DRAFT: How We Broke Bad [with Bryan Cranston] | S2E6 "Aldrin Justice"

Summary

How We Made Your Mother: "How We Broke Bad" with Bryan Cranston – Episode Summary

Podcast: How We Made Your Mother
Hosts: Josh Radnor & Craig Thomas
Guest: Bryan Cranston
Episode: S2E6 “Aldrin Justice”
Date: December 1, 2025

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Episode Overview

In this standout episode, Josh Radnor (Ted Mosby) and co-creator Craig Thomas welcome Emmy-winning actor Bryan Cranston to discuss his memorable guest role as Hammond Druthers on How I Met Your Mother—and the unexpected ways his career intersected with the show as well as Breaking Bad. The conversation weaves together craft, career pivots, actorly anxiety, family legacies, and the mysterious forces that shape creative lives. It’s part heartfelt retrospective, part masterclass, and, as always, packed with rapid-fire jokes and wry humility.

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Key Discussion Points & Themes

1. "The Role That Changed Everything?" – Playing Hammond Druthers

• [03:10] Josh teases Bryan about how Hammond Druthers—not Walter White—is truly Cranston’s defining role:

  "Sometimes, if he's lucky, an actor gets a role that absolutely defines his career...Brian, you had that kind of role. I am speaking, of course, of Hammond Druthers…" – Josh Radnor

• [03:50] Cranston reminisces about joining HIMYM just as Malcolm in the Middle ended, indicating how timing—mixed with luck—freed him up for something new.

• [04:26] Cranston jokes about being "a bit over the top"—a remark his daughter (now an accomplished actress) once made:

  “She was like, ‘yeah, Dad, a bit...a bit over. A bit too much.’” – Bryan Cranston ([05:04])

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2. The Actor’s Mindset: Confidence, Survival, and the Long Game

• [06:14] Cranston reflects on the grind of daytime soaps and the point, at age 25 in NYC, when he confidently decided he was “going to make a living as an actor exclusively.”

• The hosts and Cranston compare notes on the ever-present anxiety after finishing a long-running show—what Craig dubs "the comfortable prison you have to break out of."

• [07:25] Cranston’s advice to artists:

  “You’ve got to commit to the relationship of this…like committing in your personal life. You will not make it if you say, ‘I’m gonna give it two years.’” ([09:01])

• [09:48] – [10:30] Radnor shares a formative encouragement he received at 19 from Jane Kaczmarek (who later played Cranston’s TV wife).

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3. Luck, Talent, and Saying No: Navigating Career Crossroads

• [13:03] Cranston stresses three keys to a lasting career: talent, persistence, and luck.

  “You also need one other element that is very elusive, and that’s luck.” – Bryan Cranston

• [17:05] Discusses consciously refusing “sweet, goofy dad” pilots after Malcolm, trusting his instinct to seek drama.

• [17:38] Josh and Craig talk about the discipline to turn down roles that would typecast them—“the no’s are very important in a career.”

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4. On Good Writing and Choosing Roles

• [16:07] Cranston’s guiding principle:

  “If you hitch your wagon to well-written material, you have a chance to be good. If it’s not well written…it will not be good.” ([16:07])

• The group laughs about the fun of playing "bad" characters—especially multifaceted, oblivious ones like Hammond Druthers ([18:29]):

  “‘Did you relish just playing a dick?’" – Josh “I never saw him that way...Those are the most fun characters to play.” – Cranston

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5. The Meaning and Public Value of Entertainment

• [19:40] Josh describes the surprising power of sitcoms as “soul medicine”—with fans reporting that HIMYM taught social cues to autistic viewers or served as real emotional support.

  “It’s a real public service to make people laugh, to divert, to entertain.” – Cranston ([20:24])

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6. Family, Legacy, and Passing the Torch

• [23:22] Cranston discusses his daughter’s independent path as an actor, the family’s theatrical lineage, and the pride—and anxieties—of having a child "take up the family business."
• Anecdotes include his parents being actors, meeting his wife on set, and his daughter's determination to avoid nepotism:

  “She doesn’t want anyone to think that he got me that job.” – Cranston ([27:46])

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7. The Myth of Overnight Success: Sliding Doors Moments

• [35:19] – [40:16] The hosts reflect on the “Netflix effect”—how streaming transformed HIMYM and Breaking Bad from quiet hits to global phenomena.

• [39:13] Cranston shares how missing out on an eighth season of Malcolm enabled his casting in Breaking Bad:

  “Had they picked up Malcolm in the Middle for an eighth season…I wouldn’t have been Walter White.” ([39:13])

• They explore the "unseen hand" or luck shaping life, referencing HIMYM’s own themes of cosmic timing and trusting one's path.

  “Life only makes sense looking backward, but you have to live it forward.” (referencing Kierkegaard, [39:19])

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8. The Ultimate Acting Lessons: Preparation, Kindness, and Process

• [37:26] – [44:13] Cranston and the hosts emphasize reputation:

  “Be grateful, show up on time, know your work, be kind and respectful. It matters…Your previous work is doing work for you, especially in filmed entertainment…” – Cranston & Radnor

• They discuss the importance of confidence—quiet, calm, not cocky—and always bringing your best, even when the part seems small.

• [44:13] On being recommended for jobs:

  “Stay the hell away from that one… Life’s too short.” – Cranston, on actors with bad reputations

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9. Financial Wisdom and Artistic Freedom

• [45:58] – [47:40] Cranston advocates for financial prudence, so creative choices aren’t dictated by economic needs:

  “Be smart so you don’t have to make a creative decision based on financial need… The secret to success in Hollywood is low overhead.” – Cranston & Radnor

• He muses on the fortune of “making it” at 41, not earlier, and the joy of middle-class artist life.

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10. Art as a Noble Profession

• [48:38] – [49:16] Radnor poetically theorizes acting as noble and ancient; Cranston reinforces the call to raise one's own artistic bar, always striving, not placating critics.

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11. Specifics of Playing "Bosses" and Drawing from Real Life

• [49:48] Cranston reflects on playing “insane boss” types—what he observed, what he draws on, and the actor’s responsibility to always “be taking in” life.

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12. HIMYM In-Jokes and Episode Insights ("Aldrin Justice")

• [50:35] – [53:03] Humorous reflection on crafting lines like the “thicket of wild, ungroomed brunette shrubbery.”
• Hammond Druthers’ Pete Rose fixation—mirroring how fictional choices can reveal character.
• The importance of "small" moments like Ted’s career breakthrough echoing Cranston’s own X-Files-to-Breaking-Bad leap.

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13. On Legacy, Accountability, & Cultural Change

• The hosts address a problematic joke from the episode with present-day candor and humility:

  "We certainly tonally missed what we were trying to go for there…I think it's important to call it out and own it when you see it." – Craig Thomas ([61:54])

• They discuss the importance of self-reflection, accountability, and evolving standards in comedy writing.

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14. Behind the Scenes: "Aldrin Justice" Tidbits

• Where the episode’s “cosmic justice” theme came from (writer Courtney Kang’s real-life “karma police” acts) ([56:50])
• Crafting Lily’s journey back to kindergarten teaching, and the show’s view of (and respect for) teachers as “the noblest profession” ([59:19])
• The evolution and origins of terms like “cougar” in pop culture—brought into the writers’ room by their own assistant ([65:34])

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15. Quotable Moments

• On luck and timing:

  "You never know what's going to happen in your career. You never know how it's going to...we were...how fortunate were both of us...that Netflix actually created that moment." – Bryan Cranston ([35:19])

• On professional standards:

  "Just do your job. Focus on your job. Do the best you can. If someone taps you on the shoulder and wants to recognize you...let it be the surprise, but it can't be the reason you're doing something." – Bryan Cranston ([54:17])

• On auditioning and confidence:

  "You have to keep betting on yourself in a way that is unreasonable. You have to sort of have this unfounded and slightly unhinged belief in your future self that you will pull it off." – Craig Thomas ([42:38])

• On the fate of creative work:

  “Ted making that blueprint is Bryan Cranston doing the episode of the X Files. You do good work and it goes somewhere.” – Craig Thomas ([53:42])

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Notable Timestamps

• 03:10: Radnor’s mock-serious “obituary” tribute to Hammond Druthers
• 05:04: Cranston’s daughter’s critique ("bit over the top")
• 13:03: Cranston’s “luck” principle and the Malcolm to HIMYM transition
• 17:05: Career management and saying no to being typecast
• 20:24: The public service of entertainment (“soul medicine”)
• 35:19: "Netflix effect" and how streaming changed TV
• 39:13: Sliding doors moment that enabled Breaking Bad
• 44:13: How reputation and reliability circulate in Hollywood
• 53:42: The small moments that become career breakthroughs
• 61:54: The hosts reflect on problematic jokes and accountability in comedy

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Tone and Spirit

As always, the hosts blend hearty laughter and self-deprecating wit with genuine affection for their craft, their collaborators, and their audience. Cranston matches their warmth with perspective and humor, delivering both sage advice and irreverent asides—from stories of actors’ existential dread to the goofy joy of playing “bad” on a multicam sitcom. Their mutual encouragement and willingness to reflect on both artistic success and missteps make for a searching, inspiring hour—one that will appeal to both HIMYM devotees and anyone who cares about the mysteries of art, luck, and long-haul creative living.

