B&T Extra: Billy Gardell, Drew Powell, & Australia

Summary

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The BOB & TOM Show Free Podcast

B&T Extra: Billy Gardell, Drew Powell, & Australia

Air Date: October 1, 2025

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Episode Overview

This BOB & TOM Extra episode features a lively and comedic conversation with actors and comedians Billy Gardell (of "Mike & Molly" fame) and Drew Powell ("Gotham," "The Ponderosa"). Through a blend of personal stories, industry insight, and signature show banter, the group touches on the quirks of TV acting careers, filming in Australia, the randomness of residual payments, the formative impact of high school drama teachers, and memorable audition mishaps. The tone is humorous and candid throughout.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Drew Powell’s Audition and Filming “The Ponderosa” in Australia

• Audition Story: Drew recounts his unusual audition experience for playing young Hoss Cartwright.
  • “I walk into the audition room and… it was like a bunch of chubby 12 year olds and their moms… This is some Sesame Street. What is this nonsense?” (03:32)
  • He almost left but ended up getting the part, noting the surrealness of being cast after casting directors talked about him “like [he] wasn’t there.” (03:32–04:11)
• Shooting in Australia:
  • American Western with constant interruptions by local wildlife (cockatoos, wallabies):
    • “The number of times we had to stop for like cockatoos flying through or wallaby doing the scene...” (04:49)
• Encounter with Brad Dourif (voice of Chucky) playing didgeridoo:
  • “I said, you play the didger? Yeah, I learned it during my first divorce. Really helps me clear my mind.” (06:00)
  • Discussion about circular breathing and the never-ending drone of the didgeridoo. (06:55)

2. Randomness and Humor of Acting Careers

• Bonanza & Residual Paychecks:
  • The Ponderosa aired on PAX TV, described as "a wholesome family network" that eventually went under.
  • The phenomenon of tiny residual checks:
    • “Do you still get the occasional obscure, like, check for 17 cents?”
    • “Oh, I just got one the other day for one cent.” (08:51)
    • Jokes about bars in LA giving free drinks for checks less than $2. (08:36)
• Industry’s Unpredictability:
  • "When you're doing it, it's the greatest thing in the world… This is a dumb thing to do… but it's the greatest thing." (19:57)

3. Influence of High School Drama Teachers

• Billy Gardell:
  • The importance of his high school drama teacher, Kid Haskett, in Florida:
    • “I owe that guy because I would skip school ... and he would say… just come here, and we'll talk about theater ... he really changed my life.” (11:37–12:36)
• Drew Powell:
  • Similar experience thanks to Carol Bellis, his music/drama teacher in Indiana.
    • “She saw … that I had the thing… Like, our junior year, we did Fiddler on the Roof, which we had no business doing in Lebanon, Indiana.” (12:45–13:13)
    • On playing Tevye and the transformative effect of that performance. (13:14–13:44)

4. Performance Anecdotes & Role Preparation

• Singing on “Mike & Molly”:

  • Billy recounts singing “Lean on Me” for an episode and the delight in hearing Bill Withers himself enjoyed the show. (14:15)

• Role Memorization:

  • Billy finds memorization musical:
    • “I don't know where my keys are or where my glasses are, but for some reason... it's musical to me.” (14:58)

• Playing Colonel Tom Parker:

  • Billy on playing Elvis's notorious manager in CMT’s “Sun Records,” and his dad’s hardcore Elvis fandom.
    • “My dad was the only guy I ever knew who hated the Beatles because, and I quote, 'those hippies knocked Elvis off the throne.'” (16:38)

5. On-Set Etiquette and Work Ethic

• Cell Phones & Sides Ban:
  • Strict rules on TV drama sets:
    • “You are not allowed a phone on a set … you're not allowed sides on set.” (18:29–18:38)
    • Result: greater focus, no late nights, work often finished ahead of schedule. (18:52)
• Auditions and Industry Humility:
  • The ongoing hustle:
    • “It is amazing too how quickly you go right to the back of the line… I literally had a poster on the wall and now it's like, 'ID please. Who are you here to see?'” (21:34–21:44)

