Mayim Bialik's Breakdown - Colin Quinn: You Can’t Fix the World

Episode Date: March 8, 2022

Colin Quinn (comedian, actor, author, former Saturday Night Live "Weekend Update" host) stops by to discuss the science of stand-up and his journey toward sobriety. He takes us through his comedic evolution, from heckling teachers in school to pursuing comedy full-time after getting sober. Colin opens up about his unrecognized issues manifesting during his time at SNL, his experiences with jungian therapy, and his belief in purgatory. Mayim and Colin discuss sensory reactions to comedic timing, comedic sensibilities informed by demographics, and the consequences of ego. See Colin Quinn on Tour: http://colinquinn.com/ BialikBreakdown.com YouTube.com/mayimbialik Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When I quit drinking, I was so suicidal because I was like, that's the only thing I love doing, going to bars. I loved it. So I was like, now I'll do comedy because I said, I have nothing to fear. That's my biggest love of my life is gone, drinking. I have nothing to lose. Hi, I'm Myambiolic. Welcome to My Breakdown. This is the place where you break things down so that you do not have to.

It's My Ambialic's Breakdown. break it down for you because you know she knows a thing or two so now she's going to break down. Got a good one today. Very, very significant comedian, also an actor and an author,

Colin Quinn. He is indeed one of the most beloved voices in comedy. But first, one of the most beloved voices in podcast world, Jonathan Cohen. Maybe only in our podcast world. And there's only a 50-50.

I think you're beloved and be loved. Loved. Hello, Jonathan. How are you feeling? I'm feeling pretty good, Maim. How are you today? I'm excited to talk to Colin. I mean, I grew up watching him. I think he's very funny. The comedian's comedian. He is a comedian's comedian. He does a lot of a lot of theater. I mean, a lot of writing, a lot of his own kind of, you know, once he sort of left the SNL world, he's done so many things. He was on Broadway with Colin Quinn and Irish Wake and long short story, which was also an HBO special. Unconstitutional, which is on Netflix, The New York Story, which was directed by Jerry Seinfeld, also on Netflix. He also, in 2019, premiered Red State Blue State. And that was actually adapted into a special that was, well, you can get it on Netflix,

but it was CNN's first comedy special. And as we'll talk about with him, he's not a political comedian per se. He's a keen observer, you know, of patterns as comedians, you know, are and tend to. be. But he's also had a very interesting path. And yeah, he's going to be actually doing a new show, Colin Quinn, colon, the Last Best Hope, just wrapped a sold out New York City run at the Lucille, actually in November. But you can get tickets for Last Best Hope at Colin Quinn.com. And Jonathan and I are going to try and actually go. The world is shifting in that direction. So I would love to see that. Jonathan, do we have anything to tell our friends about?

Not really. I think they should just strap in, get ready for a good one. Pull the bar down and give it a tug. Pull on the yellow thing now. Also, don't forget to follow us. Watching us is fun. I've got my shoulders out. Jonathan didn't mention it, but this has happened only once before.

I'm letting them peek out. Last time they came out, someone commented. They wrote me a message saying, oh, they flipped over from Spotify just to see the shoulders. was that it was a big draw. Well, they're out again. So you can watch us. If you subscribe to my YouTube channel,

you can hit that little bell icon, and then you'll get notifications. Follow us on Instagram. We do a lot of fun stuff on Instagram, Bialik Breakdown. That's where Jonathan and I also do giveaways and little kind of special tidbits. We should do a live while you're remote.

Jonathan's remote for this one. He's in Oregon. All right, so excited. Let's welcome Colin Quinn. Colin, welcome to the breakdown. Break it down. I embarrassed you off camera, and now I'll do it formally on camera. I'm a very, very big fan of yours.

I'm a very big fan of yours. And as someone who, you know, grew up really watching SNL as a lot of my kind of formative comedy, you were a very, very important part of an important part of kind of my life. I was born in 1975. So, you know, I was raised on reruns of the best years and then, you know, was part of you know, getting to be an active watcher in some of the best years. And obviously you and Norm, a huge, huge component of that era. Thanks.

Normie, boy. I'm very excited to talk to you, to learn more about you. You know, I know kind of one type of aspect of Colin Quinn, but you have a, I don't want to say illustrative, but you have a very, very exciting other kind of part of your life, which is a lot of your kind of comedy. and your theater life. And you have done many, many shows. I'm most curious about the one that you did.

It's Colin Quinn and Irish Wake. Oh, yeah. That's the one that never got filmed. Can you believe living in a world where you actually did something? And I even did it on Broadway for about a month and it doesn't get filmed. It was just at that line.

It was 1998. until, you know, the unions wouldn't let you film and you couldn't just film stuff, but that we have no copies of it? Isn't that the strangest thing ever? I mean, it's, well, maybe it will make a comeback now that everything is filmed. We could do it right in your living room.

If I pushed it, I'm sure I could, obviously I could do it, you know, if I remembered it and put it together and then I could film it on my phone, you know? Right. Okay, but let's go back a bit. I mean, you know, our show is about, you know, mental health, mental wellness, kind of, you know, people's journey.

And I am curious a little bit for you to talk about what you came from. And, you know, for me, like anyone Irish is like, did you grow up like Angela's ashes? Like, I read the book. I saw the movie. I love Angela's, by the way. And I knew the McCourt's. Uh-huh. Actually, Frank McCourt came to see Irish Wake and gave me that.

He gave me one of the best compliments. And I was, like, he hadn't put out Angela's ashes yet. And I was just doing this show when I was at the Irish Art Center. in York. And he came up to me afterwards. And I didn't know who he was, but he goes, I knew the McCourt's, the other brother, Malik, he was more famous.

Right. Like a rousabout guy on Baton, he had a bar. And Frank McCourt goes, that was Shakespeare. That's so amazing. I know. It was a big, and then when I read his book,

like his book came out like three years later. Oh, he's, yeah. This guy's amazing. You know what I mean? Okay, but it wasn't like that. So tell us. Middle class, Brooklyn. And, you know, my parents,

the teachers and, you know, we grew up in Brooklyn in the 70s. So there are a lot of typical is Irish-ish stuff, but, you know, intelligent. Like, my family's small, you know, like, and we read a lot. And Irish Wake was a combination of all of those compilation of the Brooklyn, you know, growing up in that time. You grew up in Park Slope, is that right? In Park Slope, yeah. And it was a shifted neighborhood and a very, very wild neighborhood when I was a kid.

Wild. Yeah, well, those those were some great and incredible times in New York. Jonathan always thinks that I'm a Brooklyn person because that's his, he's Canadian, so we forgive him. But my parents are from the South Bronx and they were born during World War II. So a very, very different time. My mother was raised in a tenement house and my parents, you know, my mother was a native Yiddish speaker. You know, back when the Jews and the Irish were, you know, not allowed a lot of places, you know, usually when people here that I'm I have any accent. They assume Brooklyn. But Jonathan, can you tell the difference between how he talks and the way? Not so much. It sounds the same to you.

