Kristen Johnston

Summary

Where Everybody Knows Your Name: Episode Featuring Kristen Johnston

Hosts: Ted Danson & Woody Harrelson
Guest: Kristen Johnston
Release Date: July 16, 2025
Podcast Title: Where Everybody Knows Your Name with Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson (sometimes)

---

1. Introduction to Kristen Johnston

Ted Danson warmly welcomes Kristen Johnston, expressing his long-term admiration for her work. He highlights her versatile career spanning stage and screen, mentioning her Emmy-winning role as Sally Solomon on Third Rock from the Sun, as well as her performances in The Exes Mom and The Righteous Gemstones. Kristen is also recognized for her New York Times bestselling memoir and her advocacy in recovery.

Notable Quote:
Ted Danson [00:48]: "I've admired her for years and after our conversation, I admire her even more."

---

2. Acting Career Highlights

Kristen discusses her recent work, including the upcoming multicam sitcom Leanne premiering on Netflix. Ted reminisces about their past collaboration on Bored to Death, specifically the episode where Kristen played a dominatrix.

Notable Quote:
Kristen Johnston [00:32]: "I always wanted to play the girl off to the side going, you know, did he call? I liked the Roz Russell."

---

3. Experiences in "Bored to Death"

The conversation delves into Kristen's challenging role in Bored to Death. She shares her experience of wearing latex for two days, describing it as an adventure.

Notable Quote:
Kristen Johnston [01:45]: "I spent two days in that latex and let me tell you, I don't know how those gals do it."

---

4. "Leanne" and Multi-Camera Sitcoms

Kristen elaborates on her role in Leanne, a four-camera live sitcom. She praises lead actress Leanne Morgan's comedic talent and discusses the dynamics of filming a multicam show.

Notable Quote:
Kristen Johnston [05:07]: "She is incredible. Incredible actress. Really funny."

---

5. Theater Experiences and Challenges

The hosts reminisce about their theater days, discussing the intensity of live performances and the adrenaline rush associated with being on stage. Ted shares his own traumatic experience performing a 20-minute monologue, highlighting the pressure actors face.

Notable Quote:
Ted Danson [07:09]: "But what they're really saying is, please go way faster than you just delivered that."

---

6. Influence of John Lithgow

Kristen speaks highly of John Lithgow, describing him as one of the greatest actors of all time. She credits him for teaching her valuable lessons about professionalism and camaraderie on set.

Notable Quote:
Kristen Johnston [21:14]: "He really taught me how to be on set, how to deal with everyone and how to kind of be the, you know, the fish, the big fish, and not be a jerk."

---

7. Navigating Fame and Its Effects

The discussion shifts to the impact of fame. Kristen shares her personal struggles with sudden fame, describing how it affected her self-consciousness and interactions with others. She emphasizes the relief she felt when the intense spotlight faded.

Notable Quote:
Kristen Johnston [24:09]: "I feel so weird about all of it. I mean, I was young too."

---

8. Recovery Advocacy and Personal Journey

Kristen opens up about her journey to sobriety, her memoir Guts, and her efforts to establish programs like Sober High School. She discusses the challenges of sustaining such initiatives and her decision to take a step back to avoid being solely identified as a recovery advocate.

Notable Quote:
Kristen Johnston [34:09]: "I did try to get a sober high school in New York going and I worked on that for a couple years."

---

9. Societal Perspectives on Addiction

Both hosts engage in a thoughtful dialogue about the societal approaches to addiction, critiquing punitive measures and advocating for early education and emotional health support. They highlight the importance of nurturing environments to prevent addiction.

Notable Quote:
Ted Danson [30:34]: "It's the idiocy of not putting money, the short sightedness or... it's really backwards and obviously not successful."

---

10. Future Plans: Animal Rescue

Kristen shares her heartfelt aspiration to run an animal rescue on the East Coast, collaborating with her lifelong friend Jackie. She expresses her love for rescue animals and her excitement about this future endeavor.

Notable Quote:
Kristen Johnston [38:36]: "I'm going to be on the east coast running an animal rescue."

---

11. Concluding Thoughts

The episode wraps up with mutual appreciation between Ted and Kristen. Ted commends Kristen's honesty and resilience, while Kristen expresses gratitude for the engaging conversation and Ted's support.

Notable Quote:
Ted Danson [47:46]: "You're a wonderful actor. And you are for camera, like rock and roll. You really are good."

---

Upcoming Appearance:
Kristen Johnston will be featured in the sitcom Leanne, premiering on July 31st on Netflix.

---

Final Note:
For those interested in Kristen Johnston's latest work or her advocacy efforts, tuning into her upcoming projects and supporting her animal rescue aspirations is highly recommended.

---

This summary captures the essence of the conversation between Ted Danson and Kristen Johnston, highlighting her professional achievements, personal struggles, and future aspirations. Notable quotes provide authenticity and depth, making the summary valuable for both fans and newcomers.

Transcript

[Ted Danson]

Where everybody knows your name with Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson sometimes is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever find yourself playing the budgeting game? Well, with the name your price tool from Progressive you can find options that fit your budget and potentially lower your bills. Try [e-mail] Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and and affiliates price and coverage match limited by state law. Not available in all states.

[Kristen Johnston]

I always wanted to play the girl off to the side going, you know, did he call? I liked the Roz Russell.

[Ted Danson]

Welcome back to where everybody knows your name. Today's guest, Kristen Johnston. I've admired her for years and after our conversation I admire her even more. She's had an amazing career from stage to screen. She's an Emmy winning actor. You know her as Sally Solomon on third Rock from the sun and from shows like the exes mom and the righteous gemstones. She's the author of a New York Times bestselling memoir and also a recovery advocate. You can see Kristen in the upcoming multicam sitcom Leanne that's premiering on July 31st on Netflix. Let's cut to the chase. Here she is, Kristen Johnston. The last time we were together was either bored to death in which I wasn't in that scene. You were playing dominatrix with Jason Schwarzman and I just saw it again. It's very funny.

[Kristen Johnston]

Uhhuh. Do you know I had, I spent two days in that latex and let me tell you, I don't know how those gals do it. Yeah, those dominatrix.

[Ted Danson]

I've never done that.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, it's an adventure.

[Ted Danson]

Sweaty, I would think it's very sweaty.

[Kristen Johnston]

And getting in and then terrifyingly getting out is.

[Ted Danson]

Does one use baby powder to get in? Oh yeah.

