Second Drink: Diversity Day AI transcript and summary - episode of podcast Office Ladies
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Episode: Second Drink: Diversity Day
Author: Audacy & Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey
Duration: 01:01:45
Episode Shownotes
This week, Jenna and Angela tackle episode two of The Office. They cover Michael Scott's cringe-worthy jokes, their own harassment training as actors, and how offices all over the country use clips from Diversity Day as examples of bad office behavior. Finally, they reveal the origins of the famed line
"I will attack you with the North", and beg the question "was Angela in the right dressing room for the 2004 World Series?" Link to Song: Jim & Pam By Annika Wells https://open.spotify.com/album/3mmGxyEIPViWHxlG9fDSk5 Episode Transcript To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Summary
In the episode 'Diversity Day,' Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey reflect on a memorable installment of 'The Office,' where Michael Scott's cringe-worthy attempts at diversity training serve as a focal point. The hosts discuss their personal experiences with harassment training and note the episode's impact on workplace behavior discussions. They highlight the writing prowess of B.J. Novak and the collaborative process among writers. The conversation also touches on behind-the-scenes moments, iconic lines, and the camaraderie developed among the cast during filming.
Go to PodExtra AI's episode page (Second Drink: Diversity Day) to play and view complete AI-processed content: summary, mindmap, topics, takeaways, transcript, keywords and highlights.
Full Transcript
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00:02:55 Speaker_05
Are you ready for second drink of Diversity Day? This is still one of my all-time favorite episodes of The Office. I used this second drink as an excuse to watch this episode again, and I found two catches. Are you ready for them?
00:03:08 Speaker_04
Mm-hmm.
00:03:08 Speaker_05
I think I have an idea of the first one. Go. Number one, there is still a cat calendar at reception. Caught it. Saw it. I don't know why I'm obsessed with this, but I'm going to track it. I need to know when that cat calendar comes down.
00:03:20 Speaker_04
I know. I'm wondering if it's the whole first season.
00:03:22 Speaker_05
But anyway, we're going to track it. We'll let you know. Also, at 12 minutes and 28 seconds, when we're all loading into the conference room to hear Michael's presentation on diversity,
00:03:34 Speaker_05
I noticed John and Brian are smirking at one another when they enter and sit down. It is a total break of character. I don't know what they were talking about before we started rolling, but you can watch two friends having a dude bro moment 100%.
00:03:51 Speaker_04
Well, I rewatched it as well, and I want to talk about something that happens at 13 minutes and 7 seconds. Okay. Alright, everyone is entering the conference room scene, and they are going to watch Michael's video that he has made.
00:04:02 Speaker_04
Yes, it's very short. It's very short, but I guess when they were filming it, They let Steve and Rain play around at the top of it. It is so funny. I was cracking up. It's in deleted scenes.
00:04:15 Speaker_04
And you really hear the build of Michael getting so pissed off with Dwight. Dwight is his camera operator. And what I love is that you hear Steve and Rain as Dwight and Michael just discovering who these characters are to one another. It's so fun.
00:04:31 Speaker_04
Let's hear it.
00:04:33 Speaker_02
Don't do that. Just say action when we're ready.
00:04:36 Speaker_03
Dunder Mifflin. Michael Scott, Diversity Tomorrow, take four. And action.
00:04:44 Speaker_02
Should I try it now? Do it again.
00:04:48 Speaker_03
Diversity Tomorrow, take five.
00:04:51 Speaker_02
Action. Hi, I'm Michael Scott. I'm in charge of Dunder Mifflin Paper Products here in Scranton, Pennsylvania. But I'm also the founder of Diversity Tomorrow, because today is almost over.
00:05:05 Speaker_02
Abraham Lincoln once said that if you're a racist, I will attack you with the North. And those are the principles. Okay, sorry. Don't laugh. Please don't laugh this time, Dwight. It's bugging me. Let me give myself a countdown. Ready? Three, two, one.
00:05:28 Speaker_02
Take six. Just let me do it. Three, two, one. Hi, I'm Michael Scott. I'm in charge of Dunder Mifflin paper products here in Scranton. Keep the camera steady, please! People are gonna get seasick watching this. Ready? Three, two, one. Action. Don't!
00:05:48 Speaker_02
Please don't say anything. Oh, God.
00:05:53 Speaker_03
And action.
00:05:56 Speaker_02
Lights, camera, action, whenever you're ready. Could I count myself down, please, Dwight? Three, two, one. Hi, I'm Michael Scott. I'm in charge of Dunder Mifflin paper products here in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
00:06:09 Speaker_05
Oh my gosh, I could listen to those guys do that all day. Me too. It's so funny. It's so funny. He's like, don't say anything. And he's like, take six.
00:06:17 Speaker_06
He's like, don't say anything.
00:06:18 Speaker_05
I know. Well, I want to share something. I want to share a song that was written by a fan that was inspired by the moment when Pam falls asleep on Jim's shoulder at the end of this episode. Get out. The song was written by Annika Wells. It is so lovely.
00:06:38 Speaker_05
I want to hear it. I can't wait for you to hear it.
00:06:49 Speaker_01
I'll leave you sleeping on my shoulder when the meeting's over I'll save your life from total boredom and expired yogurt So take your time, three years, that's fine I'll wait until the season three finale, it's a date
00:07:13 Speaker_01
Cause you're my Jim and I'm your Pam I fell in love with my best friend No one's ever loved me like you do Cause no one's Jim and Pam like me and you
00:07:41 Speaker_01
I'll switch the teapot for the iPod a million times all over And when I'm litty at the Chili's, I'll kiss you not so sober So meet me on the rooftop, don't be late I'll bring the grilled cheese if you keep me on your plate
00:08:04 Speaker_01
Cause you're my Jim, I'm your Pam I fell in love with my best friend No one's ever loved you like I do We'll go down in history The longest, cutest love story We could make a season 10, it's true Cause no one's Jim and Pam like me and you
00:08:49 Speaker_04
Isn't that incredible? It's so good. It's so good. And I want to point out that in the lyrics, she said, they kissed at Chili's. I knew you were going to say that, Angela. I knew it the second I heard it.
00:09:06 Speaker_04
That's right, because that is when they first kissed. I am sorry not to get back into that debate. I feel seen. And also, that song is so lovely.
00:09:15 Speaker_05
We have to share it. We do. And you can download it on Spotify, everybody. So we'll tell you where to find it.
00:09:21 Speaker_04
Yeah.
00:09:22 Speaker_05
We'll link to it. All right. Join us this Wednesday as we break down The Accountant's Webisodes. But now, let's get to our second drink of Diversity Day. Enjoy. I'm Jenna Fisher. And I'm Angela Kinsey. We were on The Office together. And we're best friends.
00:09:41 Speaker_05
And now we're doing the ultimate Office re-watch podcast just for you.
00:09:45 Speaker_04
Each week, we will break down an episode of The Office and give exclusive behind-the-scenes stories that only two people who were there can tell you. We're The Office Ladies.
00:09:56 Speaker_05
Hello, everyone. This is Jenna Fisher. And this is Angela Kinsey. And today you're listening to Office Ladies, and we will be breaking down Diversity Day. It's a good one. Season 1, Episode 2. This was written by B.J. Novak and directed by Ken Kwapis.
00:10:11 Speaker_04
It was. This was the moment for me, I was like, we have a hit. This is great stuff.
00:10:17 Speaker_05
Yeah. Oh my gosh, it's happening to me again. What's happening? I have so many things in my head to talk about this episode. It's like the little cards in my head are filtering and I don't know which one to pick first.
00:10:30 Speaker_04
Oh, like a Rolodex? Yes.
