I'm Jenna Fisher.
And I'm Angela Kinsey.
We were on The Office together, and we're best friends.
And now we're doing the ultimate Office Lovers podcast just for you.
Each week, we will dive deeper into the world of The Office with exclusive interviews, behind-the-scenes details and lots of BFF stories.
We're The Office Lady 6.0.
Hello.
Hi, lady.
I'm excited for today.
I'm so thrilled and giddy.
I'm actually like having the little body buzz.
We're doing an all about episode, everyone.
As you know, these all about episodes, we focus on a specific character from the show.
We really deep dive into them.
They were my friend Angela Kinsey's idea.
Thanks, lady.
You said, I have this idea.
We do these episodes where we dive into a character that's called all about fill in the blank.
I wish people could see you right now because your impression of me is very jazz hands.
Well, you've got an idea.
You've got a vision.
I don't know why you've suddenly become like a director from the 1920s, but that's how I'm doing you.
Well, I'd like to kick things off with this letter that we got from Lauren W in Philadelphia Pennsylvania, who said
Hi, Jenna and Angela.
I'm sure I'm not the first person to suggest this, so I'll add my name to the list.
We need an All About Jan episode.
Melora Hardin is absolutely amazing, and the character of Jan Levinson is one of the most brilliant creations in TV history.
Well, Lauren, we couldn't agree with you more.
Uh-huh.
So today is all about Jan Levinson.
Gold.
Without the gold.
Yes, exactly.
Okay, so normally our All About Character Breakdowns.
We pick an area of interest to discuss about that particular character.
But we're going to do this episode a little differently because Lauren, many people, just like you, wanted an all about Jan.
In fact, when we put up our folder for questions, we got so many and we thought, you know what?
Let's just take them right to the source and ask Melora.
She is going to join us to answer them all.
And we don't want to waste any more time.
There is so much to talk about.
Yes.
As you all know, we had her on the podcast when we broke down the client in season two.
She told us how she got her job as Jan and a whole bunch of other fun stuff.
Definitely give it a listen if you missed it.
She is such a great storyteller and we're so excited to have her back on the podcast, because now she's going to answer even more questions about her time on the show.
But first, we got a letter, Ethan G from France, who said...
We know that you have lots of information in the show Bible about characters.
What does the show Bible say about Jan?
I mean, it wouldn't be an all about without a show Bible moment.
Exactly.
So I looked it up and here's what I got for you, Ethan.
First of all, according to Michael, her name is Janet.
Jan is short for Janet.
Mm-hmm.
Jan smokes or smells her candles when she's stressed out.
She's stressed out a lot.
Yeah.
Jan claims to be good at public speaking.
We don't ever really see this, but she does do a good job of shutting down the idea of unionizing in the warehouse.
Yeah.
According to Michael, she's a great limbo dancer.
Jan does not like Dwight.
The show Bible says that.
Jan does not like Dwight.
Also, Jan hates that Dwight has her cell phone number.
She likes blouses from Liz Claiborne and earrings from Ann Taylor.
So specific.
She is divorced and was a victim of identity theft all in the same year.
She sees a psychiatrist who believes she has some self-destructive tendencies.
She often drinks heavily.
She specifically likes martinis.
She also ordered a vodka tonic I watched.
It said in the show Bible, she makes her assistant buy her vodka.
She also missed her yoga class because she drank too much.
Mm-hmm.
Jan eventually dates Michael and moves in with him but has never told him she loves him.
She enjoys videotaping their sex.
She got breast implants but complains she has lost nipple sensitivity.
I can't believe that is in the show Bible.
She likes scrapbooking and soy milk.
I didn't see scrapbooking coming.
After breaking up with Michael, she becomes pregnant after going to a sperm bank.
She becomes a single mother to a little girl, records a Doris Day cover album.
Then she works as a hospital administrator, before becoming an executive at the White Pages and starting a sexual relationship with Clark.
We know she refuses to give Dunder Mifflin the White Pages account and that Dwight does eventually get them, but not much is known about what happens to Jan after that.
That is what the show Bible had to say.
Well, I loved all the nuggets in there.
There were some good nuggets.
Real specific stuff.
I know.
And before we chat with Melora, you know, we do this for all the all abouts.
We have to have our favorite Jan moments from the Office Ladies team.
Jenna, why don't you go first?
Well, I love her speech to Michael in season three back from vacation.
I love it so much.
Here it is.
Why am I here, Michael?
In the last year I've gone through a divorce, an identity theft, a husband who would not.
This is neither here nor there.
My psychiatrist thinks that I have some self-destructive tendencies and that, for once, I should indulge them.
You following me?
Uh, uh, yes.
I think I owe it to myself to find some kind of happiness.
You know, I mean, even if it means...
Lowering my expectations or redefining the word itself.
Okay.
This is the thing.
You know, I am attracted to you.
I don't know why, but I am, and I need to follow my instincts.
At least that's what Dr. Perry thinks.
I was Dr. Perry.
This is the point, okay?
You're wrong for me.
Okay.
In every way.
But I still find myself wanting to be with you.
I love how she can barely get out and be with you.
She can barely say it.
There's this big pause, and then it just comes out, be with you, be with you.
All right, Matt, how about yours?
Do you have a Jan favorite moment?
I do.
I love the character of Jan.
This is such a great performance.
And I picked the clip from The Client in season two when she's at the chilis with michael and tim meadows, the client.
I just love this scene.
She's just like stuck with them.
They're like doing their baby backs rib song and she just so doesn't want to be there, but it's just like being a good sport and playing along.
So i chose this clip from that scene.
Well, this brings us to Jan.
Truth or dare?
Tell us about your divorce.
Oh, no.
Michael.
Michael.
Michael, please.
No.
No.
Oh, really?
Hey, so you're not going to play.
She's not playing.
She's not playing the game.
We've been fighting for a while.
He didn't want kids.
I knew that going into it, but he also knew that I did.
So I guess I thought that he would change his mind.
He thought that I would change mine.
You didn't.
I was stupid.
No, no, you were not stupid.
Gould was stupid, right?
That's right.
You know, you were really brave.
I mean, you put your arms out there, you slit your wrist.
That's true.
You said, world, this is my blood.
It's red, just like yours.
So love me.
The look she gives after he says that is just like, what?
That is like a trio that I could watch all day.
It's so good.
The line I quote most from The Office is also a Jan line from Dinner Party, when Pam brings her the bottle of wine.
She goes, oh, great, I'll use this to cook with.
This will be great for cooking.
Yeah, I say that any time someone gives me a bottle of wine.
Sam, do you have one?
Yes, I do.
I think it's a good example of her playing both the straight man and the ridiculous character.
It's where Jan pulls Michael into the bathroom of David Wallace's house.
Here we go.
Like your privacy.
What is coming to you?
No, no, no, no.
What?
Come on, let's go back to the party.
Come on, wait.
We're missing everybody.
Don't take that.
No, stop it.
Stop it, Jan.
No, no, no.
No means please don't.
It's not against the law right here.
I'm not going to slam you against anything.
You're acting inappropriate, Jan.
I'm acting inappropriate?
Forget it.
Get out of my way.
Oh, yeah, it's great.
She just has to play both the ridiculous character and the straight man character at once.
It's great.
