Andy's Dad

Summary

Podcast Summary: "Andy's Dad" – The Lonely Island and Seth Meyers Podcast

Release Date: November 11, 2024

---

Introduction

In the episode titled "Andy's Dad," hosts Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, Jorma Taccone (collectively known as The Lonely Island), and Seth Meyers delve into the creation and legacy of one of their most memorable SNL Digital Shorts. This episode provides an in-depth look at the brainstorming, execution, and lasting impact of the short, while also reminiscing about their collaborative experiences on "Saturday Night Live."

Revisiting SNL Digital Shorts

The conversation begins with light-hearted banter about Jorma Taccone's recent bout with COVID-19 and Seth Meyers' interactions with fellow SNL alumni. Seth mentions a recent dinner with Andy Samberg, Bill Hader, and Maya Rudolph, setting a nostalgic tone for the discussion.

Notable Quote:

Seth Meyers [00:31]: "But also in the news, Andy is here once again because of SNL. As a fan, maybe."

Seth Meyers' HBO Special and Collaborative Camaraderie

The hosts briefly touch upon Seth Meyers' new HBO special, with Andy expressing his admiration and excitement. This segment underscores the strong camaraderie and mutual support among the group.

Notable Quote:

Andy Samberg [02:52]: "It's so funny. ... I'm very proud of you."

The Bash Brothers and Lin-Manuel Miranda Connection

Discussion shifts to the influence of their work, highlighting the Bash Brothers Netflix special and Lin-Manuel Miranda's appreciation for their creativity. Seth shares an anecdote about attending a listening party for Miranda's concept album based on "The Warriors," emphasizing the creative synergy within the comedy and music community.

Notable Quote:

Andy Samberg [05:05]: "If the Bash Brothers special on Netflix couldn't keep the A's in Oakland, nothing could."

Deep Dive: "Andy's Dad" Digital Short

The core of the episode revolves around the Digital Short "Andy's Dad." Bill Hader provides insights into the inception of the sketch, detailing how the idea of Andy dating his own father was both humorous and unconventional. The inclusion of Jim Downey, a legendary SNL writer, added authenticity and depth to the sketch.

Notable Quote:

Bill Hader [38:18]: "I had to tongue kiss Jim Downey, which was not had to, but just I can still, like right now, now sense memory ghost, understand how his, like, what his tongue felt like."

Behind the Scenes: Writing and Filming

The hosts recount the collaborative writing process, highlighting Jonah Hill's pivotal role in conceptualizing the sketch. They discuss filming locations in New York, the chemistry between the actors, and the memorable moments captured during production, including the infamous tongue kiss scene.

Notable Quote:

Andy Samberg [41:13]: "I did remember the writing process... Jonah was, like, in the zone on it."

Reception and Legacy of "Andy's Dad"

"Andy's Dad" received widespread acclaim for its originality and comedic timing. The hosts reflect on the audience's reaction, particularly the surprise and laughter elicited by the unexpected romantic twist between Andy and his father. Jim Downey's performance is lauded for its subtlety and patience, adding a layer of sophistication to the humor.

Notable Quote:

Seth Meyers [42:11]: "He's great in this scene. And it's really funny because he basically says, can I talk to you?"

Personal Anecdotes and Memorable Moments

Throughout the episode, personal stories and behind-the-scenes anecdotes enrich the discussion. From Bill Hader's multiple takes on the sketch to Seth Meyers' admiration for Jim Downey's enduring presence on SNL, these narratives provide a heartfelt glimpse into their collaborative journey.

Notable Quote:

Bill Hader [39:39]: "I've been laughing and... best memories ever."

Reflections on SNL and Creative Evolution

The conversation naturally flows into reflections on their time at SNL, the challenges of live comedy, and the innovative leap that Digital Shorts represented. They discuss how these shorts not only entertained but also paved the way for online sketch comedy, influencing platforms like YouTube.

Notable Quote:

Seth Meyers [49:14]: "Because you guys came out of the strike, you had a lot of creativity. You didn't fall back on any of your crutches."

Closing Thoughts and Future Endeavors

As the episode wraps up, the hosts express gratitude for their shared experiences and look forward to future collaborations. They hint at upcoming projects and express optimism about continuing to innovate in the realm of comedy and digital media.

Notable Quote:

Seth Meyers [52:05]: "I'm very excited. I'm gonna tease the next episode."

Conclusion

"Andy's Dad" serves as both a nostalgic trip down memory lane and a testament to the enduring creativity of The Lonely Island and Seth Meyers. Through candid discussions, personal anecdotes, and in-depth analysis of their Digital Short, the episode offers listeners a comprehensive understanding of the collaborative spirit that fueled some of SNL's most beloved sketches.

---

End of Summary

Transcript

[Seth Meyers]

Welcome to another Lonely Island, Seth Meyers podcast. Are you guys ready? Hey everybody. Welcome back to the. You have something to say, Andy? Cause I'd love to get this clean intro.

[Andy Samberg]

I was just saying I'm recording. Cause you asked if we were ready.

[Jorma Taccone]

Recording as well.

[Seth Meyers]

Welcome everybody to Lonely Island. It's Seth Meyers podcast. Once again, Jorma is in Finland. You know, during Q and A at my show, my late night show the other day, somebody asked, when is Jorma gonna be back from Finland? Cause they missed him on the pod.

[Jorma Taccone]

Oh, that's nice.

[Seth Meyers]

That was nice. But also in the news, Andy is here once again because of snl. As a fan, maybe. I'm not saying he's going to be on the show. Although again, by the time you hear this, you'll know. But Andy and I had dinner last night with Mike Shoemaker and Maya Rudolph and a. Right.

[Andy Samberg]

It was a good time.

[Jorma Taccone]

Another winter dinner.

[Seth Meyers]

Yeah, it was another winter dinner. And the only thing that was sort of, I don't know, bagging on the vibe a little bit was Keev was sending some very upsetting texts.

[Andy Samberg]

Hmm.

[Jorma Taccone]

They were upsetting. What was.

[Seth Meyers]

Well, Keev, tell everybody what your current issue is that's limiting you from having cool dinners.

[Jorma Taccone]

Well, I'm in la, but I also have Covid. I know that's what you're getting at. And everyone, it's the second time that we've had a Covid situation for me on this pod. Last time we didn't do a pod while I had Covid, but there was discussion of me showing up after having had it before on some early pods.

[Seth Meyers]

Yeah.

[Jorma Taccone]

So it's a bummer.

[Seth Meyers]

I feel like you held out for a long time and now you just get it constantly.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah, that's right. This is my third time having it. I was late to ever have it. And then I'm really making up for lost time now.

[Seth Meyers]

It's just like rolling Covid. But you were sending a lot of like sweaty Covid pics to Andy saying you want me to join.

[Jorma Taccone]

That is true.

[Seth Meyers]

Some version of that. Right?

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah, I was getting a little loopy on the couch. I've been alone upstairs for a lot.

[Andy Samberg]

Of days in a row.

[Jorma Taccone]

Apologies to listeners too, if I sound disgusting during this.

[Andy Samberg]

You sound great.

[Jorma Taccone]

Hey, thanks.

[Seth Meyers]

You know, Covid probably have a lot of time. I'm assuming you've used that time to watch my new HBO special because Andy's seen it.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah, I mean, that's. And to critique it. Honestly, got a lot of problems with it.

[Seth Meyers]

Oh, no, you'll get there. You'll get there anyway.

[Jorma Taccone]

Does that count as a plug? Enough. It's on hbo, guys, for anybody just tuning in. Do you think anybody jumps right into this one? Maybe if they just find the pod. Do people, they hear about a pod, do they jump to the most recent and just hit play, or do they go back?