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Memorable Quotes

Drew Powell (on his "Ponderosa" audition):
"I walk into the audition room and… it was like a bunch of chubby 12 year olds and their moms… This is some Sesame Street. What is this nonsense?" (03:32)

Billy Gardell (on his high school drama teacher):
"I owe that guy because I would skip school ... and he would say, 'just come here, and we'll talk about theater ...' he really changed my life." (12:28)

Drew Powell (on residuals):
"Do you still get the occasional obscure, like, check for 17 cents?"
Bob Kevoian: "Oh, I just got one the other day for one cent… Hell yeah, I earned that penny." (08:47–09:08)

Billy Gardell (on acting):
"This is a dumb thing to do... but when you're doing it, it's the greatest thing in the world." (19:57)

Billy Gardell (on playing Colonel Parker):
"My dad was the only guy I ever knew who hated the Beatles because, and I quote, 'those hippies knocked Elvis off the throne.'" (16:38)

Drew Powell (on Hollywood’s fleeting fame):
"It is amazing too how quickly you go right to the back of the line… I literally had a poster on the wall and now it's like, 'ID please. Who are you here to see?'" (21:34–21:44)

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Noteworthy Segments & Timestamps

• 00:00–01:44 – Show banter, opening jokes, and spoof adverts (skip)
• 03:07–07:40 – Drew Powell's “Ponderosa” tales, Australia filming stories, didgeridoo anecdotes
• 08:13–09:32 – TV series syndication, residuals, and actor pay oddities
• 11:19–13:44 – Influence of high school drama teachers, life-changing theater roles
• 14:15–15:00 – Billy Gardell sings on “Mike & Molly,” Bill Withers anecdote
• 15:13–16:37 – Memorization quirks, contrasting good vs. bad writing for actors
• 16:00–18:18 – Playing Colonel Parker, Elvis stories, and Graceland’s reaction
• 18:29–19:04 – Cell phone bans and set discipline
• 20:34–21:44 – The fleeting nature of stardom, audition routines

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Summary

This episode delivers a fun, behind-the-scenes peek into the lives of working actors and comedians. Billy Gardell and Drew Powell share personal anecdotes, from awkward auditions to behind-the-scenes mishaps with wildlife on an Aussie “Ponderosa” shoot. There’s warmth as they reflect on the teachers who shaped their ambitions, contrast the unpredictability and humility of TV careers, and joke about the randomness of “penny” royalty checks. Their stories reflect the camaraderie and grind of showbiz, offering inspiration and plenty of laughs for listeners and aspiring performers alike.

Transcript

[Bob Kevoian]

ABC tonight, Shifting Gears is back. He has arisen. Tim Allen and Kat Dennings return in television's number one new comedy.

[Tom Griswold]

What what?

[Bob Kevoian]

With a star studded premiere including Jenna Elfman, Nancy Travis and.

[Tom Griswold]

Hey, buddy.

[Bob Kevoian]

A big home improvement reunion. Welcome.

[Christopher]

Oh, boy, that guy's a tool.

[Bob Kevoian]

Shifting Gears season premiere tonight, 8, 7 Central on ABC and stream on Hulu. Finally, in your wellness era, then you know gut health is gut wealth. And with 20 years of science behind it, Activia can help keep those good gut vibes going. Deliciously smooth and creamy Activia probiotic yogurts and dailies have billions of live and active probiotics and help support gut health. While you go about your day, your gut is where it all begins. So start with Activia. Enjoying Activia twice a day for two weeks as part of a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle can help reduce the frequency of minor digestive discomfort. Welcome back. It's another Bob and Tom extra. This is Christopher. Not only is the Bob and Tom show live every weekday morning, but every afternoon. We'll give you a little extra in case you missed anything on the big show today. Billy Gardell, Drew Powell and Australia all coming up in just a minute. When did making plans get this complicated? It's time to streamline with WhatsApp, the secure messaging app that brings the whole group together. Use polls to settle dinner plans, send event invites and pin messages so no one forgets mom 60th and never miss.

