-Welcome to the show. -Thank you for having me.
And congratulations on, uh, having not one,
but two new projects out at the same time
that are getting great reviews from people
who are watching and reading them.
Let's talk first about the book, Little Weirds. -Mm-hmm.
Um, it's interesting because you say
you didn't want to write a book about, you know, uh,
you know, your time in comedy,
you didn't want to write about SNL.
You know, you-you just wanted to write
about your weird little world.
And I was like, "What does that mean?"
But when you read it, you're like,
you have a very strange mind.
It is a beautiful mind, but it is a strange mind, and...
I mean, like, you-you write about, like, the idea
of being born as a croissant, for instance.
Sure. Sure, that's right.
Um... yeah, that's right. That's right.
I almost jumped on the fact that you said, "a beautiful mind,"
which is, of course, a movie about a-a...
from the '90s, about a mentally-ill man, um...
Oh, no. No, no, no, no.
-No, I just mean, it's a beaut... -That's why I... just
-clarifying super quick. -Oh, no, no, no, no, no.
-Yeah. -A... just a beautiful mind.
-Well, no... -A mind that is beautiful.
I should... yes. Trademark, no trademark.
-Undo that. -I mean, great Russell Crowe performance.
-Right. Right. -He's in...
I mean, and actually, I mean,
not to get us off topic right away,
but when I was writing this book, I was like,
"I'm just gonna write, like, whatever I'm thinking about,"
-Right. -"...because that is what is interesting
to me right now."
But as I started to assemble it, I actually said,
"Is this gonna be, like,
"in the movie A Beautiful Mind" -Wow.
-"...when he's like, 'I solved the problem.
Come to my office.'"?
And then the people all come, and he's, like, in a shack
in the woods, and he's, like, you know,
-tacked up trash to the wall. -Right.
And he's like, "Do you see it?!"
Because it is. It is a... it is a collection
of very strange stories that I don't think anybody has written.
Like, ghost pirates. I don't think anybody's written
-about ghost pirates before. -(laughing)
This is, like, a thing where you were just like:
Yeah, I'm just gonna write about ghost pirates
and then Valentine's Day and my life
and this thing and that thing, and then, like...
Like, is... is that how your mind works?
Is that just what's always going on?
You know what, I do think it's, like, pretty, um,
various inside, and-and that is, like,
the scope of my imagination, but part of writing this book
was, like, you know, sometimes if... if you're...
especially if you're a comedian, they're like,
-"We want you to write comedic essays -Right.
about maybe the famous people that you've met,"
or something, or-or where you've been,
and for me, I wrote this at a time when I kind of felt like
I needed to get to know myself again.
And so, um, I started to write little pieces
just about, like, what I was observing in myself,
and the piece you're talking about-- the croissant--
it comes from this weird feeling that I've been having,
like, for over a decade that was just a wish that some...
I would be walking down the street
and people would see me and be like,
"She's probably from France."
(laughter)
You know?
I don't know. I don't know what that means.
-I love it. -No. Yeah, I mean,
it-it means, like, you know, she's classy,
she's... she's just over it.
(laughter)
I think that is the best description for a French person
-(French accent): I don't care. Yeah. -I've ever heard.
They do generally seem like they're over it.
-Yeah. -They've done it all, and they are over it all.
Yeah, like, Fre... I mean, my... my feeling about French ladies
is, like, oh, they just don't care.
Like, you have to win their attention.
Whereas, like, me as an American Jenny,
I'm like... (snorting)
-(laughter) -Like I... like...
"Do you want to talk to me?
Like, let's never go to bed."
Like, you know, even when this interview is over,
I'm gonna follow you around and be like...
-Oh. Oh, wow, thank you. -Like, one more.
Let's talk about the stand-up as well, because, um,
your mind translates completely differently
in the stand-up, and that's what I think I really enjoyed,
is, like, the book is fun and it's quirky and, like,
you play with it and it really is heartfelt,
The stand-up has that feeling but in a totally different way.
You've done something that I haven't seen before.
You've got your stand-up, but then you have, like,
a documentary that's happening parallel to the stand-up.
So you're telling stories, and then we see the real-life,
like, backstory to these stories.
One of the most adorable things in the special
is when we see your grandmothers,
and, like, your grands are just, like, adorable,
and then you imitate your grand, which is, like,
makes you adorable, 'cause you're doing the grand,
and then it's just, like, it's a magical thing.
Why did you choose to do it like that?
I think, um...
You know what? It's sort of an extension
of being like, "Mom, will you come with me?"
(laughs): Like, if you're afraid of doing something,
you're like, "I don't want to walk,"
you know, like you're a kid in a restaurant
and you have to go to the bathroom, and you're like,
"Will someone come with me?" Um, I think it was, like,
it's time, I felt like, okay, I...
I've been doing stand-up for almost 15 years,
and I've never done a special, because I don't like
the challenge of having to get it perfect.
Um, and, like, touring the country
and just making your material, like, you know,
sort of, like, bulletproof.
And I, I'm very improvisational on stage,
and I thought, like, there's kind of no place for me.
And then I thought, "Well, there's a place for me,
um, there's a place for me to show where I come from."
And that's what my special should be like, so, um,
I decided to do the set in the way that I normally do it,
which is, like, there are bullet points,
but it's-it's improvised.
And then to show that, um, I come from these people
who are storytellers
and, like, strange, silly sweethearts in their own way,
and that I'm kind of from that,
but somehow shot out the side. (laughs)
Has anyone, has anyone said to you after watching the special,
"Hey, we should get your grandmother
into standup as well"?
-Because she's really funny. -Yeah.
I mean, they're both really funny.
I was just saying to my parents yesterday
that one of the funniest jokes my nana Connie,
-who looks like Nancy Reagan, -Yes. Right.
with eagle talons, um, one of the funniest things she said
was that she turned to my other grandmother--
and they're both, like, a million years old--
um, and was like, "Oh, no, Rochelle,
we forgot our rollerblades."
Like, okay.
It's just, yeah. It's quirky,
it's different, it's interesting.
It's-It's a new way of expressing yourself.
And one thing I find fascinating is you-you've been really open
talking about, like, you know, your anxiety,
and how you were struggling at some point with, like,
your place in the world and just, like... (stammers)
-you know, harnessing your mind and your emotions. -Yeah.
Has this helped you? Writing it out, you know,
doing the special out there,
has it given you a sense of relief?
It really has, because I think there's a sense that
if you're going to put yourself into the public eye
-you have to be really tough. -Mm-hmm.
Or, like, when people hear that I'm a standup comedian,
they're like, "Ah, that must be so hard because of heckling."
And, like, I mean, I hate to jinx myself,
but I-I actually haven't been heckled.
Um, because I'm usually just a person up there talking,
but I've kept it really small scale.
And I think, for me, writing this book,
you know, first, I just wanted to, like,
be really, like, muscular about it.
And suddenly I was like,
"I just want to write a book that is sweet,
that anybody could kind of, like, open to any page
and feel that they are talking to a dear friend.
-Right. -And that means, like, a reflection of intimacy
and, um, and being allowed to share sorrow
without making it be heavy.
And, um, and so I put this book here,
kind of like into the culture to be like,
there's a lot that hurts right now.
Wherever-- Whatever side of the-- whatever line you're on,
like, there's just a lot of bruising,
and, um, I would like to just offer
a little gift for relief for myself
and whoever wants it.
Well, I think you've done that with the book,
and the special is just as fantastic.
-Thank you so much for joining us on the show. -Thank you.
Really wonderful.
Stage Fright is currently streaming on Netflix.
And Little Weirds is available now.
Jenny Slate, everybody.