WEBVTT - Paul Lieberstein 0:00:00.800 --> 0:00:03.320 Did you know that on the day Dr King was shot, 0:00:03.360 --> 0:00:06.680 the all black security detail normally assigned to him was 0:00:06.720 --> 0:00:10.559 called off. They're the ones who would not allow him 0:00:10.600 --> 0:00:15.120 to stay at any hotel with balconies. Also, did you 0:00:15.160 --> 0:00:21.279 ever asked what this was all about? This is the 0:00:21.400 --> 0:00:25.319 MLK tapes. The first episodes are available now. Listen on 0:00:25.360 --> 0:00:28.479 the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you 0:00:28.520 --> 0:00:32.800 get your podcasts. I'm Sarah Wendell and for close to 0:00:32.840 --> 0:00:35.879 twenty years, I've been a wildly recognized expert in the 0:00:35.920 --> 0:00:39.080 world of romance. And I'm Alicia Rai, best selling author 0:00:39.120 --> 0:00:43.560 of over twenty romance novels. Introducing I Heart's new romance podcast, 0:00:43.720 --> 0:00:46.880 Love Struck. Daily. Every day we deliver a new love 0:00:46.960 --> 0:00:52.160 story straight to your headphones. Real life love stories guaranteed 0:00:52.280 --> 0:00:55.000 to bring all the fields. A little bit of sexy, 0:00:55.240 --> 0:00:57.800 a little bit of danger, and a lot of heart. 0:00:57.960 --> 0:01:00.760 Who doesn't need more love like this? Who wants to 0:01:00.800 --> 0:01:03.080 go on a first date with me? On Instagram Live? 0:01:03.120 --> 0:01:07.840 Are you serious? Real life fairy tale? Right there? Badass 0:01:07.959 --> 0:01:11.200 lady Pirate and Mary takes her shirt off. Let me 0:01:11.280 --> 0:01:18.120 show you pirate style and it's just and for goodness, sakes, 0:01:18.240 --> 0:01:21.920 Just kiss already. Listen to love Stock daily on the 0:01:21.959 --> 0:01:25.360 I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get 0:01:25.360 --> 0:01:32.320 your podcasts. I'm in love with you. Look for your 0:01:32.400 --> 0:01:35.959 children's eyes and you will discover the true magic of 0:01:36.000 --> 0:01:39.920 a forest. Find a forest near you and start exploring it. 0:01:40.080 --> 0:01:42.680 Discover the forest dot Org. Brought to you by the 0:01:42.760 --> 0:01:51.120 United States Forest Service and the AD Council. My name 0:01:51.160 --> 0:01:54.720 is Paul lie Verstein, and I am a writer and 0:01:54.800 --> 0:02:00.480 director and producer on the Office, and I played Toby. 0:02:00.640 --> 0:02:09.360 I've forgotten. I constantly forget that I've played Hello and welcome. 0:02:09.960 --> 0:02:13.680 Thank you all for being here. This is the Office 0:02:13.840 --> 0:02:18.040 Deep Dive, and I am your host, Brian Baumgartner. Today 0:02:18.440 --> 0:02:26.560 we have the quadruple maybe quintuple threat, Paul Lieberstein. Now, 0:02:27.120 --> 0:02:30.680 despite the fact that he almost forgot about it. Paul 0:02:31.400 --> 0:02:36.960 is probably most famous for playing dunder Mifflin's h R. Rep. 0:02:37.480 --> 0:02:42.920 Toby Flenderson. Toby was a fantastic character, the character that 0:02:43.040 --> 0:02:48.160 everybody love to hate. Well maybe they just hated. Toby 0:02:48.240 --> 0:02:51.040 was the character that everyone just hated. But let me 0:02:51.080 --> 0:02:55.519 be very clear, Toby was hated Paul. Nobody hated Paul. 0:02:56.000 --> 0:02:59.480 He was one of our original writers. He was a director, 0:02:59.520 --> 0:03:03.160 a produce, sir, and he was our boss. He was 0:03:03.240 --> 0:03:06.600 the show runner on the show from season's five all 0:03:06.639 --> 0:03:10.360 the way through season eight, which well that means I 0:03:10.360 --> 0:03:13.639 had a lot to talk to Paul about. And Paul 0:03:14.400 --> 0:03:18.160 blew my mind with so many things I had never 0:03:18.200 --> 0:03:22.800 heard before, multiple times during this conversation. So I am 0:03:22.960 --> 0:03:26.480 very excited for you all to hear it. So, without 0:03:26.560 --> 0:03:32.200 