[Seth Meyers]

I don't know. We did get a nice shout out. You sent it out the cut. There was a interview with the person online who her Twitter handle is baldandowed. She had a nice thing to say. So thank you very much for the nice shout out of the pod, but I do, I would hope that if anybody listens to this pod, they would go back to the beginning. Especially since the first pod we did eight years ago.

[Jorma Taccone]

That's right.

[Seth Meyers]

That's how many.

[Jorma Taccone]

She also gave a nice documentary. Now shout out.

[Seth Meyers]

Yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

Seth, have I talked about your special on the pod yet?

[Seth Meyers]

No.

[Andy Samberg]

It's so funny.

[Seth Meyers]

Thank you, buddy.

[Andy Samberg]

I mean, obviously this seems just like buds stroking each other off, but I've told you so much in person, I loved it. But, man, I was laughing. Giggling and laughing. It's a good time. You're very good at standup. I'm very proud of you.

[Seth Meyers]

You said that last night at dinner, and it was very important to hear that from you.

[Andy Samberg]

And thank you, Akish.

[Jorma Taccone]

Lorraine, I've been waiting to watch with Liz and I would hope you would.

[Seth Meyers]

Want to watch it with Liz. That makes me happy. And I don't want you watching it with her now because you got the.

[Jorma Taccone]

COVID She's not worried about it. She had it recently. But listen, the point is, I haven't watched it yet because it's very hard for us to find times to watch anything. But we haven't watched anything else either.

[Seth Meyers]

Yes. So I.

[Andy Samberg]

Did you watch the World Series?

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah, but not with. Not. You know, I could just throw that on in the background.

[Seth Meyers]

Yeah, you got. You can't focus on it.

[Jorma Taccone]

It's different.

[Andy Samberg]

And who'd you root for, you fucking sellout?

[Jorma Taccone]

Listen, I'm a man without a country now. Now that the A's have left the.

[Seth Meyers]

Bay, how do you guys feel about your beloved Oakland A's? Uprooting?

[Bill Hader]

Sad.

[Andy Samberg]

So sad.

[Jorma Taccone]

It's a bummer.

[Andy Samberg]

So sad. Yeah, I mean, obviously Keev and I and yhorm of course, are big A's heads. We made an entire Netflix special about the Bash Brothers, so it was pretty.

[Seth Meyers]

Brutal, I will say, you know, if the Bash Brothers special on Netflix couldn't keep the A's in Oakland, nothing could you know who name dropped the Bash Brothers recently on my show?

[Andy Samberg]

Who?

[Seth Meyers]

Lin Manuel Miranda.

[Andy Samberg]

Oh, bless his heart.

[Jorma Taccone]

What a nice guy.

[Seth Meyers]

Because he was talking about how he was doing Brooklyn with you.

[Andy Samberg]

That's right.

[Seth Meyers]

The Nine. Nine.

[Andy Samberg]

Yes.

[Seth Meyers]

And he asked you what you were up to and you said, the Bash Brothers. I said, right. He just released this concept album based off the movie the Warriors.

[Andy Samberg]

Yes.

[Seth Meyers]

And he said they were kind of parallel ideas, which is. It was hyper specificity based on a thing you loved for no audience whatsoever.

[Andy Samberg]

Yes. And we played each other, like, demos we were working on at the time on set. And that was years ago, obviously, but it was very fun.

[Seth Meyers]

And it's also very fun to have somebody like. I don't know. I think it's very cool. Lin Manuel, who obviously made one of the great successes of both art and commerce with Hamilton, also appreciating that he has this, you know, monster to feed. That's just art, you know, he's not.

[Andy Samberg]

That's right.

[Seth Meyers]

Yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

By the way, because I had been clued into that he was doing Warriors a couple months ago. He was like, hey, I'm gonna do, like, a listening party in LA and we're gonna play it for the director of the original warriors movie. You should come. And I was like, oh, awesome. And I, like, rolled down there in my sweats and got in there and was just like, hey, you know Nas and rza. And I was just like, what? Oh, no. And they were just like, hey, everyone. Very nice. And obviously, the warriors thing is super cool and trippy, and it's a great lesson. Yeah, it's a love letter. Love letter to New York, as it always is with Lin. And it's just fun. And it goes so many places you're not expecting and spans, like, 15 genres. And dude doesn't fuck around.

[Seth Meyers]

Hey, so let's get into it. I was delighted to go back and visit everything about this episode with Jonah Hill. This is the first time Jonah hosted. Jonah would go on to host a great many times more. Jonah would join the Five Timers Club. But this first time was really very special. It was a great show, truly.

[Andy Samberg]

And it was apparent immediately. I mean, we already knew Jonah and we're friendly, but it was. There are certain hosts that come in from our perspective where you're like, oh, they're going to pick all the stuff I like.

[Seth Meyers]

Yes.

[Andy Samberg]

Which is to say the weird. Like, you are really into comedy stuff.

[Jorma Taccone]

He was only 25 years old, or maybe 24. 25. That's crazy.

[Seth Meyers]

It is crazy. And also he's just so very good.

[Andy Samberg]

Yeah, he's funny.

[Seth Meyers]

He's also. We'll get to the short, but even in the live stuff, he has that subtlety that works on film that sometimes doesn't work live. He manages to do. There is a game show sketch called I think what's yous Situation? Where he's the host and it's three female guests, and basically he asks a trivia question and then the follow up is always so, like, what's your situation?

[Bill Hader]

Contestants for 50 points. What measure of energy comes from the Latin word meaning heat? Bethany Graham from White Plains.

[Seth Meyers]

And that would be the calorie.

[Bill Hader]

Very good. Bethany, you are on the board. And let's follow up this question with another one just for you. Bethany, what's your situation?

[Seth Meyers]

I'm sorry, what?

[Bill Hader]

You know, what's your situation? Are you single? Are you seeing somebody, or.

[Jorma Taccone]

Oh, I'm single at the moment.

[Bill Hader]

It's good to know.

[Jorma Taccone]

It's good to know.

[Seth Meyers]

Cool. That's good to know. It's a really hard shift that he does exceptionally well and I think was unique to him. A couple other things about this episode before we get to the short. I do remember Bill in the final, like, hours before the show, learning Eliot Spitzer impression for the Cold Open. And I often remember him, like, sort of talking about that was sort of a good example of how stressful the.

[Andy Samberg]

Show was for him, but also did a great job.

[Seth Meyers]

Great job. Now that I've resigned as governor, I intend to bring that same passion and intensity to my new career as an attorney in private practice specializing in lurid, embarrassing sex cases. The thing that's really hard to do and is always very cool when somebody pulls it off is a recurring character for a host. And Jonas showed up and brought a character called Adam Grossman, who was a six year old at Benihana. Bill was his dad. Fantastic sketch. And it was an idea that Jonah had, and I was lucky enough to sit in a room with him and Bill. I think he and Bill had talked about it before Jonah had showed up, and they had all these really funny beats and it's just a great sketch. And I remember Fred plays the Benihana chef named Su Shin. And I went back and watched it, and there's a line that really makes me laugh where he's basically a roast comic and he's just roasting his dad, who's Bill, as a divorced dad. And at one point he goes, sushin, I'm joking, Sushin, arigato. And mazel tov. And it's just delightful.

[Jorma Taccone]

So I send him questions about all these sketches, right?

[Seth Meyers]

Yep.

[Jorma Taccone]

So he sent in a voice note where he goes over all of them.

[Seth Meyers]

Okay, great.

[Bill Hader]

Mamima. Mamima Shaffer. Andy Jorma. Seth Jonah. So one of the things I wanted to chat with you guys about was about the episode and stuff, but I also wanted to let you know that it's you guys. Maybe I've set. Probably heard of it. So Dave Chappelle had a show on before all this, like, recent stand up stuff on Comedy Central, and it's insane, dude. It's called Dave Chappelle show and it's comedy basically. You know, like different sketches, like a SNL kind of thing.

