Podcast Summary: "Side Dish: More with Wendi McLendon-Covey"

Dinner’s On Me with Jesse Tyler Ferguson
Release Date: March 5, 2026
Guest: Wendi McLendon-Covey
Location: Della Nona (Downtown LA)

Episode Overview

In this "side dish" episode, Jesse Tyler Ferguson sits down with comedic powerhouse Wendi McLendon-Covey at Della Nona to continue their candid conversation. The chat delves into career beginnings, the quirks of improv versus scripted acting, finding joy and self-worth in performance, and Wendi’s enduring marriage and love of New Orleans. The episode is filled with humor, deep reflection, and stories about family, navigating the entertainment industry, and why self-awareness and humility matter in showbiz.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Roots and Relocation: Long Beach, New York, and Family

• Wendi’s Journey Out West (04:19 – 04:43)
  • Wendi shares she left Albuquerque, NM at 17 for New York, craving a bigger stage and the energy of city life.
  • "I went running from Albuquerque, New Mexico, where I was born, like the minute I had an opportunity." — Wendi (04:22)
• Long Beach Living
  • The group bonds over LA geography inconveniences and the appeal of Long Beach: affordability, the ocean, and a relaxed lifestyle.
  • Jesse jokes about the practicality, "Property taxes are very civil." (05:04)

2. Culinary and Cultural Los Angeles

• Local Eats and Date Spots (05:11 – 05:46)
  • Wendi expresses her love of Mexican food and recommends a local spot, Luna, known for its cucumber jalapeño margaritas.
  • "Target adjacent, so we would have had a Shoppies." — Jesse (05:24)

3. Improv vs. Theater Instincts and Insecurities

• Improv Roots & Modern Family Connections (06:29 – 07:48)
  • Wendi discusses her theater background and contrasts it with Eric Stonestreet's improv fluency.
  • On improv anxiety: "Sometimes I felt like I couldn't necessarily always keep up with him...I have to be as sharp as that to be legitimate. Like, it would kind of make me nervous." — Jesse (07:21)
  • Despite nerves about unscripted moments, the cast found chemistry through different strengths.
• Inner Saboteurs and Performance Nerves
  • Wendi admits to feelings of imposter syndrome in those early days, underlining the pressure actors put on themselves.

4. Theater vs. Television: Passions and Paychecks

• Jesse’s Theater Love (07:57 – 08:43)
  • Talks about his roots and ongoing love of theater and musicals, like “Spelling Bee” and “On the Town.”
  • Admits theater pays little: "I need to make a paycheck because there's no money in theater." — Jesse (08:39)

5. Early Career Hustle and New York Nostalgia

• Transition to NYC and the Reality of 90s New York (08:51 – 11:28)
  • Jesse recalls his audacious move to New York at 17, living in low-income/student housing, and going to school on the Upper West Side.
  • Funny memory: Walking past 90s Times Square porn shops and joking, "I'm just gonna hop in and get a bite to eat." — Jesse (11:20)

6. Marriage, Career Side Hustles & Self-Awareness

• Wendi’s Long Marriage (14:46 – 15:52)
  • Met her husband, Greg, in community college communication class.
  • "We had to demonstrate that we were able to practice active listening..." — Wendi (14:51)
  • They got engaged after just three months, but married three years later due to financial constraints.
• Academic Day Job While Acting (16:13 – 17:40)
  • Wendi worked editing a scholarly social work journal for 12 years—providing stability up to landing "The Goldbergs."
  • On balancing ego: "What I'm doing is not that important compared to what other people are doing. There are people out there really making a difference, and I am a spoiled professor performer." — Wendi (18:08)
• Humor in Self-Awareness
  • Discusses the absurdities of Hollywood and awards campaigns: "When you're talking—did we ever—? I didn't realize that I was like, oh, campaigning. Like, what is this?" — Wendi (19:18)
  • Importance of self-awareness and humility in show business (19:59 – 20:08).

7. Relationship Rhythms and New Orleans

• Date Nights & Vacation Home (22:21 – 24:30)
  • Wendi describes married life, low-maintenance date nights, and a beloved getaway: a tiny condo in New Orleans French Quarter.
  • On the city: "There's just such an energy about it. And every alleyway you turn down, it's like you're gonna run into something crazy. It's just a continual treasure hunt. It’s almost like living in the middle of Disneyland, really." — Wendi (23:29)
• Why New Orleans?
  • The city’s music, food, culture, and vibe left a deep impression post-Covid.

8. Family, Comedy Lineage, and Portland Connections

• Her Sister’s Creative Path (26:03 – 30:10)
  • Wendi’s sister is both a family therapist and owner of Portland’s Siren Theater—a hub for weird and wonderful performance.
  • "If you have like, oh, I think I’m gonna do Indonesian shadow puppets. I want to make this my career...Go to Portland. Someone will show up." — Wendi (27:41)
  • Her sister made it onto Portlandia and balances dual full-time jobs.
• Family Humor (30:18 – 31:19)
  • Their mother was a performer—singing and organizing skits at work—which provided a household infused with creativity and encouragement, if mixed feelings about actual showbiz as a career.
  • "But, yeah, it’s her fault. It’s totally her fault." — Wendi (31:19), about inheriting her comedic chops from her mother.

Notable Quotes

• "My inner saboteur did." — Jesse Tyler Ferguson (07:50), on battling insecurity while performing.
• "Sometimes when I’m doing a play, I’m like, I'm wearing a dead person's hair on my head and speaking loudly in front of strangers as another person. Like, what are we doing?" — Wendi McLendon-Covey (18:20)
• "There are people out there really making a difference, and I am a spoiled professor performer." — Wendi (18:08)
• "You can let your freak flag fly, and nobody bats an eyelash." — Wendi (23:53), about New Orleans

Memorable Moments & Timestamps

• Wendi describing her performing family and early New York life: 04:22 – 11:28
• Improv vs. theater anxieties and working with Eric Stonestreet: 06:29 – 07:48
• Love of theater and reality of artistic living: 07:57 – 08:43
• Wendi’s academic side job and balancing the ego: 16:13 – 18:08
• Sharing marriage stories, date nights, and falling for New Orleans: 14:46 – 24:30
• Her sister’s wild theater in Portland & Portlandia love: 26:03 – 30:10

Final Thoughts

This episode is a warm, riotously funny, and often touching conversation about the messiness of creative careers, family support and rivalry, the humility required for Hollywood, and finding balance between grounded life and artistic ambition. Whether you’re craving stories of community theater, bizarre Portland comedy, or the serendipity of finding your place (and people), you’ll find something to savor in this episode with Wendi McLendon-Covey.

Want more? Listen to the full "Dinner's on Me" episode with Wendi for the main course. Next week, tune in for Dan Bukatinsky's story of queer acceptance and shifting from acting to producing.