November 24, 2022 • 48 mins
And That’s What You REALLY Missed - The SNIXXMAS Special
Tickets here: And That’s What You REALLY Missed - The SNIXXMAS Special – Mandolin Box Office
Long before Kendra was helping her sister Terri fake her pregnancy, Jennifer Aspen was on the brink of Glee-dom. Jennifer joins Kevin and Jenna as she shares the story of being turned down from the show and how she ultimately, literally became Kendra.
Plus does Glee fame make you a cool parent? And Jennifer's big regret from the show.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey everyone, Before we get to our new episode, we
have an exciting announcement. Snakes Miss is back, so please
join us for a live taping of and That's What
You Really Missed live from the I Heart Radio Theater
in Los Angeles. We are raising funds and awareness in
loving memory of our friend Naya Rivera to benefit Alexandria House.
(00:20):
Celebrate the holidays with us and keep the snakes Miss
spirit alive. Join us in person at the I Heart
Radio Theater or watch the live stream. Special guests, performances,
unbelievable gleeful auction items, and a live podcast. Here are
the details. In person event December six at seven pm
from the I Heart Radio Theater in Los Angeles. And
(00:40):
for those of you that can't join us in person,
we are streaming the event on December eight at five
pm Pacific time, and don't worry, we'll be watching right
along with you and chatting with you live. We will
even have a virtual meet and greet option. Tickets are
available on box office dot Mandolin dot com. We're placing
the direct link to the tickets on our Instagram and
bio and the notes of this podcast episode, so go
(01:03):
check it out and We'll see you there. Mary Snicks.
Miss and that's what you really missed with Jenna and
Kevin and I Heart Radio podcast. Welcome to and that's
what you really missed with Jenna and Kevin. Welcome back
for another wonderful and surprising and just delightful conversation we're
(01:24):
gonna have with someone. We have the one and only
Jennifer Aspen, who plays Kendra Grd. She is a comedic genius,
and I think also it's important for people to know,
like we were so obsessed with her because we never
actually got to be in any scenes with her, all Right,
(01:45):
we'd only see them like their scenes after when we
were watching like screenings of the episodes, which they would
show us and the crew at lunch. Um, and she
would just have these zingers, I mean true zingers that
stuck around forever. She'll talk about out as well. Um,
but she is just I feel like her and and
(02:06):
Jescelyn just elevated the show and really we felt like
it really felt like we were in a comedy with
them absolutely, you know, with these scenes. I mean also,
I think her character is probably um, the most quoted
amongst each other. He and the biggest clothes that we
would say all the time. She's a delight um. So
let's get into the conversation. Enjoy. Yeah, look at you guys.
(02:34):
Thank you so much for joining us. Oh, I'm so
happy to be here. I mean, that's you know, the
fandom that never dies. It surely doesn't truly we're here. Yeah,
I mean I hear that. You're like, you have a
resurgence of fame. I do. I do, because now I'm
mom famous. I think they call it mom pai mom fame.
(02:55):
That's a new one. Yeah, mom fame because now the
kids at school. Because I have a ten year old,
she hasn't seen Glee yet, but it's coming. I mean,
her friends must tap there's an age that's maybe more
appropriate than others to start watching the show. Well, I
don't eve brag, but my daughter is incredibly smart. So
(03:18):
just she's watched all the seasons of Stranger Things. If
we're just I've just got it. I'm not a bad mom.
That happened and with them for all the week. Okay,
but I do think it's coming. But yes, her friends
have seen it, and so her friends like to take
screenshots of me on different shows and send it and
(03:42):
she's just constantly embarrassed. Basically, that's the that's what happened.
So um yeah, and she sees it. She's going to
be real embarrassed. I mean, how you are so good.
You've also been in a billion shows, so there's no
way to like watch television and then not see you
on something that's everything. Yes, that's true. So it's a
(04:05):
lot of texts. It is true. And what's your mom?
And but she's at this phase. And I understand you
have a daughter now, which is super cute, and I
love her name, Emma. That's one of my favorite names.
Thank you as congratulations saying, and then any children, No,
I can barely take care of myself, I will subject
(04:26):
a child to that. No, I don't. I don't want
you to, so I want you just I'll leave it
to you. Guys, you're much more responsible than a cool uncle,
cool uncle Kevin, well uncle Kevin. Yes. So anyway, so
she's at the age right now which you will get
there where you just stand and you're embarrassing to your child. Thing.
(04:50):
I come to pick up and then she's not there.