[Tom Griswold]

A meme or milestone.

[Bob Kevoian]

All protected with end to end encryption. It's time for WhatsApp message privately with everyone. Learn more at WhatsApp.com Greg Hahn is our guest. I went out with this one girl. Can I say this? Sure. Get a load of this. I'm on a date. I was out with this girl, right? Here's what she says. It's true. She says, oh, I did something she didn't like. She goes, oh, you just lost something. Some points. Oh, there's points involved. That's a point system that the women have. It's a point men. We don't know what's going on. All we know is it involves points. And all of a sudden we're down. You know what I mean? I was doing my impression of her mother. You just lost some points. I'm like, really? How many did I start out with? Don't ask any questions. You're just gonna lose more points. Well, transfer my account to your younger sister. No way. It's your mom again. You're talking to a guy that can blow Through a lot of points in a hur.

[Tom Griswold]

Anyway. Yes, sir.

[Bob Kevoian]

I like having girls over to my place. That's how I like, I like them. I like having, I think chavar for the man to cook for the woman. Let me tell you something. The chicks love oatmeal. I'll just say that. That's what I'm talking about. We just got a call from Tony, the yodeling Shetland pony. He can't be here tonight. He's a little hoarse. Come on, everybody, Come on. Just beat me halfway on some of this junk.

[Tom Griswold]

We're just waiting for the cast to.

[Bob Kevoian]

Actually show up for work.

[Tom Griswold]

Here's more Bob and Tom ext.

[Bob Kevoian]

With us in the studio, comedian and actor Billy Gardell. And also with us in the studio, the man who once portrayed Hoss Cockright. It's not cockright. Hoss. What? Cartwright. Yeah, sorry. The benefits of a classical education. Cartwright. Thank you. He is Drew Powell. And didn't you, didn't you my credit saying you met your wife while playing Hoss?

[Tom Griswold]

That's right, yeah. She was a makeup artist on the show. And that's a funny audition story too. Cause I went in, this was a young Hoss car. He's supposed to be 17, I think. And I walk into the audition room and it's no joke. It was like a bunch of chubby 12 year olds and their moms in their little hats and their vests. I'm like, oh, gee. I mean, like children. Like, this is not like. And I got up. This is true story. I got up. I sat there for a minute, like you said, like, you know what? I'm staying. I was like, I'm not staying. This is ridiculous. This is some Sesame Street. What is this nonsense? I put my hand on the door and Jackie Burch, the old casting, you remember.

[Christopher]

Yeah.

[Tom Griswold]

She's like Joey's agent on Friends.

[Christopher]

Like, hey, stop.

[Tom Griswold]

I hold hand on the door, stop. And I turn around. He's like, come here. And then they sit me down. And she, they. She and her assistant talk about me like I'm not there. It's like, well, maybe if you put Vaseline on his face. Next thing I know, I got the job. And I was. I was on the phone with David Dortort, the original creator. He was 95 years old.

[Bob Kevoian]

Bonanza.

[Tom Griswold]

Yeah, yeah. He was telling me stories about how he's like, well, I put up a million dollars and Ford put up a million dollars and we decided to color do the first color show in television. I'm like, this is like real history. Dripping out of this dude's mouth. Total classic. And he did like High Chaparral and all these classic.

[Bob Kevoian]

And you filmed it in Australia, Right.

[Tom Griswold]

We shot, of course, the classic American western. The number of times we had to stop for like cockatoos flying through or wallaby doing the scene. My mother' I'm weeping. And I cut. Cut him like, what? That was great. He's like, ah, there's a wallaby in the back of the shot. I'm like, oh, well, of course, we.

[Bob Kevoian]

All know that the, the. The Ponderosa was very big.

[Tom Griswold]

Yes.