[Andy Samberg]

Can you please stop it for a second?

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah. You want to explain our inside joke here?

[Andy Samberg]

Jonah's going straight to the well of an inside joke that he's had that is now running 15 years.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah. When was the Haida Chappelle Show, Seth? What year was that? 2005?

[Seth Meyers]

04 or 05?

[Andy Samberg]

Yeah, it was when we were recording one of our albums. He came and hung out with us in la and he kept doing this exact bit where he was telling us about this new show called Chappelle's show, and it was already just a smash hit.

[Jorma Taccone]

It was at the height of I'm Rick James bit.

[Andy Samberg]

And we were like, yeah, no, we know about it. He's like, dude, it's so funny. It's got like sketches and. And he does some of it live and some of it goes into pre taped stuff. And we're like, yeah, we know about Chappelle's show, dude.

[Jorma Taccone]

He'd wait till you were deep into a hangout or a conversation so that you'd be off guard and just kind of go like, oh, wait, have you guys seen this thing? It's so funny. Like, I was watching late night tv, whatever it would be, find a new way into it. But now it's even weirder because we only talk to him like once a year when something, like someone puts out something and go, dude, I saw your thing. And then he immediately goes to it. It went from being like maybe of our conversations to 97%.

[Andy Samberg]

That's right.

[Seth Meyers]

It's a very funny bit. And I'm glad he is still leaning into it because of course, with each passing year, it becomes a better bit.

[Andy Samberg]

Yes. All right, well, let's keep going. See how much longer he talks about.

[Bill Hader]

It and then he'll help. So one of the things he did was he would tell stories, have friends tell stories about famous people. He had encounters. They had encounters with. And then he would kind of reenact them. Dude, if you guys haven't been, check it out. And Andy's dad. Well, that was the first time I hosted snl, and I was friends with you guys, and I was friends with Bill because of Superbad. And I knew wig a little bit. I don't know how well I knew Seth. I really liked Seth. I worked with a ton because I think he was head writer at the time. And it was so exciting and so fun. And Seth wrote my whole monologue. I did not have anything to do with my monologue. It was all about being fancy. I think he can talk to you about that.

[Jorma Taccone]

I'm gonna pause right there. Seth, do you remember the monologue?

[Seth Meyers]

I do. It was a song called I'm Fancy, and it was just about how he was a fancy fella. And I think one of the reasons I had the idea is he had a tattoo on his finger. Do you remember the tattoo he had on his finger? Oh, yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

It was a little mustache.

[Jorma Taccone]

A little fancy mustache.

[Seth Meyers]

It was a little mustache. So he would hold his finger up to his lip, and it looked like a mustache. And it was. It was some version of I'm fancy. Oh, so fancy.

[Bill Hader]

I'm fancy so very fancy from my top hat right down to my under panties and I've got style oh, so much style I got style to make the queen of England smile and I've got class yes, so much class I got so much class that it's coming out my butt well, my ex. The idea of fun is to strap on a cummerbund so tally ho and now you know I'm very fancy.

[Seth Meyers]

But it was a fun song and dance monologue. And I know that sometimes there's a little bit of a knock on them, but it also seemed very not what people would expect from Jonah.

[Andy Samberg]

Yes.

[Seth Meyers]

And that made it delightful. And there were backup dancers. Andy, what do you think the chances are you were one of the backup dancers?

[Andy Samberg]

I'd say 50. 50, at least.

[Seth Meyers]

I mean, it's wonderful to me that you have no idea. You have no memory of it, clearly.

[Andy Samberg]

Again, most of the stuff I did live is a bl.

[Seth Meyers]

Sure.

[Jorma Taccone]

Would you say you were blacked out like Asa did last week?

[Andy Samberg]

I would not.

[Jorma Taccone]

Okay.

[Seth Meyers]

But, yeah, I thought a very fun monologue, and that was very sweet that Jonah remembered.

[Jorma Taccone]

We've talked about this with other young hosts, and we were young at the time, too, where it was always just such a good feeling. I think we talked about with, like, Natalie, when it was like, oh, my God, one of us is now the boss is the host.

[Seth Meyers]

Yes.

[Jorma Taccone]

And it would always be just a different level of excitement that it felt like. Like, would you say we worked in, like, a nut house and, like, the inmates were running the asylum? Is that a fair thing to say? You would say, Seth.

[Seth Meyers]

Yeah, I mean, that's.

[Andy Samberg]

It does sound like something you'd say, Seth.

[Jorma Taccone]

Exactly.

[Seth Meyers]

It is a go to. I think, what I'm trying to paint a picture of a situation, you know? And it's not that it wasn't true of Natalie, but I think it was super true of Jonah, because I think because Jonah came from a world where so much conversation was about comedy, there was a boldness to the way he sort of stood up for things that was very impressive for someone his age.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah. Cause he was genuinely also just the right age to be an actual fan of the show and know what he liked on the show and what he didn't and et cetera. Yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

Seth, you kind of casually mentioned that there sometimes are knocks against musical monologues.

[Seth Meyers]

Yes.

[Andy Samberg]

I feel like that is such a in the eye of the beholder kind of a thing, though, because so many people I know are like, oh, my God, I love that, you know?

[Seth Meyers]

Yes.

[Andy Samberg]

And I think for us, it's very much depends who it is.

[Seth Meyers]

Well, it's who it is. It's how it's executed. Right.

[Andy Samberg]

If it's someone who I'm like, they just want a show that they can sing that to me, I'm less interested in. But I also acknowledge that a lot of the world is interested in that.

[Seth Meyers]

Yes.

[Andy Samberg]

But for me, it's what you're getting at, which is Jonah is not known to have a strong singing voice, nor was he in the market to let everyone know he had a strong singing voice. So all of a sudden I'm like, well, this is going to just be a goof.

[Seth Meyers]

Yes.

[Andy Samberg]

Which I get excited about.

[Seth Meyers]

Also, he's famously sort of not fancy.

[Jorma Taccone]

Which was also, by the way, he did have a good singing voice.

[Seth Meyers]

He was. He was great.

[Jorma Taccone]

Which was a nice little surprise on. On top of it.

[Seth Meyers]

And another thing that I think there knocks on is game show sketches, which, again, his was really funny because it was different and new. And so I think that's one. It's a shame to paint with a big brush there.

[Andy Samberg]

I feel like you keep bringing this up, that people knock game show sketches, but I have never heard of anyone knocking game show sketches. Where are you getting that intel?

[Seth Meyers]

Look, I'll venture To say that I think maybe people who recap snl.

[Andy Samberg]

Oh.

[Seth Meyers]

And I think that they are fans, so I'm not being critical, but I think sometimes they will make the point that the show is falling back on a game show sketch. Whereas I feel like because SNL is live, sometimes it looks the best when you mimic another type of show that's live. And so that's why game shows and new shows, I think that's why they look better as sketches. Whereas, you know, pre tapes can cover things that, you know, look more cinematic, but it's hard to do that in the live format. Anyway, I've made my point.

[Timothy Oliphant]

Yeah.

[Bill Hader]

Yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

I dig it. I mean, to me, that's an interesting thing to talk about. So that's why I asked.

[Seth Meyers]

Thank you. I'm glad you did.

[Jorma Taccone]

Just to tie up the monologue here, we got sent a photo. It's Keenan, Forte, you, Andy and Sudeikis all in nice little tuxedos with the tails, canes and the whole deal. I'm sure we can put that picture in the show notes.

[Andy Samberg]

I'm looking at it and my hair indeed looks like, as Seth said, it is eating my head.

[Seth Meyers]

I think the top hat they probably had to, like, staple on this is fascinating.

[Andy Samberg]

I mean, Jonah looks decidedly not fancy. Keenan Forte and Suds look quite done up and fancy. And I am back there just ruining the illusion.