So I went into the like the auditorium where they
kind of wait for their pickup and I'm just standing
there trying to not be embarrassing. I'm I'm standing and
she's like, I said, you shouldn't watch anything. I do
you know that I'm actually a comedian, Like she's gonna
(05:15):
be that's really funny. I can't not be. I just
imagine just standing there, like literally stoic, and she's like,
you're like, that is all I did. Iath and it
was too much. Read it was too much. So she'll
see she will see Glee soon. I think which show
gets the most screenshots? Um? I think it's well, it's
(05:39):
kind of the one where I think that Terry I
was like coaching Terry on how to give birth to
a fake babo. Um, that one got a lot of
That was like and you poop on your cowboy boots.
Oh that's a good one. Yeah. And then I think
(06:00):
with Dr Wu, of course best scene. That was a
master master scene, mostly because of my performance, but we agree, yeah,
but mostly, but really because the writing was just And
now Dr Wu is like a sex symbol on nine movement, right,
that's right. Yes. What's fascinating though, is that like you
(06:24):
come in like you have been on so many shows
and you come in, especially for let's say for Glee,
the show was on in the air. You get the
job and you come in and then you just slaughter everyone, like, yes,
the writing is good. Not all of us did as
good of a job with the writing as you did.
Like for us, because we never even got to being
scenes together, we would quote your things like to each
(06:48):
other because we got to watch your scenes as just
a fan, like the walk gone down to dr chat
Like we used to say that all all the time.
We're just out of the time, Like how do you
do that as an actor? How do you show up
and just do that? That is such a skill. We're like,
(07:08):
how do you You don't know the tone of the show,
Like we're there all the time, and we're still we
were still figuring out the tone of the show. You
come in and just I mean, I guess it starts
with like how did you even get like how did
you get the role? How did it come to you?
Oh my gosh, I have so much to say. First,
I want you to know that I'm about to cry,
you know, because I really appreciate everything you're said in
(07:29):
your compliments. It's very nice, and because it makes me
remember that time with you all, and you were also nice,
and you would all come up to me and say
my lives to you know, and I and you you
were all wonderful and supportive and all of it. So
I just want to thank you for saying that is
(07:51):
really really nice, and um, I am good and so well,
why don't I go back to a question that came
a little later, which was how did you? Let's tell
us how you how you got here? I think most
(08:12):
people don't know this. This is definitely in your in
your vein of what you're doing. But I auditioned for
Terry and saying and sing in that audition, I saying, um,
I'm I'm gonna just say I'm not a singer. You
guys know this. That's why I didn't sing. I asked
(08:33):
to sing ugly like all the time, like woman, do
you guys know that song? Because yes, net one and
I know how that's so I was saying that that
was my audition and I really thought that was my
fate and it wasn't my fate. I didn't get that.
Just one got it. She did wonderful, you know. And
(08:56):
so what what happened in my devastation of not getting
that was this like email that just popped up about
I guess you guys were filming maybe the first episode.
I think I think I came in on the second episode. Yeah, oh, Ryan,
Rian Murphy has written this role for you. Here's a
(09:17):
samples like two pages. Are you interested? I was, and
I read it and the two pages were incredible. They
were funny and I couldn't type yes fast enough And
at the time I didn't know, like is it just
two pages? Is there more? I'm just gonna say yes.
(09:40):
I don't even care what this is. And so I
had when you asked that, how did I come in
and groove in? It was the second episode and you
were all finding out what the tone was. And I
had the total gift of Ryan knowing my work and
(10:01):
writing something he knew I could deliver, you know, So
that that made it so much easier. And I don't
I don't know if he directed my first episode or
he directed a couple of them. So I also had
that so that it works so well, you do. Yes,
it is great writing, yes, you know, but I came
in with something made for me. I didn't, you know,
(10:24):
so that was like written to what I could do.
Your writer's dream It's like, especially when Ryan knows your work,
he can just be like, let's throw this atter because
I know she can do that. Yeah. Yeah, that's also
there's like a sense of confidence going in, being like
this is written for me. I just have to do
what I do and like be you know what I mean,
and kind of be done with it. Yeah, I mean
(10:45):
I didn't. Wasn't that confident, But I'm glad appeared though
it absolutely did look at sound whipper snappers with its
curious uniforms. But I yeah, so I wasn't. I wouldn't
say I was that confident. I would say I was
still in a state of shock and that that it happened.
(11:08):
But I knew walking in. I don't know if you
guys knew this or not, but I knew this was
a hit show. This was no we did not know
what couldn't I told you that? Yeah, I just you
could you could really feel, having been someone who's so
experienced having a couple of hit shows yourself, just if
(11:32):
you know, there was a real specialness to it. And
I could feel that right away. I felt lucky to
be there and not confident, very insecure. Your clothes spoke
of your your costumes spoke of your confidence for you.