[Bob Kevoian]

It covered most of Virginia. Drew, we're going to take that again. Paul Hogan just walked by.

[Christopher]

Did you hear a didgeridoo in the back?

[Tom Griswold]

Funny story about that, though. So let's take it back to the pit. Fiona Dur, the doctor that has the ankle.

[Bob Kevoian]

Yeah, I love her.

[Tom Griswold]

She's great.

[Bob Kevoian]

She's fought Chucky a couple times.

[Tom Griswold]

Yes, well, her dad was the voice of Chucky Braddorf. Also Billy Bibbit and One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest. Like a legendary actor. He was on the show. And the first time I met him, we're all staying in this townhouses and they're all in kind of a circle. And I walk up and there's this guy playing the didgeridoo on the porch. And it's Brad Duraf. He's like, hey, man.

[Christopher]

Of course.

[Bob Kevoian]

Hey, man.

[Tom Griswold]

I said, you play the didger? Yeah, I learned it during my first divorce. Really helps me clear my mind.

[Bob Kevoian]

Wow.

[Tom Griswold]

He was the one that said I was at Woodstock. He's like, yeah, man. They said, don't take the brown acid. I already took the brown acid.

[Christopher]

Too late.

[Tom Griswold]

Too late.

[Bob Kevoian]

The didgeridoo. Wow.

[Christopher]

Yeah.

[Tom Griswold]

Yeah. He was really good at it, too. That was impressive.

[Bob Kevoian]

I. What is. Is it like a bassoon or something? It's a big tube. It's almost like a. Made of wood, right?

[Tom Griswold]

Yeah, perhaps.

[Bob Kevoian]

No, no, it is wood, but it just looks like a.

[Tom Griswold]

It's incredible.

[Bob Kevoian]

I think I have the sound. Weird. The sound of a didgeridoo.

[Christopher]

Oh.

[Bob Kevoian]

Ladies and gentlemen, that's it right there.

[Christopher]

There it is.

[Bob Kevoian]

Well, that is it. That is beautiful. This would be good on an alien movie.

[Tom Griswold]

Absolutely. Your mind.

[Bob Kevoian]

That makes mine hurt. I don't know.

[Tom Griswold]

But the thing about it says circular breathing, so they never stop. So they inhale, you know, through the nose while they're breathing out. That's the tricky. So I think that's the Zen of it all, is that's why.

[Bob Kevoian]

That's why parents don't ever want to get one for their kids because it never stops right there.

[Tom Griswold]

That's awful.

[Bob Kevoian]

Wow.

[Tom Griswold]

Yeah. But that was. That was a hell of a job. Veronica, my wife, swore she'd never date an actor.

[Christopher]

Yeah.

[Tom Griswold]

And I promised my agent I wouldn't fall in love. Literally. Last thing. Don't fall in love when you go down there. I never. In Australia, nine months. Oh, yeah? Yeah. And it was. It was one of those deals, you know, this. Where it was. We were going to shoot in la, and then I get a call when I'm back in. In Indiana, visiting my. My sister's graduate high school graduation. They're like, so, a little change. We're going to Australia. I need you to pack for six weeks or six months because we don't know what's gonna happen. And I was there for nine, so. Talk about a life change.

[Bob Kevoian]

What happened to the movie?

[Tom Griswold]

Which.

[Bob Kevoian]

Which was. It was the Bonanza movie on regular screens?

[Tom Griswold]

No, it was a series called the Ponderosa, and it was on PAX tv, which was, you know, we were on right after Billy Ray Cyrus. He played Doc, the country doctor in the city. So it was a network that they tried to be like this wholesome family network. And then it kind of went away. But, yeah, we shot 20 episodes.

[Bob Kevoian]

Is it still floating around out there?

[Tom Griswold]

I think it's like, there's DVDs, but the DVD only has half the season. And maybe there's some, I think, on YouTube. Maybe you can see it. And it was done by the woman that did Dr. Quinn, medicine woman. You remember that? So she's real wholesome.