00:10:31 Speaker_05
Like that?
00:10:32 Speaker_04
Yes, yes.
00:10:32 Speaker_05
That's what's happening.
00:10:33 Speaker_04
I know. This also happens- And then I freeze up. Then you freeze up and you kind of look like deer in headlights when I look at you.
00:10:38 Speaker_05
Yeah, I just stopped talking. I sort of shut down like a computer screen.
00:10:42 Speaker_04
You know what? The same thing happens to me at a buffet. I love a buffet. I can't decide. Too many choices. Too many choices. I'm like, do I want pancakes or do I want like the crab legs or their sushi?
00:10:53 Speaker_05
What buffet has crab legs and pancakes?
00:10:56 Speaker_04
Like go to a buffet in Vegas. I love a Vegas buffet. Touche. Touche. Okay, let's do it.
00:11:02 Speaker_05
All right. I'm going to start with a synopsis. You love it.
00:11:05 Speaker_04
Do it.
00:11:05 Speaker_05
That seems good. All right. In the episode Diversity Day, the staff of Dunder Mifflin must complete a diversity training seminar due to some complaints. to corporate.
00:11:15 Speaker_05
But manager Michael Scott feels the training was insufficient and subjects the staff to his own training.
00:11:21 Speaker_04
Yes. That's it in a nutshell. That's it, folks. And my gosh, I mean, just when I rewatched it, it was so awkward. It's so awkward. This is like Michael Scott at his most cringey this first season, I feel like.
00:11:37 Speaker_05
Yeah, they really leaned in.
00:11:39 Speaker_04
They leaned in. OK, Jenna, go.
00:11:41 Speaker_05
All right. Shall I start with some fast facts? I am waiting. I can't wait to see what you got. I see. All right.
00:11:48 Speaker_05
So my first fast fact is that this was the first totally original script of the American version of The Office, because we talked about in the pilot that this was based on a British television show of the same name, and the pilot episode was an adaptation of their script.
00:12:08 Speaker_05
This was not. After the pilot episode of our show, we started writing original storylines for our version of the show.
00:12:17 Speaker_04
That's right. Unique to the American, The Office.
00:12:19 Speaker_05
That's right. And the writers referred to this episode as the pilot after the pilot.
00:12:25 Speaker_04
Ooh, that's good little insight, guys. Yeah, that's a little insight. The pilot after the pilot.
00:12:29 Speaker_05
Because they felt like this was establishing what is the American version going to be like? Oh, wow. Diversity day. Boy. That's the pilot. That's it. Oh, my God. I think when we think about this episode, Angela, we both talked about this.
00:12:44 Speaker_05
It is absolutely brilliant. It's brilliant. And people love it. And in rewatching it after all these years, I couldn't believe how remarkably it held up. Yeah. I mean, it's just a stunning piece of comedy, in my opinion. And it was written by B.J.
00:13:02 Speaker_05
Novak, who plays Ryan the Temp on the show.
00:13:04 Speaker_04
Who also, you guys, is like really smart. He is one of the smartest people I know.
00:13:10 Speaker_04
One time him and Mindy were having a conversation and I walked up and I was just like, hey, and they were talking about sort of like some kind of advanced economics kind of conversation. And I was just like, okay, bye.
00:13:22 Speaker_05
I think it's why Mindy and BJ became best friends was because they are just two of the smartest people in the world.
00:13:28 Speaker_04
They're so smart.
00:13:29 Speaker_05
And they're the only people they can talk to.
00:13:30 Speaker_04
Well, I just knew in that moment I had nothing to add to their conversation and I just did the slow fade because I was like, wow, these are two really smart people.
00:13:38 Speaker_05
Well, let me lay something on you about B.J. Novak in this episode. He was 25 years old when he wrote it. Shut the front door! What were you doing when you were 25 years old? Oh, Jenna. I'll tell you what I wasn't doing.
00:13:50 Speaker_05
I wasn't writing a brilliant piece of television comedy.
00:13:53 Speaker_04
I was an operator at 1-800-DENTIST.
00:13:55 Speaker_05
Yeah, I think I was working in a medical office as a receptionist.
00:13:59 Speaker_04
Mm-hmm, yeah.
00:14:00 Speaker_05
Transcribing medical documents, which is interesting work, by the way.
00:14:05 Speaker_04
Ew, it sounds a little gross.
00:14:07 Speaker_05
Well, it was a psychological office. So what these psychologists did was if you were applying for an executive position at an important company, you had to go through a psychological evaluation.
00:14:21 Speaker_05
And then the psychologists would determine whether or not they could recommend you for the job or not.
00:14:26 Speaker_04
And you wrote it all down?
00:14:27 Speaker_05
I transcribed all of the sessions, all of the therapy sessions. Oh, my God. With the executives. Jenna, this sounds like an HBO series.
00:14:35 Speaker_04
Oh, my gosh. You should pitch that. Okay, sorry. We're getting off topic.
00:14:39 Speaker_05
Well, I want to say in my time doing it, there was only one person who was not recommended. And it was because they felt he had some violent tendencies.
00:14:48 Speaker_04
Okay, well, this is taking a turn.
00:14:50 Speaker_05
Can you imagine how suspenseful it was for me to be typing out that information? I was like, what are they? 25-year-old Jenna was like, ooh. Yeah, well, that's what I was doing when I was 25.
00:14:59 Speaker_05
When BJ Novak was 25 years old, he was writing this television show. And this was his first job writing for a television show.
00:15:06 Speaker_04
I know, all of it.
00:15:06 Speaker_05
And his first script was Diversity Day. What the hell is going on?
00:15:11 Speaker_04
BJ, just settle down on being such an achiever, okay? Can you just relax?
00:15:15 Speaker_05
I had to reach out to B.J. because I wanted to ask him, B.J., what was it like? Because here we had the British version of the show that was so acclaimed, and you are now tasked with writing the first original episode.
00:15:30 Speaker_04
The pilot after the pilot.
00:15:31 Speaker_05
The pilot after the pilot. He explained the original writing staff for The Office was Greg Daniels, the executive producer, showrunner, Paul Lieberstein, Mindy Kaling, Mike Schur, and B.J. Novak. What a room, by the way.
00:15:45 Speaker_04
Right? What a room.
00:15:46 Speaker_05
I know. And then they had Larry Wilmore and Lester Lewis, who were consulting. This room full of writers broke down the plots and storylines of the five remaining episodes of season one. And they did this as a group.
00:16:01 Speaker_05
So they created outlines for each of these episodes. And then a different writer got assigned a different outline, and he got assigned the diversity day.
00:16:10 Speaker_04
Okay, so wait, I just wanna make sure I understand. So they would take storylines and outlines and break them down as a group. Yes. And then you would get assigned which storyline was yours. Yes. Got it.
00:16:19 Speaker_05
And then you had to fill in the dialogue and different story points and you do a good amount of writing on your episode, but the idea for the episode comes from the group collective. From the room, okay. Right.
00:16:32 Speaker_05
Also, at that time, they didn't know what order they were going to air. So he did not have the pressure.
00:16:39 Speaker_04
Yes. Because that's what I was thinking.
00:16:41 Speaker_05
Of writing the first one.
00:16:43 Speaker_04
Yeah. That would be so much pressure.
00:16:44 Speaker_05
I would freeze up. And I remember that. I remember that when we came back after getting picked up and we were going to shoot these five additional episodes, we had five completed scripts. And then they decided which one they were going to shoot.
00:16:57 Speaker_05
They didn't come out weekly. They did it collectively before we started the season.
00:17:01 Speaker_06
Mm-hmm.