You got some good costumes. You did get Ryan, That
was all Ryan. So I usually have very opinionated on
(11:56):
my clothes. I think wardrobe people hate me. I'm just
like and this. I also don't like the staffick and
blah blah blah, and and I need it to be
cut like this. And my jewel tones. I am a
jeweltuine girl too. Right, it's a difference. I feel like
I should be hearing some right now, because you guys
did say form I like very cold, and I gave
(12:19):
all of those opinions and then walked into my first
fitting for Glee and the clothes were there and none
of what I said mattered at all, and and it
was like this whole person that already been created. I
didn't have any input, nor did I need any input
or any input because it was so, you know, so
(12:42):
much more elevated than even what I could imagine. That's
kind of what that's Ryan Murphy for you. Yeah, Ryan
Lou just that's right. Costume masters, do you remember what
it was like when you first got to set to
actually start shooting your first day? Um? Because I think
Ryan did direct your first episode. I think he did.
(13:02):
I think that. Um, I remember that it was really
one of the busiest sets I've ever been on because
you recall, if you guys weren't on camera, you were
rehearsing oh yes, oh yeah, yes, number and so everyone
was there all the time. It wasn't like, you know,
because most of the scenes I did was with Terry
(13:24):
and Will and Kendred, the three children, which I looked
at their names, Kyle, Josh, and Me. They're full grown
humans now. They definitely have ideas and they go to
exactly so so I was more expecting just those people.
You know, typically it's the people that are in the
(13:46):
scene that you're filming, and maybe the scene before after,
but it's usually just not that many. But because you
guys had a whole sound stage and you were constantly
rehearsing on everybody was constantly we were saying on that
or in the scene, there was just like dozens of
people the entire cast all the time, and so I
think that was so great for your camaraderie, but even
(14:09):
for someone like me coming in because I really felt
folded in there and we were all hanging outside. This
was before people were supermaniacal on their phones, right right,
It's true, and so we actually instead of sitting in
our trailers and scrolling, we would actually be out like
sitting on our stoop and talking to each other and
(14:32):
learning something from Crafty and it was great. So when
I first came, I just loved that it was busy.
It was just all everywhere and it was busy. That
is true. I do forget about that that we all.
I always just say like the real show was like
what was happening at base camp because we were all
always outside just hanging out. Well, except for early season,
(14:55):
like season the Back the Back Nine, people would come
to base camp and it would be completely silent because
maybe like where is everybody? Where's the cast? And we
were all sleeping because we're so tired, and the only
time we could sleep was like during setups for other scenes,
(15:16):
and so the base camp would be like silent, and
then we'd all come out of our trailers looking like
a muck, like did I miss it? You know when
you wake up in your trailer and you're like, did
I miss the scene? Yeah, like no one would be
pounding on your door to yeah, but yeah, I can
see that. At a certain point, you're like I gotta
(15:37):
take care of me right now. I can't. I had
a dig a nap. Yeah. That was also the reason
why Jenna and I have to perspectives on this, because
I was not an expert napper like you Jenna, and
so I usually was one of the only ones out
there just looking for friends like someone wanted to. Were
definitely out there more you were you. You were definitely
(15:59):
part of what was happening all the world. I like
to get all the secrets. I like, you know what's
going on. I was definitely collector of information. Oh I didn't.
I didn't really do it that way. Although you were
secretly what it really seemed like honestly that you were
just interested I was. It was a very social being too,
(16:20):
you guys doing what what? Hi? How was your what
did you eat for lunch? You know What's very like
you were. But to be fair to you, is you know,
women like we gotta have a little This is like
gets real affective it does you know? You can tell?
You can really tell. So it's like you ought to
protect it. Yeah. So I'm I, um, yeah, rest the phase.
(16:44):
And I don't know if you guys know this sounds
like I'm really bragging now, but I also like executive
pretty smoothies now, but I do and I yeah, we
got to talk about that lead to it later. But
the whole point of it is that I have my
one of my secrets, as I put some of my
best friends in the movies because then it's so much
more fun. However, that means on Monday mornings, if I
(17:07):
don't do something with the schedule and they have to
get there before I am. That's a very good point,
they text. You're talking about we want to do what
you're doing, exactly what you're doing, produce things, put our
friends in it, and like, oh, good point. Then they're
going to be leaning on you for favors exactly exactly.
(17:41):
So Okay, so you've gotten You've gotten the new acclaim
from your daughter's um school and snapchats. But what was
it like for you, um in the real world, Like
after being on Glee when the show started change for
you at all? Because you had already been kind of
recognizable and not a lot of shows. What was that
like for you? Yeah, so I've been super famous for
(18:03):
a long time. No, it was so cool, it was
like I Yes, there were especially younger people on the street,
and now I was cool to like this whole other
generation of people joining it. And then I think, you know, um,
(18:25):
the stories we were telling and that you guys continue
to tell without me anyway sadly sadly talked about that.
