Update: here’s the link to the podcast! I come in at around 13:45.
The weekend before last, I was leaving a coffee shop when I got a call from a friend of mine. Someone had called her and invited her to be a guest on a celebrity podcast based in L.A., but she said no, because she lives in Kansas City. Did I want to be on the podcast? I said sure.
Two minutes later, a woman called to invite me to be on Topher Grace‘s Minor Adventures podcast with a guest, comedian Iliza Shlesinger. It was a quick call. I got the time, the place, and the basic idea: I’d talk about being a greeting card writer (which I was, in the past) and get them to try writing some cards.
I felt like I’d be going in kind of cold, but I wasn’t worried about it. I figured it wouldn’t matter if I was super witty or not, since they’d have that covered.
Who Are These Guys?
I work all the time, I watch very little TV other than old Friends episodes and Hallmark movies, I don’t read celebrity news, and I don’t even go to a lot of movies, so I know a lot less about famous actors and entertainers than most people do. I don’t say that to be cool, because I don’t think it is cool. It’s just kind of the way it is.
So I wasn’t positive who Topher Grace and Iliza Shlesinger were, even though they are big deals. Topher was on a very popular sitcom, That 70s Show, and has starred in a bunch of other things. Someone I work with said Topher was scarier in Predators than, well, the predators. He delivered this one line in a particularly terrifying way, and sometimes out of nowhere, my coworker repeats that line to his husband, just to creep him out.
More recently, he played David Duke in BlacKkKlansman (an even scarier role, I’m guessing), and I watched the Black Mirror episode he was in and he was amazing. I wish I could find one of his scenes from Black Mirror on YouTube, but I can’t, so here’s him on the Late Show.
Some guys I knew, namely my nephew in Boston and my actor friend in Chicago, were really jealous. This is a guy that guys really want to hang out with. (Important update: also, an executive at Hallmark, in her email to me, just described him as “dreamy.”)
And it turns out that basically every woman I know is a huge Iliza fan, and with good reason, because she is very, very funny. So when I told people on Facebook about the podcast, as one does, I got a lot of “OMG I LOOOOVE HER.”
I’d love to share her most recent clips, and I recommend checking them out, but they’re R-rated and I try to keep this blog more or less clean, so here’s a classic one.
Timing
I was a little nervous about my scheduling for that day, because I had a second podcast coming up right afterward, followed by a meeting with the CEO of my company. Most of my days aren’t like this. For instance, I can’t stress enough how many people do not want me on their podcasts.
The podcast is in a building on Hollywood and Vine. It’s close to this terrifying funhouse thing, which is promoting the second It movie, so fortunately, it’s temporary.
I was in the downstairs lobby a half hour early because I’m from the Midwest. I saw Iliza come in and sit down. By the way, Iliza described herself once as “a seven without makeup,” but I have to be brutally honest and tell you she is a solid eight without makeup.
I decided to wait until we were properly introduced instead of just pouncing on her. This turned out to be a good thing: I soon learned from a text from the woman who’d called me that Iliza didn’t know she was going to be writing greeting cards. The “minor adventure” really is a surprise to the celebrity guest. So someone came down and brought Ilizia upstairs, and they escorted me up a little later.
The Podcast!
They brought me into a small room with Topher, Iliza, and the producer, and I got a handheld microphone. A couple of minutes into the conversation, Topher said I was so charming and smiley and exactly like he would’ve imagined a Hallmark writer to be. I happen to like it when handsome movie stars tell me I’m charming, so I was happy.
We talked about Hallmark movies first and then Hallmark card writing. Of course I had to be careful about how I responded to some things. The whole session was, unsurprisingly, pretty blue. Anyone who’s read my fiction under the Bryn Donovan pen name—which is at least, like, ten of you—knows I deal with grittier things there, while in my job, I have to keep things very wholesome. Topher assured me a couple of times, “We’re going to edit all this,” but I’d expect the final version to still be edgy.
After talking a little about greeting card writing, it was time for Topher and Iliza to try their hand at greeting card writing, and I evaluated the results. The only spoiler I will add is that several of Iliza’s ideas were what we would call at work, “funny but no”—things we would never print on a greeting card.
Topher was happy with the way the session played out. I don’t know yet when it will air, but when it does, I’ll update the post. They took a picture afterwards of the three of us, and if I see it show up on the Internet I’ll add it to this post, too. On the elevator, I was telling Iliza about how many of my friends were fans and she offered to pose for a selfie, which was very sweet.
The whole idea of the podcast, in which people try things for the first time, is so fun and inherently positive. I love trying new things, so the concept really resonates with me.
Do you want to share your hanging-out-with-celebrities experience? Do you have thoughts about Topher and Iliza? Or do you want to recommend a podcast to me? Let me know in the comments! Thanks for reading, and I hope you’re having a great week!
