170. Please Don't Destroy Returns: The Journey of an SNL Sketch from Pitch to Air

Summary

Podcast Summary: Mike Birbiglia's Working It Out – Episode 170: "Please Don't Destroy Returns: The Journey of an SNL Sketch from Pitch to Air"

In Episode 170 of Mike Birbiglia's Working It Out, released on May 12, 2025, comedian Mike Birbiglia welcomes the talented sketch trio Please Don't Destroy—comprising Ben Marshall, John Higgins, and Martin Hurley. The episode delves deep into the creative journey of developing a sketch for Saturday Night Live (SNL), offering listeners an in-depth look at the collaborative process from initial pitch to airing on national television.

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Introduction to Please Don't Destroy

Mike Birbiglia begins the episode by introducing his guest, Please Don't Destroy, recognizing their impressive body of work on SNL and their origins from Saran Live. He highlights the group's transition from being mutual fans to collaborators, emphasizing their shared comedic sensibilities.

Mike Birbiglia [00:23]: "Ben Marshall, John Higgins, and Martin Hurley. You may know their sketches from Saran Live. They are fantastic."

Mike recounts how, about a year and a half prior, the group decided to embark on something new together—launching a monthly improv show at Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB) in New York City, humorously named "Please Don't Birbiglia."

Mike Birbiglia [00:30]: "Which is a thing you often say to people. And then nobody follows up. And then we're like, why don't we do something that requires no preparation? Let's do an improv show."

Launching the Improv Show: Please Don't Birbiglia

The trio discusses the spontaneity and playful nature of their improv performances, highlighting the absence of preparation as a key factor in their collaboration's success. They share anecdotes about how last-minute announcements and unplanned scenarios lead to both hilarious and unexpectedly brilliant moments on stage.

John Higgins [04:23]: "It is uncool in the same way I... I don't even push back on you saying it's lame."

Ben Marshall adds to the conversation, reflecting on the often-undervalued art of improv within the comedy community but defends its intrinsic fun and creativity.

Ben Marshall [04:19]: "I just couldn't imagine giving a fuck about people thinking it's lame because it's actually fucking fun."

Evolution of Their Collaborative Relationship

As the episode progresses, Mike observes the evolution of his relationship with Please Don't Destroy, noting a shift from initial introductions to a dynamic of playful mutual teasing, indicative of a healthy and growing friendship.

Mike Birbiglia [03:16]: "The Please Don't Birbiglia improv show is the biggest success of the working it out process in the history of the podcast."

The group reminisces about their first interactions, the mutual admiration that set the foundation for their creative partnership, and the organic way they decided to work together through improv.

Crafting the SNL Sketch: "Jon Hamm Pizza"

A significant portion of the episode is dedicated to dissecting the creation of their iconic SNL sketch featuring Jon Hamm. Mike guides the conversation through the intricate steps of pitching ideas, the rigorous writing process, and the eventual live performance.

Mike Birbiglia [11:49]: "Because it's working it out when you guys write a sketch like that. ... where's the inception of a sketch like that? And, like, where does it go?"

Martin Hurley recalls the initial brainstorming session, where the concept of ordering pizza evolved into a multifaceted sketch intertwined with elements of a detective narrative.

Martin Hurley [17:37]: "We were like, 'There's a girl who's gone missing, and it's a meeting at the police station... we're gonna lock in and order some pizzas and work through the night.'"

Ben Marshall elaborates on the adaptability required in sketch writing, especially when tailoring content to fit the host's persona and preferences.

Ben Marshall [15:08]: "And Ham was like, 'I like the pizza thing.' So that's when we started to go like, okay, we'll write that."

The team discusses the challenges faced during the write-through sessions, particularly the balancing act of integrating humor without overshadowing the sketch's central premise.

Mike Birbiglia [16:20]: "It's uncool in the same way I... I don't even push back on you saying it's lame."

Insights into the SNL Writing Process

Please Don't Destroy provides valuable insights into the SNL writing ecosystem, from Monday pitch meetings to the intense deadlines leading up to live performances. They share firsthand experiences of navigating feedback, refining jokes, and the emotional rollercoaster of presenting sketches to the SNL team.

John Higgins [22:00]: "It's a very informal thing, the Monday pitch meeting. It's mostly just to make the host feel, like, comfortable."

The group emphasizes the importance of perseverance and flexibility in the creative process, especially when initial ideas undergo significant changes based on feedback.

Ben Marshall [17:07]: "And a lot of it was just being like, 'Oh, this is like a character sketch for John that was really him, take the lead in.'"

Advice for Aspiring Comedians

Towards the latter part of the episode, Mike solicits advice from his guests for those embarking on a comedy career. The trio advocates for live performances and continual practice, underscoring the value of live interactions and real-time feedback in honing comedic skills.

Ben Marshall [44:29]: "Comedy for sure."

Martin Hurley adds a cautionary perspective on the pitfalls of immediate online exposure, advising newcomers to focus on their craft before seeking internet fame.

Martin Hurley [44:43]: "Like before you start putting stuff out."

Mike complements this advice with his own insights on viewing a comedy career as a long-term journey, emphasizing continuous improvement and resilience.

Mike Birbiglia [45:06]: "It's going to be a while. And just keep... the word 'numi n u m m I' which means continuous improvement."

Future Endeavors and Collaborations

The conversation shifts to future projects, with Mike expressing enthusiasm about a potential movie collaboration with Please Don't Destroy. The group teases the possibilities without divulging specifics, highlighting the organic and evolving nature of their creative partnership.

Mike Birbiglia [46:12]: "I think the four of us are going to work on a movie together."

Supporting Causes: Housing Works

Concluding the episode, the trio discusses their commitment to philanthropy. They endorse Housing Works, an organization fighting homelessness, sharing personal anecdotes about their involvement and the impact of the charity.

Ben Marshall [49:40]: "Housing Works is great because we're not at the level where it's like we're working with a thing or the face of a charity yet."

Closing Remarks

Mike wraps up the episode by expressing gratitude towards his guests, celebrating the friendship and collaborative spirit that defines Please Don't Destroy. He encourages listeners to check out their work on SNL and their upcoming tour, reinforcing the theme of continuous creative exploration.

Mike Birbiglia [51:06]: "Thank you guys for doing the podcast and... and doing these improv shows. And I can't wait to see your tour this summer."

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps:

• Mike Birbiglia [00:30]: "And we call it Please Don't Birbiglia. And it's so fun."
• Ben Marshall [04:19]: "It's actually fucking fun."
• John Higgins [22:00]: "It's mostly just to make the host feel comfortable."
• Martin Hurley [44:43]: "Like before you start putting stuff out."
• Mike Birbiglia [45:06]: "Continuous improvement."
• Ben Marshall [49:40]: "Housing Works is great because..."

Conclusion

Episode 170 offers a compelling exploration of the collaborative dynamics between Mike Birbiglia and Please Don't Destroy. Through candid conversations, behind-the-scenes anecdotes, and shared insights, listeners gain a deeper appreciation for the intricate process of sketch creation and the enduring bonds formed through comedy. Whether you're a fan of SNL, aspiring comedian, or simply enjoy insightful discussions on creative endeavors, this episode provides valuable takeaways and entertaining dialogue.

Transcript

[Mike Birbiglia]

We crowdsourced my Instagram followers questions for you guys, and one of them was.