It's pretty close. They're close. The difference is, to me, is that people in Brooklyn speak quicker and people in the Bronx cut off their words more than in Brooklyn. Yeah. Well, we'll review the Fred Armisen, you know, the different boroughs, the way that we talk in the different boroughs. What does he do the boroughs? Oh, he does all the boroughs, which is my, it's my favorite thing.

It's my favorite thing. I've seen him do every state, and I've never seen him to the boroughs. Brooklyn, Brooklyn. It really is amazing. Anyway, I won't do my Fred Armisen. So my parents were also teachers. What did your parents teach? Yeah, all over, yeah, and everything, you know.

I mean, yeah. Did you have siblings? Yeah, two sisters and a brother. Wow, that's a big Irish family. Yeah. And were you always funny? I know it's a dumb question, but were you always a comedian or, you know, I was a very, I was a very boisterous.

Like, I feel like, I feel like a lot of comedians have ADD. So I definitely was one of, if there was such a thing back then, but there wasn't. But I was very scattered. I didn't like school. I was very just heckling. I was a heckler of teachers. And, you know, I got, you know, I just hated it. I just hated everything.

You know what I mean? I just was bored by it all. And it's not big, I hate when people go, I was bored because I was too smart. It's like, no. I was bored because I just had a bad attitude. I wasn't too smart. I didn't learn all those things.

I didn't know all those things they were teaching already. You know what I mean? I just had a bad attitude. Did your bad attitude continue like all the way through high school? Yes. It continued actually until. Until today. I still feel like you got a bad attitude.

Probably like a year ago maybe. Yeah. I mean, when I look back, back now, I'm like, oh, my God. But, yeah, but I mean, I was just, you know, I didn't appreciate school. Put it this way. Now I look back and I'm like, oh, you idiot.

All these great opportunities that you could have had and you chose to throw it away just because, you know, kids, you when you're at that age, you just, you don't even, you don't even care. People are telling you, you could say, I think back now all the people that would be like, look, listen, this, this.

and you're like, yeah, I'm going to do this. It's like, no, you can't pick the worst of all the options, but you do. And I remember one time I was in high school, and I was, you know, stoned all the time. And this guidance council, Mr. Berkowitz, comes up to me. And I'm in the library just sitting there like wasted, you know, it's just high. This is in 1970. But this guy was a straight hour. And he sat there and he goes, listen to me, you're such a personality.

He goes, Colin Quinn, even your name. He goes, you should go to Wall Street and you become a big, like a sales guy. Colin Quinn, he starts imitating and he lays out this whole life. And he goes, and I go, I don't know. I think I want to be in like showbiz. He goes, but your wife can start a community theater later in Westchester. And he made this whole ideal life. And I remember I told my mother about it.

She goes, yeah, that's what he wants. That's what he wanted to be. That's right. That was his fantasy. But it was a good fantasy. He goes, you'll be rich. He goes, you've got the personality. And I could tell he was like trying to give me like advice on what I should do.

But I was like sitting there going on. And anybody, but even whether it was that advice or good advice, it didn't matter. Teenagers don't listen to a word of advice, most of them. You know, maybe there's a couple of do. I doubt it. I got a 16 year old who was born 65. He's always listens pretty much. Oh, she does.

It's very strange. but we're suspicious of him. We think he's Eddie Haskell. Yeah, or maybe one of those people that's just like, here's the way I do it. That's interesting. Thank you. That's really good.

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Use the code break at checkout for $20 off your membership. And after you sign up, they'll ask how you heard about them. Make sure to mention my ambiotic breakdown to help support the show. What were the other things that you were interested in? So pot, obviously. Pot, basketball, basketball. I mean, it really was kind of a, when I look back now, I go, I was relatively shallow. You know what I mean?

I wasn't really interested in anything. I mean, I was just not interested in anything, but, you know, pot and basketball to a degree. I mean, even once I saw this moment about, I didn't even care about basketball. You know, I was a ball. I worked in restaurants. I like working in restaurants, you know. Because, you know, it was exciting and everyone's out partying. I was really interested in the party.

Like, even when I, I used to watch stand-up comedy, and comedy. When I used to watch stand-up comedy when I was like 11 and 12, and I was like, look at this party. They were all smoking cigarettes. They were all smoke-filled rooms. They're laughing. They're drinking. It just, and my family parties were also a lot of smoking and drinking.

And the family we get together. So I was like, I like this. I like that. That just felt, that felt great to me, you know. When did you start drinking? Was it kind of just all in that kind of party atmosphere? Yeah, when I was like 15, 16. Okay.

And you eventually stopped. Do you consider yourself a sober person or you just don't drink or you just don't like to? Like, where are you at with it as a grown-up? Don't like to. Jesus. I mean, no, I quit drinking. I had no choice. I quit.

I quit when I was 24 and I'm telling you it was the last possible. or second. I was in all kinds of trouble. It was bad. Even the people in that,

this is 1984, even in those days when nobody would even really think about that kind of thing, people didn't want to hang out. My friends, nobody would hang out with me.

I was one of those, you know? You see them once in a while where you like, oh, that guy, forget it. I mean, forget it. There was no way

I was going to survive. I wake up in the middle of the street all the time, somewhere else. you know. Obviously there's a very strong, you know, literary and theatrical tradition of your people, of Irish people. And often that is paired, you know, with a real need for whatever that is, you know, and alcohol is a depressant, you know, and yeah, I'm wondering, were you aware, like, at the time, what it kind of did for you? You know, like they say first drinking is fun, then it's fun with problems,

then it's just problems, right? What did it do? when it was fun? I was on the accelerating course. I wasn't one of those people that ever had the romantic period. I thought I was having it, but I was almost like I was almost a bum when I was 20. I mean, I was sleeping in the Bowery sometimes. So I thought I had like this,

it was, I had like a frayed corduroy jacket and I used to read J.P. Dunlady, who had this drunken book. So I romanticized it myself. But nobody really, I wasn't fooling anybody's myself for a long time, you know. I just thought I was like a guy with a corduroy jacket, a literary guy with a drinker,

and I was reading the book, but I wasn't writing a book. I was reading a book. So obviously I had, you know, what I thought was happening, what was happening with two different things. Common problem for everybody in life. Right. Well, and I was going to say also, you know,

for actors, like a stage is another place that we get to hide, you know, and I don't know what your, you know, childhood was like, I can, you know, speak for mine. My grandparents were immigrants and, you know, my parents were first generation. And, you know, we, you know, in my family, we didn't really have money for alcohol. It wasn't a thing. But, you know, all these other kind of, just like mental health, like, it's like it's generations, you know, of some kind of trauma or being kicked out or not being liked. And it just breeds this kind of like family anxiety, you know, that's very fiery and it's very passionate.

