Speaker 1: Hello, Hello everyone. It's a new year, a new dawn
Speaker 1: of a new age that sounds like the terminator. Uh.
Speaker 1: We have a new episode of the Office Deep Dive.
Speaker 1: I am, as always your host, Brian Baumgartner. New year,
Speaker 1: same guy. I'm excited for you to join me today.
Speaker 1: I cannot wait to kick off with my favorite kind
Speaker 1: of episode. That's right, today, I have got another our
Speaker 1: final call in episode where I get to hear directly
Speaker 1: from you. We're gonna get down and dirty, all right,
Speaker 1: and we're gonna answer a whole lot of the questions
Speaker 1: that you've been dying to know, and then we're gonna
Speaker 1: talk about off. Mm hmm. You didn't see that one coming,
Speaker 1: did you. So. Happy New Year, everybody, and let's start
Speaker 1: it on the right foot with another beautiful episode starring
Speaker 1: the incredible, the inspiring, the unbelievably touching messages that we
Speaker 1: have received from all of you. Bubble and Squeak. I
Speaker 1: love Bubble and Squeaker, Bubble and Squeaker Cookie, every moon
Speaker 1: lift over from the nut before. Ryan. This ethan we
Speaker 1: big fan of Office all family, watch whole series fifteen
Speaker 1: times you funniest character on show. Okay, this is a
Speaker 1: lot harder than books. You get the point. I'm Ethan
Speaker 1: and I'm ten years old. My mom and I really
Speaker 1: liked The Office, Deep Dive, and my entire family and
Speaker 1: I love The Office is my favorite show. The Office
Speaker 1: is like Elf. You can watch it over and over
Speaker 1: again and still laugh every time. This is my first
Speaker 1: time talking to a celebrity, so I am really happy
Speaker 1: right now. I have three older brothers who always make
Speaker 1: jokes from the Office. At first, I never got any
Speaker 1: of them. They would say things like I wanted to
Speaker 1: eat a pig in a blanket in a blanket, or
Speaker 1: nothing beat the Cookie season, next the Truth. The only
Speaker 1: thing I knew about the things they said were they
Speaker 1: were from the Office. My favorite storyline from the Office
Speaker 1: is Jim and Dwight's rivalry. Someone always gets in Office
Speaker 1: the Christmas or birthday gift. When one of my brothers
Speaker 1: turned sixteen, my mom got him a custom dundee that
Speaker 1: said it is your Birthday. She also attempted to put
Speaker 1: his money while it was in a zip blog bag,
Speaker 1: into some yellow jello, but when she flipped it upside down,
Speaker 1: the edge of the bag cut right through the jello.
Speaker 1: As much as she loves the Office, my mom gets
Speaker 1: really mad when we say. That's what she said. Not
Speaker 1: a day goes by that someone in my house doesn't
Speaker 1: quote The Office. Thanks for listening. Whoever is, have a
Speaker 1: great day, Ethan. Thank you so much for calling in
Speaker 1: ten years of age. I don't know if you should
Speaker 1: see every single episode in its entirety, but good on you.
Speaker 1: Thanks to you and your mom for listening to the
Speaker 1: Office Deep Dive. That is huge. H That's what she said, Sorry, mom,
Speaker 1: I had to do it. Hello Brian and the Office
Speaker 1: Deep Dive. My name is Sam Bagwana and I'm eighteen
Speaker 1: years old um here in Australia, and I just wanted
Speaker 1: to send a quick message to say thanks for making
Speaker 1: such an awesome podcast. It's really been great to listen
Speaker 1: to throughout my final year of high school and the
Speaker 1: HSC exams. So I guess I just had one question
Speaker 1: for you. What is your favorite episode of the Office Brian?
Speaker 1: And I know that's going to be a hard one.
Speaker 1: That's what she said, Sam, thank you for calling all
Speaker 1: the way from down Under. That was awful. What is
Speaker 1: my favorite episode? Listen? Sam, I'm gonna be honest, it
Speaker 1: changes a little bit. I've recently found out Variety just
Speaker 1: came out with a list of the fifty best episodes.
Speaker 1: Their number one was The Dinner Party, which is fantastic.
Speaker 1: I mean, there's no doubt Lee and Gene and the
Speaker 1: work that they did. They're making a modern day Who's
Speaker 1: Afraid of Virginia Wolf. It's incredible. Personally, I believe their
Speaker 1: number two is currently my number one, which is Stress Relief,
Speaker 1: otherwise known as the episode with Dwight's fake fire drill.
Speaker 1: Part of it for me is and I've said this
Speaker 1: quite a bit, you know, for me, now what was
Speaker 1: going on outside of the show is also significant to
Speaker 1: me as I go back and I rewatch. So we're
Speaker 1: about to move here into American football playoffs and uh,
Speaker 1: the episode Stress Relief aired immediately following the Super Bowl,
Speaker 1: and so for me that was a huge as a
Speaker 1: big football fan sports fan, to be on a show
Speaker 1: that aired immediately following the Super Bowl, it was very special.
Speaker 1: And that happened to be the first Super Bowl I
Speaker 1: ever attended in person as well. Uh, the Pittsburgh Steelers
Speaker 1: defeated the Arizona Cardinals in Tampa. It rained. It's a
Speaker 1: long story, but anyway to answer quickly your question, Stress
Speaker 1: relief for me. It's got comedy, it's got complicated camera
Speaker 1: movements and choreography, a lot of rehearsal. I remember shooting
Speaker 1: the episode well and and that's that's currently my favorite.
Speaker 1: But check out the list on Variety or elsewhere and
Speaker 1: see how how your list compares to theirs. Hi, Brian
Speaker 1: and team. This is Megan from Amersh Virginia. Thank you
Speaker 1: so much for this podcast. I have loved listening to
Speaker 1: the cast and the crew and hearing their take and
Speaker 1: there behind the scenes stories that we wouldn't have heard otherwise.