00:17:03 Speaker_05
I guess that takes some of the pressure off.
00:17:05 Speaker_04
It would.
00:17:05 Speaker_05
Yeah.
00:17:06 Speaker_04
And I have another fast fact. All right, you do your fast facts, because I've got some delicious note cards waiting for you. All right. Some Kinsey tidbits over here.
00:17:15 Speaker_05
I enjoy digesting your note cards. Oh, OK. Digest this first, though. What? A lot of people want to know, where did the idea for this episode come from? This episode is based on the real life experience of our writer's assistant, Tom.
00:17:31 Speaker_05
So when they were in that writer's room, they throw out ideas for episodes, and Tom told this story about how when he was in college, he took a class, and in the class, they did this exercise where they had to put note cards on their heads that said different ethnicities, and then they had to go around and regard one another as that ethnicity using stereotypes.
00:17:49 Speaker_04
Where did he go to school? Where did he go to school? Oh my gosh.
00:17:54 Speaker_05
I don't know. Holy moly. But that happened. Okay. So let that sink in. Yeah. That happened to people.
00:18:02 Speaker_04
Well, here's the thing I feel like about the show, and listen, you guys watch it, you know. There's a lot that happens that you're like, oh yeah, something like that kind of happened at my job. Yeah.
00:18:10 Speaker_04
I mean, when I worked at 1-800-DENTIST, we had to go to these human resource, like resources meetings, and they would act out skits for us about inappropriate behavior.
00:18:20 Speaker_05
Well, you know what, remember we used to have to sit through those sexual harassment seminars on the office. The whole cast and crew would gather in the warehouse and once a year we had to get- NBC made us do it.
00:18:32 Speaker_05
Yeah, made us do sexual harassment training.
00:18:34 Speaker_04
And then we signed papers saying we'd all behave appropriately.
00:18:37 Speaker_05
Correct, but do you remember what happened like in season four or five? The video package that they showed us was our show was what not to do.
00:18:45 Speaker_04
Yes clips from the office Yeah, we were sitting there watching clips of our show as examples of ways not to behave in a workplace I've had actually a lot of people tell me that that it comes up in different ways that in their either college or work that our show is like what not to do and
00:19:01 Speaker_05
All right, I've got one more fast fact, and I also have a fan question.
00:19:05 Speaker_04
Well, OK, good, because then I have some Kinsey tidbits.
00:19:07 Speaker_05
Very good. What would you like first, the fast fact or the fan question?
00:19:11 Speaker_04
Jenna, what is happening? Are you going out of order? Who are you? You're right. What am I saying? I want the fast fact. Of course.
00:19:18 Speaker_05
Finish fast facts. And then go to fan questions. I'm sorry. I'm feeling very loosey-goosey today, obviously. Oh, my gosh. All right, final fast fact. In this episode, we introduce two new characters. Yes, we do.
00:19:31 Speaker_05
Toby Flendersen and Kelly Kapoor, played by two more members of our writing staff, Paul Lieberstein and Mindy Kaling.
00:19:40 Speaker_04
Yes, I do have to say, I love the name Toby Flendersen. I love when a character's name sort of describes the character. But like the name Toby Flendersen, like when you see Paul on screen as Toby, you're like, oh, of course that's Toby Flendersen.
00:19:54 Speaker_04
That's who that is.
00:19:54 Speaker_05
Absolutely perfect. A lot of people ask why were so many writers actors on the show and that was Greg Daniels.
00:20:03 Speaker_05
Greg believed that it would be a good idea for writers to have the experience of acting because it would give them a deeper appreciation of what an actor does. Which I have to say is so brilliant and I think
00:20:17 Speaker_05
there are a lot of directors that I know go take acting classes just so they can better speak to actors and understand actors.
00:20:25 Speaker_05
And it completely worked on our show that the writers were immersed with us because they really got to not just understand our jobs, but they got to see us being our characters firsthand.
00:20:37 Speaker_05
They got to see our little improvisations that they would never see if they were just stuck up in the writer's room. And all of that ended up becoming a part of the show.
00:20:46 Speaker_04
I think it was so great. It really made us a cohesive show between the two departments, sort of the writers, the actors, this creative partnership. It always felt like a partnership to me and made me feel safe, like I could try things, you know? Yes.
00:20:59 Speaker_04
But, you know, BJ and Mindy were really great performers. They were crossovers. But Paul was not a performer. Paul had only just been a writer. So I know this was like a huge sort of like step out of his comfort zone.
00:21:12 Speaker_05
And I think he thought it was going to be Just this one little line in this episode, right?
00:21:18 Speaker_05
Well Jenna texted him this morning I did Paul tell us the dish on how you became Toby and he just said Greg kind of made me do it he said he remembered walking in one day and it had been decided that he was gonna play this role of Toby and He really thought it was just gonna be this one line, right?
00:21:37 Speaker_05
He didn't think he was gonna be A series regular. Regular, right. No, he did not think it was gonna grow into what it was, but Kevin Reilly, who was the head of NBC at the time, saw this episode. He loved it.
00:21:48 Speaker_05
He loved the dynamic between Michael Scott and Toby Flenderson, and he said, I want more of that. I want more Toby. And so then Paul officially became an actor on the show.
00:21:59 Speaker_04
Paul, who was not a performer and who was kind of a quiet person in real life, all of a sudden became a full-time actor and writer.
00:22:07 Speaker_05
I think something we have to talk about too is the transformation of Kelly Kapoor. A lot of fans wrote in asking about this, and I'm sure you've got a notecard about it, Angela.
00:22:19 Speaker_04
I do. First of all, all my notecards today are green, and Jenna has already said they're whorish, but whatever, Jenna. So I have a note card that's just written, Kelly's outfit! Yeah. Exclamation point, because this is hilarious.
00:22:33 Speaker_04
Anyone that knows Mindy knows that after this episode, she was like, yeah, I'm not gonna dress like that, okay? Because she had on this sort of paisley blouse and those pants. That went all the way up to her neck.
00:22:44 Speaker_04
I know, and her hair up in an updo, and it was just so funny to me. Very fussy. Very fussy and sort of like,
00:22:50 Speaker_04
just like buttoned up and right after like this episode, I feel like she was like, yeah, I'm going to come in for a real wardrobe fitting and we're going to change up the way Kelly Kapoor looks.
00:23:01 Speaker_05
I think when she realized, same as Paul, that this was going to be more than just a one-off that she would be appearing regularly on the show, not only did her wardrobe change, but the whole conceit of her character changed. Yeah.
00:23:14 Speaker_05
And she started writing herself more into the character, the love of Beyonce and, you know, the clothes and the fashion show, fashion show, fashion show at lunch. That's all Mindy.
00:23:25 Speaker_04
And then the romance with BJ. Yes, exactly.
00:23:29 Speaker_05
Correct. All of those elements sort of weaved their way into the show, but it is true in this first incarnation of Kelly Kapoor, she is.
00:23:37 Speaker_04
Very different.
00:23:38 Speaker_05
Not the Kelly we eventually learned to love.
00:23:41 Speaker_04
No. And I love the Kelly she became, though, because she was so fun and just added so much, like, sort of like just sunshine to like whatever scene she was in.
00:23:50 Speaker_04
I don't know how to say it, but like there was always, she was just all so bubbly and everything and everyone else was so drab. So I thought she added much needed energy. She added literal color.
00:24:00 Speaker_05
She was the only person who dressed literally colorfully. So, do you want my fan question? Do I? Okay. Heather from Twitter asked... Hi, Heather. Hi, Heather.
00:24:12 Speaker_05
Heather asked, since it was only the second episode, what was the atmosphere on set like filming? And I thought that was a really good question because we shot Diversity Day about six months after we shot the pilot.