But comedy is often what kind of cuts through that, you know, and allows you to be heard or seen. I don't know if that was your experience. I don't know. I mean, I still don't know because part of me says, oh, yeah, but then when I see comedy, it just seems to me like people are born comedians or not. Because there's a lot of people in comedy that you just say,

there's no through line on them other than the fact that when I talk to them, I'm like, that's a comedian. You can just something about the way they're thinking, even though it's not the way I think, but it's a comedian's way of thinking. It's really a weird thing. But I mean, I guess everything's like that. But like my younger brother, like,

we all played sports all the time, but my younger brother was like an athlete just because they move a different way and they're just jump and they're faster and there's something stronger about them. And the same with comedians. When I talk to these comedians, I'm like, oh, my God. Like, that's just the wrong thing to say.

Why is that so funny? and they're not trying to be like it just blurt out and you're like, oh, God, we are really something wrong here, you know. Well, Mark Marin and Jerry Seinfeld have an interview where Mark is trying to get Jerry to dissect what makes someone funny. And he's like really trying to psychoanalyze it and quantify it. And Jerry's just like, people are funny because they're funny. And Mark is just really struggles. He's like, okay, that's oversimplified. and he's like really trying.

And Jerry at every point is just locking it down and just won't go there. And it sounds a little bit like your perspective too in that, you know, Maim and I are a little bit like, well, there's people's pain and converting and like, you know, we're trying to have some formula. But fundamentally, it's like you're either born

with that ability to have that instinct or not. Well, I think, yeah, I think it could be both. But I mean, yeah, for example, like, people always like, well, you know, when they show about comedy, they're like, they have to be speaking their opinion on some subject. But it's like, you take a guy like Mitch Hedberg. He wasn't given his opinion on anything particularly,

but he's just funny and he's as good as anybody. Or like Steve Wright, Steve Wright is surreal. His jokes are as good as anybody. So it's like, it's so hard to, there's so many different categories of who's funny and what's funny. Or like Don Rickles. Look at Don Rickles. These jokes were not.

great jokes, right? But Don Rickles beyond, be talking to him any interviewer. And he's like, shut up. And you'd be like, this guy's just funny.

Because there's something, he'd be like, Larry, you know, Larry King, an interviewer, give him a long question, you go,

Larry, you're boring. Larry, you're a Jew, and nobody knows it because your last name is King, but I know it. And you're like, this guy is just funny. Okay, wait.

But there's, sorry, it's gonna be laugh. One of the things that I love most is watching stand-up comedy. And I've watched just about everything that exists. It was, I'm divorced 10 years, but I dated someone after I got divorced. And when we broke up, this was, you know, several years ago, I decided to take on stand-up comedy because I was very depressed. And I at least felt like this is a distraction that doesn't involve me to follow. I don't got to follow a plot.

I'm too depressed. I'm crying all the time. And the first person that I started watching was Eliza Schlesinger, which is, you know, female comedians, I could do like a whole thesis on the difference between the presentation that women have versus men. And she's more conversational. You know, she's a storyteller, whatever. And I started watching her. And then I've kind of made it through, I mean, I watched all the things.

So it's like a little bit science for me. And I've gotten to work with some really specific comedians. Like I worked with Woody Allen, for example, when I was 19. I did three episodes of Curb Your Enthusiasm. I don't know who you can talk about anymore. But I'm just saying, I've worked with very specific kinds of comedians. And then, you know, like, I got to hang out with, like, Jeff Garland and Bob Saggett. You know, like, I've seen those people, right, when they're not on the stage, right?

It's a very different kind of funny, but there's a much more intellectual component, I think, to comedy when you're actually spending time. And I think the kind of comedy that you have moved into is much more. It's deeper, you know. It's not just to make you laugh. It's to make you think and laugh, right? Well, my, I mean, I like to do that kind of comedy, but that doesn't make it, in my opinion, that's just what I'm into. Right.

But that doesn't make it more valid than like, you know, I keep saying Mitch Headberg, but I'm saying Mitch Heardberg is hilarious. So it's kind of a, you know what I mean? Like, yeah, I like intellectual comedy myself, but there's definitely, like Don Rickles is not intellectual. It's funnier than Don Rickles. I mean, who's funnier than Joan Rivers or Rodney Dangerfield? These people, I can't, I guess if I really articulate, I could think it through,

but some people, you're just like, I don't know why, you know, these people are so funny. And if you read their jokes, if somebody else did their jokes, they would not be as funny. Because there's just something in them. And speaking of Seinfeld, he always used to say that on his show, he goes, we would cast people. He goes, we wouldn't know what. We're just going, there's something funny about that person. Find a way to use it. And that's also, that's very, you know, I don't need to sound old at 46.

That feels very old Hollywood because that was the kind of, that was the kind of thing that we were cultivating, right? So I was on a show from 14 to 19. I was an NBC. Yeah, I was, yay. Colin Quinn likes blossom. And, you know, we were on at the same time as Seinfeld, right? And I remember that was so interesting also. as a, you know, as a Jewish person, but also a comedian, like for me, my comedy is very, very,

for me, it's very Jewish. Like, I was raised on Jackie Mason as the gold standard of my culture, right? Because that was our guy. So for me, like, when I would hear people say how much they loved Seinfeld, it was almost irritating to me. Because I was like, that's just how we, that's just how we, like, what's so funny, right? Right, right, right. But it's like, this kind of, like, phenomenon of like, oh, look, look at the Jews. Like, they're so, but they're not. supposed to be Jewish. We all knew they were all Jews. Like, come on. But what we've seen, and like, also, I was part of, you know, this era of the 90s where it's true.

Someone saw my face and was like, let's put that on a little box and she's going to live in people's living rooms for the next 30 years, right? But the way that we cultivate kind of comedy now, and especially I still work in sitcom, is like, how attractive are they? What do they look like? You know, oh, they're not as funny. They're not as good, but that's the look we want, right? And I miss that. the old days of like, you know, of Tracy Elman, you know, of just like, like, throw out basically everything you would do in improv, but polish it up and then see what happens. Like, I was raised on

faulty towers. It's like I was raised on outrageous comedy, you know? Yeah. Well, it's also, what they would do is after, because your show is, not only was it young, you were young and funny, but it was also like early, like right after grunge started. Yeah. So you were like this, sort of like almost hipster before hipster existed, but you were like the first of this type of, you know what I mean? Right. It was a young, and then what they would do

is they'd take somebody like you and they're like, oh, she's funny. Let's find somebody who kind of reminds me of her, even if they're not funny. Right? So they're trying to find people that sort of resemble you in some weird way and they're like, they almost have

your attitude or whatever, but not, but instead of trying to find somebody else funny. They're like, she was funny. Let's find somebody who seems sort of like her. They'll be funny too. But it's like, it's a, it's a holy cop. One would hope that one day,

Eastern European Jewish girls will rule television. So once you, you know, once you finished high school, what was your path like? I mean, were you like, I'm going to just give this a shot? I was working in restaurants and then I quit drinking. What happened was when I quit drinking, And I wanted it. I was so, talking about an Irish stereotype,

I was so suicidal. Because I was like, that's the only thing I love doing, going to bars. I loved it. So I was like, now I'll do comedy because I said, I have nothing to fear. That's my, my biggest love of my life is gone. Drink it.