Speaker 1: My question is what do you think about the fan
Speaker 1: theory that Dwight should have ended up with isabel instead
Speaker 1: of Angela. Thanks have a great day, Megan. Thanks so
Speaker 1: much for your question. I was not aware that this
Speaker 1: was a movement. Maybe it's happening on the in the
Speaker 1: dark threads of Reddit. I'm not sure. I haven't heard
Speaker 1: this one before. Look, I think that there's a lot
Speaker 1: of reasons that Dwight could have or should have of
Speaker 1: ended up with Isabelle. But you know what, sometimes with love,
Speaker 1: it's in inexplicable, it's in its blitzable, in explainable. There
Speaker 1: I changed it. Um he had Dwight and Angela. They
Speaker 1: were a match made in well, I'm not sure exactly
Speaker 1: where they were made, but I think in the end,
Speaker 1: at least on our show, they were meant to be.
Speaker 1: And I think ultimately, as Greg Daniels and some of
Speaker 1: the other writers and producers have talked about, they were
Speaker 1: sort of the anti Jim and Pam. Jim and Pam
Speaker 1: were the couple that everybody got, that everybody responded to,
Speaker 1: and I think Dwight and Angela was harder to explain,
Speaker 1: but I think in the end their love was just
Speaker 1: as pure or just as creepy. Hi Brian, my name
Speaker 1: is Jake Ryan. I'm from Johnston, Iowa, and I'm currently
Speaker 1: senior at the University of Iowa. Um So, to start out,
Speaker 1: I my funny story comes from back when my dad
Speaker 1: and I we used to watch The Office when I
Speaker 1: was little, and we used to stay up late, uh
Speaker 1: or for me it was late but every Thursday night
Speaker 1: watching the premiere of the New Office, and I remember
Speaker 1: we introduced my mom to the Office in the first
Speaker 1: episode coincidentally had my to this day, my favorite line
Speaker 1: from the Office, which came from Kevin and her reaction
Speaker 1: to that line. So I remember the episode was the
Speaker 1: one in which Darryl and Toby were competing to sell
Speaker 1: Kevin Girl Scout cookies, and I remember the funniest line
Speaker 1: was when Kevin told them he likes to be wined
Speaker 1: and dined and blank blank blank um. And I remember
Speaker 1: just seeing the look of horror on my mom's face
Speaker 1: when she heard that, and my dad and I obviously
Speaker 1: hysterically laughing. At that age, I didn't know what it meant,
Speaker 1: but I saw my dad laughing and I went along
Speaker 1: with it. So that's that's one of my favorite memories, um,
Speaker 1: and one of the funniest memories from the show. UM.
Speaker 1: And then my question, I wanted to ask you, I mean,
Speaker 1: other than what your golf handicap is, but I wanted
Speaker 1: to ask you. You know, I know that The Office
Speaker 1: Is has always been a pretty well scripted show and
Speaker 1: there's not a ton of room for improvisation, but were
Speaker 1: there any times in which you improvised in the show
Speaker 1: that you can remember? And if so, what was your
Speaker 1: what was your favorite improvisation line? Thank you? I I
Speaker 1: love the show and I'm super excited for to come
Speaker 1: back in two So keep doing great things. Brian thanks.
Speaker 1: Thanks Jake. First of all, I think the words you're
Speaker 1: looking for our sixty nine and yeah, I guess, I guess.
Speaker 1: Go look it up, Jake, go hawk Eyes. I was
Speaker 1: there a couple of years ago into the talk, had
Speaker 1: a great time there in Iowa. Thanks for your call. Um.
Speaker 1: I can't imagine they're as a high school ish kid
Speaker 1: watching that episode with my mom and I can. I
Speaker 1: can imagine her face and how you and maybe your
Speaker 1: dad felt in that moment. I love it. By the way,
Speaker 1: six point eight is the handicap. Will move on from
Speaker 1: that and asking about my favorite improv. I don't know
Speaker 1: if this is my favorite or not, Jake, but at
Speaker 1: the moment I had the idea of doing a running
Speaker 1: improv in the episode where they're evaluating employees by putting
Speaker 1: beans and Kevin saying what does a being mean? And
Speaker 1: that was scripted what does a being mean? But the
Speaker 1: fact that he becomes obsessed with the idea of not
Speaker 1: knowing what a bean means, but he probably knows and
Speaker 1: so yes, towards the end of that scene, you hear
Speaker 1: him yelling in the background and I remember laughing standing
Speaker 1: away in the off camera, just yelling, what does a
Speaker 1: being mean and the idea that Kevin is just going
Speaker 1: around to everybody asking what it bean means. I don't know.
Speaker 1: That makes me laugh at least right now. Hi Brian,
Speaker 1: big fan of the podcast, big fan of the Office.
Speaker 1: I'm not sure if I'm the biggest fan out there.
Speaker 1: I'm sure there's someone who's much crazier than I am.
Speaker 1: But I've been a scranted five times now. I'm not
Speaker 1: sure if my wife will let me go back. Um.
Speaker 1: Been to Office Fest that was happened last fall. That
Speaker 1: was kind of cool. I've hosted office Trivia at a bar.
Speaker 1: I had an office theme party where I bought everybody
Speaker 1: dundees and we played office trivia. Um. My question is
Speaker 1: how long of a break did you guys have between
Speaker 1: shooting seasons? You know the I know it took five
Speaker 1: days to shoot an episode, but how long of a
Speaker 1: break did you have, like I said, in between shooting seasons?
Speaker 1: And another question is who do you think was the
Speaker 1: funniest on set. I've had the privilege of meeting some
Speaker 1: of you. I've actually met you at a comic con
Speaker 1: in Pittsburgh, and everyone seems to say Rain Rain was
Speaker 1: the funniest. So just want your opinion on that. And thanks, Brandon,
Speaker 1: thanks for your call. You've been to Scranton five times.
Speaker 1: You're not sure your wife will let you go back.
Speaker 1: What happened in Scranton, Brandon, that gives your wife pause
Speaker 1: for sending you back. Um, it was nice to meet
Speaker 1: you there in Pittsburgh. Maybe we will meet someday back
Speaker 1: in Scranton. So a question about the schedule, it varied
Speaker 1: a little bit. What I typically tell people is it
Speaker 1: was like a school year, but kind of extended into
Speaker 1: the summer a little bit. Right, So the Office when
Speaker 1: it was airing for probably the last seven to eight years,
Speaker 1: it would have its season finale in roughly late May,
Speaker 1: which means we stopped filming in sometime late April early May,
Speaker 1: we were done for the year, and then we would
Speaker 1: have a summer break basically right, so it would give
Speaker 1: the writers specifically time to recharge. They would come back
Speaker 1: much earlier and begin working on stories for the coming year.