further ado, the most soft spoken man in television, Paul 0:03:32.240 --> 0:03:41.480 Lieberstein Bubble and Squeak. I love it Bubble and Squeak 0:03:41.520 --> 0:03:48.200 on Bubble and Squeaker Cookie every month, lift over from 0:03:48.200 --> 0:04:09.839 the night before. Oh there is great. You've been doing 0:04:09.840 --> 0:04:12.680 a bunch. I've been doing a bunch. Yes, there's no 0:04:12.840 --> 0:04:16.680 way too much about the office, I way too much. 0:04:17.480 --> 0:04:19.920 And this is all off the record, correct, all of it. 0:04:20.080 --> 0:04:23.520 We're not going to record. And we're not we're literally 0:04:23.560 --> 0:04:32.799 not recording any of it. Wow, Hi, Paul, are we rolling? Um? 0:04:32.839 --> 0:04:35.279 I mean you know, we're just we're literally we're just 0:04:35.360 --> 0:04:38.960 having a conversation. Oh you know what I'm saying. Again, 0:04:39.000 --> 0:04:44.120 it's all off the record, nothing's gonna be recorded. Um, 0:04:44.120 --> 0:04:49.040 how are you? How's it work going? All right, Yeah 0:04:49.120 --> 0:04:55.680 it looks yeah. Things are good. Yeah, family, family is kid, 0:04:55.960 --> 0:04:58.560 family is good. Work is sort of so so, but 0:04:58.640 --> 0:05:02.840 family is good. No, No, that's probably accurate. Family it's great. 0:05:02.960 --> 0:05:06.479 I got a lot of joy from family and not 0:05:06.560 --> 0:05:10.000 as much from not as much from Okay, I hear you. Alright, 0:05:10.040 --> 0:05:14.760 So rewind back in your mind like fifteen years. Okay, 0:05:14.920 --> 0:05:17.800 we're going back like two thousand four. What were you 0:05:17.839 --> 0:05:20.680 doing in your work, not with your family? I don't 0:05:20.720 --> 0:05:25.800 know what I was doing. I mean held and there 0:05:25.880 --> 0:05:29.679 was the True Care Show, and then Bernie mac Show 0:05:30.000 --> 0:05:32.240 and then Greg the Bunny. I think Greg the Bunny 0:05:32.560 --> 0:05:35.440 was the last show that I had done. You were 0:05:35.440 --> 0:05:39.000 writing on Greg's Bunny? And then were you unemployed? At 0:05:39.000 --> 0:05:42.200 that point? I think I was free? You were free? Yeah? 0:05:42.360 --> 0:05:45.080 Were you aware? I never really think about it as unemployed, 0:05:45.640 --> 0:05:49.360 just free because like our jobs come and go, right, 0:05:49.800 --> 0:05:52.680 So if you think about is unemployed, you can hit 0:05:52.720 --> 0:05:57.520 some very big loads in there. Trust man's just they 0:05:57.560 --> 0:06:01.480 come and go. Yeah, so you were free? Is free? Yeah? 0:06:01.520 --> 0:06:04.280 Were you aware of the British version of it? Yeah, 0:06:04.600 --> 0:06:08.280 you are very aware. I loved it. Yeah, I was 0:06:08.320 --> 0:06:12.440 aware way before Greg was going to adapt it. I 0:06:12.480 --> 0:06:14.520 mean it would really hit the sweet spot of what 0:06:15.600 --> 0:06:20.799 I loved about writing UM and what I loved about TP. 0:06:21.400 --> 0:06:25.120 What do you love about writing? UM? I do like 0:06:25.360 --> 0:06:29.320 trying to catch real comedy as it seems to exist 0:06:29.400 --> 0:06:33.280 in the world for me, and I like, you know, situations, 0:06:33.560 --> 0:06:37.680 and it's much less people cracking jokes. And I think 0:06:37.839 --> 0:06:40.520 there's a lot of room for people cracking jokes comedy, 0:06:40.800 --> 0:06:43.680 you know, And I enjoy it sometimes, but it's not 0:06:43.720 --> 0:06:49.560 what I'm interested in writing, right, Um, that was really unprofessional. 