I have nothing to lose. Before that, I was scared of bar me. Can we slow down what you just said because that's profound? Yeah. I mean, I do feel like, A lot of people go into comedy after some kind of a crisis where they're like, I don't care. There's two kinds of people go into comedy.

People are just like nervous are going to it. And people are just like, of course. A whole world should be listening to me. Wow. I'm terrified to this day. I'm a very, very anxious, nervous performer. I am fearful. I don't do improv.

I start to cry in a way that's inappropriate on stages. Yeah. Yeah, it's a very interesting distinction. And I have actor friends who are absolutely fearless. I have a friend of mine, Lisa, she's a Ground Links company member. And she said some audition once came in and it said like, you know, wear whatever you want. And if you told me that, I'd be like, well, I'm going to wear my safest outfit. Jeans in a black T-shirt and Converse.

And she's like, I went in in silver tap pants with, you know, purple high tops and my hair in a ponytail. And I got the part. And I'm like, who would? She's like, I looked ridiculous. But they said dressed like you. And I just, I don't have that fearlessness. So I'm so curious that alcohol was in that way. I mean, it was a crutch for whatever you felt needed to be protected.

But once that was released, like you got to be Colin. Yeah. Well, I mean, I went back to being who I was because I was a before I ever drank, I was like the class, you know, class, clout, big mouth. And I was like, you know, I had fun in life. I played basketball. I was around, you know. And then once I started into that, that's all I cared about.

So then I get into comedy. And then I was still bartending and, you know, for a couple of years. But I got lucky breaks. Like, my bartending jobs were 11, the morning and afternoon, like afternoon shifts. In those days, people still drink at lunch. So I was this afternoon evening bartender. My spots weren't until 11 at night,

so I could actually sleep a little late in the morning. It couldn't have gone better as far as what I would want. You know, it was really amazing. I was very lucky that I got a job like that, you know? So I did comedy and I just was in love with it. You know, I loved it so much. that I was like, this is the greatest gig in the world. Even though it was, I have to say, it was harder then to write material.

It was so hard. Like now I could at least write, like, you know, like if the Ukraine happens, I'm like, okay, I'm trying to write and things come out. In those days, it was so hard to write jokes. It was, I can't even believe I stayed in. Was it finding your voice? Like, what is it like? Jokes.

Yeah. I don't believe, I believe your voice is going to come over when it comes over, but writing the material. Your voice comes through the material. You know what I mean? So it's like voice to me, if it's just finding your voice, people that do that,

it's like posturing to me. You know what I mean? Like, it works. But I'm just saying to me it's posturing. Like I'm about the content. What are you saying? Where's the jokes? You know what I mean?

No matter, like I said, I like to talk about cerebral stuff, but it doesn't matter. What are your jokes? Because sometimes somebody would be up there and you're like, you're just eating up people's time. Get to the jokes.

It doesn't matter if it's the deepest profound thing. What are you up there? Because I feel like a danger for comedians, for everybody at show as comedians, is to try to be, you know, to try to be like the voice, the conscience of a nation and all that stuff. And it's like, you're not that deep.

You know what I mean? If you had answers, if anybody had answers, forget comedians, know about it. Okay, wait, but, but that's funny coming, not funny, that's unusual coming from you because you are a person who, in a way that I tremendously appreciate, has decided to combine some of the largest concepts, you know, that, that we can tackle. No, absolutely. Absolutely jokes first and also second. But what, and I know there's like a long way between, you know, high school and college and that. But, you know, is it that when you're a young,

you know, comedian or starting out that it's about kind of like finding that voice and finding who you are? And then with maturity, you then get to be like, I'm going to tackle politics. No, because back then I tried to do the same concepts. You know what I mean? And in fact, I've actually had a couple of little lines from those days that I found a place to put it. But you know, you just don't know, you don't know how, It's like anything else. You don't know where to put it. So you're sitting there going, and you're on stage,

and the crowd's not laughing, and you're like, oh, that whole thing must be terrible. It's like, no, you don't understand that it's not just a punchline. It's presentation. So if I'm going to say something, like, let's say I'm doing,

I wish I could think of a routine particularly, but if I'm doing any routine and let's say I was talking about the Ukraine or something, you know. So if I spend, If I jump right into Putin is this way. Right. People are like, whoa, whoa, whoa, what do you say?

Right. We're not going to love at a joke. You didn't put us in the right. But if you take too long and go, here's what's going on with Russia. First of all, and then you're taking too long. People are like, okay, you know, TED talk, what they call a TED talk, you know. So it's like finding the place where you're like, I'm bringing you in to my, where my, I think the humor is. And then I'm getting to it.

So it's like a weird fine line. Okay. So I really, really love. the way you speak, first of all. And what you're describing is a kind of processing. I don't have the same process because we do different things. But there's a certain sense, like even in the work that I do, right? Even on a sitcom, right?

There is a, and I worked with Chuck Lorry for 10 years who, like, you know, he knows what to do with the sitcom, right? It's not rocket science, but he has figured it out, you know, for the most part. In terms of, and look, you don't have to like sitcom. I don't really love sitcom. in terms of those rhythms, but they work for a reason and they work in our brains as a species. And like anything else, when they're good, they're good. Right. So this is what I was going to say. There's a, there's a sense of the rhythm of a joke or of a sensibility. And, you know, for me, I come from like people who sold cigarettes on the street in villages with no electricity.

Like, that's my, like, that's my immediate story is like my grandparents. were sweatshop workers who barely spoke English on my mom's side. Like, we think my mom peed in a bucket because there was no plumbing for some years. So, like, that's my story. And then on my dad's side, like, they were the, you know, assimilated, you know, Jewish New Yorkers. My grandfather worked in the Empire State Building as an accountant. Like, oh, he made it in America. He was an accountant, right?

And what I've discovered is that this sense that I have, like, this knowing, you know, it's almost like you know if a shoe fits, you know, when you put on a shoe and it's like, it's just like, it's not right. That's what it feels, it feels wrong to me when comedy's wrong. And it annoys certain people because many people want to be like, just like, it's funny enough. Like it's okay. But it's almost like, you know, and I am on the obsessive compulsive spectrum.