00:24:26 Speaker_05
We took this really long break because we were waiting to find out if we were going to get picked up or not. It was so thrilling to be reunited again.
00:24:37 Speaker_04
I remember when we were watching Diversity Day, people have asked me, when did you feel like you had a hit? And I said, it's the moment we were all in the room, and we all had those note cards taped to our foreheads.
00:24:48 Speaker_04
And I was just looking around at all of us, and Steve was being Michael, and he was being so hilarious. And I thought, Oh my God, if any, if we can just get anyone to watch the show, we're going to be hit. If anyone sees it, it's so good.
00:25:01 Speaker_04
And it really was in that moment. I was like, Oh wow, this is, this is lightning in a bottle. Now, how do we get the world to watch it?
00:25:10 Speaker_05
Aw, I love that Ange. Listen, should we take a break? Yeah, let's take a break. I have lots of note cards. Well, perfect. When we come back, we will really break down Diversity Day and get into the scenes and tell you all our stories. You say diversity.
00:25:24 Speaker_04
I say diversity. What? Yeah, it's just been bugging me. But anyway. Diversity? OK, let's go to a break.
00:25:36 Speaker_04
You know, it's that time of year where you reflect and you look back and sometimes you want to just mark what you've been through with something beautiful, something just for yourself, something maybe even sparkly.
00:25:50 Speaker_04
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00:25:57 Speaker_05
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00:26:05 Speaker_04
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00:26:14 Speaker_04
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00:26:20 Speaker_05
We each got a pair of earrings from Blue Nile and I actually used that service. I chatted with someone because I had a question about the prongs, like the setting. That go on the back. And they were very helpful.
00:26:31 Speaker_05
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00:26:36 Speaker_04
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00:26:48 Speaker_05
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00:26:52 Speaker_04
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00:27:07 Speaker_04
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00:27:21 Speaker_05
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00:27:52 Speaker_04
Well, the holidays are upon us and Whole Foods Market is your holiday headquarters. Whether you're hosting or if you're a guest, impress everyone at your table with exceptional flavors and enchanting host gifts for all of your holiday gatherings.
00:28:07 Speaker_05
This is where you want to go for cheese, Ange. Oh, I know. I love their cheese. There's such a huge selection. Yes. And not just that. They also have all the best, like, little extras that go on your cheese board.
00:28:20 Speaker_05
The nuts and the dried fruit and the little jams and the fig stuff.
00:28:26 Speaker_04
Chocolate. You can put chocolate on a cheese board. It's just the way you said it.
00:28:32 Speaker_05
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00:28:45 Speaker_04
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00:29:13 Speaker_05
And we're back. Hello. All right, so the Diversity Day episode starts with Michael explaining that today the office is having a mandatory diversity training. Yes.
00:29:24 Speaker_05
We also learned that today is the day that Jim is going to make his biggest sale of the year. He explains he only has to make one phone call, and it amounts to 25% of his total sales for the year.
00:29:35 Speaker_05
But Dwight keeps making it impossible for him to make that call. And so the first way that Dwight makes it impossible for him to make this phone call is that he must shred paper at his desk.
00:29:46 Speaker_04
Oh, Dwight.
00:29:47 Speaker_05
Which I always thought was funny because, you know, Pam has that industrial-sized shredder behind her desk.
00:29:53 Speaker_04
Pam has a shredder like the size of a Xerox machine behind her desk.
00:29:57 Speaker_05
Yeah. We never used. Never used. Ever. I never shredded a single thing in it. And it used to get in the way when the camera- You had to move it. And it was a big argument over whether or not they could move it.
00:30:08 Speaker_05
Like the integrity of the documentary crew, would they have moved the industrial shredder or not? No. And so I remember a day we were on set and they wanted to get this shot behind my desk. And they said, if we could just move the shredder,
00:30:24 Speaker_05
we could get the shot you're asking for. And it was like a 30-minute argument over whether or not they could move or not move the shredder.
00:30:31 Speaker_04
Right, because they didn't want to like ruin the integrity of the documentary.
00:30:34 Speaker_05
Yes, this was a big thing all the time. They decided, you know, you can't move walls, you can't move windows, you can't move furniture. They did agree you could move this one plant around. The ficus. You can move the ficus.
00:30:48 Speaker_04
They clearly agreed that you could move that conference table out and put chairs and then all of a sudden the conference table would be back. Where did the conference table go?
00:30:57 Speaker_04
I've had so many people write to me like on social media be like, what happened with the conference table? It was there and then it's gone. Where does the conference table go?
00:31:05 Speaker_04
And I told them, I said, you know what I would have loved at the end of one episode, all
00:31:09 Speaker_04
All it would take is one episode and the whole nine seasons if at the end credits, it just showed like Kevin and like Jim breaking down the conference table and Dwight and like stacking it in some storage thing and then having to go get it and put it back together.
00:31:25 Speaker_04
But just as the credits rolled.
00:31:27 Speaker_05
Yes, I would love to see them carrying the conference table down to the warehouse or something.
00:31:31 Speaker_04
Like in pieces.
00:31:31 Speaker_05
Because where is it? I don't know. There is nowhere for it to be. I don't know. That is one of the great mysteries of the show. Where is the conference table?
00:31:39 Speaker_04
every time Michael was like, conference room meeting, that they were like, ugh, because they knew they had to break down that table. Okay, okay.
00:31:46 Speaker_05
Well, do you remember that shredding scene where Rain is shredding the paper? Yes. So he's shredding paper, he's shredding paper.
00:31:53 Speaker_05
So then Rain notices that there's a special slot on his personal shredder for a credit card, and he kind of stopped the filming, and he said, guys, I think I should shred a credit card. A credit card. And we were thinking, well, okay.
00:32:08 Speaker_05
And he said, no, there's a special slot for it. I know.
00:32:11 Speaker_04
Everyone was like, is it going to work? And so he did it. He did it. They got him like a fake, like credit card kind of thing, the props department. And he did it, but it almost broke that shredder. It started going like.
00:32:24 Speaker_05
I remember sitting there and thinking, is it, you know, is it, what's happening?
00:32:29 Speaker_04
What's happening? But he was so determined. I also think Rain is like a gadget person a little bit. So he was like, oh, there's a thing on here. I need to do it. Yeah. I need to work this part of the machine. I need to do it.
00:32:39 Speaker_04
Angela, would you like to do a card? I would, Jenna Fisher. Okay. So this card applies to the opening shot of the whole episode. There is a great establishing shot of the Homer Simpson doll.
00:32:50 Speaker_04
The camera is going past Phyllis's desk and it's sitting right there. And, you know, it just makes me smile because I know that Greg Daniels wrote on The Simpsons, and this was his little, like, nod to, like, the first part of his career, right? Yes.
00:33:04 Speaker_04
And it sat there all nine years. It did. That Simpson doll. So I love that. That's just, like, kind of a dorky moment. You guys know I love the things in the background.
00:33:13 Speaker_05
Well, you know what he did for the main cast. I'm sorry.
00:33:16 Speaker_04
I do know this. You do know? Are you saying I'm sorry because I didn't get one? Yeah. Because you're calling me not main cast? Well, we called you supporting cast. Is this? As a gift. You guys, the rest of us didn't become series regular till Boo's Cruise.
00:33:34 Speaker_04
That's a story for later. But in the beginning, there were just five of us. Well, there weren't just the five of you, but you were the five that were the quote series regulars.
00:33:43 Speaker_05
That's right. There were just the five series regulars, I should say.
00:33:46 Speaker_04
And the rest of us were just trash in the corner.
