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah. Okay.

[Brady]

But just not while I'm exercising. I listen to music in the car. Yeah, but not when I'm running.

[Heidi Gardner]

Have you ever.

[Katie Nolan]

Chris, why don't you just listen to music while you're in the shower and then groove a little bit? No, no. You're gonna get hurt. Don't dance. Don't. I'm trying to give him, like, ultra privacy, but that is a level of difficulty that I don't think our Chris Is ready for I. You can really hurt yourself busting a movie.

[Chris]

That is a young person's opinion who does not understand herniation.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Knees are crucial to your existence, and we can't be blowing them out in the shower because you were doing the scene from Step Up. But, you know, I just. You're never alone. You're never alone. You never have alone time.

[Brady]

Not really. Does dancing in a circle pit count.

[Katie Nolan]

In a circle pit?

[DSW Advertiser]

For sure.

[Katie Nolan]

Like when you're at, like, a wedding and then like.

[Brady]

Oh, you mean like a metal concert where more than a mosh, where everyone, you know, they.

[Heidi Gardner]

They.

[Brady]

They part ways and then they make a big circle in the middle, and then you just go around and swing your arms and I guess that counts. Yeah, I've been in a couple of those before in my life. Not for a few years, but that sort of counts. You haven't been since.

[Katie Nolan]

Is it moving? Is it. Is it experiencing music through your body? It.

[Brady]

It's just.

[Katie Nolan]

It's.

[Brady]

It's essentially just fighting.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah. So I don't think. If you would just said yes to what I said, then. Yes. But if it's just fighting, then I.

[Brady]

Think no fighting while music is going on.

[Katie Nolan]

Okay. No, still, that's. That is fighting with a soundtrack.

[Brady]

Okay, Gotcha.

[Katie Nolan]

Well, I think. I still think, look, the yap wasn't ready. You know, it was like, I was gonna cook that for future, and then we had to do a Wednesday, and here we are. So whatever. I think we should be dancing more. I think you should dance privately, private dancer, just to music. I think it makes you feel. I think you'll think going into it, wow, this isn't gonna work on me. And then I think you'll find it does. So try it.

[DSW Advertiser]

Where'd you get those shoes? Easy. They're from dsw. Because DSW has the exact right shoes for whatever you're into right now. You know, like the sneakers that make office hours feel like happy hour, the boots that turn grocery aisles into run, and all the styles that show off the many sides of you, from daydreamer to multitasker and everything in between. Because you do it all in really great shoes. Find a shoe for every you at your DSW store or dsw dot com.

[Katie Nolan]

Okay, let's move on, because our guest today is a big one. Very, very excited to have her here. You may know her from SNL, where she's in her eighth season. She's been a cast member since 2017. She's a recurring guest star on Shrinking on Apple TV, which I have, to be honest, I've heard so much about but have not started yet, so don't spoil it for me. But I've heard it's very good. You've also probably seen her in super bowl ads. She's a spokeswoman for homes.com with Dan Levy. Ladies and gentlemen, joining us on Casuals, the biggest Kansas City Chiefs fan you may know, Heidi Gardner. Heidi, thank you so much for being here.

[Heidi Gardner]

Thanks for having me.

[Katie Nolan]

A very exciting week at snl.

[Heidi Gardner]

It is very exciting.

[Katie Nolan]

It's a concert Friday. What's the. And then Sunday is the show.

[Heidi Gardner]

Sunday's the show. Yeah. And Saturday is nothing. Recovery or between really big events.

[Katie Nolan]

Certainly a strange schedule for a show famously titled Saturday.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes, but this is our primetime. This is Sunday night. This is us. You know, we're famously known as not ready for prime time players. And Sunday, we get to be prime.

[Katie Nolan]

Time for the very first time 50 years later.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

God forbid. Three hours long.

[Heidi Gardner]

I just found that out. I was like, crazy. Well, that makes sense. That's 50 years. But I think I was thinking, too.

[Katie Nolan]

I mean, at first I saw the list and I was like, how are they gonna fit this all in? And then I saw three hours and I was like, well, that's too much. That's a long time to do comedy. Comedy marathon.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

So. But I'll. I'll be seated. Every single person who's ever done snl, I feel like, is going to be there.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

I have to start by apologizing to you because, and I'll be honest, we're a young podcast. We don't have a good track record in this. Your appearance was booked, and then the Chiefs lost the Super Bowl. We did this. Our very first guest. I don't know if you know Stavros at all, but he's a big Ravens fan. We booked him right before. And then they lost.

[Heidi Gardner]

And so now I know.

[Katie Nolan]

Clearly some sort of a curse.

[Heidi Gardner]

No.

[Katie Nolan]

But how are you feeling?

[Heidi Gardner]

Okay. I actually love that I get to talk about it. Cause I'm not really a trash talker in any way. And it's hard to, like, say how I feel because, you know, I was at the super bowl and my job as a Chiefs fan, well, I believe I've been one since I'm a baby. I'm from Kansas City. They have given me so much life in my life and so much happiness. Wins, losses. It's just what my family loves. So my job as a Chiefs fan is to love them completely. Absolutely. When they're down when they're up. As a fan, all I'm doing is sending love. Like the last three Super Bowls I have. Just when things were tight and it wasn't tight this time, even when they weren't tight.

[Katie Nolan]

Crazy.

[Heidi Gardner]

I start manifesting. I close my eyes, and I just start thinking about red and yellow confetti, and that's just where I'm at, and that's, like, my job. So that's all I was doing Sunday. I never got to see the red and yellow confetti, but I was just trying to stay positive. I was like, it was an amazing season. It was a crazy season. You know, the last game wasn't as tight as every. The 17 games prior to that. So I'd been trying to keep it positive. Now I am grieving, and I am starting to read articles, and I am. I'm starting just to get a little upset about the narrative.

[Katie Nolan]

And let's talk and let's talk about it first.

[Heidi Gardner]

Narrative. I just. I just want to call a few people out. Or not. Actually, I won't call one person out. Just at the beginning of the season, a lot of people were talking trash on the Eagles. I just want to say that they had a slow start.

[Katie Nolan]

Okay.

[Heidi Gardner]

And then. It is funny to see narratives change by the end. It's like, this was the greatest team of all.

[Katie Nolan]

We all knew it was coming. It was written in destiny. We all saw.

[Heidi Gardner]

These were the greatest players. People were. I was never talking trash on Hertz. People were talking trash on him. You know, like, he's incredible. He's always been incredible. He was incredible two Super Bowls ago. Fine. That one. I'm just. I'm just saying, Justin, narratives change.

[Katie Nolan]

Yes.

[Heidi Gardner]

As well as ours. Don't we know?

[Katie Nolan]

Yes.

[Heidi Gardner]

The other one that's bugging me are just a few quotes that were just like, chiefs didn't show up, didn't try. There's no one on that field, either team, either coach, that doesn't get to the super bowl and isn't like, this is the biggest stage of my life.

[Katie Nolan]

Can you imagine being like this again?