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Additional Highlights

• [54:47]: Bryan announces his then-upcoming run in All My Sons on the London stage, reflecting his joy in continually seeking new challenges.
• [67:03] Discussion of period-specific jokes (“just like John Mellencamp, I'm gonna get rid of the cougar once and for all”) and how they land with new audiences.
• [68:41] The hosts marvel at Cranston’s fearless, physical performance style.
• [69:28] Final reflections on acting as a lesson in boldness and embodiment.

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For more behind-the-scenes stories, listener questions, and episode deep-dives, visit howwemadeyourmother.com.

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(Summary compiled in the episode’s original conversational, openhearted style, preserving notable quotes, jokes, and perspectives.)

Transcript

[Craig Thomas]

Hey, Ryan Reynolds here wishing you a.

[Bryan Cranston]

Very happy half off holiday.

[Josh Radnor]

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[Craig Thomas]

Mint is still premium unlimited wireless for a great price.

[Josh Radnor]

So that means a half day.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. Give it a [e-mail] Switch upfront payment.

[Josh Radnor]

Of $45 for three month plan equivalent.

[Commercial Announcer]

To $15 per month required new customer offer for first three months only.

[Josh Radnor]

Speed slow after 35 gigabytes of network's.

[Commercial Announcer]

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[Josh Radnor]

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[Commercial Announcer]

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[Bryan Cranston]

One thing we always get asked, whether it's how I met your mother, whether it's Breaking Bad. The thing, the question we always get asked is did you know it was going to be a hit? You knew it was going to be a hit. And I go, no one ever knows. But what you do know and what I knew about how I met your mother is that it was good.

[Josh Radnor]

I'm alone. What a pity I won't be soon. New York City when I see you, Please permit me to tell you everything in New York City. Hello and welcome to another episode of How We Made youe Mother. I'm Josh Ratner. I played Ted Mosby in a TV show called How I Met yout Mother. From 2005 to 2014, we did 208 episodes of that show. Craig Thomas is the co creator of that show. He is here with me as always.

[Craig Thomas]

Hello, Craig. Hello, Josh.

[Josh Radnor]

It's great to see you.

[Craig Thomas]

As always, same but today's a little extra special.

[Josh Radnor]

Extra special. I'll tell you, these special, these special episodes keep getting specialer and specialer and we're just delighted over the moon today to have Mr. Brian Cranston joining us. Hi, Brian.

[Bryan Cranston]

Josh, how are you? Craig, how you doing, bud?

[Craig Thomas]

Great. Great. We're so happy to have you.

[Josh Radnor]

We're just so happy to see you. It's always, it's always great to see you both on the, the small screen screen, in person, in a zoom box, wherever we can find you. I wrote you a little Intro that I just wanted to set this up with. Okay, you ready?

[Bryan Cranston]

Oh, I'd love to.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I spent a long time on this. Sometimes, if he's lucky, an actor gets a role that absolutely defines his career. The first role that will be mentioned in his obituary. The kind of role that divides an actor's career into a before and an after. Brian, you had that kind of role. I am speaking, of course, of Hammond Druthers on how I met your mother. Your life must have. Your life absolutely changed as a result of playing Hammond.

[Bryan Cranston]

Changed completely.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah. Tell us, walk us through what was it like the morning after the show airs? Your life's completely. Talk us through it.

[Bryan Cranston]

Hey. Well, you know, I think my first appearance on your show was in 2006, if I'm not mistaken.

[Josh Radnor]

Alec, what was the actual date of the airing?

[Bryan Cranston]

Absolutely.

[Alec Lev]

The episode was called Aldrin justice, written by Jamie Ronheimer, and it aired on October 23, 2006.

[Josh Radnor]

Wow.

[Craig Thomas]

Right? The shot heard around the world. It was like the Beatles on Sullivan. And so you take it from here. Take it from here, Brian.

[Bryan Cranston]

So I'm a little sketchy on some of the things. How many episodes did I actually end up doing? Like three.

[Craig Thomas]

You appeared in three. The third was a very quick appearance. But you appeared in three. This was your first one.

[Bryan Cranston]

Okay.

[Craig Thomas]

And. Yeah.

[Bryan Cranston]

Okay, so the timing of this, guys, was that my show, Malcolm in the Middle, had ended production in March of 2006.

[Josh Radnor]

Oh.

[Bryan Cranston]

And so that freed me up. And. Yeah. And then I got. I got the call to be Hammond brothers, which was a juicy role.

[Josh Radnor]

Oh, yeah, it really was.

[Bryan Cranston]

It was.

[Josh Radnor]

And you juiced every ounce of juice out of it.

[Craig Thomas]

You did.

[Bryan Cranston]

Some might say I was a bit over the top.

[Craig Thomas]

No one says that. No one says that.

[Josh Radnor]

Wait, didn't you tell me? Didn't you tell me, remind me if. If I'm wrong about this, did your daughter say a little over the top, something like that about your. Your work? She thought you were a little cranked up.

[Bryan Cranston]

Just.

[Craig Thomas]

Just like a global. Like a global note on your whole career? No, no, just on this one.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah.

[Craig Thomas]

Because she's.

[Bryan Cranston]

She. And she. She was like, yeah, Dad, a bit. Bit over. A bit too much on a.

[Josh Radnor]

On a multicam sitcom with a laugh track. She was like, you were a bit over the top.

[Craig Thomas]

Oh, my God.

[Josh Radnor]

Your daughter is, by the way, to be trusted because she's an excellent actress.

[Bryan Cranston]

Oh, God. Yeah.

[Josh Radnor]

I mean, she is so, so wonderful on the pit. I'm really just so floored by her performance.

[Bryan Cranston]

Thanks, Josh. You Know, I mean, first of all, it doesn't even have to be as an actor, but any, any person who praises your kid for anything is just, it makes the parent feel like, okay, I'm good. I can walk away.

[Josh Radnor]

It was worth it to come on here today. So, so when you, when Malcolm went off the air, did you have that feeling that an actor. I was told years ago by a manager, all actors believe two things at one, any given time. One, my reps aren't working hard enough for two, the job I currently have will be my last. Were you in that feeling of like, okay, this great run on this show ended. Were you suddenly back in, like, I need to get a job?

[Bryan Cranston]

No, no, no. I, I, it was when I was 25 years old. I, I moved to New York City to do a soap opera.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah.

[Bryan Cranston]

And while the, the quality of the show or of any of those shows in that medium were not of the highest standard because they just went so fast, as soon as you're done, you throw it away. You got the next one. Throw that away. Do the next one. Throw it away. It's such a churn.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah, I saw Tootsie. I, I know you saw, too, you know. Yeah, I know, but it was such.

[Bryan Cranston]

A churn and such a chore to be able to, to look at that work and, and try to find moments of honesty. You can't find extended moments because it just, there's no time. You're focused on learning those lines. And it'. But at that time in 1983, I realized that I crossed a threshold. There was something within me that said, oh, I can do this. I belong here. I feel confident that I'm in. I am now going to make a living as an actor exclusively for the rest of my life. And that's what happened. It was that moment. So, no, I don't have that feeling of I'll never work again. I don't. It, it just changed in me at that time.

[Josh Radnor]

It's an expression that has an asterisk by it, and at the bottom it says, except Brian Cranston.

[Craig Thomas]

Wait a minute.

[Bryan Cranston]

Did you feel that way when your show ended? Did you freak out?

[Josh Radnor]

No, I, I didn't feel that way when the show ended. I definitely felt like I have some rethinking of things to do, and I have, I have to be careful and judicious about what I do when I do it, how I'm going to, you know, and I, and I, I had a broader idea of myself as a maker of things, you know, that I wasn't only about acting, but. But I know what you mean. I'm curious though. You were how old, like in your mid-20s around that time.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah.

[Josh Radnor]

And there was just some internal shift where you said, I can do this and I'm going to keep doing this. And like, I mean, I think it's a. I think in some ways success is a bit of a psychological game, you know, I mean, there's plenty of people. I used to. I said this once that a lot of people have the talent for acting, but not everyone has the stom. You know, that there's a lot of, like, you got to take a lot of clocks on the chin and just stay in it. So you just had this essential kind of belief in yourself that, that never dimmed.

[Bryan Cranston]

No, I mean, but that's not to say there aren't frustrating periods that you go through when you're, you're ebb and flow of, of a career. But as I tell young.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah.

[Bryan Cranston]

People who, who want to become actors or writers, directors, producers, whatever. I said, you gotta, you gotta commit to the relationship of this. You have to commit to it like you're committing to in your personal life, you know, if you will not make it. If you say, I'm gonna give it you. We've all heard I'm gonna give it two years.

[Josh Radnor]

Right. It's like saying a marriage. Like, I'm gonna give this two years and if I hit any rough spots in my marriage, I'm out.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. Yeah. It won't work if you're, if you're just dipping your toe into it. So, yeah, that's what I was committed to it. I had a bunch of survival jobs before I was waiting tables or I loaded trucks. And every time I was at work, I would say, one of these days, one day I'm getting closer and closer. One day I'll be able to say I. I work exclusively as an actor. And I gotta say that was my happiest moment to my. To this day, that also feels like my most accomplished moment. That when I crossed over and I said, oh my God, this, I can do this. And I, I belong here.

[Josh Radnor]

I'll tell you a story. I was. Did you ever work up at Vassar? At New York Stage in film?

[Bryan Cranston]

No.

