Office Ladies – "Actor Awards & Jenna’s Birthday!"

Podcast Summary
Release Date: March 25, 2026

Overview

This special episode of Office Ladies centers on celebrating Jenna Fischer’s birthday week and a recap of Jenna and Angela’s whirlwind experience presenting at the recent Actor Awards. The episode dives into their behind-the-scenes preparations for the award show (including wardrobe adventures, celebrity encounters, and fangirl moments), personal stories, and heartfelt birthday surprises for Jenna. It also features the beloved “call sheet questions,” lots of best-friend banter, and listener submissions in the “Around the Town” segment.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Birthday Celebration and Traditions

[03:04–05:25]

• Angela excitedly announces it's Jenna’s birthday week, sharing how much she loves to mark birthdays with fun, snacks, and little parties—even as part of their company mission statement.
• Jenna reflects:

  “For my 52nd year, my theme is books and fabulous women.” ([05:08]) She details her plans: reading more, spending time with amazing women, and hosting a tea party/Finer Things Club for fellow book lovers.

Presenting at the Actor Awards

[05:46–18:43]

• How it happened:
  Angela reveals the last-minute invitation—Mindy Kaling texted their group chat on a Tuesday to see if they wanted to present. By 9am, it was locked in. Not all Office ladies could attend (Kate Flannery and Phyllis Smith were unavailable), but Angela, Jenna, Ellie Kemper, and Mindy Kaling made it.
• Wardrobe scramble:
  The group frantically sources outfits. Jenna borrows a sequined jumpsuit from Lindsay Price—“the Carrie Bradshaw of my friend group” ([10:18])—and laughs about not being able to sit down in it.
• Coordinated fashion:

  “Weirdly, magically coordinated. It was so cool.” – Jenna ([09:17])
  All four wound up in black and plum dresses/jumpsuits.

• Avoiding the red carpet:
  The trio skips it to avoid anxiety, entering instead through the artist entrance.
• Backstage & celebrities:
  The green room is “the glitziest” they’d ever seen. They meet Teyana Taylor, Odessa Zion Segall, Wunmi Mosaku, Quinta Brunson, Paul Mescal, Jessie Buckley, Rose Byrne, Kathryn Hahn, Rhea Seehorn, and Sterling K. Brown (who calls Angela “Ange” – [17:06]).
  Angela: “All of these people were wonderful. So if you want to know what they're like, the answer is wonderful.” ([17:22])
• Jenna and actor Connor Story share a chair during the ceremony due to the mad musical chairs of awards show commercial breaks.
• Books come full circle:
  Oliver Hudson chats books with Jenna post-show, agreeing to be her “book friend” for the year ([18:03]).

  “This night was full of fabulous women. Guess what? Books made their way in...” – Jenna ([17:51])

Birthday Surprises

[21:59–31:47]

• Angela shares 1974 pop culture trivia (films, songs, TV shows from Jenna’s birth month).
• Jenna receives a “book-themed” surprise: Angela, Matt, and Sam each read passages from books or poems that mean something to them (and Jenna receives copies of each).
  • Sam – “Do not go gentle into that good night” by Dylan Thomas ([23:38–25:31])
    • “You strike me as somebody who knows exactly what they want out of life, is very particular, and isn’t afraid to change the things in their life to get what they want.” – Sam ([24:46])
  • Matt – A passage from A Marriage at Sea by Sophie Elmhurst ([25:49–26:36])
    • “I believe in all human beings there is a desire to love and be loved...to make it a measure of the success of one's life.”
  • Angela – Shares Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry ([26:56–29:51])
    • Favorite quote: “The healthy way is to learn to like the everyday things, like soft beds and buttermilk and feisty gentlemen.” ([28:33])
    • “You enjoy the little moments...An afternoon with your kids, just hanging out in the backyard with your dog Maggie. These are the things that just fill your bucket.” ([29:04])
• Angela donates to the Library Foundation of Los Angeles in Jenna’s honor, praising her quiet advocacy for the unhoused and support for libraries ([30:38]).
  • Jenna: “How very seen and known I feel right now.” ([31:35])