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

One of these again.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

I'm not even gonna try.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes. Like, that is just, like, lazy.

[Katie Nolan]

Yep.

[Heidi Gardner]

Lazy. Quote. I'm just frustrated. We were never the enemy. Like, we are not this evil empire that people think we are. Like, we are a team that. You know, my entire life before seven years ago was very up and down. You know, like, we had so many heartbreaks, and we just love our football team. I'm just.

[Katie Nolan]

What do you want from Me, I'm sending love and light. I'm picturing red and yellow confetti.

[Heidi Gardner]

If anything, I'm like glad that maybe the narrative will change now. It's like, oh, this is the other thing. There was a headline recently that was like the Eagles used the like copyrighted three peat thing as motivation bulletin board material. I love bulletin board material. We use it. The Chiefs have used it before. I also just want to say there were just. I don't know that it was the Chiefs that were copywriting 3P. We are a pretty humble team. That was trying not to say. I don't even think any of the organization, including Andy Reid was ever trying to like put that in players minds. I think we were trying to ignore that. That's like a huge weight on your shoulder, obviously. But obviously everyone's going to talk about it. It's not. I just. The Chiefs weren't saying three peat. Run the tape. We weren't saying it. If anything, it's like, that would be so cool, a chance to make that sort of history. But it's one game at a time and Patrick Mahomes is incredible and anybody that is like questioning his legacy is upsetting me.

[Katie Nolan]

Do you feel, are you feeling any anger? Are you angry?

[Heidi Gardner]

I'm just angry at just these narratives and I get it, it's sports, but I just, you know, Mahomes is a standup player, a standup guy, a standup dad. This is someone who sat there, you know, Peter Schrager talked about this.

[Katie Nolan]

I love a Peter Schrager shout out.

[Heidi Gardner]

For 13 minutes post game, looked every reporter in the eye and answered questions and took accountability. This is someone at the end of football games that you know, thanks God, says hello to his kids. Like, this is not the enemy. This is a unicorn generational player that I am so thankful my home team got. We've never had like a franchise quarterback like that. And when you have a franchise quarterback, this is the sort of stuff that happens and we are so fortunate and that is how we feel. And it wasn't a good game on Sunday for us.

[Katie Nolan]

No, it was not.

[Heidi Gardner]

And I'm happy for the Eagles fan. I have lots of friends that are Eagles fans that I'm so happy for.

[Katie Nolan]

Who were you happiest for?

[Heidi Gardner]

My friend Devin on the show. He's a big Eagles fan and once I once I was positive we weren't gonna make the comeback. He was also at the super bowl and I was able to text him and say like, I'm happy for you cause I love you. And, you know, he posted a picture of him at probably, like, 12 years old in an Eagles jersey. And I was like, that rules.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah, that's rule. So you've been a Chiefs fan forever.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

How does this new era of it feel like, watching this influx, especially of young women come and start rooting for your team? Like, I'm watching it from the outside, and I have feelings and thoughts, but, like, as a woman who is a Chiefs fan, what's it been like? Is it cool?

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah, it's so cool. And my older brother always reminds me, you know, most of my time, I live in New York, some of it in Kansas City. During the season, I'm mostly in New York. And he'll ask me, like, oh, are you coming in for so and so game? And, you know, I'm kind of like, well, it's a Sunday. It's my only day off. I don't think I can come in or I'm gonna think about that one. And he's like, just remember, we're not always gonna have Mahomes, so, like, it is important to us to try and go to every game we can. Like, just during this time and during Coach Reed and Brett Veach and the whole organization, it's, like, very special. I'm just seizing the moment.

[Katie Nolan]

Sunday's your only day off.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes. And I have definitely flown to Kansas City.

[Katie Nolan]

Crazy. Absolutely crazy.

[Heidi Gardner]

I know.

[Katie Nolan]

I know you said you don't trash talk.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

And I know you. You actually seem like an emotionally adjusted sports fan, which is hard to. Hard to process. I'm not used to it. I wanted to give you an outlet if you wanted to maybe let out some of your feelings towards Eagles fans. We had. We pulled. We have some famous ones that we were gonna let you talk trash to Brady. Do we have those? Just, you know, and. And whatever moves you. If you feel actually instead like you want to say something nice to Kevin Hart, feel free. But I was thinking you could be like, yeah, you're.

[Heidi Gardner]

You're.

[Katie Nolan]

You're short, you know, something like that. That was good, right? Just something along those lines where you just tell. Tell these people who are just celebrating what was yours, what you deserved, they got right. Anything.

[Heidi Gardner]

You know what? Someone talked trash to me online today. I never answered anything, and I had a full response, and then I ended up writing, which is what I'm saying to Kevin Hart, because it feels better, is what my mom used to always say. Something good's gonna happen to you today. I hope your day is blessed with a lot of love. Little miracles. And blessings. That is what I said to someone. And they were mean to me. And I. I was trying. I was trying to get the, like, trash talk out. And I was like, I just can't.

[Katie Nolan]

I can't do it. Incapable.

[Heidi Gardner]

I can't do it. And I am happy for Eagles fans.

[Katie Nolan]

Give me another one. We gotta get this out of her. It's gotta be in there somewhere. Next. Ah. Surely you have something mean to say to Shane Gillis.

[Heidi Gardner]

No. I will say this is my only thing is the next day he was. He started following me on Instagram and I was like, is that to be mean? Like, he didn't. Like, he didn't say anything after the Super Bowl. Yes. So I was like, was it just like, I see you and I see that you lost?

[Katie Nolan]

That's how I felt. I don't know I should feel that way because you guys worked together. So we should have followed you then.

[Heidi Gardner]

Right.

[Katie Nolan]

But he waited till the day after the Super Bowl. And you don't want to say anything mean to his dumb face.

[Heidi Gardner]

No, because I just don't. I just don't want to start it. I appreciate. I. Saquon. Here's the one thing about the Super Bowl. I was terrified of Saquon. Like, and I was like, all of the meetings are going to be about stopping him.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah.

[Heidi Gardner]

I will say we did.

[Katie Nolan]

You did. You did 50 something yards. You stopped him.

[Heidi Gardner]

We did.

[Katie Nolan]

But there were. Here's the thing. There were other people on the team I think that we had to worry about as well.

[Heidi Gardner]

I know.

[Katie Nolan]

Bradley Cooper. Big dumb idiot.

[Heidi Gardner]

No. I heard he opened a cheesesteak place here in New York, and I want to try one. Okay. A free one for what I went through on Sunday.

[Katie Nolan]

Okay. That's. She's starting to sort of push back a little.

[Heidi Gardner]

I'm begging for things.

[Katie Nolan]

Maybe you could be nice and give me a. Okay. Miles Teller. What's he even doing now?

[Heidi Gardner]

He's amazing in Whiplash. I do. And I watch. You know what? I watched his scene at the end of Whiplash where he's just drumming the hell out of the drums and his dad is realizing what his. Paul Reiser is realizing what his son has become, which is, like, larger than life. And I watched that before my SNL audition. So thank you. Miles Teller.