Um no, I they really meant something to people. So
there was a real emotional um connection and uh gratitude
(18:46):
from people on the street. I will say that would
recognize me because you know, the show was telling stories
of people that hadn't been told before. It meant a
lot to them. So there was like this sort of
deeper thing and then so so that was really nice
to experience. And I will say I totally missed, missed
the entire Twitter evolution because my understanding was that I
(19:11):
was quoted on Twitter like at nauseum and it was
like finally Chris. I ran into Chris Cole for somewhere
after you know, it had aired, and he's like, why
aren't you on Twitter? People are talking about you all
the time in your lines to do this, and like,
I'm old with Twitter. The reason I ended up getting
on Twitter was because of Chris, because he was like,
(19:35):
this is what's happening and and so that was the
young the young Padwan showed me the way I mean,
ye was sort of like at the advent of Twitter.
It all sort of happened at the same time because
we also were not on it at the very beginning
either I sort of forced everyone to do it, but
did ye. But I I also love that you came
(19:58):
on and work to like crazy on Twitter and we're
so foundational because you were in the like first season,
which obviously I think it was the biggest And what
sticks people's minds the most that do you do you
still have like years after, because I feel like you're
part of like the o G Glee family. Yeah, so
(20:19):
like when people think of Glee, at least like for me,
I think of you. I think of everyone that was
involved and the kids were and also because you were
so memorable and had like the best Oh my god
for years after like what was like what was that like?
In addition to like when it first came out in
the show weirdly became a thing and then the show
(20:43):
keeps somehow coming back over and over and over again.
And now your kids do you still have do you
have outside of your kids, Like do you have people
coming up to you too that recognized you from the show. Well,
now it's it's really different because no to not strangers.
So I would say the kids at school, I love
(21:04):
it because you know it makes my daughter popular. Um,
you know, so I feel like that's coming around now.
Um you know, nobody saw anybody on the street for
a minute there. But yeah, but so I think that's
that's changing now as people. I feel like it's there's
(21:26):
a whole new wave happening right now. And I totally
totally right. So I see things on Twitter more and like, uh,
we'll be tagged in things and I'm like, oh, I
guess it's re airing it again somewhere. So I think
what's interesting is that, uh, this show capture what's happening
right now on culture, totally totally relevant. So I feel
(21:51):
like this second, Mike, it will be interesting to see
you know how people respond this time around for sure.
And I think, you know, again Ryan's writing like I
I'm going to say that a nauseum and everybody and
you feel that way too. But I when I wasn't
doing anymore, and I know that they wanted more, but
(22:13):
it was really started to focus and I totally understand
that on the kids more right, and so I was
more like third storyline out from you guys. So I
do totally understand that, but it was hard because I'm
telling you that writing, as you know, is so good,
and then you you know, you're auditioning for other things
and you're looking at other things to it. Yeah, I know,
(22:36):
that's very true. That's a very good point. It's a
good point when people don't think about two I guess
people that maybe aren't actors when you do get something
that is so good, like, how grateful we are to
be able to get to do that because audition for
a lot of crap. You got to cling to the
good ship, only to the good ship. Yeah, and it
(22:59):
makes a different because you, as you know, you're now
you're trying to be funny, but the writing itself isn't funny,
and it's not it's just not the same. You really
shine when as you know that writing like running up
the page. Are Yes, it's so easy. So yes. Speaking
of which, did you love doing sort of all the
(23:21):
maniacal things that Kendra got to do, the influencing Terry
and all that, just the plotting, the accomplice to the
to the villain. Oh god, it was so great. I mean,
I really I do you know that there's like a
whole wicki Glee Wicky online. Did you know that? Well,
(23:44):
there's a whole rite up about me, of course, and
I was funny. Is I just want under other information?
This goes along with what you're saying. This interests herself.
This is about Kendra, which is a great talent, scheming, bribery,
(24:06):
very good. Yeah, they're right. And vulnerabilities, her arrogance, her
seams failing. I know that was that could have we
should have gotten a baby out of that, right, That's
how it. Yeah, strength manipulation and weaknesses common sense not
(24:28):
listening to her schemes. That's a weakness. Answer your question,
Oh my gosh. I loved every second of it. I
just thought it was so hilarious that this you know,
like Kendra. You know when I played Kendra, it's like
just like taking an eraser and just wiping all intelligence out,
(24:48):
like just I just make which is and I'm just like,
you know, no, we're gonna have this baby, and here's
how it's gonna go work, because we're gonna get hers
and it's gonna be fine. And this is what's gonna
hap happen, you know, like there's just it's just like
this train of maniacalness. So I loved it. I find
(25:10):
the crazier people are the funnier it is to me.
