Jen Psaki in conversation with actor and author Billy Eichner

Summary

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The Briefing with Jen Psaki

Episode: Jen Psaki in conversation with Billy Eichner
Date: July 13, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Jen Psaki sits down for a lively, candid conversation with Billy Eichner, actor, comedian, and author, known for "Billy on the Street" and his new memoir (an audio-only release). The discussion explores Eichner’s journey from a pop culture-obsessed kid in Queens to a breakout comedy star, the sharp contrast between his public persona and his private self, the profound influence of his supportive parents, and moments that defined his career—including advice from Joan Rivers. The talk is packed with humor, poignant stories, and insights on art, ambition, and LGBTQ+ identity.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Public Persona vs. Private Self

• Audiobook Exclusivity and Authentic Voice
  • Billy: “It was important to me that people really hear my real voice, because there's the person and there's the Persona, you know, and those are two different things.” (04:00)
  • Eichner’s decision to make his memoir audio-only was intentional: he wanted listeners to experience his true self, not just his Billy on the Street character.
  • He reflects on being more “soft, lower key” in real life compared to his famous, aggressive, confrontational TV persona. (03:51)

2. Origins and Evolution of "Billy on the Street"

• From Stand-Up to Street
  • Billy started developing his "furiously urgent" comedy style through live sketch shows in New York after college.
  • The street-interview format was a natural extension: “What if I break that rule and I stop someone and I ask them...force them to talk to me about, you know, Kate Winslet's Oscar chances?” (07:00)
  • The show was a “slow burn,” developing well before going viral and hitting television.

3. Childhood, Family, and Influences

• A Love Letter to His Parents

  • The memoir is deeply rooted in stories of his family, particularly his parents’ unconditional love and support.
  • “My parents gave me something from a young age...that is just an enormous amount of unconditional love and support to pursue my dreams, right? And to be me.” (13:47)
  • Unlike many LGBTQ+ celebrities, Billy did not have to overcome parental trauma: “I'm very lucky. I am successful because of my parents.” (24:23)

• Notable Story: The Madonna ‘Sex’ Book

  • For his 14th birthday, Eichner’s mom waited hours to buy him Madonna’s “Sex” book, sealed in plastic and not intended for teens.
  • The story intertwines coming-of-age, the AIDS crisis, queer visibility, and parental acceptance: “She let me know it was okay to be attracted to these men. It was as if Madonna had handed my mother an entry point for being an ally.” (20:00)

• Influence of New York City

  • Growing up in Queens, with exposure to NYC’s diversity and culture, gave Billy a unique confidence and acceptance of his identity.

4. Career Reflection & Self-Discovery

• Writing the Memoir:

  • The writing process became a journey in understanding childhood patterns mirrored in adult challenges.
  • “The same challenges I have now, interestingly enough, on a bigger scale, are the challenges I always had and that I've gotten over.” (11:00)

• Persistence in Show Business:

  • Reflects on being an “A-list student” but struggling with Hollywood’s narrow lanes.
  • “I always wanted to be Madonna, and there's part of me that wanted to be a Gilmore Girl....torn between being, like, the badass rebel and, like, the goody two shoes.” (12:10)

• Early Acting and SNL Moment:

  • Shared an early memory as a child actor on SNL, remarkably not cast as one of John Goodman’s main kids in a sketch, but still thrilled: “If you watch the sketch, you see me...bending over so I can be seen on TV.” (32:10)

5. Parental Support: Specific Stories

• Father’s Encouragement:
  • Dad’s unyielding support, exemplified by his reaction at a fourth-grade storytelling contest: “He immediately leapt to his feet, threw his fist up in the air triumphantly, and in this mostly empty, cavernous school auditorium, shouted very loudly, way to go.” (39:50)
  • Addresses the legacy of a parent who never tried to steer him away from the arts, even when it made them nervous about practicalities.

6. The ‘Artist as Family’ — Madonna, Joan Rivers, and Barbra Streisand

• Madonna as Role Model and Family Thread
  • “The artists we love raise us too, but also how my parents learned about what was important to me by watching the culture that I loved.” (21:44)
• Joan Rivers’ Pivotal Advice
  • When struggling professionally, Rivers encouraged persistence: “Sometimes if you're kind of an outside the box kind of person, it takes a long time… They have to pick you up and put you in the right thing.” (52:00)
  • Rivers actively advocated for him, handing out his DVDs to late-night producers: “No one does this in show business, right? Everyone is so self-centered and thinking about their own success...” (51:00)
• Barbra Streisand — Persona vs. Person
  • Streisand as an example of the difference between celebrity persona and private self: “That's not the Barbra Streisand that's ... on my couch eating Chinese food...it's just a Persona, you know." (76:15)

7. The Mechanics and Impact of “Billy on the Street”

• Format Evolution
  • Satirized his own obsession with pop culture — “making the Super Bowl about Madonna, that’s very me.” (63:12)
  • Viral before viral was a thing: the show’s longevity, now even more popular via social media.
• Interactions on the Street
  • On awkward encounters: “I worry, because everyone I talk to ... they have to sign a release...I know that loud gay man just called you a bitch, but will you sign this release?” (66:09)
  • Never physically assaulted — “New Yorkers are really savvy ... they get the joke.” (66:19)
  • Why it connects: tension-breaking, silly escapism, and “a little joy bomb” in an anxious world. (67:19)
• Audience & Legacy
  • Despite his own attempts to move past it, the show’s appeal persists. “If people like something ... I think that's really rare. And so, yeah, we need a little humor in our lives right now...” (68:56)

8. Audience Q&A Highlights

• Would Billy do “Oh, Mary”?:
  • “I mean, maybe. Yeah, I would be honored. But maybe you don't know, really, But I'm open to it, for sure.” (71:11)
• Bar mitzvah theme if he turned 13 now?
  • “Broadway meets pop. I haven't evolved, unfortunately.” (72:15)
  • Continued love and admiration for Madonna: “Fucking Madonna rules, you know?” (73:40)
• Rapid Fire
  • Favorite Sitcom: Golden Girls. (74:03)
  • Underrated Actor: Stockard Channing, especially in "Six Degrees of Separation". (74:13)
  • Celebrity He’d Be Starstruck By: Barbra Streisand — “I wish we could have had a conversation, like, about her work and stuff, which has also meant a lot to me.” (74:50)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “I am successful because of my parents.” – Billy Eichner (24:23)
• “I said, I don't believe in God. I believe in Madonna. But [my rabbi] was okay with it. He understood.” – Billy (48:01)
• “When a silly video of me comes along ... I guess it gives people a little escape...or maybe sometimes people say they're living vicariously through me. Just kind of really like storming away from people that don't agree with me or something like that.” (67:19)
• “Her message has always, ultimately been one of defiance. And that's a good message. You need that message.” – Billy on Madonna (72:29)

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Timeline of Key Segments

• [03:04–04:56] – Contrast between public persona (Billy on the Street) and personal self; why audiobook only.
• [05:59–13:07] – The book as a love letter to his parents; parent stories; formative moments.
• [32:10–33:37] – Child acting experiences, including SNL cameo.
• [34:02–37:52] – College years at Northwestern and transition to comedy.
• [39:50–47:29] – Readings and reflections about his father’s influence.
• [49:08–56:06] – Joan Rivers mentorship and resilience in showbiz.
• [58:19–66:19] – Genesis and mechanics of Billy on the Street; viral culture; memorable field stories.
• [70:41–74:50] – Audience Q&A: future projects, favorite pop culture, Madonna, bar mitzvahs.
• [75:44–77:18] – Barbra Streisand anecdote about the nature of persona and stardom.

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Final Reflections

This episode offers a warm, often hilarious look into Billy Eichner’s life, plumbing the gap between his comedic persona and the thoughtful, earnest individual behind it. Listeners are left with a sense of the power of parental love and cultural role models in shaping self-acceptance and courage, and a reminder that authenticity can trump adversity in the long run—especially for outsiders and rebels in any field. The conversation is laced with Eichner’s wit, insightful stories, and joyous defiance, making it essential listening for fans of comedy, pop culture, and inspiring life stories.

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Transcript

[A]

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[B]

I'm Lindsey, and in my line of work as an investigator, I'm always looking out for other people. Getting my diagnosis didn't really change that, but it did make me realize that I also need to keep an eye out for myself. So my doctor and I decided to start on Kaskali ribociclib. Lindsey is a real patient, compensated for her time. Visit kiskali.com that's K I S Q A L I.com to learn more. And ask your doctor if cascale ribociclib is right for you. This event was hosted by 6th and I, a center for Arts, Entertainment Ideas and Jewish Life in Washington, D.C. Well, if you're here, you probably are a huge Billy Eichner fan. Maybe you've listened to the audiobook. Maybe you're going to listen to it again. Maybe you love Billy on the street. Maybe you love other things he's done, like his SNL appearance when he was a kid. Which we will talk about and show you. But just in case we pulled together, just a little reminder for you guys before we bring him out.