[Katie Nolan]

Huh? The timeline on that feels off, but I guess that is. Time moves so different now after Covid.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

What is that? Who is that even? Oh. Always Sunny. Yeah. Terrible show that you hate. Maybe.

[Heidi Gardner]

They did a lot for that city and now they're getting things back. I'm sure they already have a lot of money and now they get a championship. I just. I can't.

[Katie Nolan]

You suck at this.

[Heidi Gardner]

I know.

[Katie Nolan]

We found the only thing you suck at. You can't be mean. Have you ever been mean in your life?

[Heidi Gardner]

I'm sure, yes, for sure. But I just. I don't. Devin, I love you so much and I'm so happy for you. I wish the results were different. I still wish I won. I still wish the Chiefs won the three peat. I was trying not to think about it. It's too much to think about. I did want it. I was slightly. I wanted it so much and I thought the world would want it because it's like, why don't we want history? It's cool when one singular thing happens. The little thing I was worried about was, then what comes next? I knew that the Chiefs would absolutely still have drive, but I'm like, how do you have quite the same amount of drive when you've won three in a row? And how do you not feel greedy, even as a fan?

[Katie Nolan]

So, yeah, and for Pete, that sounds stupid. Yeah, that doesn't work at all.

[Heidi Gardner]

But we were not trademark. We were not taking three.

[Katie Nolan]

Who was then? Who was trademark? Maybe it was like the. The ownership or something.

[Heidi Gardner]

I think maybe the. I read something. I'm not trying to quote the interval. I read something that an Eagles player said or someone said that the NFL had already copyrighted or something. But it just seems targeted. Like the Chiefs were like, yeah, well, we own this now. The T shirts are printed. And that's just not how we are. We are not a cocky franchise. I mean. I mean, I'm from the town. I know we are not walking around.

[Katie Nolan]

You're bigger than the town now. It's like, it's more of a national.

[Heidi Gardner]

We won 17 one score games. Like, we are fans that are always like, oh, oh, you know, like, we're just.

[Katie Nolan]

We're not a Patriots fan. So I am. You are me of the. Like, I went through that and I.

[Heidi Gardner]

Think from what you're questioning about me, I'm like, you guys are those fans you're walking around.

[Katie Nolan]

No, you're those fans.

[Heidi Gardner]

No, you're those. You. You're the ones that are walking around like, we own.

[Katie Nolan]

You hate us because they ain't us. Yada, yada, yada.

[Heidi Gardner]

Exactly.

[Katie Nolan]

We were talking on our podcast earlier, this about the Swifties are like, kind of acting out right now online. Something about cj, Gardner Johnson. It's evolving. So I don't want to Say what it is, because it might be something. By the time this podcast airs, I feel like that's them processing loss for the first time. Now, as a Chiefs fan who has been around for loss, I was wondering if you had any advice to Swifties, to young female Chiefs fans who are feeling for the very first time. Because you remember, I mean, we were young when we experienced our first, like, devastating sports loss.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes, I remember.

[Katie Nolan]

But imagine having to go through that right now, and that just feels like a tough thing. So I feel like since you can't be mean, perhaps you can be nice and supportive.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

And we can. You can help them get through this a little.

[Heidi Gardner]

I. I think take that sadness and grief and manifest it. And all of the things that make you a Swiftie, which, what I can tell from the eras tour, like, positivity and light and making bracelets and, like, make more bracelets or come back next year. Put the numbers of the next super bowl on it. Put the Chiefs. Like my mom would always say, when the Royals were in the World series in, like, 2015, we would be out to a restaurant, and she would ask the waiters, she'd be like, who are you rooting for in the World Series? And they'd be like, oh, I don't really care. And she's like, oh, your team's not in it. And they were like, no. And she's like, would you mind rooting for the Royals?

[Katie Nolan]

Oh, my God.

[Heidi Gardner]

I used to get so embarrassed. I was like, mom. And they would always be polite, and we're like, sure. So maybe Swifties just go out and ask people to root for the Chiefs.

[Katie Nolan]

That's the cutest thing I've ever heard in my life.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

Would you mind? Could you spare rooting for my team? That's so cute. It's so sweet.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

You big Royals fan as well. How are they? I haven't paid attention to the Royals in a second. They good?

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah. We made the playoffs last year. Of course. Yeah. We've got Bobby with Junior, so we're feeling good.

[Katie Nolan]

Big star.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

I feel like the baseball struggles with stars lately, but I feel like of the few that there are, I feel like Bobby Witt juniors, probably one of them. And baseball season started. We are now in full baseball season. So pitchers and catchers reported.

[Heidi Gardner]

They reported, yes. Wow.

[Katie Nolan]

So we are going. We're off to. Or they're reporting this weekend. We're off to the races. I know you're busy this weekend. You can't report as a pitcher and.

[Heidi Gardner]

A catcher, but maybe spring Training. I'll get down there.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah, maybe you were on a flight with Josh Allen.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes. See? Okay, this and this I can just go off on a little bit. This is where I'm showing that I love and appreciate sports. When you're playing the team that is like your enemy or the best in the game, it is so frustrating. Just like the Eagles game, it was frustrating to see, like, how awesome Jalen hurts was, you know, and you start to. Whenever I watch the Chiefs and the Bills, I'm like, oh, Josh Allen's annoying. Like when he runs for a touchdown, I'm like, did you really have to rush and push? Oh, you had to show off that much. Could have just thrown it, you know, I'm just like, that's my trash talking, actually. It's like, I'm annoyed with you because you're so good. So this is someone who I'd been like, trash talking. You know, we've been meeting them in conference championships for the past five years. Talking so much trash on. I go to sit down on a flight last summer and. Or no, I was already. I was seated and then someone was like, oh, I think you're in my seat. And I looked up and I was like, oh. I immediately like ran out of my seat. Let them sit. I was like, is that Josh Allen? Is that Josh Allen? Is that just freaking out? Is that Josh Allen? Start texting people. Like, I think I'm sitting next to Josh Allen and everyone I know is like, did you tell him you're a Chiefs fan? I'm like, no, I would never do that. I'm sitting next to him on a six hour flight. I don't like, I'm not doing that. I'm not trash talking for six hours on that flight. I tried to think about what I was going to say to him.

[Katie Nolan]

That's so relatable.

[Heidi Gardner]

And also I think at one point he ordered a Coke, which I just thought was so cool. I was like, you play football. You ordered a Coke. I was fangirling so hard. This person that I met that you allegedly hate.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah.

[Heidi Gardner]

And then at the end of the flight, as him getting down my luggage, I was like, thank you for all that you do with your body on Sunday to put on the line for us.

[Katie Nolan]

For us.

[Heidi Gardner]

Thank you for all you do to your body on Sunday to put on the line for us. You're incredible. And he goes. He was like, thank you very much. I did a similar thing. I met Dwayne Wade and the nonsense that came out of my mouth, it's Just, it's best not to meet your hero. Like, I haven't technically met LeBron and I just, I want to so bad and I just shouldn't because of what's. What's gonna come out.