It just gets me when someone gets really mad at
in traffic. Oh yeah, you laugh so hard, like they're
breaking out, and they're just like and I'm just laughing.
It's really literally laughing in their faces and they get
(25:30):
even more angry, and you're like, and I'm not doing
it to be like ha ha, I'm not doing it
meanly like funny, getting my funny bone. So the fact
that you know, Kender was just like and working to
this and now I'm now we're gonna get her baby,
and that's how this is gonna work. You don't get
rid of that. I mean, it was just great. It
(25:51):
was great. I loved the skating NASCAR. It was just
so stupid. Could you relate to that at all? Drawn
And no, no, you know I don't draw on my
life that much. You don't need to when you're that talented.
That's what I say. Wow, wow, wow, No, I think
(26:17):
I just as my husband puts it, he's been around,
We've been together since nineties seven, so he was around
for all the Glee stuff. He was my all the things. Yeah,
so gorgeous. And you know, he lovingly says to me,
you're so great at playing stupid idiots, and and I do.
(26:37):
It's my favorite. I really enjoy it. And but I'm
also so smart, you guys. Well, like speaking of smart,
like executive producing, tell us about UM your production company
with our our good friend tell its share share, Okay,
I will share, so Um Kristin Cheneweth and I um
(27:00):
who we did not meet only what was her character's name,
only April Rhodes. I mean we got to work with
her a lab. My god, I know she was like
mama to you guys, and but I never met her
actually on set, I was in the makeup chair the
first time I ever really noticed her. And in the
makeup chair, and then you know how they put polaroids makeup, right,
(27:25):
So I'm getting a makeup done, I'm looking at this
girl and I don't really know her. I don't, I don't,
I don't know her at all. And I look, I go,
she's got an amazing tan. That was it that hooked
me for this person, for what her tan. So then
(27:47):
years later we started the show called GCV good Christian
Bitches so good, thank you? That was That was another
about Bobby Harlan Steele. Magnolia's wrote that that was that
was you know, another total blessing, like that world class
cat and that like you guys pass and you're in
the shore. I mean this was Marison Nichols. This was like, yeah,
(28:10):
that was heaven anyway. So we we met and fell
in love on that and instant. It was crazy. We
were just like in the rooms texting all night long
every night. And when that show was prematurely canceled, certain people, um,
we're offended and advertisers and they pulled out and the
(28:31):
show was over. It was great anyways. Um, so we yeah,
we wanted to continue being around each other. To be honest,
she is in my adult life and everyone falls in
love with christ and Channa. So I just was like, I,
(28:53):
you know, we need to continue this love affair. And
I just found a way. I created a movie for
her and we um did it on a Hallmark channel.
We filmed it. It was about adoption. She's adopted. She
inspired me to adopt, who was a very important story
for both of us, and so we did this movie.
(29:13):
And it was so good that when I turned it in,
so I created the story and everything, and then I
do I don't write. I'm not a writing show owner.
I'm a creative executive. So there every day. And so
at the end I turned to my producers kind and
they made it the Hallmark Hall of Fame, which happens
once a year on that channel. And that was out
(29:35):
of a hundred plus movies. It was great. It was
really yeah. And so then we were like, okay, well
we need to continue this. So we are. You know,
we have this production company called Sparkling Shine. It feels
very appropriately. I'm interested to know which one do you
(29:56):
think which is just setup? C I know, but I
just Christians is a Sparkle, You're the shine. I would
say the same. Oh my god, it's clearly obvious that
is the truth. Yeah, so we you know, this is
a very new thing. And she is so smart, Kristen,
(30:19):
and has wonderful um like she knows when something's going
to be great, she knows what stories are good. And
uh so we've basically sold to to Disney Plus, to Netflix,
to Hallmark and we have I'm more I'm talking like
two and a half years so we have I'm gonna
get this board right now of like six projects that
(30:40):
are unreal. We need to have a sidebar. Yeah, I know,
um running an empire, I know, but it's not. It's
really so simple. It's not like we have some like
fancy office and we're like, you know, have people running about.
It's not like that. It's just it's just telling stories,
(31:04):
you know. I mean that's why Kevin I did the
podcast and so we can hang around each other and
I can bug him more than I already do. Yeah,
and your faces are so very cute and attractive and
they should be just out here doing these conversations and
making people happy. Likewise, it's all good lighting. Yeah, that's
why I'm literally sitting in a window. I need to
(31:26):
be blown out as much as possible. Great, it looks
so good. I thought I was doing good. But then
the sun started going down and it's like it's this,
this is not this natural light. But you got a sunflare.