[A]

I've got cash in hand and I'm ready to give it away if I can find anyone who knows anything. Here's how it's gonna work. If you get two. What? Obama? I didn't ask about that.

[B]

Okay, let's go.

[A]

Mr. Singh, take my hand. Okay, we gotta find a stranger.

[B]

I wanted to go this way.

[A]

Well, unfortunately, we're going this way. Do you care about John Oliver? I don't even know who that is.

[B]

Oh, okay.

[A]

What about Wendy Williams? Of course I do. It's La La Land. A lot of Oscar buzz. Could be Emma Stone's ear.

[B]

Four kids. I'm not watching tv.

[A]

Dan Patrick, how are you? Why are you yelling? Question 2. Why are you screaming at me?

[B]

Are you some guy? Are you. You like one of the.

[A]

Yeah, exactly. Apparently it's only a half hour more till Madonna. Just gotta get through some of this first.

[B]

You're a Republican. I'm not a Republican.

[A]

I'm like, the gayest person Alive. Katy Perry. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Chris Tucker's back. I did not say a hug. No, no. Get up. Stop. Stop. Name a woman. Name a woman.

[B]

Any.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Oh, my God. This is so hard.

[A]

Name a woman. Name a woman.

[B]

Okay, everyone, without further ado, Billy Eichner.

[A]

Oh, my God. What's up? Okay, here we are.

[B]

This is when I just grill you about really telling you, please grill me.

[A]

I like that.

[B]

Okay. I loved the audiobook. It was not what I thought it was going to be in some ways, and that was one of the things I loved about it.

[A]

Thank you.

[B]

But I want to start by asking you just about the public person we just showed that a lot of people here know and have watched for years. Probably got them through some difficult times. And the private Billy Eichner, because I've had you on my show before. And I was like, he's so much soft. Yeah. He's lower key.

[A]

I am a normal person.

[B]

Tell us about the difference that people will hear in this audiobook.

[A]

Yeah. And that was one of the reasons that I did the book and one of the reasons it's only an audiobook, which is obviously a question that I get a lot. Why an audiobook? And, you know, the publisher really wanted me to release it in print. That's still how they do most books these days, even though audio has blown up, obviously. But. And I thought about it, because it would be cool to have a book to hold in your hand. But it was important to me that people really hear my real voice, because there's the person and there's the Persona, you know, and those are two different things. And I've done a lot of coming off of Billy on the street, which people loved, and I'm very grateful for. It obviously changed my life, but it is a character. And I then did variations on that character in other projects, because once people like something in Hollywood, they kind of want you to keep doing it, which was great, too. But I, you know, I'm 47 years old. I know I look great, but I'm 40. I am 47. Thank you. Thank you. That's the first time I got applause saying that. I appreciate it.

[B]

It's a very supportive town.

[A]

Very supportive. Yes. But you get to an age where you think, all right, like, I've been doing this a long time, and people really are familiar and love that version of me, which. But it is a character. And I got to the point where I wanted people to get to know the real me. And also the book, it is a Billy on the street origin story. And there's a lot of stuff about the show and about my career, but really, as you know from listening to it, it ultimately is about my childhood. Because what the Billy on the street origin story becomes is a story about how I got the confidence or the. Since we're in a synagogue, I'll say the chutzpah, you know, as my family would have said, to follow my dream and to do Billy on the street, which is a crazy thing to do. And all of that confidence came from my parents. Right. And so the book becomes a real love letter to them. And I didn't want people to inadvertently hear stories about my childhood in my shouty Billy on the street voice, if that makes sense. So that's why it's an audiobook.

[B]

And we're definitely going to talk about Billy on the street and we're going to talk a lot about your parents because it is a love letter to your parents. For people who haven't yet listened to the audiobook. I think everybody's getting the audiobook.

[A]

I think you all get it or.

[B]

Yes, it's great.

[A]

Don't be too excited about that.

[B]

Yeah, they were really excited about how good you look for your age.

[A]

I know. By the way, if it's one or the other, I'll take that. Right. That's more exciting to me. Fuck the audiobook.

[B]

Exactly. You're just hot, so it doesn't matter. So what do you hope people learn about you as a person versus you as the person?

[A]

What do I want them to learn about me? I think we're all multidimensional people. And I got known for this very aggressive, confrontational, silly, but confrontational Persona. And like I said, I'm an adult now. The first Billy on the street video I ever met made was over 20 years ago. And people don't realize that because it got popular online and then it went to tv. But I made the first Billy on the street, what would become known as a Billy on the street as part of my live comedy show I was doing with a friend, my best friend, Robin Lore Taylor, who's also an actor. I started writing a sketch comedy show for us in our early 20s after we graduated Northwestern. And we were just struggling actors. And I didn't know what to do to get an agent. And so I thought, well, people say I'm funny. So I'm gonna write this live show, the sketch show. And it was a 90 minute show. And over the course of the show, the Persona that I was kind of organically developing on Stage started to become increasingly angry about pop culture and about actors and was just furious about movies and just bringing an irrational amount of urgency to pop culture topics. And people loved it. And so I said to my friend who was directing the show, I said, I have this idea to take this Persona. I said, I don't know, maybe it won't work, but what if we go out onto the street? And I kind of. I'm a New Yorker. I grew up in New York. That's a big part of the book. And in New York, you guys know, hundreds of people are walking down the street and acting like the other people aren't there. You have to kind of walk with blinders on, because that's the only way the city can function with that many people. So I thought, what if I break that rule and I stop someone and I ask them, you know, I forced them to talk to me about, you know, Kate Winslet's Oscar chances or something like that, you know, and force them to kind of have this discourse with me. And so that really took off, you know, but that was in 2004, before YouTube. YouTube comes along a year later. And then my videos don't go viral at first. They don't go viral till 2010, and then the TV show comes along in 2011, and then the segments from the show go really viral and things take off from there. But I've been doing it a long time. And so, again, I think my desire was for people to know my backstory and to get to know the actual complicated person that created all of this.

[B]

We talked a little bit about writing a book before we came out here, and it's a journey, writing a book.

[A]

A lot of work. Yeah.

[B]

And yours is very personal. It's about your childhood and things you struggled with through early adulthood, before you became super famous. What'd you learn about yourself?

[A]

It's a good question. You know what? You know, I think we're. So if you're, like, you know, kind of a lifelong overachiever, and especially if you're in a cutthroat industry, and I'm sure you know about this, Politics isn't competitive at all.

[B]

Yeah, I know.

[A]

It's easy for easy Kumbaya ing with each other, especially these days. It's so chill. There's literally a mixed martial arts event happening five blocks away,

[B]

sponsored by Bud Light or something.

[A]

Really?

[B]

Lots of people. There's lots of people.

[A]

It should be sponsored by Grindr, because they're all in the closet. I got here last night, and my Grindr is blowing up with a lot of guys who are just experimenting. That always happens whenever the RNC is in a city. Grindr blows up, you know, but that's an actual thing that tells you all you need to know.

[B]

Who.

[A]

Who was it? Who's the husband? Who was it? I'm going off topic here. Oh, what's this?

[B]

Oh, Kristi Noem.

[A]

Kristi Noem.

[B]

Do you know? I didn't.

[A]

You didn't. Her husband.

[B]

Who is the husband? I was like, kristi Noem is the. It's the husband's.

[A]

Yeah. Hey, why am I. Oh, Byron.

[B]

Brian.

[A]

Brian Gnome. I love that story so much. It's sad, but it's delightful. Yeah. Anyway, not here to talk about that, but it does explain everything. What was I talking about?

[B]

Oh, we were talking about what you learned about yourself.

[A]

Oh, what I learned about myself. Not what Brian Noem learned about himself. Although if I did that would be fine. I hope I would handle it differently. Okay. What I learned about myself is that we're so kind of hyper. When you're in a cutthroat career, you're so hyper focused on what's happening right now and what your next challenge is or the thing you want to achieve, and you kind of forget about your history. And what I forgot is that I've been struggling, you know, the same challenges I have now, interestingly enough, on a bigger scale, are the challenges I always had and that I've gotten over. Because when something disappointing happens or when something hard happens, you think, fuck. Like, you feel like you've never been through it before. Because, like, emotionally you're like, how am I going to get over this? You know, something doesn't go the way you planned, but then you look back at your life. This was amazing because I'm not a person who sits and talks about my. Thinks about my childhood a lot. I have a therapist, but like every actor, I don't talk to my therapist about my parents. I talk to them about my agent. Yeah. You know, I'm focused on, like, what's happening, like, right now. I know my parents were great. We don't have to talk about that. But when you go back and think about it, I saw it's amazing challenges I had in second grade kind of with the powers that be. I always wanted to achieve. And I wanted to be like, an A list student. An A list student.