Speaker 1: And we usually started late July early August to begin
Speaker 1: for the fall, and that that would give us time
Speaker 1: to get episodes in the can as they call it,
Speaker 1: before the traditional television season started, which was September. So
Speaker 1: basically September through May is when the network television season lasts,
Speaker 1: so we had to we were done earlier than that,
Speaker 1: and we had to come back earlier to get some done.
Speaker 1: So yeah, roughly end of July through end of April.
Speaker 1: H Hello, Brian. My name is Brianna, and I am
Speaker 1: calling from Madison, Wisconsin. I first want to say thank
Speaker 1: you so much for creating this podcast. I love listening
Speaker 1: to it each and every week just as much as
Speaker 1: I love watching The Office. The Office is my all
Speaker 1: time favorite show. I watch it all the time and
Speaker 1: I'm pretty sure all my friends think I'm nuts, um,
Speaker 1: but The Office is such a comforting thing to me
Speaker 1: have it in the background on all the time. And
Speaker 1: what I love about is even when I rewatch it
Speaker 1: over and over again the same episodes, I am able
Speaker 1: to find little gems hidden in the background of scenes
Speaker 1: that I didn't notice before. So, for example, there is
Speaker 1: a scene where Michael is in the kitchen and he's
Speaker 1: drinking a diet soda, but if you pay attention, he
Speaker 1: is pouring sugar into his diet soda as he's talking
Speaker 1: in the kitchen. Or in St. Patrick's day, there is
Speaker 1: the water cooler in the background behind Stanley and if
Speaker 1: you pay attention the water cooler, their water in there
Speaker 1: is dyed green for St. Patrick's Day. Or in the
Speaker 1: garage sale the yard sale, they kind of pan around
Speaker 1: the warehouse there and you can see that Michael is
Speaker 1: trying to sell his broken plasma screen TV that Jan
Speaker 1: hit with the Dundee and the dinner party episode. So
Speaker 1: that just got me thinking that the writer's put so
Speaker 1: much effort into not only the scenes itself and what's
Speaker 1: in the forefront of the scenes, but also what's happening
Speaker 1: in the background and adding these little gems that you
Speaker 1: may find as you watched the episode over and over again.
Speaker 1: You might not the first time, but when you catch
Speaker 1: those things, it put a smile on your face and
Speaker 1: makes you laugh. And so I guess I just wanted
Speaker 1: your take on why the writers put so much effort
Speaker 1: into the background of scenes and how that added to
Speaker 1: the show. So thanks again, I appreciate what you do
Speaker 1: and talk to you soon. Thank you so much for
Speaker 1: your call. Brianna. By the way, that easter egg of
Speaker 1: the broken plasma screen in the garage show episode, that's
Speaker 1: one of the best, So kudos to you for finding
Speaker 1: that one. Look, our writers were amazing. I can't truly
Speaker 1: can't say enough about them, But what I would say is,
Speaker 1: in addition to them, everyone on the crew was working
Speaker 1: all the time thinking of those type things. Right. So,
Speaker 1: I don't know whose idea the plasma screen was, but
Speaker 1: it very well could have been Phil Shay props, or
Speaker 1: a scenic designer or an actor. It could have been
Speaker 1: Steve Carrell saying, hey, you know what, what do would
Speaker 1: be funny? And you know I talked about this in
Speaker 1: the last Calling episode we did. There is a warehouse
Speaker 1: of props that exists somewhere. Maybe at this point they've
Speaker 1: given them up that any prop that was used in
Speaker 1: any episode at any time, they saved it in case
Speaker 1: they would need it again, and there's a great example
Speaker 1: of the time they decided to use it again. So, yes,
Speaker 1: our writers were incredible. Maybe that was scripted, but it
Speaker 1: just as easily could have been Steve Carrell or a
Speaker 1: prop person or or anyone really, because Greg Daniels created
Speaker 1: such a collaborative environment that anyone was able to pitch
Speaker 1: those kinds of jokes, and people consistently were And I
Speaker 1: think that's one of the things that makes the show
Speaker 1: so so deep and and have such depth and texture
Speaker 1: and yeah, as you said, ultimately comedy. Hi Christina McDonald here,
Speaker 1: I'm a huge Office fan. I will admit, Um. I
Speaker 1: did not become a fan until Covid started. I decided
Speaker 1: to sit down and watch The Office before they were
Speaker 1: going to take it off Netflix, And of course that
Speaker 1: just led to me buying Peacock when it went to
Speaker 1: Peacock and um, and then once I discovered your podcast
Speaker 1: and The Office Ladies, you know, Jenna and Angelo's podcast,
Speaker 1: I really just couldn't get enough. It became more and
Speaker 1: more and more of an obsession. And what I like
Speaker 1: about my obsession is, you know, not only do I
Speaker 1: put The Office on like right now, just when I'm
Speaker 1: eating or whatever it's on in the background, but I
Speaker 1: put the podcast on it all the time because I
Speaker 1: absolutely love hearing every little detail about how the show
Speaker 1: has been made, about every single person that has helped
Speaker 1: you guys and has been a part of it, every
Speaker 1: single person, regardless of their role. And you know how
Speaker 1: quote unquote trivial it may seem to the whole production. Um,
Speaker 1: you know, every little bit of it has been so
Speaker 1: fascinating to me and most of all, it's like it's
Speaker 1: it's so inspiring to me. I have been completely uninspired
Speaker 1: and not creative. I feel like my whole life, which
Speaker 1: is not true, but I've just struggled to find that
Speaker 1: spark in that creativity. I'm thirty eight years old. I'm
Speaker 1: still trying to figure out what I'm doing. But I
Speaker 1: have to say you have inspired me, Kevin, you specifically,
Speaker 1: all of you have inspired me to to create, to
Speaker 1: become creative, to pursue writing again. I heard about Brent
Speaker 1: Forresters writing course that he does online and I just
Speaker 1: signed up for it Lance or you know, I signed
Speaker 1: up to get notification about it, and I'm so excited
Speaker 1: to do that. And so I just wanted to thank
Speaker 1: you Kevin specifically for making the podcast, but also each
Speaker 1: and every one of you that has been on the
Speaker 1: office and has helped create the office and as you know,
Speaker 1: contributed the ways that you have the fans and the
Speaker 1: ways you contributed contributed as well. I am just so
Speaker 1: thankful to all of you. I feel like we're all
Speaker 1: a big family. You guys just make me so happy.