[Ben Marshall]

You have Instagram followers?

[John Higgins]

I'm surprised you figured out how to download the app.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

Oh, come on.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I haven't seen a lot of your sketches on SNL lately. What's going on with that?

[John Higgins]

They're there. They're there.

[Mike Birbiglia]

All right, cut this. All right, cut this. Cut this. That is the voice of Please Don't Destroy. Ben Marshall, John Higgins, and Martin Hurley. He. You may know their sketches from Saran Live. They are fantastic. They're writers for snl and they are a sketch group that performs their own shorts on SNL that I love. This is sort of a success story of working it out in the sense that these guys came on about a year ago or a year and a half ago, and we were like, hey, we never met, got along well, similar sensibilities. And we're like, let's do something together. Which is a thing you often say to people. And then nobody follows up. And then we're like, why don't we do something that requires no preparation? Let's do an improv show. So starting in September, started doing a monthly improv show at UCB here in New York City. And we call it Please Don't Birbiglia. And it's so fun. And we just. We announced them, like, a day before. And if you want to find out about those shows, just follow me on Instagram erbigs or. Or Please don't Destroy. We put them in our Instagram stories. We usually announce the day before. It's super fun. It's entirely unplanned and goofy, and sometimes the shows are ridiculous and sometimes they're great. And this episode today is a great example of how much our relationship has developed, because last time I think we were sort of getting to know each other, and this time we're all just fully making fun of each other throughout the episode, which is maybe a sign of a healthy relationship, but who knows? Big news here on the show the Good Life. My new special will be premiering on Netflix May 26, which means that if you go on Netflix right now and you'll see a little icon that says the name of my special, the Good Life, and you could click remind me, and then it'll just show up in your feed on Netflix on May 26th. This is a fun one. With Please Don't Destroy, we actually talk about the improv shows. We talk about snl. We break down this. You know, it's a good thing to watch before the Episode is go on YouTube or Instagram. They did a sketch with Jon Hamm. Just write Jon Hamm pizza. Please don't destroy. It's a hilarious sketch, kind of an instant classic. And we kind of walk through the whole process of writing and pitching and going on air, and it's just like, really in the weeds and wonky and fun, and I think you're gonna love it. Enjoy my chat with the great Please don't Destroy. I think the Please don't Birbiglia improv show is the biggest success of the working it out process in the history of the podcast. Wow. No, it is, because you guys came on, like, 15 months ago.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And we didn't know each other. I was just fan. We're mutually fans.

[John Higgins]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And then we were like, let's do something. But I don't even know who said, do you say, let's do an improv show?

[Ben Marshall]

I think it was Ben at the show. At your show.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

I think when we went and saw your hour.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah. We're like, let's do something.

[Ben Marshall]

Which never actually happened and never happens.

[Mike Birbiglia]

A classic show business trope. Yeah, we should do something. Yeah, we should do something.

[John Higgins]

Especially in the improv show, there's zero preparation. That's the only reason we're able to do it together.

[Mike Birbiglia]

No, I know.

[John Higgins]

It's cause you just show up. It's the best.

[Ben Marshall]

That's so true.

[Mike Birbiglia]

We do it for pure fun. And actually, my favorite improv coach, Liz Allen, who coached us for the movie Don't Think Twice, she's out of Chicago and she's so great. She gave us this piece of advice that we pretty much say before every show, which is like, that this is about not the product, it's about the process. And I think that's when improv is its best.

[John Higgins]

Yeah, absolutely. It is funny. Like, people really do look down on it in a real way.

[Ben Marshall]

No, they do.

[John Higgins]

It is legitimately uncool to a lot of comedians especially.

[Ben Marshall]

Certainly is. And I can't even deny that it's lame. But I was just, like, on my way here because I was thinking about that of, like, this will come up of it's how kind of, like, nerdy it is or whatever. But then I was like, with. With how crazy everything is right now. I just couldn't imagine giving a fuck about people thinking it's lame because it's actually fucking fun.

[John Higgins]

It's so fun.

[Ben Marshall]

It's been the few fun things and, like.

[Mike Birbiglia]

But I even push back on you saying it's lame.

[Ben Marshall]

Okay, well, that's where you're. That's crazy to acknowledge that it's lame, but it's like, do we give a. No.

[John Higgins]

Well, no, no. Let's hear your side of the argument.

[Ben Marshall]

There's no argument.

[Mike Birbiglia]

My side of the argument. You can say I said the argument. Okay, look, it's. It's uncool in the same way I.

[Ben Marshall]

Said the argument's done.

[John Higgins]

All right, so we got it. All right, so what's next?

[Mike Birbiglia]

But.

[John Higgins]

This podcast is about to be so much looser than last time. I've watched clips of it from last time, and I'm like, we do everything on snow.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Here's how we conceive of sketches on Saturday Night Live.

[John Higgins]

Yeah. I was so nervy.

[Mike Birbiglia]

This is how when we first met at nyu. God, we. Martin wasn't in the group, but then later we asked him to join our group. He was younger, but this is my impression of you. Very good. Okay. It's uncool. Improv is uncool the way that acapella is uncool. But acapella's cool, bro.

[Martin Hurley]

Acapella is the worst spot in the world.

[Ben Marshall]

You're making me, like, take back what I was saying. I'm like, who cares?

[Mike Birbiglia]

No, I. I'm gonna hold a candle for acapella. I think acapella.

[John Higgins]

Acapella is impressive.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And it also.

[Ben Marshall]

There was a tiny place for acapella, too. They had four hit.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Time is now. Time is now. Yesterday. You mean the coolest art form on the planet. What's going.

[John Higgins]

Real Mike is coming in.

[Ben Marshall]

The time is now.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah, I love it. No, but. Okay, so you're saying improv is kind of uncool. It is uncool. But here's what. Here's my case. I wasn't going to get into this whole theory of improv, but it's like, here's my case. All comedy should be uncool.

[Ben Marshall]

Oh, yeah, Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I think once. I think that once you put on the leather jacket, you start to go, I don't know.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, that's true.

[Martin Hurley]

For sure.

[Ben Marshall]

And there's been a. There's been a comedy being cool thing that has happened recently.

[John Higgins]

Oh, yeah. It's like, now people are getting sick of it.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

How's this show enough?

[Mike Birbiglia]

You guys opened for my show at the Beacon as a favor, and it was really nice. And then you went on and roasted me for 10 minutes.

[Ben Marshall]

Well, okay.

[Mike Birbiglia]

You guys roasted me so hard. Is there anything on the cutting room floor that you didn't. That would be too far. Yeah, I feel like, it was the hardest. You could have gone. Really? Yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

Oh, my God. We got so much harder. We cut so much.

[John Higgins]

Wait, do we remember any of the Roast jokes that we said about Mike?

[Mike Birbiglia]

You must have him on your notes.

[John Higgins]

Or get him on the record.

[Ben Marshall]

Do you want to just pick and choose which ones are your.

[John Higgins]

Sure. We've been doing shows with Mike. He's a good friend of ours. We love him. He's kind of like an older brother figure for us. Like a much, much older brother.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, like a father figure. Yeah, like.

[John Higgins]

Like your father's older brother figure.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, like an older uncle figure.

[John Higgins]

An older uncle figure. Yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

That's how he started.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Martin Hurley]

And then it was. No, we're just kidding. Actually, us and Mike all met when we were at NYU Langone Hospital. We are his end of life care nurse.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, my God. Oh, my God.