[Katie Nolan]

Because your brain goes. You gotta say something. And then goes blank. And you just go like. And you are. Thanks. Of the Sunday body.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

Thanks.

[Heidi Gardner]

Dribbling. You've always, you know, it's just like.

[Katie Nolan]

Words are hard.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

Especially was this, like a. You were in seat A, you was in seat B. Like you were next to each other or were you across the aisle?

[Heidi Gardner]

We were next to each other.

[Katie Nolan]

Damn. For six hours. You didn't bring it up? Didn't come up. You didn't speak.

[Heidi Gardner]

No, because also, I knew he. There was a guy in front of me that had like a Saints jersey on and I just knew. And he like, put his hood up. I was just like, he's going under. I can't even imagine being a quarterback in the NFL.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah.

[Heidi Gardner]

Like, you know, I'll occasionally get people being like, love you on SNL or something like that. A football fan is different.

[Katie Nolan]

Yes.

[Heidi Gardner]

Especially if you're there. And I was just like, I.

[Katie Nolan]

He got very lucky. Looking at it in retrospect, he got very lucky if he were being sat for a six hour flight next to a Kansas City Chiefs fan, that it was you.

[Heidi Gardner]

You're right.

[Katie Nolan]

The sweetest, most unassuming who, when she finally said something, it was thank you for what you do for us. When what he does for you isn't really.

[Heidi Gardner]

It's something you like bad and scary. You hate it. Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

But you thanked him for it.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes. Cause in the end, he is so incredible. What he does.

[Katie Nolan]

He's very good. And Hailee Steinfeld, very pretty.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

Very pretty.

[Heidi Gardner]

Power couple.

[Katie Nolan]

Yes. And we saw the ring at the NFL honors.

[Heidi Gardner]

I know, I know. He's doing great.

[Katie Nolan]

He's doing great.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

And maybe that's because of a seemingly nothing interaction that he had with you.

[Heidi Gardner]

I thought you were gonna say because a good woman in his life, Hailee style.

[Katie Nolan]

Oh, yeah.

[Heidi Gardner]

But maybe it was. Maybe it was you.

[Katie Nolan]

A good woman in his life, however brief.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

Super bowl commercial for a sports fan. How crazy did that feel?

[Heidi Gardner]

Really crazy. And this is, I guess I have to say this is the second year in a row I did it last year and the Chiefs won that year. And that felt really special. I kind of thought, well, that magic if I'm playing on the screen and it'll all work out. But I mean, it's amazing. I You know, I think back to, like, little version of myself and tell her, like, the Chiefs are in the super bowl and you're on a commercial. Life is cool.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah. They're gonna be there and you're gonna talk about holmes.com and everything will be. And you'll be on SNL.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

It's incredible.

[Heidi Gardner]

It's good times.

[Katie Nolan]

Is it almost overwhelming to stay present at times when your life has so much good in it?

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah, because I still complain about a lot of things and have, you know, my own little breakdowns and then remind myself of even just those three things.

[Katie Nolan]

The Chiefs were in the Super Bowl. I'm in a Super bowl commercial for Holmes.com and I'm on SNL.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah. And so a lot of the small things I complain about, like, you know, yesterday I think I was out of Celsius.

[Katie Nolan]

Oh, no.

[Heidi Gardner]

And I didn't want to leave the apartment. Cause I was tired, relatable, and I was pretty close to crying.

[Katie Nolan]

That makes sense to me. What is your schedule? What is. It's like famously talked about that the schedule for SNL is nuts.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

What is it?

[Heidi Gardner]

I mean, it's every day of the week except Sunday. But Sunday, you've been at the after party and you've been out till like 5am and chances are you probably have someone in town who came to see the show that you also are entertaining on Sunday.

[Katie Nolan]

So it is a full time. It's full time every day.

[Heidi Gardner]

But now I've been there long enough. I figured it out. I figured out how to sometimes cook for myself during the week, sometimes do therapy during the week, sometimes get in a workout, sometimes see a friend. But still, it's messed my sleep up so badly that, like, even when I'm not on season, I'm a terrible sleeper. I'm up three or four times a night for a couple hours. You know, it's just. It's affected things.

[Katie Nolan]

I bet. I mean, it really. It's crazy because obviously you're very grateful. It's an amazing opportunity. It's a cool thing. But the. That part of it sounds wild to me. It's like a lifestyle that you have to adjust to. A cool one, but a tough one.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah. It's also the overstimulation. Like I was thinking about recently when I was on the stage waiting during a commercial break and I was playing a reporter. So I was just center stage, like at home base. Snl, the whole crowds around me and the camera. And I'm just used to that. Like, everyone's looking at me. You know, while we're waiting in the commercial break. And I'm used to. To that and just trying to, like, zone it out. And then I realize in my normal life, even when I have breaks or downtime, I'm creating experiences where I'm constantly around a lot of people. Like, I love to entertain. I love to have parties. I just have gotten used to this, like, thing of just, like, people, people, people, people floating around to people, people, you know? And I'm like that. I'm tired because that's my life now. And I won't stop. I complain, and then I pack a day of all that.

[Katie Nolan]

You're never just alone.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah. Kind of interesting.

[Katie Nolan]

I am the complete opposite of that. I'm just alone all the time. But also different bad. Like, you know what I mean? They're like, nothing is purely good, you know, Mine's bad in a different way, where I'm like, you need to get out of the house. Get out of the house. And then I'm like, here I am again, alone. And I like it. I like it this way. But I also know I should get out of the house. Now we're just talking about me. Ooh, I unplugged my headphones. Let's talk about. And I'm sure you've talked about this a lot, but we're a sports show, so I'd be remiss to not ask you. Let's talk about the athletes you've worked with on snl. I feel like the biggest one, athlete wise, in terms of hosts. I feel like in your time has been Travis Kelce.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

And you had something. You had a hand in that. In making that happen. Right.

[Heidi Gardner]

It was definitely something where, you know, I was a fan, and then I noticed or I saw Travis in. On, like, award shows or, like, bit parts and things, and I was like, oh, he's also really funny. And I'd met him. I was like, he's really charming. I just thought, this is the next, like, athlete host for snl. I was. I wouldn't shut up about it for two years. To Lauren and the talent producers. And then two years ago, before they won the Super Bowl, I think it was heading into the AFC Championship, I was like, come on, we gotta get him, you know, And Lauren was like, well, you know, we'll do it if he wins the Super Bowl. And I was like, that's such a big ass to put on him. And even some of my friend Kerry and talent was like, you know, if they don't win, we're gonna Ask Joe Burrow. And I was like, well, when did this become, like, an enemy state? Like, against. That's mean. And then they won the Super Bowl. And, you know, the next day, I was like. Sent the text that was like, okay, right? And they're like, the offer's out. And then it was probably, like, 11:30am that Monday after they'd won against Philadelphia that year. And I got a text back that was like, we haven't heard back from him. And I was like, number one, I'm not his agent. I just. I simply, like, recommended him. And he's probably asleep or still up from winning the Super Bowl. Like, can we give him a day, please?