[Josh Radnor]

Did you ever go up there to do. Okay, so I was up there as an acting apprentice when I was 19. It was in my, in between my sophomore and junior years at Kenyon, and there were all these professional actors up there and they would come and see our work. And I was on a running crew for one of the shows. And there was an actress who saw me in these David Ives one acts and she pulled me aside and she said, you can do this. How long do you have left of college? I can introduce you to my agent. I was 19. I was really overwhelmed and I never forgot her kindness to me. That actress was Jane Kacmarek, who played your wife in Malcolm in the Middle Twist. Yeah.

[Craig Thomas]

Not see that coming at all.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah.

[Bryan Cranston]

Wait, are you sure she just didn't want to sleep with you?

[Josh Radnor]

Oh, no, no, no. We slept together. That's not the, this was a post coital conversation. Sorry.

[Craig Thomas]

We wanted, we wanted season two of this podcast to break news and get headlines. This is it. Spinning headline. We've got it.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah, no, but I know, I know what you mean. You, you, I, I, I do think especially you, there's a, there are moments, whether it's bequeathed to you by someone who you trust, who, who believes in you, or a kind of fundamental shift where you say, I do belong here. You know, it's like my friend before I went into a Hill Harper one time said, we're in the NFL of actors. Remember? We're in the NFL of actors, you know? And I wrote you this little ditty to sing to you in New York City. We'll be right back. Why does every recipe I try need 18 ingredients, including a jar of something paste I'll never use again but will.

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[Bryan Cranston]

Indeed. And now back to the so in in 2006, which is also something that should be brought up for those listening or in our business or contemplating getting our business, is that in order to have a successful career, you have to have talent. You do. You have to have talent. You have to have persistence and patience. But you also need one other element that is very elusive, and that's luck. There has to be a healthy dose of luck that comes your way that opens things up for you. Now, when it's open, are you able to perform to that level that is desired by you and others? It's. That's the question. But you need the luck. And so it. In March of 06, after a lot of contemplation from Fox, they. They were teasing us with possibly doing an eighth season of Malcolm in the Middle. And we were like, oh, yeah, I hope we get a chance to do the eighth season. We go, go to work like you guys. You have fun and you great laughs and it's great. They came to us, they said in May. They had a great. They had a great pilot season. So we're not picking you up for the, for the eighth season. Well, that's a.

[Craig Thomas]

Bummer. Wow, thanks. But where are any of those shows? I want to know. We got to look this up. Where are any of those shows? Okay, we'll get back to that.

[Bryan Cranston]

Later. Yeah, so I was free to do your show, which was lucky. Able to, you know, spread my wings a little bit and take on a character that was so different from Hal and Malcolm in the Middle. Very grateful to be on a hit show like yours and.

[Craig Thomas]

To. Well, that's. Brian. We were not a hit show. This is my question to.

[Josh Radnor]

You. Yeah, this is where memory gets season.

[Craig Thomas]

Two. We were not really a hit show.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yet. Okay. I was just being.

[Craig Thomas]

Kind. You're a good actor. I really bought it. But honestly, this is my main question for you. I really mean it. What made you do this show? We were not a hit. We were really just getting there. We were so starstruck by you, every writer in that room, because you were so fucking funny on Malcolm in the Middle for all of those years. That was such an amazing comedic performance. I wonder if all your younger fans that watch Breaking Bad have gone back. And please do yourself a favor, if you're such a fan, go back and watch Malcolm in the Middle. How funny Ryan was. We were so starstruck. We couldn't believe you said yes. We're like, I don't know if we're offering. Like, we're not. We're offering him this crazy boss role. It's very different than what he was doing on Malcolm in the Middle. Like, what made you say yes and thank you? And the other thing is, I'm thanking you for.

[Bryan Cranston]

It. Craig. First of all, one thing, we always get asked, whether it's how I met your mother, whether it's Breaking Bad, whatever the show you're associated with or movie, the question we always get asked is, did you know it was going to be a hit? Did you know you knew it was going to be a hit? I go, no one.

[Josh Radnor]

Ever. No one.

[Craig Thomas]

Knows. No one ever.

[Bryan Cranston]

Knows. But what you do know and what I knew about how I met your mother is that it was good. And that's all. I learned this edict long ago. If you hitch your wagon to well written material, you have a chance to be good. You have a chance. If it's not well written, it will not be good. I don't care what you, how you paint it, what you do, it's not going to be good. So that was the edict that I lived by. So I knew your show, and I, I said, this is a fun show. It moves, it's quick, it's funny, it's pointed. It has moments of, of pathos to it. And it's like, there's something here with this. And so I was happy to do it. And then for me personally, to be able to break away from what I knew now when, when Malcolm in the Middle ended, I was offered two pilots, two comedy pilots, and they said, it's perfect for you. He's a sweet, goofy.

[Craig Thomas]

Dad.

[Bryan Cranston]

Right? And I went, guys, I just did seven.

[Josh Radnor]

Years.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. Of that. I would be, I would be, you know, just traipsing over my own work and, and just diluting everything. I, I, no, thank you. No, no, no. So I knew I wanted to look for a drama if I was going to go into a series regular. But to be able to come and play on your set and do a character that was not like the character I was just playing. I was like, let's.

[Josh Radnor]

Go.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah. Well, then add a third edict of good instincts. It was talent and luck and Also, good instincts like you had that everything you just said is really smart. Career management of your own.

[Josh Radnor]

Career. The no's are very important in a career. What you don't do is very important, really. Especially after, you know, I was offered after how I met your mother, you know, any single guy looking for love in the big city, I couldn't do. You know, I couldn't do it. I mean, I literally couldn't do it artistically just because I had. So I had. There was nothing left to explore under the rock. You know, after 208 episodes, I'm also wondering if there was a little bit. I mean, your performance is so funny as Hammond, but it's also like, he's quite evil. Like.

[Craig Thomas]

He'S. He's not.

[Josh Radnor]

A. He's not a good person. Was there some relish in. In exploring just like the. Just playing a.

[Bryan Cranston]

Dick. I never saw him that way. Josh, of course, because you don't.

[Josh Radnor]

Judge your characters because you're a proper.

[Bryan Cranston]

Actor. I think you were full of yourself. And I'm like you to this day, and I like even less right.

[Josh Radnor]

Now. He never got out of character with.

[Bryan Cranston]

Me. Those are the most. Those are the most fun characters to.

[Josh Radnor]

Play. Yeah.

[Bryan Cranston]

Right. Is when someone's going off on a limb and they don't. They're not aware of who they are, how they present or something. You just going, yeah. And. Yeah, so that.

[Josh Radnor]

Was. It's also. It's also like consequence less free bad behavior. Like, you get to really exercise. Like, your shadow gets to come out and play. And it's like you're beloved for it. You know, you're really. I also. I was watching the episode again, Brian, and I had this feeling for both of us, but especially for you. I can't believe this is our adult job. I can't believe this is how he is feeding his family. Like, through doing.

[Craig Thomas]

This. He's screaming at the child with the ice cream.

[Josh Radnor]

Cone. Yeah, he's screaming at a child with an ice cream cone. Like, this is how. This is how he's gonna pay for things. Like, it's unbelievable, isn't.

[Bryan Cranston]

It? I wish that for all of us. I am never without that sense of what good fortune we've had. And to be able to just say, this is what we do for a.

[Josh Radnor]

Living. It can be hard, you know, when you're on a soundstage every day. We've talked about this in the podcast. You forget, you know, it's such a cocooned kind of environment. You forget that it's being beamed out to all over the world, you know, and that actually sometimes you can think, oh, I should be in the Peace Corps. I should be doing something in a nonprofit, or some sort of altruistic kind of impulse. And then you think, like, no, people come up to you and they have those jobs or they have gone through hard times, and they're like, your show was the source of lightness and laughter in my life. Like, you realize it's a real public.

[Bryan Cranston]

Service.

[Josh Radnor]

Exactly. To make people laugh, to divert, to entertain, you.

[Bryan Cranston]

Know? And did you have that feeling always, or was it your experience on the show and hearing those comments from the public that you start to say, oh, I. I guess simple entertainment has tremendous value to.

[Josh Radnor]

People? Well, I think I always had a sense of it, but I have the largest sample size from How I Met yout Mother fans. Just because it's. I did more of that than anything else. So I hear from more of those people. And one of the things we're interrogating in this show is what is that kind of special soul medicine that How I Met yout Mother seems to have beyond just a comedy? A lot of shows can make you laugh, but there was this additional element of. That it felt like a friend to people, that it was a comforting show through their. Their tough times. We've. We've heard from autistic people who said, this taught me social cues like this. This taught me how to be in the world in a different way. And that's. That's the stuff that is particularly.

[Bryan Cranston]

Startling, like how to pick up women from.

[Josh Radnor]

Barney. Yeah, yeah.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah. How not to be a boss from Ham and.

[Josh Radnor]

Druthers. Oh, we did it. We did have a question. Craig and I were talking about.

[Craig Thomas]

This.

[Josh Radnor]

You. I don't know if this was your first horrible boss, but it's not your last. Because your character on the studio is also probably in your lineage of these kind of insane.

[Craig Thomas]

Bosses. Yes, it is funny. You're back in the insane boss world a little bit. Although it's a very different twist. That show is great, and you were great on it. Is it fun getting to be an unhinged egomaniac boss with sort of a different.