[Seth Meyers]

But again, this is why it was a dream era for the show. We had no other options.

[Andy Samberg]

They could have put me in a wig.

[Seth Meyers]

The show was all starters. No bench. And so everybody played every down and it was super fucking fun.

[Andy Samberg]

Can I say something? I guarantee you hair was like, let's put you in a wig so you can have, like, neat, tidy, fancy hair. And I was like, nah, I don't want to do that. And then trotted out looking like I was a little, little kid dressing up in my dad's clothes.

[Jorma Taccone]

Support for the Lonely island and Seth Meyers podcast comes from Airbnb. Some trips are better when you're in an Airbnb, like when you're traveling with a group of friends, when you're looking for an authentic or local experience. Now, I'm sitting here now, across the room, my assistant Danny. We're at the edit here again at Nakedgun. Same thing. Sometimes you don't want to be in the touristy area. You want to go somewhere and have an experience where you're with the real people. Is that right, Danny? Just shout from across the room. Yeah, it's dead right. Have you ever stayed in an Airbnb every single night. You stay in one every night.

[Seth Meyers]

Yeah.

[Jorma Taccone]

Because you don't really live here. Yeah. And the rates are that good. You're being sarcastic. Once again, that's my role. I wanted authenticity from anyone else. You have space for the family and a yard for your puppy. Right? You can even bring a puppy. A lot of hotels won't let you do that. And you got some space. And you know what? Your kid's bedtime doesn't need to be your bedtime. You have space to put that kid in the crib, maybe put on the baby monitor, shut a door, and then you can go, you know, binge, watch your favorite Looney Tunes or whatever you're into. Support comes from Shopify. So from what I understand, here's what Shopify does. Basically, you have some sort of a business. You're going to be selling that stuff online. Let's say you're selling shirts and stuff, and you have a great product, you have a cool brand, you have brilliant marketing. But the overlooked secret is actually that business behind the business makes selling and for shoppers buying simple. For millions of businesses, that business is Shopify. I know I've went to buy something and I've seen the little Shopify logo at the end, and I've been like, what the heck is that? And that's what it is. It's home of the number one checkout on the planet. And the not so secret secret with shop pay that boosts conversions up to 50%. Now, if you're a business person, you know what that means, so I don't have to explain it to you. I know what it means. Danny, do you know what it means? No, I'm lost. It says here that it means way less carts going abandoned and way more sales going. So I think it's converging window shoppers to actual customers. If you're into growing your business, your commerce platform better be ready to sell wherever your customers are scrolling or scrolling on the web, in your store, in their feed, and everywhere in between. Businesses that sell more sell on Shopify. Upgrade your business and get the same checkout Aviator Nation uses. Sign up for your $1 per month trial period at shopify.com lonelyisland all lowercase go to shopify.com lowercase lonelyisland to upgrade your selling today. That's shopify.com lonelyisland all right, I'm hitting play.

[Bill Hader]

Seth, me and Hayter wrote the Benihana Kid. And the Benihana Kid was from dinner. We all had dinner. I don't know if Seth was there or not. But I know Andy was there and I know Bill was there. And Bill was telling us a story about a Benihana he went to and he saw a kid in like a Tony Soprano tracksuit that he couldn't tell if he was like 6 or like 46. And he had like a gold chain and a tracksuit, and he just couldn't tell if he was a kid or an adult. And when the chef did the shrimp in like the hat trick or whatever, the kid clapped just using his hand, leaned back and one hand clapping against the table. And then we all started doing. Viewing this kid as like a kind of Tony Soprano kid at a Benihana who was six. And then it more from like a Tony Soprano kind of guy to like a Catskills comedian. Kind of reminded me of my grandpa vibe. Just loud Catskills comedian. And Seth, Bill and I wrote that and it was so fun. And we were laughing and I remember it kind of killed right away. And that was really, really fun. And then I ended up doing it, I think, I think five times. I think all five times I've hosted with different Benihana chefs through the years. I think Fred was the og, but that was so fun. And Bill played my dad and it was just so epic.

[Jorma Taccone]

All right, so that was Jonah talking about that, but I think Jorma joining us and we'll get back to Jonah. One sec. What's up, Jorman? He has a special guest with him.

[Andy Samberg]

What up? What's up, Tim?

[Seth Meyers]

Oh my God, it's fucking Oliphant.

[Timothy Oliphant]

Yeah, yeah.

[Jorma Taccone]

Jesus.

[Andy Samberg]

You guys in an igloo?

[Seth Meyers]

Uh huh.

[Jorma Taccone]

Just for the listener at home. They look so cold. They are red faced. They are clearly kind of sniffily. Yorm especially.

[Seth Meyers]

It's amazing that I look colder than Tim because he has been acting on camera without a coat, so.

[Timothy Oliphant]

Yeah. Or a director. Whoa.

[Andy Samberg]

No, no, no, no, no.

[Seth Meyers]

We're at the.

[Andy Samberg]

We want that. We need that.

[Seth Meyers]

So everybody, this is Timothy Oliphant, who is truly one of my favorite guests on Late Night. And I'm a little heartbroken because we're text friends that he didn't give me a heads up that he was working with Jorm in Finland.

[Timothy Oliphant]

This is just news right here. Well, first of all, thank you. You know, I love it. I'm a big fan of all you guys. It's good to see y'all.

[Andy Samberg]

You too, buddy.

[Timothy Oliphant]

Can I just say real quick, Seth, because it's very kind of you to say that you appreciate my talk show appearances. I Heard you on the thing you did with all the talk show hosts.

[Seth Meyers]

Strike Force Five.

[Timothy Oliphant]

Thank you. I listened to that podcast and someone brought up the subject of great guests.

[Seth Meyers]

Yes.

[Timothy Oliphant]

And I'm not going to lie to you, I was walking the dog listening to it, and as that subject came up, I think I said out loud, come on, Seth, come on. Come on, baby, give it to me. And boom, you go. Always could count on Timmy the Oliphant as a great guest. Like, top five or something like that. And I so appreciated it. And the very next moment, all I could think of is I noticed nobody chimed in.

[Bill Hader]

None of the other hosts.

[Timothy Oliphant]

It was crickets, and they just moved on.

[Andy Samberg]

No one's like, yeah.

[Timothy Oliphant]

They're all like, oh, I guess. Okay.

[Andy Samberg]

They're like, all right, on.

[Seth Meyers]

By the way, if any anybody wants to know what it's like to be an actor for a living, that's it in a nutshell.

[Timothy Oliphant]

It was right there.

[Seth Meyers]

You get praised, and then you immediately move on to so, like, no one else.

[Andy Samberg]

No followups.

[Timothy Oliphant]

No one else.

[Andy Samberg]

What am I now to do with the vacuum left in its wake?

[Timothy Oliphant]

That's exactly right.

[Seth Meyers]

Oh, so now it's the arrow's pointing down the rest of my life.

[Bill Hader]

Exactly.

[Seth Meyers]

Do I praise you on as a director so far?

[Timothy Oliphant]

Yeah, no, you're fantastic. I've told you. Yeah, no, this guy's great.

[Seth Meyers]

I cued him up.

[Timothy Oliphant]

Yeah, no, don't worry. Yeah, whole thing's going great.

[Andy Samberg]

Well, I hope he's directing well because he certainly is shitting the bed as a podcast host he didn't make last week, huh?

[Seth Meyers]

No, I don't think so.

[Andy Samberg]

We don't even know.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah. Did you guys just rap or are you in the middle of stuff?

[Andy Samberg]

No, we're on lunch break.

[Seth Meyers]

I actually got to go to a props meeting in a second.

[Bill Hader]

Great.

[Jorma Taccone]

So is it a full night shoot then, or is a split? What do you. What are we talking about?

[Seth Meyers]

We're going to, like, 1 1am but we'll probably end early.