The two of them are so good together.
So good together.
No, she's like spiraling.
And so she's going to her default, which is just hookah.
Just he's Michael has enraged her.
And then it just like turns into just she's turned on.
I know.
Yeah.
Which is very funny because there's the whole runner with you and Andy planning your wedding on the show.
And every time Andy bothers her, the character of Angela with like wedding plans.
Then she pages Dwight for sex.
I know.
It's like kind of a common theme in the show.
How like how people deal with stress.
Exactly.
They sex it up.
Well, Angela, what about you?
Well, I rewatched some compilation like videos of Jan scenes.
They were such a joy.
By the way, did you guys know there's a YouTube montage just titled Jan being a walking red flag for 36 minutes straight?
I saw that.
That's great.
The title of it, which is what's amazing.
So her performances are all amazing, but season three is really a stellar Jan season.
And my clip is from the job.
So it starts at the corporate offices.
David Wallace has just fired Jan.
She's called him a son of a bitch.
She says goodbye to Hunter, wishes him all the best with his band, and then she's going to hop in the car with Michael.
She's starting to really spiral and you got to hear it.
I mean, I just don't understand.
Just so rude, you know?
I mean, the absolute nerve of that guy.
I'm sorry about that.
That was terrible.
No, actually, I think it's good.
You know, it's fine, actually.
I do.
I really think it's great that it happened, because you know my work has always been the thing that's gotten in the way of my happiness.
So
Well... No, don't cry.
It's gonna be okay.
Oh, I know, I know.
It's just, I'm sorry.
It's just these painkillers that I started taking since the surgery.
Oh, they make my moods totally unpredictable.
Wow.
What am I gonna do?
Well, I guess you could come and save my condo.
I think I could back out of the sale.
Probably get some negative feedback on my eBay profile.
Actually, wait a minute.
This could be great.
This could be perfect.
You know, my full-time job could be our relationship.
I could wear stretch pants and wait for you to come home at 5.15.
It could work.
This could work, really.
Oh my gosh, there's so many highs and lows.
The journey through that.
Yeah.
Like she's pissed off.
Then she starts crying.
Then she's like, this could work.
And she's like, this is great.
Oh, could you imagine a whole life with someone who turns on a dime so quickly like that?
And Michael's face as she's going Oh, no.
It's like the roles have reversed.
Yes.
Now he's like, OK, I'm going to do this.
Amazing.
Guys, this has gotten me very excited.
I think we should take a break because when we come back we will have Melora Hardin in studio answering all of your jam questions.
I can't wait.
Well, welcome back to office, ladies, Melora.
Thank you so much.
It's great to see you guys.
We're in person in person.
We should confess that we have been chatting for close to 30 minutes. for coming on, Mike.
It has just been an absolute delight.
It has been so nice to see you both.
I haven't seen you in person in a really long time.
I know.
Yeah, it's really nice.
Yeah, it's great.
I am thankful, though, that the cast, like we will text or DM.
I just am so appreciative of the little touchstones we have every once in a while in each other's lives.
Yeah, it's good.
It's sweet.
Well, I'm rewatching The Office now with my kids.
Oh, wow.
They're on their first watch of it.
We've just gotten to season five.
So you've been on my TV every night, basically, as we go through the show.
So I feel like I just saw you.
I need to do that.
You know, I haven't seen the show since it aired.
Oh, Melora.
You are so phenomenal.
Isn't that weird?
You need to watch it.
I don't think it's weird.
I literally have not.
If we didn't do this podcast, I'm not sure I would have sat down and watched it.
And now my kids curiosity.
That's why I'm watching it again.
Right.
Yeah.
I watched it with my kids too.
My kids watched it.
But I didn't watch it with them, but I should have.
That's a really good idea that you did that.
You're doing it together.
Well, first of all, like Jenna said, we did the whole rewatch.
But then I spent last night just watching.
All of your stuff like the best of Jan kind of all these like clips and it's.
You are just so brilliant.
And I want you to rewatch it, just to watch how great Jan is, because you have created the most amazing character.
And you should know, and I know, you must know this that you are on the fan favorite list of like office characters.
Oh, I love that.
It makes all the lists.
Right, right.
I love that.
Well, I think the show was so amazingly well cast.
You know what I mean?
Yeah.
I mean, everybody on the show was like perfect for who they played. really, really perfect.
It's always those lightning in a bottle kind of moments where people are like what is it that made you know, why did that movie?
Why was that show?
It's like all those things have to come together.
And there really is no recipe for that.
It is the writing.
It is the casting.
It is the directing.
It is the lighting.
It is the sets.
It is the props.
Like it all just has to like infuse into this little special magical moment.
And the fact that we were part of something that is so special.
It's extraordinary to have fans that are in their 60s and 70s and fans that are 10.
It's really crazy.
Yeah.
And I had been, you know, in this business since I was six years old.
And I think that when I did the office, I think I literally, I think it was my 13th pilot.
And so I was really used to things just, you know, being on the air as long as they were on the air.
And then that was it just going off the air or just getting put up on a shelf.
No one ever seeing them, or some people seeing them or maybe a few people seeing them, or even when it was kind of like successful.
But then it was over and that's it.
You know, so this was all very shocking to me.
And just where I was in my reality timeline of you know my age and stuff and in my life.
This was just a very unusual experience for me.
I don't know if I if I told you guys about that one that I didn't even believe we were hit.
Did I tell you that?
No, I didn't even.
I was like I didn't know we were a hit, until we won the SAG award.
Uh, the first SAG award.
And I don't know if you remember that trophy is made out of bronze.
And then the base of it is just a solid brick of marble marble.
And when you are a winner, right, you walk around all night.
You don't carry it like at your knee.
You don't carry it above your head.
You carry it with your elbow bent up here because it's Everyone wants to see it.
So you're kind of holding it like right at your shoulder, right?
I woke up the next morning and I could not lift my arm.
My bicep was just absolutely completely dead.
And I literally needed physical proof.
I was like, oh, I guess that means we're hit.
I mean, it was just that simple for me.
I don't know whether it's the dancer in me or what, but I needed physical proof.
That muscle memory of like, all this pain means it happened.
Yes, it means I was carrying an award around all night and we are a hit.
It was just surreal to me.
Really surreal.
Anyway, sorry, you didn't even ask me one question and I went on a rant.
This is what we love.
So many people wrote in.
We put out a prompt, hey, Melora's going to be on the show.
Do you have any questions for Jan?
Melora, we got so many amazing questions.
So we're just going to throw a few at you today.
Okay, good.
Yeah, sure.
Let's kick things off with Peyton W from Hiram Georgia, who said when first starting the role did Melora create any kind of character background apart from what was scripted in the show?
And then Lisa R. from Plymouth Lake, California said, what is Jan's history?
We first learn about her past at Chili's, but who is Mr. Gould?
And what is that backstory?
Did you create any kind of backstory for Jan?
I don't think so.
Yeah.
I don't remember that I did that.
Jan was so visceral to me.
Steve and I had such an interesting chemistry that when we were playing the characters there was such a distinct push-pull, like attraction repulsion that was so visceral to me that I really just hooked into that.
And I think that's really how Greg Daniels the writers you know wrote built the character was really from that sort of tactile kind of experience that I think the audience can feel and I think Steve and I could feel.