[Kristen Johnston]

Hell yeah. Yeah, it was, it was. And then by, when you pull it off, your whole body just goes, you know, you just expand. Yeah, yeah. But that was fun.

[Ted Danson]

We're talking bored to death. Jason Schwartzman. Jonathan Ames was the creator of that.

[Kristen Johnston]

That's a great show. No, no, they just asked me to do it. I was like, yes, yes, sir.

[Ted Danson]

One of my favorite writers I've ever, ever worked with.

[Kristen Johnston]

I love that show. That's a great. I gotta rewatch that. I haven't watched that in a couple years.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah, he had this wonderful way of. There wasn't a perversion he wouldn't delve into with a total wide eyed innocence.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, really?

[Ted Danson]

Yes, there was like he didn't. Jonathan himself doesn't know the word sarcasm.

[Kristen Johnston]

Right.

[Ted Danson]

You know, if he says, how you doing? I Go, oh, great.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, yeah.

[Ted Danson]

He goes, oh, good. He does not get that. And he's this gentle soul that just jumps into, you know, heavy perversion.

[Kristen Johnston]

Did you live in New York for that?

[Ted Danson]

Came to New York, stayed for three months or something.

[Kristen Johnston]

That's fun. That's a fun job.

[Ted Danson]

It was kind of. Yeah. Every actor's dream, or at least mine, was to come back after barely getting arrested in New York, after college, to be able to come back and work in New York, work in Brooklyn.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, it's just such a treat. It's so rare there. Or at least it was. I think it's getting better.

[Ted Danson]

But is this home for you now?

[Kristen Johnston]

It is homeish. Like, I'm here until I can move again back to New York.

[Ted Danson]

Because you want it.

[Kristen Johnston]

That's my place. That's my place. The East Coast. Oh.

[Ted Danson]

Oh, because you have this. Have you started? It's.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yes, we finished shooting it. Yeah, it's called Chuck Lor. We finished. We shot 16 episodes.

[Ted Danson]

Oh, you.

[Kristen Johnston]

You've done so. Yeah, we finished it last week and then it airs in July, but I don't know when this is airing, so. But anyway, so whenever you want. Whenever I want it, it's on Netflix and, you know, they dump them all at the same time. And you just hope for the best, I guess. I don't know. I don't know how it works over there, but it was fun.

[Ted Danson]

Very impressive, by the way. You can feel the entire world went and watched you. It's really intense.

[Kristen Johnston]

Okay. Yeah, I've never had that. I've never had. I've never done the streaming thing yet.

[Ted Danson]

I've only done it once. And it was. It turned out blessedly, really well.

[Kristen Johnston]

Good.

[Ted Danson]

But the impact, you know, if you do as successful as you have sitcom or.

[Kristen Johnston]

It's a low build.

[Ted Danson]

It builds.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

And then you sell. Sell into syndication and it builds a little more. It can get big, but not that overnight. Boom.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, that's. I'm excited for it. Cause I think it's really funny, this show. Do you know who the Leanne Morgan is?

[Ted Danson]

I watched her today. I confess. Sorry, Leanne. I will now watch her some more.

[Kristen Johnston]

Because I didn't know who she was either. I'm not a big standup person, but she is brilliant.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah, she.

[Kristen Johnston]

And she had never acted before, and it's, you know, about her family. But a lot of the scenes focus on me and her. I play her sister, and she was like, you know, I'm 57. I've never done this before, you know, so we Were we had to go right from the gate. Just figure it all out together. And she. She is incredible. Incredible actress. Really funny.

[Ted Danson]

Three camera live.

[Kristen Johnston]

Four camera live.

[Ted Danson]

Four camera lives. Yeah.

[Kristen Johnston]

Did you have three cameras on Cheers? Okay. Yeah. I was like, I've never seen that. But yes. So it's a, you know, old school Chuck Lorre audience, which Chuck seems to work for Chuck. It does seem to work for Chuck. So. Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

And tell me. No, tell me more. Tell me more. Is it. See, I don't have the adrenaline in my body to do four cameras anymore.

[Kristen Johnston]

No, it is hard, man.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah, it's hard.

[Kristen Johnston]

It's a Greatest schedule. But you are doing one. A new play every week. And it's a lot. A lot of lines. And I've never actually done a sitcom where I'm the driver of a lot of the scenes. You probably had to do that a lot. In Cheers. You were kind of the driver guy.

[Ted Danson]

There were a lot of drivers, though. There were a lot. I was the beholder in chief. I beheld all the wackos.

[Kristen Johnston]

Okay. But you know what I mean? But when you come in and your character's like, we're doing this, we're doing that, and we're talking a lot and blah, blah. So that was kind of my job on this show. And it's a tough job. It's a hard job, man. I felt. Cause I did mom with Allison Janney, and I was in like three scenes a week, and I was like, this job is the best. And Allison drove every scene. And I saw her for lunch last week. I was like, man, now I really understand how hard you work.

[Ted Danson]

It started with the slow dumb joke.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

Which is my speed. That's my natural speed. And now, for some reason, at 77, here's this page. And then they very sweetly say, you know, they'll come up with some. As if.

[Kristen Johnston]

Right.

[Ted Danson]

But what they really saying is, please go way faster than you just delivered that.

[Kristen Johnston]

Really? Because you're a pretty adept guy. I mean, you're. You can do that dialogue.

[Ted Danson]

Adept. Ish.

[Kristen Johnston]

Adept. Ish enough to get away with it. Anyway. Adept adjacent.

[Ted Danson]

But that's why I don't know that I want to do theater.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

Anymore. Anymore. Like, I did a lot.

[Kristen Johnston]

Same one every night. That's not a new show every week.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah.

[Kristen Johnston]

I think you could. You would kill it.

[Ted Danson]

I know I told it on this podcast, but I got terrified at the Atlantic.

[Kristen Johnston]

My theater company.

[Ted Danson]

Your theater company. They did the. Do you remember the 25 playwright, 25th reunion.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yes.

[Ted Danson]

Celebration or whatever. And 25 playwrights.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yes.

[Ted Danson]

And I got a monologue that was 20 minutes long.

[Kristen Johnston]

Okay, well, that's different. That's a lot. And you got it, like, the day before.

[Ted Danson]

Well, you know, you had two rehearsals with Neil, the artistic director.

[Kristen Johnston]

Right. Oh, my God, that's terrifying.

[Ted Danson]

I totally, totally psyched myself out.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, no.

[Ted Danson]

You know, you do five. You do it five times.

[Kristen Johnston]

Right.