00:33:51 Speaker_05
No, but we had to do a lot of extra stuff.
00:33:55 Speaker_04
You had to do press and whatnot.
00:33:56 Speaker_05
We had to do press, and we had to do these crazy photo shoots, and we did all this stuff as the show was launching.
00:34:03 Speaker_04
Listen, there is no debating. You guys were the core main cast, and the rest of us filled out the picture. And then it grew, and then the cast grew, and then we had all of these series regulars. But I'm going to give you a little shit.
00:34:17 Speaker_04
And you can leave that in, Sam. I'm going to give you a little shiitake sometimes.
00:34:21 Speaker_05
All right, listen. So as a gift, Greg had the illustrators over at the Simpsons turn us all into Simpson characters. And it was me, John, Rain, and Steve huddled around a computer.
00:34:41 Speaker_05
Now that I'm saying it, I realize I think BJ Novak was left out of this photo. Sorry, BJ. But we were Simpsonized. And he gave us these illustrations in like a frame
00:34:55 Speaker_04
It's really cool. It's really cool.
00:34:57 Speaker_05
It's in my living room. It's like a treasured item from the show.
00:35:00 Speaker_04
I mean, Jenna is a Simpson.
00:35:02 Speaker_05
I have a Simpson version of me. All right. I want to talk about Pam's FreeSell and so does BNG Chris on Twitter. Well, let's hear it, BNG Chris. All right. He asked if we were actually good at FreeSell. And the answer is, oh, yes, we were.
00:35:20 Speaker_04
You want to know why? This is one of my note cards, too. We didn't get Wi-Fi until July of 2006, and it was such a big deal on our set that a memo went around, and I saved the memo.
00:35:33 Speaker_05
Because to give you some context, we shot this episode in 2004.
00:35:39 Speaker_04
Yes. And so it wasn't until 2006 that we got internet. So for the pilot, they were nothing. They were literally like pieces of plastic. I have to tell you something, Angela. What?
00:35:48 Speaker_05
My computer on the pilot was real. Son of a bitch, Jenna. I'm so sorry. Main cast got real computers.
00:35:54 Speaker_04
Shut up! Are you serious? You and John and Rain had actual computers with no internet, but you had games for the pilot? Yeah. Will this ever end? Will it ever end? All these things I'm learning.
00:36:10 Speaker_04
Well, back in accounting, guys, we had a piece of plastic that they made look like a computer.
00:36:15 Speaker_05
stare at a plastic piece of plastic that did nothing.
00:36:18 Speaker_04
So we passed notes.
00:36:20 Speaker_05
I haven't known when to tell you this because you've told the story before that our computer sat silent. I have. I haven't known how to tell you that all along I had a real computer.
00:36:29 Speaker_04
Oh my God. What else is going to come out in this podcast?
00:36:32 Speaker_05
I don't know.
00:36:33 Speaker_04
Holy crap. Well, We passed a lot of notes, and I saved those, too. Oscar can draw. He's a really good drawer, and he would draw me and Brian as Kevin and Angela, and I saved them all. So there, Jenna.
00:36:45 Speaker_05
That's what you were doing while I was on my actual computer.
00:36:48 Speaker_04
Well, whatever. The answer to that story is yes, we were very good at Solitaire because it's all we had to do for like two years.
00:36:55 Speaker_05
It's true, and we had on-set free-sell competitions. And we would compete with the cast and crew. In between scenes, the crew would sit down at a desk, and they would play Free Cell. And Kate Flannery held the title for a very long time.
00:37:07 Speaker_05
She was really very good. She is a master. Phyllis was also very good. Kate is so good, though. Yes. With the Free Cell, the competition was who could do it in the fewest moves.
00:37:17 Speaker_06
Mm-hmm.
00:37:18 Speaker_04
And yeah. Kate was really good. I never made the top 10. I would also lose patience. Okay, all right, get going. What else you got over there, Fisher? What else are you hiding from me that you're not telling me? What other perks did you have?
00:37:36 Speaker_05
Well, this wasn't really a perk, but this was a little sneaky. So during this episode, off camera, there was a whole thing going on, and it involved me and Phyllis. So Phyllis and I are from St. Louis, Missouri.
00:37:50 Speaker_05
And during this time, the Cardinals were in the playoffs. I remember this. They ended up in the World Series against the Boston Red Sox. And in between scenes, Phyllis and I would sneak back to my trailer and watch the Cardinals games. Yes.
00:38:06 Speaker_05
And we were rooting hard for the Cardinals. And it was very difficult for us because basically everyone else on the set was from Boston. Steve, BJ, John, more people. Everyone was rooting for the Red Sox except for me and Phyllis.
00:38:20 Speaker_04
I rooted for the Cardinals with you. Do you remember that? You did? You don't remember that? No. You and I are going to have a talk after this, lady. I did. You brought me onto your side.
00:38:34 Speaker_04
Listen, one of the things I remember so distinctly about that World Series is that at the end of work, we would stay and we would all go into John's trailer and we would watch the game.
00:38:46 Speaker_05
Angela, if you were in John's trailer, you were rooting for Boston. Oh. Phyllis and I watched it in my trailer.
00:38:52 Speaker_04
Wait, I didn't know that. Wait, you weren't. Oh, right. You didn't go in John's.
00:38:58 Speaker_05
No.
00:38:58 Speaker_04
Oh. We were an island, Phyllis and I. We were an island. Well, John's trailer was really fun. A lot of people were in there. Of course they were. I think I probably stopped by your trailer and was like, brr, brr. A little sad in here.
00:39:12 Speaker_04
And then I went into the party trailer where everyone was gathered.
00:39:15 Speaker_05
Well, also, Boston swept the series four to zero, so it was a particularly depressing room.
00:39:21 Speaker_04
I mean, I remember there being snacks and like laughter. Mm-hmm. Phyllis and I were just in my trailer crying. Okay, maybe I didn't realize that.
00:39:29 Speaker_05
No big deal. Okay. All right, we should really get back to the meat of this episode.
00:39:32 Speaker_04
Oh my God, you guys, I'm sorry. We've gone on so many tangents. This is what happens when we get together. Okay, back to Diversity Day.
00:39:38 Speaker_05
All right, so Mr. Brown comes into the office to run the diversity training, and once again, played by one of the members of the writing staff.
00:39:49 Speaker_04
So brilliant, Larry Wilmore. Larry Wilmore. So smart, so funny.
00:39:54 Speaker_05
He originally read the part during a table read. Yes. Just because they hadn't cast the role yet. They were going to cast the role. They just hadn't gotten to it yet. That's right. Greg loved how he read it so much that he asked Larry to audition.
00:40:09 Speaker_05
Because this was a big part. This wasn't just one line. So you had to audition for a role of this size. So they put him through the paces.
00:40:15 Speaker_04
Poor guy. But what I loved about his delivery is it was so straight.
00:40:19 Speaker_05
He did it like so straight. He put nothing on it, no spin on it, and that's why it worked. But this was not the first time that Larry Wilmore has performed.
00:40:27 Speaker_04
No.
00:40:27 Speaker_05
He was a writer-performer. Yes. Did you know he had a recurring role on The Facts of Life?
00:40:33 Speaker_04
No.
00:40:33 Speaker_05
Yeah, as a police officer. Somebody did a deep dive on the internet. I did. Want to hear what else the internet told me? Yeah. He created The Bernie Mac Show, for which he won an Emmy, and he was a Daily Show correspondent.
00:40:45 Speaker_04
He's very funny, and I actually emailed him, and he wants to come on and chat with us. Oh, yes! I know, I know. He couldn't do it for this episode, but we're going to get Larry on. I'm so excited.