[B]

An A student.

[A]

An A student. I was an A list student, by the way. No, I wanted to be an A student. And I talk about this in the book. Like, there's part of me that always wanted to be Madonna, and there's part of me that wanted to be a Gilmore girl. Right. If you're like a Gilmore girl, Rory

[B]

Gilmore, who doesn't want to be Rory Gilmore a little bit.

[A]

Well, but. But I was always torn between being, like, the badass rebel and, like, the goody two shoes who gets an A in everything fair. Right. And so I. That was a challenge, like, because I would kind of. Sometimes I'd rebel, and then I'd get freaked out about rebelling. And you can see this pattern. And I saw in my life times, like literally in second grade, literally in 2006, up until the present day, like, similar challenges that I'm always navigating. And that was actually amazing because it does. It's a reminder, like, oh, yeah, it feels like you haven't gone through this before, but you have in a different way, and you have come out on the other side of it. And that was a. That was nice to see, actually, and

[B]

nice for people to hear. Cause everybody, you know, people think you just, like, popped out of the world and just had, like, hundreds of millions of YouTube.

[A]

Oh, God, not how.

[B]

Well, all right, we're going to talk about that, but I want to talk about your parents, because this really is. The book is really a love letter to your parents. A big chunk of it is. They sound amazing. We're the same age. He talks about Starlight Express, and I was like, I love Starlight Express. Who's with me here on Starlight Express? Yeah, it just brought me back. Okay.

[A]

It's my first Broadway show in 1988.

[B]

Yeah. Amazing. But you talk about your parents a lot in the book. I know you have an excerpt from the. From the book you want to read, which people can give you a sample of. I think this is it right here.

[A]

Yes. So the book is a love letter to my parents. And really what I realized is when I sat down, I knew I was going to tell the Billy on the street origin story, but I didn't know what that meant. And then, like I said earlier, I started to think about, well, how did I get here? What gave me the confidence? I'm not always confident, but it does take a lot of confidence and a ton of resilience, even in success, to keep going, especially in my industry, but also for all of us. Just, life is hard. And then when I realized is, oh, like, my parents gave me something from a young age, like back in the 80s and 90s that a lot of gay kids did not get. Still don't get some of them when they're kids, and especially back then, a lot of kids who love the performing arts don't get. And that is just an enormous amount of unconditional love and support to pursue my dreams, right? And to be me. They always let me be me. I had a very unusual. My therapist actually said to me recently, she said, you know, for a gay man, you had a very unusual childhood because your parents did not instill any shame in you about that, ever. And I think you can track any success I've had back to how much they loved me and let me be me. So, yeah, and here's one example of it. This is from a chapter in the book. Well, the other theme of the book is that even when you have great parents, which I did, my parents were not in the performing arts. They were not creative people. They loved show business. They loved going to see a Broadway show. And that really bonded us as a family because that was obviously a huge driving force for me. But they weren't artists, so they didn't really know what that life was gonna be like for me. And in that case, I think the artists and the entertainers you love, especially as a little kid or as a teenager, they really help raise you too, in a way, I think. And my parents often learned about me and who I was and what was important to me by observing how much I cared about the artists that I love. And chapter three is called Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone, which is Madonna's full name. This is from that chapter. For my 14th birthday, my mother waited in line for hours at the Barnes and Noble in Manhattan to buy me Madonna's highly controversial and not at all intended for children book called Sex. Sex was a coffee table book full of black and white Steven Meisel photos that less sophisticated readers might describe as soft core porn and more sophisticated pop culture connoisseurs might describe as elevated erotica. With a wink, it came sealed in plastic like Hustler magazine and was not to be sold to underage customers. But my parents respected my devotion to Madonna and knew that I would literally have an emotional breakdown if I didn't have it. So my mother waited in line for hours the day it went on sale and got it for me. For that birthday, my parents also got us tickets to see Nathan Lane and Faith Prince in the landmark 1992 revival of Guys and Dolls on Broadway. Now, did I have a nervous breakdown in the lobby of the Martin Beck Theater when we got there and found out Faith Prince was out that night? And we had to see her understudy. Yes, yes, I did. But we stayed. And by the way, her understudy, if you're for like, if you like Broadway shows, her understudy. This was 1992. Her understudy was Victoria Clark, who 20 years later becomes a Tony winning Broadway star in her own right. So always stay for the understudy. But I didn't know that as a kid. After the show, my parents took me to Carmine's, the old Italian restaurant in the theater district, which served everything family style, and where I ate what can only be described as a historic amount of bread pudding, Probably a serving designed for an entire family, and which made me physically ill. Guys and Dolls, the sex book, and nearly throwing up from eating too much bread pudding. Just a typical night out for the Eichners. Yet another non traditional. My choice, a non traditional choice my family made was brushing aside the traditional Mother's Day activities of buying flowers and going for a nice brunch to instead once again travel into Manhattan from Queens to see Madonna's documentary Truth or Dare. We didn't wait until it came to Queens. Nope. I insisted my parents and I go into the city to see it right away. The weekend it opened at a movie theater on 23rd street in Chelsea. Ironically, the same movie theater on 23rd street between 7th and 8th Avenue that I would spend many, many days shooting Billy on the street in front of. Years later, sitting there between my parents, I often sat in between them at movies and shows in a notoriously gay neighborhood, looking up at this big screen and watching scene after scene of Madonna interacting with the cast of her show, many of whom were the gay men who worked as her dancers, was just thrilling to me. This was during the height of the AIDS crisis, so of course that's acknowledged in the film. But for the most part, these men weren't depicted as victims. They were sexy and confident and strong, in addition to being exceptionally talented. They actually seemed really fucking happy up there on that screen. And you can't overstate how rare it was to see that in such a high profile piece of entertainment at the time. At one point, two of the male dancers make out in the movie passionately. You can see tongue. It was very bold for the time. I don't think I had ever seen that sort of thing before, at least not on a big movie screen like that. After the movie, when we were heading home, my mother took the opportunity to comment on it. She said, wow, that Belgian dancer is so handsome, in reference to one of the gay men in the movie. We had all just watched making out with another guy. I didn't respond when she said that. When she said that, I just stayed quiet. But in my head, I was agreeing with her. I, too, had noticed that the Belden dance answer was really hot. Now, maybe she was just blurting out how she felt in typically blunt Eichner style. But in doing so, and by not expressing any discomfort with the subject or simply ignoring it altogether, she let me know it was okay to be attracted to these men. It was as if Madonna had handed my mother an entry point for being an ally, for letting me know that it was perfectly normal to be me. Exciting, even. Madonna was the mechanism. Madonna lost her mother when she was just five years old. I would lose my mother when I was 20. Life is fragile and unpredictable, and it can be cruel. Mothers die young sometimes. Me, Bambi, Madonna, all the greats. But seeing Truth or Dare with your mother on Mother's Day 1991, and your mother telling you she thought Madonna's gay dancer was hot right after he makes out with another guy that lives forever. Thank you.

[B]

There are so many stories like that about your parents. There's one story exactly like that, but there's a lot about your parents. Yeah, yeah.

[A]

And about Madonna. Yes. And kind of the interweaving of the two, because it's not just fangirling out over Madonna. There's a little of that, but not much. It's really about how, again, the artists we love raise us, too, but also how my parents learned about what was important to me by watching the culture that I loved. And that's a big theme in the book.

[B]

Did your parents understand what your ambition was to be a performer? I mean, did they know that even before you did, or what do you think?

[A]

Yeah, because I tried desperately to be a child actor in New York, and they. They were not stage parents at all. They didn't care. Yeah, that's us. That's our cat, Jovi, named after Bon Jovi, who I loved. And that's my mom, Debbie and Jay. And so they. Yeah, they. Because we were in New York, we had proximity to theater and to the business, and so I wanted voice lessons. So, you know, I was a really good singer as a kid. I can still sing, but I was, like, a really good singer as a kid. So my whole track was to be on Broadway. Like, going to see Nathan Lane was big for me. Saw a lot of Broadway shows. I was very lucky in that way because they loved it, too. And so they got me singing lessons, and we'd go into Manhattan. And I went to, like, the vocal coach that all the kids on Broadway, like, the handful of kids that were on Broadway, he taught them. He also taught Debbie Gibson, which in 1998 was a very big deal.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

And so, yeah, and I got an agent when I was a kid, and I never really. I didn't book very much as a kid, and my parents would take me to the auditions, but I never. Even then, I never really fit in. Like, there just. I wasn't a category for me, which is then also the case when I get older. But, yeah, they definitely knew that I was on track to do what I do. Yeah.