[Ted Danson]

In a week. The first one, literally 18 seconds in, boom. Froze my brain.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, no.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah. And I'd seen someone else go up the week before, and I thought someone would whisper your lines from the wings. No, it was a loudspeaker.

[Kristen Johnston]

Spanish.

[Ted Danson]

Yes, from the booth. Your line is. So I thought, oh, I'll be clever, and I'll say, so Darcy or Marcy. I think it was Marcy. What's my next line? You know, something like, I was unflappable.

[Kristen Johnston]

Right.

[Ted Danson]

Darcy just sat down with her. Or Marcy with her cup of coffee.

[Kristen Johnston]

Right. She has no idea where the hell you are.

[Ted Danson]

Thumps through quickly and gives me the line I had just said.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh.

[Ted Danson]

So I thought, well, I'll try it, but I don't think it's gonna come.

[Kristen Johnston]

Sometimes it does. That does help, though, but. Oh, that's a nightmare. I went up once in Williamstown in a play, and you have two performances total. And the. It was the first night, and I had no idea. And. And I'm looking at the actor, Bradley Cooper was in the play. I looked at him, and he was like. And it feels like it was probably 45 seconds of silence, but it felt like 45 minutes. You're just. It's horrible.

[Ted Danson]

It's sticking your finger into a light socket.

[Kristen Johnston]

It's the adrenaline. Oh, it's horrible. It's. That's hard.

[Ted Danson]

My poor daughter Katrina had to walk me, who was in the audience, walk me afterwards, around the city block with a huge jug of water to flush out this toxic levels of adrenaline.

[Kristen Johnston]

Escorting you till you recover.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

So anyway, that would be very scary to me. Whereas at least 3, 4 camera. Why do I say through cam? It was called three camera when it started.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, was it?

[Ted Danson]

Yep. Oh, three camera live.

[Kristen Johnston]

But, yeah, now it's just multi cam.

[Ted Danson]

Multicam multi. The audience, eventually, once they know you a little bit better or once they get to know you, love you messing up.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yes. Oh, yeah.

[Ted Danson]

So it's not a. Oh, it's fine.

[Kristen Johnston]

No, it's not. But, you know, you still have that thing where you're like, you want to nail it, and, you know, he wants.

[Ted Danson]

You to nail it.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, Chuck likes us to be off book. So he prefers that he.

[Ted Danson]

Is he scary friendly?

[Kristen Johnston]

He's your uncle, you know, or he's kind of all of that, you know, he is, he is brilliant and his great. I think his. The greatest gift he has. I mean he, he's funny and all that, but he really understands what people go with, what project and writer, matching writers with actors and producers and he really understands the dynamics of that.

[Ted Danson]

Was he running the room or was it someone else?

[Kristen Johnston]

Well, I think he was initially and then he steps back after a couple episodes and then he, you know, watches them and edits them and all that stuff. But he's not as hands on he was the first few weeks and you.

[Ted Danson]

Don'T know when it's coming out for people.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yes. July 31st.

[Ted Danson]

Oh, fantastic.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, it's all dumping.

[Ted Danson]

Is there a shot that we can make sure that people. Yes. Oh, good.

[Kristen Johnston]

He's all over it. Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

Fantastic.

[Kristen Johnston]

Thank you.

[Ted Danson]

See, we're desperate for product. I don't mean to say you are.

[Kristen Johnston]

Product. Well, oh, I feel like it's a good product.

[Ted Danson]

Yes, a wonderful product. Say you've always wanted to take a spontaneous trip to the Caribbean. Here's the thing. If you get smart with your money, you can do things like that. With Empower, you can start making the most out of your money so you can go out and live a little. I mean, isn't that why we work so hard to have some fun with our money, like treating yourself to something special or spontaneously doing something extra for a loved one? So use Empower and get good at money so you can be a little bad. Join their 19 million customers [e-mail] not an Empower client, paid or sponsor. Hershey's milk chocolate with whole almonds makes for a wholly amazing, wholly delicious experience that's, well, wholly Hershey's. Everyone should get to experience the satisfying surprise of a whole almond tucked inside creamy Hershey's chocolate. And if you have already tasted Hershey's milk chocolate with whole almonds, then chances are you're already a lifelong fan of this confectionary delight. Because let's face it, everything's better when you put your whole self into it. Why should an almond chocolate bar be any different? This is a chocolate bar that gives 100% and that's something to celebrate. Nowadays, late at night, I wake up, but I want a little something to go, you know, a little taste treat before I go back to bed. Quarter of that little chocolate covered almond. Scrumptious. Shop for Hershey's Milk chocolate with whole almonds now at a store near you found wherever candy is sold. As a small business owner, your business is always on your mind. So when you're hiring, you need a partner who's just as dedicated as you are. That hiring partner is LinkedIn jobs. When you clock out, LinkedIn clocks in. They make it easy to post your job for free, share it with your network, and get qualified candidates that you can manage all in one place. And LinkedIn's new feature can help you write job descriptions and then quickly get your job in front of the right people with deep candidate insights. At the end of the day, the most important thing to your small business is the quality of the candidates. And with LinkedIn, you can feel confident that you're getting the best. Find out why more than 2.5 million small businesses use LinkedIn for hiring today. Post your job for [e-mail] Ted and Woody. That's LinkedIn.com Ted and Woody to post your job for free. Terms and conditions apply. I love talking actor talk. And we'll continue talking actor talk. Actually, let's do that first. But I also. You don't have to. You can do anything you want. We don't have to talk sobriety. But I love some of the things that you have started as a result of your sobriety. I would love to talk about that with you.

[Kristen Johnston]

Sure.

[Ted Danson]

To me, those are the conversations that make me happiest. And most things.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, good. Okay.

[Ted Danson]

Other real ones like that, but backing up just a hair.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

How the hell did you go from in your description? Feeling very. Too tall, too young, too. All of a sudden, now I think I'm gonna perform and I'm gonna act and I'm gonna get on the theater first.

[Kristen Johnston]

Theater first.

[Ted Danson]

Tell me that little journey from Milwaukee.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, I think I just always. It was my thing. I just loved it. I was so. My mom was really into the arts as we were growing up, so she would take us to all the plays in Chicago and we would see all these productions, and I just. I loved it. I loved it. I wanted to do theater. That was what I wanted to do. What, six, seven?

[Ted Danson]

Oh, really?

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

Early on.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, really early. And just what? You know, seeing things like even A Christmas Carol every year, I was just like, I just want to do that. So then when it came time to go to college, I applied to nyu, the Tisch program, and I got in and sort of went from there, you know.