Call Sheet Questions – Get to Know Jenna

[32:06–46:29] Angela runs Jenna through their old “Office” call sheet questions:

• First entertainment job: Murder mystery dinner theater in St. Louis—improv at a haunted B&B ([32:29–34:02]).
• Languages: Some French ([36:30]).
• Musical instruments: No, but tried guitar briefly ([36:39]).
• Favorite book: Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver (“It impacted my life, made me want to create more moments of kindness for unhoused people”; [37:21–38:28]).
• Favorite US cities: Oklahoma City (“the food was so good”), Chicago ([40:18–42:29]).
• Favorite international city: Copenhagen (“Such a charming city. Tivoli Gardens, great food, great sightseeing.”; [42:36]).
• Weekend routine: “I run a small taxi service for two very demanding clients”—her kids’ extracurricular schedule. But what she loves: sleeping in and cozy reading time in her “nook” ([44:08–46:29]).
• Midnight snack: “Cereal—right now it’s Frosted Mini Wheats...used to be Lucky Charms.” ([46:35–47:02])

Around the Town

[51:14–55:07] Angela and Jenna read listener submissions, including:

• Marching band friends throwing a “Bob haircut” themed party.
• An Akron Zoo tawny frogmouth owl’s birthday celebrated “Office” style with a banner.
• Legendary “Rock of Norfolk” in Nebraska—Facebook-famous boulder installed to prevent shortcut driving, now a local tourist attraction.

Office Question of the Week

[55:11–59:46] Why didn’t we see Michael and Holly’s wedding on The Office?

• Jenna: Both Steve Carell and Amy Ryan had left the show. Michael’s marriage happened off camera, due to scheduling and contract reasons—not creative choice.
• Angela and Jenna imagine what the wedding would have looked like—Michael as “bridezilla,” their own vows, “a lot of voices,” a choreographed first dance, possibly being lifted on a chair at the reception, and more.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Office Ladies' mission:
  “We go to the bathroom when we need to go, and we have a fun birthday.” – Angela ([03:49])
• On presenting at the Actor Awards:
  “We were just still as perplexed [about dressing up] 20 years later!” – Jenna ([07:20])
• On books and kindness:
  “My theme for my 52nd year—books and fabulous women.” – Jenna ([05:08])
  “I want to be that [moment of kindness] for somebody if I can.” – Jenna ([38:28])
• On practical advice:
  “No, you know what? Use that [wedding carriage money] for some good bed linens...Get the good towels.” – Jenna ([59:03])
• On being celebrated:
  “How very seen and known I feel right now.” – Jenna ([31:47])

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:04] – Birthday episode and traditions
• [05:46] – Jenna’s “theme” year: books and fabulous women
• [06:21] – Actor Awards last-minute invitation and presenting panic
• [09:17] – Wardrobe adventures and fashion coordination
• [12:27] – Avoiding the red carpet, backstage, celebrity encounters
• [23:38] – Birthday literary gift: readings and tributes from Sam, Matt, Angela
• [30:38] – Library Foundation donation in Jenna’s honor
• [32:06] – Call Sheet Questions: Jenna's early jobs, language, favorite book, travel, weekends, snacks
• [51:14] – Around the Town: listener stories
• [55:11] – Office Question of the Week: Michael & Holly’s wedding

Conclusion

This episode is a joyful, intimate, and laughter-filled celebration of friendship, books, special moments, and “The Office” nostalgia. Jenna and Angela are at their warmest and most relatable, whether recounting the chaos of prepping for an awards show, reflecting on what matters most at each new age, or imagining what could have been onscreen. With behind-the-scenes details, touching surprises, and the signature Office Ladies best-friend chemistry, it's a birthday episode filled with heart and lots of laughs.