[Bob Kevoian]

It's like, you know, we always hear about residuals, and I don't want to make you guys give me any numbers.

[Tom Griswold]

But a million dollars I've read about.

[Bob Kevoian]

There's some. Apparently some bar in LA where if.

[Christopher]

You get a residual, that's less residuals in the Valley. It's on Venture, if you have a residual. I think it was back then, it was under $2. You got a free drink.

[Tom Griswold]

And then they put them up on the wall.

[Christopher]

Yeah. And they put them on the wall.

[Tom Griswold]

Yep.

[Bob Kevoian]

Do. Do you still get the occasional obscure, like, check for 17 cents?

[Tom Griswold]

Oh, I just got one the other day for one.

[Bob Kevoian]

Sent one.

[Christopher]

Like, yeah, I've had a couple of those that you look at and you're like, it cost them more to mail.

[Bob Kevoian]

Yeah.

[Christopher]

It's ridiculous.

[Tom Griswold]

Absolutely crazy. Do you cash it? Hell, yeah. I was gonna say I earned that penny.

[Bob Kevoian]

Right, Right.

[Tom Griswold]

That's the thing about residuals, though, is that most of the Time. You. I never. I don't. Who can figure out how it's structured? So it's just like money that comes in the mailbox. That's why the one thing about the strike was, you realize like that was all gone for a big cause, you know, it's leading up to it's over. So I realized I didn't really think much about how important that was until it was like, oh, that's gone. That hurts. So, you know, well, that's what happens.

[Christopher]

When you allow the nanny to go negotiate your contract. I never went to college, but I think we should have sent a lawyer. Your representation. This Guy was number two on Magnum in 78. He's gonna be talking for us once a week.

[Bob Kevoian]

They'll go, yeah, talks have stalled. And we're like, yeah, they probably got tired of hearing Fred. We just need a break.

[Christopher]

All unbelievable.

[Bob Kevoian]

Two great guests, the distinguished actor and comedian Billy Gardell and an actor that was. Been a friend of the show for a while, played Hoss Cartwright.

[Tom Griswold]

I will say real briefly, the guy that played my. Played Adam Cartwright, was a friend of mine. He lived in Hollywood over on Franklin, you know, right by Bourgeois Pig and all that. And he had at the time a chopped off convertible, like a, I don't know, 60 something continental. And one morning he gets into this car and in the back seat is a VHS tape and he puts it in the beast. It's called the Pounderosa.

[Bob Kevoian]

Excellent.

[Tom Griswold]

Is exactly what you thought.

[Christopher]

A wonderful parody.

[Bob Kevoian]

Pounderos.

[Tom Griswold]

Oh, dang it.

[Bob Kevoian]

No, I. I don't. Are there. I'm assuming is there's. Is there a. Is there a sphere of pornography that is based on sitcoms? Do they do like a. Yes, of course. There have to be like. Not the Brady's or whatever. The Dick. The Dick Van Dick Show.

[Tom Griswold]

Was there Mike and Molly one?

[Bob Kevoian]

No.

[Christopher]

No. I don't think anybody was putting us in a porn party. Imagine hearing Lou in a porn. Oh, yeah, that's it right there. That's perfect.

[Bob Kevoian]

Nice work. Let's talk with Billy for a second. Billy Gardell, we talked a little bit about your early days.

[Christopher]

Yes, sir.

[Bob Kevoian]

Doing standup. And then did you always in the beginning think I could be an actor? Was that even on the.

[Christopher]

It was actually. That was one of my goals. My. My first goal was to pay the rent with stand up. And my second was to figure out how to get into sitcoms because that was what I love to do. That's. That's what I set out to do.

[Bob Kevoian]

Were you in the school play? That sort of Thing.