[Ted Danson]

What year was that?

[Kristen Johnston]

That was 85. Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

That wasn't, though. That wasn't doesn't the Atlantic also work with nyu?

[Kristen Johnston]

Yes. So my sophomore year, I. One of my teachers recommended that I go to the prac. It was called the Practical Aesthetics Workshop. At the time, they were like, it's David Mamet's company. They do a summer program in Montpelier, Vermont. Go up there and see what you think. And that. That started my whole relationship with them.

[Ted Danson]

Bill Macy.

[Kristen Johnston]

Bill Macy and David Mamet and all those guys. Yeah. And Mary.

[Ted Danson]

And so your first play was where. My first time you were in front of a paying audience.

[Kristen Johnston]

I don't know. Probably some off.

[Ted Danson]

Off.

[Kristen Johnston]

Off Off Broadway thing. But my first, like, big theater break was with Atlantic. We did this play called the Lights by Howard Quarter at Lincoln center, and it was great. Sorry, you have a Howard Quarter crush.

[Ted Danson]

I'm breaking into a sweat. He wrote the monologue at the Atlantic Theater. It was brilliant.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah. Oh, he's such a great writer.

[Ted Danson]

So good.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, he. I love him. I love his writing. I love this play that I did. It was insane. And this crazy, brilliant British director, I forget his name. And it was like all the music was by the Cronus Quartet. And it was just this mind trip at the Mitzi Newhouse Theater. But anyway, so that really started theater stuff. How old? I was probably 25, 24. I don't know, somewhere around there. Early 20s.

[Ted Danson]

Living in New York.

[Kristen Johnston]

Living in New York. Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

Having to work.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yes. Waitressing, hosting. Yeah, all of it.

[Ted Danson]

That was Mary that was married for seven years.

[Kristen Johnston]

Was she in New York? Did she start New York?

[Ted Danson]

Yeah, she went in the neighborhood. Play out.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yes. Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

And. And somebody. I can't remember, one of the acting teachers, you know, got so kind of insulted or mad that she was asleep in the back row and somebody had to go. She works.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

When she leaves here until three in the morning.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

It's a little more gentle. Did you do that? Were you.

[Kristen Johnston]

I did all that. I did all that. Yeah. I mean, I couldn't do it now. Forget it. I can barely show up for this. Oh, I have a podcast at 2.

[Ted Danson]

If. If you fall asleep, we will be very gentle. We will film you.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah. So, yeah. So then I. And then I just spent the next few years in New York. And then, you know, we remember pilot season. They don't do that anymore, but I would come out here every year, and that's when I got third. Rock was a couple years after that.

[Ted Danson]

Magnificent.

[Kristen Johnston]

Thank you. Yeah. Changed my life, for sure.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah. But you. You were outrageous.

[Kristen Johnston]

It was fun. We had good time.

[Ted Danson]

Was outrageous. Always Easy for you to tap into as an actor.

[Kristen Johnston]

I don't know why. I just always loved. I just always kind of understood rhythm and timing, comedy, you know, the mathematics of comedy. Kind of. I always love that.

[Ted Danson]

And you probably. What to say something, Ted, maybe you shouldn't say, but there's probably. If you're six foot tall.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

It.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

What am I gonna do?

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, yeah. Well, yeah, you know. Play this. Yeah. No, no. And it just never interested me. I always wanted to play the girl off to the side going, you know, did he call? I liked the Roz Russells, you know, the Eve Arden parts. I love all that. I still do. I just connect so much with those.

[Ted Danson]

If somebody wants me to play a suit who stands up straight.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

Can't do it.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

I can tilt to the left of the suit.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, yeah, no, totally. No, you got to put a spin on it. It's something. Something's wrong with him. Whoever you're playing, you know, there's gotta be something underneath there. You can't just be like, how are you? I couldn't. I just couldn't do it. I remember during the 90s, during my heyday, I did a Clairol commercial, a couple of them. And, you know, it's money and let's do it. But I had to be, like, into myself in a very kind of real. Like, look how great I look. I just couldn't do it. I couldn't do it without. You know, they were like, no, you have to be. I was like, I can't. I don't know how. I don't know how to be like. I can't even do it now. So.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah, that's funny. You are beautiful.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, thank you.

[Ted Danson]

You are cool. But I don't think you can play goofy unless there's a part of you that knows that you're cool, you know?

[Kristen Johnston]

I guess.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Ted Danson]

Anyway, that's what I tell myself. You're cool, Ted. You couldn't be silly unless you were really cool.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, man. I don't want to disabuse of that, but. No, I'm sure you're right.

[Ted Danson]

We have another little thingy. John Lithgow. Oh.

[Kristen Johnston]

Huh.

[Ted Danson]

One of my favorite actors.

[Kristen Johnston]

One of the greatest of all time. Absolutely. Just a gem.

[Ted Danson]

I quickly. I understudied him in the Comedians in New York. Neil who. Who was that? Mike Nichols directed.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, my God.

[Ted Danson]

I can't remember the British. But yeah, he was in that. And I understudied him.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

Never went on, thank God, because they were all so Brilliant.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, my God. Yeah, he. Him on stage is something else, man. You know, he. I'm so lucky that I, you know, started out on that show because he really taught me how to be on set, how to deal with everyone and how to kind of be the, you know, the fish, the big fish, and not be a jerk. You know, he was just always so. He knew everybody's names. He's just so warm and enveloping. And I really learned a lot from.

[Ted Danson]

Him, especially shows like that. I don't know, probably features. You don't maybe have to be that way. Yeah, but you are a host. You're a host to the crew. You're a host of the guest stars.

[Kristen Johnston]

And you set the tone. I mean, for real, you do. Like, if you come on and you've got. You're in your own head or it's about you, everyone has a shitty time. So you just want to make sure, you know, you're. You're there to work and be cool and have a great time and.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah.

[Kristen Johnston]

And then everything goes great. But I've been on sets where that's not the case, and it's a different animal. It really is.

[Ted Danson]

One of my first guest stars. I won't tell you the show, but I went into the little guest star dressing room, and it had a mirror, like, you know, makeup mirror, and somebody in Magic Marker wrote, two more days and I'm out. And I thought, watch my step. Yeah.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, my God.

[Ted Danson]

Later, it was demonstrated in front of me. Why and all that, but wow, it was so funny. That's cool. Yeah. John Lithgow is.

[Kristen Johnston]

He's the best. Yeah. I haven't seen him in a couple years. We did a little reunion a couple years ago. It was so fun to see him.