So I also have a, I have a physiological feeling I get when something's wrong. But I get it in common, like when the timing is off, It's almost like if you're hitting a C and it should be a B. Like, it's wrong. And I'm wondering, you know, obviously I have great reverence for Irish culture and literature. And I was raised in particular with a lot of Irish poetry and my, like, James Joyce is on my dad's gravestone. Like, it's a whole thing. But I'm wondering, like, do you think this is just something that, like, Colin got, like, in the genetic, you know, in the genetic roulette that is your life?

Like, you got three siblings, right? And did you just get this? Like, it's just you got it? Whatever that is? Whatever that part is. But they're all, like, like, my brothers and sisters and my cousins are all, like, funny. Like, I feel like there's a certain Irish mentality that there's a humor like Jewish human.

There's an Irish personality like that's funny. There's something about, well, I mean, like, humor in general is. one of the big, you know, obviously generalization, but is your angle on things. So if I'm talking about Putin, what's my angle that's going to be so funny? You know what I mean? And same thing with Jews, Irish people, black people. What's your angle on this? And so with Irish people, there's just this, I don't know what it is, but it's a very

corner of the mouth kind of attitude that just makes me laugh. where they're just like, yeah, you know. And my friend once did, my friend Harry O'Reilly, who's a actor, very funny guy. And one time, when I first met him, he grew up in Marine Park, with an Irish thing too. And he goes, what about these guys?

He goes, you go to them, hey, man, I really feel like, you know, my girlfriend, like, we're broken up, but I like to get back together. And he goes like this. And I just laughed for like 10 minutes where he just goes, so many guys used to do that to you. Yeah.

You're in the middle of something person. listen, go. And for people who are only listening, Colin has just opened his mouth and said absolutely nothing. Right. It's, it's hard to explain. Yeah. Thanks for, you know, basically saying, yeah, nobody cares. Yeah. What you're saying is yes, it's so, it's so precise if you're really interested in OCD like we only, but it's precise. And when it's not, you want to go, how can you be so funny and then just throw that part away? That's what. drives you crazy. These are professionals. They've done it before, and now they don't care to try to repeat that level. I was raised in Los Angeles, but I was raised by very recent transplants. Like,

my mom was nine months pregnant when they moved. They were living in Manhattan at the time. And I was raised, you know, I was raised to speak like a New Yorker. I was corrected for my pronunciation. Like, I was taught that the word quarter is water with a cue. Like, that's how you said. And I was, I was corrected and admonished. And, you know, I say they raised me like it was the 40s in LA. We played hit the penny. We played stickball. Like, I don't know why they raised me like we were in a tenement house. I mean, it was close where I grew up, you know, with, but what I was going to say is there's something very specific about New York people. And in particular, and I say this, you know, you are a very special person and a very special comedian. You can meet people that look like this guy

and that talk like this guy and they're in policemen uniforms and they're standing on the corner, like they're walking their beat and they talk like this like you can meet like you meet firefighters that you think should have a stand-up show and it's they're not comedians there's a sensibility in particular to this kind of this era of Brooklyn and also you know Irish Brooklyn and kind of Irish New York in particular but like just to imagine there's like there's a whole country of Ireland and like I wonder are they like that like why aren't they like us there well there more Irish Jewish people are really funny. I mean, they're another level of funny.

Like, every comedian that goes to Ireland goes, I love the Irish people because they've just put you in your plate. Like, they just don't like anybody. I'm sure everybody feels that way about the people, but they don't like anybody getting too big. Yeah. But it's just something very funny. But anyway, it doesn't matter.

But I mean, yeah, there's something in, or at least New York, the way, I mean, I did a whole show on New York personality, New York Story. I took about the Jews, the Irish, and all the different groups. And so I analyzed it all down, but there's something in New York, I feel like, that made people a certain way. Maybe because they had to hit the ground running.

Yeah. I'm not sure, but it was a definite sensibility. It's post-depression era. It's post a lot of pogroms. It's post-Holocast. Like, the comedy, even, and that rippled out to the other communities. Like, my family in Queens, like I have family in Flushing, where everybody sounds like Frandresher. The women sound like Frandresher, the men.

And that is some of the most hilarious parts of them. And they're teachers, their housewives, they're not, these are not special, like, celebrity people. Right. But they're just funny. They're freaking hilarious, you know. Yes. Yeah, I agree. Yeah, I agree.

So I'm curious also, you know, you got married later in life, correct? Well, I was married before, but yeah. Right. But you recently are in a relationship. Yeah, yeah, yeah. What was it like being a comedian dating? Like, I know it's a crazy lifestyle. and, you know, obviously not drinking

is probably less fun dating than drinking. I don't know. Well, I got used to it fairly early, so it wasn't, but yes, it's a different ball game, but, you know. Yeah. What's it like? I mean, you know, it was, I mean, it's obviously easier than it is for most people because you're around people all the time.

So, you know, girls will be like, hey, they can come up and you go, I like your show. So there's already an icebreaker going on. For men there is, Ali Wong's recent special, I'm going to talk about this forever. She says when men become famous and have power and respect, like they're dating models. And, you know, they get all the, she uses a much more vulgar word about the fan attention they get. And she said for women, it's like the prospects go down and it's mostly stalkers. Like it's not, when a woman gets power and respect, she said it's a very different game.

I think for comedies. You know, Chelsea Handler talked about this, Eliza. Sarah Silverman's talked about it with us, you know? Right, right, right. Well, I guess it is for them, yeah. Right. There's also a difference on perspective. So they call them stalkers.

We wouldn't care. What does Eliza Schlesinger say? It's only sexual harassment if he's not attractive. That's what she was like, sorry. It's terrible. She said it first, not me. I know. But that's the kind of humor that is funny

because, you know, when you go to see comedy, you used to expect a certain kind of what, you know what, you know what I mean, like transgress, you know. Right. And so now people are just worried, you know. Yeah. Well, that part of comedy is like, well, yeah, so I guess tell us about sort of your,

what you consider, I guess, your break. Well, I've had several breaks and I've sabotaged a lot of them if you want to talk about mental health. I mean, I was on MTV. That was my big break. And then after that, It was like nothing. So I was on MTV.

Tell people what you did on MTV. I mean, I grew up when MTV first started. It was a game show, and I was at the sidekick, but it was very big in late 80s. I mean, we would go down the streets in Midtown or wherever we were and be flooded with like 80 kids, and everybody over 23 would go, who are they? We didn't know who we were. It was the weirdest thing. You'd walk in one store.

