You get on this terrific TV show,
in a role that just was perfect for you,
this great role as April in "Parks and Rec.
And so I'm just curious, how did that happen?
How did you get that part?
It's a weird series of little things that happened
but that specifically was because,
I don't even know how to start,
but basically I came out to LA
because I was up for Judd Apatow's movie, "Funny People",
which I got, but he was trying to cast
a completely unknown comedian.
That's a whole different story, but where he wanted to
cast a standup comedian and I wasn't doing standup
but I was doing improv and sketch comedy at UCB.
Right.
But I basically pretended to be a standup
to get that part or whatever.
And then Allison Jones was casting that movie
and I didn't have an agent at the time,
but because I made it up the ranks of the audition process
for that, I flew out to LA for one week
to do a chemistry read with Seth Rogan.
And then while I was in LA, Allison Jones was like,
"Would you mind going on a couple other meetings?
And how do you feel about that?"
And I had no idea what was going on,
cause I'm like, this is crazy.
I was like, I had nothing going on for me in New York.
I was doing comedy stuff,
but I was like, "Sure, I'll go to whatever meeting
you want, lady. I don't give a shit."
(Conan and Matt laughing)
And then, so she basically said,
This is infuriating any actor out there
I know, believe me. I know
There's so many starving actors out there.
I'm sorry, I'm Allison Jones, a top casting director.
Would you go on a few big time reads?
Hey lady, I don't know. I got nothing to do.
I don't get a shit.
First of all.
Fuck off. Fuck off.
I was kidding.
Yeah, I know. I know.
Second of all, Allison Jones changed my life, okay?
As I'm sure she's changed so many people's lives.
Not mine.
Okay
Well she, well, not everyone, went to whatever.
You know what you did.
(Conan and Matt laughing)
Went to the devil and signed a contract in 1993?
That's what I did.
You know what you did.
I know what I did.
But yeah so she was like,
"I'm going to send you on these couple meetings or whatever.
One of them is with the creators of "The Office"
and "The Office" was on the air at the time.
It was huge.
And so I was like, yeah I'll go to meet "The Office people."
I don't give a shit, lady.
(Conan and Matt laughing)
And then, and so, but I was in LA for the first time.
So I was like, LA, I was wearing jeans shorts.
I was like I don't,
I didn't realize the weight of that meeting.
And then, so I went to the set of "The Office."
It was somewhere in the fucking Valley
or I don't even know where I was,
but all I remember was, I went into
I think it was Mike Schur's office.
And I kept seeing the actors from "The Office"
like Mindy Kaling and BJ Nova and people walking by.
And I'm like, oh my God,
those are the people in "The Office."
And he was like, "That's because
we're on the set of "The Office."
And I was like, this is crazy, dude.
And then we were waiting for Greg Daniels.
and then Greg came in and again,
they hadn't written the pilot at that point.
They were just talking
about they had Amy and they were talking
about the ideas for the pilot or something.
And then we, I don't know,
I don't even know what I did in that meeting.
Mike Schur says, "She was the weirdest person I ever met."
I wasn't being weird, okay?
I don't even know what I was doing,
but Greg came in and then, you know how weird Greg is.
Yes, I do.
Greg and I immediately just, I don't even,
we literally started talking about the meaning of life.
I don't even know what we were talking about.
It was like we were high or something.
He came in and he was like, "What happens after you die?"
I'm like, "Okay, this is what I've been saying.
I don't know, dude, what do you think?"
And then we were,
This is Greg's process by the way.
This is how he casts.
Steve Carrell apparently was awful in his audition,
but then had a really good theory
for what lies at the end of the universe
and Greg, that's what Greg wanted to know.
Okay. All I remember is I have an image of Greg,
I want to say he was doing a Rubik's cube
that he wasn't, but I want to say he was
knitting something or I don't know.
He was, if it was Greg,
he was probably knitting a Rubik's cube.
Okay, he was knitting a Rubik's cube.
A functional Rubik's cube.
He wasn't making a lot of eye contact.
And I just remember, he was like, I don't know.