[Ted Danson]

But fame. Did fame come crashing down on you then? Was it a lot? I mean, did it.

[Kristen Johnston]

You know, it's so. It's. It's so weird to talk about it.

[Ted Danson]

Because you don't have to talk about anything.

[Kristen Johnston]

No, I just mean, like, people. I would talk to you about it because you can understand it, but it's, like, hard for, like, other people are, like, what's your issue with it? You know, get over yourself. But it really did. It was a shocker for me. Yes, it was a shocker. Took definitely about 10 years to get used to it.

[Ted Danson]

I always describe it as like, every adult in the room, all of a sudden focusing on this little toddler in the middle of the room.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

And the palpable energy.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

That, you know, people. People's focus is energy.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

And that energy literally impacts your body.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

And fucks you up. Because especially if you think this is about me.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

And then you're just screwed.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah. So self conscious. I felt so weird about all of it. I mean, I was young too. I mean, I don't know when Cheers hit for you, but how old you were. But I was like 25 or 6.

[Ted Danson]

No, I had 10 years on you.

[Kristen Johnston]

Okay. Well, it's still. It's a big adjustment, but, you know, and then, I don't know, about 10 years ago, I realized I'm not really famous anymore. Like, you know, friends, people who know, like back in the day. But it's kind of great. It's. Yeah, I really prefer it kind of just to wander around the world without feeling that focus that you talked about.

[Ted Danson]

Your silly things. Your peripheral vision goes.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yes.

[Ted Danson]

Because either people are truly staring at you or you're wondering whether they're staring at you. So you don't dare look to the side. And you do feel a little shut off.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, you do.

[Ted Danson]

And then the limos are so expensive and the free gifts and all that shit.

[Kristen Johnston]

Exactly. Yeah. Yeah. You got to be careful complaining about it. But it. Look, it's. I don't know if it's a natural state for a human to be in, you know, to sort of walk around with all that attention focused on you. So I don't know, it was a. Kind of a relief when it died down for me.

[Ted Danson]

I have faith that you know, when it comes again. Because it's coming. Yeah, it's coming for you.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

That you know what to do with it. Because you. All these things that. No, I mean, because I'm going to talk about myself. When it came at me coincidentally, I discovered that I was an ocean activist and I had started an organization that needed funding and all that. So I immediately learned. Oh, this is power. All this. Hey, cheers. Is energy.

[Kristen Johnston]

Power.

[Ted Danson]

If you deflect it and go, hey, thank you so much.

[Kristen Johnston]

Look over here.

[Ted Danson]

But let me introduce you to the marine biologist behind me. All of a sudden, I.

[Kristen Johnston]

It matters.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah. I was making use of my fame too. Not just them.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yes, totally. I completely get it. Yeah. That's exactly what we. To bring it down to, the sober thing.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah.

[Kristen Johnston]

Because I think you're referring to the sober high school. I tried to get off the ground. It didn't work, by the way.

[Ted Danson]

By the way, isn't that. Wouldn't that be brilliant?

[Kristen Johnston]

I know. And it actually really, really. The few that were started. I don't Even know if they were in existence anymore. There's one in Boston, there's. They really helped kids. But right now the funding and I mean, I. You can't even touch it. You can't even touch it. But anyway, I did try to get a sober high school in New York going and I worked on that for a couple years and it was like, what you're talking about. Finally my energy, all that stuff you're talking about had a focus and it was. And it really helped me and back up.

[Ted Danson]

How did you. Didn't you start something before that? Or was it there's another organization? Forgive me, I don't.

[Kristen Johnston]

No worries. I think it's the initial slam, sobriety, learning and motivation.

[Ted Danson]

That was you.

[Kristen Johnston]

That was me starting it with a couple people in New York. Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

And that was pre. Trying the high school.

[Kristen Johnston]

No, that's the high school. That is. That's the program. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And then we brought it to Staten Island, a high school. There we brought the program of kind of counseling and how to, you know, be in high school and stay sober and all that. And it really did work. It just was, man, getting through the board of ed and trying to get it going and going to city hall every 20. I mean, it was. It was like five, six years of just really raising money, raising attention, focus. And finally I just was like, you know, I gotta. Well, I came to New York to do. To la to do a show. So it kind of died off.

[Ted Danson]

Right.

[Kristen Johnston]

But.

[Ted Danson]

But that need and that early education is literally where it's at. I'm part of something called Angels at Risk. And it was started more as like family drug and alcohol rehabilitation kids who were just starting to, you know, got caught smoking a joint or drinking a beer. And the judge said, okay, you have one child, you need to go over here and do this program. And it brought families together.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, fantastic.

[Ted Danson]

So that the families would not be judging the fuck up kid.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Ted Danson]

Then it was like, oh, this is. And there was just this one simple core to the whole thing that I loved was letters from the heart. And you'd have all the kids who were sent there by the judge and then you had all the parents in another room. And they would ask, both rooms, would answer on paper 3 questions at the end of the normal kind of AA sharing all of that stuff was, what did we, what did we do well this week? What did we not do well? And what do you think we should do? And then they would switch those notes so they each got to read what the other Person thought in this kind of not sterile but non judgmental way.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yes. Yeah, yeah.

[Ted Danson]

People in cars going home started to talk family and you know, it was like, oh, you're not. This is a family deal.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

This is not just me.

[Kristen Johnston]

Me.

[Ted Danson]

Oh, totally. The designated. You know, and it made such a huge difference.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, that's amazing. Yes.

[Ted Danson]

Literally.

[Kristen Johnston]

And support and what you're talking about of the, like really understanding the dynamics that go into addiction and recovery and.

[Ted Danson]

Which has a lot to do with, I won't say mental health, but emotional health.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh for sure.

[Ted Danson]

I mean that's literally where it begins. So the idiocy of not putting money, the short sightedness or.

[Kristen Johnston]

And the short sightedness now, you know, that comes with like, if you take theater away from kids and you take music away from kids, you know, what do you think they're gonna fill their time with? I mean, it's Xbox and drugs. I mean, you know, for a lot of them. So how do you think it's gonna turn out? You know, just taking away all these extra programs. It's really scary.

[Ted Danson]

And those kids who are in those problems programs, playing an instrument or singing or doing something, their whole, their reading, writing and arithmetic skills go up as well.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, yeah. No, I know. I mean, we grew up in sort of the halcyon days, weirdly. I mean, you know, when there was all this money being devoted from the government etc to school programs. I mean, we had, you know, debate teams and after school music lessons and six plays a year. I mean, we did. And now none of that is around, I don't think. I mean, it's very, very short. Yeah, it's so short sighted.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah. And then you spend huge sums down.