That is so awesome! I’m glad you had a great time.
This made me laugh out loud: “…several of Iliza’s ideas were what we would call at work, “funny but no” because I could just imagine the possibilities. 😀
Haha, they were *really* creative!
😆
“I happen to like it when handsome movie stars tell me I’m charming, so I was happy.“
You are so stinkin cute and I’m so proud of you and I can’t wait to listen. ❤️
Aww, thank you! They were both so nice and so entertaining. 🙂
Now this is a Hollywood story everyone can love. What a fabulous experience, Bryn. And fun. Plus, your hair looks amazing. Boom.
In my previous career as a professional actor (before getting injured on a film in Romania) I was fortunate to act with celebrities like John Ritter, Ben Affleck, Carl Weathers (we did a tv series together called Street Justice) the original cast of the Bold and the Beautiful where I played Rocco Carner for years, Carrie Ann Moss, Michael Madsen, Ice T and Eric Roberts who all acted in films I wrote and co-starred in. Gene Simmons and…okay, enough name dropping. At the same time I was so lucky, because of the success in my career, to hang out with or be friends with many ‘famous’ actors whose identical remain confidential.
It is fun though to hang with talented people you either grew up watching then get to meet, work with, become friends with, talk shop with, or better yet, all three, right? Like you paid your dues for the incredible success you’ve achieved working with Hallmark cards, publishing etc…all of us in the art world share similar struggles and hardships before achieving success–if we’re ever lucky, talented and persistent enough to become part if an exclusive club for those willing to pay the price for their art and dreams.
I grew up in a tiny town in Canada and have experienced, and continue to experience, Hollywood magic. It is something I never take for granted. But also a perk of hard work and a pitbull-attitude.
I’m so glad you had a fantastic experience. ?❤? You look fabulous wearing fame and success.
Bryan! I had NO IDEA that you’d been an actor. Amazing! You must have so many stories! (Well, obviously you do, since you’re a writer…but I mean real-life stories, too!) I think all creative work involves a lot of struggle, and yes, when you keep working hard, it can lead to some amazing experiences.
Thank you so much for all the kind words! You are leading such a fascinating life.
I hadn’t heard of her before you first mentioned her on FB, but I am now a huge Iliza fan!
Hahaha, Merry Lu, I love your avatar! That is perfect for you!
She really is hilarious, isn’t she? What a talent!
No celebrity hang-out stories (unless you count Amy Carlson? not sure I have any repeatable stories anyway . . .) and I’ve never heard of Iliza, but Topher Grace, yes! And I didn’t realize that was him in BlacKKKlansman. Guess I was just staring at Adam Driver the whole movie.
I think Amy Carlson counts, but I bet your stories ARE more on the un-repeatable side. 😀 Do you know that I saw her here in Studio City? I was at the coffee shop down the street and there she was! She was in town for auditions. I need to see BlacKKKlansman!
I hope you are doing well and enjoying the new town!
Why would people NOT want you on a podcast?! You’re great! Okay, now, yes that IT thing is scary. I would most likely cross the street to avoid it, haha. I’m looking forward to listening to the podcast when it airs. I recently did my first podcast for Winston Versus the Snow and I was terrified. Thankfully, it was all audio and everyone that has listened to it says I did great. I would have to agree with Topher, you are smiley and it’s a wonderful thing. Have a great rest of your week!
Savannah, oh yay, I want to check out that podcast! I bet you did a wonderful job. Thanks for the kind words!
Most welcome and thank you, Bryn! I hope this is okay, I’m posting the link for the podcast here in the comments. There is an ad, so my interview doesn’t come on until 2:50 into it. https://readingwithyourkids.com/winston-versus-the-snow-a-picture-book-by-savannah-hendricks/
That is so cool! Thank you for sharing that with us. I look forward to listening when it comes out.
Thanks for reading, Erin! Hope you’re having a good week! <3
I’ll totally have to check this out! Love Topher Grace and recalled seeing a post that he was starting it. I have listened to a few episodes lately of Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness and I absolutely love it. He has the best energy and though he can be snarky at times, he’s genuinely a person who loves to learn and loves to bring that learning to others! As for celebrity hangouts…my girlfriend got us backstage passes to Motley Crue about maybe ten years ago? She had friends working at Logitech at the time and one of them was friends with Nikki Sixx, who is a major hero of mine. He’s an incredible musician, not only with Motley Crue but with his band Sixx AM. He’s also an author, photographer, philanthropist and is currently crusading to call attention to the real dangers of the opioid epidemic, which he has first hand knowledge of. Anyway, we got to meet him on his tour bus, had an excellent conversation, and then he had to excuse us because his kids were calling him. It was a very aw moment and he’s an incredibly handsome and engaging host. It was definitely cool. Then my girlfriend and I ended Up getting lost backstage and had our own Spinal Tap moment, it was epic. I’ve had the fortune of meeting several folks in the music business and I’m always pleasantly surprised at how gracious they are. Can’t wait to listen!