People over 23, they didn't know who you are. Under 23, they go, ah, the Beatles, you know. And then so it was crazy, you know. So then I got all these opportunities to be auditioned for TV shows. So I walked in there, you know, when I walked in, you would have thought, this is speaking about mental illness, you would have thought if it was today, it would have been like, when I entered, you would have thought Martin Scorsese, Leonardo DiCaprio, and like Oliver Stone entered through him.

That's how I used to walk in. Like, they go, they would ask me, what do you think of our script? Like, it's terrible. I'll fix it for you. We and my comedy friends will fix it for you. So how'd that go over? I made more enemies just by being in ass. And I would sit there, and in those days you smoke.

I would be smoking. It's like 1990. And I'm in there. I'm on MTV. I think I'm a comedian, big shot to me. You know what I mean? I'm just sitting there, like, talking to these guys like, yeah, now you know who's in charge of me.

And so it ended up very badly. But anyway, cut to a few years later, I'm broke. You're living on your friend's couch? No, not only on my friend's couch. I had to live back with my mother. So. This is what happens when you don't become a cop, like your cousin. Yes, yeah.

So I'm sitting there and I'm like, you know, And then I get on my Friggen's be writing job on SNL. So then after that it was more or less a different story. Because my stand-up was developed. My problem was when I was on MTV, my stand-up wasn't developed. So I wasn't a strong stand-up. So I couldn't really just keep doing stand-up. It wasn't working that well.

So I was doing it, but I wasn't, you know, getting gigs because I would just, I would bomb so much. And so that had to, that got in the way of my development, but it was a good, lesson for me in some ways, you know. And how is your time? I mean, I know it's like it's its own, you know, topic and I'm not looking for gossip or anything, but generally speaking, what was your time like, you know? I mean, S&L is, I mean, this is this, you know, extremely iconic and important, you know, aspect of the best of times, it was the worst of times. You know what I mean? It was, it was the, I mean, we all went in there at the beginning of a fresh slate and everybody, I'll speak, I can only speak for myself.

I brought my dreams, expectations, attitude problems, you know, defenses and everything else there. So that's what I brought. So it went great and we, you know, there were people, we loved each other. Like any dynamic things happened and, you know, it took me years to realize my part. And that's the only part I could really speak to. Although, you know, obviously we all like to speak to everybody's, but I would say I definitely knew. had a sabotage pretty, pretty well. I, you know, some things I've done that I would not call sabotage.

I would say I did what was for the right reasons. That was not one of them. I would say I had a lot of issues that I didn't, that I didn't realize. And it came out when it came, the way it came out, you know. Oh, this feels like a good time to ask, you know, stopping, stopping drinking or whatever it is that, you know, I mean, you know, we, we fill it with whatever, meaning you can be a workaholic, you know, a lot of people stop drinking and take up, you know, being full-time, you know, manager and controller, which is my favorite thing to be.

Sure. But I'm curious. Did you have like a support around stopping drinking? Did you do 12-step? Did you go to therapy? I don't really talk about 12-step stuff. I'm like real old-school. I will say I did not do it on my own.

Okay, got it. You know, as someone who I've spoken openly about, you know, I sit in three different rooms. I've sat in three different rooms in the past 20 years. And so I do, I live my life according to kind of the, you know, the big book and the traditions and principles. And one of the things, and this is not to specifically talk about 12 steps, but one of the things that I've learned is that when you put down the thing, then you find out why you were picking up the thing, you know? So like the expression, like, if you want to find out why you're using, stop using. That's true of food. It's true of alcohol.

It's true of sex. It's true of pot. It's true of other narcotics. It's also true of obsessing, controlling, codependency, seeking validation. So what happens is when we stop doing that thing, like, we're left just with us, you know? So I guess I'm curious, like, making a decision to stop whatever it was that we were doing. Yeah. Then it's like, okay, now you just have, like, the rest of your life to manage without the thing that made it so much easier.

So I guess I'm curious, like, is that sort of just this process that keeps unfolding for you? Like, oh, look, I can still be obstinate. I could still be whatever self, you know. Absolutely. I mean, for me, I'll just speak. My thing was, and I'm sure it was no secret to people that were close to me because I felt like I was very stealth because people would say, you're so like normal.

You're so down to earth, you know, even though you're doing well in the business. My ego, I was just good at, I was good at playing it. off, my ego was so deep, I didn't even have to play it up. That's how deep it was. But I didn't know that, you know. Or if I knew it, I thought it was cute. Right. And then years later, I go, oh, no.

So how do you realize that? Like, how did you realize that? Pain. Right. Only pain. That was it. Yeah. Pain.

That's the only way I realized it. Maybe other people could figure it out, but I never realized anything. Until it hurt me. You know? And then I'm like, wait a minute. Now it's serious. Now it's affected me. Right.

And what did you like, do you like therapy? Do you, do you meditate? Are you a meditator? Yeah, but I mean, I don't know. I mean, I've been slacking off on meditation lately. I don't, I mean, meditation's fine. I mean, it's good. There's good things in it.

But again, it's one of those things where when it's, I can make even meditation all about, when it's all about me, it's all about me. Yep. And that's one of my biggest, as you know, that's one of the biggest things is, you know, it's like the old expression. I may not be much, but I'm all I think about it. I totally get that because I'm a person who, I'm a competitive yoga person, meaning, like you're supposed to go to yoga to like center and all these things.

And first of all, in L.A., in my defense. walking into a yoga studio in LA, it might as well be like a Sports Illustrated swimsuit photo shoot that you were not invited to and that you showed up at like and they think you're bringing craft service. Okay. So that in and of itself is a challenge. But for me like, you know, I was raised very athletic, very, you know, shake it off, get up, you know, faster, harder. Like I was raised like that. So for me, like it is all of, and that is, that's ego, you know, that's better than less than. I'm constantly. constantly scanning, which as an actor, and as a woman in particular, a female actor,

very, very challenging, you know, for that kind of ego conflict. But no, I so relate to that because also that's, I'm also finding like all these defects that they've been hiding. I thought they were gone because, like, they weren't as prominent. And I was like, oh, you morphed into this other shitty part of myself. It was like hiding. It was hiding. and I keep finding it.

It makes me feel icky. Yes, I agree 100%. It's like, it's so subtle and it's just there, you know. What are you? What was therapy like for you? Like, I think you're kind of like, you're like a tough guy. Like, what's it like when we put you in a therapist office? Therapy was like, I got a male, I've had therapists, different therapists,

but I got to mail this time because I just needed a male therapist for this, you know. And then we had these, I mean, I literally would just be like, like, you know, have confrontations with him all the time because I didn't realize therapy where it was just, he would just look at me. And it used to make me so mad, you know, and it just be like, and I just felt like he was looking at me with this, like, I just felt like, and I would tell him, I go, are you looking at me to provoke me or is it because you're stupid and you really have nothing to say? So you're just sitting there hoping something accidentally comes to you, you know, or something, you know, hits me a certain way. I go, well, my second. I go, well, my

supposed to project onto you because you actually are empty, so then I'll be doing all the way. Like I just used to resent it so much. But also, he was kind of, you know, he added his own attitude, which I needed. I felt, you know,

but it took me a few years to really appreciate the fact that he was saying, look, I mean, the short version is only one asshole. Me and you can do anything about it. You're paying so he can fix one dick, It's not somebody outside this world. You don't pay so we can fix the world.