[John Higgins]

Oh, God. What? What a crowd. What an older liberal crowd.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, my God.

[Ben Marshall]

I don't want to pander, but I have a tramp stamp that says iron glass is daddy.

[Martin Hurley]

Are we doing the whole thing?

[Mike Birbiglia]

I mean, why not? You can burn it. You can burn it.

[Martin Hurley]

I don't know if Mike's this American Life ass audience know us. Unless you have an 8th grade daughter who's like, pre bisexual. But for those of you who don't know us, we're. Oh, I didn't do this one. We're on snl. But this audience tonight might. Might know us best from being overserved at Jacob's Pickles.

[John Higgins]

Why didn't you do that one? This is.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I don't even know what Jacob's Pickles is.

[Martin Hurley]

It's like Upper west side.

[Ben Marshall]

He cut it, dude.

[John Higgins]

Some local material.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I got poke holes in it.

[Ben Marshall]

Jesus being mean now, dude.

[John Higgins]

This is a crowd that's like Free Luigi. But then if they see a homeless person on their block, they're like, honey, call the cops right now.

[Martin Hurley]

Another Upper west side. This isn't even a joke. This is just a really good hypothesis. This is the kind of crowd where at least a third of you have seen Richard Kind at zabrz.

[John Higgins]

Six sold out nights at the Beacon. Damn. I don't mean this in a mean way, but I am shocked at how famous Mike is.

[Martin Hurley]

That isn't even a roast. That's just a bald, mean thing to say.

[John Higgins]

There's nothing clever about that. It's just kind of.

[Ben Marshall]

You wouldn't know it by how Mike is dressed tonight, but the Beacon Theater is one of the most respected venues in America.

[John Higgins]

Anybody seen his movie? Don't think twice. Yeah, don't think twice is also how he picks out his clothes for his shows. Just grab a wrinkled sweater and some chinos. Don't think twice about it. It's only 3,000 people.

[Ben Marshall]

Michael come out here looking like he's in line at Panera. It's like, these people are here to see you. This is a show. You're not ordering them.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Mike's outfit, you can tag that with it. And he's eaten a lot of bread bowls. Oh, you're helping us. I know.

[Martin Hurley]

Yes.

[John Higgins]

We'll tour with this.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah, yeah.

[Martin Hurley]

Mike's outfit tonight will have you going. Damn. I didn't know all birds made pants.

[John Higgins]

Wow. I can't believe we did that.

[Ben Marshall]

I can. It was awesome.

[Mike Birbiglia]

It was so funny. And meanwhile, I'm behind this fucking beautiful painting I'm about to perform in front of.

[Ben Marshall]

It's like, perform a truly hilarious and beautifully touching show about, like, life and death and your father. Like, it was watching the show and then thinking about all of the. I was like, we set him up horribly.

[Martin Hurley]

And then. And then it's an audience full of people who are, like, thrilled to see you. And then we come out and we go, him.

[Ben Marshall]

Honestly, I remember the jokes against the audience were better than the jokes against Mike, obviously, which is a lesson we've learned maybe a million times. Like, we're here for this guy. Guy that was actually, you know. You know. And I think it's a testament to our friendship that that is out of love. Oh, yeah, yeah, I know. Okay.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I'm just saying that's how I feel about it. We crowdsourced my Instagram followers questions for you guys, and one of them was.

[Ben Marshall]

You have Instagram followers.

[John Higgins]

I'm surprised you figured out how to download the app.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

Come on.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I haven't seen a lot of your sketches on SNL lately. What's going on?

[John Higgins]

You're there. There, there.

[Mike Birbiglia]

All right, cut this. All right, cut this, cut this. No, no, that was.

[Ben Marshall]

Leave it in.

[John Higgins]

That's great.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, my God.

[Ben Marshall]

I'm excited about this.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Your recent one of the ordering the pizza one killed me.

[Ben Marshall]

Oh, thanks, dudes, man. Yeah, we excited about that.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Wait, when you guys. And I'm going to get to the. The Instagram questions in a second. But I, I, I will say, like, because it's working it out when you guys write a sketch like that. And I'll tell people the premise of they haven't seen it, but it's on YouTube is. It's like. It's like, basically a girl's lost investigation. Highest Stakes situation. They're like, it's going to be a late night. Let's order pizza. And then it becomes Jon Hamm and everyone arguing about what kind of pizza. Hawaiian pizza. How from start to finish, where's the incarnation of a sketch like that? And, like, where does it go? How long does it take? Like, what do you guys argue about? What do you agree on?

[Martin Hurley]

That one had a long. That one we did, like, pre pandemic live at our old bar show.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Are you serious? That was, like, a live sketch you guys had?

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, well, we just kind of had.

[John Higgins]

The term only the top. Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Of pizza. That's so funny.

[John Higgins]

I actually feel like I remember you coming in and being like, I don't know what the sketch is. I just know, like, you had seen a guy do that or something. But your idea was pizza.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

I remember us sitting together figuring out how to, like, make that into the context of a sketch. And I think it was initially, like. Like a cyber security breach.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

It was where we were all like, like, it's gonna be a late one tonight. The mainframe has been hacked.

[Ben Marshall]

The mainframe has been hacked.

[Martin Hurley]

I remember I almost exclusively watched, like, murder shows.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

So then. Okay, so you have this idea, the pizza. You have the pizza joke side of it, which is the turn.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And you're doing it on stage, and it's like, presumably, like, killing on stage.

[Ben Marshall]

That turn.

[Martin Hurley]

The turn in the way the sketch, like, the first two moves of it.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[Martin Hurley]

Worked. But then we didn't have, like, the Hawaiian or any of, like. Yeah, it just sort of like, that was.

[Ben Marshall]

It.

[John Higgins]

Bail on it. As we did with many of our sketches.

[Martin Hurley]

A lot of.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

Laughs and then just like. All right, that's. That. We'll figure it out.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

All right, so. So you have that sc. You. You have the. The joke live.

[Ben Marshall]

Yes.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And then you're like.

[John Higgins]

Like five years ago.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Five years ago. And then you were like, every week. Because people don't all know this. Some people do. Like me. I'm. I'm an SNL nerd. So I know, like, the host comes in early in the week, and you pitch ideas on the host. And. And it's some combination, as I understand it, of what the host is interested in and what Lauren's interested in.

[Ben Marshall]

For the picking of it. Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

It's like, definitely, if the host really wants to do something, Lauren is like, great, because it'll just be better if.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Right.

[Ben Marshall]

The host really wants to do it. But it changes every week. But that is the general.

[Mike Birbiglia]

So Jon Hamm you pitched us on Jon Hamm.

[Ben Marshall]

This was a weird one because it was. There's that Monday pitch too, where it's a lot of, like, fake ideas or whatever. On Monday, when we came in, we had just kind of gone over, like, a list of all of the sketches that we vaguely remember, even from, like, the Vaughn. That was the bar that we did it at, like, the Vaughn show days. And pizza was one of them that we just, like, remembered. And I was like, maybe we do pizza. And Martin was like, maybe I'll just pitch that in the Monday meeting.

[Martin Hurley]

Yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

Then pitch the turn in the Monday meeting. And Ham came in the next day on Tuesday, when we were actually gonna write stuff. And we had started writing another idea. And Ham was like, I. I like the pizza thing.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, that's cool.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, yeah.