And I remember saying it out loud at lunch during the pilot.
I remember saying you know God, if we get picked up, Michael and Jan have to hook up somehow, some way.
And I remember Steve laughing and Greg laughing so hard and me laughing.
And we were all just like, oh my God, that would be so wrong and so right.
Like we all just got it so early that I don't even think there was time to even think that way about this character, this role.
I was hired as a guest star possible recurring character in the pilot.
I was not even necessarily going to be a regular on this show.
I had done so many guest star possible recurring characters in my career before.
So as far as like, is this going to be, you know, some memorable thing?
I just was going in with this visceral feeling I had for her and it seemed to be working.
Everybody liked it.
They were laughing.
They were enjoying it.
Steve and I had great chemistry when we were working together and it was like let's just go with this.
Well, I, you know, a lot of people did write in about the chemistry.
Okay.
And Steve F from Bryan Texas, said do you remember a first or early moment on set that you knew?
You and Steve had great chemistry.
It sounds like right from the pilot.
But Steve wants you to know that your relationship on camera was truly remarkable.
Oh, that's so nice.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I mean, I felt it.
I think Steve and I both felt it really early.
I have come from a background in improv, but different kind of improv than what Steve had come from.
My mother was an acting teacher and she was an actress herself as a younger woman.
And then she kind of put together her own technique and she taught young people.
She taught kids.
Her name was Diane Hill Harden.
She taught Leonardo DiCaprio when he was a kid, and River Phoenix and Joaquin Phoenix and Maggie Gyllenhaal and Jake Gyllenhaal.
Jessica Biel and on and on.
But the point being that I think that the kind of improv I came from was really playing the truth.
So not going for the laughs, but finding the comedy inside.
The was why, as a kid actually, I think I was thought of mostly as a dramatic actress.
And then as I got older and then you know, comedy happened for me.
People were like, oh wow, she's really funny.
But I think that's where the chemistry comes from.
Really.
It literally is just that I say, Steve can throw a ball.
It could be a curve ball.
And I would get so excited by that and catch it.
And then he could throw a straight ball the next time, or an underhanded ball the next time, or an overhanded ball the next time.
And I was just always like ready to catch those balls.
And he was exactly the same way.
So.
I think we had a lot of fun.
I certainly did.
I can't speak for Steve, but it felt like we both did.
But I certainly had a lot of fun tossing those balls in different ways, even subtly all the time.
And I think that does come from a comfort with that. the unknown, a comfort with improv.
Well, to continue that metaphor, I like this metaphor of the idea of like pitchers and catchers in improv.
And I sort of saw myself on the show as more of a catcher of other people's improv.
But I think you have what makes Jan so fun is that you're both.
I think Jan was a pitcher and a catcher because I would see it on set as well.
Like you just toss it right back to him. you know, but you catch it just right too.
So thanks.
Yeah.
What fun.
Yeah.
Yeah.
It is fun.
And that's a really great observation about your character.
I feel like you're totally right about that.
And that was what made her so special too, because she just was so always available for that, from anybody, you know.
Yeah.
So great.
So great.
Yeah.
I think the thing that really spoke to me and everything you said there was just playing the truth.
Because that's the highest brow of comedy.
Truly.
It's not going for the joke.
That's the cheapest way to go about getting a laugh is to go for the joke.
But if you play the truth...
It's so pure and real.
And you did that so many times as Jan.
I was watching you.
Oh, my gosh.
Last night there was a moment where Jan just finally decides she's going to get back together with Michael.
Yeah.
Even though he has sent the email to everyone.
You know, Jan Tan everywhere, Jan everywhere.
Like it's gone so far.
As she's like look, I don't know why my therapist told me just lean into this, but clearly I'm attracted to you.
I don't know why.
And Michael is trying to say back to you that he agrees, but he's so excited.
And it comes out like, and I also henceforth agree.
Do thee thereby affirm this moment?
Like whatever, I'm paraphrasing it.
But he says so many ridiculous things in a row saying yes.
And then you have this moment where you just go.
I mean, those little moments of you reacting to him are so truthful as Jan.
Some of my favorites are your nonverbal, Laura.
There's an elevator nonverbal.
That's literally like I'll do it with you when I see it.
It's the one where you're like Michael, you're a good looking guy, but I just this and you're annoying and I can't stand you.
And you say all these insults and it's just not going to happen between us.
And then he says you think I'm good looking and you get in the elevator and you go, And then the door is shut.
And it's just like, it's my favorite jam nonverbal.
You have so many.
And that one was the one where we got given the candy bag and the scene started in Michael's office and we walked to the elevator.
Yes.
Continue having that argument, get in the elevator and the doors close.
And that was that scene where they basically said, we're going to rewrite the scene.
We don't like it.
Basically, we need you to hit this beat.
You guys improvise.
We're going to go rewrite it.
We'll be back.
Have fun.
They left.
But we went off and I do know that definitely that scene is, I would say, 90 percent improvised.
Wow.
They were like, just go play.
We're going to try it.
Because they weren't liking the way it was playing, the way it was written.
And they were just like, you know, Greg was extraordinary that way.
That was the first set I'd ever been on with that much collaboration with the writers and the actors.
That was just an extraordinary eye-opening, like, what?
And even what you said, Angela.
Greg was extraordinary at that in terms of weaving in the truthful things, so that there are things about Jan that are very much Melora.
Like I've often said, you know, I had Greg and Paul Feig and his wife and Greg and Suzanne over for dinner one night.
And I have a huge painting of myself.
This was at an older house that we had that a friend of mine had painted.
That was the cover of my second album called Purr.
And it was basically a nod to Gil Elvgren, who was the first pinup painter of Before they could take photographs of women like that.
There were painters that would paint women that were just a little cheeky, where they'd be leaning over and picking up a garden hose and their skirt would be flying up and they'd be going oh, and they'd have these cute little ruffly panties on.
And it was sort of a nod to that.
And it was, you know, my record was called Purr and it was very kind of 50s, 40s inspired music.
And so I had this painting over our couch in this very pretty but small living room that we had, with hand-painted ceilings.
And I remember when they came in and I remember Greg noticing and I remember saying you know, I often think sometimes people might come in my house and think that I think that's serious right.
Because I'm like sitting in this very provocative pose and I've got all these kittens all around me and, you know, my leg is out and my boobs are all pushed up and I'm like, you know, very smiley.
And I said, but, you know, like it's a joke.
It's a joke that goes with the music.
It's perfectly for my record.
But sometimes I think people might think that like, oh, wow, she really thinks that she's all that.
I mean, I am all that, but, you know, that was a character I was playing for the music.
Anyway, so that was where the Warhol of Jan came from.
And the candle thing came because again, when I came for dinner it was just like I had the whole house lit up with candles.
I mean, I'm a candle fiend.
I just am, especially back then.
But I really literally would just light the whole house with candles.
And I just thought it was so romantic and so sexy and so beautiful in such a beautiful environment.
And I just think that he was like you know, like he was just taking notes and he gave Jan the candle business because, you know, Melora loves candles.
I'm so sorry.
Those are funny things.
Yeah.
No, I love all of that.
And I love just the through lines that they would pull back over and over again.