0:06:49.600 --> 0:06:54.000 I didn't silence my thing, damn it. Um, So life, 0:06:54.080 --> 0:06:57.520 you know, we hear noises, We hear noises that fa 0:06:57.720 --> 0:07:00.240 deal and planes that fly over it's going to stop 0:07:00.279 --> 0:07:04.960 their car? Like, what the hell was that? Um? What 0:07:05.000 --> 0:07:08.800 was your relationship with Greg prior to you coming to 0:07:08.800 --> 0:07:13.240 work on The Office? Um? Well, very strong released it 0:07:13.400 --> 0:07:16.080 was he's my brother in law, right, So you've known 0:07:16.120 --> 0:07:18.720 each other for a while, for a very long time. Yeah, yeah, 0:07:18.760 --> 0:07:21.120 And you had worked together on King of the Hell. 0:07:21.320 --> 0:07:22.960 So you were a big fan of the Office. You 0:07:23.000 --> 0:07:25.520 knew it before he came on to adapt it. Were 0:07:25.520 --> 0:07:28.040 you excited about that? Thrilled? And I was thrilled when 0:07:28.040 --> 0:07:31.800 he asked me to be part of it, and I 0:07:31.840 --> 0:07:36.760 was quite nervous about taking it on. But I couldn't 0:07:36.760 --> 0:07:39.240 imagine not taking it onto, because then what am I 0:07:39.240 --> 0:07:42.120 gonna do? Just work on something that is good. Why 0:07:42.160 --> 0:07:45.080 were you nervous? Well, because I loved the British It 0:07:45.200 --> 0:07:48.960 was done at a very high level and you know, um, 0:07:49.160 --> 0:07:52.760 you know, most adaptations don't work. But because of your 0:07:52.760 --> 0:07:57.080 relationship with Greg, you didn't know that you would be 0:07:57.120 --> 0:07:58.840 working on the show. But you showed up for some 0:07:58.920 --> 0:08:02.040 of the filming of the pilot. Yeah, just to hang 0:08:02.080 --> 0:08:03.880 out and see how it was going, and just this 0:08:04.000 --> 0:08:06.920 kind of a viewer. Did you give notes? I think 0:08:06.920 --> 0:08:10.480 I suggested a few jokes, but you know, notes seems 0:08:10.520 --> 0:08:14.440 to be a word used when when someone has like 0:08:14.560 --> 0:08:19.760 an official role. Right, oh shit, okay, what are your notes? 0:08:21.680 --> 0:08:24.520 I'm not interested in someone's notes. If they have some ideas, 0:08:25.080 --> 0:08:29.160 I'd love to hear their ideas. Right. Um, So when 0:08:29.160 --> 0:08:30.520 did you find out that you would be joining the 0:08:30.520 --> 0:08:33.160 writing staff? I guess after the pilot was picked up. 0:08:33.160 --> 0:08:36.000 He started putting it together and called. They also didn't 0:08:36.040 --> 0:08:38.000 have a lot of money, because you know, NBC wasn't 0:08:38.040 --> 0:08:39.880 releasing a lot of money, so he had a real 0:08:40.000 --> 0:08:43.960 scout on staff, and I think I was officially three 0:08:44.040 --> 0:08:47.040 days a week, although I started doing five days just 0:08:47.080 --> 0:08:50.199 because it was fun and there was lots to do. Yeah, 0:08:50.320 --> 0:08:53.840 I would not like coming in and something happened without me. 0:08:54.640 --> 0:08:56.600 It's like, wait a second, No, we just agreed on this, 0:08:57.360 --> 0:08:59.920 so that was better to be part of the whole thing. 0:09:00.200 --> 0:09:04.680 What specific challenges did you feel or did you feel 0:09:04.679 --> 0:09:09.160 like the writer's room felt adapting the show that you know, 0:09:09.320 --> 0:09:12.160 critically and at least with a core group of people, 0:09:12.200 --> 0:09:17.760 was such a huge, colt amazing show. I mean, obviously 0:09:17.800 --> 0:09:21.680 we were really challenged. Everyone there loves the British show. 0:09:22.440 --> 0:09:25.640 I think we just we didn't want to just copy it, 0:09:26.320 --> 0:09:29.360 nor did we want to abandon it. But I remember 0:09:29.400 --> 0:09:33.560 Greg saying early on that he kind of like took 0:09:33.600 --> 0:09:35.800 apart that show like a watch and put it back 0:09:35.840 --> 0:09:40.120 together and he knows exactly how it works, and so 0:09:40.160 --> 0:09:42.960 I think we just grabbed the principles of how it 0:09:43.000 --> 0:09:47.559 worked without grabbing anything else. I mean, there was definitely 0:09:47.559 --> 0:09:50.520 a mirror, like a fuzzy mirror on the English show 0:09:50.640 --> 0:09:52.280 where you could point to a lot of things and 0:09:52.360 --> 0:09:54.600 be like, okay, you know, American