[John Higgins]

We pitched him, like, five ideas.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

One that we were like, we know we're gonna write this one.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

And he was like, I love all those. Except that one.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, really?

[Martin Hurley]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Can you say what it is?

[John Higgins]

We might still use it for something. Yeah, yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

It didn't make as much sense for Ham, which we.

[John Higgins]

Yeah, you have to really tailor it to the host.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Well, the pizza sketch is so perfect for Ham because he would play the detective part in the movie. Yeah. He, like, said that. Yeah. So he's legit. Like, he's like, I'm. He's central casting. Yeah. He's in those damn movies.

[John Higgins]

So funny.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, and he's so funny.

[John Higgins]

He's great.

[Mike Birbiglia]

So funny. So nice.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And also, like, interestingly, like, loves comedy.

[Ben Marshall]

Obsessed with comedy.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah. Like, knows comedy really, really well. So you pitch it to him. He's like, let's do that. And then when does it get greenlit? You write a version of it and then you pitch it again in the read through.

[John Higgins]

We write it.

[Ben Marshall]

We read it.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

We write it. Tuesday night at like 2 or 3am we were like, I don't know if this is gonna work. Maybe we should pivot.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

And we basically rewrote it entirely.

[Ben Marshall]

Yep.

[John Higgins]

And then.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Can you walk me through that? I hate to be a nerd, but it's like, when did you think, like, oh, no, we don't have it kind of thing?

[Ben Marshall]

It was at like 2 or 3. Cause you split off. We write all the other sketches too. So we're all split off, writing everything, coming back together. You know, like every hour we'll come back together. Like, where's everybody at? Then we'll pass stuff off. And then it was like, we read it at 2 and it was just like. It wasn't quite it. It was like the world and the turn were great. Then it was like figuring out, how are we the straight men of it? Do we be funny in it? How does it all work?

[Mike Birbiglia]

Right.

[Ben Marshall]

And then.

[John Higgins]

Yeah. I think a lot of it was just kind of being like, oh, this is like a character sketch for John that was really him, like, take the lead in.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Right?

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

Cause I think it felt like maybe we were all, like, fighting for the center of it or something.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Right.

[Ben Marshall]

And once we accepted that is kind of when we found it.

[Mike Birbiglia]

This puts you on the spot, but can you pitch it to us like you pitched it to John?

[Martin Hurley]

I mean, it.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I'm just curious. I've never been in the meeting before.

[Ben Marshall]

So we're sitting on the ground. I just pitched something. Probably bombed in Lauren's office. Yeah.

[John Higgins]

Everybody's sitting on the ground. The host is sitting on a chair. So they're, like, physically above you.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

And we have to sit kind of, like, behind their neck so they're turned around, like.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, yeah.

[John Higgins]

And we're like, hey.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, my God. And then.

[John Higgins]

I don't know. Do you remember how you phrased it?

[Martin Hurley]

Yeah, yeah. It was like, you always are like, maybe it's to start. So, like, maybe it's a. There's a girl who's gone missing, and it's a meeting at the police station, and all the detectives are gathered, and the chief of police comes out and says, you know, all right, we got this girl missing. It's been 24 hours. We need to. And I was really nervous because I knew it had to have this big straight.

[John Higgins]

It was a long walk.

[Martin Hurley]

So I was like, you know, it's been 24 hours. If we don't find her in 48, like, our chances of finding her go down exponentially. We've got divers out in the lake, and, yeah, we're just gonna lock in and order some pizzas and work through the night, and we're gonna find this girl. And then you play a homicide detective who's like, pizza.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Did he get a laugh on it?

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, it was a big laugh.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Okay.

[Martin Hurley]

But, yeah, I was like, I love kind of doing those ones in there where it's, like. Makes me nervous. Like a big, long, straight, laughless top and then a pause and then, like, an underplayed, like, act out. If that bombs. That's horrific.

[Ben Marshall]

It actually hurts your soul with one of those where it's just, like, a long buildup and then some, like, character Y voice.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

That gets nothing. Is Lit.

[John Higgins]

It's like those, I feel like, have a high hit rate.

[Ben Marshall]

Yes.

[John Higgins]

Because you're like, lulling people into it or whatever. Some people just do one sentence and they're like, just get through it. I just don't want to.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Do you guys ever feel like I'm horrible at it? When you're doing them, if people aren't laughing, you're thinking to yourself, your innermodel is like, yeah, you just don't like me. You know what I mean?

[John Higgins]

Oh.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Like, this is personal.

[John Higgins]

I think that it's probably easy to feel that way, but you also kind of know if the joke really. Yeah, it's a pretty warm room and.

[Ben Marshall]

So, like, people are fake laughing at a. They're giving it up. It's like you kind of. If it makes sense.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Because the document, the documentary on SNL, 50 writers.

[John Higgins]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

You guys were great in that. And I thought it was like an interesting, like, key into like that universe of like, sketches that don't go. Yeah, and they're funny.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And you're like, this is good.

[John Higgins]

We were so paranoid that whole week that it was gonna be like, we were like, did they. Do they mic the writers room? Like, they were like hiding mics around and it was like an NBC sponsored thing. So of course it wasn't gonna be this hit, was it? But somebody was like, freaking out.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah, it's on, by the way. It's on Peacock. If people want to watch. It's great.

[Ben Marshall]

Thanks, dude.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I thought it was like, a really good insight into, like, what that is.

[John Higgins]

Like, it's great. That director is awesome.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

I feel like it'll be a thing that's fun to have when we're much older and look back and see what our life was like when you're my age or even, I mean, if we're alive, even younger.

[Mike Birbiglia]

What do you mean?

[Ben Marshall]

No, I'm just saying. How are you?

[Mike Birbiglia]

It would be.

[Ben Marshall]

You're 100, right?

[Mike Birbiglia]

I'm 46 years old.

[John Higgins]

It would be.

[Mike Birbiglia]

From natural causes at 46. Like, people do it and it's sad, but like, you're. I don't. I want to be clear that what you're saying is a joke.

[Ben Marshall]

I literally thought you're like 100 or 100 or 1. I didn't know.

[Mike Birbiglia]

So you thought that that was normal that we were doing improv at ucp?

[Ben Marshall]

That's what I thought it was like.

[John Higgins]

That's the shtick.

[Ben Marshall]

Gimmicky. But it's like.

[Mike Birbiglia]

You thought I was older than your dad.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, I did. I think you're twice his age.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Who gave me my first job in television.

[John Higgins]

Lit on Wednesday night.

[Mike Birbiglia]

So is that the full pitch?

[John Higgins]

Sorry?

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's the full pitch. And then how do you know it's thumbs up to write it?

[John Higgins]

You can just write whatever you want.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Okay.

[John Higgins]

Basically.

[Mike Birbiglia]

So even if that didn't hit in the pitch.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah. Because sometimes, like, I mean, like, you know, like pitching an idea, sometimes the intense pressure and the 22nd version of it is like, I'm not gonna be able to sell this idea.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah, yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

You know, but even if it is funny, so sometimes you're like, I know that there's something there.

[John Higgins]

It's a very informal thing, the Monday pitch meeting. It's mostly just to make the host feel, like, comfortable. Like, hey, they're funny people who are working on some things.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

It's not like, approve or deny this idea. And 90% of those don't even get written.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

So you write that sketch and it's like. It's like five pages maybe.