Speaker 1: Your new episodes coming out every week, Brian just make
Speaker 1: me so happy. I feel like I'm friends with you now.
Speaker 1: Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you so much.
Speaker 1: I'm eternally grateful to you. Thank you well, Christina, thank
Speaker 1: you for your message. I appreciate that so much. Look,
Speaker 1: I think that's what the show is about. It's about
Speaker 1: finding beauty in ordinary things, and I think that's what
Speaker 1: does it. I think that's what gives you that inspiration.
Speaker 1: Hopefully it helps you find that spark. Good luck to
Speaker 1: you working with Brent Forrester. You're gonna need it working
Speaker 1: with him, Brent Forrester joke, Sorry, Brent Um, but good
Speaker 1: luck to you, all right, and thank you for your call.
Speaker 1: Thanks for letting me know. I know that everybody who
Speaker 1: worked on the show will appreciate hearing that, because, I mean, look,
Speaker 1: the fact that our show is inspiring you now to
Speaker 1: take a chance on doing something new at thirty eight
Speaker 1: years old. That's awesome. Like there's kind of nothing else
Speaker 1: to say except that's awesome and good luck. I'm gonna
Speaker 1: be rooting for you. Hey, office, Deep Dye family. This
Speaker 1: is Derek Crenshaw from Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started watching the
Speaker 1: show whenever it was still live, and I worked a
Speaker 1: blogbuster at the time, and I got caught up through
Speaker 1: season one, and I was able to get completely caught
Speaker 1: up through through my gig at Blogbuster, and then continued
Speaker 1: watching the show as it as it came on every week.
Speaker 1: I did ask for DVD sets, so I have every
Speaker 1: single one of those, and that came in helpful because
Speaker 1: when I was in college, I couldn't afford a even
Speaker 1: Netflix subscription, much less any kind of cable subscription or
Speaker 1: anything like that. So I had all my Office DVDs,
Speaker 1: so I continued. I continuously watched The Office whenever I
Speaker 1: was in college. Um, you guys were with me through
Speaker 1: some really tough times. You were with me through um,
Speaker 1: almost a divorce, through the birth of my two perfect children,
Speaker 1: and you shot You guys do not know how important
Speaker 1: you are. I just listening to you to the Office ladies.
Speaker 1: Hearing you guys break down sometimes it's uh, it moves
Speaker 1: me into tears. Obviously isn't doing it now? Um, but
Speaker 1: you guys are more important to me than anybody else
Speaker 1: who has no idea who I am. Um, but I
Speaker 1: did want to. I didn't want to pose what I
Speaker 1: thought was an interesting question. So as I've watched seriously,
Speaker 1: I probably watched the whole series, um twenty times. I
Speaker 1: I don't know, I I constantly Before it got taken
Speaker 1: off of Netflix, I had it on. It was just
Speaker 1: a constant loop. Um, a funny story. My oldest My
Speaker 1: oldest son is five, and he loves the part where
Speaker 1: Andy he calls him Michael's son, which I think is funny. Um.
Speaker 1: But he loves the part where he punches a hole
Speaker 1: in the wall. Um. But but anyway, So as I've
Speaker 1: watched these over and over and over and over and
Speaker 1: over again, I have pondered who I would like and
Speaker 1: dislike to work with the most if it were a
Speaker 1: real life situation for me. Uh, it would probably be
Speaker 1: Oscar would be the person I would like to work with.
Speaker 1: He's uh, he's good at his job. He could be
Speaker 1: a good mentor he doesn't get worked up too easy. Unpopularly,
Speaker 1: my leassavorite would probably be Jim. I think his pranks
Speaker 1: would get on my nerves in real life, and he
Speaker 1: doesn't seem like he would be a real good friend
Speaker 1: unless it was on his terms, and so that would
Speaker 1: be mine. I would ask you, Brian, if you who
Speaker 1: would be yours? Because I know you've recently watched this
Speaker 1: and so who would be your favorite and least favorite
Speaker 1: people to work with? UM, I hope that you do
Speaker 1: listen to this and know that, UM, you know, I
Speaker 1: love you guys so so I apologize for the for
Speaker 1: all of the tears, but UM, but you guys are
Speaker 1: really really important to me, so so thank you, and
Speaker 1: UM know that I love you guys. Thanks by Thanks Derek,
Speaker 1: I love you too, my friend. Thanks so much for
Speaker 1: your message, and never ever apologize for feeling all right.
Speaker 1: As for your question, I mean, I hear what you're
Speaker 1: saying about the gym thing. Michael would be really difficult,
Speaker 1: all right, let's be honest about that. Angela is a
Speaker 1: hard no for sure. Now, maybe I'm biased. I thought
Speaker 1: as you were talking you were going to say Kevin,
Speaker 1: because listen, he makes things more fun. Am I wrong?
Speaker 1: I'm definitely not wrong. Now, granted he might be he
Speaker 1: might be frustrating to work with on occasion as well,
Speaker 1: but I think he would make things most fun. Um, gosh,
Speaker 1: that's really tough. I'm gonna go, Pam. She wants to
Speaker 1: be upward lee mobile is that the right phrase? Better herself?
Speaker 1: She works her way up. I'm gonna go, Pam. I
Speaker 1: mean Dwight. There's no doubt Dwight is excellent at his job.