So I was like, you know, it's one of those lessons you keep learning and you just keep learning in different forms, you know. Well, and I think also, like they say you do with your therapist, what you do with everyone. Also, I'm just picturing, like, if I were on the therapist side of it, the fact that, like, me looking at someone might cause them to say those things. It's like, oh, this person came in with a lot of, like, a little bit of a chip on his shoulder. Well, here's why I did, because when my friend turned me on to him and goes, this guy's a youngian therapist.

So I said, this is going to be great. It's going to be this symbolic journey with all these symbols. And really, it was just like somebody going to me like, yeah, you said you did this, but then you did this. And I'm like, what? So what? Where's my, you know what I mean? Like, where's the shadow fucking mysterious shit? I want to learn here.

You know? I'm sure he was thinking about the shadow mysterious shit. Oh, I brought it up to him too. I go, where's the fucking, you know, like after like a year? I go, where's like the youngian? I go, what's young Ian about this? He goes, do you know a lot about Young Ian therapy? I go, well, but I guess a young book.

I go, what the fuck? I don't see any of that stuff. He goes, that's not what this is. I go, but you're the big Youngian therapist. You're like, if I pay extra, can you write up some shadow shit for me? Because I wanted that to be like, quote unquote, the drug where I'd be like walking around in this mystical state. And he used to tell me, this is it.

He goes, this is all there is in life. You go, this is it. He goes, there's nothing coming that you think, you know what I mean? Because I had that. I wanted delusion, you know, anything, anything to get out of, you know, boring. When I was a little kid, I used to hate. being bored so much. I used to just sit there and go,

this is misery. Just sitting there with nothing going on. I was like, I used to hate to go in like the country. I hated the country. Because I was like, oh, God, because everybody talks like,

takes 10 minutes. Everything's very slow. And then you're waiting for the country. And you're like, holy shit. And then so I just, I wanted life to be, you know,

I wanted it to be like a, like a, like a Coke-filled yacht. You know, we just, I wanted to be in this endless, endless party, you know. So I'd like Jonathan to weigh in here because also, so Jonathan is, is an East Coaster, you know, by, by knowing someone from Toronto, I was like, oh, look, an East Coaster. But they're not like New Yorkers. And Jonathan has, that's. They have, yeah, I know. Carano's all different ballgame. And it's like, he.

Jonathan, does he remind, does his speech pattern remind you of me a little bit? Oh, for sure. I mean, there's an impatience there that's tangible. I'm curious how long it took from the realization of, oh, this is all there is to realize, you know, like, how did that go from there? Did you settle into that a little bit? Did you fight it? What was the process? Yeah.

I mean, I'll still fight it. You know, every, unless I catch myself, I'll fight it, of course. You know, but I mean, you know, yeah. I mean, it was like, it was, it's, it's devastating. But then you're like, oh, you know, like what the imaginary world that somehow I conjured up in my head. I remember when I was a little kid watching these like Matt Helm movies at Dean Martin and going, that's the world I want to live in. It was like nine years old. Like, that's the life, you know.

She's everybody drinking and smoking and partying, you know what I mean? That was it. You have a line in Red State. blue state where you say we've met the enemy and it's us. And you're, you mean it about, you know, the problems in the U.S. But I listened to that recently and I was like, oh, that's also very much about our internal process as human beings just to be happy. The difference between our expectations, like we want the yacht versus what actually is. Even the idea of being happy is kind of an expectation. You know what I mean? The word happy is a

bad setup instead of just being, you know, being, whatever it is. You know what I mean? Like, I was like, I want to be happy. It's like, that's already going to be who's, who walks around all happy, especially nowadays, people are miserable. You know what I mean? Only happy people are like, you know, just crazy people. But we never, well, we used to know that, I guess.

And now, now people don't, yeah, did you ever see lovers and other strangers? It's a great movie from the 60s, the late 60s, early 70s? Mm-mm. The parents are talking to the kid. He goes, we're not happy. He goes, and the father goes, they're older. He goes, who's happy? He goes, you think your mother are not happy?

And he goes, you're not happy? He goes, and they look at each other. They go, no. And then they look at each other, they go, we're content. Yeah. We're content. And the mother is be author, by the way. And she's great.

And the father is Richard Castellano. But it's a great movie. But, you know, trying to be happy is one of the biggest problems in the world. move the goalpost from happy to generally content. Yeah. I try and aim for serenity, whatever that looks like, you know, meaning like even if there's unhappiness, there's got to be a place that inside of me that I can, you know, tap into.

Are you a religious person? Like, do you believe in God? Are you spiritual? Was your family? Yeah. Okay. Yeah. What's that like?

Believe in God? Yeah. Well, I mean, it's like I just, it's like I look at everything and I just go, I guess this is how it's supposed to be. That's a great definition of what it's like to believe in God. Yeah. And I just go, okay, I guess so, you know, I don't know. I mean, and like I believe in heaven. That's just how it is.

I don't know why, but I just believe in all that stuff. Is there a hell too? I believe in hell, totally. And I believe in purgatory. I believe in the middle section. Right. I'm Jewish, so walk me through this. Well, like,

purgatory would be like where you're kind of in the waiting list for heaven, but you have a lot of things, a lot of explaining to do, as they used to say. You're not a hell person. You're not like a rapist or a murderer or whatever. You know what I mean? But at the same time, you know,

some of you be, you're not going to waltz into heaven. So heaven, you have to be in a state of grace. Got it. You know how hard it is to be the state of grace? And Catholicism lets a lot of people off the hook. I don't think I need to. I'll like to the world. Sorry.

So many jokes about how they made a career of letting people off the hook, as a matter of fact. Okay, sorry. That's correct. But I mean, but yeah, so it's basically, you know, just in between. You have to, you have a little cool your heels for a couple of thousand years. So you can get in eventually? You can get it eventually. Got it.

Hold on. Where do the Jews go? Yeah, well, I mean, I'm not really a Catholic. Okay. I'm more of a, you know, I've almost formulated my own religion in many ways. Okay. I can dig that. I'd love to ask kind of one more thing, you know, before we end.