[John Higgins]

I would guess it's double space there.

[Martin Hurley]

Multi cam.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Like a 10. 10 page.

[Ben Marshall]

Like nine.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Nine pages.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And then.

[Ben Marshall]

Oh, but you know what? It's like Monday you do that, and then Tuesday ham comes in, which is the writing day. So we'll get in at like one or two or whatever. Ham comes into everybody's office and actually hears what you're working on.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Okay.

[Ben Marshall]

So that's when he was like. That's when we pitched him the idea that we thought we were gonna write. And then he went, you know, I actually like that pizza thing. So that's when we started to go like, okay, we'll write that.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Let's pivot to that.

[Ben Marshall]

Yes. Yeah. So that's that.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Like, you hadn't written. You hadn't written.

[John Higgins]

No, no.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Wow.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

So then you're like, oh, we gotta write that. So you're up late Tuesday night, probably.

[Ben Marshall]

Writing that and other sketches.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Right. And then you're. And then you show that at read through, like Wednesday or Thursday?

[Ben Marshall]

Wednesday.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Wednesday. And then did that kill the read of that sketch?

[Martin Hurley]

It did. Well, it wasn't a lock, though.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah. There's a lot of funny. So it was like it could or could not.

[Martin Hurley]

Yeah. We didn't have that Hawaiian pizza chunk in there.

[Mike Birbiglia]

So funny.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Martin Hurley]

And I think it was.

[Mike Birbiglia]

You describe the Hawaiian pizza turn.

[Martin Hurley]

It's the. The chief of police says that he's. You know, everyone relax about the pizza. It's not a big deal.

[Ben Marshall]

Or just three. John, relax.

[Martin Hurley]

John, relax. Yeah, it's Not a big deal. I just got three cheese, three Hawaiian. And then everyone goes, what the.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, it sets it off. And a lot of those lines were just kind of like improvised like that section.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, really?

[John Higgins]

The gun.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh my God, the gun. You shoot the gun.

[Ben Marshall]

The dude. The dude gave us these prop guns and then it was like we were just rehearsing it and it was like. Like I just did it in a thing and it was like, duh. You gotta, you know.

[John Higgins]

Yeah. If you got the gun.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Bell, do you think that's part goes back to our improv roots? Kinda cuz our improv shows are unhinged.

[John Higgins]

Yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

A lot of guns.

[Mike Birbiglia]

That's the kind of you would do in an improv scene.

[John Higgins]

For sure.

[Ben Marshall]

No doubt. That's like my friend.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah. Support for working it out comes from Helix. We talk about Helix mattresses a lot on this show. You know how Helix works? If you listen to this show, you take the sleep quiz. Easiest quiz you'll ever take. You order a Helix mattress, shows up in a box. Come on. Easiest mattress you'll ever get. It's in a box. Open the box, you unwrap the mattress. Boom. But let's talk about temperature. It's getting warmer out. You want your mattress to be the right temperature for you. Sometimes I wake up a little sweaty, feel like I have to take my shirt off. Feel like I have to take the blankets off. Look, what I'm here to tell you is you sleep hot, you sleep cold. No problem. Helix mattresses are always the perfect temperature. Go to helixsleep.com for 27 off site wide plus free bedding bundle, sheet set and mattress protector with any luxe or elite mattress order. That's helixsleep.com for 27% off site wide plus free bedding bundle, sheet set and mattress protector with any luxe or elite mattress order. Helixsleep.com foreign I'm going to ask some of these questions. Okay? So here's the questions from the Internet. Who's the best improviser in the group? Please don't forbid me.

[Ben Marshall]

I would probably say Martin.

[Martin Hurley]

We're kidding.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Martin also shows up half the time.

[John Higgins]

Martin usually skips it, but that's okay.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I think it's actually a close call.

[Ben Marshall]

I would honestly say that the individual. It's when we have a good show, it's usually because we're all great.

[Mike Birbiglia]

No, but you know what's interesting? You know what I will say is interesting? Is that every now and then we don't wrangle a big crew and like we had one recently where it was literally. No, Martin. It was Ben Jon, me, Chloe Trost. I think it's the best show we've ever done.

[Martin Hurley]

It was always. No, no, no, Martin, I wanted to.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Bring this up to you outside of the context of the cameras and the microphones and everything, but we need you to just hang back. Just hang back.

[Martin Hurley]

Okay.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And just take a hiatus.

[Martin Hurley]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

If you're gonna have no problems.

[Mike Birbiglia]

No, it's. No. But you know what it is? I think this is. This is, like, a thing for all the improv groups out there listening. Four people in an improv group's a good number. Great number, because it forces everyone to be in every scene.

[Ben Marshall]

There's no hiding.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Sometimes multiple characters.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

We had, like, a handful of scenes where we were each two or three people.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

What I'll say about improv, and I always say this, you know, wherever you are in the country, if you want to do comedy, like, gather some friends, get an improv book, get Truth in Comedy, get the UCB comedy Manual, and just, like, do the games, do long form, do the exercises. Like, it's so fun. You don't even need an audience.

[Ben Marshall]

No.

[Mike Birbiglia]

It's just absurdly, like, pure. Just, like. Just pure fun.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, this is an interesting one from Taylor Grayson, who says, how is their process different for writing for your shorts versus Live when you guys, like, are touring the summer?

[Ben Marshall]

Oh, our live sketches.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[Martin Hurley]

I think with the live thing, because we're doing a full hour, we, like, if someone is, like, has. If it's their sketch, we'll defer more to each other.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[Martin Hurley]

You know, everyone kind of has their, like, 20 minutes of the show that they're, like, in charge of. You know what I mean? So if your 20 minutes isn't good, it's like. Yeah, you know, come on.

[Ben Marshall]

It's kind of like how SNL works of just like, if we were writing live sketches for the host or whatever, it's like, there's usually a point person on it. Like, I'm talking about all of snl. Like, somebody is on the. You know, their name is first, and they're in charge of getting it.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

Going.

[John Higgins]

Yeah. I would say we're less precious, probably, with our live stuff, because we can just kind of try things a million times and see how it goes and adjust. But with our SNL stuff, it's like we're really diligently going through, like, line by line, trying to figure it out.

[Mike Birbiglia]

So, okay, so for our improv shows at UCB lately, we've Been doing gossip.

[John Higgins]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

So. Which was actually our producer Mabel Lewis's idea because she had done college improv, like, a few years ago. And I was like, what. What do you do for inspiration from the audience? Like, what's a good one? She goes, I do gossip sometimes.

[Martin Hurley]

Really?

[Mike Birbiglia]

That's what we've been doing. It's great. So we do. So we do gossip in our shows, often as the inspiration. And what's the best piece of gossip that we've gotten? I.

[John Higgins]

Well, multiple times we've called on somebody who is. He describes himself as an artist and a lawyer.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, my God, you're right. My God. The artist lawyer guy.

[John Higgins]

Three weeks later, we were like, and you, sir, what do you do for a living? I'm an artist and a lawyer. We go, oh, we're not doing this again.

[Mike Birbiglia]

The other one that was notable. And I won't say the company's name because we always say to the audience, we're like. We're like, this stays in this room. And we believe that it stays in this room. Don't repeat this because it is gossip. But one person works at a chain retail store, and everyone. Everyone steals from everyone. Everyone steals from the chain. And it's not Zara, but it's something like Zara.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Is it Zara?