[Bryan Cranston]

Spin? It's so much fun, of course, that it's done in that single camera style with. With kind of that one. Or with stitching going on with the whips and things, but so much fun. And again, once again, like, you know, like, you. You guys who created the show, the writing was there. If the writing's not present, it's not going to work. And. And, you know, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, they're, they're really funny, funny.

[Craig Thomas]

Writers. So.

[Bryan Cranston]

Smart. And they get it. So it was fun to.

[Josh Radnor]

Do. Do you, do you get just. I'm just curious. This is just for me. Do you get nervous during one or is like in a different way or do you just get used to that? It's the way you're shooting. I mean, it's more like theater in a way. Like you just, you got to do the whole.

[Bryan Cranston]

Thing. I think what my, my daughter is going through is probably the hardest work to, to have right now. As she plays a doctor on the pit, she's, they, they have the six or seven syllable words, medical terminology. Right. That you know, they're whipping to someone whipping back to you go, it's like, and if you didn't get it, we got to do it over. And you're thinking, oh my God, what's the.

[Josh Radnor]

Word? Yeah, this is not English. This is a different.

[Bryan Cranston]

Language. It is learning a different language. And yeah. So she's, that's the, that's the tough.

[Josh Radnor]

Part. Can I ask what, what is the. You know, my father had an, his own negotiation with kind of accepting that, that his son was not going to be a lawyer, he was going to be an actor. And that was his own process. But, but your daughter went into your line of work, like, what was that like? I mean, I imagine there must be untold amounts of pride and joy, you know, now and, but, but like, were you nervous about, did you try to prepare her? Did. Like, I'm just curious how much ever much you want to share about.

[Bryan Cranston]

That. Well, I mean, parents are always teaching their children in the best case scenario, hopefully, it's, it's how to behave, how to, how to be a good person, a kind person, a respectful.

[Josh Radnor]

Person.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. In some cases it's, you know, in my case, in many times when I was a child, it was, oh, my parents did that, so that didn't work. So I'm going to do this, you.

[Josh Radnor]

Know. Yeah.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. But both of my parents were.

[Josh Radnor]

Actors. Oh, I didn't know.

[Bryan Cranston]

That. Yeah. They met on a show in 1951 called Life with Elizabeth starring Betty.

[Craig Thomas]

White. Oh, my.

[Bryan Cranston]

God. And they played her next door neighbor. They were a married couple next to her neighbor. They got married, they started having kids, and so they were actors as well. Okay. And when you think about it, guys, it is probably the most common matriculation in the world to go from school to your, your life's work in your family business. There are probably more people around the World who just follow up. If you're a farmer, you're a farmer. If you're a dry cleaner, you inherit. You just like, what are your paint houses? You do whatever you do. So when you think about it in those terms, it's like, oh, of course, she's. She's got. She's exposed to what it's like to be an.

[Josh Radnor]

Actor. Well, she was on. She was on sets with you from. From the time she can remember.

[Bryan Cranston]

Right? Yeah, she was. She would come in. It was a very normal part of her life.

[Josh Radnor]

But.

[Bryan Cranston]

Right. She also knew that, you know, I wasn't. I was 41 or 40, 41 when I did the pilot for Malcolm and the Middle, which was my first series that stuck. I had done other series.

[Craig Thomas]

Before.

[Bryan Cranston]

Right. Four episodes, six episodes gone, gone, gone, gone. It's like the life of an actor, you know, you're like, yeah. And so my wife and I and our daughter, we had this little house in the valley, and we were very normal, very middle class. We would work and we'd save that money because we didn't know when we were going to work again. It was just like, okay, we got this. It's.

[Josh Radnor]

Going. And is it true you also met your wife doing a show? Isn't that.

[Bryan Cranston]

Right? Yeah.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah. So there's another in the family.

[Craig Thomas]

The family line, How I met your.

[Bryan Cranston]

Mother. Yeah, basically that. 30, 38 or 39 years ago now. I met her on an episode. We were both guest stars on an episode of a show called.

[Josh Radnor]

Airwolf. Oh.

[Bryan Cranston]

Sure. Oh, do you remember.

[Craig Thomas]

This? Oh, I.

[Bryan Cranston]

Remember. It was the.

[Josh Radnor]

Helicopter.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah. Oh.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yes. Jan Michael.

[Josh Radnor]

Vincent.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. Ernest Board died. And it was like. And it was. When you look back, it's like so silly because they're cardboard cutouts. Bad guy, good guy, ingenue victim. It's like. And everyone plays that role, stays in their lane. And it's like, oh, God.

[Craig Thomas]

But. And it has to involve a.

[Josh Radnor]

Helicopter. That was before you got into more nuanced work like.

[Craig Thomas]

Hammond. But they can't all be that multifaceted look. Come.

[Bryan Cranston]

On. Subtlety. It's my signature.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah. So, yeah, you know, I always think about, you know, children of actors who become actors. There's this kind of like, oh, they had every door open. My. My theory is they might have a door open, but they, if they don't have the talent, they will not walk through it. They. They just. The, the business is too tricky and too. It's too much of a high wire act that if you can't do it, you're not going to stick around.

[Bryan Cranston]

You know, And Taylor is so independent that she, as of now, she's like, very resistant to even considering auditioning for something that I may be doing. She won't do it. She doesn't want.

[Craig Thomas]

Any. Oh, interesting. She doesn't want to work with. She doesn't want to work with dad. It's too weird. It's too much.

[Bryan Cranston]

Pressure. Not right now. No, no, I don't want any. I don't want anybody. I hope someday I don't want any talk of anybody even remotely thinking that he got me that.

[Josh Radnor]

Job. As I put away my father daughter's spec script that I wrote for you.

[Bryan Cranston]

Too. I'm so proud of her. Yeah, she, she. To the point where she said to me once, I'm gonna use mom's name as my professional name and asked me, okay. I go, yeah. Oh, yeah, do we. But, but she did that because she didn't want to have the last name and have people. Oh, is that why you're.

[Craig Thomas]

Here?

[Bryan Cranston]

Right? It's like, ah, yeah.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah. Well, our, Our, our Druthers and Daughter pilot is straight out the fucking window now. We're definitely not pitching you.

[Bryan Cranston]

That. That's a good title. Druthers and daughters alliterative Ds. Come on. That's.

[Craig Thomas]

Right. Brian. I. I have a question. We. On this podcast, we. One of the best parts of doing this podcast for us has been hearing from the fans. The fans send in these amazing messages like. Like what Josh said. Like someone with autism saying someone. Someone who said, I'm. I'm Korean. And I watching How I Met yout Mother. What are the things you hear from fans that touch you or surprise you? Whether it's Malcolm in the Middle or Breaking Bad? Like, what do you hear from people? Most or even. Or most and least. What's the most specific, interesting, surprising thing you hear from fans? And what do you hear a ton of. I'm just curious. What. When you walk through the world, what are you.

[Bryan Cranston]

Hearing? Well, the most I hear from is Breaking Bad. And that probably the comment is like, hey, do you know how to cook it? And I go, I actually did learn because the DEA chemists were our consultants and, and they taught us how to do it. It's very.

[Josh Radnor]

Intricate. I would trust you to cook my.

[Bryan Cranston]

Method. Thank you.

[Josh Radnor]

Josh. That's so.

[Craig Thomas]

Sweet. It's really.

[Bryan Cranston]

Sweet.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. When we did cooking segments, it sounds like a cooking.

[Craig Thomas]

Show. Just a. More like the Today.

[Bryan Cranston]

Show. Well, did it on the show. We specifically purposefully left out part of the process or reversed the process so that it wouldn't become a how to. So we. We specifically did that.

[Craig Thomas]

So.

[Bryan Cranston]

Right. But. But then it. It caught on with the zeitgeist that people who were cooking meth around the world started making it with a tinge of.

[Craig Thomas]

Blue. Oh, my.

[Bryan Cranston]

God. And we. I was sent comments by newscasters who would. I don't know why they feel compelled to comment after they see it. After a reporter on the scene says, here's what happened, and that's what happened. Then they say, oh, yeah, it's blue. It's supposed to be the most pure form of it. And it's like, totally out of something we made up. It has nothing to do what happened. Was it blue on our show because it was too invisible? The camera wasn't picking up the clear. So they said, well, can we give it a little tint? It did look.

[Craig Thomas]

Beautiful. Wow, I love that. That's one of the main things you.

[Bryan Cranston]

Hear. That's one of the main.

[Josh Radnor]

Things. You know, weirdly, I get that. No, I'm kidding, Brian. I just realized, though, we had similar arcs from How I met your mother, Breaking Brat. I mean, I think you were winning. Did you win an Emmy the first season or the second.

[Bryan Cranston]

Season? First.

[Josh Radnor]

Season. First season. So.

[Craig Thomas]

You. Hell, yeah. You.

[Josh Radnor]

Were. You were being lauded for your performance, but the audience was relatively small compared to what it.

[Bryan Cranston]

Became. Yes, exactly.

[Josh Radnor]

Right. Yes. So. So. But we had the same thing, because I think it was. We were four seasons, a little quiet, and then we went on Netflix, and there was a notable change both in our audience and also. And the same thing happened to you, right? Exactly the.

[Bryan Cranston]

Same. Yeah, exactly the same. It was the Netflix.

[Josh Radnor]

Effect. Yeah.