[Katie Nolan]

Can we not move on until.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah, but that was the biggest. But we've had J.J. watt. We've had Charles Barkley. It's been awesome.

[Katie Nolan]

If you had to rank those three of who did the best job hosting in order.

[Heidi Gardner]

Well, Travis first, for sure. I mean, Charles Barkley is just hilarious. But the thing that was awesome about J.J. watt was, you know, the. And this is just so was so cool for me, being a sports fan. Every host at SNL will get a binder, I believe, at the beginning of the week that just has all the sketches in them, you know, just to refer to. And every actor I've ever seen, I've seen that binder in the dressing room, just, like, you know, them going over their scripts on breaks or whatever. But J.J. watt brought it out to every rehearsal, and I was like, this is a playbook. He's using it as a playbook, and he's taking notes like they're plays. I just had never seen it activated that much in my presence. And I was just like, he's running, he's doing football.

[Katie Nolan]

But with comedy.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

That's very cool. That's very cool. Took it very seriously. He did a good job.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah, he did.

[Katie Nolan]

You've also had guests that were athletes, I think a rod. You did something with a rod?

[Heidi Gardner]

Yep, A rod.

[Katie Nolan]

Was there Peyton Manning.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

Who? Everybody is. He's now, like, the de facto funny athlete.

[Heidi Gardner]

Totally. I mean, he's, like, the one. And that's why I love when athletes host, and I. I welcome them. You know, I would love for my homes to host, I think, for when an athlete hosts, I'm like, no one expects them to be great.

[Katie Nolan]

The bar is low.

[Heidi Gardner]

They're a fish out of water. If it doesn't work, like, you're fine.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah.

[Heidi Gardner]

But when it does work, it's the Peyton, the Trav. It's like people I remember people saying there was an article the next day after Travis hosted that was like, he's better and funnier and a better actor than the entire cast. I was like, cool.

[Katie Nolan]

I'm being directly insulted, and I'm not even mad.

[Heidi Gardner]

So when it works, it works. We look bad.

[Katie Nolan]

Is there an athlete that you. Other than Mahomes, that you're like, oh, that person should. Absolutely.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah. I definitely have a list. I mean, I'm a huge LeBron fan, so I'd love that.

[Katie Nolan]

He's never. Has he ever even.

[Heidi Gardner]

He has, but it was before I was there. Steph Curry, I think, would be great. Simone Biles.

[Katie Nolan]

Oh, yeah.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

She would be great.

[Heidi Gardner]

That's my. Those are my top three. Right.

[Katie Nolan]

Those are in the universe now, so we can make that happen. I'm sure you've been asked about this a million times. My favorite thing about you on SNL was that you always were very present in the scene, and I didn't notice that you had never broken. But now I know, because I know famously, when you first broke that of all of the sketches, to have your first break in. What a perfect one.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

Your reaction was so genuine. Had you not seen. It was the Beavis and Butthead sketch. Had you not seen them before you turned around?

[Heidi Gardner]

You know, it's so funny. When this first became a thing, I was like, should I just lie and say that I hadn't? Because I don't want to take away the mystique. But then I was like, I'm not a liar. I don't want to start this. But I had seen them. But each rehearsal, like, you rehearse it three times on Saturday. Rehearsal, dress rehearsal, and then the show. So just two times in just the rehearsal. Saturday, during the day, like, Mikey had a wig on, and he looked stupid. But it. You know, it's like half the.

[Katie Nolan]

It's the first step just a little. Right.

[Heidi Gardner]

And then in the dress rehearsal, there was a little bit of, like, an upper lip thing going on. The nose was slightly different, but, like. And it was just the wig. Like, there wasn't so much forehead. They, like, sauced it for life, whatever.

[Katie Nolan]

Was happening with his mouth.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes. And Mikey, like, you know, like, when someone spikes the camera, it's like, Mikey spiked me. You know, like, you can see, like, they were just. They were prepping me for a big loss. Like a blowout loss, live.

[Katie Nolan]

God, it was so funny. It was perfect. I like it. I know that there's. You can do it too much, but I. But I also just respect that you have the ability to not. Your first episode ever was with Ryan Gosling and Jay Z. Two names no one will remember in history. Two small bit players in the entertainment. Entertainment sphere. Do you remember that at all, or was that just blur?

[Heidi Gardner]

It was pretty blur. Except. And then, you know, Beyonce's at the after party. You're just like, oh, what? And I had just moved. Like, literally. The way SNL works is you find out you're on the show, and then like, a day later, you moved to New York. You know, just so many things were different, and I did. And then also, I think at the after party, I was just like, well, I've made it. And I'm at the SNL after party and the world is free now. And I think I ordered every. It was a steakhouse, and I ordered, like, everything on the menu. Like, how steakhouses have, like, the sides that are also creamed spinach.

[Katie Nolan]

I'll have the lobster Mac potatoes. Yes.

[Heidi Gardner]

The scallop potatoes, the baked potatoes, the garlic mashed potatoes. We ordered everything and just expected that it was just paid for.

[Katie Nolan]

Oh, no.

[Heidi Gardner]

And then it was not.

[Katie Nolan]

No.

[Heidi Gardner]

So that is my biggest takeaway that first week was like, you still have.

[Katie Nolan]

To pay for things at the after party.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

Beyonce was paying her own bill.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah, I think so.

[Katie Nolan]

Did you meet her?

[Heidi Gardner]

No, I wouldn't. I just, like, kind of walked by the table.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah. I'd walk by. You'd, like, maybe take not a creepy one, but, like, a deeper sniff just to see if you. I could tell what she smelled like. But you. I don't think I would. Sometimes you're just too famous. It's too. Your aura's too strong.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

I can't look at it. Cool to see her in the same room, though.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

Say you've been in the same room. I can't say the same. A lot of famous people that I'm interested in have spent. You've spent time with when they were at SNL Chapel. Roan.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

She amazing.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

Total amazing in person. I'm now learning, like, you're not gonna. You're not gonna give me anything on these people anyway. We're not gonna get any dirt out of her. She's the nicest, sweetest, purest soul.

[Heidi Gardner]

But I'll say amazing voice.

[Katie Nolan]

Elon Musk.

[Heidi Gardner]

You know Elon Musk?

[Katie Nolan]

Katie.

[Heidi Gardner]

We had. We had a scene together where we weren't able to use the teleprompter, you know?

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah.

[Heidi Gardner]

Where we just had to.

[Katie Nolan]

Like, cue cards.

[Heidi Gardner]

No. We just had to be memorized and oh, boy. Eye contact. You know, that was. That was interesting. And to see how much I didn't. I was trying to make small talk about rocket.

[Katie Nolan]

Okay, Sick. What does that sound like?

[Heidi Gardner]

For me, it's like, so what's the kind of weight of rocket? You know, I really. With rocket and space, those are kind of the only two words I know.

[Katie Nolan]

Like, in that whole area.

[Heidi Gardner]

In that whole area. So it was kind of rocket weight and space. And is it loud.