[Kristen Johnston]

The way to help for health and overdoses and trying to, you know, get fentanyl under control and all that. It's crazy. It's, it's. Yes, that's the whole thing. It's like, don't, you know the. Attacking the addiction issue in America by the time they're in their 30s and they're, you know, a fentanyl or they're on the street, it's too, like it's not too late for them, but it's too late to, to, to prevent that.

[Ted Danson]

So you're into rehab, you're not into.

[Kristen Johnston]

Early, early understanding and like trying to give people more purpose to their lives. So they're not. I mean, for me it was boredom was led to my addiction. So, you know, keeping yourself interested and mentally occupied and stuff. I mean, it's a simple simplistic Answer. But it is an answer.

[Ted Danson]

It is. Well, you're right. It is not a simple.

[Kristen Johnston]

It's a complicated issue where you start.

[Ted Danson]

And what you need to focus on is just common sense nurturing at an early age.

[Kristen Johnston]

And it's also, you know, the draconian kind of grip that they are now trying to do on medication and drugs. And, you know, the crackdown where you have people who are in chronic pain or whatever and actually do need the medication now, can't get it, so they have to go on the street and get, you know, the heroin or whatever. So it's. It's the way they've kind of tried to attack the whole drug and alcohol issue in the United States, I think is really backwards and obviously not successful.

[Ted Danson]

You know, Ed, I do.

[Kristen Johnston]

I mean, I don't know him personally, but I know who he is. Yeah, he's.

[Ted Danson]

He was on last week and he's written a book called Snafu. You know, Situation Normal. All right. Right. Military phrase. And he does it with a sense of humor. But he takes these things that really happen. This is history. And the reason why I talk bringing it up is he talked about this year. He's talk this season. He's talking about prohibition.

[Kristen Johnston]

Right.

[Ted Danson]

And this is history. The bad guys, the bootleggers would kidnap these, whatever, hijack these trucks, these tankers full of industrial grade alcohol. And then they would add stuff. And that's how cocktails became. You would had taste to make the alcohol. So the government. Well, this is. They're not stopping drinking. We need to find a way to make it not, you know, make this stuff not usable. So they started to literally put poison.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, really? I never knew that.

[Ted Danson]

As in kill you poison in. Into the industrial grade alcohol which was used for other things. And the poison wouldn't matter. But if you tried to make alcohol and drink it, and people were dying by the thousands outside of these bars.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, my God.

[Ted Danson]

And they know this because the same time this happened, forensic science was starting to come to the surface. And so people, scientists were going, wait, what? Why? Why is that? And they discovered and traced it back.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, my God.

[Ted Danson]

That is kind of that, you know.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, let's solve it this way. Just kill all the junkies.

[Ted Danson]

No, make people emotionally healthy down at this end and they won't have to.

[Kristen Johnston]

No, exactly. Exactly. Okay, we've pontificated enough. No, no, no, no.

[Ted Danson]

This is all about pontificating.

[Kristen Johnston]

That's true. It's a podcast. I forgot. But yeah. That's insane.

[Ted Danson]

So are you. Are you talking to Folks individually. Do you go give speeches? Do you do. What do you do if you can't start your high school?

[Kristen Johnston]

I did it for a while, you know, I did it for, I wrote a book called Guts which was kind of about my, what happened to me and got getting sober and all that. And then after that I did about 10 years of pretty, you know, everyday work on, you know, speaking out, going to, doing speeches all over the United States, different rehabs and all that stuff. And then I kind of needed a break and that was about five years ago. And I just was like, you know, I need to take a little step back because I did also want to become like the recovery person. I just, you know, it's part of me and I don't mind talking about it ever. I like talking about it, but I just didn't want it to become okay.

[Ted Danson]

Let's put everything dot dot dot to no period to that. But just let me say I so respect you. Oh, I so, and I so admire. Not all sober people are cool. A lot of them remain. But yeah, some of my favorite people are sober people because they've, they've looked at the depths, the bowels and they decided to be honest and now they're deeply honest. I mean, I love talking to Dax Shepard because his level of truth and honesty is so intoxicating because he went there. That to me is like, that's a kind of nobility that I really appreciate. So I'll leave it there.

[Kristen Johnston]

Thank you.

[Ted Danson]

You're beautiful and you're noble.

[Kristen Johnston]

Thank you. I wish I'd done this show earlier. I needed the ego boost. Thank you.

[Ted Danson]

I've just heard about a serious but rare heart condition called attr, Cardiac amyloidosis or attrcm. If you have ATTR cm, you may experience symptoms related to heart failure like breathlessness and swelling of the legs, but also have issues that seem unrelated like carpal tunnel. There's a treatment option that may help called Atruby or Acharamidus. Atrube is a prescription medicine used to treat adults with ATTRCM to reduce death and hospitalization due to heart issues. In a study, people taking Atrube saw an impact on their health related quality of life and 50% fewer hospitalizations due to heart issues than people who didn't take a truby. Giving you more chances to do what you love with who you love. Tell your doctor if you're pregnant, plan to become pregnant or are breastfeeding and about the medications you take. The most common side effects were mild and included diarrhea and abdominal pain. If you have ATTR CM, talk to a cardiologist about a Truby or visit attruby.com that's a T T R U B Y.com to learn more. Maine, where life, the way it should be transforms all who encounter its spectacular landscapes. Rugged coastlines, pine scented trails, sandy beaches, sparkling lakes and tranquil forests inspire you to reflect and make meaningful moments. They offer endless opportunities for adventure and exploration. Whether pedaling or paddling, hiking or biking, Maine has more than enough outdoor spaces to make the most of long summer days. Relish in exquisite flavors harvested from the ocean and the rich soils of orchards and fields. Maine's makers are rooted to its heritage while boldly branching into new ways of thinking, doing and being. Connect with its people in warm and authentic towns which beckon you to stroll art galleries and locally owned shops where generations of artists, writers, entrepreneurs and craftspeople see the world anew. It's tempting to do it all when you visit, but take a beat and a breath. Get a feel for the time and tempo of Maine. Simple pleasures, scenic adventures where every route is the scenic one. Discover [e-mail] what do you want to talk about? If you had a magic wand, what are you going to be doing five, ten years from now?

[Kristen Johnston]

I am going to. I know exactly what I'm going to do. I'm going to be on the east coast running an animal rescue.

