I attempted to rewatch it a couple of months ago and despite the generally breezy vibe had to give up because it was just too misogynistic, which really started to wear on me at a certain point.

I was ambivalent about it on first viewing but rewatched it during the quarantine and really appreciated the hangout vibe.

Judging by the quality of representation Russians have had in American cinema for...ever?, I feel like they’re not being catered to as an audience in any sense.

I think a reunion special could be pretty watchable even if you’re not a huge fan of the show, in the same way that behind-the-scenes/making-of docs can sometimes be better than the project they’re covering. The problem here is that there’s zero creative reason for this to exist.

In my understanding he needs a birth certificate to present to immigration, but can’t procure it because none of his documents use his birth name, including presumably his passport. So I’m just shocked that he managed to get a passport using a fake name.

He kind of did it on The Affair (same character, different perspectives)

I could see that happening with driver’s licenses but I figured passports had to be correct since you need a birth certificate (or in my case, naturalization certificate) to get one. But then again I’m an immigrant so I’ve had to fill out a mountain of paperwork and it all had to match or else, so I can’t even imagine…

How does the name on his passport not match his birth certificate? Did the paperwork rules change or something?

I’m old enough to have despised him then...

Oh wow I bet he’ll have some spicy New Rules when he returns

As an on-air guest? Zero. As a guest of a guest? Three. A friend is an assistant to an actor so she’s been to all of them, except for the really new ones because they haven’t done promo since before the pandemic. 

Judging by the guest list they didn’t have enough material to fill 2 hours and had to bring in reinforcements.

I don’t think you want to be taking cues for how to run a workplace from Letterman, triply so if your entire brand is being nice.

Generally hosts do swing by the green rooms and greet all the guests before the show. If she had done another show before, she absolutely would think that’s weird.

She and the network got a lot of threats, complaints and hate mail, but the show lasted for another season. She then had a standup special and another sitcom very soon after, and then obviously both Finding Nemo and her daytime show immediately after that. She doesn’t really have any gaps on her resume.

I know someone who did casting for commercials and clients would routinely reject any actor who had publicly talked about having been harassed or assaulted because they were “too controversial”, including a victim of domestic violence. And these weren’t famous actors.

The venue in my understanding was too cavernous for most improv shows and better for standup, except UCB’s relationship with standups was too fraught to capitalize on that. And much like with Times Sq & Rock Ctr, just because it’s technically easy to get to it doesn’t mean anyone local wants to come out there…

That move did sink the UCB though... And people weren’t mad about the niceness and accessibility; the location made it difficult to get a sizable audience to attend smaller shows and the space itself was not appropriate for the shows they were doing according to every person I know who had either performed at or gone…

I’ve worked in both Rockefeller Center and Times Square, and TS is far worse for foot traffic but at least you don’t have to put up with Saks blaring Christmas music every hour.

Was Franco actually instrumental to his success? He owes more to Apatow than to anyone else.