[Katie Nolan]

Rockets? Are they scary?

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

And then I'm sure he handled that with. I'm sure he was very socially unawkward.

[Heidi Gardner]

Just very much has. I assure you. He told me he has the biggest rockets and the loudest.

[Katie Nolan]

I'm sure.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes. Pumped up those rockets.

[Katie Nolan]

I'm sure that he did. Going into this weekend, how do you feel? It feels like such a big deal. Are you. I'm not trying to stress you, but, like, is this stressful or is it like, every week on SNL feels like this. So it's. You're just kind of used to it.

[Heidi Gardner]

Every week on SNL feels crazy, but I'm used to that crazy. This feels different. Knock on wood. I'd never get sick, but I. Oh, boy. I just feel like my body is already telling me right now, like, be scared. And I think it's just. I also. I don't get social anxiety, but it sounds like a lot of people. But also, I could have those sorts of interactions with. Where it's just the word garbage comes out.

[Katie Nolan]

Adam Sandler, Chevy Chase, Eddie Murphy, Kristen Wiig, Will Ferrell, Amy Poehler, Andy Samberg, Chris Rock, Fred Armisen, Jason Sudeikis, Jimmy Fallon. It's everybody.

[Heidi Gardner]

It's everybody. That's what I mean. It's every single person that you like.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah.

[Heidi Gardner]

And then you say that a billion times, and then it starts sounding crazier and crazier, and it's probably just there.

[Katie Nolan]

Hearing it from. That's just stressful.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah. I could just put a wallpaper on my phone that says, I'm on vocal rest. Or, like, brilliant, like, sorry, I'm prepping for a big film. I'm not. But vocal rest, please. But. And just tap my heart like, but I love you. That would probably be better than anything else I'm gonna come up with.

[Katie Nolan]

I have faith you could come up with something better. I think you're very charming and sweet, but that is a brilliant idea because no one's gonna check. No one's gonna go, hey, Heidi Gardner told me she was working on a major motion picture a couple months ago. Let's follow up and say, see what that is. It's got to be coming out soon.

[Heidi Gardner]

Like a Marvel super.

[Katie Nolan]

And then they're like, she's not in a movie. She was lying.

[Heidi Gardner]

She wasn't an Avenger. I thought she was in the next Avengers.

[Katie Nolan]

I put, I, you're an Avenger to me. Do you have a favorite? Here's the thing, people. I feel like you get asked the same questions, and I want to ask you different questions, but I also don't want to put you in a place where you have to speak on anybody who was on snl.

[Heidi Gardner]

Right.

[Katie Nolan]

Has there ever been somebody you've had to work with on snl, not naming any names that you didn't like that I didn't like? Like, have you ever had to be funny with somebody you couldn't stand?

[Heidi Gardner]

I wouldn't say couldn't stand, but maybe that I couldn't find, like, a gear with or. Or sometimes even just like, chemistry wise, it's like. And also being a somewhat shy person occasionally at first, like, you know. Cause some. There's a lot of people I work with that are just, like, confident and come off really funny immediately and, like, are disarming. And, you know, I do think I, you know, maybe I have that, like, sweetness that comes off, but not necessarily cool, you know, or you're just. You're trying too hard to, like, figure out, how do I get some chemistry with this person? Simply just to make them feel comfortable so we can have a fun scene. And that has happened before where I'm just like, ugh, how do I find my footing with this person? But then it's really. Typically, I've been trying too hard, and when I just start being like an idiot or joking with them or like, acting like the character, then they're down to act like the character and then we're fine.

[Katie Nolan]

You just fixed it. You just meet them in the middle and you fix it. Yeah, I don't think I would be able to do that. What has been like, the most surprising thing like SNL is something we all know. It's a cultural institution, I imagine. Like, our preconceptions of it are so different once you're inside and you're like, oh, that makes a lot more sense. Like, has anything been very surprising to you about SNL that was sort of different than what you thought it was before you started working there?

[Heidi Gardner]

Surprising? Gosh, I know there are things, you know, I had never seen it other than on tv. I'd never gone to a live taping of it. So the fact that it all is in Studio 8H in the one set that's all moved. Like, I thought Weekend Update was in a different room. I thought maybe the audience walked down the hall to the Weekend Update room. Like, I was just actually very shocked by those two and a half commercial breaks. The amount of people that are moving things around. And maybe for one sketch, like, your only job is to put that fork down, because if you did anything else, it would make things more chaotic. Like, just the singular job that you have to do in that time. And moving walls all in one room. I think that's the thing that people that come see the show even before they, like, even if I've had a good show and I'm expecting them to be like, oh, my God, I loved your sketch. They're like, oh, my God. The crew working so hard in between, like, all of that work, even with, like, wardrobe, like, when Prince Harry and Meghan Markle got married and we were gonna do a sketch about it on the show that Saturday night, and the wedding, like, New York time was airing at, like, 5am Saturday morning. The wardrobe department had to be watching that and then starting to make the costumes for that night. Then, you know, like, they. A sketch gets in, but you might not know what they're wearing, like, for the debates or, you know, like, those things are getting made.

[Katie Nolan]

Oh, I didn't even think of that.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah. It's insane how talented everyone is and how that's, at this point, not a big deal. It's like, yeah, we know that's part of our job. We know we're gonna get something with two hours to do it.

[Katie Nolan]

That's the level of anxiety I feel like, that you have to exist in.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah.

[Katie Nolan]

At snl, I would think gets would get in the way of the comedy. How do you keep the frenetic pace of this show that it has to be in order to be as timely and, like, topical as it is every week? How do you keep that from, like, spilling over and you know what I mean? Like, preventing you from being able to just, like, enjoy and be funny.

[Heidi Gardner]

I know that's one thing that from the time I got to the show, and that's what all Lauren and producers will always say to you is, like, have fun. Have fun in your care. Have fun. And it's like, I don't quite know how to do that, given all the other circumstances around it, including the liveness. But you do get to a point where you're just like, I have been doing this long Enough. I think the audience has accepted me. They might not like my sketch tonight, maybe. Who knows? But you just have to give it over. And I do, like, the whole week. It's like, you get a sketch in, you're doing rewrites, you're perfecting it, you're rehearsing it. All of that stuff feels. You get to a point where it's like, this is rehearsed, this is planned. But then the live show, it's like, that's the first time I'm seeing that audience, their energy. There's something unexpected about that. And it's like with the Beavis and Butthead thing, it really is like. It is more playful. Cause you are just like, I don't know what's gonna happen. And there's something really fun to that. You know, just whether you plan it or not, it's like, that is fun and funny.

[Katie Nolan]

How often is somebody, like, adding something extra in the live to try to, like, make you laugh or. You know what I mean? Like. Cause you've done it at that point twice right before it, but it's evolving. Are you ever in that live moment and you're like, I don't know, maybe, like, Kenan's famously gonna do something that's gonna throw me off in a funny way?