So I guess I'd like a feeling of a little bit of a, I mean, I feel like there's so many aspects of your career that really feels. So at least for me, as an observation. or very gratifying, you know, just for, you know, for the path that you've had, especially starting at MTV, like, you know, when it was like this, you know, essentially new kind of medium to, you know, making a presence for yourself on one of, you know, the most iconic kind of comedy platforms, you know, that exists for us. And then really building, you know, then your own career, your own voice. And you, you are, you got, you got married. Was it before COVID?

Are you one of those people who got married during COVID? Before COVID, yeah, like a year. Like, I don't know how long before COVID, maybe a year. You can lie to us or we can cut this out. Like, what's it like to be married? Are you a happy married comedian at this point in life? First of all, if I wasn't, I would lie anyway and say I was. What I'm making it say?

It's suffocating. Maybe this is where you want to unleash all of your We could bring her on. We could do a session. No, yeah. She's a totally different personality from me. She's great. Yeah.

I mean, we get along great during the pandemic. You know what I mean? Yeah. And yeah, no, it was definitely one of those things where you're like, oh, boy, this is a good test. Right. You know what I mean? So it was really, it was a great into the fire type moment. Right.

That's really, it's very, it's very sweet. It's such a pleasure to talk to you. It's really, it's so. neat, you know, to get to hear your voice, you know, because obviously you were a very natural speaker in your work, but it's just really so great to get to hear from you. Colin Quinn, thank you so much. This has been really, really awesome. It's really fun. We really appreciate it. And we wish you all good things. Thanks, same here, men. Hopefully we'll, we'll do it again. Absolutely. Yeah, we didn't get into so many things. So yes, lots more. Thank you.

I'm meeting more of my people by doing Miami-Lex breakdown than ever before. Maybe we only have New York guests. I mean, I just feel so comfortable when someone talks, like when someone speaks like that. Also, I think you had more jokes this episode than any other. I'm making a comedian laugh. It's like, I had him laughing hard. He left frame a couple times. I was watching you perform here.

And I was like, oh, she's got some real comedy chops that I didn't know about. I was just being, Jonathan. Normally you're not that funny. I'll be honest. It's like, do you work here? Can you clean the? the bathroom please someone threw up. That's what it's like going to yoga in L.A.

Well, this is what I'm saying is that you have said that story multiple times on the podcast. You 100% got a punch up between the last time you told that story and it's all because of the New York energy. Yeah. So it's there is a place, you know, there's a, there's a place in our brains that, you know, kind of get activated that way when we're in more of a, it's a linguistic flow. It's a rhythmic flow. I mean, it's like when you and I riff really hard, you know, which nobody gets to see,

it's our own private riffing. But when you and I riff really hard and it's like it's that rolling sense of timing and laughter and, you know, it's so funny also when you meet non-Jewish New Yorkers who do the same thing as Jewish New York. Like, that's what people say. It's like Italians are like, it's all the same for that kind of New York energy, you know. And the thing that I, you know, that I really like is like that's, that is a straight shooter personality. Like if he wasn't having a good time, it would have been quite evident. So for me, then,

when I say something that might be less funny, like, that's the desire. And it's like, if you think of it, like, if we were primates in the wild, like, what is it? I want to be my, you know, best funny self to, like, to try and match it, you know? Well, we mirror the language of other people around them. Like, I used to go to Montreal to be with my brother-in-law's family, and then, like, all of a sudden and I would have a French accent, and I'm talking like this. That's weird. And like all the time. And it's just because there's research, I don't have it, but there's research that we mimic the speech patterns of the people around us so that we feel better understood.

You don't need to have research. That's just like a thing that everyone knows. I mean, there's real studies about it. Okay, but it's okay. If there's not, we know that's true. So people don't take my word for it. Anytime I say things, you're like, that's not scientific. Now I'm saying there's science behind and you're like, you don't need science.

There's research that I'm happy today. No, when you speak to your family, your Canadian accent becomes, you know, heavier and you use different expressions. I mean, people say when I speak to my mom, it sounds like a different language. You start to sound like a baby goat. Ma. My very first boyfriend, I was very young. He was from Westchester County. I don't know if that counts.

If you know where Westchester is, maybe you're laughing. Or maybe you're deeply insulted. That's like a New York joke. That's like, oh, it's not really New York because it's Westchester. He was from a fancier neighborhood, let's say. And like, you know, like, yeah. Anyway, no, I've dated West Coasters, Midwesterner. That's a whole experience.

Like, you were like, your speech is rapid compared to the Midwest. And my ex-husband was, you know, Southern but raised in, you know, the Bay. I mean, his family's Southern, but raised in the Bay. Yeah, no, I think that would be very, very. interesting. In all seriousness, gosh, what a, what a story. It's a really good Hollywood story of like this kid who like, that's all you thought to do. He just wanted to party, have fun, and he was funny. And then he like built a life around that. And that's his career. I don't want to party. I just want to have fun and play. And now I'm sitting in this chair with you.

No, but honestly, there were certain things he said about his teen experience that sounded like what you've talked about, like really like, I don't want to say wanting to be somewhere else. But like, you know, you, you know, you had really great times at, like, summer camp and, like, working, you know, with young people. And, like, you know, I am not a person who's ever said, like, I want a lifestyle that just feels like I'm at camp all the time. Like, that's never appealed to me at all. So when I was in high school, actually, junior high, too.

Like, I would do okay. Pretty well in school, like mid-Bs, even A's for pretty much from, like, September. until May hit. And as soon as May hit in Toronto, it got so nice outside. I just was like could not participate in any type of education. September to May. That's pretty good. Things took a really big time at the end, though.

I was just like, I hit my wall and I was done. I really also love how he talks about, you know, kind of sobriety. And it's a very specific type of drinker, you know, the one that he described. That's the one is too much and all the drinks in the world are never enough kind of. I thought that was really interesting the way he described it, you know, that he kind of always knew what that was serving. And then it, you know, seized to serve him, as it were. I want to remind people that he is doing a tour of his new show, Colin Quinn, The Last Best Hope. He was just wrapped in New York run.

And you can go to Colin Quinn.com to get tickets. And I think he might be our last best hope. It was really, really exciting to talk to him. If anyone listening hasn't watched Red State Blue State or if they haven't watched a New York story, I was rewatching a little bit of the New York story, the New York story. He has a bit about when Jews come over and they're the first organizers of unions. It's not that they're complaining, but they just want to know if it could be done better. It was very, very funny. I'm eager to rewatch. Well, I think that was just really, really awesome. And, you know, that's our second, our second SNL person we've had on. That's right. Yeah.

We've had two. We got into more of the psychology with Bobby if you want more SNL content. More SNL Irish content. There's lots of stuff in there in that library of ours. All right. From our breakdown to the one we hope you never have. We'll see you next time. It's My Ambiolyx Breakdown.

She's going to break it down for you. She's got a neuroscience PhD. or two One fiction And now she's going to break down So break down She's going to break it down She's going to break it down