And I was looking at him and we were just, I was like,
this guy is fucking really weird.
And then we were talking and then Mike was just watching it
like, what am I watching here?
And then he was basically, then he started telling me
the idea for the show.
And he was like, "Amy's going to have an assistant
and maybe she's going to be like this."
And then I was like, "That's a stupid idea" or something.
Not really.
But I was basically like, "Oh, she should have an assistant
that's a college intern, that's really smart,
that's just doing it for credit, and hates everybody,
but is good at her job,
but doesn't give a shit about it or something.
I pitched him the character basically.
And then he was like,
"Uh, okay."
And then,
(Conan laughing)
And then, that was it.
And then,
and then,
(Conan laughing)
I told Greg Daniels exactly what my character was
and how it would fit into the show,
and he went, "Uh, okay."
Whatever.
No, I don't know.
I'm pretty sure that's what happened.
And then I pitched him that
and then basically I found that was it.
And then I left and I'm like, well that was weird.
And then basically a couple weeks later or something
they called me, they were like, "You're in this show."
And I think the original pilot that they wrote,
the character's name was Aubrey.
It was just Aubrey in the pilot.
Right.
And then when NBC, I guess, was going sign off on me
they made me audition to play myself.
Yeah.
They were like, "You got to audition now."
I'm like, to play myself?
I hope I get the part.
Then I went in and did an audition where I was,
I don't even know what I did.
And then they changed into April and then that was it.
And I'm like, great.
I didn't even want to be on TV.
(Conan laughing)
I was trying to be in movies, bro.
Let me just say one thing,
cause it's just that sometimes the universe,
everything comes together in too nice a way.
Greg Daniels, who is running "The Office"
and with Mike Schur, he's doing "Parks and Recreation.'
He and I started out in the business together,
just quick disclosure, as writing partners.
And we've been friends forever
and we text each other all the time.
And Greg is, I love him and he's brilliant
I love him too. and really super funny.
He's a little, his mind works differently.
This is a text I got on my way this morning to Larchmont,
to come do this podcast,
not knowing that Greg's name would even come up.
I'm just going to talk to Aubrey.
I get this text out of the blue from Greg.
I haven't heard from him in a couple of weeks
and I just get this text.
"How you doing?
I had a weird dream you hurt your left hand.
Hope you're great."
(Matt and Aubrey laughing)
I never, I just picked up my phone was like,
okay, you brought up Greg. I've got to.
I don't know. That sounds sexual.
I know. So I'll be calling him later
to find out exactly what happened in this dream.
You hurt your left hand jerking me off.
What's up. It's me, Greg. Remember us?
Jesus.
You jerk off Greg Daniels?
In the dreams, we both,
(Conan laughing)
What the hell happened here?
You numbed your left hand for the stranger.
Yeah. What were you doing with your left hand and Greggie?
Little Greggie?
Yeah, exactly. Jesus.
Not little Greggie.
It's made of concrete, that thing.
It broke my hand.
You guys are sick.
You're sick. You did this.
You introduced that whole image
and then circled around and accused me of being a perv.
It's really you two, weird Catholics
at the end of the table,
I know. doing all this.
I know.
If it's wrong, it feels so good.
Right, Conan?
(Conan laughing)
Well, that's interesting. That's fascinating.
And you got this part and then you're off and running,
you're off and running.
I got that part,
I got "Funny People"
and I got "Scott Pilgrim vs the World"
directed by Edgar Wright in one week.
Oh my God.
When does that happen?
Man, I was in the right time, in the right place,
in the right jean shorts.
I've just realized that when I auditioned
for the Late Night Show in 93,
I was wearing very short jean shorts.
Oh really?
Remember when I first met you for this podcast?
You were wearing super short jean shorts.
That's right.
Hey, you got to show a little leg, baby.
A little bit more than that.
Had to show my little under shelf.
Want to play in the big leagues.
That little overhang that Tom Cruise climbs
in "Mission Impossible."
Oh my God.
I was lucky.
I was a lucky little waitress from Queens.