[John Higgins]

No, it's not Zara. Okay, I know what one of these.

[Mike Birbiglia]

But it's like, Zara.

[John Higgins]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And it's like, she was literally like, we all steal.

[John Higgins]

She's like, I'm doing it. My co workers are doing it. Some of them are getting arrested.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And then.

[Ben Marshall]

And then, wasn't it, like a story in, like, the paper? Like, it was.

[Mike Birbiglia]

No, I think it made the paper.

[Ben Marshall]

It was like, right after that, it was like, crackdowns.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I was surprised at that one. I'm like, is everyone stealing from every job all the time?

[Ben Marshall]

I think so, probably.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Have you guys ever stolen from a job you had?

[John Higgins]

I don't think so.

[Martin Hurley]

Not money, but certainly, like, food. Food.

[Ben Marshall]

Martin used to, like, feed us with ice cream. Yeah. Ice cream.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, wow. What ice cream store?

[Martin Hurley]

Van Leeuwen.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, nice.

[Ben Marshall]

It was awesome. When we were doing that old bar show, he would leave during his break, do the show, bring a bunch of ice cream, go back, finish it out, come back.

[Mike Birbiglia]

What would a birbiglia flavor of Van Leeuwen ice cream be? Would they give me a flavor when my special comes out?

[John Higgins]

What's the candy that old people eat? Like those caramels where there's originals?

[Ben Marshall]

Ice cream, which would be really good.

[Martin Hurley]

That would be really good. They kind of have that. It's called honeycomb.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, that's right. Honeycomb.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Right, Honeycomb. And then maybe there's dentures in the ice cream.

[John Higgins]

Yeah. Yeah, maybe.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And a cane.

[Martin Hurley]

Sure, if it could fit.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Martin. Yes. And so funny.

[John Higgins]

Talking about improv, the whole podcast. Then as soon as you do a riff, being like, maybe. I don't know.

[Mike Birbiglia]

All right. Do you think I should do slow round or jokes? You know what? I have jokes that I'm working on right now.

[Ben Marshall]

And then slow around, too.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah, we could do slow round, but I don't know if we'll have time, I guess. Jokes or a slow round. I haven't.

[Ben Marshall]

You have somewhere to go? No. Yeah, we're doing slow around. Continue.

[Mike Birbiglia]

All right, I have a. I have a murder documentaries joke. Maybe Martin can help me with this.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, I always watch these murder documentaries, and there was this one I was watching where the wife cheated and the guy kills the wife. And if you analyze it, it's basically that the guy felt like a loser. But I would argue everyone knew he was a loser before he killed his wife. And now that he has killed his wife, we definitely know he's a loser. Like, nobody looks at the guy who kills his wife and thinks, that guy's great in bed. They just think, you're the worst. You're the guy at the pickup basketball game who lost the game, took the ball home, cut the ball into pieces, threw the ball in a fire. No one's like. Like, mvp.

[John Higgins]

That's really funny.

[Martin Hurley]

And then found that you had used the balls. Credit card.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Jet ski found you use the ball's credit card. Yeah. That was just a murder documentaries joke that, you know, basically, like, I'm. I just filmed the special, so I'm like, literally, like, all the walls are like, joke. There's, like, joke premises. And it's like, I'll just do that. And I'll just go like, well, what does that have to do with the other things I'm talking about?

[Ben Marshall]

These are all new.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I'm in the process of taking these down, the old ones down and putting new ones up.

[Ben Marshall]

Oh, my God.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[John Higgins]

By the way, the show's amazing.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah, yeah. Oh, thanks.

[John Higgins]

And we can't wait to see the special.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Thanks.

[Ben Marshall]

How's it been going?

[Mike Birbiglia]

May 26th comes out. It's exciting. Like, it's. It came out. It's. It's really gorgeous. The set design was by Beowulf Barrett. It was. It's all. It's all that huge canvas painting is Amazing. Painted by this woman named Marina who came in from Eastern Europe just to paint this canvas.

[Ben Marshall]

Awesome.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah, it's like incredible. Seth Bears directed. It's Aaron cop lighted it. It's. It's just gorgeous. And yeah, it's the most. I think it's the most me that of any of my specials.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, I think so.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

You look gorgeous.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I look gorgeous. I. Well, I think early in my career when I was starting out I was a little bit like always like a. A little bit of a character of myself.

[John Higgins]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I think as the years go on I think the veneer falls away if you keep working at it kind of thing. And I feel like this one is just like. I don't know, it feels the most like I'm just kind of like spilling.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, totally.

[Mike Birbiglia]

So. Yeah. So that's Murder Docs one. I thought you guys might have something on this which is I got an email from a director of a movie, small independent film, Mr. Birbiglia. There's a role in my movie that only one man can play. I truly believe that man is you. And then the description she sends the script description of the logline is when a 40 something wild child splits from her punk rock boyfriend. She gets over it the only way she knows how by seducing a mediocre dad bod cuck of a husband.

[Martin Hurley]

Oh my God.

[Mike Birbiglia]

So I'm like, am I the punk rock boyfriend or.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, right. You don't know.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I don't know.

[Martin Hurley]

No, that's.

[John Higgins]

That's so funny. You were the only one who can do this.

[Ben Marshall]

Can we be honest? When do you shoot it?

[Mike Birbiglia]

It's gonna go in the fall. Fingers crossed. We're waiting on financing. No, but it's like, it's funny because sometimes, and I'm sure you guys have this with bits and this is where I am with this thing. Sometimes something is so funny on its own. I don't know what the joke.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Where do you go with that? Yeah, I've read it on stage and people laugh. But then it's like, well then what?

[Ben Marshall]

There's a part of it that's like. To me, whenever I get those self tapes or something where it's like.

[John Higgins]

What.

[Ben Marshall]

Do I think I look like?

[John Higgins]

Do you guys have guys who like you are often up against in like casting stuff?

[Ben Marshall]

There definitely are.

[John Higgins]

We were, we were up for something as a group and it came down to us or Kiki Bomber.

[Mike Birbiglia]

It was like really?

[John Higgins]

It was a commercial, another commercial.

[Ben Marshall]

Paul told us and he was like asking the guy like what, what Is this commercial to you that they could both be selling?

[John Higgins]

What role?

[Mike Birbiglia]

All right. This is a slow round.

[Ben Marshall]

Love it.

[Mike Birbiglia]

What is the most embarrassing video you get served in your algorithm on Instagram or Tick Tock.

[John Higgins]

For me, it's all like posture correction.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yes.

[John Higgins]

Which is such. That's just what I'm like anxious about all the time. That it's like all these crazy stretch. Oh my God.

[Ben Marshall]

Mine is like butts and then like clips of Jack Black on a podcast. Butts and Jack Black or anybody. Any podcast of comedians.

[Mike Birbiglia]

What's yours?

[Martin Hurley]

I mean, the most embarrassing thing. You're lying if the answer is not.

[Ben Marshall]

But butts. Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

You think everyone just has butts.

[John Higgins]

And I think it's not.

[Martin Hurley]

It's not a wall of butts.

[Ben Marshall]

No, but there's there.

[Martin Hurley]

There's a but, you know, every once in a while.

[Mike Birbiglia]

What if I told you I have no butts in my algo.

[Ben Marshall]

Well, that makes you better, man.