version. That's so that's 0:09:54.640 --> 0:09:57.560 the American version of that English ning. But it really wasn't. 0:09:58.080 --> 0:10:02.280 I mean, Jim and Tim worst incredibly different as we're done, 0:10:02.280 --> 0:10:06.440 and Pam and and you can't even begin to compare 0:10:07.200 --> 0:10:11.120 Ricky and Steve. You know, do you remember feeling a 0:10:11.160 --> 0:10:16.000 pressure to make it our own or americanize it? No? No, 0:10:16.880 --> 0:10:19.760 it's felt the pressure to like live up to the 0:10:19.840 --> 0:10:27.000 quality of their show, right, Um, and the potential embarrassment 0:10:27.679 --> 0:10:32.400 that we faced. Yeah, when did you learn that you 0:10:32.440 --> 0:10:34.120 were also going to be an actor on the show. 0:10:36.679 --> 0:10:39.160 So we we had a while before we started production. 0:10:39.240 --> 0:10:42.040 We were writing and writing, and nothing about it came up. 0:10:42.120 --> 0:10:45.920 It never crossed our mind. But um, I think we 0:10:46.040 --> 0:10:49.120 had the need for someone to come in and do 0:10:49.440 --> 0:10:53.679 one line. And Greg had this idea that he wanted 0:10:53.720 --> 0:10:56.840 to kind of break down the wall between the writers 0:10:56.840 --> 0:11:01.880 and actors, which is like Verry like strong sacred wall, 0:11:02.160 --> 0:11:05.160 this big tradition, and he thought, let's give it a try. 0:11:05.240 --> 0:11:08.240 Let's break this down and you know, have some writers 0:11:08.240 --> 0:11:10.679 see what it's like to be on set and have 0:11:10.800 --> 0:11:15.000 more communication between the writers and the actors. And so 0:11:15.040 --> 0:11:18.880 I got the one line. But we were up all 0:11:18.960 --> 0:11:24.559 night writing and and it was like four in the morning, 0:11:25.320 --> 0:11:27.439 but we finally went home and then I kind of 0:11:27.480 --> 0:11:30.760 stumbled onto the set the next day. I had one line. 0:11:31.200 --> 0:11:34.120 I didn't really know it very well, and I didn't 0:11:34.120 --> 0:11:38.360 know Steve was going to improvise at all, and I 0:11:38.440 --> 0:11:40.760 was so tired when we did it, and I think 0:11:40.800 --> 0:11:46.800 that would like infused the performance quite a bit. And Steve, 0:11:47.000 --> 0:11:50.160 you know, he wasn't the giant yet, you know he was. 0:11:50.880 --> 0:11:53.800 He was kind of another actor on set, So I mean, 0:11:53.920 --> 0:11:56.160 I can't imagine what it had been like coming in 0:11:56.280 --> 0:12:00.360 season four and having to act with them, right, I 0:12:00.400 --> 0:12:02.840 would have been really scary. But we got to know 0:12:02.960 --> 0:12:06.600 him as we went, so it wasn't so bad. And 0:12:06.720 --> 0:12:08.720 you know, we had such a forgiving as you know, 0:12:09.280 --> 0:12:13.640 filming style. You kind of couldn't make a mistake unless 0:12:13.640 --> 0:12:18.560 you broke, which happened. Which happened, But I didn't break much. 0:12:19.160 --> 0:12:21.560 You didn't. I would just kind of stop and wait 0:12:22.200 --> 0:12:25.920 for someone else to talk, which always happened. Someone would 0:12:25.960 --> 0:12:30.240 jump in. I feel like I remember a big break 0:12:30.280 --> 0:12:34.240 from you when Rain got really close to your face 0:12:34.960 --> 0:12:40.680 and asked you where the Yeah, yeah, yeah, I definitely 0:12:40.720 --> 0:12:47.720 broke yeah. Um There was a moment in uh season one. 0:12:48.280 --> 0:12:50.600 I was barely acting, you know, I was just figuring 0:12:50.640 --> 0:12:54.280 it all out, and we were doing a scene together 0:12:54.360 --> 0:12:58.320 and they kept trying to make me be louder, and 0:12:58.360 --> 0:12:59.960 I was like, I don't know why I would be 0:13:00.040 --> 0:13:02.200 louder because the person I'm talking to is right here. 0:13:02.760 --> 0:13:05.160 Why would I be louder? And you said to me, 0:13:05.679 --> 0:13:08.760 we're sitting next to the