[Christopher]

Oh, I. Yeah, I had a great drama teacher in high school. You know, I. I was supposed to graduate in 87, had to take another lap. And I own. The only reason I did was because my grandmother guilted me, and I just want to see one of my grandkids walk across the. Thanks for dumping that. So I stuck around, and I got to be friends with the drama teacher, a guy named Kid Haskett. And in high school, this guy was. They won the state festival in Florida every year. I mean, this guy made us do real work. Like, we did the Ballad of the Sad Cafe. We did the Book of Job. We weren't doing, like, Our Town. And this guy, even in 11th grade, he was teaching us about Meisner and Stanislavski. Like, he really. I owe that guy because I would skip school a lot in high school, and he would say, look, if you're gonna skip, just come here, and we'll talk about theater, and we'll talk about acting, and you can help build sets. If you're really gonna do this, just come here. So I spent, like, four hours a day with that guy, and he really changed my life.

[Bob Kevoian]

Drew, were you a high school drama guy?

[Christopher]

Yeah.

[Tom Griswold]

And I was just thinking that, as you said that, how many of us have that story of the one person that. Yeah.

[Christopher]

Serious of what you wanted to be? Right?

[Tom Griswold]

And look, I was a ham from a long time ago. Like, in kindergarten, they had me around doing the Night Before Christmas because I had it memorized. But Carol Bellis, God rest her soul, she was the music. The choir and drama teacher at Lebanon High School in Indiana. And she just. She saw. She knew that I had the thing, and so she. Like, our junior year, we did Fiddler on the Roof, which we had no business doing that musical in Lebanon, Indiana.

[Bob Kevoian]

But were you on the roof?

[Tom Griswold]

Yeah, I was. I was heavy.

[Bob Kevoian]

You were Tevier.

[Christopher]

You played.

[Tom Griswold]

Yeah, it changed my life.

[Christopher]

We have the disease we need to kill.

[Tom Griswold]

Oh, I loved it. And I got into. I did the research. I saw the. The touring show came through iu. We went and saw it. I. I did the. I was studying what it is a pogrom. And, you know, in Russia. So I really. And then. And then the performance then was like, the best when you do the homework.

[Christopher]

Yeah.

[Tom Griswold]

And you're just out there, just, like, every moment, I was soaking it up, so. And that was the moment. Like, oh, I think I want to do this for the rest of my life. I had no idea how the heck that was.

[Bob Kevoian]

You still remember some of the lines.

[Tom Griswold]

Oh, yeah. All the songs, I sing them all the time.

[Bob Kevoian]

Now you're more like heavier, bigger fellow. There's a good chance you saw Bob's brother, Peter. He played.

[Tom Griswold]

Is that right?

[Bob Kevoian]

He killed him.

[Tom Griswold]

He was great.

[Bob Kevoian]

Yeah, he was great.

[Tom Griswold]

That's amazing.

[Bob Kevoian]

Billy, have you ever had to sing?

[Christopher]

I had to sing on Mike and Molly one time. There was an open mic night and Gary Anthony Williams was. He was the host of the open mic night. And I did Lean on Me by Bill Withers. And what was really cool was there was a Rolling Stone article about him about three weeks after we did that show. And they asked his wife, what's his favorite things to do? And he said, well, he loves to listen to music, do the crossword puzzle, and watch Mike and Molly. So we put that up on the bulletin board because we thought that was just a gift from the heavens, which.

[Tom Griswold]

Was really, really cool.

[Bob Kevoian]

How do you. Are you really good at memorizing lines? Some people I know can read it once they've got. Others really struggle.

[Christopher]

I have a weird. It's musical to me. So once I hear it, it's in there. I don't know where my keys are or where my glasses are, but for some reason in that thing, it's musical to me. Like, once I hear the beat of how it sounds, it sticks.

[Tom Griswold]

Wow, that's great. And the truism is, good writing is easy to memorize. Bad writing is impossible.

[Christopher]

That is. That is an incredibly true statement. When it's. When it's just clunky, you're just like, oh, God. Because you're already in your head anyway. But then when you read a sour.

[Bob Kevoian]

When you're like, this is how you go first. Billy, did your wife ever help you run lines early on?