00:40:54 Speaker_05
We should, because I want to get more of that story of exactly how he wound up as Mr. Brown and what it was like for him to do those scenes with Steve.
00:41:02 Speaker_04
Oh, was Steve just like, he was just messing with him all day. And he stayed so stoic. I know. He was amazing. I have to say this one story about Larry Wilmore. When this show was going to air, he invited the whole cast over to watch it at his house.
00:41:18 Speaker_04
And I had like an apartment at that time, so like anyone that had a house, I was like, oh my God, you're like the real deal. Yes, you're an adult. You're an adult.
00:41:26 Speaker_05
Well, that's something we used to do. We used to watch every week together as a cast, these viewing parties. I hosted everybody for the pilot. It was before it aired. Greg came over with a DVD of the pilot, and the cast piled into my living room.
00:41:42 Speaker_04
We couldn't figure out how to make it work at first. Do you remember? Like, your sound wasn't—like, the DVD wasn't working, and we were all freaking out.
00:41:49 Speaker_05
And we had—well, I also remember we had to, like, move furniture out of the way, and people were on the floor. I have a picture of that, and there's Steve Carell just sitting on my floor. He didn't get a spot on the couch, ready to watch the pilot.
00:42:01 Speaker_04
I have one just like that, and I remember telling everyone, okay, so my building doesn't have parking. So here I am telling the cast, you have to street park. Also, I'm the unit way in the back. It says 824, but I'm 824 and a half. And everyone came.
00:42:17 Speaker_04
It was so sweet.
00:42:18 Speaker_05
And Paul Feig used to host a lot.
00:42:21 Speaker_04
Oh my gosh.
00:42:21 Speaker_05
Paul and Lori Feig, they would put out a fantastic little buffet.
00:42:26 Speaker_04
They would. They are great hosts.
00:42:27 Speaker_05
But yes, we used to watch the episodes together as a cast, which is something we did really for years. For years.
00:42:33 Speaker_04
Should we take a break? Yes, I think we take a break. And when we come back, Jenna, I have a question about something that's in the background. You know how I love things in the background.
00:42:42 Speaker_05
You've really been the background spotter of this podcast.
00:42:46 Speaker_04
As people will hear. As you will hear, because we've done a few of these. Jenna knows I love things in the background.
00:42:56 Speaker_05
Do you know a website I can get completely lost on in the best way? I do. Wayfair. I know. There is so much stuff that is so good. I like to get a bowl of my mini cheese crackers and pick out new stuff on Wayfair.
00:43:11 Speaker_04
I know. You can walk through every room of my house and there's one item from Wayfair in each room. This is so true.
00:43:18 Speaker_05
I feel like we're not telling people anything they don't already know, but Wayfair is the place to shop for all things home. Literally everything from sofas to spatulas. You name it, they have it.
00:43:30 Speaker_04
Here are a few items from Wayfair in my house right now. Okay. A cozy chair.
00:43:35 Speaker_06
Mm-hmm.
00:43:35 Speaker_04
Two kids' desks in their bedroom. Mm-hmm. Two nightstands.
00:43:41 Speaker_05
and two bed frames. Everything you need for your living room, outdoor areas, we didn't even talk about that, bedroom and more. Wayfair makes it easy with fast and free shipping even on the big stuff and they'll even help you set it up.
00:43:55 Speaker_04
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00:44:03 Speaker_05
Don't miss out on saving big with Wayfair this holiday. Head to Wayfair.com now to shop Wayfair's Black Friday deals.
00:44:11 Speaker_04
That's W-A-Y-F-A-I-R dot com. So I want to share with you something that I have started doing every year. I take a picture from our year, like a special family memory, and I make it into an ornament.
00:44:25 Speaker_05
I do that! Ah! You do? Yes! I've been doing it for years. How have we never talked about this? I don't know! I've always used Shutterfly to do my Christmas cards. Same. But I also use Shutterfly to do my photo gifts. Yes. Especially during the holidays.
00:44:41 Speaker_04
Well, it couldn't be easier. You upload photos from your phone to the Shutterfly app and you can start making your personalized item right then and there.
00:44:49 Speaker_05
You can design a Shutterfly calendar for your extended family or friend group. You can add in all the birthdays, all the anniversaries, and other special holidays. I made my mom a calendar. All her grandkids are each month.
00:45:02 Speaker_05
Explore gifts like blankets, mugs, photo books, and calendars at Shutterfly.com. All easy to customize in minutes with your favorite photos.
00:45:11 Speaker_04
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00:45:21 Speaker_05
Peloton is not just bikes, people. Peloton has a variety of workouts for whatever era you're in. Holiday era, running era, wellness era. Whatever it is, they have classes and motivation to help you get to it.
00:45:36 Speaker_04
Or what if you've always wanted to try something like bar, Pilates, yoga, running, meditation? You can sign up for one of these classes and explore a variety of workouts.
00:45:46 Speaker_05
So I like to walk in my neighborhood. I like to walk in the fresh air. And then I like to do one of the Peloton meditations and total body stretches. That is an example of like one fitness thing I'll do in a week.
00:46:00 Speaker_04
And here's the thing. A lot of times you think, oh, do I have time to exercise? Well, they have 10, 20, or 45 minute time increments of classes. I usually do the 20.
00:46:10 Speaker_05
I hit it right in the middle. Find your push. Find your power with Peloton at OnePeloton.com. And we're back. Hello, everyone. Angela, give it to us.
00:46:27 Speaker_04
What's your observation? Well, I have two. First of all, at six minutes around 46 seconds, I can make out the yellow Post-it note sprinkles invite that I drew on the partition in Kevin's desk. Really? Yes. We talked about this in the pilot.
00:46:42 Speaker_04
It's a little yellow post-it note, and I can just see the side of it, and it just made me happy because it was there all nine years, as you know, all nine seasons.
00:46:51 Speaker_04
And then Brian gave it to me, and I have it, and I love it, but I can spot it, and that just made me happy.
00:46:56 Speaker_00
So there you go.
00:46:57 Speaker_04
Sprinkles post-it note. And here's the second thing I observed. At around 8 minutes 30 seconds, there is a cartoon taped to Michael's door. Oh. With like a notepad with like some writing on it. Okay. That's all I got.
00:47:15 Speaker_05
What is the cartoon?
00:47:17 Speaker_04
I don't know. I did take a picture of my TV and I zoomed in as big as I could. I don't know what it is.
00:47:22 Speaker_05
That's it.
00:47:23 Speaker_04
That's it.
00:47:24 Speaker_05
Your observation is that there is a cartoon on Michael's door. The end.
00:47:28 Speaker_04
OK, well, the way you're looking at me is a little judgy. They're not all going to pay off. I thought you were going to tell me what it was or how it got there. But no, I don't know.
00:47:36 Speaker_04
But I bet someone else is looking at it and being like, Angela, I saw that, too. I don't know. I don't know what it's about.
00:47:41 Speaker_05
Thank you so much for that one. Moving on. I need to talk about a scene. Okay. That contains one of my favorite lines of all time from the show. I know it. I know it because it's one of mine. I know it.
00:47:54 Speaker_05
When Steve does his own diversity training, he makes a video. Yes. And in that video, he has a line where he says, Abraham Lincoln once said, if you are a racist, I will attack you with the North.
00:48:14 Speaker_05
I love that line so much, and I asked BJ who wrote that line, because I know there's a collective element to the script writing.
00:48:24 Speaker_05
So the process is they break down the plot, and then a single writer goes and writes it, but then they bring that script back to the group, and people can pitch jokes.
00:48:33 Speaker_04
They do joke punch-up.