[Ted Danson]

Oh, I saw that.

[Kristen Johnston]

That's my thing. That's my thing. I have my oldest friend in the world, my friend Jackie. She has a little plot of land on the East Coast. I'm gonna buy one near it and she rescues animals and we're just gonna be the crazy old ladies rescuing animals.

[Ted Danson]

For real?

[Kristen Johnston]

For real.

[Ted Danson]

Wow.

[Kristen Johnston]

Horses, dogs, cats, whatever.

[Ted Danson]

Wow.

[Kristen Johnston]

I have four dogs, but that's all I can have here.

[Ted Danson]

The only thing I would add is a little bit of pocket change. Because of the vet bills, Right?

[Kristen Johnston]

Exactly. No, that's why I'm still here. I gotta tap dance a couple more years and then I can move. I really am.

[Ted Danson]

Oh, that's so cool.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah. Have you been five years?

[Ted Danson]

Some rescues right now. Do you have rescued dogs or not?

[Kristen Johnston]

I do. I have four. Four rescue dogs. They're all a mess. Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

Hats off.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah. Well, I don't have kids. They're my kids, basically. Yeah. They're the best, though.

[Ted Danson]

And are they success stories? Because some rescues. It's a big long.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah. Yeah. I've never had a bad road with a rescue dog.

[Ted Danson]

They're so genuinely Great.

[Kristen Johnston]

They're so grateful. I mean, my dog, they range from. I have a pit bull to a chihuahua. So like they're, you know, and then a border collie and a terrier. So they're. They are just the greatest. They're the greatest. They're my favorite creatures on earth. I can't wait. I'm excited to leave because then I get to look forward to coming back home and seeing them again. Like, I just love them.

[Ted Danson]

Somebody Mary quoted somebody or something. And I'm going to butcher this. But it's like there are many animals that show, especially now with cell phones. You're learning more about animals than you ever knew. Who knew that donkeys, you know.

[Kristen Johnston]

Love.

[Ted Danson]

And want to hug. Interspecies, taking care of, nurturing, all of that stuff.

[Kristen Johnston]

That's true.

[Ted Danson]

But that dogs are perhaps the only. I'm sorry, butcher this. But perhaps the only species that offer you unconditional love as a species. As if they were here to do that. Okay, humankind, we're here to give you unconditional love.

[Kristen Johnston]

You know, they're angels on Earth. People say that. They really are, though. They are.

[Ted Danson]

We have one.

[Kristen Johnston]

You do?

[Ted Danson]

Yes. Can I tell you the story? Although you'll. Right away. You know, there's guilt.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

In the air. But it is a rescue.

[Kristen Johnston]

Right.

[Ted Danson]

Nevertheless, it was born of a champion mini Aussie.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, I have an Aussie. A mix. Aussie mix. Yeah. They're brilliant. And a lot, a lot, a lot brilliant. Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

And he went from one place to another. Somebody died, they passed it. So in essence, we did rescue. But it was a high class rescue. This is a gorgeous, gorgeous dog.

[Kristen Johnston]

Gorgeous dogs. Holy gosh.

[Ted Danson]

And he was goofy because he was meant to be a mini.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

And he kept growing and growing, growing.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, really?

[Ted Danson]

And it's all about the base. He has a huge butt and he's just.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, I love it. Mine does too. You know, have you heard of those sheep herding ranches near here?

[Ted Danson]

Yes.

[Kristen Johnston]

That you can take your border collie. I'm totally going to do it. I have to get mine fixed because I've only had them a couple months. Oh, have you done it?

[Ted Danson]

No. Oh, we went to. We thought we were going to one and we went to some cattle. Yeah. And it didn't quite work. No, it wasn't set up. Well.

[Kristen Johnston]

There'S one that's just sheep herding.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah.

[Kristen Johnston]

I mean, I want to try that.

[Ted Danson]

I want to see.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, I think it would be so fun. I gotta wait. I. He's about. I've only had him like five months. So I gotta wait for him to be fixed before I genuinely find a.

[Ted Danson]

Way to reach out to us.

[Kristen Johnston]

I will.

[Ted Danson]

And say, hey, this place is amazing.

[Kristen Johnston]

Let's double date at the ranch.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah. Mary had a mix, I think a Queensland healer when I met her, and maybe an Aussie something, I'm not sure. And took him to a sheep farm. Not to see what. But was curious, just she happened to be there, I think, or something like that. And he started to foam at the. She. Sorry, Lucy. Started to foam at the mouth. And Mary went, oh, Lord. And the owner said of the farm, said, no, no, just relax, watch. And then he stuck his nose in the fur of the sheep and kind of nuzzled like this and wiped his foam all over these different sheep. It was like, I got you now.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, yeah. You're marked. You've marked you.

[Ted Danson]

I got you.

[Kristen Johnston]

And then did he run around and chase? I just think that's the coolest because it's just their.

[Ted Danson]

She'll never forgive me.

[Kristen Johnston]

Okay. Sorry, Lucy.

[Ted Danson]

Lucy.

[Kristen Johnston]

But their instincts kick in and it's supposed to be incredible. I'll let you know. I'll report back.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah, do.

[Kristen Johnston]

I will.

[Ted Danson]

That's amazing.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

All right. What else? Acting. Anything more? Are you now acting to raise money for your dog? No, no. Well, I mean, no, I know you loved it, but I mean, that's.

[Kristen Johnston]

No, no, no. I mean, I'd like to, you know, quit Hollywood at some point and go back to the east coast and. But the thing about, you know, doing what we do now is you don't even need to be here anymore, really, in la. I mean, not to do your podcast, obviously, but, like.

[Ted Danson]

No, that's true. It's very rare when you have the job that nails you to la.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. And it didn't used to be like that, but it is now. So I'm gonna sort of wait and see what happens with the show and. And then take it from there.

[Ted Danson]

Much success.

[Kristen Johnston]

Thank you. Yeah, yeah. I was gonna ask you. Do you think. Cause people keep asking me of the multicam dying. You know, now it's. People are. That it feels so old school. Do you think that there's a way for it to come back?

[Ted Danson]

Jimmy Burrows used to laugh. Jimmy, who directed all the Cheers.

[Kristen Johnston]

He directed me in a bunch of stuff, too. I love that guy.

[Ted Danson]

Everything known to man is for camera.

[Kristen Johnston]

He did.