[B]

As you mentioned in what you just read, your mom died when you were only 20 years old. You were in college at Northwestern.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Is there a moment in your career you wish she would have lived to see?

[A]

Well, all of it.

[B]

All of it, Yeah.

[A]

I mean, she missed all of it.

[B]

Was there a first moment when you made it you wish you would?

[A]

Was that.

[B]

Was there a first moment when you made it, when you knew you made it, that you wish you'd live to see?

[A]

For me, I say about Billy on the street in the book, Billy on the street is a loud show, but it was a slow burn, you know, like, it didn't. It was on an obscure cable network, you know, and it ends up taking off in segments online. In other words, we didn't have a big opening weekend. We never had, like, a. An explosive first season, like, you know, the Bear or White Lotus or something. It just wasn't. It was a slower thing. So there was never one moment that I thought, oh, I've made it. You know, it's been a very deliberate step by step process. But of course, like, you know, there's such a big part of the reason that I'm successful, you know, and that's what's so nice that I got. I have this platform to, like, tell this story in the book. I've really never had a proper format in order to tell these stories, you know, but it's nice. Like I said, we don't. A lot of celebrity memoirs we get are always about. It's so often about how, like, the mother of the person was jealous of them, you know, like, very strained relationships between the entertainer and their parents. Or. We get. Obviously, and for good reason, we get so many stories about LGBTQ people who had to overcome trauma to make it. And I say in the book, I think you can divide people into two different groups. People who were successful in spite of their parents and people who were Successful because of their parents. And I'm very lucky. I am successful because of my parents. And you can track any success I've had back to how much they just loved the hell out of me and never tried to get me to be anything other than who I wanted to be and always made me feel like I had a shot, you know, and we don't get a lot of stories like that in Hollywood. It's often the reverse. So I'm happy to be able to put a story like that out into the world.

[B]

Yeah, you had some wonderful parents. Not parents you were trying to get away from and run from.

[A]

No. And they weren't competing with me, you know, they just wanted the best for me. And it's amazing because when the book tour started, the book hadn't come out yet, you know, and then maybe we had a couple of stops like this right after it came out, so people hadn't listened to it yet. But now it's been almost a month, and I'm seeing comments on social media from all these people who've actually listened to the book. And it's really unbelievably because you don't know when you put something out, what the reaction is going to be. You just don't exactly what people are going to take from it. And the book was sold very much as a Billy on the Street. You know, I'm interviewing myself. We're playing off of Billy on the Street. But what it's really about is my childhood. Right. And how success came out of love and not trauma. And I'm seeing all of that, all of these comments from strangers, fans of mine, but people, I don't know who obviously did not know my parents. And it's just. You can look under the posts on Instagram. It's just flooded with comments and DMs and personal messages about people saying, oh, my God, I'm in love with your parents. And messages from parents saying, like, this is a reminder to me to let my kid be my kid, you know, and it's very, very moving that 30, 40 years later, after my parents made the choices they made, to see their love kind of reverberating and having this effect on parents now, that's like. That's very humbling and that's very meaningful still.

[B]

Lessons for parents to learn.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So, okay, we just were showing. Maybe we could pull it back up again. Young Billy.

[A]

Yes. Right.

[B]

So let's talk about that guy.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Because he's part of the book, too. And I think sometimes it's hard to imagine, if you're a kid, going from that to who you are today.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

So what was his earliest obsessions?

[A]

Oh, I was always me. I loved entertainment. I mean, I loved Madonna and I loved. But she wasn't the only one. I mean, you know, I'm a Gen X kid. I loved mtv, played it on a loop, loved Broadway. I loved comedy. But I was more of a theater kid than a comedy guy. Comedy kind of came along later, but, yeah, I just loved entertainment, you know, it was magical to me, you know, going to see Starlight Express. I tell this story in the book about how, you know, if you remember Starlight Express, it wasn't a very well reviewed show. You know, it was like Angel Lloyd Webber's follow up to the Phantom of the Opera, but it wasn't as big of a hit. It did okay, but if you grew up in the New York area, they would play commercials for Broadway shows on local TV all the time. And that was my first exposure. This is like decades before the Internet, obviously. And I saw commercials for Starlight Express and it was this big spectacle and they were all on roller skates, all the dancers were on roller skates, which was like a really high tech thing at the time. And we went to see Starlight Express and we sat up in the balcony. But they had reconfigured the theater so that during the bows, the dancers in the ensemble could roller skate up to the mezzanine and kind of be close to the audience. And I'm literally this kid. And I had begged my parents for tickets based on the commercials. And then this one dancer in the ensemble. I always think about this guy. It was a man. I don't know who he was. He wasn't the star of the show. He came up to me, right in front of me, and he's on roller skates. And I'm just, like, mesmerized by everything happening. And he came up to me and he looked me in the eyes and he waved at me like this. But it wasn't like a generic wave. Like, he was over it and just wanted to get out of there. Like, he looked at. He must have seen a kid, like a young gay boy who was, like, dazzled by this musical. And he, like, looked at me and, like, really waved at me, like, hi, like, I see you. And that wave changed my whole fucking life. It really did. I was like, I like this. Everything that's going on, I like this. And so, yeah, it meant the world to me. And luckily, because I was in New York, New York also is such a character in my life. All my work, obviously, is so informed by being a New Yorker and by growing up, I had something that kids don't have, which is not only amazing parents, but I had New York City. So, like, I saw gay men since I was a kid taking the subway. My mom's boss at work, Jim, was gay and she loved Jim. And she wouldn't shut up about Jim. And she would come home and be like, Jim said the funniest thing today. And like, Jim said the funniest thing about his boyfriend today. And I'm a kid and that leaves an impression, but that's very New York City. And they were super liberal. And so New York raises me also. And I don't know what your question was, but.

[B]

Yeah, no, just who you were as a kid. Now, I alluded to this earlier, but I don't know how many have already listened to the audiobook. How many of you knew that Billy appeared in SNL as a kid at one point?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So some new.

[A]

I didn't get many jobs as a child actor, but I get a call from my agent when I was a kid around this age, maybe a couple years, a couple years later, and she says to me, guess which show that you watch every Saturday night you're gonna be on this week? And I literally said to her, the Golden Girl. And I got so excited.

[B]

That would have been cool, too.

[A]

Would have been cooler.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And she said, no. I remember the tone in her voice. It was so funny. She said, no, not the Golden Girls. But I remember the tone of her voice was like, no, you little. Not the Golden Girls. She said, what other show that you like? And I said, Saturday Night Live? And she said, yes. And she said, you are going to play John Goodman's son in a sketch on snl because we sent over your photo and they thought you looked so much like John Goodman that you don't even need to audition. Now, not every, you know, closeted 14 year old wants to hear that you look like John Goodman, although he's a lovely man and a very talented actor. But I was so excited. And so. But what happens is we end up going to the studio and it turns out there were 30 kids all playing his children in this sketch. Because the premise of the sketch was that there had been a doctor at the time, a real doctor, who had secretly inseminated, like, hundreds of women with his sperm and had all these babies. And so the joke on SNL that the doctor.

[B]

Yes, we found it. I don't know if we have the video or just a photo, but yeah,

[A]

so the joke was that, like, these were all his kids and that he had to host. He had to star in a sitcom with all of his kids.

[B]

Wait, can we see you in this?

[A]

Yeah. So I'm in the yellow on the staircase in the back. Yeah. But I was pissed off because I thought I was going to be his one kid in the sketch. And then we get there and there are literally 30 John Goodman look alikes. And they put me on the staircase in the back because I was so tall. And then I know I tell this story in the book. You can't tell in this shot, but when they go in for, like, a closer shot, and that's Chris Farley also playing one of his kids. And it was amazing. I mean, I got to, like, be in the SNL studio for a weekend when I was a kid. And these were the years of, like, Mike Myers and Phil Hartman and Dana Carvey. You know, I was, like, blown away by this, except I was pissed because Madonna had been the musical guest two weeks earlier, and my musical guest was Garth Brooks, and I was like, Garth Brooks when Madonna was here. That's literally homophobic. That is homophobic. But in the closer shot, if they went in to zoom in on John Goodman, and if I had stood up tall, you wouldn't have seen my face. I noticed in the monitor during rehearsal. And so I told myself, oh, when it airs live, I have to bend over to get my face in the shot so people can see me in tv. And if you watch the sketch, you see me doing that. I'm like, very unnaturally bending over so I can be seen on tv. But, yeah, one of the very few roles that I got as a kid.

[B]

I mean, that screenshot right there is a real. It's a moment from your childhood.

[A]

It's a moment. But it was still very magical, you know, I mean, as a kid, I was so just in awe just to be on snl, even for a second.