[Martin Hurley]

Thanks.

[Ben Marshall]

When you're in your babies.

[John Higgins]

So.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Who would that be pertinent to?

[Ben Marshall]

Oh, right, right, right.

[Martin Hurley]

It's always like five, like mets, like reels and then a butt and then five more mets reels.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Ben, what do you have? What do you have? Butts.

[John Higgins]

This is a shirtless guy. Loose carpenter shorts are a staple this summer.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Support for working it out comes from Mint Mobile. Are your wireless bills making you sweat? Come on, it's summertime. The only thing that should be making you sweat is the heat. Cool down your wireless bill with Mint Mobile's premium wireless plans for just 15 bucks a month. That's right. All plans come with high speed data and unlimited talk and text delivered on the nation's largest 5G network. Use your own phone with any Mint Mobile plan and bring your phone number along with all your existing contacts. Ditch overpriced wireless. With Mint Mobile, it's so easy. You can sign up online and get three months of premium wireless service for 15 bucks a month. I really can't get over this this year. Skip breaking a sweat and breaking the bank. Get your summer savings and shop premium wireless [e-mail] that's mintmobile.com perbigs upfront payment of $45 for 3 month 5 gigabyte plan required equivalent to 15 dol month new customer offer for first 3 months only. Then full price plan options available, taxes and fees extra. See Mint Mobile for details. Support for working it out comes from Quince. Quince makes high quality clothing, home goods, luggage and more. Graduation season is coming up. Quince is your one stop shop for Gifts for grads. They've got nicely curated collections of jewelry, bags, cutlery, bedding, even a coffee grinder. They just have so much great stuff there. Really great selection of gifts for grads for Mother's Day. Looking ahead to Father's Day, you're bound to find the perfect gift at Quint's. Does that sound good? Well, how about this? All Quince Items are priced 50 to 80% less than similar brands. What? Quince only works with factories that use safe, ethical and responsible manufacturing practices and premium fabrics and finishes. And I love that. You know me with premium fabrics and finishes. I'm all about them. Go to quinns.com for bigs for 365 day returns plus free shipping on your order. That's Q-U-I-N-C-E.com forbigs to get free shipping and 365 day returns. Quince.com for bigs. What's something you believed 10 years ago that you don't believe now?

[John Higgins]

Climate change.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Okay.

[John Higgins]

Just kidding.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Do you guys have anything where, like, you imagine yourself being comedy writers and you didn't imagine this part of it?

[Martin Hurley]

I definitely didn't assume that I would be in any capacity, like, front facing, like performing.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, really?

[Martin Hurley]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And you're. And not only are you front facing, you're in movement movies. Like, like you guys wanted to be comedy writers like for a decade ago, but you didn't have the success you have now. Is there anything you didn't foresee?

[John Higgins]

Yeah, I mean, I. I don't think I foresaw any of it. I don't know. Like, if I told myself 10 years ago that I would be like writing for SNL and have a movie and stuff, I would think that's insane.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

But. But I don't know what, like, in my beliefs have changed. I'm sure they have. The weird thing to me now is thinking about how 10 years ago it wasn't as long ago as I, as I think. Like, I'm thinking about like myself in high school or whatever. But that's. That wasn't 10 years ago.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah. 10 years ago you were in college. Yeah, high school for me.

[John Higgins]

That's great.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Wow. Thanks a lot, Martin.

[John Higgins]

I'm turning 30 in a couple days.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Nice. I'm going.

[John Higgins]

You're going to my birthday tomorrow? Yeah, yeah. Sweet.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah. That is. Yeah.

[John Higgins]

You can only come if you have a certain amount of Instagram followers.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

And you hit it. Barely.

[Ben Marshall]

You're right there.

[Mike Birbiglia]

You're. You have that thing at the bar. For your birthday, where if you have to be this tall to enter.

[John Higgins]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Me and John aren't gonna get in.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah. How tall are you?

[Mike Birbiglia]

Five' nine.

[Ben Marshall]

Nice. I'm six feet tall.

[Martin Hurley]

You are five' eleven.

[Mike Birbiglia]

You always play the short character in the sketch.

[Ben Marshall]

I don't play the. I play the short character.

[Mike Birbiglia]

You play the short character. You get paid by your height in, like, the Charli XCX1.

[John Higgins]

You do.

[Ben Marshall]

I play into it because I'm next to these guys who are super tall.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Doesn't Charlie burn you for being short?

[Martin Hurley]

Oh, yeah, that's one of my favorite jokes. What did she say we've ever done?

[Ben Marshall]

Wait, what?

[John Higgins]

No, no. She burns you, John, for being short.

[Martin Hurley]

And then it cuts to the reverse shot, and John is lowered. The frame is the. But he's lower.

[John Higgins]

His voice is higher.

[Ben Marshall]

I fell for it. Yeah, well, you do. What's wrong with being f. What is it?

[Martin Hurley]

What's wrong with being five two? My favorite joke.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, my God.

[Ben Marshall]

I fell for it.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I fell for the sketch. Yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

I lowered myself in frames and barely.

[Mike Birbiglia]

That's a banger of a sketch. That's a classic.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, that was a.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Thank you, Charlie.

[John Higgins]

I love Charlie, dude.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, my God, I love the Charlie XCX.

[John Higgins]

What are we talking about?

[Mike Birbiglia]

What, 10 years ago? What. What. What belief system?

[John Higgins]

Did you have anything?

[Ben Marshall]

No, I, like. I'm like. That's what I mean. Of, like. I was like, whoa. Because it's like, I have so many things that I thought that are so entirely different, but it's weird because they are now just my new beliefs. So it's, like, hard to. You know what I'm trying to say? It's like. It's just now just natural. So I'm like, what did I. What was opposite back then? But there's stuff.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Well, one of the. One of the questions that the Instagram followers had was, do you guys think that Don't Think Twice is an accurate depiction of what it's like to come up in comedy now?

[Ben Marshall]

Wow. You know what? I bet the general truth of that movie is. Is real.

[John Higgins]

Yeah.

[Martin Hurley]

But they would all have, like, Instagram.

[Ben Marshall]

It would all be modernized with followers.

[John Higgins]

Which thank God that it's not.

[Ben Marshall]

That's such a better movie because of that 100%. Because all of those movies or. Or whatever shows or sketches or shorts about, like, followers and stuff, they're just so. It's just the same, you know, what's the.

[Mike Birbiglia]

What's the. Yeah, I know. You're right.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

What's the best? And the other Question that a lot of people had was what's your advice for people starting out?

[Ben Marshall]

I think we said it last time, but do live stuff.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

Comedy for sure.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

It just, just. It's gonna be so tempting to put everything that you do on the Internet. On the Internet constantly. But it's like.

[Martin Hurley]

And if you can wait a little bit.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Martin Hurley]

Like before you start putting stuff out.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah. Especially if you're really young because it's like look at the landscape of those people that you loved when you were 18 or whatever. And look at them now. It's just like either huge crash outs or just like they're not what they used to because they got famous for one specific thing.

[Mike Birbiglia]

It's like, yeah, it's funny. I. My advice, and I've never said this on the show, it's kind of similar. It's like, it's like thinking of your career not as a five year comedy career, but as, as like a 15 to 45 year comedy career.

[Martin Hurley]

Yeah.