I watched this morning when Dwight and Pam they think they're making a sale to some unknown person, but it's actually Janet, her new job.
And once again, that was in season nine.
Season, that's right.
But all of those paintings of Jan are back on the wall in her office.
Then there's one of her skydiving, but it's just a huge one of herself.
I really wondered if you got to keep any of that, if you have any of those.
You know what?
I would love the skydiving one.
No, I did get given the Jan Warhol.
I have that rolled up somewhere.
And then this spark parking space reserved for Jan Levinson, Michael Scott's girlfriend.
Oh, that's so great.
I have that one from the prop guys.
Yeah.
Yeah, that's pretty fun.
And I have it in my house upside up high outside my door.
And so sometimes like work people or like people delivering packages.
And sometimes, because it's up above your eye level, you don't necessarily see it, but sometimes they'll see it.
And if they see it, they are so excited because then they put that with my face and they're just like what?
Oh my God, I'm delivering to Jan.
They can't believe it.
They're so excited.
All right.
We have a question from Vicky G in Argentina.
Yeah.
And I actually have strong feelings about this.
So I'm curious to know your answer.
All right.
Vicky would like to know, did Jan ever really love Michael or did she just need him?
And also a lot of people wrote in asking if Hunter is really the father of Jan's baby, because they think maybe Jan was pregnant at the dinner party and they'd like to know your thoughts.
Wow.
I love how deeply these people think into the storylines.
That's really great.
I think Jan did love Michael as much as she could.
I just think she was quite broken around love.
You know, she had this other husband, the Gould guy.
And I think that was probably the picture perfect marriage.
That's probably what it looked like.
And that's what she chose thinking that was what she should have.
He had the right bank account.
He had the right job.
He had the right clothes.
They had the right house.
And I think that when she left that the thing I always was playing was Because I remember.
Also again back to Greg.
I mean Greg and I did a lot of talking about Jan and a lot of thinking and there was a lot of like his wheels turning and I could see that
And I think very early on he said to me something like we're having a little trouble in the writer's room reconciling with this idea of that Jan would ever be with Michael.
And I remember this was a real conversation with the writers.
And I remember saying, I think that it really works.
And it wasn't just because I wanted to stay on the show.
I did.
But it wasn't really that.
It was that I could feel that chemistry that Steve and Melora had.
But it was really it was Jan and Michael and it was like there was something that was a little broken about Jan that Michael could fill because he was very childlike actually.
He was very childlike, even in his delusional thinking everything was amazing.
And I think probably at the beginning of their relationship, he was like that with her.
He was like How could I get so lucky to have this beautiful talented, successful woman strong, powerful woman that can dominate him, which is what he really loved.
I think she was quite dominant of him.
And I think that he was just like a puppy dog, just like he would show up at the door like a dog with his tail wagging, you know, with his tongue out, like what are we going to do today?
And she would make the plans.
And so when they say, like, was she really in love with him?
I mean. deep philosophical existential love.
I don't know.
But for those two people, those two characters, I think they loved each other as much as those two people could love another human being.
So I would say fully yes for that.
And I want to know your strong opinions on that, Jenna.
Do you think they were?
Yes.
Okay, good.
100%, for all the reasons that you said.
And I love what you're saying about Gregg.
You know it's funny if Jan and Michael are together, but Greg wanted to make sure it was also truthful and real that they were together.
And so he was saying we're trying to figure out like, what's the truth of these two characters being together?
We know what's funny about it.
And so but I think it is what you're saying, which is like.
Yeah, I do too.
And play.
Yeah.
I think they had a lot of playfulness in the fact that her dominance and his sort of passiveness, where he has to show up at work and be the guy who's in charge and be the boss where he's really not suited to be a boss.
Right.
But he is.
He's the boss of Dunder Mifflin.
It's hilarious.
And then she's the bigger boss.
And she gets to boss him around.
And I think that was really hot for him.
That was that's what I always got.
That was hot for him and hot for her, because I think Gould was much more dominant.
And I think that wasn't comfortable for her.
I always used to say to the Jan tossed out her femininity to climb that corporate ladder that she felt she had to be masculine, she had to be one of the guys.
And I think that Michael reignited that feminine part of her that was dominant, but playful.
And I think he probably could get her to soften in their private moments, in their intimate moments.
I always imagined that they had great sex and some really sweet tender moments too, where I think they did have.
That kind of healing, you know, flavor that I think you're talking about there.
I believe they snuggled on the couch and watched movies.
Yeah, I do too.
I do too.
I think they snuggled on the couch and watched movies.
I think they filmed themselves having sex.
I think they did all of those things.
Oh, we know they did that.
Yes, we know they did that.
We know they did that.
But also they have this super sweet. scene where Michael is bankrupt, basically.
Jan is spending his money, but he also hasn't been good with his money.
And they're sitting in the train, the empty train.
Oh, that's such a sweet scene.
Jan says, like, look.
You know, after I lost my job, like my friends aren't talking to me.
These people abandoned me.
No one, you know, whatever my family under legal restraints can talk to me.
And then she's like, but you're always here for me.
Yeah.
I think, you know, there was some real truth to that.
Michael was always there for Jan.
Yeah, he was.
He was.
And so I think that was healing for Jan.
Yeah.
He didn't give up on her.
Yeah, exactly.
Yeah.
Oh, that's sweet.
What about the baby?
Was Astrid Kevin Malone's sperm donor baby or was Astrid Hunter's baby?
I think, yeah.
She wasn't Michael's baby because of the vasectomy and the double condom that she insisted that he wear.
So I think we're pretty sure it's not Michael's.
Definitely was not Michael's.
Yeah.
I mean, we had played it that it was that she had gotten a sperm donor.
Kevin, no way.
That would just be him, you know, being Kevin.
But No, I don't think it would have been hunters.
No, I don't think it would have been hunters either.
I think that would be nice because I'm sure they had sex, but I don't think it was hunters.
I think it was a sperm donor.
Like I think she literally went and got an anonymous you know sperm donors sperm, and that would be the way Jan would do it.
She would be very meticulous and very across all the T's and dot all the I's.
I bet she didn't get an open one either.
I bet she didn't get the one where you can find your father.
Yeah, she locked it up.
Because I think she really kind of wanted to go back to Michael too.
I think some part of her was like he could help me raise this kid.
There's probably some part of her that had that fantasy which was never going to be a reality.
Okay.
I agree because like I said, I'm rewatching the show.
We just watched a fun run last night and that's the one where Kevin finds Jan at the grocery store and she's pregnant, and he calls Michael and, And then Michael comes down and you have this great conversation.
It is so heartbreaking.
And it just punched me in the gut where Michael is like, is it mine?
And she's like, no.
And he's like, but.
It has to be mine because you clearly got pregnant when we were together.
And you say, I did.
And then he says, I can't believe you cheated on me when I specifically asked you not to.
Sorry.
That's such a great line.
And it's such a great line.
And you're like, I didn't cheat on you.
And he's just like, I can't figure this out.
And that's when you tell him, I went to a sperm bank, Michael.
And he says, you went to a sperm bank when you were with me?
So hurtful.
It's so painful.
But then there's this great talking head where Jan explains like listen, if I were younger, maybe I'd give Michael a shot.
But I can't take it anymore.