Speaker 1: So if I really wanted the company to succeed, what
Speaker 1: I put up with his eccentricities. Probably not, but he
Speaker 1: is really good at his job. Thanks Derek, Thanks for
Speaker 1: the Hello, Brian. This is Kira. I'm a teacher from
Speaker 1: Pennsylvania and I am a huge fan of the Office
Speaker 1: and I have followed your podcast and Jenna and Angela's
Speaker 1: podcast from the beginning, and your podcasts have given me
Speaker 1: so much joy as an Office fan, just because The
Speaker 1: Office has meant so much to me, because it's such
Speaker 1: a real show and it connects to your life no
Speaker 1: matter what character you're connecting to on what day, and
Speaker 1: it just brings so much joy to me. To know
Speaker 1: that you guys love the show just as much as
Speaker 1: the fans who are watching the show. I think it
Speaker 1: makes that ten times more special, and all of the
Speaker 1: relationships that you guys have had throughout the show makes
Speaker 1: that even better. I I just want you to know
Speaker 1: that some of my classroom decorations involved The Office. My
Speaker 1: motivational quote is by Dwight, so above my door of
Speaker 1: a picture of Dwight, and it says I am ready
Speaker 1: to face any challenge that is full wish enough to
Speaker 1: face me. And one of my favorites that I have
Speaker 1: in there is I found a decoration that has Stanley's
Speaker 1: face on it and it says did I Stutter? And
Speaker 1: I like to use that when my students don't listen
Speaker 1: to the directions I give them the first time. Everybody
Speaker 1: knows I'm an Office fan, and I just have a
Speaker 1: couple of questions that I would love to get your
Speaker 1: opinion on. If you were gonna show someone a season
Speaker 1: of the Office that really portrayed what the Office was about,
Speaker 1: what season would you tell them to watch? Um, what
Speaker 1: many arc of the show was your favorite? And what
Speaker 1: episode was your favorite to shoot? Thank you so so much.
Speaker 1: I appreciate all of you. Sometimes I feel like I
Speaker 1: know you personally, but thank you so much. Thanks so
Speaker 1: much Kia for your call the being a teacher and
Speaker 1: using did I stutter? Is amazing, So well done there.
Speaker 1: I'm not sure about using Dwight to motivate, but there
Speaker 1: you go. As I just said, he's good at his job.
Speaker 1: So what season would I choose to show someone. I
Speaker 1: guess I'm gonna go with two, though, I could say
Speaker 1: three or five. You know, I think if you're gonna
Speaker 1: watch the show, I think you start at the beginning.
Speaker 1: That's truly what I think. I think part of what
Speaker 1: stays with people when they watch the show is getting
Speaker 1: into the characters, and I think that jumping in if
Speaker 1: you haven't seen it at all before could be difficult.
Speaker 1: In terms of my favorite mini arc, for me, it
Speaker 1: was Holly when Dwight tells Holly that Kevin is is
Speaker 1: not all there. It's I don't know any other I'm
Speaker 1: sure that they exist, but a joke that is set
Speaker 1: up for four years that is then played off. And
Speaker 1: that's kind of what I'm talking about about starting at
Speaker 1: the beginning. That story isn't funny unless you have experienced
Speaker 1: Kevin for four years before that. So that's what I'm
Speaker 1: going with. And last, my favorite episode to shoot. I'm
Speaker 1: gonna go a little different on this one. For me,
Speaker 1: the episode that I think about the most and where
Speaker 1: the memories are most in the forefront of my mind
Speaker 1: is the finale. I think about shooting the finale a lot. Now.
Speaker 1: Maybe it's because it was the last one, but I
Speaker 1: don't think so. The number of things that happened there
Speaker 1: from Michael slash Steve coming back and the wedding and
Speaker 1: the Q and A session and lots of locations and
Speaker 1: Kevin neetis Bar. That's the episode I think about the most.
Speaker 1: So yeah, today, that's my favorite episode to shoot the finale.
Speaker 1: Hello Brian and other office add It's my name is
Speaker 1: Alicia Maw. I am an artist from Springfield, Missouri, and
Speaker 1: I would love to share my awkward office moment with
Speaker 1: you all. Back in two nineteen, it was late at night.
Speaker 1: I was trying to come up with a design and
Speaker 1: for some reason, the quote popped into my head. We
Speaker 1: all have a little bit of Michael Scott in us,
Speaker 1: and of course Steve Carril's voice immediately shoved itself into
Speaker 1: my brain screaming that's what she said. So I drew
Speaker 1: up the design. I ordered the Tope bags, which are
Speaker 1: my signature item that I sell, and I had them
Speaker 1: at the next festival event. So we had a booth
Speaker 1: set up and this elderly woman and I'm assuming her granddaughter,
Speaker 1: walk in. She was immediately drawn to my Michael Scott
Speaker 1: totes and she exclaims to me, Michael Scott is the
Speaker 1: name of our pastor he would love this bag, and
Speaker 1: I thought, oh, this woman does not know she must
Speaker 1: not know who the real Michael Scott is. So it
Speaker 1: went really silent. I was looking at the granddaughter, she
Speaker 1: was staring at me the most awkward few moments, and
Speaker 1: then she leans over and whispers the explanation of that's
Speaker 1: what she said to the woman, and she was not happy.
Speaker 1: She was not pleased at all. She looked at me
Speaker 1: like I might be the devil, and they definitely walked
Speaker 1: out without purchasing anything from me, which you know, in
Speaker 1: the end was fine because it's this hilarious moment that
Speaker 1: I will always remember. And of course, throughout that day
Speaker 1: I made a lot of office sales because so many
Speaker 1: fans are down here in Springfiel, Missouri, and the love
Speaker 1: of in the bonding that we all had just from
Speaker 1: a simple quote or a simple moment from the show.
Speaker 1: It just brings strangers together and it's just like the
Speaker 1: funnest time to meet these people that as an introvert
Speaker 1: I never would have spoke to you in the first place.
Speaker 1: So even though my life is a lot of awkward
Speaker 1: moments like what happened, I love that we keep Michael
Speaker 1: Scott in it, because I mean, we all really have
Speaker 1: a little bit of him in us. You know, we
Speaker 1: we don't want to admit it, especially during the extremely
Speaker 1: cringe e times, but you know what, there have been
Speaker 1: times where I've thought, oh, man, I may have done
Speaker 1: that same thing that Michael just did. And it's definitely
Speaker 1: a Michael Scott thing to admit that you wouldn't do
Speaker 1: those awkward, cringe e things. So thank you for sharing
Speaker 1: in the awkwardness that is my life. And I just
Speaker 1: wanted to give a big shout out to everyone else
Speaker 1: who loves this amazing show, and to Brian and everyone
Speaker 1: else in production that helps give us all the insider
Speaker 1: notes and all of the amazing, amazing info. We never
Speaker 1: would have known what thought you guys. Alicia, Thank you.