[B]

Most people can't say that. So that's still cool. Yeah. So one of the things I learned about you from listening to the audiobook is you went to Northwestern, you went to college. I mean, not everybody does. Right? That's true. That seems like it played a pivotal role in part in your theater journey. So tell us about that.

[A]

Yeah, Northwestern. I had, you know, my whole life. I had written on my junior high school binder, if you remember. Do kids still have binders? I don't know, but I had written that. I was. I had My whole life plan. I talked about this written on the COVID of my notebook in a magic Sharpie, Magic Marker. And it said NYU Film School. And I just thought I was going to go to NYU my whole life. And then I very surprisingly end up getting into Northwestern and then I end up going with my dad to visit. And I sat in on an acting class at Northwestern. Northwestern is obviously a great school in many ways, but it has a really prestigious theater program. A lot of great actors and also comedians have Julia Louis Dreyfuss and Seth Meyers, and there's a long, long list of actors that came out of Northwestern. And also a lot of comedy people, Broadway people. There's a big musical theater program. And I sat in on an acting class at Northwestern and I just thought, oh, I have to go here. And luckily I was able to do that. And we weren't rich people, we were like middle class people. But my dad, we haven't talked much about my dad. I'll tell the other story. But my dad plays a huge role in the book. And he was an older guy. He was much older than my mom. He was from the Bronx, you know, and. But he always, like, he never wanted me to, like, miss out on an opportunity, even if we couldn't afford it. And he said to me, he had this like Bronx accent. He said, if you want to go to Northwestern, you'll go to Northwestern. And I did. And it was really. I had an amazing acting teacher. And that really opened me up. You know, it's where I really leaned into being. I was for the. I always loved Broadway, but I shared that with my parents. It's not something as a kid, I, I mean, I did the school musical and stuff, but like, you know, I was like a kid listening to Stephen Sondheim albums and like Barbra Streisand albums and stuff. And that's not stuff I shared with like all my friends in junior high school. And I said, but then I got to Northwestern and it was just like all of these like minded kids. We had all been listening to Stephen Sondheim in high school and I like, you know, I found my people, which was a big part of the book. And I was. Comedy was not on my mind at all, which is like another reason that I wanted to do the book. Because what I end up doing is so different from what I started out wanting to do. You know, I was like a very like serious, serious actor, you know, And I was in acting class and we were doing Shakespeare and Chekhov and Greek drama and Angels in America and musicals and just everything. And then when I get to New York later, I kind of, for strategic purposes, was like figuring out a way to break through. And I remember being in the back of a line of hundreds of actors at this open call for like the Delaware summer theater production of Brigadoon or something like that. Something I didn't even want to be in, but I wanted to get the part, and I never got the part. And I remember thinking, you know, so many guys on this line, they're hot. I bet they're good actors. Everyone had gone to a good school. Everyone had gone to NYU or Northwestern or Carnegie Mellon or one of these good theater schools. I thought to myself, I bet they're good actors. I bet they're good singers. How do I differentiate myself? And I thought to myself, well, what's the most rare skill that I have? And I thought, well, people say that I'm funny. Like they think I'm funny. And so that's when I go to sort of lean into comedy. And I take stand up comedy classes and improv classes. I go to Upright Citizens Brigade and then eventually start writing the show I talked about, which is where the Billy on the show street videos started. But at Northwestern, I was not. I was funny, but I was funny in a play. I wasn't. They have a huge improv scene that I wanted nothing to do with, interestingly enough.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, that's pretty. I mean, because one would have thought that would have been your thing.

[A]

Yeah. Yeah.

[B]

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[A]

World War II with Tom Hanks is a must watch.

[B]

It is on a scale no one's ever seen before.

[A]

An enormous accomplishment. The world turned upside down. It's global history on the grandest scale. All wars changed the world, but none of them like the Second World War did. Unlike any World War II docuseries before. World War II with Tom Hanks. New episode tonight at 8, only on History. Next day on the app.

[B]

Hey, everyone, it's Chris Hayes.

[A]

This week on my podcast, why is this happening? A special crossover episode with the hosts of the Strict scrutiny podcast.

[B]

I think the Supreme Court massively misplayed this end of term.

[A]

My solution would be more trying to address the underlying structural issues that allow

[B]

us to get to a point where

[A]

a minority faction that is not committed to and antagonistic to the rule of

[B]

law can get power. The bigger fundamental problem is that we have never done the work in this country of actually wrestling with our deep seated antipathy for a multiracial, multi faith pluralist, a democracy.

[A]

That's this week on why Is this Happening? Search for why Is this Happening?

[B]

Wherever Listening right now and follow. Let's read the clip. Let's read the excerpt about your dad because I think and we should talk more about him because he's such an important person in your life and in the book, of course.

[A]

Yes. So you know, I had an older dad. He was much older than my mom. He was from the Bronx. He was in the Korean War. He loves sports, but he did, he did love show business also. But you would think, especially back then in the 80s and 90s, that our age difference or just where he came from, who he was might have been an issue considering who I was. But I was very lucky because it wasn't an issue at all. And this is from chapter five, which is called My Dad. When I was in fourth grade, I took up a new extracurricular activity. Was it soccer, you ask? Perhaps the spelling bee? No, it was something even gayer and nerdier than spelling bee, if you can imagine. I participated in my school storytelling contest, except for one other boy. The other competitive storytellers were all girls. Being the little performer I always was, it suited me well to stand on a stage and dramatically tell a short story. And it really rang my bell to figure out how to do this better than everyone else. I performed the Nightingale, a classic children's story by Hans Christian Andersen. I won the first contest at my own school, which allowed me to advance to the district level competition. It was there on a Saturday morning that I stood on the stage in a very large, mostly empty school auditorium in front of the dozen or so parents and three judges who were the only ones to show up to watch us. And I killed. And when the judges got up to announce the winner, and they said, the winner is Billy Eichner, Jay Eichner, my father, usually a stoic man of few words and never that visibly emotional one way or the other, immediately leapt to his feet, threw his fist up in the air triumphantly, and in this mostly empty, cavernous school auditorium, shouted very loudly, way to go. As if I had just thrown a buzzer, beater in the last seconds of a championship basketball game or scored a winning touchdown when all I had done is won the fourth grade storytelling contest. His big bellowing Bronx born voice bounced off the walls and echoed off the vast dark span of empty seats in the school auditorium on a Saturday morning in Queens. And he stayed on his feet, beaming. This was when I was in fourth grade in 1986. I'm 47 years old now, but I can still hear him saying those words. There's a Stephen Sondheim song children will listen in the finale of into the Woods, a show about parents and children, about how adults have to remember that children listen more than you think. They listen and learn and remember everything you say and do. They retain everything. And that way to go I have retained for the rest of my life. Now, sometimes my parents took their love and encouragement a step too far. Because I won the district storytelling competition, I advanced to the next level to perform my story in the Queensborough Wide Storytelling Contest. And yet again, my father attended with the pride of someone who was watching his son play quarterback at the Super Bowl. Except this time I fumbled the football by stumbling over a few words in my story. And you cannot stumble over your words in a storytelling contest. I ended up coming in fifth place, losing out to a girl named Jenny Pethkonkathon. That was her name. I still remember it. Who at one point in her performance paused for a suspiciously long time while staring hard at her mother in the audience. She had clearly forgotten her next line. There was some speculation among the other contestants that her mother had mouthed the word she was forgetting, which was of course considered cheating. And yet she was given second place anyway. And the girl who took first prize happened to be from that same district where the competition was held. Well, my father thought this was very suspicious. I was just mad at myself for stumbling over the words. And I stormed out of the auditorium, telling my parents to start the call so we could just get out of there. I blamed myself, but not my father. He ranted all the way home in the car about the travesty that these girls had beaten me, that they had cheated, that the competition was rigged to favor the girl from her own district. My dad was like one of those stop the steal guys. What about the 1988 Queensborough Storytelling Contest? It was fixed. He shouted, and I finally had to shout from the backseat to quiet him. You don't have to make excuses for me. I just lost. I was disappointed in myself, but I wasn't about to blame the other contestants, even if they had Cheated. Plus, to be honest, I really didn't care. I just wanted to go home and eat a bagel and watch tv. But Jay Eichner had accepted enough defeat in his own life. So when it came to me, he refused to accept defeat and was particularly sensitive about me not having the same opportunities and advantages that a kid from a richer, more powerful, more well connected family might have. That's it.

[B]

I mean, that story so illustrates how your dad was always in your corner. You talk about it throughout the book.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

What else is. I mean, you do a whole chapter about him. What else do you want people to know about your dad and how he helped you become who you are?