I needed a great sperm from a great, like everything you're saying fast.
Yes.
Yeah.
No, she was great DNA.
Yes.
She was smart.
She was not messing around and she knew this was her last shot to like, to have a kid.
Like I'm going to do it and I'm going to do it now.
Yes.
Oh, my gosh.
That scene is amazing.
Yeah.
Well, I have a question for you from Amber V. in New Hampshire.
Amber says, what was Melora's favorite Jan storyline?
And Rachel O from South Dakota said is there a storyline you wish would have played out differently or maybe have gotten more depth?
I mean, nobody can really look at Jan and not see the dinner party storyline being sort of brilliant as far as just what happened in that evening the invitation of people over and all of these characters crashing together in a way that we just didn't see.
I mean most of my scene, all of my scenes really were with Steve and sometimes other characters would pop in and out, but nothing significant with Jan was with anyone but Steve, except In the dinner party.
Oh, and then also that last season nine, that one was also cool because that was with you.
And was it you and who?
Rain.
Oh, it was you and Rain.
That's right.
But mostly you, right?
It was mostly the two of us.
Yeah, that's right.
That's right.
You show me a slideshow.
That's right.
Yes, I remember that.
Of Astrid.
Of Astrid.
And I sing that song.
I'm singing the song on the slideshow and I'm mouthing the words to it.
That's That's right.
Absolutely ridiculous.
And the song is completely improvised.
That was completely improvised.
Oh, my gosh.
Are you kidding?
Yeah, they just gave me the lyrics and they were like, and they know I'm a songwriter and a singer.
So they were just like, yeah, just I don't know, sing it.
I came up with a whole melody that is so ridiculous.
The melody itself as a melodicist. and a lyricist.
I'm telling you, the melody of that is so ridiculous.
I've had people before on Cameo ask me to sing that song and I have to go back to YouTube and watch it.
And I go, This is the weirdest melody.
It's just like, I have to figure it out.
And I know I just came up with it on the spot.
So no, it's so bonkers.
I was watching it this morning.
I don't know how, first of all, you guys got through that without laughing.
I don't know how you did it.
It was so crazy.
Wait, I want to play it.
Can I play it?
You can play it.
Or is it weird?
You're here.
No, you can play it.
No, I'll play it.
Oh, I don't know.
Maybe.
If I listen to it once, I could probably sing along.
I remember... sit there and it's such a great scene because Pam's trying to get this sale.
You know, she's trying to get you as a client.
Yes.
And it's the thing where it's like She's really trying to walk a line of remaining a truthful person, but also flattering you, but making sure you don't feel flattered.
And you call her out.
You're like, don't patronize me, Pam.
Oh, I know.
It's so good.
And I'm like, I'm sorry.
I don't like it.
I like it.
I do.
I like it, but not.
And then you're like, I like how Astrid writes her name.
And Jan's like, I wrote it.
And you're like, what?
She made it look like a little kid.
Jan takes everything.
I know.
Okay, ready?
Yes.
Mommy, you are a princess.
Mommy, you're a superstar.
Mommy, you're the greatest.
How could I ever fail your show?
I love this.
Like ridiculous.
I mean, you can tell I did that in one take.
That was literally like, just sing it.
It's just me making it up.
I never thought in a million years I'd have to ever sing that for anyone ever again.
So it's not even a followable melody, really.
It's really not even a followable melody.
Followable melody.
And now, knowing that you made it up, it makes sense too, because it's like you're kind of just commenting, like on the picture, like she's putting on the shoe, and you're like, and it's too big for her.
See, that's another thing that Greg wrote in to the, because.
Mindy did it first because I sang, I did Les Mis at the Hollywood Bowl and I was Fantine.
And that literally that next episode, Mindy was like, you're going to be singing.
If you can sing like that, you're going to sing.
And that was when I did the baby shower episode where I came in and sang to the baby son of a preacher man.
And that was Mindy that wrote that.
And then Greg was like We're going to have her be, and then had me come in and do the Astrid, you know song the mommy, you know, what did you learn?
You know, I learned about clocks and that as another one that I improvised.
Just they just gave me the, they gave me the lyrics and I just made it up.
Never thinking in a million years anybody would get, you know, attached to that song.
But people know these songs.
I'm always amazed by the fans.
And also Threat Level Midnight.
Yes.
Oh, yes, exactly.
Where you get to play the singer.
Yes, exactly.
Exactly.
I mean, that was all Greg sort of making my dreams come true.
He's such a sweetheart that way.
Like he's like, oh, you know, you sing.
We're just going to keep on putting you in here singing all these different ways.
But they did that.
They were like, oh, Ed, you play banjo.
It's going in.
That's right.
You can play recorder.
Yes.
Like any talent that you had.
They just threw it in there like oh, John Krasinski, you're great at impressions.
And you know the one, though.
I used to always say guys, can you please like have Meredith built out a song sometime and be really amazing.
But they were like, it doesn't track for me.
But Kate Flannery has such a great voice.
She did get to sing with Pam, like you guys got to sing.
We did get to sing karaoke.
That's true.
But yeah.
Well, karaoke is kind of perfect for her character.
It is.
And they found a way.
Yeah, they found a way.
It's like, I'm a dancer too, but I had to pretend not to dance when I'm dancing to the Hunter song.
You know, there's things you have to do for your character.
It would have been weird for Jan to be good at dancing.
And I tried to dance like literally off the beat a little bit.
I tried to like when he's doing this.
I was just like so, in the reverie of the sex of the song and the memory of the song.
Dancing in that moment is so great.
And you'll remember this Angela, because we were there which is that you walked over to John and you were like dance with me.
And he was so brilliant because he didn't, but you then awkwardly like spin yourself under his seated arm is just incredible.
Oh my God.
It was so much fun.
We haven't talked about us breaking in scenes yet, but we need to.
But When you're singing Son of a Preacher Man, I'm sitting right behind you at that baby shower.
And what I wasn't ready for was when you, while holding the baby and you're sitting on the ground, you started snapping.
Like just started like you were so feeling it and everyone is just watching you.
And when you started snapping, I thought I'm going to lose it.
I am going to lose it.
Oh my gosh.
Well, it was such a free environment for those kinds of things, you know, because I think the snapping it was just something that came to me in the moment.
It wasn't like I planned that or thought that through the night before.
So we're very lucky that we had that experience.
It really is very special and not always that way.
It's not always an environment where...
That many people can make that much space for each other.
People often ask how was working with Steve?
What was it like to work with Steve Carell?
And I always say well, the best thing about that was just that space that we made for each other.
That really was very present.
And we had also a great connection.
To finish that question, what would I like an episode to go longer?
Where would I have liked to have gone more depth?
I would say the end of the dinner party episode was so strong, with her trying to put the thing back together, you know, trying to put the trophy back.
Yeah.
The Dundee back together and just what had gone on that night and how deep and how revelatory that was for their insight into their relationship, that I think I did for a long time have thoughts of where that could have gone had they continued the relationship.
There were a lot of things I think could have come from that.
I even had conversations with Greg about it.
I think about like where it could go from there, and so I was.
I think I was a little like oh, We could have done so much more together as a little couple and, you know, could have been even crazier and fun and we could have healed and we could have, you know, blown up.
So, yeah, that's where I would say I could have gone.