refrigerator, which is off. Imagine 0:13:08.920 --> 0:13:11.440 that it's got a really loud hum and you have 0:13:11.480 --> 0:13:16.320 to talk a little louder. Oh okay, that was the 0:13:16.360 --> 0:13:23.960 beginning of acting. So I taught you everything you know? Well, 0:13:25.000 --> 0:13:28.200 you tell me one thing that I know. Yes, yes, Wow. 0:13:28.600 --> 0:13:32.440 It could have given me a little more credit there. No, 0:13:32.720 --> 0:13:36.800 I learned from everybody on set. Oh that's amazing. You 0:13:36.840 --> 0:13:40.320 said it's not traditional and there's this huge wall typically 0:13:40.360 --> 0:13:43.800 between the writing staff and the actors. How do you 0:13:43.800 --> 0:13:47.640 think that that difference in our show changed the dynamic 0:13:47.960 --> 0:13:49.800 it would have been. I don't think I should would 0:13:49.840 --> 0:13:52.280 have come out that way if there if there was 0:13:52.320 --> 0:13:56.520 a strict wall. We were all on the same page 0:13:56.520 --> 0:14:01.720 with the show writers and actors, and we became so 0:14:01.880 --> 0:14:05.719 close with each character and actor and liked them and 0:14:05.920 --> 0:14:09.720 liked writing for them. And that often doesn't happen when 0:14:09.760 --> 0:14:12.000 they're so separate. The writers have one idea what the 0:14:12.040 --> 0:14:13.960 show is that they want to create, and the actors 0:14:13.960 --> 0:14:16.920 have a different and so they're fighting each other on 0:14:17.000 --> 0:14:20.520 set just create without ever talking. They're fighting each other. Right, 0:14:21.040 --> 0:14:23.640 So I think, yeah, it was such a it was 0:14:23.680 --> 0:14:26.760 such a good I need to do Often that wall 0:14:26.880 --> 0:14:31.280 is there because of the producers and the director. Now, 0:14:31.320 --> 0:14:34.080 the director typically, you know, you're not supposed to have 0:14:34.120 --> 0:14:38.200 any sector. Is supposed to be the only person talking 0:14:38.200 --> 0:14:43.880 to you about your performance, right, And I get that. 0:14:44.080 --> 0:14:50.120 But at the same time, if you have you know, 0:14:50.240 --> 0:14:52.560 the show goes for a little while. Actors know their 0:14:52.640 --> 0:14:54.800 roles better than the director, the writers know the characters 0:14:54.800 --> 0:14:58.880 better than the director, the DP knows the show better 0:14:58.920 --> 0:15:00.800 than the director. And the director is coming in knowing 0:15:00.800 --> 0:15:04.680 the least about the show of anybody, and we're all 0:15:04.720 --> 0:15:07.960 supposed to like not make the show better and just 0:15:08.040 --> 0:15:11.680 wait for the director to catch It's just it doesn't 0:15:11.720 --> 0:15:15.720 really work completely, right. It's the It's the thing about TV. 0:15:15.800 --> 0:15:18.880 I mean, it's a great rule for a great rule 0:15:18.920 --> 0:15:21.320 for a movie, and I mean, you know, you can 0:15:21.320 --> 0:15:24.760 see like as a director too, and we all became directors. 0:15:24.880 --> 0:15:27.600 You know that building someone's performance, you want to tell 0:15:27.600 --> 0:15:30.080 them just a couple of things. You can slowly try 0:15:30.120 --> 0:15:33.280 to push them in a direction, and you know, it 0:15:33.320 --> 0:15:36.760 matters how you say things. And I think we all 0:15:37.000 --> 0:15:41.200 generally respected that boundary while we were building a scene, 0:15:42.040 --> 0:15:45.160 but we all talked about the scenes beforehand and afterwards 0:15:45.280 --> 0:15:47.880 what was going to come up the stories, and when 0:15:47.920 --> 0:15:50.320 things weren't working, we just stopped and we just talked 0:15:50.360 --> 0:15:55.240 to each other. I've taken that with me into the future, 0:15:55.840 --> 0:15:58.760 like I always will show respect to a director, but 0:15:59.000 --> 0:16:01.640 I will walk the video village and have a conversation 