[A]

Yeah. I mean, I think a lot of parents have an expectation for their kids. You know, I don't have kids myself, which is so funny that all these people are commenting that I wrote a great guide to parenting was not what I was expecting. But I'm only the messenger, you know, I'm just telling the stories about my parents, like, that's what the guide is. But I know a lot of friends, gay friends, but also just straight people, friends of mine who wanted a career in the arts. And that really scared their parents, which it didn't. Not scare my parents, but they knew that this was my life, and they could see from a young age how much I lived and breathed it. Like, this was my passion. I say in the book, like, this was my motor from the beginning, and they were not going to try to convince me to be something else. I think I would imagine a parent has a vision for who their kid is going to be, who they want them to be. And I was not the child that my parents were expecting, you know, but they quickly kind of noticed it. And from a very young age, their default mode with me was always to just love me and not try to convince me to be interested in other things or to let fear guide my choices. Never, never, ever. You know, even when I got older and Billy on the street doesn't become a TV show till 32. I'm 32 years old, and my mom's gone for 12. My dad's in his 70s. He's starting to get worried for me, you know, but even then, he knew. He was like, I had come so close, even though it hadn't quite happened yet. And, like, he. It would have broken his heart to, like, not. Not, like, let me try. And so, yeah, I'm very lucky. And a lot of kids don't get that. And so if you're a parent or thinking about being A parent, like, I don't know. We only go around once in this world. And so. So let your kid try. I would say.

[B]

Yeah, that's such a great answer. You already mentioned this about Madonna being, I guess, part of who raised you

[A]

or by the way. Yes. And I was thinking, because we're in a synagogue, the one thing my parents and I didn't agree on was I really did not want to get bar mitzvahed.

[B]

Oh.

[A]

Because I just wasn't a religious kid.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

But then I realized I did because I realized you could throw a big party and I wasn't a religious kid, but I was a gay man and I wanted to throw a party. But my rabbi, I had a. Oh, oh.

[B]

Just so you know, we found.

[A]

Oh, yeah, that's me and my bar mitzvah and that's my mom and my bar mitzvah. So the theme of my bar mitzvah is. And there's my bar mitzvah party and how I like. I art directed my bar mitzvah as it was the fucking Met Gala, you know, And I took it very seriously. And it was, the theme was Broadway meets pop music. Because I couldn't decide.

[B]

Maybe you're giving people ideas in here. You don't know.

[A]

Yes, exactly. I hope so. And on one side of the DJ booth was like a life size airbrushed portrait of Madonna in her cone bra and garter belt. At my bar mitzvah. And on the other side of the DJ booth is the same kind of life size airbrush portrait of the Phantom of the Opera. So when I came out of the closet, it wasn't a shock, but I always remember my poor rabbi because I really resisted going to Hebrew school. Sorry. And I told my rabbi, a very nice man, Rabbi Shlomo Bligstein. That was really his name. At the Rigo Park Jewish Center. I said, I don't believe in God. I believe in Madonna. But he was okay with it. He understood.

[B]

He was like, cool.

[A]

He was like, hey, I get it. Yeah, yeah.

[B]

Now another. Okay, so Madonna was a key person, as you've talked about already. You also talk about Joan Rivers.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

And how she gave you advice at a pivotal time because you didn't know you were going to make it. Always.

[A]

No. And you know, again, the book gave me an opportunity. I never had a proper format to tell my Joan Rivers stories. And people don't. Unless you've been really following me closely and you've watched like every talk show appearance. Maybe I've mentioned it occasionally, but, like, so when my live show in New York starts taking off in 2006, 2005, 2006, Bravo had just done the first Queer Eye, the first one. And so they were looking for, I guess, a way to build off of that. And so they did a pilot. My first big TV job was a pilot for Bravo in 2006. And they were trying to do their own version of the View, but instead of Barbara Walters and four different types of women, it was going to be Joan Rivers and four different types of gay men. And my joke was always like, well, there aren't four different types of gay men. A problematic joke now, but it was funny 10 years ago. And it was gonna be prime time and a little raunchier. Cause it was Joan. And so I auditioned for it and I got it. And Joan came to my live show, which was in a theater, a cabaret with like 40 seats in it. And Joan Rivers walks in in like a fur coat and like dripping with jewels, you know, very. Joan always done up and she loved me and she really got me, you know, and she just saw something. So they cast me in the pilot. And it's me and Andy Cohen before on the panel with Joan. And beforehand he had his own show and these two other guys. And the pilot doesn't get picked up, right? It was called Joan Rivers Straight Talk.

[B]

Ha ha.

[A]

And, you know, Bravo, you know. But Joan becomes like a real mentor of mine. And like, she really, like, takes me under her wing to the point where she took my early Billy on the street videos before they went viral, and she had me put them on a dvd and when she would go do a talk show, Kimmel or Fallon. Now, if you remember Joan, when we did the pilot, Joan was kind of at a low point in her career, right? So she bounces back in like 2010 with her documentary, and then she wins Celebrity Apprentice. Let's not talk about it, but she was amazing on Celebrity Apprentice and she was hilarious. And that kind of brings her back into relevance. So all these talk shows had blacklisted her because of Johnny Carson and her feud with Johnny Carson. It's fascinating, but we won't get into it right now. Watch her documentary. It is truly the best show business documentary. And so she's doing talk shows, late night talk shows for the first time in years, which was a really big deal for her. It broke her heart not to be able to do those shows because Letterman and Kimmel, all these guys, I mean, I like those guys, but it was like an old boys club. And they sided with Johnny Right. It's crazy. But so she's doing these talk shows again and she tells me, I'm about to do late night talk shows again. Put your Billy on the street videos on a dvd. And she goes up to all the showrunners at all these talk shows who had no idea who I was. And she said, you have to watch this guy and have him on. And she gives them my DVDs. No one does this in show business, right? Everyone is so self centered and thinking about their own success. People used to ask me if Joan Rivers was my grandmother because they couldn't find any other explanation for her being that nice to me. And so then we get to 2009 and it's like four years after my live show was getting attention in New York and we sold a pilot version of my live show. It was called Creation Nation to Bravo. And they also don't make that. And the Joan thing doesn't get picked up. And in 2005, 2006, they're writing like big articles about me in the New York Times. And I go from having no agent to like Brian Lord, who's like the most powerful agent in Hollywood and like very smart gay man. But then four years later, nothing, none of it pans out. And I literally moved back in with my dad in Queensland. And I was like, how do you go from all of that buzz to nothing? And Joan understood what that was like because no one had more of like a roller coaster show business career than Joan Rivers, right? So in 2009, I reach out to her because everyone's telling me like, oh, you're so talented and blah, blah, blah. But I couldn't get a job, right? I couldn't get three lines on Law and Order. I'm the only New York actor that I've never been on Law and Order. None of them. There are like 10 of them. Yeah, I think there's one that's literally called Law and Gay Guys. And I have not been on it. I couldn't get three lines on Law and Order. I mean, I was like at the end of my rope and I was really considering quitting, you know, because I was that like a student. I was like, maybe I was wrong and I should just go to law school. Like, I'm a smart person, I don't need all of this. And so I reach out to Joan and I say, joan, I really don't know what to do. And I'm really thinking of quitting. And she said, come have dinner with me and we'll talk. And so she was doing a stand up, a standup show in New York. And I go to her show and then I go have dinner with her. And she just gave me the greatest pep talk in the world. And she said I was like 30, 31 at this point. 2009. Yeah. And she says to me, how long have you been doing this? And I said, about 10 years now. And she said, it took me seven years to get on Johnny Carson. And she said, which was her big break. And she said, sometimes if you're kind of an outside the box kind of person, it takes a long time. But she said, I really think you should stick with it. And she said very nice things. And I don't know if she meant them. Maybe she was just being nice. But she said, you know, she's in her 70s at this point. She said, I saw Billy Crystal come up when he was young and I saw Robin Williams and I saw Howie Mandel. She loved Howie Mandel. She wouldn't shut the fuck up. Up about how he met up who's wonderful. But you know, Billy. Robin William is Billy Kressley. But she said to me, she was like, I saw them when they were young and struggling. She was like. And I think she was like, I think you've got what it takes. She was like, I just think you need to stick with it a while. Like a little bit longer. And I always remember with her, like, very manicured fingernails, she made this gesture where she said, all it's going to take is for someone to come and pick you up and put you in the right thing. They have to pick you up and put you in the right thing. And I always remember that. And this was 2009. And then. And so. And I go home and I tell my dad. And I was like, dad, Joan says I have to stick with it a little while longer. And my dad says, if Joan says it, you gotta do it for real.

[B]

That is an amazing story.

[A]

Because he's an older guy, a Jewish guy from New York too. Joan Rivers, like, meant something to him, you know, it was like a rabbi had said it, you know, and so. And I did. And a year later, my first videos go viral. And two years later, Billy on the street becomes a TV show. And Joan is one of the first celebrity guests on the show because I didn't know any other famous people.