I could have gone more with that.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
But Michael just ends up you guys kind of break up and he moves in with Dwight at the farm.
Right.
And then we don't see you for a while.
Yes.
Yes.
But I hear you in terms of it did feel like we had just scratched the surface and how fun it was to go into Michael's private home with Jan and into that relationship that we'd only seen in little glimpses at the office.
Yeah.
I mean, I could have spent a whole season just in that condo.
I mean, I could have, a spinoff that was Jan in some kind of neighborhood group chat.
I mean, what was Jan like in that condo community?
I could have watched that.
Yeah, that could have been good.
That could have been good.
I loved it when michael like she wants the car because she's going to yoga the one car they share and he's working as a telemarketer and she doesn't know it and all this stuff right.
But you go to pick him up and he's he's like how was you?
Okay, jane goes, i didn't go and she was like you drive, i drank too much wine.
I want to see more of Jan's life.
It's so amazing to me.
Oh, it is.
It's so silly.
So silly.
Well, I'm here for the Jan spinoff.
I can tell you that.
Okay, so I have to ask you because a bunch of people did write in about this.
Yeah.
Because you had so many scenes with Steve, was there one in particular that you remember that was so difficult to get through because you were laughing?
And I know one that you're heavily featured in the bloopers then.
Well, I mean obviously the one in the dinner party where he kept throwing the television that he kept the Dundee.
And when he kept saying about the small TV and it's this size and pulling it out of the wall and Just like that was ridiculous.
None of us could get through that.
Jenna, you couldn't get through that.
I couldn't get through that.
John couldn't get through that.
It was mostly the three of us, right?
Yeah, that was before Andy and Angela arrived and were getting the house tour.
But even Steve broke in that.
And he never breaks.
And I really didn't break very much.
I don't think I'm, I don't know if I'm in the blue.
You didn't.
I didn't break much.
You were good.
No, I didn't laugh that much.
But like, I could not get through that stupid television.
And also you.
When I come up to the thing to knock on the door the bathroom and you and John are in the bathroom.
Well, we're up in the hallway, I think.
And I'm eating.
I'm eating.
And this didn't even make it in the episode.
The osso bucco wasn't ready yet.
Yes, and i'm eating and i had to keep you know because every time we broke we had to retake it.
I was like you guys, i'm getting really full, like i can't eat anymore this power bar.
I feel like you were in the bathroom because i felt like we had to keep opening a door.
Were we not in a bathroom?
There was a second one, I think, where I'm in the bathroom and you had to knock on the door.
Okay.
That I don't think ever saw the light of day.
There were all of these.
And every time the door opened, you or me, one of us would just crack up so much.
So now, you know, it's bad.
Because the first few times the whole crew cracks up with you.
Right.
But you know it's bad when the crew stops laughing because they're just trying to get you to stop laughing so they could get through the scene.
I'm Jenna.
We it was like 15, 20 minutes.
It was so many.
Well, there was this whole runner that you don't really see in the episode.
It ended up getting kind of cut out, which was that like Pam was always trying to sneak away.
Yes.
She was starving.
But you were just always right on top of her.
And so it was like she couldn't.
The hostess with the mostest monster.
Without food.
Yes.
That whole idea was so funny to us.
Oh, God.
Because it was like a horror movie.
It was like, what?
Exactly.
You were just trying to get a snack.
I have some things downstairs.
It was so good.
I was at a restaurant in Seattle last week and there was osso bucco on the menu.
And the waiter said to me, are you going to get the osso bucco?
And like their little wink wink.
And I thought, oh my gosh, I bet Melora gets this all the time.
Like, is there a quote?
We had a gal write in Amelia S from Yukon, Oklahoma.
What is one line that gets quoted to you the most?
Oh my gosh.
I guess if you burn it, you buy it is sort of what people tend to say to me.
Or I guess that makes me the devil.
Oh, I bet you get that.
That one.
Or just that's what she said.
That's the one I hear the most, obviously.
Right.
It's like everyone says you say something and they say, oh, that's what she said.
Or they say something.
Yeah.
I thought the best.
That's what she said that I watched of all your clips is when.
Oh, God.
When Michael says it in the deposition.
The dying star.
Oh, I thought you were going to say the cocktail episode.
That was a great moment of that's what she said.
I'm like, I guess I'll just...
Get back with Michael and dissolve inside myself like a dying star.
Yeah.
That's what she said.
And it makes no sense.
It's not a that's what she said.
Jan's using it wrong.
And she doesn't even know what she's saying.
And she's a little confused by it.
It's such a freaking great.
That's a really fun.
I think there is a handle that leads to that's what she said.
Is there not?
I have it.
I have it because Malora, I have to tell you that there is a Dunder Mifflin Reddit thread and they put this prompt one line that best captures a character.
And this is what they wrote for Jan, which is from cocktails.
It's, I'm taking a calculated risk.
Where's the upside?
I overcome my nausea, fall deeply in love, babies, normalcy, no more self-loathing.
Downside, I date Michael Scott publicly and collapse in on myself like a dying star.
Why is this so hard?
That's what she said.
Oh my God.
Why is this so hard?
That's what it is.
That's what she said.
Okay.
There was a setup.
But people think that perfectly encapsulates the character of Jan.
It does.
It does.
No, it's really perfect.
And it was quite early in the show.
Yes, season three.
Uh-huh.
Yeah.
Well, before we let you go, you've been so generous.
We got some fan mail flurries.
People had questions about some non-office related things.
Okay.
So a lot of people are curious how the recasting of Back to the Future affected you and how you persevered.
Well, I was 17 years old and it was a big deal because it was a two picture deal.
And it was Bob Zemeckis and Bob Gale and Eric Stoltz, who I had a huge crush on.
We had almost worked together several times.
And at that time in my life, I just had a huge crush on him.
So I was super excited to do this.
Went and did, you know, publicity photos.
It was on the backlot at Universal.
It was a big, big movie.
It was a big deal.
Had you shot anything?
Did you?
Because we should say like he was Marty McFly and then you were Jennifer.
Yes.
Okay.
Yes.
And it was all things.
I mean, it was like it was a go.
You were doing marketing for it.
Yeah.
So I had only done some publicity stuff.
I had done some costume fittings and.
And I had met everyone.
I'd come on the set and the back lot there on Universal.
You know, I was part of it.
It was fun and I was excited.
And I was starting like a week later, you know, and then, yeah, got a call.
I remember in my mom and dad's kitchen in our house in in the valley it was, you know, a wall phone.
There were no cell phones there.
And I remember my mom answering and saying, oh, honey, this is for you.
And she was standing there next to me and Bob Gale and Bob Zemeckis were on the phone together.
And they both just said, you know, this is just the most awful phone call I've ever had to make.
And we just think you're amazing.
And we disagree, but apparently we're Some of the executives at Universal.
We've had to let Eric Stoltz go and they feel like it's emasculating to their lead actor to have a girlfriend that's taller than him.
And you are quite a bit taller than Michael J Fox, who we've hired.
And so we don't want to, but we're going to have to let you go.
And we're just so sad about it.
And I burst into tears.
I burst into tears.
I mean, I was just like floods of tears.
And they sent me the most beautiful bouquet of flowers you've ever seen.