[Bryan Cranston]

We. We had three seasons on amc, and we were getting critical attention and. And attention from the TV academy, and it was wonderful, but people weren't watching. They couldn't find us. They didn't know where. You know, where do I have amc? I don't know. And, yeah, a lot. When we started our fourth season, Netflix had already transitioned from the little red envelopes that we used to get sent in our.

[Craig Thomas]

Mail.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. To streaming to where you're just pushing the button. And all of a sudden this was available on their streaming. And. Oh, wait a minute. I heard that. Let me go see. And they watch two episodes and then they're.

[Josh Radnor]

In.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. And they're on along for the ride.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah. I mean, it's crazy to think now it's such a common thing that you can watch three seasons in a weekend. You're up to speed. You can now watch it in real time if you want. But but for the all of television history up until that moment, you would have to hop in on whatever season they were airing. I mean there was no ability other than like DVD box sets when that started happening, right? But it really revolutionized the way a TV show could be found. I mean there's now shows that had a short run, went off the air and become cult classics because people discover them years later. And this old man, he must admit he fell in love with him and knew he was.

[Craig Thomas]

City. And now.

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[Craig Thomas]

Deserve. End of commercials Back to.

[Bryan Cranston]

Show. You never know what's going to happen in your career. You never know how it's going to. I mean, we were. How fortunate were both of us or all of us that that happened, that Netflix actually created that moment for us to be seen by millions more than would have ever seen our.

[Craig Thomas]

Shows? Yeah, it's huge in some ways. I think it rescued like, I think we were kind of on the bubble. We were. We weren't quite kind of popping out and then it measurably lifted it up. I really think streaming helped cause it's such. Our show is very bingeable for a sitcom. And God knows watching Breaking Bad a whole bunch in a row is so rewarding because everything is so cleverly. It's great. It was great watching it on air and having to wait a week. But seeing the brillian of that storytelling of how Breaking Bad was written and constructed, watching them all in a row is very.

[Bryan Cranston]

Rewarding. It was fun. Well, to give you an idea of how this all came about in that magical year of 2006 when the end of Malcolm in the Middle happened. I got the job on your show in between and it was available to me, but you guys stopped shooting in May or something like that every year. And so I had April and May, two month window to be able to do your show. And had we been picked up? No. But also later that year, I get a call that my agent says, do you know who Vince Gilligan is? And I said, no. He said, well, he knows you from X Files. You did an episode of his show. I go, yeah, yeah, I remember. You remember what he looks like? I said, no. He goes, well, he wrote this script called Breaking Bad and he wants to see you for it. I go, okay, all right. And I read this script. It was the best hour long script I had ever read. And I want this desperately. I want to go in and get this. And he was my champion to get the role, but it was because of 10 years earlier, I did one episode of X.

[Craig Thomas]

Files.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. And he remembered.

[Josh Radnor]

That.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. And I'm telling you, be grateful, show up on time, know your work, be kind and respectful. Is it matters? Because he would not have said, wait a minute, I know that guy. He's good. And he can, he's good to.

[Josh Radnor]

Be around or whatever he Wasn't like, I remember that guy. He was held up production, 90 minutes. I'll never cast him.

[Bryan Cranston]

Again. That's what happens. That's what.

[Craig Thomas]

Happens. Yeah. So anyway, did you have.

[Josh Radnor]

To. Did you have to read for Breaking Bad? Or was. Did you. Were you.

[Bryan Cranston]

Offered? How dare you? No, I. I did not read for Breaking Bad. It was the meeting with Vince and. But. But he relayed his interest and his choice to Sony and to amc, and there was some initial pushback because.

[Craig Thomas]

They saw you a different way. Right. They saw you as a comedy dad. Right. But Vince was like, no, I don't care. He was so good. In this one episode of x.

[Bryan Cranston]

Files 10 years ago, he actually literally overnighted the disc of that one, 2006, overnighted the disc of that episode to the executives at AMC and to the executives at Sony. And he said, watch this. And then. Then we'll talk. And so without him being my champion, I don't think we're talking here today, you know, because he. He changed my life. And that's it. By the way, here's the irony of it. So we shot the pilot for Breaking Bad in February and March of.

[Craig Thomas]

07.

[Bryan Cranston]

Wow. Remember when I was telling you about Fox saying, wait, we might pick up Malcolm in the Middle for an eighth.

[Craig Thomas]

Season? Right.

[Bryan Cranston]

Right. Had they picked up Malcolm in the Middle for an eighth.

[Josh Radnor]

Season.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah.

[Bryan Cranston]

Wow. I wouldn't have been Walter White. I wouldn't have been available to.

[Craig Thomas]

Be. Oh, my God. You just don't.

[Josh Radnor]

Know. When you look back, this is. I'm gonna. I'm gonna somersault this into a how I met your mother type of reference. But when you look back at your career, you know that it's that thing there. Is it Kierkegaard, that quote of, like, life only makes sense looking backward, but you have to live it forward when you look back. Like, so the thing you just did, like, had I gotten the pickup for Malcolm, the middle eighth season wouldn't have done Breaking Bad. When you're stumbling, you're going on your instinct, you're trying to make the best next right choices, does it sometimes feel. This is a slightly theological question. Does it sometimes feel like there's an unseen hand working things out in a way? Because it's a theme of How I met your mother, this kind of trusting the universe. If this hadn't happened, then this wouldn't have happened. It's a bit of a sliding doors kind of thing. Like, do you have that feeling about your career that there's something you. You call it luck, but it feels like maybe something else is going on. I don't.

[Bryan Cranston]

Know. Well, I. I think. I think that's partly due to a positive.

[Josh Radnor]

Outlook.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. I. I generally look positively upon all things. Yeah. And I think, as I try to. To teach when I talk to young actors, is that there is a difference of presenting yourself with confidence, quiet confidence. Not a chest beating. Look at me. But a quiet confidence. If you can convey that, you have to really believe it. And if you can convey that you're going to instill confidence in.

[Josh Radnor]

Others.

[Craig Thomas]

Right.

[Bryan Cranston]

Right. When we cast, you're looking for someone to come in who can grab the role and take.

[Craig Thomas]

It.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. Not like. It's like, if you don't feel confident in the actor act coming in to take on a role, it's. It's usually not going to.

[Josh Radnor]

Work. I. I heard. I think it was John Cusack describe filmmaking this way, which I really loved. He said, you get an army of people together, literal trucks, you know, hundreds of people. There's just. It's a village that you're creating just so you can catch, like, a single tear rolling down a cheek. You know, like, it's this incredibly vast apparatus to capture these incredibly intimate moments. And the thing is about acting, what you're des. Describing is there's a lot of money riding, and there's not. There's never enough.

[Craig Thomas]

Time.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah. So you need someone that you're like, put me in coach. Like, I'll make the shot. Like the. Like, what's his face at the end of Hoosiers? Like, I'll make the shot. You know, you need. Yeah, you need that kind of, like, glint in your eye, that little bit of, like, I can do.

[Bryan Cranston]

It. Well, it's. It is a bit of. Of, you know, hope and spit that we put these shows together. Yeah. You know, how many times have you gone in and said. Said, you know, to meet with the network or the studio and you kind of give them a song and dance because you're not quite sure. Craig. I'm sure that at the end of every season, when you're going into CBS and they're saying, tell us about the next season. Yeah, it's a little bit of.

[Craig Thomas]

A. Well, oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, it's a Willy. It's a Willy Loman moment. Let me open my briefcase of wares. You know what it reminds me.

[Josh Radnor]

Of? It's Dana Carvey chopping broccoli. He's just making up the album as he.

[Craig Thomas]

Goes. He's got a song fully written for you guys. Yeah. There's Definitely some salesmanship. And you have to have a little swagger. You have to keep betting on yourself in a way that is unreasonable. Right. You have to sort of have this unfounded and slightly unhinged belief in your future self that you will pull it off. And some of these targets are very small. Think about. You did one episode of X Files. That's why you got Breaking Bad. It wasn't that Vince Gilligan was like the biggest Malcolm in the Middle fan of all time from this story. It could be that he never even saw that show. And by the way, that show was great and you were great on it, but he remembered one thing you.

[Bryan Cranston]

Did. That's.

[Craig Thomas]

Right. And you made that fuck that one thing fucking count. And it resonated 10 years in his brain. If there's not a lesson in there about show up and commit and do your best, even when it seems like one little thing, I mean, that is just. That is one of the biggest versions of that lesson I've ever.

[Bryan Cranston]

Heard. And, and that's really the message that I want to convey to young actors, writers, directors. It's like, it's process, a lot of it. You, you hold on to your talent, develop your talent, expand your talent, but it's also logistics. It's. It's right, you know, being reliable, being able to. To come in and, and be there and be respectful and. Because that's what, what happens. Listen, you know, when I produce shows, I get calls, or I'm calling other producers and saying, we're thinking of hiring. So and so what. What are your thoughts? And I will say, I won't say names, but I will say, stay the hell away from that.

[Josh Radnor]

One. Life's too.

[Bryan Cranston]

Short. Life's too short comes.

[Craig Thomas]

Up. It.

[Bryan Cranston]

Does. Oh, got it. And I.