Speaker 1: I need a tote. I need. I need one of
Speaker 1: these totes so that I can remember your story. It
Speaker 1: is interesting though, it is worth noting that very often
Speaker 1: I am surprised by those that are fans of the
Speaker 1: Office and that do get the jokes. In this case,
Speaker 1: I guess I guess she didn't, But thank you. I
Speaker 1: need I need a tote. I need a tote, because
Speaker 1: who doesn't need a little Michael Scott in them. Oh,
Speaker 1: let's move on. So listen. There was one thing that
Speaker 1: we weren't quite expecting when we put the call out
Speaker 1: for call ins, and it was how many of you
Speaker 1: had your own Jim and Pam stories. Because we really
Speaker 1: thought out there there would be more of the Dwight
Speaker 1: and Angela stories. You might be afraid to admit it,
Speaker 1: but that's what we thought. But seriously, one of our
Speaker 1: favorite episodes from the oral history of the Office was
Speaker 1: episode five, when we dove deep into relationships. What can
Speaker 1: I say? Everybody loves love? Am I right? So Act
Speaker 1: three of today's podcast will be dedicated to the beating
Speaker 1: heart of the Office and the way it helped your
Speaker 1: hearts beat a little bit harder too. So let's get
Speaker 1: into to it. I wanted to call in and just
Speaker 1: tell you how much the show has meant to my
Speaker 1: husband and I and how much your podcast has meant
Speaker 1: to me over the last two years. Especially. I met
Speaker 1: my husband about eight years ago, and one of the
Speaker 1: first things that we talked about on our first date
Speaker 1: was the Office and how great it was. You know,
Speaker 1: I would throw a little one liners in there, and
Speaker 1: you know, I asked some questions didn't really get anywhere,
Speaker 1: But it wasn't until I asked her what she planned
Speaker 1: on doing that night after we got out of class,
Speaker 1: and she said, well, we'll watch The Office with my roommates.
Speaker 1: When my husband and I first started dating, it was
Speaker 1: The Office that originally brought us together. We quote the
Speaker 1: show daily and by each other show merchandise often. When
Speaker 1: we got married three years ago, we walked out to
Speaker 1: a piano version of the theme song. I kept up
Speaker 1: with the Office and really followed Jim and Pam's relationship,
Speaker 1: being that they were friends, they flirted together, they had
Speaker 1: this great relationship, and then they got into a romantic
Speaker 1: relationship and they had their ups and downs, their challenges,
Speaker 1: their disagreements, and I saw so many parallels in my
Speaker 1: own relationship and knowing that my wife and I are.
Speaker 1: We are different people, we like different things, and sometimes
Speaker 1: we want to go in different directions, but we came
Speaker 1: together because we of that love and appreciation. I've always
Speaker 1: loved Jim and Path. It's been wonderful, and of course
Speaker 1: can't beat Kevin. Kevin's the best. Well, I can't argue
Speaker 1: with that. Thank you, Sarah, Katie, Tim, Kate and you Tyler,
Speaker 1: thank you so much. And you know what, relationships, they're
Speaker 1: not perfect and people are different, but I'm glad to
Speaker 1: know that maybe you found a little love through the Office. Hi, Brian,
Speaker 1: I just wanted to share this little story kind of
Speaker 1: show how culturally pervasive office was. It was over a
Speaker 1: decade ago, which seems crazy. My then boyfriend, you know,
Speaker 1: we were serious, and so it just seemed natural that
Speaker 1: he would propose any minute now. Um. And so one
Speaker 1: day we were outside and he knelt down to um
Speaker 1: while on one knee in front of me, and yeah,
Speaker 1: I thought that was it. And then he reached to
Speaker 1: tie his shoe much like Jim did with Pam on
Speaker 1: The Office. And we were big fans and still are.
Speaker 1: And so I just want to say that that worked
Speaker 1: on the show, but it did not work in real life.
Speaker 1: I was very mad. I was really mad, and it
Speaker 1: became a moment of tension definitely in our relationship. Everything
Speaker 1: worked out. We are now happily married for the past decade.
Speaker 1: He proposed six months later, which is a whole other story,
Speaker 1: but he did propose and things turned out great. But
Speaker 1: that's how you know. The Office is in the cultural
Speaker 1: milia at the time, and just how much how influential
Speaker 1: it was on all of our lives. Anyway, love your show,
Speaker 1: Take care. Thanks by Justine. That is amazing. I love
Speaker 1: what you say. It worked on the show, it did
Speaker 1: not work in real life, but listen, I'm guessing he
Speaker 1: then chose not to propose in the rain at a
Speaker 1: gas station, so you're probably happy about that as well.
Speaker 1: Thank you for your call. I was hoping also that
Speaker 1: you would say that he keeps doing that over and
Speaker 1: over in life, and if he doesn't, he should because listen,
Speaker 1: it's funny now. It may not have been funny then,
Speaker 1: but it is definitely It's definitely funny now. Hi Brian.
Speaker 1: My name is Katie Nufield and I'm from Orlando, Florida.
Speaker 1: Thanks to the Office, I accidentally manifested the gym to
Speaker 1: my Pam, complete with falling in love with a co
Speaker 1: worker and calling off an engagement. So now I am
Speaker 1: married to my co worker turned husband, Jeremy, and we
Speaker 1: have a one year old son. I started watching The
Speaker 1: Office in high school and it has gotten me through
Speaker 1: the good and the bad times. I introduced my husband
Speaker 1: to the show, and now I have someone who laughs
Speaker 1: whenever I work in an office. Quote into the conversation,
Speaker 1: I would say I'm the biggest fan of the office,
Speaker 1: but I know that there are thousands of people who
Speaker 1: might disagree. Thank you for doing this podcast because if
Speaker 1: there's two things I love, it's Deep Dives in the Office.
Speaker 1: I look forward to all the new episode and thanks
Speaker 1: again by Katie. Congratulations you and Jeremy. That is great
Speaker 1: that you manifested him by your fandom through the show
Speaker 1: you created. Jeremy made him work with you, and then
Speaker 1: you fell in love with each other. That is amazing.