0:16:01.680 --> 0:16:04.280 with the writer or the creators on set just about 0:16:04.320 --> 0:16:07.360 the character or or what we're going for. I feel 0:16:07.360 --> 0:16:09.280 like I'm able to have a conversation with them and 0:16:09.440 --> 0:16:14.680 get to the core of actually what it is they're yeah, yeah, 0:16:14.760 --> 0:16:16.960 Which is that a director is just more skilled at 0:16:17.240 --> 0:16:22.840 having that conversation. Yeah, Yeah, I've really I'm really big 0:16:22.840 --> 0:16:27.760 it with intention. Now I'm working on the Space Force 0:16:27.840 --> 0:16:30.720 with Greg Now, so we were doing scenes with Steve 0:16:30.840 --> 0:16:34.080 and I tell him to say whatever he wants and 0:16:34.120 --> 0:16:38.160 just tell the intention, right, I mean, he's gonna say 0:16:38.200 --> 0:16:44.840 whatever he wants anyway. But right, Um, did you feel 0:16:44.880 --> 0:16:50.240 like you had because of your relationship with Greg? Did 0:16:50.280 --> 0:16:54.160 you feel like you had a greater accountability to him 0:16:54.200 --> 0:16:58.320 when you started working Like, did you feel Yeah? I 0:16:58.360 --> 0:17:01.240 think you know, there's always the this I when two 0:17:01.280 --> 0:17:05.120 people are working together and related, there there's there's this 0:17:05.440 --> 0:17:09.359 sense of nepotism, you know, And I felt like I 0:17:09.440 --> 0:17:13.440 had more to prove and I wanted to, for both 0:17:13.440 --> 0:17:17.000 of our sakes, defend against that by just doing more 0:17:17.560 --> 0:17:22.680 and being better, you know. Right, Um, I just want 0:17:22.680 --> 0:17:26.440 to talk a little bit about the form of the show. 0:17:26.880 --> 0:17:30.480 We began over time to find elements that we felt 0:17:30.520 --> 0:17:33.960 like worked that was going to create, you know, the 0:17:34.000 --> 0:17:38.680 best half hour of television, meaning in diversity day for example, 0:17:38.760 --> 0:17:42.480 like setting that episode in one day, having you know, 0:17:42.560 --> 0:17:46.760 having all episodes were one days most yes, as a rule. 0:17:47.359 --> 0:17:49.840 As a rule, yeah, yeah, and which I astally think 0:17:49.880 --> 0:17:52.000 that's something we broke a handful of times in two 0:17:52.960 --> 0:17:57.200 And why was that important? When we were talking about 0:17:57.240 --> 0:17:59.760 the concept of the show. A documentary crew had come 0:17:59.760 --> 0:18:04.119 there that day for some reason, and everything we shot 0:18:04.240 --> 0:18:08.879 was contained in like their intention and the I know, 0:18:08.960 --> 0:18:12.160 at least the first few times we broke that rule, 0:18:12.280 --> 0:18:15.080 it was because a story lingered to the next day, 0:18:15.080 --> 0:18:19.879 so they followed it. But it was our feeling that 0:18:19.920 --> 0:18:24.399 they weren't there every day catching everything, whereas I think 0:18:24.440 --> 0:18:26.080 towards the end of the show we we said, no, 0:18:26.200 --> 0:18:29.800 maybe they just are there every day. I have never 0:18:29.840 --> 0:18:33.600 heard this before. I swear to god, I've never heard 0:18:33.640 --> 0:18:38.320 this before. Yeah, why why did they come? Because they 0:18:38.359 --> 0:18:42.679 came because they knew, Um, this person was coming to 0:18:42.680 --> 0:18:46.680 talk to Michael about you know, a problem they received, 0:18:47.000 --> 0:18:50.399 you know, the Larry movement, diversity thing, or but there 0:18:50.400 --> 0:18:53.160 there was always that hook. Where were they there even 0:18:53.160 --> 0:18:56.159 if it was never stated or so like, oh today 0:18:56.160 --> 0:18:59.359 it's the Christmas party? Yeah, exactly. You can imagine some 0:18:59.440 --> 0:19:01.720 days were not thing happened and they just didn't come. 0:19:03.320 --> 0:19:07.720 That is Oh my god, that's so awesome. Do we 0:19:07.800 --> 0:19:11.000 have that there? I loved that so much