[Ben Marshall]

Process, not product.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Yeah. It really is like that. That's like if the thing, if there's one thing I could tell my younger self would just be like, no, it's going to be a while.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And just keep. We have this thing in the, on the wall. It's like a. It's Japanese script. That is the word numi n u m m I which means continuous improvement.

[John Higgins]

Wow.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And I always think of that.

[John Higgins]

You embody that in a way that I admire.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Thanks.

[John Higgins]

To be earnest for a second.

[Ben Marshall]

I really brutally mean about you.

[John Higgins]

Yeah. After roasting you the whole episode, I think that you are so dedicated to finding new things that like excite you creatively and trying different things.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And you're like, man.

[John Higgins]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

That's part of the improv experiment that we've done. And I think it's, it's, it's, it's worked. And also like, I think the four of us are going to work on a movie together.

[Ben Marshall]

Oh.

[Mike Birbiglia]

I don't know which movie it's going to be and I don't know when it's going to be. But I, I feel like this, like collaboration and friendship that's loose is going to form towards a crescendo.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, I think so too.

[John Higgins]

That's why I'm involved.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Career.

[Ben Marshall]

I'm doing career. Reason. Yeah, yeah. The movie. The big movie.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And you, Martin.

[John Higgins]

Yeah.

[Martin Hurley]

The eventual career payoff. That's what all of my relationships are based on. Romantic friendship, family.

[Ben Marshall]

What can you give me?

[Martin Hurley]

Wrote Billy Madison.

[Ben Marshall]

I actually think that doing the shows with you a reason why I love it, and Ben was just kind of saying this is that we get to get a little bit of that from you.

[Mike Birbiglia]

What's the surprising thing about that you've learned about me or any of us from doing improv shows?

[Ben Marshall]

That you're only in the game this long if you love it. Because I don't think that you would do these shows if you didn't love it. And I mean that in a positive way of, like, totally. Like, it's been a super big, long career for you, and a lot of people don't have that. And for you to, like, be like, you know what? Doing these little stupid improv shows is actually filling the well in a way that leads to bigger, better things.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And, yeah, I have that with you guys. Kind of the inverse, which is because you guys are at, like, the beginning of. In a kind of a career explosion, and you're a lot younger than I am, and, like.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

That you are genuinely interested in, like, trying and failing.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[Mike Birbiglia]

And it's. And you have this, like, you know, cream of the crop job already at snl. You don't need to come downtown and do improv and try and fail and try and fail, and. And it's like, you're there, and it's like, I do think that is the common thing that the four of us have in common. It. With those shows.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

Yeah. It also speaks to the ceaseless void inside of all of us.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Broken. We're all broken.

[Ben Marshall]

We're broken.

[John Higgins]

We need constant reassurance and laughter to feel whole.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

Which I'm not saying is good or bad. In fact, I think it's good we're.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Broken the way Martin's glasses were broken by bullies in middle school.

[John Higgins]

What if we find out that Martin was a huge bully?

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah, that would be awesome. That is so weird. It's like, maybe having an unfillable thing is actually good.

[Martin Hurley]

Cause it's like, at least you're waking.

[Ben Marshall]

Up trying to get something.

[Martin Hurley]

I think most people have an unfillable thing. And the fact that we have ones that result in a career that is.

[Ben Marshall]

Rewarding financially, at least it's not like. Yeah, like, love.

[Martin Hurley]

Very unlucky.

[Ben Marshall]

Yeah.

[John Higgins]

Love.

[Ben Marshall]

Like filling the hole of, like, my dad didn't love me or something like that, which is like an unfillable. Like.

[Martin Hurley]

Yeah, but if he. He was the announcer on the Tonight show, then, you know.

[Ben Marshall]

Bingo. And it worked out fucking perfect. Fuck. Yes.

[Mike Birbiglia]

The final thing we do on the show is working out for a cause is There a non profit that you like to give to. And we will contribute and link in the show notes.

[Ben Marshall]

You know what? This is localized, but I thought of it on my way here, which I go to all the time, is Housing Works.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, yeah, it's a great one. Housing Works is awesome because I just.

[Ben Marshall]

Went to one in the West Village which I didn't know that they're everywhere. I was like, oh, dude, Housing Works is where I've dropped off so much shit. And they just like fight for homeless against homeless, fight for homelessness.

[Mike Birbiglia]

They fight for home. Yeah, they're, I think, creating homelessness.

[John Higgins]

Yeah. Dropped off so much shit there.

[Martin Hurley]

Just no, I.

[Ben Marshall]

The other day I was like, wow, Housing Works. This is like one of the. Housing Works is great because you're not. We're not at the level where it's like we're working with a thing or the face of a charity yet. So I was like, what's a localized thing that people could like actually just go to today and.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Great. Anything else you guys want to plug before we wrap?

[John Higgins]

Yeah, actually we're dropping at some point this summer a tour documentary slash special of the show that we toured with two summers ago.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Oh, that's amazing.

[John Higgins]

Yeah, we filmed a bunch of the shows on the road and we cut them all together. Wow. And it's taken so long, but it's gonna finally come out this summer and we're super pumped about it.

[Ben Marshall]

Wow. Yeah. And it was edited by my wife Emily, who at the same time opened for us all tour with her material about how she got rejected on X Factor when she was 15. And that special is coming out April 29th at 8:30pm on YouTube.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Nice. Thank you guys for doing the podcast and. And doing these improv shows. And I can't wait to see your tour this summer.

[Ben Marshall]

Dude, we love you so much.

[John Higgins]

Love you, Mike.

[Ben Marshall]

It's very common to make friends as an adult and I'm really glad that I made a new one with you.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Right back at you. And yeah, you guys rock. Working it Out.

[Ben Marshall]

Cause it's not done. We're working it out.

[Mike Birbiglia]

Cause there's no one that's gonna do it. For another episode of Working it out, you can see Please Don't Destroy on Saturday Night Live. And also on tour this summer. Find out all about that on their Instagram, Please Don't Destroy. And catch that tour. You can get the [e-mail] check out burbigs.com to sign up for the mailing list. To be the first to know about my upcoming shows. Our producers of Working it out are myself, along with Peter Salamone, Joseph Birbigli and Mabel Lewis associate producer Gary Simons sound mix by Shub Sarin supervising engineer Kate Belinsky. Special thanks to Jack Antonoff and Bleachers for their music. Special thanks to my wife, the poet J. Hope Stein and our daughter Oona, who built the original Radio Fort Maida Pillows. Thanks most of all to you who are listening. If you enjoy the show, rate us and review us on Apple Podcasts. It really helps if you're new to the podcast and you enjoyed this one. We have over 169 other episodes we've done. This is our 170th since 2020. They are all free. No paywall. We've had some incredible guests. Last week we had Ira Glass, we've had Sarah Silverman, we've had Roy Wood Jr. Check out our back catalog and comment on Apple Podcasts. Which one is your favorite? Thanks most of all to you who are listening. Tell your friends, Tell your enemies, Tell your acapella group. Let's say you're in an acapella group and you're on a big bus headed to your next acapella competition. Put the podcast on. Be like, hey everyone, some people may not think we're cool, but this comedian, Mike Birbiglia thinks acapella is cool. He used to judge acapella competitions for cod sakes. He hosts this podcast called Working it out where he works out jokes with other comedians. I think we could listen and learn a little bit about ourselves and others and maybe sing a song about it. Thanks everybody. We're working it out. We'll see you next time.