[Craig Thomas]

Do.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah. It's also really nice as an actor to remember, while you might not have the job of your dreams in this moment, your previous work is doing work for you, especially in filmed entertainment. It's not like theater that goes away, you know, that, that someone might stumble across an episode you did of something and they, they. I mean, I'm always the director part of me. I'm always. If I'm. If I like an actual performance, I, I stick around for the credits. I want to see who it is. I Wanna, you know, IMDb, like, what are they up to? This is a really, you know, I did want to say Brian. For me, when I, you know, if someone asks me, you know, if I'm talking to agents or my manager or something, your name always comes up as someone who transitions so beautifully out of a kind of sitcom into something like, much darker and more treacherous in the best kind of way. So I've always, I've always looked at you as a guiding light of how to. Because, you know, I've talked about this on the show, that when you, when you're on a show that long that's as iconic as How I Met yout Mother, it can feel like a very comfortable prison that you have to break out of, you know, and so I, you know, so that, that's always been a guiding light for me. But I'm also curious, when you were at the end, how long was Breaking Bad? Six, seven.

[Bryan Cranston]

Years. Six.

[Josh Radnor]

Years. Six years. So you've won all the awards. You, you know, I mean, you're, you're, you're at, you're, you're in a kind of Mount Rushmore television history kind of thing. Like, did you have any moments of despair of, what now? What? What next? Or were you just like, let's see, let's just play right.

[Bryan Cranston]

Now? No. And I, I, I would say that, that I never, ever disparage any actor for taking any job. But I will say that if you're lucky enough to be on a hit show for a length of time, as we were, you better take care of yourself financially. You better be smart so that you don't have to make a creative decision based on financial.

[Craig Thomas]

Need.

[Bryan Cranston]

Right. So that, as you said before, Josh, so that you can, you can say no without going, oh, my God, how am I going to pay my rent this.

[Josh Radnor]

Week?

[Bryan Cranston]

Right. Right. You've got to be careful. You got to take care of yourself. So that's the first thing you want to.

[Josh Radnor]

Do. Yeah. Someone once told me the secret to success in Hollywood is low.

[Bryan Cranston]

Overhead. Dead. Well.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah. You know, you, you, you see, you see certain actors and you go, why would they do that? And then you read they have a castle in Europe that they're trying to sell that has sunk.

[Craig Thomas]

Them.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah. You know.

[Bryan Cranston]

Exactly. Right. They bought. They have 17 properties around the.

[Josh Radnor]

World.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. And it's.

[Josh Radnor]

Like.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. And they have to do, you know, Sharknado or whatever to, to make a.

[Josh Radnor]

Living. Yeah. Do you think, Brian, that it was a stroke of good fortune that it didn't happen until 41 in terms of, like, a little more stability, a little more.

[Bryan Cranston]

Visibility. Yeah. Perhaps I will say again. I said that the biggest achievement to me was knowing that I worked as an actor from 25 years old and whatever that means. And I did keep my nut low. I didn't I didn't spend a lot of money. We had a little house, we had a baby. Very, very middle class life and it was, it was.

[Josh Radnor]

Terrific. Yeah, I love hearing people talk joyfully about living the life of an artist. I mean, there's so many cliches or misunderstandings, you know, oh, it's so hard. And, but you, you, I, I think something that I've always responded to you as an actor is there's a, even in a, even when it looks like the character's going through hell, there's a spark of joy in you of getting to do it. And it feels very pure, like, like almost. I sometimes think about like the history of actors, like troubadours and you know, people going town to town and telling stories There' Very, to me, very ancient and noble about the craft of this thing. And I think that without actors and artists, it's a, it would be a very impoverished society. I, I, I, I don't like it when people denigrate what we do or say. We're liars or we, we, you know what I mean? Like, I think there's something very noble about it and I, I feel that very strongly when I, when I watch your work and talk to.

[Bryan Cranston]

You. Well, thank you. But I agree with you. Any, any art form is a leap of faith and you hope that you will be satisfied. Your audience, in whatever medium it is, will be appreciative of what you do. But the biggest thing is to not try to please others really as much as have a high standard for yourself and then keep raising that and try to keep reaching for that higher bar. You won't always make it, but it's the effort to do it that's the important part.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah. Brian, I have a question for you before to bring it back to How Much yout Mother, for one more minute you Played an Asshole boss and How Much yout Mother you play. You're playing a really deliciously unhinged asshole boss on the studio. Are there any real life asshole bosses you had that you're channeling without naming names? Are there any real life Craig Thomas and Carter Porter? Even in those few weeks we worked together, you saw what just huge pricks we were. Do you ever think, oh, I'm kind of going to let myself be like this person that I worked for one time? Or is it, is it not.

[Bryan Cranston]

Like whether you have a firsthand experience or you, you've witnessed it, you could see how the boss employee relationship handles in a restaurant or in a work environment. And yeah, I mean Actors are. Oh, I used to say that actors should never be bored. It, you could always be taking in. Our job is to witness life as it's experienced by others and yourself and, and being able to replicate that natural sensibility to it. It's, it's being able to replicate it in the most unnatural kinds of.

[Josh Radnor]

Settings. Brian, when you read the script of How I met your mother, was it the line thicket of wild, ungroomed brunette shrubbery that made you want to.

[Craig Thomas]

Do the role or was it made the.

[Josh Radnor]

Cell. That's Shakespearean in some ways. I think it's iambic.

[Bryan Cranston]

Pentameter. Okay, now, now I'm stimulated. I don't watch a lot of tv, but now I'm stimulated to go back and watch these.

[Craig Thomas]

Episodes. Yeah, there's some turns of phrase in there. Yeah. You knock an ice cream cone out of a cake. You say that you talk about penises quite a bit. In so many words. It's quite a journey watching that.

[Bryan Cranston]

One. Hey, I didn't write this.

[Craig Thomas]

Shit. I know, I know. Sadly, I did. I was part of it. Listen, the Pete Rose ball, He's obsessed with this Pete Rose baseball. I've since that episode and didn't know this. When we did the episode read of you. Tell me if it's true that you are a big baseball guy and collect a lot of baseball memorabilia. This was just pure coincidence, I think, I don't think we put that in there. Cause that's you. But that is kind of you, isn't it? Not Pete Rose.

[Bryan Cranston]

Fixation. No Pete Rose fascination, but which.

[Craig Thomas]

Hammond had and Donald Trump also kind of has. But I.

[Bryan Cranston]

Digress. Oh God. Yeah. It took 40, 50 minutes before that comic. The I, I'm a huge, huge baseball fan. Big Dodger fan. Born and raised in Los Angeles. So huge Dodger.

[Craig Thomas]

Fan. You certainly beat my Mets a lot. You son of a.

[Bryan Cranston]

Bitch. Everybody did, but, you know, they sure did. I don't, I'm not a collector of things. I, I.

[Craig Thomas]

I. Okay, you don't.

[Bryan Cranston]

Collect. No, I don't collect. I, I, in fact, as I get older, I want less things around me. I want less and less and less so that I feel lighter to be able to, to go.

[Josh Radnor]

Places. Yeah. Hey, Craig, I gotta, I do have to shout you out for I think the Pete Rose, his obsession with Pete Rose is perfectly character revealing. And there's something about like Barney loved Johnny from Karate Kid. Right? Like, yeah. When, when you pick.

[Craig Thomas]

Like disgrace. It says a lot about.

[Josh Radnor]

You. It says a lot about him that he loved Pete.

[Craig Thomas]

Rose. I was, I really. When Trump was really making a big deal, I get. Not to get political, but when he was making a big deal about Pete Rose like a few months ago, I was like, this is Hammond.

[Bryan Cranston]

Druthers. This is.

[Craig Thomas]

Insane. This is a character trait we gave to Ham and Druthers. And Pete Rose was an amazing baseball player. But yeah, the idea of like really celebrating the kind of disgraced, complicated figure. I mean, Barney, Barney was always the fan of the villain in the movie. He'd said he would say that's the hero. Just some guy who didn't even know karate. You.

[Josh Radnor]

Gotta. Did you guys come up with the name Hammond Druthers? Was that Jamie or was that like a groom? It's such a funny.

[Bryan Cranston]

Name. It's a beautiful.

[Craig Thomas]

Name. It's a perfect name. Hammond Druthers. God, I wish I had the answer. That was probably going around the room and just pitching a first and last name and just arriving at magic.

[Josh Radnor]

Somehow. Yeah, but. Well, there's a nice, there's a nice twist at the end that, that, that they, they reject the, the penis building, the phallic.

[Bryan Cranston]

Building. Big.

[Josh Radnor]

Mistake. And then Ted, Ted has been working on this alternate thing and it, and it kind. I really. Craig. We talk about the things that are both jokes, character revealing and plot advancing. And there's this. This could be a standalone episode, but for the twist at the end that, that Ted steps forward and has this plan and it's a real career.

[Craig Thomas]

Advancing and having that future narrator, having the Bob Saget voice say, this became my first building. This is. This opened up a huge career chapter. It's kind of one of these moments that we talk about, like Ted making that blueprint is Bryan Cranston doing the episode of the X Files. It's like he just, you know, you do. You do good work and it goes somewhere. It's sort of an inspiring ending in that way. And then in this little episode.

[Josh Radnor]

And in certain ways, kind of what Brian's describing is like, they're all. None of them are small moments. Like, you can never relegate your life to small moments. They all matter. In some, they do. In the last analysis, they add up. They.