that do 0:19:11.119 --> 0:19:14.080 we have that? Why wouldn't we have it? Are you 0:19:14.119 --> 0:19:19.160 just recording it's this? Sometimes they just as you feel 0:19:19.200 --> 0:19:21.359 like something interesting happening. No, I'm making sure that it's 0:19:21.400 --> 0:19:26.480 clear from you. Um okay, So what did the Cold 0:19:26.480 --> 0:19:29.840 Opens give us done? Um? What did that allow us 0:19:29.880 --> 0:19:33.040 to do Aside from that sort of core structure as 0:19:33.040 --> 0:19:35.680 we as we began to do those, I guess that 0:19:36.000 --> 0:19:38.240 it allowed us to take on something of a much 0:19:38.240 --> 0:19:43.120 smaller scope, a pure thing like you're bringing in Chile. 0:19:43.200 --> 0:19:46.439 It was not going to be an episode. It was 0:19:47.400 --> 0:19:51.080 a small thing, simple thing. One of the office workers 0:19:51.080 --> 0:19:55.480 brings in some food and here's our little he's fills 0:19:55.520 --> 0:20:00.760 it and there it is, right, I mean, side note, 0:20:03.119 --> 0:20:05.840 it is by far the thing that people talk to 0:20:05.880 --> 0:20:09.439 me about the most. Oh, there is no question. How 0:20:09.520 --> 0:20:13.320 do you feel about that? Um? I thought it was 0:20:13.359 --> 0:20:17.760 a beautiful moment. I never thought it would be this. 0:20:18.080 --> 0:20:21.520 It was a humongous departure from almost anything that was 0:20:21.600 --> 0:20:24.119 ever done on the show. It was kind of controversial 0:20:24.160 --> 0:20:26.440 at the time. They were some people who didn't want 0:20:26.440 --> 0:20:29.680 to do it. Well, it's only one character for an 0:20:29.680 --> 0:20:36.560 extended monologue, largely played in voice over. Yes, that ends 0:20:36.600 --> 0:20:41.080 in that. And they had shower. I showered and showered 0:20:41.200 --> 0:20:46.240 and scrubbed and just like throwing out dirty towels out 0:20:46.280 --> 0:20:50.840 of the shower to the wardrobe people. We filmed it 0:20:50.880 --> 0:20:53.920 obviously at the end of the day, and Oscar and 0:20:53.960 --> 0:20:56.480 Angela and I had a dinner that night at Mastros. 0:20:57.119 --> 0:20:58.919 We would do this occasionally, we would go out and 0:20:58.920 --> 0:21:01.159 have a nice dinner and just talk and be human 0:21:01.200 --> 0:21:04.000 beings instead of accountants. And I walked in and all 0:21:04.040 --> 0:21:06.240 I could do is smell chili all over my hands. 0:21:06.280 --> 0:21:10.680 Just it just it was just in my skin. Um, 0:21:10.720 --> 0:21:23.200 all right, enough about me. It's a hard time for hiring, 0:21:23.560 --> 0:21:26.840 so you need a hiring partner built for hard times. 0:21:27.400 --> 0:21:31.760 That's Indeed. If you're hiring, you need Indeed because Indeed 0:21:31.840 --> 0:21:34.600 is the hiring partner where you can attract, interview, and 0:21:34.680 --> 0:21:38.160 hire all in one place. 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Plus, 0:22:19.160 --> 0:22:22.560 you only pay for quality applications that meet your must 0:22:22.600 --> 0:22:27.879 have requirements. Join more than three million businesses worldwide that 0:22:28.040 --> 0:22:32.200 use Indeed to hire great talent fast. Start hiring right 0:22:32.240 --> 0:22:35.159 now with a seventy five dollar sponsored job credit to 0:22:35.240 --> 0:22:38.840 upgrade your job post at indeed dot com slash office 0:22:38.920 --> 0:22:42.280 deep Dive offer valid through March thirty one. Go to 0:22:42.400 --> 0:22:45.800 indeed dot com slash office deep Dive to claim your 0:22:45.920 --> 0:22:50.479 seventy five dollar credit before March one. Indeed dot Com 0:22:50.560 --> 0:22:54.679 slash office Deep Dive terms and conditions apply. Need to 0:22:54.760 --> 0:23:00.560 hire you need Indeed. Hi, I'm Hillary Clinton and I'm 0:23:00.560 --> 0:23:03.159 excited to be back with a new season of you 0:23:03.320 --> 0:23:06.480 and me both. You