It like filled this table and you know, and I just was, I was 17.
So what do you do?
How do you move on?
You just move on, you know, like.
A lot of people don't realize that as actors, we're not just good at what we do.
We have to also be very resilient people.
And you also have to be okay with all of the failure.
I've done some masterclasses or I've taught some things or done shows and people ask me how do you get to be where you are, especially young people?
And I always say for me to be where I am, I would have had to have failed much more than I've succeeded.
There is no way to be as successful as I am or to be the person that I am without the failure.
And we live in a world right now that is so obsessed with success and so obsessed with all the amazing things that are happening in everyone's life all the time, and the picture of that on social media.
And it's just misrepresentative of not just what is true but also what is good for us as human beings.
It's important for us as human beings to fail.
And by the way, we don't connect over our successes.
We connect with each other.
We connect with humanity through our failures.
And so I happened to have some really amazing parents who basically gave me a lot of love for that disappointment, that huge heartbreak which it was.
They held me through it and they helped me go on and they let me grieve and they encouraged me to go to dance class the next day and they encouraged me to go to school and I went to an audition the next week and I continued and I just went on.
I went on, and that's what we all do.
We move through these things.
And we don't crumble, and we don't become just a greasy spot on the ground, even though we might think we are.
I just was talking to someone yesterday who was saying that he hadn't had someone in his life, he hadn't had a relationship in his life for years, because he was so terrified of heartbreak.
And I said, we have to live.
You don't want to live in heartache.
Heartache is just like suffering, like a low-grade suffer.
You want to live in heartbreak, where you just give yourself All of yourself to everything you do.
And then you risk heartbreak and you are going to get heartbroken.
But we all have gotten heartbroken all the time.
I had to just put my dog down four weeks ago.
I'm completely heartbroken about it.
I cry about it all the time.
I probably start crying right now if I keep talking about it.
But I'm all right.
I'm surviving.
And, you know, she's in my memory.
And so I hope that story, because people are really interested in that story.
And I mostly hope that story encourages people to just, yeah, like go for everything, 150%.
And you might fail and you probably will sometimes.
And you might get your heart broken and you probably will sometimes.
But It doesn't mean you shouldn't keep getting your heart broken.
You should.
It's good for us.
It makes us stronger, our character as human beings stronger.
And then we can bring that to our work as actors, if we're actors, or your work as anything you do.
You'll become a better doctor.
If you're a doctor, you'll become a better secretary.
If you're a secretary, you'll become a better person, you know?
So there's my little rant about heartbreak and back to the future.
I mean, I'm tearing up because I'm so just inspired by you.
But just everything you said was such really wonderful truth.
And that was beautiful, Melora.
That was absolutely beautiful.
Thank you.
Yeah.
And some real wisdom.
Yes.
Thank you.
Yes.
My thousands of hours of working on myself, self-examination and help and great teachers.
And great parents.
Great parents, great friends, great coaches.
I have a great coach.
So if I can share some of that's helpful and I'm happy that it moved you.
Well, another thing people asked about, I'm so curious to hear the answer to this.
Will it be filled with as much wisdom?
I don't know.
This is a hard pivot because I know the next question.
So this is a big pivot.
People would like to hear about your appearance on Friends with the monkey.
With that crazy monkey that was pulling your hair.
Well, there's more depth than you might think.
So David Schwimmer and I had been on a date.
He went to Beverly High.
I went to Grant High in Los Angeles.
And a friend of ours had set us up.
And when we were 17, we went on a date.
A lot happened.
Your 17th year, oh god yeah, that's interesting.
Wow, that's right.
Yeah, that's interesting.
And we had ended up kind of i remember kind of kissing.
I don't know if we ever did anything more than that.
I think we just kind of kissed.
We kind of made out a little, but very, you know, very minor make out session.
But it was very funny because when I went in for that, we had kind of remained friends.
The sort of attraction didn't really go very far, but we were kind of, you know, a little crush on each other, I guess.
And then David was working at the Daily Grill.
And I tested for five pilots that season that he got friends.
And it was the first pilot he ever tested for.
Oh my gosh.
Ever.
And it was friends.
And we were all so happy for him because we had just sort of transitioned into friends, you know?
Sure.
Into friends.
And he got this pilot.
It was this show.
Okay, great.
I didn't get any of those five that I had tested for.
None of those went.
So I was just an auditioning actor that season.
And then I think I don't remember what season it was.
Was the second season maybe of Friends?
Or, yeah, it was early on.
I think maybe it was the second season of Friends.
Could have been the third, but I think it was.
I mean, The Monkey was still around, so it was early Friends.
Yeah, so I think it was like the second season.
And when I went in I remember Martha Kaufman and the other producers saying that they were so impressed that in the audition I did not mention that I was friends with David.
And got the part anyway.
And then when we were on the set, they were all so impressed that David and I were friends.
And I've worked with animals like my whole life.
Like as a kid, I did a series called Cliffwood Avenue Kids that people can look that up.
Good luck.
And it was just like tons of animals.
And then one of the highlights of my childhood career was this series called Thunder, about a wild black stallion that came when I whistled, which is kind of important to this documentary that I'm going to be finishing in the next two months.
I'm so excited.
My decade long documentary I've been making.
But people can look for that.
It's called Hunter's Thunder.
But my point is that I worked with so many animals on these shows as a kid that when this monkey came in I was like fine with him because I was comfortable with trainers.
I was comfortable with animals.
But this particular monkey was a bit wild.
And I had just done an episode of Square Pegs with Sarah Jessica Parker, like maybe a year or two before that.
And they had a monkey on that show, which was a spider monkey too.
And that monkey actually bit me and, but it bit my finger, but it broke the skin.
I mean, if that was now, everyone would be freaking out and they'd be sending you to the hospital.
For whatever reason, I was just like, it's fine.
Just put a bandaid on it.
We just put like some alcohol and put a bandaid on and I was fine.
But I was a little tentative with this spider monkey because of that experience and yet very comfortable because of all my childhood experience.
It was, you know, David really didn't like the monkey at all.
Like also the thing you learn when you work with animals is you work with animals or babies.
Whenever the animal gets it right.
That's the one they're going to.
That's the trend they're going to take.
So you have to be on every single time because they're going to pick the one where the baby and the animal do it right.
Right.
And now looking at it, when I've seen it, I'm like, that thing was like hanging on my hair.
It was close to my face.
And you just don't, I didn't think about that.
I didn't think about how close it was to my face.
If it had decided to bite me or just freak out because it was in front of a live audience and someone could have shouted, they could have like laughed, they could have thrown something.
I don't, you know, you don't know how people are going to behave.
Anyway, it all went well and we were lucky and it was fine.
And then the monkey was removed and we did the rest.
But that's not normally how you do three camera shows.
Like normally, you do the whole scene and then you cut, and then everyone applauds and then you move on to the next one.
But in that particular one, I think we just did the monkey bit and then. part.
It's a very short little clip, the monkey part.
Yeah.
But it's full on hanging off your head.
It's hanging off my head.
Yeah.
Very close to my face.
Yeah.
Nowadays I'd probably be like well, maybe my stand in or stunt double could do that think I would want.
I don't think I'd want it that close to my face at this point.
Yeah.
No, I just didn't know as much back then.