00:48:34 Speaker_05
Yeah, they can do joke punch-up. And BJ said it was Paul Lieberstein. Oh, so smart. And he said that the people in the writers room thought it might be like too heady of a joke or that it might not really land.
00:48:47 Speaker_05
But not only did it land, it is one of the most quoted lines from the show and inspired a fan site called Northern Attack. Yes. Which was great.
00:48:58 Speaker_04
So smart.
00:48:59 Speaker_05
So great. I also asked BJ about diversity today and diversity tomorrow. And he said that he wrote that, that he wrote diversity, that it was called diversity today. And then, you know, Michael calls it diversity tomorrow because today is almost over.
00:49:19 Speaker_05
But he said his original pitch, which he was very sad to have to lose, was that it was actually called Diversity 360. And Michael said in his video that he was from Diversity 365 because diversity should never take five days off.
00:49:38 Speaker_05
But unfortunately, there was a real Diversity 360 and they couldn't clear it because it would have seemed like we were making fun of a real business. So he had to change it to diversity today, diversity tomorrow.
00:49:52 Speaker_04
That is so funny. I have a little note card here for you, lady. Give it to me. So there is a moment in the conference room where Jenna and I are seated next to each other. Oh. Yeah.
00:50:06 Speaker_04
So we were rarely seated next to each other because we would just start laughing. This is what we discovered pretty early on.
00:50:11 Speaker_05
But this was an extreme reason why.
00:50:13 Speaker_04
This was an extreme reason why. So Steve, as Michael, we knew he was going to sit into the scene, but we didn't know exactly how. He hadn't done this in any rehearsals. So here we are, the camera's rolling. And that conference room is small.
00:50:28 Speaker_04
And so he was right in front of Jenna and I. Yeah. And he turned, as Michael, he turns his chair around and straddles it. And it's like an office chair that was very bouncy. It's bouncy.
00:50:41 Speaker_04
It bobbed up and down, and he kept bobbing forward and back, kind of
00:50:47 Speaker_05
Very groiny kind of grinding into the chair a little bit like leaning forward and Jenna and I were like So we're like, oh my god Well, you can see my hand is up by my mouth through most of that scene and it was because when I started to break I would cover my mouth and
00:51:04 Speaker_04
It was so hard not to just laugh through the whole scene because he was so brilliantly being this cringy boss who's so inappropriate but is trying to do something good for the office, like all of his intentions, you know?
00:51:18 Speaker_05
That was the scene that I think I broke the most in for this episode. It was that, with him just grinding into that chair. But you were making it worse because you were right next to me. And if you notice, for the rest of the episode, we are separated.
00:51:32 Speaker_04
We're separated. Also, I don't know if you noticed, but I try really hard not to look at you. Yes. Because I was like, I couldn't look at you. But I could see your shoulders shaking. Yeah. Or I could sense you shaking. And then I would just start laughing.
00:51:43 Speaker_04
And I didn't want to laugh, I guess. I was like, oh, God. I was still like, every day, be like, please don't fire me. Please don't fire me. Yes. don't fire me. We're trying to be professionals.
00:51:51 Speaker_04
We're trying to be professionals and Steve is so professional but I want to challenge you guys if Steve Carell turned a chair around backwards and started kind of like leaning into it close to you.
00:52:01 Speaker_05
It was so close to us. It was very close. I feel like the the scene itself doesn't properly communicate how close. It doesn't. Well, I did a little bit of background looking. Oh. And there is a reflection of us in the television screen. Uh-huh.
00:52:18 Speaker_05
When the shots are on Steve. Uh-huh. And I think if you look really closely at the reflection, you can see me break one time. Oh my god.
00:52:27 Speaker_04
You and I have become obsessed with our own show. It's so ridiculous. It's a little odd. It's a little odd. OK, I have a quick story about those note cards we had to tape to our foreheads. Oh, yes. OK, so here's the thing, guys.
00:52:39 Speaker_04
Imagine taping a note card to your forehead, because it had the double stick tape, so it would stay in place. Imagine putting that on at 730 in the morning and not taking it off till like 5 PM. which is what we did. Which is what we did.
00:52:54 Speaker_04
I mean, we did take it off at lunch for 30 minutes, but then we had to put it back on. At the end of the day of wearing that double stick tape on my forehead, when we took that note card off, it had peeled off all my baby hairs on my forehead. Yes.
00:53:08 Speaker_04
And I had a strip, like a bare strip on my forehead. And so the next morning when we went into hair and makeup, the makeup would not adhere to my forehead.
00:53:20 Speaker_05
It was like you had wax. Your forehead in one tiny rectangle spot.
00:53:24 Speaker_04
Yes, and a few of us had that. A few of us, like, I mean, I'm so fair that, like, my skin, like, shows everything, but I had kind of like this, like, this rectangle hickey on my forehead of where that notecard had been there all day.
00:53:38 Speaker_05
Well, I remember us walking around backstage, getting snacks, using the restroom. No, because then they'd have to, you know, it was a continuity thing. Even they didn't want it to be in any way different.
00:53:51 Speaker_04
Yeah, they took photos of us to make sure it was always in the exact same spot. It wasn't too high or too low. And once they taped it on, they were really like, guys, please don't take your note card off your forehead.
00:54:02 Speaker_04
So imagine being like, oh, we have a 15-minute break. I'm going to get some pretzels and a cheese stick. But I'm eating the cheese stick and pretzels while wearing a note card on my head that said Jamaica. That's how we walked around.
00:54:15 Speaker_04
Like we went to the bathroom. Yeah. Oh my Lord. Okay.
00:54:18 Speaker_05
A lot of people asked about the note cards. Like, was there, did we have any say in what our note card said? No. No. It was all scripted. It wasn't random.
00:54:29 Speaker_05
A lot of people asked questions about how much improvisation happened in the scenes with the note cards. All that was scripted. All scripted. Dwight saying, oh man, am I a woman? That was scripted.
00:54:41 Speaker_05
There was even a deleted scene in there where Jim pranks Dwight after Dwight figures out what his race is. Jim gives him a new card, and he's like, here, here, you should have this new card.
00:54:54 Speaker_05
And Dwight tapes it to his head, and what Jim's written on it is Dwight. And so I remember filming scenes where he's walking around the room and we're all saying things like, oh man, you're annoying, you're difficult to be around. Yeah, yeah.
00:55:09 Speaker_05
And he's guessing all these different things and then really it just says Dwight on his forehead.
00:55:14 Speaker_04
Okay, so I heard there was a deleted scene, and guys, I bought the DVDs, okay? I bought the DVDs at Target, but I don't have a DVD player.
00:55:23 Speaker_05
This is your problem. You're very close to being able to enjoy this DVD.
00:55:27 Speaker_04
I know. You're one major step away. I'm one major step. I forgot we didn't have a DVD player anymore.
00:55:31 Speaker_04
So I have them, but I read that there was a deleted scene where Devin, Devin who sat in the background with Creed, has a notecard on his forehead and you see it.
00:55:41 Speaker_04
I think he's outside and as Michael walks in, he's outside and his notecard says West Nile.
00:55:49 Speaker_05
I don't know that. Is that true? I don't know. That's so funny. If you get a DVD player, will you come back and tell us? Yes, I've got to get to the bottom of that.
00:55:57 Speaker_05
I do want to talk about one scene because when I put it out on Twitter that we were recording this episode, the most frequently asked question was about the scene where Mindy slaps Steve. Oh, yeah. People had a lot of questions about that scene.
00:56:13 Speaker_05
And I remember filming that. And the reason I remember filming it is because Mindy could not stop laughing.