know, when we started this podcast, 0:23:06.720 --> 0:23:09.400 we were going through some tough times, and let's face it, 0:23:09.520 --> 0:23:12.640 we still are. But I am a firm believer we're 0:23:12.680 --> 0:23:17.280 stronger together, So please join me for more conversations with 0:23:17.359 --> 0:23:20.120 people who will make you think, make you laugh, and 0:23:20.280 --> 0:23:23.399 help us find a path forward. Listen to you and 0:23:23.480 --> 0:23:26.520 me both on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcast, 0:23:26.680 --> 0:23:40.359 or wherever you get your podcasts. What Grows in the 0:23:40.400 --> 0:23:44.200 Forest Trees sure, no one else grows in the forest. 0:23:44.400 --> 0:23:48.360 Our imagination, our sense of wonder, and our family bonds 0:23:48.400 --> 0:23:53.920 grow too, because when we disconnect from this and connect 0:23:53.960 --> 0:23:58.600 with this, we reconnect with each other. The forest is 0:23:58.640 --> 0:24:01.639 closer than you think. Find a forest near you and 0:24:01.680 --> 0:24:05.000 start exploring. I discovered the forest dot Org, brought to 0:24:05.040 --> 0:24:08.120 you by the United States Forest Service and the AD Council. 0:24:19.400 --> 0:24:22.600 So you think about the office as this place of 0:24:22.960 --> 0:24:29.000 ordinary stasis. But to me, what Greg and you did 0:24:29.200 --> 0:24:37.040 throughout the show was constantly change something which I think 0:24:37.119 --> 0:24:42.240 created a kinetic energy that kept spinning through. Was that 0:24:42.359 --> 0:24:44.040 something that you were thinking about at the time, like 0:24:44.080 --> 0:24:50.480 trying to keep stirring that pot. Yeah? Absolutely, I mean 0:24:50.560 --> 0:24:55.480 I always thought putting Steve in with new blood and 0:24:55.520 --> 0:25:00.399 a new energy was like worth six episodes of just 0:25:00.560 --> 0:25:04.040 great comedy. Just every new person that you put next 0:25:04.040 --> 0:25:07.560 to him. So like Idris Elba, Charles Minor just so 0:25:07.760 --> 0:25:11.920 yes exactly, you know, who's clearly not a comedy guy, 0:25:12.119 --> 0:25:15.720 hasn't done comedy before or since. But that energy next 0:25:15.760 --> 0:25:19.720 to Steve was amazing, you know, and he just it's 0:25:19.760 --> 0:25:23.520 what happens to him, you know, and he becomes a 0:25:23.600 --> 0:25:31.320 different pars Cathy Bates next to Steve, Holly Amy Ryan. Um, 0:25:31.359 --> 0:25:34.080 how do you feel like, in addition to those things, 0:25:34.280 --> 0:25:37.880 kind of leaning into more of the supporting cast, fleshing 0:25:37.880 --> 0:25:42.040 out those stories. How did that help keep the dynamic? Oh? Yeah, 0:25:42.160 --> 0:25:45.480 that was the key. I think. You know, this idea 0:25:45.520 --> 0:25:48.919 that there's five characters on the show was this age 0:25:48.920 --> 0:25:53.600 old idea. You know, sitcoms have been following that pattern 0:25:53.960 --> 0:25:57.280 for like as long as I've been watching them sixty years, 0:25:58.280 --> 0:26:01.080 you know. Um, but there's no recent for it. And 0:26:01.640 --> 0:26:04.840 I'd say in the beginning, you know, it was five 0:26:04.920 --> 0:26:09.359 plus side characters, but that didn't last long. Everyone was 0:26:09.560 --> 0:26:16.520 a character and pretty equal. Um. And then taking turns 0:26:16.600 --> 0:26:19.560 and like saying okay, and again a lot of it was, 0:26:19.840 --> 0:26:22.119 you know, because Steve was the comedy Michael was the 0:26:22.119 --> 0:26:26.520 comedy driver. So picking the two, picking two characters to 0:26:26.640 --> 0:26:29.359 then create an episode around, say Okay, this is gonna 0:26:29.400 --> 0:26:32.719 be Michael Kevin or a Michael Stanley. You know what? 0:26:32.760 --> 0:26:35.199 Did I stutter? Or we could just move that around 0:26:35.240 --> 0:26:37.879 and kind of take turns and we would get a 0:26:37.880 --> 0:26:44.000