[Jorma Taccone]

That's a split. That's called a split.

[Timothy Oliphant]

Well, gentlemen, Twilight, you keep up the good work. Jorma's gonna go to a prop meeting.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah. Thanks for dropping by. The zoo crew.

[Seth Meyers]

The zoo crew.

[Andy Samberg]

For one brief moment, we were five shock jocks.

[Timothy Oliphant]

By the way, I am so enjoying this. If I watch the podcast and I'm not on it at all, it'll be that moment again. I was like, oh, I got cut.

[Andy Samberg]

Well, we'll hear you.

[Seth Meyers]

You'll be in. You're gonna make it. Yeah, you'll be in. Trust me.

[Andy Samberg]

Are you kidding me? A cameo? That's manna from heaven.

[Seth Meyers]

That's huge for us.

[Jorma Taccone]

You're the first in person cameo we do. V, when you just logged on, you were hearing Jonah Hill. I heard that, but it's just a voice note.

[Timothy Oliphant]

But that was a voice note.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah. You're the first live guest we've ever.

[Seth Meyers]

Had, and I think we're going to see a difference in the downloads.

[Jorma Taccone]

Personally.

[Andy Samberg]

A D in the D, I think.

[Seth Meyers]

A D in the D. Oh, a.

[Jorma Taccone]

D and the D. Difference in the downloads.

[Andy Samberg]

D and the D. That's our shorthand.

[Timothy Oliphant]

Well, guys are sending our best from Finland.

[Seth Meyers]

Thank you.

[Jorma Taccone]

Have fun in the Louvre.

[Andy Samberg]

Nice seeing you.

[Seth Meyers]

All right, love you guys. I got to go.

[Jorma Taccone]

All right, see you.

[Seth Meyers]

Oh, hey, before we move on from Benihana, I wrote down earlier one of my favorite lines, which I know I didn't pitch it. I think it was either a Jonah line or a Bill line, but it's maybe my favorite. He talks about how he can hear his divorced dad crying when he stays at his condo for the weekend.

[Jorma Taccone]

Please.

[Bill Hader]

What? Please get you back together with Mom. I know that's what you want because you talk in your sleep. I'm not eavesdropping, mind you, but the walls in your condo are thinner than Shelley Duvall. I'm joking. I don't even know who that is. I'm six.

[Jorma Taccone]

That logic just folding in on itself.

[Seth Meyers]

Yeah. It's just fantastic.

[Jorma Taccone]

That was a lovely section of the voice note. Yeah, I liked hearing that. Do you remember a dinner, Andy, Were you even at that? Do you think it was just the host dinner on Tuesday he's talking about?

[Andy Samberg]

I think it's entirely likely.

[Seth Meyers]

Oh, there you go.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

And then they went back and wrote it. Maybe.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah. Possibly.

[Andy Samberg]

Seemed like that'd be pretty fun to think about, coming up with a bit. I mean, that happens all the time, though, where you're like, what am I gonna write? And then you come up with a bit right then and there and just start.

[Jorma Taccone]

I think it's Phil and Chris. Phil Lord and Chris Miller that always talk about when people say, like, where do you get your ideas? And they're like, when we're sitting in an office trying to think up ideas.

[Seth Meyers]

Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who've come up with some really good ideas. So it's nice to know that sometimes it is just making your job coming up with them. Yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

You just focus.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

You go, what would be funny?

[Jorma Taccone]

You shut the door and torture yourself for a while as Opposed to in the shower.

[Seth Meyers]

Before we get to the short, I want to talk about Jackie Snatt and Clancy T. Bachelorette, which is one of my favorite sketches ever.

[Andy Samberg]

Same.

[Seth Meyers]

This is one of the most uniquely wig and forte sketches of all time. Jonah plays a music producer. Do you remember his name?

[Jorma Taccone]

I do not.

[Seth Meyers]

Tim Jackal. Pappy. Every name in this is fantastic. Tim Jackalpappy. And he talks about two of the best singers in country music. They are Clancy T. Baccalaureate and Jackie Snad. And they have something in common, which is all their songs reference four different things, which are Model T. Cars, jars of beer, toddlers, and spaceships.

[Andy Samberg]

That's right.

[Seth Meyers]

We hear one song from each of them. And you know what? I don't think our listeners in mind, kind of think we should play them.

[Andy Samberg]

Agreed.

[Bill Hader]

When you think of the most influential songwriters of our time, two luminaries immediately spring to mind. Clancy T. Baccalaureate.

[Seth Meyers]

Driving down the street in my Model T car Got a ton by my side and beer in a jar I.

[Andy Samberg]

Said beer in a jar in my.

[Seth Meyers]

Model T car I'm driving down the street With a toddler and Jackie Snag Rocket ship heading straight for the moon I'm going in a space with a toddler It's a hell of a ride With a toddler by my side and my beer sitting here in my space jar so anyway, that's their solo work. And then Tim jacklepappy's very excited because now they're working together. And now, again, this is one of my favorite premises of all time, because you immediately get it, despite the fact that it makes no sense at all. But they just lay it out. They are country singers. All their songs have these four things. They sing about them in very unnatural ways. They're super catchy songs, though.

[Andy Samberg]

Yep.

[Seth Meyers]

There's a song, for example, called hey, Clancy. And you know what? I think we should play it.

[Andy Samberg]

Agreed.

[Seth Meyers]

Hey, Clancy, where's space? Well, it's very, very far. Do you think that I could get there in my model tea?

[Jorma Taccone]

Hang on.

[Seth Meyers]

According to this toddler, it's actually near. You can rent his spaceship. It runs on jars of beer. We're going to space on the advice of a toddler. There you go. Then there's a song called the worst day. It's one of those sad country songs. And by the way, when it starts, I remember when at the table when it starts and it's about a funeral, I was so worried. I was like, oh, my God. Because I feel like country songs do that thing where, like, sometimes they're about, like, a family member dying. And I knew that they were gonna have to mention toddlers.

[Andy Samberg]

Oh, yeah.

[Seth Meyers]

It was a funeral for a spaceship. The toddler does. Well, you know what? Just listen to the worst day. This is the worst day of my life. I buried my spaceship and my toddler gave me eulogy. The procession consisted of model tea cars and a jar of beer lit a rose on his grave. And then. Oh, I do want to say something about the worst day. I think they cued the music early while Jonah was still talking. And Will and Kristen are so good that the music ends, but they still have a couplet to go.

[Andy Samberg]

I remember that. Yeah.

[Seth Meyers]

And they just sing past the music because they're such prose. That's why the music stops and they're still singing.

[Andy Samberg]

You know what they do? They go, motherfucker beat. I'm a duet. Acapella.

[Seth Meyers]

Then new national anthem. And new national anthem is wonderful because it does that thing that Forte does better than anybody, which is scream sings. And the veins are popping in his neck, in his temple. And it was shot with a really fun. Like that double profile move.

[Andy Samberg]

Yes, yes.

[Seth Meyers]

And even when it cuts back to Jonah, you can still hear Will screaming, America, your fertile plane gives rise to jars appear and spaceships are buried in your beautiful mountains. And one day a toddler will salute you with his tiny, tiny hand and sail through the seas of freedom on a monogee starship. America, America, America, America.

[Bill Hader]

Peace. Send checks now to the Clancy T background.

[Andy Samberg]

When it goes to that sort of double dissolve shot or whatever, like the cable access cross dissolve shot. And they're just screaming and the audience is laughing. I definitely remember that as one of the moments from our time at the show when we were in such a comedy soup.

[Seth Meyers]

Yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

You know, where you're just like. It transcends the sum of its parts. Right. You're now just in a giddy state of psychoticness.

[Seth Meyers]

And one of the most fun things about it is Joan is in a giddy state. Oh, yeah. The whole time. Well.