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah. Again, I think it's when people have been there a while, and they're just feeling a little more silly and playful and they're your good friends at this point, that even. There's so many things we do just not obviously, to each other to make each other laugh. Like, there'll be a time where I'll have done all the rehearsals and a dress rehearsal and set a line that's. That's also not meant to be a joke line, but just also, even me trying at 100 to make it funny, no one's laughing. So then I'll just gas it harder to make, like, Mikey or dismukes laugh, you know, just because I'm like, I know they like the way I say this, so I'll just mess with them right now for fun.

[Katie Nolan]

It is funny to think that, like, you guys are, like, co workers and friends. And so seeing your friendships on. On set is also very interesting. Does this in any way make you feel like you can relate to athletes, or does that feel like an insane thing for me to ask you?

[Heidi Gardner]

Okay. I know. I love that. And I actually. Actually just made a post yesterday, part of my grieving and therapy this week, and how I have not appreciated some of these narratives questioning Mahomes But I appreciate and admire athletes so much for their discipline. Like, I wish I had that. I'm like, God, I wish I'd stayed in sports just to get a bit more discipline. But I was. I had a thing happen recently at the show. This actually happens a lot, where you actually have to go out there and sometimes do something you've never rehearsed. Like, you. There might be a casting switch, or they're just like, we need you to fill in. In this moment. And I had it recently, and I was like, how can I do that? Like, we didn't rewrite it. We didn't da, da, da. And I just think, what would Mahomes do? And it makes me feel braver and more powerful because I do know that he would just go play like he would for his team, for his coaches, what they just told him to do. He would not be scared. Too scared to be like, hey, wait, this isn't. We don't have the play. Like, he would just go play if he got put in, which is the. Which is what backups do. They just go play. And so I posted that yesterday because I'm like, that Some of my favorite performances have been when I've thought that it, like, helps me harness some other power that I think athletes have. And so I just feel really grateful. So that's me being, like, kind of. I'm an athlete, and I know what it feels like to be in the Super Bowl.

[Katie Nolan]

Like, in other. In pretty obvious ways, you aren't. Right. But there, I do think it's a lot more closely connected, your work, especially a football player.

[Heidi Gardner]

Oh, totally.

[Katie Nolan]

The way the whole week leads up.

[Heidi Gardner]

To the game, when Travis hosted, the day of the show, when we were rehearsing, you know, a producer came over to him, and he was like, okay, when you're talking to Heidi, you're using that set of cue cards. When you're talking to Bowen, you look over here, but you want to make sure you're still cheating out to the audience. And it was. It was weird angles, like, to just figure out. And in my head, and because this was so close to me, I was like, oh, my God, have I set this man up for something horrible?

[Katie Nolan]

So funny.

[Heidi Gardner]

But then, like, this, like, calmness came over me that was like, wait a second. He gets adjustments all game. Like, this is what he does, and he does it on live tv. He's gonna be awesome. Like, so. Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

Are you, like, friends with Travis? Did you guys become friends because of this?

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah, I think we're friends.

[Katie Nolan]

Was that hard to do. I'm just picturing, you know, having to, like, do a scene with, I don't know, Tom Brady. And I just feel like I'd be so conscious of the fact that that's, you know. Were you thinking, like, this Travis Kelsey? This is Travis Kelsey.

[Heidi Gardner]

100%. I mean, I couldn't help that week. During rehearsals, any downtime, I was like, what do you eat pre game? You know, like, everything I wanted to know. I'm like, just like. I was on a podcast with Julian Edelman, and I think I was like, does anybody change at halftime or shower? Like, these are things I've wondered.

[Katie Nolan]

I've immediately been like, do you guys pee on the field? Do you pee? Like, when you have to pee during the game, what do you do? They've said. Some people have said that they pee, like, on the. But I feel like we'd see that.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah, that can't be true. Yeah, I do too.

[Katie Nolan]

But I think maybe that blue tent, maybe they're peeing in there.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah, it's like, it's little sister energy that's just like, hey, hey, are you friends with this person or do you hate them? Who's the best? Who are you scared of? Yeah, man.

[Katie Nolan]

I feel like she just summed me up pretty quickly. Are a lot of your castmates sports fans?

[Heidi Gardner]

No, I mean, like I said, Devin is big Eagles fan. Michael Longfellow's from Arizona, so he's a big Suns guy. Keenan is pretty much a lover. He's from Atlanta, so loves the Falcons, but also just loves good football. But what's very sweet is, like, Mikey Day. You know, he'll wear a chief's hat for me at goodnights if I'm like.

[Katie Nolan]

Will you wear it?

[Heidi Gardner]

So a lot of people are sweet and they're like, I'm just rooting for the team that you like. Cause you really like them a lot. And I know it means a lot to you.

[Katie Nolan]

You realize that you're carrying on your mom's energy.

[Heidi Gardner]

I know. I've started. I fully get it. I used to be so embarrassed by it. And I'm like, I am her.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah. Because like you said, when you're watching a game, your only job is to bring positivity and love.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

And so if it's a numbers game, the more people you can have positively thinking and loving your team, the more likely they are to succeed.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes. I've told RGM Brett beach so many times. I've been like, I don't. I was like, number one, this isn't Something I would charge for. This is volunteer work. But, like, if you need like a big sister to come to the game, hug, give Gatorades pep talks. Like, also just like, I don't know what my role is, but I just know that maybe, maybe some people would, like, I would even hug the other team. I just.

[Katie Nolan]

How's that helping?

[Heidi Gardner]

Well, at the end, I feel bad when the other team loses.

[Katie Nolan]

Oh, okay.

[Heidi Gardner]

You know, I would hug. I'm just like, you know, the chiefs.

[Katie Nolan]

Bring their own lady who comforts you after they beat you. It's kind of a flex. She just comes over. She's on snl. She comes over and she hugs you. She's on the chief staff.

[Heidi Gardner]

I've dmed players that have games or plays in games that people are famously like, oh, that lost the game or something. And I've written them and just shut up. I hope you know, like, you are so amazing and you were doing everything you could for your team to win.

[Katie Nolan]

And like, can you remember specifically anybody you've sent these to?

[Heidi Gardner]

I have. I don't want to say because I don't want to bring up their bat. A play that was not good. You don't want to remember a play.

[Katie Nolan]

They probably are already haunted by.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes. But I'm just saying, I'm like, but I need to talk to some football players that actually ask, is this necessary? Would you guys want this? I know that there's team therapists, but I'm like, what about just an unassuming woman who's not trying to get with.

[Katie Nolan]

You and not qualified. Not like, not trained. Not formally trained, but also not here to hook up.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

Who just wants to hug you and comfort you.

[Heidi Gardner]

Like, I went to the. The first time I went to the NBA all star game. This was my first season on snl and I got to go to a party the night before and I remember someone asking me or something like, why are you here? Yeah, I can't remember what that seems like. Such. They were. It wasn't that mean. But I was there with my friend Amanda. We were so excited, such NBA fans. And literally we were like, we just want to see the players. And like, they were like, sure you do. Like, we were trying to hook up and we were like, no, we just want to look.