Speaker 1: You are Pam. Katie, you are Pam. Congratulations, Best of
Speaker 1: luck to you and your future, and thank you so
Speaker 1: much for calling in. My name is Jenna Davis. My
Speaker 1: husband's name is Michael Davis. I am an HR professional.
Speaker 1: That is my my passion as my calling. I absolutely
Speaker 1: love human resources. UM. My husband is a firefighter paramedic
Speaker 1: for our city fire department, so he's been at the
Speaker 1: front line, UM during this whole pandemic, doing the dirty work,
Speaker 1: meeting patients before they even get to the hospital. UM.
Speaker 1: So if I can do a shout out to my husband, UM,
Speaker 1: not biased. I'm very proud of him. So when we
Speaker 1: first met. My husband had already been a fan of
Speaker 1: the Office, he already loved it, already seen it multiple times,
Speaker 1: and when we met, you know, we'd go on dates
Speaker 1: and the Office would never not come out of his mouth,
Speaker 1: like he'd either say something about it or asked me
Speaker 1: if I've seen it, and I'd always be like, no,
Speaker 1: I have no idea what you're talking about, and he
Speaker 1: was just like, Nope, we gotta watch it. So we
Speaker 1: sat down and we started season one, episode one, and
Speaker 1: as an HR professional, I cannot explain the cringe that
Speaker 1: was going on inside of my body watching those earlier shows.
Speaker 1: I could not believe somebody was just walking around in
Speaker 1: office doing the things that Michael Scott was doing, saying
Speaker 1: the things he was saying, uh and um. There's a
Speaker 1: specific point in the Office series in which everything clicked
Speaker 1: to me. It was when Dwight had just pierced the
Speaker 1: CPR dummy and they're chatting with David Wallace now and
Speaker 1: David Wallace is saying something about how the dummy is
Speaker 1: worth three and Michael Scott how interprets that as five
Speaker 1: thousand three d dollars. I lost my mind, laughing hysterically.
Speaker 1: It was like In that moment, I suddenly understood the
Speaker 1: show's intention, the show's humor. It all made sense, and
Speaker 1: I was done. Since then, me and my husband, of
Speaker 1: course together have seen it several times through and through UM,
Speaker 1: and our love for the Office grew, just as our
Speaker 1: love for each other was growing. You know, our foundation
Speaker 1: of our relationship is built on the Office. It was
Speaker 1: something we could have in common and we laugh about
Speaker 1: and joke about UM. And because of that UM, the
Speaker 1: bond we formed over the Office, we thought no better
Speaker 1: place than to get married in good old Scratt in Pennsylvania.
Speaker 1: So we got married and I ended up getting pregnant
Speaker 1: with my son UM. While he was in my tummy.
Speaker 1: Every day going to work, coming home from work, I
Speaker 1: would have The Office on playing in my car. And
Speaker 1: it wasn't long after my son was born that we
Speaker 1: noticed him like looking at the TV when The Office
Speaker 1: would come on, when the scene so Time will come on,
Speaker 1: he would stop what he was doing, stare at the
Speaker 1: TV with a big smile on his face and just dance.
Speaker 1: And it was so awesome because we knew that he
Speaker 1: was hearing it while he was in my tummy, and
Speaker 1: his love for the Office or the joy that the
Speaker 1: office brings him came before he even took his breath,
Speaker 1: like in this world, and I think that is just
Speaker 1: so amazing. UM. We love the podcast. We love Brian
Speaker 1: and what he's able to pull out of people. Honestly
Speaker 1: are Our son is a huge fan of trash Truck,
Speaker 1: so when UM that when trash Truck is on, my
Speaker 1: son instantly recognizes Brand's voice. We are so happy to
Speaker 1: talk to you and share our story with the rest
Speaker 1: of your list. Nurse. UM, if you you know, select
Speaker 1: this UM, but if not, I hope either way this
Speaker 1: message brings a smile into your face and you you
Speaker 1: really I mean every single word inside this message, UM,
Speaker 1: and I just hope you all continue what you're doing
Speaker 1: and bringing smiles to people, UM every day. Wow, Jenna,
Speaker 1: thank you for your message. You and Michael getting married
Speaker 1: in Scranton, Pennsylvania. I haven't heard of that as a
Speaker 1: destination wedding place yet. That's a first. Obviously, I know
Speaker 1: people get married in Scranton, but I assume you're not
Speaker 1: from there and that you chose to go there and
Speaker 1: get married. That is incredible. UM. I have to point
Speaker 1: out that in the beginning of your message, you keep
Speaker 1: saying how much you love HR, and I just needed
Speaker 1: to point that out that you love HR, which of
Speaker 1: course makes people think of Toby. But anyway, thank you
Speaker 1: so much, and Michael God bless you. Thank you so
Speaker 1: much for the work that you're doing keeping people safe
Speaker 1: and healthy every single day. So my best to the
Speaker 1: two of you. And uh, obviously your son has great
Speaker 1: taste if he's watching trash Truck. Hi, Brian. My name
Speaker 1: is Abigail Peters. I am recording this from Lovely Gray
Speaker 1: and Gloomy in Canto, Ohio. I've always wanted to tell
Speaker 1: anyone of the Office, essentially my comment in what the
Speaker 1: Office means to me. I'd always heard of The Office
Speaker 1: growing up, but I never watched it. By the time
Speaker 1: I was eighteen, I had gone through a really bad
Speaker 1: high school breakup with a boyfriend who I thought I
Speaker 1: loved young love type of thing, and he was quite mean,
Speaker 1: to say the least to me. So I was going
Speaker 1: through a rough time mentally and emotionally. And I come
Speaker 1: from a household of divorce. My parents are divorced, so
Speaker 1: for me when it comes to love, I was always
Speaker 1: very confused and watching The Office like binged it satin
Speaker 1: on my couch in the corner, day in and day out,
Speaker 1: and watched it and just watching things like Jim and Pam,
Speaker 1: or even Michael and Holly, even Aaron finding her parents.
Speaker 1: That love, unconditional love. He gave me hope. It gave
Speaker 1: me solace. It was, you know, a young girl who
Speaker 1: thought her heart was broken, forever depressed. What have you lost?