[B]

So we have Joan Rivers to thank, I think in part here for Billy on the Street. Otherwise. Otherwise, who knows?

[A]

Totally, totally.

[B]

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[A]

World War II with Tom Hanks is a must watch.

[B]

It is on a scale no one's ever seen before.

[A]

An enormous accomplishment. The world turned upside down. It's global history on the grandest scale. All wars changed the world, but none of them like the Second World War did. Unlike any World War II docu series before World War II with Tom Hanks. New episode tonight at 8, only on History. Next day on the app.

[B]

You better eat your Wheaties today because there's a lot of lot of news to cover. Money time for the business. All eyes on the new Fed chair. The economic fallout from the war is a temporary power. The president is now a major crypto industry operator. Is this White House for sale? Politics. Is there an energy to respond to this aggressive gerrymandering? It has never been more important to be informed and engaged.

[A]

Money, power, politics with Stephanie rule, weekdays at 9:00am Eastern on Ms. Now.

[B]

Okay, so everybody here I know is a Billy on the street fan. We've talked. They've learned so much about your childhood, how you got here. Tell us about where the idea for Billy on the street came from.

[A]

Oh, yeah. So I'm doing my live show and there was a sketch in the live show where I would review a movie that had just come out or a Broadway show or something. And the joke of the sketch was that I was furious about whatever I had just seen and really angry at the actors in the movie to like an irrational degree. And the movie review would start out and I was kind of speaking at a normal volume, but then it would become like this 1012 minute rant where I would just like lean in and rip everything apart about the movie as if it had been a personal attack on me. And by the end of it, it was like, by the end of it, it was like I was having a stroke. I was sweating and crying. It was outrageous, right? And Robin, who was my sidekick, would have to come over and console me, right? And the audience in New York loved this because they got it. Like, the jokes were funny. But I was also satirizing critics and how like overly invested people are in pop culture. And this is actually before social media discourse becomes what it Becomes now everyone is Billy on the street. Like, everyone writing a comment. You know, sometimes when people, like, insult me and my stuff on social media, I'm like, you are Billy on the street, and you don't realize it. Yeah, but. Yeah. And so the audience loved it, and that's where that came from. And so Billy on the street, like me stopping the person to make this person who doesn't give a shit talk to me about, you know, Meryl Streep or whatever it might be, that was kind of satirizing my own love hate relationship with my own intense interest in entertainment, really. That was my way of doing that. Now over the years, it expands, right? It becomes a half hour TV show and you have to find other things to do. And so it, you know, so it kind of grows. And, you know, eventually we come up with like, sillier games that have nothing to do with pop culture, like name a woman or, you know, like, name three white people or whatever it is. And. And that becomes kind of its own genre, which now everyone steals, but it's fine. And so it expands over the years, but the beginning of it was that it was like satirizing my own kind of irrational level of interest in Hollywood, really.

[B]

Watching these clips, I always think, were you ever nervous? Were you nervous when you were going out there and kind of walking up to people?

[A]

Yes. I vividly remember the first time We Did It, 2004. The first one we did was in Washington Square park, and my friend Jamie's behind the camera and, you know, it does. I know this is like what comedians always say, like their Persona, like, doesn't come naturally to them, but it's really true. Now I can slip into it. It's been over 20 years, but at the time, I had to circle Washington Square park like a dozen times before I walked, before I worked up the nerve to approach someone because it's a very strange thing to do, especially in New York City. Like, people want to be left alone. It's also why it works, you know, because I'm being, you know, this is a crazy thing to do with your life, but yeah, yeah, this is. This is a bit. Oh, this is name a woman. Yeah, but. And I always think about. She's never resurfaced.

[B]

I know. Where is she now?

[A]

Oh, there's Elena.

[B]

Oh, yeah, we love her.

[A]

Elena, who you still stay in touch with. This is the first time that we meet. That was the first time we met. And I'm still in touch with Alaina. And she still lives where she always lived In Chelsea. This is when the show starts taking off. This is the TV show. Would you have sex with Paul Rudd? This was big. This is when I'm at the super bowl and Madonna's the halftime show.

[B]

Okay. You have to tell the story about this in case people don't remember the halftime show at the Super Bowl.

[A]

So, yeah, so Billy on the street as a TV show. Oh, there's Michelle Obama and Big Bird. We shot that in D.C. actually. Yes. I've done a lot now that I'm thinking about it.

[B]

Tell the Super Bowl. You may not remember this, and it's such a great story. Yeah.

[A]

And so right when Billy on the street becomes a TV show, Conan o', Brien, who had his own talk show at that point on cbs, he has me be a guest on his show. It was the first major show that I did, and Conan really got me, and his people called and they said, you know, would you want to go to the super bowl and do a Billy on the street style segment for us? And I said, sure. They said, we have crazy access. We have, like, press passes at the super bowl, and we can get you to interview the players. And I was. You know, at the time, I was like, well, yeah, of course I have to do that. But then I hung up the phone, and I was like, what the hell am I going to do at the Super Bowl? You know? And then I looked up the halftime show, and it was Madonna. And this was like a gift.

[B]

It was like fate.

[A]

It was a gift. Like, Rabbi Shlomo Blickstein was shining down on me. And I said, oh, okay. And I called up Conan's people, and I was like, look, I want to do this because it's obviously a big deal for me, especially then, but would still be a big deal. It's Super Bowl. And I said, but I don't really know anything about football. But here's my angle, is that I am only there to talk about Madonna, and I'm only gonna ask the people about Madonna, and I'm gonna ignore the game entirely. And they said, great. We love it. And so we do that. It was in Indianapolis, and then at the end of the game, they had these press passes as if I was a sports journalist and no one knows who I am. It's 2012. My show had just started, and so I'm, like, running across the field, and I'm yelling like, Madonna was amazing. And there's confetti pouring down the Giants one. They're crying. Their families are on the field, and they're getting the trophy. Spike Lee, of course, is on the field, as he always is, you know, And I run across the field and I'm shouting, conan, Madonna was amazing. Vogue, motherfuckers. And then I go up to the Giants, who just won the super bowl, and they're literally like these big dudes, and they don't know who I am. And I look. I'm in, like, you know, a winter coat, and I look like a sports guy. And I go up to them and I'm like, did you see Madonna? And they're looking at me so bewildered, and they're like, what? And I was like, madonna. She was amazing. And he was like. The player's like, yeah, I don't know. I was in the locker room, and I do that a few times. And then we, you know, I stayed up all night editing the video in, like, a motel room in Indianapolis. Then we, like, fly to LA and we show the video on Conan the next day. And it really was a hit. And it was, like, one of the first things that put me on the map. And I say this in the book, but for me, that whole video is. That really encapsulates. What I'm about, basically, is making the super bowl about Madonna. That's very me. And there's a funny story about Spike Lee where I went up to him on the field, and this did not end up in the video. And I go up to him on the field, and I'm like, and Spike, I know, knows Madonna, you know, I know. I just know that. And so I go up to him and I'm like, spike, Spike, any thoughts on Madonna? But Spike did not get the joke. And Spike was. He's such a big sports fan. And Spike was like, the Giants just won the super bowl, and you're asking me about fucking Madonna, But I like that.

[B]

That's perfect.

[A]

He got really angry. Too angry to put in the video, but I enjoyed it.

[B]

Is there any. I know. That's such a good story, isn't it? And we can't find it. Is there any moment. I'm sure there were, because you taped it. Was there a disaster moment that you remember that didn't make it to air

[A]

with Billy on the street? Yeah, a disaster. You know, I know everyone wants a story about how I got punched in the face or something.

[B]

I don't know that I was looking for that. It could be other kinds of disasters.

[A]

I feel people always wanting that story. And, look, I don't blame them. But you know what? You know, New Yorkers are really savvy. You know, there are people who get pissed off sometimes, you know, and. And I worry because everyone I talk to on the show after I have my interaction with them, they have to sign a release, otherwise we can't use the footage. And so a producer goes up to them after and says, hi, I know that loud gay man just called you a bitch, but will you sign this release? That literally has to happen and they have to sign it, otherwise we can't. And so, I don't know, I think sometimes they're a little annoyed with my shtick, but not enough to like hurt me physically. Also, there are cameras on them, so. So there is that. And I think, you know, New Yorkers get the joke and so, look, it could always happen, you know, but hasn't. I haven't gotten punched or anything like that.

[B]

Why do you think. I mean, I think we probably all have thoughts on this. Why do you think it connected with people so deeply online?