[Andy Samberg]

Cause he loved the sketch.

[Seth Meyers]

And again, he was both the presenter of it within the body of the sketch, but he also was sort of the presenter of it as the host of that week's snl. And I think he took some real pride in the fact that it had made the show.

[Andy Samberg]

I think I even had mentioned this earlier. I know for a fact he fought for that sketch specifically. But let's see what he said.

[Bill Hader]

You asked me to talk about Model T's and toddlers. Now, that one, I am proud to say Every time I've hosted all five times, I can sniff out the weirdo shit that the writers love that they can never get on. And I'm maybe one of the people that they knew would fight to get the weirdo shit on. And this was one of them where Lauren did not want it on the show. And I was like, please, please, please. I know I'm just like a kid and I'm hosting, but this is so awesome. I'm begging you, can we put this on? And he kind of like, knew it was funny, but no, it was pretty gnarly. And then he let it on. And everyone always was really nice to me about that for many years, because Will Forte and John Sol were those kind of writers that was like everybody's favorite writers, but sometimes just so insane that they couldn't get it on. I think they had, you guys can know better than me. They tried to get this on and then I was begging for it to be on. And then it was on and I. I couldn't keep it together. God damn, Will Forte is so funny. And John Solomon and. And then the version of that that I did years later would be Tim and Zach. I would always get a weirdo. Tim and Zachary, Tim Robinson and Zach Canaan. I don't know if I'm saying his name.

[Jorma Taccone]

Cannon.

[Bill Hader]

Right, Zach Cannon. But Tim and Zach would always have those kinds of sketches that were like Will and John sketches. And I would always get them on and later on. I think my favorite sketch ever that I ever did was one that they wrote called Boss's Dinner. Keenan's my boss. I'm going to his house for dinner. And I keep like really slightly messing up a word and then I'll excuse myself to the restroom and then scream insane shit. But they can all hear me. It's so dark and weird and so much. What I love about Tim and Zach's humor. So that was always a mission of mine when I hosted was to get on a weirdo ass sketch that I knew I and the writers thought were really funny that maybe, you know, a non comedian guest wouldn't love or fight to get on or whatever real quick.

[Seth Meyers]

And I feel like we'll maybe one day we'll talk about it with Jorma. But before we get to the short, there were also a MacGruber in this. Jonah. And I will say I had no memory of this. And I went back and watched it and I think the reason I had no memory is we only aired two of the three.

[Jorma Taccone]

Oh.

[Seth Meyers]

And it was unsatisfying.

[Bill Hader]

Hmm.

[Jorma Taccone]

To only have two of the three.

[Seth Meyers]

And it was also, I feel like right before they figured out they had to have a bigger premise. But the premise was that Jonah had talked shit behind MacGruber's back, and he'd just heard. And then he had a bit of a crisis of confidence. Okay, Isaac, okay, look, I'm just gonna.

[Andy Samberg]

Lay all my cards on the table here.

[Jorma Taccone]

That little birdie was my friend Brad.

[Seth Meyers]

And he said that the person talking.

[Andy Samberg]

Behind my back was you.

[Seth Meyers]

Uh, five seconds, McGruber.

[Jorma Taccone]

Forget it.

[Seth Meyers]

I don't care what you think anyway. Okay. Cause I'm very good at my job.

[Jorma Taccone]

Do you really think I'm not good at my job?

[Seth Meyers]

But I will say the third beat, which didn't air. I went back and watched, and it was MacGruber. Had his life coach with him, which was Bill. And Bill was a really funny Life coach. But MacGruber's confidence was rattled, and Bill was being really patient with him, and he very quietly asked for a chair to defuse the bomb. And it was a very funny will bit of just picking up a chair and using one of the legs to, like, gently push the bomb around. And it's funny to go back and be like, oh, two out of three McGroovers. You can't do that. That don't work.

[Jorma Taccone]

Support comes from fitbod now. Yhorm. Yep. Seth was saying something the other day about how you needed to not skip leg day when you were chaka because of all the crouching. And maybe if you had prepped a little, you wouldn't need those cortisone shots. True or false? That's true. What you could have used is fitbod. If you had had fitbod, you could have customized a workout based on your goals. In this case, it would have been crou. Like a monkey. You could have typed that right in there. It would have been like, do some lunges. Seth, what are some leg exercises that you think would have helped him?

[Seth Meyers]

Squats.

[Jorma Taccone]

Squats. That's right. The app would have helped you stay focused, get a better workout, get an intensity of the workout. It could have tracked that for you.

[Seth Meyers]

Cool.

[Jorma Taccone]

It's got some amazing features. It would have tracked your progress, your strength and endurance, would have improved all things. For being a little monkey man, your friends and family, they would have noticed.

[Seth Meyers]

If we would have noticed, and we would have said something. I think all of America would have. Many people saw. I'm just going to take over, lock in, and stay focused. Join FitBot today to get your personalized workout plan. Get 25% off your subscription or try the app free for 7 days at FitBod Me Island. That's f I t b o d dot m e Island support comes from.

[Jorma Taccone]

Rocket Money, but I don't have to tell you that. Yorm.

[Seth Meyers]

No, you don't.

[Jorma Taccone]

Now, just stop me if you know this already, but most Americans think they spend about $62 per month on subscriptions, but the real number is closer to 300. You didn't stop me. I noticed. So is this new?

[Seth Meyers]

I didn't know that, but go ahead.

[Jorma Taccone]

Even if just a couple of subscriptions fall off your radar, those recurring payments you don't even know about can really add up. Yhorm. You need to stop me if you already know this stuff.

[Seth Meyers]

No, no, I would stop you, believe me.

[Jorma Taccone]

What's a subscription you have that you forgot about and then realized you had been just hemorrhaging cash? Just toss one out. I'm not going to name names, but.

[Seth Meyers]

There was one that was three years of me paying, like, $20 a month. I lost a little money.

[Jorma Taccone]

You really need Rocket Money?

[Seth Meyers]

I do.

[Jorma Taccone]

If you did, you could say something like this. Next sentence. Thanks to Rocket Money, I'm no longer losing money because of subscriptions I forgot about. Wouldn't that have felt nice, to say that sentence?

[Seth Meyers]

Yeah, after, like, hundreds of dollars. Totally.

[Jorma Taccone]

I just said the sentence. It felt great. Even though for me personally, it was a lie. But for you, it was true. I'm very responsible. Rocket Money is a personal finance app that helps find and cancel your unwanted subscription, monitors your spending, and helps lower your bills so you can grow your savings. Stop me if this sounds like something you'd want, or stop me.

[Seth Meyers]

Oh, I will, I will.

[Jorma Taccone]

All right. You just say stop right there. Here we go. Here's something you could do. At Rocket Money, you can easily create a personalized budget with custom categories to keep track of your spending every week, every month. See your monthly spending trends in each category to know exactly where your money is going.

[Seth Meyers]

Stop it.

[Jorma Taccone]

Okay, great.

[Seth Meyers]

Stop it, because I love it.

[Jorma Taccone]

Okay, good. That makes sense to me. You're still the Yorm I know. If you hadn't stopped me, I'd be like, who is this guy? Rocket Money has over 5 million users and has saved a total of $500 million in canceled subscriptions, saving members up to $740 a year when using all of the app's features.

[Seth Meyers]

That's a lot of money to have saved. That's pretty impressive.

[Jorma Taccone]

Stop wasting money on things you don't Use Cancel your unwanted subscriptions by going to RocketMoney.com I that's RocketMoney.com Island.

[Seth Meyers]

All right, so Andy's dad. Let's talk the digital short.

[Andy Samberg]

Not my actual dad, right?

[Seth Meyers]

Yeah, no, we are going to do a full episode on your dad. Dad. But this is.

[Jorma Taccone]

We've already hit Roy, the brother in law.

[Seth Meyers]

Yes.