00:56:19 Speaker_04
Mindy could not stop laughing. She laughed every single take. Every take. And we had, we were all standing there watching. Yes.
00:56:26 Speaker_05
And she, every time it was time for her to slap Steve, she would laugh. But then right after she slapped Steve, she would laugh. One thing we should say, and a lot of people wondered, was the slap real or fake?
00:56:40 Speaker_05
Well, I remember we shot that so many times and the majority of the time it was fake. It was fake. She made no contact with him because people wanted to know, oh my gosh, did he have a big red mark on his face or anything like that?
00:56:52 Speaker_05
And no, she, and thank goodness it was fake because she kept breaking every time. It was like unusable.
00:56:58 Speaker_04
I feel like I do remember Steve and, I don't know if you remember this, Jenna. I do feel like I remember him in one take saying, I think you, you know, just go ahead and hit me once. Yes. Go ahead and hit me one time. Right.
00:57:08 Speaker_05
So I think there was one where she made contact with him. And there was also one time she didn't laugh. And that's the time it's in the episode.
00:57:16 Speaker_04
That's it.
00:57:17 Speaker_05
That's it. But I think if you look really closely, you can see, I mean, we know Mindy. Yeah. I think we, I can see her, her eyes are laughing a little bit.
00:57:26 Speaker_04
Or she does a thing where she doesn't close her mouth all the way and that's because she's about to laugh and she's trying not to. Here's the thing, we got to know each other all so well that I know everyone's tell before they break.
00:57:38 Speaker_04
It's just so clear when someone's about to laugh.
00:57:41 Speaker_05
Another thing more than one person asked, I guess there's a controversy. Is Steve saying cookie, cookie or googie, googie? He's saying googie, googie. Googie, googie.
00:57:51 Speaker_04
Yeah. Yes. Well, I'm glad we could solve that controversy. We cleared that up. I have some note cards, m'lady. Let's do a note card. Okay. All right.
00:57:59 Speaker_04
This is a very sort of dorky actor moment, so just bear with me, but I thought John, as Jim, did such a fantastic job on the phone with Mr. Decker when he loses his sale to Dwight.
00:58:10 Speaker_05
Oh, it is one of the hardest things in the world to have a fake one-sided phone conversation.
00:58:16 Speaker_04
That has hills and valleys of emotion. Yes. Where you're reacting like this, he's excited, then he's disappointed, then he like figures out what happened. And there's no one on the other line. No one. There's no one speaking to you.
00:58:27 Speaker_04
John is just doing that on his own. And I just sat there and I rewatched it. And John, I just want you to know, you crushed that phone call. You are so right. I thought you did such a great job. Yeah.
00:58:36 Speaker_05
Now, I have done films or I have done things where someone is on the other line. For example, in season nine, when Pam breaks down crying at her desk, they figured out a way to wire in John Krasinski live so I could hear him in my ear.
00:58:53 Speaker_05
So there are times when there's a really emotional scene or a scene that really requires you to speak to the other actor, but like 90% of the time, you are just pretending someone is there.
00:59:04 Speaker_04
There's no one there. Yeah, exactly. And so John was just talking to Mr. Decker, who wasn't there, and I just thought he did such a great job. So anyway, I just had to give a little love to JK.
00:59:15 Speaker_05
Yeah. And after that scene, when Jim finds out that he has lost the sale, that Dwight stole the sale that is 25% of his income. He goes back into the conference room where Michael is wrapping things up, and everyone is bored to tears.
00:59:31 Speaker_05
And that is when Pam falls asleep on Jim's shoulder. And we filmed that about, oh my goodness, like 15, 16 times, that scene, because this was our Jim Pam moment of the episode. This was it.
00:59:48 Speaker_05
And they really wanted to get these little Jim Pam moments just perfectly. I looked up this scene in the script, and there is a piece of stage direction that B.J. Novak wrote that I want to read for you because I think it is so perfect. He wrote,
01:00:04 Speaker_05
Jim reacts to Pam falling asleep on him like a butterfly has landed on his shoulder. Aww. Isn't that so poetic? That's so poetic. That is so sweet. And so that's what John had in his mind was that was his, you know, inspiration for how to react to that.
01:00:22 Speaker_04
That is so sweet.
01:00:22 Speaker_05
Like how special to have a butterfly land on your shoulder and you don't want to move and you want to savor it.
01:00:28 Speaker_04
Yeah, you don't want to disturb it. Yeah. Yeah. Oh, that is so sweet. Well, I wrote, you know, this is equally as just insightful, you guys. I wrote, on my note card, what a great jam moment at the end, and Jenna's skin looks flawless.
01:00:43 Speaker_05
Well, thank you, Angela, because I did notice in an earlier shot, there is a shot of my skin that looks just terrible.
01:00:50 Speaker_04
Well, we didn't have, like, any makeup on, really, like, at all, like, barely any makeup.
01:00:54 Speaker_05
We had powder, blush, and a little mascara.
01:00:56 Speaker_04
Right, and I had one strip of powder that wouldn't stick to my forehead anymore, so I don't know, Jenna, I thought your skin looked flawless.
01:01:03 Speaker_05
Well, you know what, to wrap it up, why don't we do one last fan question? Okay. Alexia asked if there were any scenes that were taken out that we wish had made it in, and I picked this fan question because my answer is yes. Okay, which one, Jenna?
01:01:18 Speaker_05
And I was in it.
01:01:19 Speaker_04
Well, what is it?
01:01:21 Speaker_05
All right, so you remember earlier in the episode when Mr. Brown starts his training, he explains what a hero is, and it's an acronym, and Then Dwight explains what he thinks a hero is.
01:01:33 Speaker_05
Well, after all that happened, there was a scene where Michael stands up and creates his own acronym for sensitivity. And his words are inclusion, new attitude, colorblind, expectations, sharing, and tolerance.
01:01:50 Speaker_05
And while he's saying these words, Dwight is writing them on a whiteboard. And I look at the whiteboard and I say, Michael, that spells incest. And then Steve tap dances and says, but it still works because incest is bad and discrimination is bad.
01:02:12 Speaker_05
But also incest is something that happens in your family and the world is our family. Like it just this crazy ramble. Just back away from it. But he won't let it go.
01:02:25 Speaker_05
And then Pam has a talking head that says, if he just rearranged the words, he could have spelled insect. And I just, I just remember shooting that scene.
01:02:37 Speaker_05
And every time I had to raise my hand and very matter of factly point out that it spells incest, then there was just this silence in the room as everyone took it in. And I was sad that went on the cutting room floor. That's very funny.
01:02:52 Speaker_05
So thank you, Alexia, for your question. All right, everybody, that was Diversity Day. And next week, we're going to be talking about health care. Angela, what do you think about when you think about health care? Hot dog fingers. Hot dog fingers.
01:03:04 Speaker_05
We're going to talk about hot dog fingers with our first special guest, Rainn Wilson.
01:03:09 Speaker_04
Yes, that tall drink of water is calling in, and we are going to talk about the episode with him. So be sure and tune in. Thank you for listening to Office Ladies Second Drink. This episode was initially created in collaboration with Earwolf.
01:03:29 Speaker_05
Office Ladies is a presentation of Odyssey and is produced by Jenna Fisher and Angela Kinsey.
01:03:34 Speaker_04
Our executive producer is Cassie Jerkins and our audio engineer and associate producer is Daniela Silva. Odyssey's executive producers are Jenna Wise Berman and Leah Reese Dennis.
01:03:44 Speaker_05
Office Ladies is mixed and mastered by Chris Basil. Our theme song is Rubber Tree by Creed Brattain. Hey everyone, we want to tell you about Klarna.
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