[Christopher]

Yeah, early on. In the early days. And then did she direct? No. She's so sweet because she would just read the stage directions, too. And I'm like, mike crosses over. Yeah, you don't got to read that part. But she was so patient, man. Yeah, she used to do that with Tom. You know, Billy played a role, and.

[Bob Kevoian]

Tom Hanks also played the same character. And I submit Billy's version is better.

[Christopher]

Yeah, that's really kind. I actually got a little bit of that online that people said, which one was this? I played Colonel Tom Parker in a short series called Sun Records.

[Bob Kevoian]

It was a really cool series.

[Christopher]

It was great. It was directed by Roland Joffe, and it was about the Million Dollar Quartet, Perkins and Cash and Elvis, I remember. And it was a great. I think it's. Some of the best acting I did, I think about eight people saw it because it was on cmt. And then they got the price tag and said, we should probably go back to the shows where people catch fish with their arms. That was the end of that. But it was a joy to play that.

[Bob Kevoian]

Billy, you were wonderful.

[Christopher]

Thank you, Billy. Did you see the crazy Tom Hanks accent for the. No, I didn't play him like that at all. My dad was a huge Elvis fan. And I'm actually in the Elvis museum now across the street, the car museum. There's a poster of me as Colonel Parker. My dad, like, when I. When I got successful, I took all. We took my. My wife's parents and. And my parents, we gave everybody their bucket list dream wish. Like, where do you want to go? Anywhere you want to go. So, like, her mom wanted to go to Hawaii, and my mom wanted to go to New York during the Macy's Parade. And when we got to my dad, he's like, I want to go to Graceland. I'm like, dad. I said. Anyway, I said, any. But my dad was the only guy. He loved Elvis so much. My dad was the only guy I ever knew that hated me. The Beatles, because, and I quote, those hippies knocked Elvis off the throne. All right, all right. Okay. All right. So. But I got to play him. But when I talked to the. They gave us a lot of access, you know, like, sometimes you get a role and people talk to this guy. He was there.

[Tom Griswold]

Y.

[Christopher]

So we got to talk to some of the Memphis Mafia, and we got to talk to the CEO of Graceland. And he said, look, when you play Colonel Parker, he goes, just remember, he did a lot of awful things, but he was so likable. It's the only way he got away with it. So if you just play him dark, nobody's gonna believe he could con you. He was a con man, so you got to play him with a twinkle in your eyes. So ironically, here's a Malcolm in the Middle reference. The two people that I based him on or mixed mixed up the soup with was Foghorn Leghorn and Walter White. Those two together, that's a good cocktail for this guy. And it made him likable and devious, so it was really cool.

[Tom Griswold]

I love that freaking.

[Bob Kevoian]

When you guys are. When you guys are working on a contemporary show of some sort. Is there a rule about cell phones? Do they have to be offset or should be.

[Tom Griswold]

Well, it's funny you say that. You're absolutely so on the Pit. John Wells and Scott Gimmel like, you are not allowed a phone on a set.

[Christopher]

Smart.

[Tom Griswold]

And you're not allowed sides on set.

[Christopher]

Smart.

[Tom Griswold]

So consequently, means.

[Bob Kevoian]

That means the script.

[Tom Griswold]

Yeah, Josh, sides are.

[Bob Kevoian]

They are part of the script.

[Tom Griswold]

That.

[Bob Kevoian]

So other lines. Not yours.

[Christopher]

Yes, but that's good. They're set in the temple. You need. You need to be ready to work.

[Tom Griswold]

Exactly. And consequently, we were done by dinner all the time. Like, there was no late nights. Sometimes they were done by. By lunch.

[Christopher]

It's almost as if you guys were doing your job.

[Tom Griswold]

Isn't that crazy?

[Christopher]

Crazy talk.

[Bob Kevoian]

Now, did you ever. Did you ever, ever blow any scenes in the pit?