You magically got a sunflair into your zoom, and I'm impressed.
(31:48):
That's how I'm looking at it. Where are you? Then
we were in l A forever and then you know,
the world shut down and we have family here, and
I was like, I gotta go, Let's just go. I
don't know how. I didn't know at the time. I
was like, let's just go be three months. It's a
small town, right, I was just like, let's get out
(32:09):
of like ground zero for a second and take a break.
And and what ended up happening is it was just
really beautiful and really peaceful. And my daughter can go
out on the street and play with kids. You can
just go and and I had that as a kid,
and I thought that was so great. So after a
(32:30):
while it was like, well, and I have a family
member who does need us to be here too, and
um so it's so we ended up staying and and
we're happy. And I travel anyway, so it doesn't really matter, right,
You can you can get movies picked up, and you
can act from anywhere. Yeah, it's true. Yeah, I'm terrible.
(32:51):
I want to I want to be honest with you guys.
I know you think I'm amazing, and rightly so, but
but I am here bowl at on camera auditions just awful,
just terribly, Yes, which makes me think it's really my
personality that people have been casting. Well, I'm in the
same way so I relate. I enjoy doing it because
(33:15):
I have terrible nerves. So I enjoyed doing like self
tapes from home. But I think, yeah, I only get
things when I convince people in the room that I'm
right for it, not necessarily based off of my mediocre
acting ability. It's yeah, I think that's what's happened to
me too. I'm so glad we're talking about it. It's
not just me. Oh no, No, it's definitely. And I
(33:36):
have friends who strictly book just off of self tapes.
I don't think i've booked off, actually booked anything since
since Glee. To be honest, everything else has been like
to do this. Yeah, I'm an offer only, So I'm
offer only, and that's only because I don't book of
self tapes. Going back to Glee for a second, did
(34:09):
you have trouble not laughing or was it people not
having trouble not laughing at you in like while filming
scenes like we did that with Jane a lot. We couldn't.
We'd have to keep it together. Oh, she is such
a national treasure. Truly, I've never actually acted with her,
but I'm glad because I wouldn't. I don't know how
(34:32):
it's sort of a nightmare. It's impossibly Yeah. I once
did a series with um um, oh my gosh, really
Jennifer the star of the Office Steve Steve Carell. So
I did series with him, and he was so funny.
The only thing I could do to even make a
scene happen was bite the inside of my cheek I
(34:55):
did with her. I did an episode of the Office
pret and I realized at watching it back that I'm
frowning the entire time because I was the only way
I could stop myself. That's already, that's that's and a
lot of that is for me, not me trying not
to laugh the entire time. You know. One Kristin chenu
Wit actually taught us early on when um, when we
(35:19):
were shooting, we were trying not to laugh, and she
would say dead puppies did puppies did puppies, And that
would make me laugh even more. Kristen, especially in her
Boy's gonna do anything that's not going to quell any
laugh horrible. I still use it. I use that for
myself sometimes. Do it makes me when I have laugh
(35:41):
attacks like dead puppies, because usually it freaks everyone else out.
If I'm with people like we shouldn't be laughing, Like what,
I'm like, that worked, you know, distract them. I'm going
to take that, and I yes, to answer your question,
definitely laughing with it. I think that there was there
was a scene in where I think it was my
(36:01):
first episode where Ryan had the children. We were at
a dinner table and Ryan had the children just run
around while we're just having a normal house It's so good, right,
it's the best. And and I don't even notice it,
like if they don't know this, and um, I kidder
(36:21):
remember what was said at the table. But it was
so hard, especially honestly, um Matthew was having a really
hard time getting through that scene because he was just
his character was just experiencing the who anyway, so he
didn't have that much to say to at least like
drive through the pink, right, He just had to watch
(36:43):
this screaming. It was screaming, I like this, and I
was like, here's what we're gonna do. Okay, Yeah, we've
got this situation. I'm gonna be staying here or whatever
it was I was saying, and we would get to
the end and collapse because it was so kind And
I do laugh at my self like a lot, Like
we've already established ridiculousness really makes me laugh, right, really ridiculous,
(37:08):
and so I just will laugh at myself then like
I can believe myself. Yeah, I get that. I feel
that in my in my core I do. That's seen
also is so anxiety inducing and it's so perfect. Just
how do you have any favorite kindred lines? Um? Definitely, um,
(37:31):
the whole line is this, I know the last line. Um,
well there's two. There's two things that really make me laugh.