[Ted Danson]

He said before he. Cheers or whatever it was dying, you know, it dies all the time until something comes and comes along and hits a chord.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

And then it's off and running again. Yeah, yeah, it is, it is. You know, things did change, I think, with cable and streaming, where all of a sudden you're watching at home, you know, kind of a movie. A film. And that comes with an expectation of, oh, you can say dirty words or you can talk about whatever you want.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

So that. That kind of did. What is your language like on this. On the show?

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, well, she's a clean comet. She's a clean stand up, so there's not a lot of that. But I would say, you know, if someone is going to bring in the scissors, cynicism and kind of aggression, it would be my character, you know, so. To kind of balance off of her goodness.

[Ted Danson]

Right.

[Kristen Johnston]

But. But yeah, so we don't.

[Ted Danson]

Different than. Not like network being on.

[Kristen Johnston]

No, it was. It felt very much the same in terms of the actual process of it.

[Ted Danson]

Well, Netflix is real smart, obviously.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

And they probably think that that's.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

Where that.

[Kristen Johnston]

I mean, I do think that there's room for it. It's just such an. Because it's really my bread and butter. I mean, you know, I've done other st. Really my stuff is the multi cam. And so for like 10 years, there was just very little of it, you know, like the most sitcomish was like the good Place, but it's single cam, so it's not. You know, but anyway, so hopefully it'll come back. I mean, I love them.

[Ted Danson]

I do too.

[Kristen Johnston]

I love doing them.

[Ted Danson]

If I were smidge younger and had. Didn't have that Atlantic experience.

[Kristen Johnston]

Sorry that traumatized you. Oh, oh. Going up on a Howard quarter monologue. That's brutal. That's brutal.

[Ted Danson]

I was so glad to meet someone who was in his play or something because he's so good.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, so great. Well, you saw Boardwalk Empire. He wrote all that. Just incredible. Such great writing.

[Ted Danson]

He wrote all.

[Kristen Johnston]

He wrote that every episode of that. Oh, God, yeah.

[Ted Danson]

All right.

[Kristen Johnston]

He's a great writer.

[Ted Danson]

My little monologue more about me was this guy, middleman guy sitting in front of the audience and going, something's really bothering me. I need to work through my day. And I came here and I did that and da, da, da. He goes through the day and gets more and more anxious until he gets home. His wife says, can you go downstairs in the basement and get such and such. And he goes downstairs into the basement and discovers that in the basement is literal hell. Literal hell, yeah. And he's horrified. He goes back upstairs and then she says, take the dog. And he's just takes the dog for a walk, you know, just. And by the time he gets back, he's forgotten. So each day is about.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, discovering hell.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah.

[Kristen Johnston]

Discovering hell in his basement.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah.

[Kristen Johnston]

That's so him. That's. He's a dark fella.

[Ted Danson]

So good.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yes. So good.

[Ted Danson]

So good.

[Kristen Johnston]

So good.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah. I don't know how long we've talked.

[Kristen Johnston]

I don't either. It could have been 20 minutes or six hours.

[Ted Danson]

I know. But I really, really enjoyed talk. You're very cool. I love what you're doing with your life.

[Kristen Johnston]

Thank you.

[Ted Danson]

You're a wonderful actor.

[Kristen Johnston]

Thank you.

[Ted Danson]

And you are for camera, like rock and roll. You really are good.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, thanks.

[Ted Danson]

You know that combination of, yes, we're in front of a camera, but we're in front of an audience.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah, yeah. Not everyone can do it. It's not easy. It isn't.

[Ted Danson]

It's really cool.

[Kristen Johnston]

It's a different thing, but. Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

Thank you.

[Kristen Johnston]

Thank you. Thank you for having me. It was good to see you.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah, I will watch that.

[Kristen Johnston]

Okay, good.

[Ted Danson]

Because I watched her stand up. Oh.

[Kristen Johnston]

Oh, yeah.

[Ted Danson]

Different.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah. She's cool. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I love her. And she has. I mean, people are obsessed with her. Like, you know, Middle American women are like, oh, my God. Obsessed with her. So it's fun to, like, do tapings with her. They're. They're so excited.

[Ted Danson]

Where is she from?

[Kristen Johnston]

Knoxville, Tennessee.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

That's very cool.

[Kristen Johnston]

Yeah. Yeah. I'm going to go see her this summer. I'm going down to see her family. It'll be fun.

[Ted Danson]

I will watch it and.

[Kristen Johnston]

Okay, good.

[Ted Danson]

Look forward to seeing you again. Okay, thanks.

[Kristen Johnston]

You too.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah. That was Kristen Johnston. You can catch her in the sitcom leanne premiering on July 31st on Netflix. That's all for our show this week. Special thanks to our friends at Team Coco. If you enjoyed this episode, send it to someone you love. Subscribe on your favorite podcast app and maybe give us a great rating and review on Apple Podcasts. If you're so moved. If you like watching your podcasts, all our full length episodes on YouTube, visit YouTube.comteamcoco See you next time. Where everybody knows your.

[Kristen Johnston]

You've been listening to where everybody knows your name with Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson sometimes. The show is produced by me, Nick Leow. Our executive producers are Adam Sachs, Jeff Ross and myself. Sarah Fedorovich is our supervising producer. Engineering and mixing by Joanna Samuel with support from Eduardo Perez. Research by Alyssa Grohl. Talent booking by Paula Davis and Jane Batista. Our theme music is by Woody Harrelson, Antony Gend, Mary Steenbergen, and John Osborne. Hey, I'm Paul Scheer. I'm June Diane Rayfield. And I'm Jason Mantzoukas. And we're the hosts of how did this Get Made? A comedy podcast where we deconstruct, make fun of, and celebrate the best worst movies ever made. Have you ever seen a movie that's so bad that it's actually good? That's what we're talking about. From blockbuster franchises and made for TV romances to bonkers 80s action flicks and obscure sci fi musicals, we cover it all. You can find how did this get Made? Wherever you get your podcasts and don't forget to follow the show so you never miss an episode.

[Ted Danson]

Idiot.

[C]

Did you know 39% of teen drivers admit to texting while driving? Even scarier, those who text are more likely to speed and run red lights. Shockingly, 94% know it's dangerous, but do it anyway. As a parent, you can't always be in the car, but you can stay connected to their safety with Greenlight Infinity's driving reports. Monitor their driving habits, see if they're using their phone, speeding, and more. These reports provide real data for meaningful conversations about safety. Plus, with weekly updates, you can track their progress over time. Help keep your teens safe. Sign up for Greenlight [e-mail] podcast.