[Bryan Cranston]

Matter. And the focus should be on, on doing that job, not where it might be. Like, I hear often. Did you do that because you thought it's a stepping stone to something? No, just. Just do your job. Focus on your job. Do the best you can. If someone taps you on the shoulder and wants to recognize you or, or whatever, let it, Let it be the surprise but it can't be the reason you're doing.

[Craig Thomas]

Something. That's such great advice. Just be good. Just do good work and love the work, and that's what.

[Bryan Cranston]

You'Ve. John. Yeah, it's just. It's just fun. I'm. I do want to say that I'm. For anybody listening or watching, I'm going to be on stage in London this winter from mid November to the end of February, where I'll be in London doing All My.

[Josh Radnor]

Sons. Oh, wow. One of my favorite.

[Craig Thomas]

Plays. Great.

[Bryan Cranston]

Show. Great.

[Josh Radnor]

Play. Oh, my.

[Bryan Cranston]

God. So come and see.

[Craig Thomas]

Me. Neil Patrick Harris was in that show at one.

[Josh Radnor]

Point. Neil was in that.

[Craig Thomas]

Show. Neil did that show. And when we were doing how much your mother. That's an amazing piece of.

[Bryan Cranston]

Writing. I saw Neil the other night in the play Art. He was.

[Craig Thomas]

Terrific.

[Bryan Cranston]

Yeah. And we talked about that. We talked about All My Sons. And his production at the Geffen Theater in Los Angeles was really one of the best ones I've ever.

[Josh Radnor]

Seen. Yeah. With Len Cariou played the father, I.

[Bryan Cranston]

Believe. And Laurie.

[Josh Radnor]

Metcalf. Lori.

[Craig Thomas]

Metcalf. Yeah. Laurie Metcalf was so good in.

[Josh Radnor]

That. Devastating.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah. Well, definitely go see Brian in London. If you're in London, do yourself a treat. Bryan Cranston on stage. My God. Doesn't get any better. Brian, you're.

[Bryan Cranston]

Amazing. Thanks.

[Josh Radnor]

Guys. Thank you. Brian, we're so happy you're in the constellation of how I met your mother Carrie.

[Bryan Cranston]

Characters. I'm very proud of.

[Josh Radnor]

It. Yeah. Brian, thank you. It's always so great to see you, and I love having seen you over the years, grabbing lunch every once in a while. You just. I find you to be such a delight, and your career inspires me, and you inspire me and. Yeah, thanks. Thanks so much for making the.

[Bryan Cranston]

Time. Great to see both of you. Thanks.

[Josh Radnor]

Guys. What a.

[Craig Thomas]

Guy. I mean, just the best dude, the most talented and the.

[Josh Radnor]

Nicest. Yeah. Yeah. It's always so nice when brilliance and kindness can sit comfortably in one.

[Craig Thomas]

Person. That's the.

[Josh Radnor]

Dream. That's it. That's it. So thank you, Bryan Cranston, for joining us. We had so much fun talking to you. We're just. We wanted to. Craig and I wanted to cover a little bit more of this episode. A little popcorn style. We're just gonna talk about things we. We loved. We. So. So this episode's called Aldrin Justice. Explain, Craig, where that came.

[Craig Thomas]

From. Yeah, this came from a room discussion. Cause Courtney Kang, one of our writers, the great Courtney Kang, they're all nine seasons. She was Just telling a story about how she sometimes in life chooses to be the karma police when she sees an asshole in the world. And we're like, no, you don't really do that. She's like, oh, yeah, I do it. And she told this story where she was in Vegas at a pool. Like they were just having a vacation, she and her husband or maybe a boyfriend at the time. And she was listening the whole time they're at the pool to this guy, be a fucking asshole to his girlfriend. A few like. Like chairs over by the pool. And she's like, this guy's gotta lose something. He's gotta lose something. Something must be taken from him. I will be the agent of karma in the universe. And so he went to his boiling hot in the Vegas sun and he walked away for a little bit. And she went over and stole his suntan lotion. And then he came back and immediately was upset and had. He had been planning on putting on more suntan. Where's my suntan lotion? And he's like. He's blaming his girlfriend for it. He's like. And Courtney Kang is like, he had to lose it. And I think she was explaining it to her boyfriend at the time. Like, he. That that had to have something karmic had to happen to this guy. And we're like, wait, so you do this sometimes? You just steal something because someone was a jerk. He's like, it's not going to be some. It's not going to be something beyond the pale. They just need to lose a little something to get to even out the shit. Karma. That really sparked this idea that Lily has the same.

[Josh Radnor]

Code. I love that Courtney appointed herself the kind of arbiter of the cosmic justice.

[Craig Thomas]

Yes. She decided.

[Josh Radnor]

She. But I would trust Courtney. Like, I don't. I think there are. Out of all the writers room, she might be the one. I would say, like, no, you actually have the best sense.

[Craig Thomas]

Of. No one really questioned it. She kind of had the gravitas of, like, yeah, Courtney knows. And Lily has that on the show. I think, like, Lily would be the one. She's a kindergarten.

[Josh Radnor]

Teacher. It's actually the perfect assigning of a trait to a character. Like, it's perfect for.

[Craig Thomas]

Lily. It's great. And it sends her back to kindergarten. And I like that ending of the episode too. I like Ted's ending of the episode for the future. It unlocks for Ted and Lily kind of the opposite. She kind of goes back to something old that she's like, I thought I was running away from this. But this is who I am. Because you've got to start young, you've got to. You've got to teach these lessons young, or they grow up to be ham and druthers. And it all. It all.

[Josh Radnor]

Tracked. Did you ever hear from kindergarten teachers who were frustrated that you seem to think that Lily needed a profession other than being a kindergarten teacher or she was searching for.

[Craig Thomas]

Something? I think. I think she comes back to it and realizes that's her true love. And then she stays the rest of the series that way. I think we heard.

[Bryan Cranston]

Cause.

[Craig Thomas]

Right. She had this freak out and she thought, oh, I can't. There was a tone that I regret in some of how it was discussed where it's like, I've got to do something more. I can't only do this. We wanted to show that career freak out. It's a Wonderful Life. Right? It's. No, I actually belong here in Bedford Falls. And it's the falling in love with the thing you had. And that's where we wanted to get with it. Cause it is. My mother is a teacher. My wife's parents are both teachers. I think teacher is the noblest profession in the world. So we wanted to land her back there. But maybe during that career crisis, it came across wrong once or.

[Josh Radnor]

Twice. But, yeah, my. I was speaking at a college a while back. I don't remember where it was, but I said, you know, my dad really wanted me to get an mfa, like an advanced degree, because he said, well, if it doesn't work out, you can teach. And someone who was studying education said, basically implying that I was like, frowning upon teaching. And I said, no, no, no. I come from teachers. Both my parents are teachers. Like, it is the noble profession. The noblest.

[Craig Thomas]

Profession. It is the noble. It should be the highest paying job. Should be the most well paid job in the.

[Bryan Cranston]

Country.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah. I think I would actually delight in being a teacher, like, if I weren't doing this.

[Craig Thomas]

Podcast. Oh, yeah. I mean, you played one on.

[Josh Radnor]

Tv. Yeah, yeah, it's true. I actually have played a lot of teachers. I do get cast. I radiate teachers somehow. I have a question. This might be a. The joke about the whole chicken and the larger person made me uncomfortable. Does it make you.

[Craig Thomas]

Uncomfortable? Yeah, it did make me uncomfortable rewatching that. I felt shitty about that. Obviously it was supposed to be that Ted stepped in it and it was not supposed to be pointing a finger at anybody else. It was supposed to be Ted did something very stupid. But I didn't like that joke in retrospect. I think it was walking a bad.

[Josh Radnor]

Line. I know. And I remember that day and I remember feeling not great for the.

[Craig Thomas]

Actress. Yeah, totally. I felt that watching it now in 2025, because it didn't quite come. I also think it, it was sparked, that little vignette was sparked by something, some version of it really happened kind of thing, something like that really happened to someone in the writer's room. And then sometimes you convince yourself, oh, because something like that really happened and they didn't, they didn't mean it to be mean. So it'll, that'll come across. And I will admit it didn't, it didn't sit great watching it now, that one.

[Alec Lev]

Moment. By the way, by the way, I just want to say that online, the Joe Torrey says what I love about how we made your mother this potential podcast is the accountability you guys take for writing jokes pointed towards vulnerable populations. You guys handle it with such grace. I never thought I could be more of a fan, but the show has made me a bigger fan of Himyim, of the Himyum creators.

[Craig Thomas]

So. Well, that's nice. That's very generous because we certainly missed a bunch of times. We certainly tonally missed what we were trying to go for there. I think it's happened other places and I think there's no shame in calling it out. And I think, I think it's important to call it out and own it when you see.

[Josh Radnor]

It. I don't, I, I, I really, I really think that it's an import. A hugely important part of being a human being on the earth is to, you know, in 12 step there, there's a really, when you do a, a fourth step, which is your inventory of, of, of wrongs and what's happened to you. There's a column that you fill out, what was my part? You.

[Commercial Announcer]

Know.

[Bryan Cranston]

Right.

[Josh Radnor]

Right. It's such a holy question. Like, what was my part in this horrible thing that happened to me?

[Bryan Cranston]

Me? Like.

[Josh Radnor]

What. How did I contribute? Like, what was my part? Not, not in any case where you were a child or overtly a victim. But I, I think, like, we're all doing a dance here. You know, I just think it's really important.