[Katie Nolan]

We want to look like this.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes. We just want to see these players and like these superheroes to us. So if you hear of a job opening to do anything like that. I'm looking for part time work.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah, absolutely. I feel like I could just be on a Competing team and do the same job. Are you superstitious at all? Do you have any superstitions when you watch sports or interact with sports?

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes, And I'm trying to just accept that just for my own health. I'm like, I need that stuff to go away because it's like the red and yellow confetti. It worked the last two years. It didn't work this year. So I'm like, okay, that might be B.S. you know, that wearing the same T shirt every week in a row until we lose, and then I'll wash it. And then I'm like, but I'm not gonna put it back in the rotation till next season. You know, I have, like, a rose that was in a vase two years ago when the Chiefs won the AFC championship that I still haven't thrown away.

[Katie Nolan]

Like Beauty and the Beast.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes, it's just wilting. Yes, it's a yellow, wilted rose. That stuff is getting to be too much, and I need that to stop. Also. The. And I will continue to do this, but the hotels that I have stayed at in the cities where the Super Bowls are, in the shower, on the glass, in the steam, I will write so many messages to the Chiefs, like, in an insane way, so that it's just plastered on the walls, like, full sentences. Yes, Chiefs. I love you, Chiefs. Be yourselves. Remember to be yourselves. Then I do all their numbers. I do Coach Andy Reid. I do players from the past. I mean, I do xo. I always say, I love you, Chiefs. Like it. I also. I could show you my phone. Anytime there's a Chiefs game, I put it in my gcal. And then there's the maximum text you can do. A message that I've written to the.

[Katie Nolan]

Chiefs that is individually for each game or.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah, for each game. That's just like, have fun out there. I'm so proud of you guys. I love you, Chiefs.

[Katie Nolan]

Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.

[Heidi Gardner]

Wait, wait, wait, wait.

[Katie Nolan]

You write, like, a locker room, like, a pregame speech to the Chiefs every week that they have. You put it in the calendar.

[Heidi Gardner]

I'll show it to you. Yeah? Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

Can you show it to me?

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah. Let me.

[Katie Nolan]

You.

[Heidi Gardner]

Is.

[Katie Nolan]

Does it depend on the opponent? Like, are the speeches different based on who they're playing?

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah, sometimes. If, like, I think this super bowl one was pretty, just, like, open ended, wanting to give them love. Wait, no, I'm on the wrong day. It was. See, I've, like, already forgotten the date of the Super Bowl.

[Katie Nolan]

That's good. That's good. That means you're healing.

[Heidi Gardner]

So it's Chiefs. I couldn't. This was on the super bowl, you guys. This is what I was conjuring. Chiefs, I couldn't love you more and the season you had, you show up for your team and your fans, and we are so lucky to have you. I'll be there to watch you. Thank you for giving me such a special opportunity. I'm so lucky to be your fan. Have fun. Be yourselves. I promise. I'm manifesting amazing luck, love, and energy around you. I love you, Chiefs. You got this.

[Katie Nolan]

That's the purest, sweetest thing.

[Heidi Gardner]

And then, like, the notes in my phone, like I'm writing, it's all red.

[Katie Nolan]

It's like hearts. Red hearts. Red and yellow hearts.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes. I'm trying. I'm trying to do what I think is my duty, which is just to, like, give love. That's the only thing that I think might be missing. I think it's like, you need, like, determination and aggression and great coaching, and I'm like, I just want to make sure there's, like, love.

[Katie Nolan]

I mean, it's. You're laughing, but that's, like, a profound thing for the world, but also, especially for sports.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah, that.

[Katie Nolan]

That part does seem to get discounted. The love part.

[Heidi Gardner]

I love the part during the game. It's so hard when someone, like, fumbles. But I love immediately when the players come over to each other and they try to get that player's confidence back up, and then the next play, they usually give that guy the ball. And I love that. That's love.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah. That's like. What would you say that's what you like the most about sports? I'm trying to understand people's connections to sports, and I'm most fascinated in women because I think that sports has always been marketed to men. Of course, I'm not saying anything revolutionary. I feel like when I meet women that are connected to sports, I like to, like, zoom in on what it is that connects them to it so that I can show that to other women and be like, see, it's also for us. It's not just for them. So if we zoom in on what connects you to sports, is that it. Those moments of the.

[Heidi Gardner]

It's that. And it goes back also to my mom. It's like, my mom was the one who got me into sports. She was watching Chiefs games. She's from Chicago. I saw. She just embraced it. She embraced that. It was like community. It was something that she could watch with other people and have fun. She liked to rep her team. She liked how it would connect her with, like, people in any city of the world.

[Katie Nolan]

So true.

[Heidi Gardner]

She lived in Texas for a while. Longhorns fan, you know, so when she would see a Longhorns T shirt, she would love to just say, hook em, honey. Like, and she would laugh so much that, like, her and a stranger connected over that and that everyone just kind of got a laugh, you know? Like, I love. It's the great connector. It's like when I get. I can be shy, like I said. And, you know, if I am just meeting someone, you know, it's easy for me to just ask where they're from and then be like, oh, are you a this or that fan? And we might then have something to talk about. Like, the great connector, I think is what. And then I just. As an empath, I get attached to storylines. I think sports. The greatest reality television.

[Katie Nolan]

Yes.

[Heidi Gardner]

Storylines of players and fans, their home lives, their families.

[Katie Nolan]

Do you love the Olympics?

[Heidi Gardner]

I'm obsessed with the Olympics. Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

Because they're the best of that. It's like, oh, this girl who grew up in this tiny little town and her family had to move so that she could pursue her dream, and you're just like, like, eating it up.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes. It's incredible. It's incredible what people do for other people to achieve.

[Katie Nolan]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Amazing. Yeah. Heidi, this was so cool. I'm so happy to have talked to you about sports. Thank you. I'm very sorry about the Chiefs.

[Heidi Gardner]

Thank you.

[Katie Nolan]

I'm sorry that that was. And I appreciate you coming in today in spite of the fact that the Chiefs lost the Super Bowl. But good luck this weekend. You're going to be great. You don't need. I know. Break a leg. If I were talking about. But I mean, with the interaction with.

[Heidi Gardner]

Thank you.

[Katie Nolan]

Good luck with the social aspect of it. Yeah, it sounds exhausting, but you're going to do fantastic. And if the conversation ever lulls, just bring up sports.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yes.

[Katie Nolan]

And then you'll be fine.

[Heidi Gardner]

Yeah. Thank you.

[Katie Nolan]

Thank you so much. All right, everybody, that's it for the podcast. Thank you so much for listening. Thank you to Heidi Gardner for being here during such a busy week. Be sure to tune into all of the SNL50 festivities this weekend. That concert's on Friday and the big show is on Sunday. Pretty ironic, wouldn't you say? Friday and Sunday, the big days for Saturday Night Live. If you want to email us, it's casualtynolanmail.com you can call us 646-801-0043 on IG. And TikTok. We are at casualsthepodcast. Thank you for listening to episode number eight. We love you. We mean it. Have a good day.