Yeah.
Now you have the experience of all the many things that have gone wrong on sets.
Lots of things, lots of things.
Yes.
Yes.
And then you know, ignorance is bliss in a lot of ways, because I do like I am happy that in a way that I didn't know.
And then I got to just have that, whatever, and it worked out okay.
Sam, I think you have a question for Melora.
All right.
Hi.
Hi.
So my all time favorite movie, it's from 1991.
It's called The Rocketeer.
I've seen it probably 100, 200 times.
I just noticed recently you play the lounge singer in it.
Yeah.
I wanted to just pick your brain because this came out in 1990.
So you were what, 21, 22, just about filming it.
Did you tell me you took a dress from that day?
Well, let's see.
So Joe Johnston, the director, and my brother went to film school together.
And Joe had come to my parents' Christmas Eve party, which we had every year.
And I sing.
I always sing at the Christmas Eve party, which they don't have anymore, but I would always sing.
And I guess Joe kind of took a liking to me and thought I was very beautiful and loved my voice.
And loves music.
And I think maybe threw my headshot in for the Jennifer Connelly part.
But the executives, whatever you know, I think they he was like I could use her, I could have her.
And whatever executive didn't, you know, go for it and push my headshot aside.
But I think it was really up to Joe who could be the South Sea singer.
And I remember him calling and saying you know?
So I have this little cameo I'd like you to do and I'm going to make it really special.
And it's going to be really beautiful.
I'm just going to come out of a clamshell and Both the songs will be on the soundtrack and you'll work with James Horner and Billy May, who was this incredible arranger of the 40s.
Would you be willing to go over and sing it with Billy May at his house in Burbank?
He had a house and a little back studio.
And I went and he was probably 80 when we did this.
And I went into his little back studio and he played piano and I sang a little bit of Begin the Begin.
And he was like, Okay, great.
So I think he had to sign off on me, which he did.
And I remember just being on set.
I remember really Jennifer was lovely and we both had these incredible gowns.
The costume designer was extraordinary.
Marilyn Vance, she was a big costume designer at the time and just incredible.
She was just a quirky character.
So many costume designers are like that, like those big movie costume designers are really interesting characters.
And she was lovely.
And we, you know, made this beautiful dress.
And then and Jennifer had a similar beautiful white dress also in this scene in the South Seas Club.
And I remember when they were setting up everything and Jennifer and I were like dancing around, like we were pretending to be partners and we were sort of dancing and laughing and And it was cute.
She was just very sweet.
And we were talking and, you know, we had fun.
And yeah, so I just remember coming into the recording session and Billy May was there conducting the orchestra, which was quite a large orchestra.
I mean, it could have been like 50 or 80 pieces.
I'm not even sure, but it was a big orchestra.
And there, you know, it was over there on the back lot of Disney and it was in the big recording studio on the back lot.
And it was a big deal.
And I walk in and I'm just like, oh, my God.
And Billy goes, oh, we're about to do just finish up some horns.
Why don't you step into the vocal booth and just sing along?
You know, we won't record you, but just sing along.
And I had never sung with an orchestra.
Now, if you're a singer and you're whatever age I was, 20 or whatever, you know, yeah.
It's a big deal to sing with an orchestra.
I had never sung with an orchestra.
So I get in the booth and I start to sing.
They start to play.
I start to sing.
And I just suddenly hear the... And I lose the melody.
I literally am like, Because the horns are doing all these counter melodies that the horns play, the strings play, backed off from the mic and just stopped singing.
And as we were leaving, Billy was like, you're going to sound great.
And I remember one of the violinists walking by and going, you just sounded beautiful.
And I was like, really?
And she's like, you're going to find it.
And they were also confident that I was going to find it, but I was not confident.
I was like freaking out and everyone left.
And it was just Joe Johnston and James Horner.
And James is in the booth and he goes, why don't you just come with me?
We go into the recording area.
All the musicians are gone.
There's a piano.
And James says, can you just turn the lights down?
They turn the lights down.
And he literally sits at the piano and he says, let me just play it and let's just sing it.
And he plays the piano and I sing it one time.
And he goes, great, now let's record it.
And I'll never forget that, to be like in a room like that, you know, it's gonna make me cry.
It was beautiful.
Yeah.
Wow, thank you.
Yeah.
It is really a special scene.
And not only do you sound amazing and look beautiful, but the way you're lit, it's angelic.
It is.
No, it's incredible.
It's incredible.
Yeah.
I think Joe had a little crush on me.
He made you shine.
He wanted to make me look like beautiful.
And he did.
Yeah, you look great.
Yeah.
Thank you.
But it really was extraordinary.
The clamshell opening and walking down that thing.
Oh.
I mean, it was like a little, you know, couldn't have been more beautiful.
So that's a nice question.
Thank you for the question.
It brings back memories.
Melora, I've just loved talking with you.
I could just listen to you talk forever.
I feel like I have even more questions than when we started.
This was wonderful.
Thank you for coming here.
Thank you for talking to us about your time in the office, but also for inspiring us.
This was great.
It's so great that you guys do this.
It's so great that you've kept this like the lore of the office alive for people, Because it is still so relevant, and I just am glad that you guys really got it, that this was a thing to continue to talk about and that you did it with your special friendship that you created on the show.
It's really a lovely contribution you're making. to all the fans.
And I just know they really appreciate it.
And it's not something I could have ever imagined doing, but that's because I didn't believe we were hit until you know, like that's, who I am.
I love that you guys had some kind of foresight into how this would contribute and the fun that you're getting out of it too.
And the friendship you've built and it's really, really sweet.
So And the wonderful, wonderful reunion.
What a wonderful reunion.
And we are such fans of yours.
So you have to let us know when your documentary is ready.
We'll give it a shout out here.
If you want to come back and talk about it.
Thank you.
That's really nice.
I appreciate that.
It's an epic, you know, 10 year thing that I've done with my life.
So that's a long time to be working on something.
So I really appreciate that.
And I would love to talk about it at some point.
It's yeah, it's a very healing, lovely thing.
So I would love to do that.
Thank you.
That's very nice of you to offer.
All right.
Well, Thanks for listening, everybody.
Melora is an amazing woman.
I'm still so inspired by what she said about like how it's failure and heartbreak that connect us, not our successes.
Yeah.
It was a great, great interview.
Yeah.
Thank you, Melora.
And thank you, everybody, for listening.
Thank you for sending in your amazing questions that really helped make that interview happen.
Next week, we have kind of an interesting episode.
A lot of you wrote in and said you would like to hear... more of my journals.
And so Jenna had this idea where she was like, hey, we're both about to take trips.
Why don't we journal about our travels and come back and read them?
So we did.
Guys, I'm going to tell you right now, it does not disappoint.
You're going to want to hear it.
So we'll see you next week for Travel Journals.
See you then.
XOXO.
Catch you later.
Thank you for listening to Office Ladies.
Office Ladies is a presentation of Odyssey and is produced by Jenna Fisher and Angela Kinsey.
Our senior producer is Matt Beagle and our audio engineer is Sam Kiefer.
Odyssey's executive producer is Leah Reese Dennis.
Office Ladies was mixed and mastered by Bill Schultz.
Our theme song is Rubber Tree by Creed Bratton.