[A]

It is shocking to me. It is shocking to me that it's still. When I ended the TV show, I did it on purpose because I thought, okay, we've done that and now I'm going to go do other things because I went to Northwestern, I'm an actor, and I wanted to do movies and TV shows and play other types of characters. And I thought that meant that it would end, that people would forget about it. And now it's like 10 years later, it's more popular than ever because it's. Because it's on social media. And I accidentally, in 2004, created the most kind of algorithm friendly content. Yeah. And I didn't even know. We didn't even know what that was. But people just love it. Not everybody. But the people who love it, they really love it. And I think it's just a little joy bomb, you know, it's so silly and our world is so fucked and it's so dark. And I think social media especially gives us all so much anxiety, endless anxiety. Like we have created a monster that we are all addicted to. And so when a silly video of me comes along and it just makes people laugh and it's so ridiculous and outrageous. I guess it gives people a little escape or something. Or maybe sometimes people say they're living vicariously through me. Just kind of really like storming away from people that don't agree with me or something like that. I can't explain it, but I'm shocked at how much it has sustained.

[B]

We have a couple audience questions we're gonna get to in a second, but would you ever. Do you ever wanna just go out and do it again just for fun?

[A]

We made a video a few weeks ago to promote the book. So it is on my. It's a short one, you know, but it is a new one. It's on my Instagram and TikTok and all that. And, you know, it was the first time we shot in a while. Will Ferrell and I did a video a few years ago for Kamala, which did not work. But we tried. At least we tried. But had I known he was gonna do a UFC fight, I would have supported him at the time. But anyway, so we don't do it often, but you know, when we do go out and do it, it's actually. It's actually nice. I could never do the half hour series again. Cause it's just like too much and there's other things that I wanna do. It's very time consuming, but. But you never know. Like I said, I have been really shocked and humbled by its continued popularity online and by. Social media can be so toxic and people can say the worst things about you if you're in the public eye. But under a Billy on the street clip, it's just always people loving it and asking for more. And I take that very seriously. I really, I want to honor that. That is very rare in our business, especially on social media things. People who go viral two months later, you don't hear about them anymore. And this has been going on now for 15 years. That is astonishing. And so I'm very grateful. And so if, you know, if the time is right and there's a way to do it that makes sense, like never say never, you know, like, I'm not, I'm not opposed to it. I was for a little bit, but now I just. If people like something I don't, you know, I don't. I don't take that with a grain of salt. Like, I think that's really rare. And so, yeah, we need a little

[B]

humor in our lives, don't we? Right now, in this moment? I think we all do. Okay, these are a couple questions from the audience. And by all means, if you're here and you can be anonymous. Ish, but if you want with the wave, you can. Okay. This is from Kyle, who says, I adored you on Difficult People with Kola Skull.

[A]

Oh, thank you.

[B]

Yep. Do you have any interest in being in O Mary at some point? Oh, look at that. That was quite a response.

[A]

I'm going to do O Mary in a synagogue. I'm going to do The DC premiere. They really don't need me. It's doing very well. Maya Rudolph is in it right now. I love Cole. I knew Cole 10 years before difficult people, and that was 10 years or more ago. And Cole was always the funniest person that everyone knew. And I'm so. It's astonishing. Like, you know, Cole just now, it's like, oh, Marian is this huge hit, and he's this big thing. But, like, Cole sat in a coffee shop and had to write that when no one was thinking about it. And I just. It's such a success story. I love it. They definitely don't need me. If they ever asked. I mean, maybe. Yeah, I would be honored. But maybe you don't know, really, But I'm open to it, for sure. I mean, it's. If you haven't seen it, it's the funniest thing ever. I mean, it's so great. And I love Cole.

[B]

Yeah. Amazing. Okay, maybe. Okay, this question is from Eric. If you turned 13 this year, what would your bar mitzvah theme be?

[A]

Oh, Broadway meets pop. I haven't evolved, unfortunately. I wish I could say I changed.

[B]

So Madonna.

[A]

I really love Madonna. Her new album's coming out, so we're in the middle of this, like, Madonna rollout, and I actually. There was some nice symmetry with the fact that the book came out right as, like, Madonna is doing, like, this big rollout for her album, so she's, like, very much back in the conversation. And, I mean, she never really goes out of the conversation, but she's, like, very much in it now. Yeah, I mean, I love Madonna, and I just. You know, I think we have a very. And this is in the book, too, like, a very special relationship. Like, the artists we loved as kids, they are, like, friends to me, you know, and they have been, like, a constant source of inspiration. And, like, Madonna is the way she, like, elevated gay men at a time when literally no one else was. You know, that truth or dare story, that's real, you know, and no one else was doing it. And she's just such a fucking badass. And, like, her message has. Her message has always, ultimately been one of defiance. And that. That's a good message. You need that message. You need that message. Anyone needs that message. And if you're in show business, you really need that message. And so, yeah, fucking Madonna rules, you know?

[B]

It's almost time to get your seats for the UFC fight, but before we do that, I have to warm up.

[A]

I have to warm up.

[B]

He has to warm up.

[A]

I'M singing the national anfel Stress.

[B]

Exactly. It's going to be great. Okay, this is a little rapid fire before we go because we only have a minute left. Okay. Greatest sitcom ever.

[A]

Wait, what?

[B]

Your favorite sitcom ever.

[A]

Favorite sitcom ever. Golden Girls.

[B]

Okay, good one. Most underrated actor.

[A]

Underrated actor? Yeah.

[B]

Or actress.

[A]

Underrated. I'm going to say, like some obscure person. Everyone's going to go, huh, Underrated actor. Oh, God, this is real. Oh, well, I talk about this in the book. The play and movie. A little obscure. Gay men of a certain age will know and like theater people. The play and movie Six Degrees of Separation had a real impact on my life. And Stockard Channing is the lead in that movie and she is like, fucking genius. And so, you know, we need more love for Stocker channing. She's like 90, though, at this point, but. And she's still amazing. And so I would say her Bet a celebrity.

[B]

You celebrity. You'd still be starstruck by.

[A]

Celebrity I'd still be starstruck by. That I haven't met. I've met a lot of people who haven't I met that I would be starstruck by. Well, oh, God, I've met her, but Barbara Streisand. But I have. I know it's very name droppy. I have met her, but we've never, like, had it. I met her, we talked a little bit, but I didn't want to bother her too much. And I talk a lot about Barbara in the book, obviously Jewish, gay, New Yorker, Broadway, you know. But I wish we could have had a conversation, like, about her work and stuff, which has also meant a lot to me. And also she's like fucking Barbra Streisand. Like, you know, it's a very larger than life thing. But if you want to hear a quick story. Do we have time for a quick story?

[B]

Sure, yeah.

[A]

About Barbara. Because it plays into the book, too. Like the difference between person and Persona. Make a very long story short, someone who knows Barbara very, very well, not a famous person. That's the mother of a friend of mine that I. A friend, whatever. She took me. She knew I was a big Barbara fan. So like 10 or so years ago, she took me to see Barbara's dress rehearsal for her concert tour at the Staples center in la. Right. Which was very cool, obviously. But Barbara was really doing it. She wasn't rehearsing, she was really doing it.

[B]

It.

[A]

And at the end of the show, this woman who knows Barbara really Well for like 40 years, right. She says to me, she says that Barbara up there, I don't know who that person is. She said, that's Barbara Streisand. That's the state. Not that what Barbara was doing was a lie or anything, that it wasn't real. It was just a Persona, you know. And I said, what do you mean by that? She was like, that's not the Barbra Streisand that's like on my couch eating Chinese food or that's like in my swimming pool with my kids, you know, And I just thought made perfect sense to me. But also like, wow. Yeah. Like, that's a specific thing to if you're an entertainer, there's like the public version of you, which is not a lie. It's just a different part of you. And it's the part of you that you're kind of like giving the people and it's this larger than life thing. But then, then you're just on your couch, you know, being a real person, even Barbara. And that really stayed with me. I thought that was really interesting.

[B]

It's a reminder. That's a perfect place to end. Billy Eichner with the amazing audiobook that's out now.

[A]

Thank you all so much for coming. Thank you very much. Thank you to everyone at 6th and I. I really appreciate it and hope you enjoy the book. Thank you so, so, so much.

[B]

All right.

[A]

Thank you, Jen.

[B]

Oh, thank you.

[A]

Jen Psaki.

[B]

Thank you so much to Jen Psaki, Billy Eichner and Mississippi Now. And thank you all for joining us. You better eat your Wheaties today because there's a lot of news to cover.

[A]

Money.

[B]

Time for the business. All eyes on the new Fed chair. The economic fallout from the war, is it temporary?

[A]

Power?

[B]

The president is now a major crypto industry operator. Is this White House for sale? Politics. Is there an energy to respond to this aggressive gerrymandering? It has never been more important to be informed and engaged.

[A]

Money, Power, Politics with Stephanie rule. Weekdays at 9am Eastern on Ms. Now.