[Tom Griswold]

In the pit? I was pretty locked in because I didn't, you know, I had my moments, you know, because that's the whole thing.

[Bob Kevoian]

You play sort of a. Angry.

[Tom Griswold]

Yeah. I want by a guy that comes in with, you know. Well, here's the thing. Here's the thing about Doug Driscoll. He's misunderstood. Oh.

[Bob Kevoian]

He's like. He's like the colonel.

[Tom Griswold]

Yeah, yeah, exactly. He comes in with it with the chest pain, and he's, you know, he thinks he's gonna die of a heart attack. And then he's there for, you know, nine hours, and it's like, this is crazy. You know, what. What's going on? So, you know, maybe he's called triage, my friend. Maybe some bad choices. Yeah. Along the way. Yes, he does. He makes some bad choices. But my goal, and I love. It's so fun to be here with a fellow thespian, somebody I've really admired.

[Bob Kevoian]

Thank you very much.

[Tom Griswold]

It's like we're in the club.

[Christopher]

Me too, Pat. Me too.

[Tom Griswold]

I didn't say lesbian, but because there is this, like, camaraderie, this club. It's insane what we do. This is a dumb thing to do. It's insane. You're silly and dumb. If you want to drive across the country to LA or New York and. And be a professional actor, but when you're doing it, it's the greatest thing in the world. And the, you know, the process of it, which I know you really understand and appreciate, is like, you know, it's. It's. It's part of the fun. I'm on the season finale of Tracker. Have you ever seen that show on cbs?

[Bob Kevoian]

No.

[Christopher]

Yeah.

[Tom Griswold]

Yeah, it's. Yeah, I think it's a, like, number.

[Christopher]

One on string going, hey, buddy, we're on a roll. Malcolm. Come on, Wood, baby.

[Tom Griswold]

I'll trade it all in for one. Mike and Molly, you're at the top of the heat, baby.

[Christopher]

I'm like, if they ever do a movie with me, it'll be the last sitcom star. I was the last sitcom star. It's true. Last comic to get over the fence.

[Tom Griswold]

Here's my audition appointment from. It says 11 to 18. November to audition to play Douglas in Bob Hart's abishola.

[Christopher]

You would have been my brother.

[Tom Griswold]

I know.

[Christopher]

Oh, man, they missed the boat on. We had. Who got that role? Matt Jones. Matt Jones got that friend. He was.

[Tom Griswold]

I want him to die.

[Christopher]

What was he? He was on breaking.

[Bob Kevoian]

Now. Do you have your next gig for him?

[Christopher]

Great guy to work.

[Bob Kevoian]

Your next gig. Is it lined up and if so, yes or no will do. If you can't talk.

[Tom Griswold]

No. That's why I was auditioning in my parents. In my parents living room clothes.

[Bob Kevoian]

Say basement. That would have been funnier.

[Tom Griswold]

That's why I was in my parents basement.

[Bob Kevoian]

It was the TV version of oh, Calcutta.

[Christopher]

It is amazing too how quickly you go right to the back of the line.

[Tom Griswold]

Oh, yeah.

[Christopher]

I mean it's on. But like I used to pull in the Warner brothers at guard and they knew me.

[Tom Griswold]

And your face was on the side.

[Christopher]

I literally had a poster on the wall and now it's like, ID please. I was here for 12 years. ID please. Who are you here to see? Who are you here to see?

[Bob Kevoian]

That's it for another Bob and Tom show. Extra. Catch us on itunes, Google play and stitcher for Bob and Tom. Extra. This is Christopher. Take care everybody. And Doug Limu and I always tell you to customize your car insurance and save hundreds with Liberty mutual. But now we want you to feel it. Cue the emu music. Limu. Save yourself money today.

[Tom Griswold]

Increase your wealth.

[Bob Kevoian]

Customize, save, we save. That may have been too much feeling. Only pay for what you [e-mail] Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty Savings Ferry underwritten by Liberty Mutual insurance company and affiliates. Excludes Massachusetts.