[Bill Hader]

I came in with a few ideas. One was Andy's dad, where I just wanted to do, like a really hard conversation with a friend about that. I'm dating his dad. And from the second you guys were into it and you were down, we knew we wanted Jim Downey to play Andy's dad. That was like a big thing because I was obsessed with Jim Downey from, you know, Billy Madison and the Coin bank and all that stuff. And just a legend. And it just happened really fast. We all wrote it and it was so fun. And honestly, it was amazing. Except I had to tongue kiss Jim Downey, which was not had to, but just I can still, like right now, now sense memory ghost, understand how his, like, what his tongue felt like. And then we shot it and it was so fun and funny. And me and Akiva went around and shot like Annie hall kind of stuff around New York with me and Jim Downey. That was a blast. And it was funny and I loved watching it on the floor with you guys and watching it kind of do really well. And the kiss got a huge reaction. I remember. Anyway, best memories ever. I love you guys. I swear to God. I think Lonely island is like the greatest art group of all time.

[Jorma Taccone]

Art group is a nice way to put it.

[Bill Hader]

And the episode you guys did on this podcast about, I already sent you a voice note that you just had nothing to do with me, but Roy Rules. I think Roy rules is the funniest, funniest thing. And then one last story, in case you want it. After Akiva and Jorma left Andy, the last time I hosted, when Andy and Wig and Hater and all them were there, we were like, we're going to do a digital short, but we didn't have any ideas. And I think they wanted us to do a digital short, but you guys were gone. And then me and Andy were like, we have nothing. And we were just in the office on YouTube and we saw this video of a guy deliberately getting hit in the nuts with a tennis ball practice tennis ball machine. And we made a video short that is just us getting hit in. The premise is, I think, us just getting hit in the nuts over and over again with a tennis Ball machine, which I haven't watched and maybe I'll re watch now. Anyway, I love you guys. I wish we were young and being stupid again. And I love this podcast. I'm so the direct audience. And. Yeah. Love you guys, man. And, Seth, love you, dude. Thanks for all the memories.

[Seth Meyers]

I'm very glad he mentioned the getting hit in the balls. Cause obviously we're gonna get to that, and that's one I rewatch a lot.

[Jorma Taccone]

Love you too, Jonah. Just to wrap up that note. Love you too, Jonah. Thank you for sending that in.

[Seth Meyers]

Yeah, we love you, too.

[Andy Samberg]

Yeah, I love you, buddy. Thanks for sending that in.

[Jorma Taccone]

That was awesome.

[Seth Meyers]

So lovely to hear.

[Jorma Taccone]

There you go.

[Seth Meyers]

I didn't remember that it was Jonah's idea.

[Andy Samberg]

I did.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah.

[Seth Meyers]

Okay, great.

[Andy Samberg]

I mean, the thing that he points out in that. That is my favorite thing upon rewatching it is the tone of it, which is decidedly Annie Hall.

[Seth Meyers]

Yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

Keev, you did a really great job. And obviously, it seems like Jonah wanted it this way and you guys conjured it that way together, but the, like, light touch on it and the sort of. Even with the cameras we were working with, the cinematic feeling to it and the music choice and the way it all kind of flowed really put me at ease. Also, it's just so rare on SNL to see a conversation scene with such deliberate pace to it.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

Which was very much how he had originally pitched it.

[Jorma Taccone]

It's okay not getting laughs in the beginning. It's not even trying for them. It's setting the thing in a very nice, as you say, deliberate way.

[Andy Samberg]

It's completely in control of what it wants to be, but it also feels.

[Seth Meyers]

Like a movie you want to watch.

[Andy Samberg]

Exactly. It feels like a movie. And I immediately felt very much put at ease also because Jonah's a great actor. So you're like, I'm watching Jonah in a movie.

[Seth Meyers]

He's great in this scene. And it's really funny because he basically says, can I talk to you? You're in wardrobe. You guys sit down. You're both really great. There's some really nice flashbacks. He talks about meeting your family, and it's really funny because it's a mom, a sister, and Jim Downey is your dad.

[Bill Hader]

So you remember when I met your family last week at the show?

[Seth Meyers]

Oh, yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

They actually loved you. My mom thought you were hilarious.

[Bill Hader]

Yeah, well, there's actually kind of an issue with that.

[Andy Samberg]

Like, what kind of issue?

[Bill Hader]

Well. Well, since then, I've. I've sort of been seeing your dad. What's that, Andy? I'VE been dating your dad.

[Jorma Taccone]

I remember Jonah. I'm surprised he didn't say it in the voice note, but maybe I'm remembering wrong. I remember him coming in and saying he had a dream that this short came to him in a dream. I don't know if he literally saw part of the short in the dream or a dream that he really was dating your dad or in the dream, thought of a sketch idea, but I remember him saying he had dreamed this, like, literally as a dream.

[Andy Samberg]

Dude, that fucking rules. If it's true.

[Jorma Taccone]

I will say this because this is about a relationship between two men. Ultimately, I went into this being concerned that it would age badly. And I think we. Because the joke is not about that. The joke is about dating a parent and about a hard conversation.

[Andy Samberg]

Yes.

[Jorma Taccone]

Because of all the things you just said of how we did. I think it still holds up.

[Andy Samberg]

Yeah. There are a lot of turns in it that made me laugh still a lot.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah.

[Seth Meyers]

I think that a really wonderful choice of words is Jonah telling you it's become extraordinarily physical to put you at ease. Also, there's a really. He takes a sip of coffee and he goes, I'm not usually a coffee guy. Ben has me trying so many new things. I believe that's after the kiss. So, like, the fact that he thinks you will find that interesting.

[Andy Samberg]

Yeah. I'll say this. I do remember the writing process, and I remember, not surprisingly, Jonah was, like, in the zone on it.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

Like, we were just kind of riffing out the scene, and he just kept saying the jokes, and then we would just write them down.

[Jorma Taccone]

Agreed.

[Andy Samberg]

For the most part. Yeah.

[Jorma Taccone]

All those little jokes like that that are so nuanced and perfectly Jonah. And perfectly like, needling. The situation is definitely all Jonah.

[Andy Samberg]

Yeah.

[Seth Meyers]

Also, we talk about the patience of the sketch. One of the most patient performers of all time is Jim Downey.

[Andy Samberg]

Yes.

[Seth Meyers]

Jim Downey is never in a rush, and I think that's why so much of what he does endures. Jim Downey. If you don't know, the most recent great Jim Downey thing is on Conan O'Brien's podcast where.

[Andy Samberg]

Oh, my God.

[Jorma Taccone]

Oh, right.

[Seth Meyers]

He does not know about Jeffrey Epstein, what has happened? And he keeps referring to him as the financier.

[Bill Hader]

Yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

Jeff Epstein.

[Seth Meyers]

The financier.

[Andy Samberg]

The financier.

[Seth Meyers]

And Downey writes patient and performs patient. And of course, he's the teacher in. What would you call him? He's running.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah. The academic triathlon at the end of Billy Madison. He's the one that's like, we're all dumber for having listened to what you just said or whatever. And he was a writer on SNL since season two. I think season two, like, came in with Bill Murray.

[Andy Samberg]

Oh, my God.

[Seth Meyers]

And, you know, over the years, I wrote things with him, and it felt like a M.C. escher painting. Because I realized I learned so much about sketch comedy writing from watching sketches he had written when I was growing up.

[Andy Samberg]

Yes.

[Seth Meyers]

And then, you know, end up being with him. But it's also perfect casting because he is so Even the moments where he and Jonah sort of look at each other.

[Andy Samberg]

Yes.

[Seth Meyers]

No one ever reaches for, like, anything lecherous. Anything.

[Andy Samberg]

No. The meet cute stuff all really plays. And that's sort of what I was saying before, too, Keeva, about the way you directed and cut it. Like, it feels lovely.