So okay, Dr Woo sing it's the best. I just
watched it this morning. It is truly the best, the best,
and it's truly every line right, every line, Um, you
know much for Toson and you screwed up my kids
(37:53):
d n A, you know, just too good, so good.
I mean, I know some powerful midsized law firms. Really
makes the laugh is I think Dr Woo says something like,
you know, um, I mean clearly both aren't pregnant, and
(38:16):
I go, I'm offended. I'm so ridiculous that those are.
There's just like golden the lore in that sane this
one line. I just people said it a lot to me.
I think maybe I think it was from show Mance.
Birth isn't like it is in the movies. It's bloody,
(38:38):
it's messy, and you get poop all over your cowboy boots.
So I remember when we that episode was screened to
us and we all died. We had Matt Kendra for
the first time, right, we were meeting Kendra in that line,
I'm mind the poop all of your cowboy boots. So
(38:59):
that one just really just stuck with me. And and
so those were sort of sort of my my highlights.
I will say, you know, people talk about spinoffs and
all these things. The one spinoff I would like to
see is you and Jesselyn Terry and Kendra. Terry and
Kendra would just be like, go on tour because your
(39:21):
guys brand of um delusion was different and complimentary and
like the worst way possible, and your chemistry together also
was so your comedic timing with one another was brilliant.
We need more of that. I love her. I We've
we've worked together once or twice since then and have
(39:44):
always been to see each other. UM Yeah, and I
agree the the level of delusion is really the enjoyable
part of this, right, you know, it's just that they're
just I agree with you. I think that would be
a really fun, fun spin off where they I don't
know what they've done, but they've really gone on and
(40:07):
created like a whole They probably robbed banks now or something.
Rob I mean, I think they're more sophisticated and they're
like full con artists, Like they go around the country
and like con people, poor poor people. They were working
at fts for sure. Absolutely. Yeah, it's funny because I
(40:28):
did this character in Screen Queens. So I've done a
couple of other client shows and they're all related. These
characters are related and uh somehow. So in that one,
I was like in a trailer park with some baked
armadillo and someone was like, oh my god, it's Kendrick Giardi.
(40:50):
She now lives in a trailer park. And then the
other character, I did a couple of episodes of nine
one one on and and I was like, dr woo,
how did this happen here? On? That's right? Reunited a
hot fireman? What is going on? What career? Right? It's
(41:10):
so versatile Verstal and so you know, he's so talented,
and I was like the guests. I was like the
guest and he was the Master at that point, like
anyway and still lovely anyway, Um, but's Angela Bassett mostly.
But anyway, that character I know beyond right and I'm
(41:33):
my character and that is also a complete moron. So
clearly you have a type. I have a type for
type for you. Ryan has a type for you. Really,
so this is what happens in Ryan Murphy's mind. He's like,
oh my god, I have this role. It's a an
idiot called Jennifer I have Yeah, so that one, so
(41:58):
that that that was also sort of Kendra. Now I
was stealing packages off of people's I was I was
a crime person. That sounds right. I would like like
the justification behind it probably made a lot of sense
to her. Yes, people need to pick up their packages sooner.
See lease packages out. What a stupid idea. And maybe
(42:25):
it was delivered incorrectly, I don't know. Came to your doorstep. Hey,
I think you need to add this to your board
of shows that need to get Kendra and Terry. That's
like Bob and Mark the newest America's Sweethearts. The one
thing I want to say, my one regret from Glee.
(42:49):
I never got to sing I was going to say
she never got a song. I never got a did
you guys notice that we did notice that it's not
really an organic thing. When you really look at your
storyline that Kendra would like show up and do a
number at the school, it doesn't really make sense. But
I wanted to know that I lobbied for that. I
(43:11):
bet you don't. What would you have sung your audition song? Yes, yes,
you know, like as they run, as they like drive
off with the baby. She's seen a woman, I know,
high class broad you know, just like saying it you
in Cowboy Boots with She's self aware? Yeah, what's you know?
What's really interesting is that there's like a little bit
(43:32):
of like a Southern accent. Her name is Kendre GARDI.
I remember when we watched Showmance and you know, we're
looking at the character names and I didn't realize her
last name with Garady was like, oh, that gives me pause.
I clearly didn't pick up on that. I was like,
(43:53):
I'm obviously saying this was a Southern accent. Maybe you
can do it in your spin off show. You can
you and Jescelyn can do some songs and Cowboy Boots, well,
we could, but I just don't. I really don't. I mean,
I think the Magic of Blue wasn't really I mean,
I'm being very humble right now. And but also in
saying that we were a but I was an exceptional
(44:16):
side show. You know. The real meat and potatoes that
kept everyone coming back was you, guys, and and how
you all work together as the team, and how you
made these incredible numbers, and how much your heart was
in the stories you were telling you, how much you
loved each other. Yeah, thank you, Well, we loved you
(44:40):
and we still love you. Um, thank you so much
for coming on and chatting with this. I think people
really nice excited to hear from Kendra herself and Jennifer.