R.L., thanks for the recommendation with Getting Curious! Years ago, a friend of mine met Nikki Sixx and said he was the coolest guy. How awesome that you got to meet him! Love it. Thanks for commenting—always love hearing from you. 🙂
This is so much fun! I knew nothing about this podcast, but I will certainly try to catch your episode when it airs. I have no particular hanging out with celebs stories, though I did once apologize to Aaron Copeland for a mistake one of the brass players in the Rochester Philharmonic had made while performing one of his pieces. I’m not sure why I was apologizing, since I was in the audience, not the orchestra, but I felt an apology was in order and suspected that the brass player was not going to offer it. Also, once while turning a corner on Beacon Street in Boston I almost knocked Roscoe Tanner (pro tennis player from Lookout Mountain TN) down. And one fall, I spent several hours in the tiny Martha’s Vineyard airport pretending not be be staring at John Stamos and his wife and a couple of the Beach Boys. Pretending not to stare kind of precluded me from initiating any sort of conversation or other hanging-out activities. Gee, these are sort of pathetic anecdotes, huh? But anyway, very cool stuff you’re up to–life in LA agrees with you! All best!
Rich! Hiiiiiiii! Oh my gosh, that is so funny about Aaron Copeland. I would hate to be that brass player 😀 You’re so fancy, hanging out in Martha’s Vineyard with celebrities! 🙂 It is great to hear from you. <3
Thanks for the post and good luck with the podcast. Personally I don’t know or hangout with any “celebrities.” Fact be known, I have no use for celebrities partly because of the obsession people have with them and partly because there are so many other important things we should be dealing with.
Hi Bob! I’m always interesting in people doing creative work and storytelling, and definitely, celebrity obsessions can get WAY out of hand. 🙂 Good to hear from you! Have a great weekend.
Can’t wait to hear the episode, Stacey! Iliza has been one of my faves since her Last Comic Standing win like 10 years ago. She is such an amazing mimic, phrase-bender, and storyteller. She’s a word-nerd’s kinda comedian. I’m sure her Funny But No’s (Funnies-But-No?) will be top-shelf quality. Adding Minor Adventures to the podcast menu immediately. (“Cecily Strong Tries ASMR”…!!!)
Matt!!
She is SO clever and such an amazing performer. I want to go to a show of hers! I listened to the ASMR one. Loved it. (But of course, I love ASMR.) It’s a great podcast!
Have a great weekend! We miss you!!
Oh man, Topher was AMAZING in BlacKkKlansman – he absolutely nailed the mundane, charisma-sucking black hole of NOTHINGNESS that is David Duke. Instead of playing him as the mustache-twirling evil genius that he is most definitely not, he perfectly tapped into how completely boring and stupid bigotry is. I watched That 70’s Show and he was always funny but I never knew he had range. How exciting- I can’t wait to listen!! xo
Also, this is Michele- I am signed in so I don’t know why this posted as anonymous LOL.
The funny thing is, when I was reading the first comment I was almost POSITIVE it was you! Hahaha. I don’t know why that showed up as anonymous. I need to see this. It sounds like a perfect portrayal of banal evil.
You definitely need to watch it! John David Washington and Adam Driver are also excellent.
Not to brag, but I am actually a close friend with a really beautiful and positive author and Publishing Professional. Oh and she was at my wedding also. Miss you, you lovely person.
Oh, really? Well, that’s nothing. I’m friends with a gorgeous writer who’s hilarious for a living! Hahaha. I MISS YOU SO MUCH. We’ve got to visit KC again before too long!
Hi Bryn, first hi! I love your blog, and read it every time here in Dubai! So, my ‘celebrity’ hang out involves the astronaut Buzz Aldrin! I was on a plane from Dubai to Cape Town, and he was sitting behind me. I was absolutely desperate to show him my ‘supermoon’ photos on my phone, and tell him that the moon landing took place on my birthday. I think he’s truly cool – he was wearing a ‘mission to Mars’ t-shirt – every bit the space exploration advocate that I’d imagined! Of course, I didn’t bother him at all though, as he was mostly sleeping on the long-haul flight. I did, however, have a lovely chat with his manager, who told me how much travelling he was still doing. On that trip, he was en route to Antartica!
Hey there! Thanks for reading…gosh, we’ve been mutuals forever. 🙂 That would be AMAZING to see Buzz Aldrin on a flight. That’s a great one! How cool that he was “on brand,” too, haha…and on his way to Antartica! Once an adventurer, always an adventurer, I guess. Thanks for sharing!
I am happy that you enjoyed.