[Bill Hader]

Yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

And it's funny because, you know in the story that it's my father, but, like, it's working and is funny on that level because you are selling that this spark between them is actually happening, and it just feels very real and lovely.

[Seth Meyers]

Jonas says he's aware that this is a difficult conversation.

[Bill Hader]

I know this is tough, but even if I lose a friend over this, I like to think that I gained a son.

[Andy Samberg]

Okay.

[Jorma Taccone]

Uh, oh, here's my guys.

[Seth Meyers]

I like Shafanka. You're super bummed by that.

[Andy Samberg]

So bummed.

[Seth Meyers]

The outro's real memorable.

[Andy Samberg]

Oh, my God. It did make me laugh.

[Seth Meyers]

It made me laugh too. Do you remember who came up with the outro?

[Jorma Taccone]

You're talking about the very final. The text on screen.

[Seth Meyers]

Well, everything. I mean, so first, then Jim comes in. Jim Downey comes in, and he wants to tell you. And Jonah lets him know that he's already told you.

[Andy Samberg]

Yes.

[Seth Meyers]

And then Bill enters.

[Jorma Taccone]

Jonah and I are dating. I'm sorry.

[Timothy Oliphant]

I told him already blabbered mouse.

[Bill Hader]

I know. I'm the worst.

[Jorma Taccone]

Hey, Ben.

[Seth Meyers]

Way to go, Andy. Jonah. How do you guys know Ben?

[Andy Samberg]

He's my dad.

[Seth Meyers]

Small world.

[Jorma Taccone]

We've been.

[Andy Samberg]

And then he turns to camera, freeze frame, and we get a graphic of text created by Lorne Michaels.

[Jorma Taccone]

Why in the world?

[Andy Samberg]

It's great. Yeah.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah.

[Seth Meyers]

Because I will say Downey's involvement, I think hamstrings Lorne a little bit in a great way because, you know, he's known Downey since season two. Downey's obviously blessed this thing with his involvement. It plays super hot. And then even I think Lauren has to be like, ah, yeah. All right, you guys got me.

[Jorma Taccone]

I've seen a recent Jim Downey performance that you guys haven't seen yet. That's very good. And it's coming. This is a plug for something probably a year away. Oh, but he acts in Tim and Zach's HBO pilot that has been picked up that they are writing episodes of now. But in the first episode that they have shot of a show called the Chair Company.

[Andy Samberg]

Fantastic.

[Jorma Taccone]

But he's in it and he's very good.

[Andy Samberg]

He's always great. It always pays to put Downey in.

[Seth Meyers]

Yeah. Also, Tim sent me a photo of Downey with him on set. And the other great thing about Downey is he's both great on camera and he also maybe has like, the best hundred stories about snl.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah.

[Seth Meyers]

And is so funny talking about sketches of his that he wrote that bombed because he wrote some really funny things that didn't work.

[Jorma Taccone]

We should get him to do one voice note about a bombed sketch.

[Seth Meyers]

We should. If we can get Downey to explain the O.J. simpson Detective Agency.

[Andy Samberg]

Oh, wow.

[Jorma Taccone]

Okay, great.

[Andy Samberg]

Yes, please.

[Jorma Taccone]

Is it Criterion? This guy. I mean, this in the mirror were the two of this golden run you kept talking about. It ends so strongly with the mirror and this.

[Seth Meyers]

Oh, no Hero Song. Don't overlook Hero Song.

[Jorma Taccone]

No hero. I jumped right past Hero Song. You're right.

[Seth Meyers]

But I will say, like, the point I was trying to make, you guys do four in a row where it's never. This is a catchy, good song. Cause like, Hero Song, the song is just set up.

[Jorma Taccone]

We did not put it on our album.

[Seth Meyers]

Right. Of course you would never. And so I just like, for me, it was. You guys came out of the strike, you had a lot of creativity. You didn't fall back on any of your crutches. And I was delighted.

[Andy Samberg]

Thanks, man. Yeah, I always do like seeing the trying things. That always was exciting for us. We always tried to really make a point of like, let's just try something different. If it doesn't work, it just doesn't work. But we would get bored of ourselves, I think, before anyone else would.

[Jorma Taccone]

I remember I would talk to Lorne about, like, the Schiller films and the Gary Weiss films. And I know we've talked about on your. In the beginning a little bit, but, like, I know we talked about. There was one where it was just people hugging at the airport. It was literally what they. I'll say it ripped off for the Beginning of Love, actually, where it's just people hugging at an airport for the opening credits. And there was the one where he filmed a ballet but put it to hip hop music or they did it to hip hop music.

[Andy Samberg]

Swan Lake.

[Seth Meyers]

Yeah, exactly.

[Jorma Taccone]

And it's in the 70s. It's like something somebody would mash up on TikTok now.

[Andy Samberg]

It's so rad. Yeah, it's cool.

[Jorma Taccone]

And they weren't going for laughs at all. They were just short films to be interesting. The same way that the musical guest isn't going for laughs. And he would talk about, like, well, it is a variety show. And so I remember sometimes us, like, being like, we don't. This is in the future. But like, Cherry Battle was one. I remember where we went. I don't even know if this is funny. It's just conceptual and that's okay.

[Andy Samberg]

Yeah, we'll get to Cherry Battle.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah. Or the Neil Patrick Harris one where he's playing the Doogie Howard theme. Blah, blah, blah. These aren't spoilers. These came out like, 15, 20 years ago.

[Seth Meyers]

If anything, they're like teases for upcoming podcast episodes.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah, exactly. Teases for things 15 years old. But I do remember there was something I liked about. I mean, Andy punching people for eating is experimental, too. About the ones that didn't fit into.

[Seth Meyers]

Any category you could place, one thing I do want to say we've talked about the thrill of new people who then become part of the SNL family. Jonah was very much that. Things we didn't mention in this show. There was a Target lady, which was fantastic. Wiig used to do a fantastic Susie Orman that was in the show. And cut from this show was one of my favorite cut sketches ever, which only exists to watch as a second chance theater, which was Sudeikis juggling flyer sketch.

[Andy Samberg]

Oh, funny.

[Seth Meyers]

Which he tried so many times.

[Andy Samberg]

Yes, yes.

[Seth Meyers]

The premise of juggling Flyer was Sudeikis as a guy walked into a coffee shop wearing a T shirt that said, ask me about juggling suspenders. And he went over to his flyer, which was basically free juggling lessons, and went person to person in the coffee shop and asked why they weren't interested. And it was never gonna work.

[Jorma Taccone]

It sounds a lot like Andy's cut. Like, wanna come with?

[Seth Meyers]

It turns out that the audience doesn't love a sketch where it's just a person getting notes, Hustles.

[Andy Samberg]

Yeah. One person who's just.

[Seth Meyers]

Well, it's surf meeting.

[Andy Samberg]

Surf meeting.

[Jorma Taccone]

Yeah.

[Andy Samberg]

And it's always funny to us. And it always is a tough sell in that studio.

[Seth Meyers]

Well, it also was the tour de force performance by Suds. Like, there was a lot of moves in it as a guy getting a no on juggling lessons. All right, guys. I'm very excited. I'm gonna tease the next episode.

[Andy Samberg]

Please do.

[Seth Meyers]

Walking.

[Bill Hader]

Ooh.

[Seth Meyers]

And as great as it is to get a first timer like Jonah, it's thrilling to get one of the classic hosts to interact with a different cast. And I'm gonna say it. We landed the plane. It was a great episode. There's a lot of fun things to talk about.

[Andy Samberg]

Yep.

[Seth Meyers]

And I'm very excited to have that conversation with you guys. All right, I love you both very much.

[Jorma Taccone]

Love you too.

[Andy Samberg]

And I you both.

[Seth Meyers]

Bye.