Speaker 1: Hopeless watching someone who looked hopeless. I mean, think about Jim.
Speaker 1: He moved, he thought, I'm never going to be with
Speaker 1: the woman I love, and then look and they had
Speaker 1: their hard times and they overcame adversity and their relationship.
Speaker 1: It just showed me patience and kindness. And I just
Speaker 1: think for young generations trying to figure out life, it
Speaker 1: gives up us almost a piece at heart, piece of
Speaker 1: mind that there are still adults. I mean, these are
Speaker 1: adults in an office still trying to figure out life.
Speaker 1: Even Michael, I mean, by the time he finds Holly
Speaker 1: and everything, they always talk about his agent stuff. He's
Speaker 1: mid forties when he finally finds Holly and finds love.
Speaker 1: I mean it might happen later in life, Phyllis, you
Speaker 1: know later in life type of a situation. But that
Speaker 1: even adults are still figuring it out, even when you
Speaker 1: look in an adult and sit sit there and go, man,
Speaker 1: I had to become an adult somehow, And then here
Speaker 1: are these adults still trying to figure it out, and
Speaker 1: you kind of go, okay, okay, I'm not alone. It's
Speaker 1: just the love and the unconditional nous, the patients, the
Speaker 1: let's work things through, and let's all that. I mean,
Speaker 1: coming from a home and experiences of people screaming and
Speaker 1: yelling at each other and being so impatient and calling
Speaker 1: each other names, to watch people genuinely sit and go,
Speaker 1: you know what, let's talk about this. Let's not just
Speaker 1: blow up on each other, Let's not just tell each
Speaker 1: other off. It just it means this show means so
Speaker 1: much to me. You all means so much to me,
Speaker 1: just because a girl who's going through a tough time,
Speaker 1: a young, freshly eighteen adult thinking, my god, him, I'm
Speaker 1: not going to be able to figure this out. I
Speaker 1: always I always find comfort in this show knowing I
Speaker 1: still have time I can figure it out. Life is
Speaker 1: short but also still quite long. I mean, I'm twenty
Speaker 1: five now, but as an eighteen year old girl in
Speaker 1: two dozen fourteen, who had no idea where life was
Speaker 1: going to take me. I mean, I'm getting choked up
Speaker 1: thinking about it. Like I said, watching Jim and Pam
Speaker 1: Michael find Holly. You know, I found someone. I'm twenty
Speaker 1: five and I finally found someone, and I it brings
Speaker 1: me peace and joy. And I just I love you all.
Speaker 1: I thank you all so so much. And I just
Speaker 1: this show will never mean more to me than anything
Speaker 1: ever has. And I just I thank you guys so much.
Speaker 1: So that's all. Thank you, Brian, Abigail, thanks for your call.
Speaker 1: And I think I'm going to end this episode quoting
Speaker 1: the great Greg Daniels, muttering truth and beauty, Truth and beauty,
Speaker 1: Truth and beauty. And that's what we were trying to
Speaker 1: do on this show, to bring a degree of realism
Speaker 1: that is not typically seen on television, certainly not network television.
Speaker 1: To show the truth which is sometimes ugly. Look, we've
Speaker 1: talked about dinner party today. All you gotta do is
Speaker 1: look at dinner party. That is a disfunctional relationship. Um,
Speaker 1: but ultimately finding the beauty in people through that truth,
Speaker 1: finding that little flower growing out of the concrete parking lot,
Speaker 1: That's what the show was trying to do, and I
Speaker 1: think that is what brings comfort to people. I think
Speaker 1: that's what brings hopefulness to people, and it sounds like
Speaker 1: for you, Abigail. So there is beauty in ordinary things.
Speaker 1: That was our point. And to those of you who
Speaker 1: have received comfort from watching the show, thank you to
Speaker 1: all of you for sharing that with us and know
Speaker 1: that you are important and beautiful. Wow. Thank you guys,
Speaker 1: Thank you all of you truly from the bottom of
Speaker 1: my heart, and the entire team here at the Office
Speaker 1: Deep Dive, thank you for reaching out. Going through all
Speaker 1: of your messages. It has been a roller coaster to
Speaker 1: say the least, but myself and the whole team here
Speaker 1: we have loved every single minute of it. And here
Speaker 1: we are to thank you for joining me for another
Speaker 1: great year of podcasts. I cannot wait for you to
Speaker 1: see what we have in store for you next so
Speaker 1: as always, I will see you next time. The Office.
Speaker 1: Deep Dive is hosted and executive produced by me Brian Baumgartner,
Speaker 1: alongside our executive producer Langley. Our producers are Liz Hayes
Speaker 1: and Diego Tapia. Our theme song Bubble and Squeak, performed
Speaker 1: by my great friend Creed Bratton, and the episode was
Speaker 1: mixed by Seth o Landski. Hi, Brian, this is Josh.
Speaker 1: I love the podcast. I've been watching the show since
Speaker 1: two was in six when I was in college. It's
Speaker 1: helped me through some hard times in my life. It's
Speaker 1: made me laugh and cry. I don't think my life
Speaker 1: would be the same without The Office. It's tough for
Speaker 1: me to put into words adequately. I guess exactly what
Speaker 1: The Office means to me. I even put it on
Speaker 1: when I go places now. I put it on for
Speaker 1: my dog. And recently my TV died and my dad
Speaker 1: joked that it was because my dog was sick of
Speaker 1: watching The Office over and over again. Um, which she doesn't.
Speaker 1: She loves it. My dad passed away when I was
Speaker 1: eight years old, and I didn't realize how much he
Speaker 1: loved the show until I grew up and after he
Speaker 1: was gone. But I feel like I get my love
Speaker 1: for the show from him, and it just feels so
Speaker 1: nice to be able to have this connection with him
Speaker 1: that I didn't know I had um until recently. To
Speaker 1: summit Mason silly to instill such an emotional connection to
Speaker 1: a television show, but the fans of this show, as
Speaker 1: well as the cast and crew alike on nderstand It.
Speaker 1: I know you've gotten such a positive reception for your podcasts,
Speaker 1: and I just wanted to echo that and reiterate that
Speaker 1: you deserve every oums of that response. As Dave Rogers said,
Speaker 1: thank you for this. Thank you