[Craig Thomas]

To.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah. Say we're not always getting it right. That's why I, I really reject when people are, you know, triumphalist about, like, America's always right and always doing. It's like.

[Craig Thomas]

No.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah. No country's always. No one's hands are clean. Like, we're all have a plank in our eyes to, to quote Mr. J.C. you.

[Craig Thomas]

Know. You know who would never admit to being wrong is Hammond.

[Josh Radnor]

Druthers. Hammond Druthers.

[Craig Thomas]

Exactly. He would never admit to having been wrong. And I think it is the thing that's.

[Josh Radnor]

Missing. People that don't admit to being wrong ever, who are so stingy with apologies. Those are impossible people to have in your life. Yes, yes, they really are. It's just. Yeah. Anyway, let's talk about Jane.

[Craig Thomas]

Seymour. Yeah. So funny. So funny in this. And so had the upper hand on Barney, which I also loved that I really liked and thought held up really well because it. It punctured Barney a bit in a really great way. I really loved.

[Josh Radnor]

It. You know what we used to deal with at NYU with this one teacher, Jim Calder. He would say, when you're playing a character, figure out what status they are. Are they high status? Are they low status? How do they walk into a room? Where are they in the social pecking order? And he would hand out, I think it was like cards, like 1 through 10, right. And he would hand you, you know, if you got the one you were low status. If you got the 10 you were. And you just had to walk in the room with your status and then orient and constellate around the different people with different.

[Craig Thomas]

Status. That's a great. That's such a good.

[Josh Radnor]

Exercise. It was a great exercise. Yeah. But Druthers and both Jane Seymour, you know, they both are like really high status. And she's even so high status that Barney who's always trying to play high status, can't out status.

[Craig Thomas]

Her. Yeah, well, she stays high status. And Druthers kind of is a little bit undone by Ted's. Ted's success at the end. So he loses some of his high status. And. And in a later episode columns, we see that Druthers has really fallen from grace. We'll get there. But it's his status switch is the nature of that future.

[Josh Radnor]

Episode. I forget, in 2006 was the word cougar in use in.

[Craig Thomas]

The. Someone had said it to Carter and I not long before that. We had not heard of.

[Josh Radnor]

That. In 2006, we were at least on the early.

[Craig Thomas]

Wave. We were riding the early cougar wave. But yeah, I love that she had the upper hand, is the point. I love that we didn't just say that word like it was funny. And she destroys Barney in this episode in the best possible.

[Alec Lev]

Way. Can I just say that? Rachel, Rachel L. Kozar says, I look to see what your cougar started being a popular term since the Group needed Barney to explain it to them. I see that in Canada, it was slang used through the 80s and 90s, but it didn't make its way here until the early 2000s. So I guess my question is twofold. First, was Cougar a new idea to all of you in real life? And second, if so, who heard it? Finally, I love that it originated in Canada, and Barney originated it in the group, which I assume may be unintentional nod to Barney's later discovery of his.

[Craig Thomas]

Bloodline. Yes. Yes. That's really funny. Wow. That is. That's. That's a deep dive. Uh, yeah. And I. Our. Our assistant, Carl McLaren, just said the word cougar at some point in conversation, and Carter and I were like, what? What's that? Carl would just say things and know things sometimes. Our Wonderful assistant Carl McLaren McLaren's bar is named in him. He was our assistant and How I Met yout.

[Josh Radnor]

Mother. And.

[Craig Thomas]

He. He was hilarious. And he would say things, and we'd go, what the hell is that? What are you saying? And, like, we would often put it on the show. Some weird thing he said, and it was.

[Josh Radnor]

Great. I also. I loved the. The. The safari that they're. You know, they're. They're on a safari.

[Craig Thomas]

Which. On that. The big planche. It's.

[Josh Radnor]

Ridiculous. Yeah, yeah. Kitty's got claws. Justice khakis. These are just phrases I jotted.

[Craig Thomas]

Down. Justice khakis was.

[Josh Radnor]

Good. Justice khakis is very funny. Not. Band.

[Craig Thomas]

Name. Comes back around, too. It's a plot point. It gives Ted. It gives Ted the courage to. To stand up at the end and unlocks his.

[Josh Radnor]

Future. In some ways, I liked Mr. Druthers as an adult. And he wants his ball back. Was really funny. And also, Lily, here's the ball. At least you have one now.

[Craig Thomas]

Great. L. Great line. Great Lily. Burn. She could get a good burn.

[Josh Radnor]

In. Sometimes I'd say my favorite line of the episode, which I texted you, was, tonight, just like John Mellow Camp, I'm gonna get rid of the cougar once and for.

[Craig Thomas]

All. Yes. The stars aligned. The stars aligned for that.

[Josh Radnor]

Joke. And also, that's a. I had to. I. I had to explain that joke to my.

[Craig Thomas]

Wife. Oh.

[Josh Radnor]

No. Years younger than.

[Craig Thomas]

Me. Oh.

[Josh Radnor]

No. She never knew a world with John Cougar or John Cougar.

[Craig Thomas]

Mellencamp. Cougar. She knows. She at least knew John.

[Josh Radnor]

Mellencamp. She knew John Mellencamp, but I had to explain that he's gone through a couple.

[Craig Thomas]

Iterations. Generations. Oh, my God. That's funny now I'm terrified. Like, are most people that aren't as old as you and I not getting that joke? Because that.

[Josh Radnor]

Joke. Well, Howie makes her at some point. It's a period piece that was always framed as a period piece that is becoming more of a period. But. But it's funny. There's, you know, there's just. It's packed with these, like, kind of Gen X specific jokes. It does.

[Craig Thomas]

That.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah. You know, you realize, like, when you look. When you read Shakespeare now and you have to read. Okay, this was slangy reference in 1587. This was a slang reference that we now don't understand. But the crowd loved it. You know, the crowd would totally get.

[Craig Thomas]

This. Yeah. We always tried to limit those because of our. We wanted the show to age well. But of course there's going to be some of it. But it'll be interesting. We catch up to the year 2030, and the show is hopefully still running. It's like Conan O' Brien had that bit in the year 2000 where they would imagine the future. And they kept doing it well into the 2000s. They just.

[Josh Radnor]

Passed. They didn't change.

[Craig Thomas]

The. It takes on a different meaning. And I think we're going to hit.

[Josh Radnor]

That. It's all. It also begs the question, did narrator Ted tell the John Cooger Mellencamp joke to his kids? Like, did he have to explain that to his.

[Craig Thomas]

Kids? Are these stories word perfect and those kids are really.

[Josh Radnor]

There? Yeah. I feel complete. Do you feel complete about Aldrin, Justice.

[Craig Thomas]

Craig? I feel good. I mean, my God, the great Bryan Cranston coming on here and gracing us with his presence. Great episode. Great.

[Josh Radnor]

Dude. He just struck me. You know what? His performance is fearless. And there's something about Brian as Hammond Druthers that it's so big. It's like it's pushing against the edges of the.

[Craig Thomas]

Screen.

[Josh Radnor]

Yes. His daughter thinks it was too much. I don't. I think it was.

[Craig Thomas]

Perfect. I don't either. I love it. I love it. His daughter had notes. That's.

[Josh Radnor]

Hilarious. But. But there's something about. He just trusts that he's in the manner of all great clowns, that he can really go for it and he's not going to be embarrassed. He trusts that he's going to. He's going to. He's going to milk the laugh out of.

[Craig Thomas]

You. You know, he's so inhabits anything he does in his body. Every single character has a different sort of, like, physicality. And he's so in his body and it's such a part of his performance and even when he comes in and does something completely ridiculous like this, there's he just embodies it. It's great. It's just such an acting.

[Josh Radnor]

Lesson. Well, thanks again, Brian for joining us. We'll hopefully have you on again. And yeah, thank you all for joining us and we'll see you next time. Thanks a lot. I am guilty. Please acquit me. All sins are forgiven in New York.

[Alec Lev]

City. How We Made youe Mother is hosted and executive produced by Josh Radner and Craig Thomas and is presented and distributed by the Office Ladies Network and Odyssey. This episode is also executive produced by Jenna Fisher and Angela Kinsey. The show is produced and edited by me as Alec Lev and our co producer is Doug Matica. Our audio producer and mixer is Alex Reeves at Point of Blue Studios. Our digital content producer, AKA Gen Z Master is Emily Blumberg. Artwork by John Morrow. Please follow rate and review the show on Apple Podcasts or your podcast player of choice. It really does help the show. Our theme song is New York City by our own Josh Josh Radner, with additional music by Craig Thomas and Andrew Majewski. Special thanks to Lola Kennedy and Elliot Connors. Visit how we made your mother.com to learn more and click on the contact page to send us an email or a voice message. Your stories and questions are an important part of the show. Subscribe to Josh Radner's Muse letters on Substack and check out his music and everything [e-mail]. order Craig Thomas's debut novel, that's Not How It Happened, wherever books are sold, and check out his other published writings at craig thomas writer.com and you can subscribe to My own Dead Fathers Society, also on Substack to learn more about how you make a difference, this show's ongoing campaign to raise money for congenital pediatric heart disease research. Check out the Make a Difference Difference tab at the top of our website. People will, in fact.

[Bryan Cranston]

Dance the.

[Josh Radnor]

Real question it just hit me. Am I in love with you or just New York City?