Thank you the goddamn star, Jennifer. There you go. I'm
for more a superlatives to go on. Yeah, yeah, let's
(45:03):
go further and you did. Yeah I got you. Thank you.
Um you guys. I can't even express what a pleasure
it was to see your faces today. Truly truly gift
and I hope to see you all again and I'll
definitely be paying attention to this podcast now. Oh good,
(45:25):
just this episode. Thank you, just the seriously, if you
have any direct offers for Jenna or me. We are available.
Well that's that's actually really good. We won't be sending
in tapes. I'll show before I am. I won't. I
won't get mad. Yeah, we're hard work you at least. No.
I mean, this is this is the this is the secret.
(45:48):
And I know that you guys have thought about this
because you're like, oh, I put my friends in it.
But as you you know, this is what you're doing
right now. You get to do your job with people. Friends.
Really like that you come on. I wanted to frust right,
and you picked you to come on. And just so
the audience knows right now, and did not love me
(46:08):
for myself to be honest show okay they asked me.
You did. Came from the record from her. You pick
your people and that's who you get to spend time with.
And I feel like these days that is what it's
all about. So I it's right and you can sidebar
me anytime. I'm so available, available, but like busy, well
(46:32):
you know yes all that I really do, um, especially
both of you. I definitely have a lot of warmness
in my heart for you. That is real and that
goes on you know that, oh, that was then. No,
when I love people, I do love them forever. So
you guys are in likewise. I feel honored. Yeah, thank you, thanks,
(46:56):
thank you. It's really good to see you. She's what
the light, what a joy. I love her and visit her. Yes,
just make us laugh all the time. My cheeks are hurting,
my face hurts from smiling this entire time. It's good
to see um old friends like that. I mean, we
(47:18):
didn't get to spend like a ton of time with
her on set, but there's just a knowing camaraderie you
have with these people that we we love so much.
So we're just so grateful to have Jennifer on. And
it's really nice too that, you know, the more people
we talked to, like because we're not as close with her,
we don't talk to us regularly, as we talked to
a lot of other people that were on the show,
and how we all have come away with the same
(47:41):
feeling of that time and how special and close and
just magical it all was. And that's really sweet to hear,
and especially because we were so busy that hearing her
perspective of spending off screen time with us was really
nice as well. She's brilliant. What a joy. Um Well,
thank you Jennifer Aspen for coming on the show. I
(48:04):
know that people were really excited. Fans were excited to
hear from hear from her and um revisit Kendra again.
Truly just brilliant. Um Well, thanks for joining us, you guys,
and join us next week for another brand new episode
of And That's what you really missed? Do you like
that I did? Bye Bye Bye
Hey everyone, Before we get to our new episode, we
have an exciting announcement. Snakes Miss is back, so please
join us for a live taping of and That's What
You Really Missed live from the I Heart Radio Theater
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loving memory of our friend Naya Rivera to benefit Alexandria House.
(00:20):
Celebrate the holidays with us and keep the snakes Miss
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(00:40):
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we are streaming the event on December eight at five
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even have a virtual meet and greet option. Tickets are
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bio and the notes of this podcast episode, so go
(01:03):
check it out and We'll see you there. Mary Snicks.
Miss and that's what you really missed with Jenna and
Kevin and I Heart Radio podcast. Welcome to and that's
what you really missed with Jenna and Kevin. Welcome back
for another wonderful and surprising and just delightful conversation we're
(01:24):
gonna have with someone. We have the one and only
Jennifer Aspen, who plays Kendra Grd. She is a comedic genius,
and I think also it's important for people to know,
like we were so obsessed with her because we never
actually got to be in any scenes with her, all Right,
(01:45):
we'd only see them like their scenes after when we
were watching like screenings of the episodes, which they would
show us and the crew at lunch. Um, and she
would just have these zingers, I mean true zingers that
stuck around forever. She'll talk about out as well. Um,
but she is just I feel like her and and
(02:06):
Jescelyn just elevated the show and really we felt like
it really felt like we were in a comedy with
them absolutely, you know, with these scenes. I mean also,
I think her character is probably um, the most quoted
amongst each other. He and the biggest clothes that we
would say all the time. She's a delight um. So
let's get into the conversation. Enjoy. Yeah, look at you guys.
(02:34):
Thank you so much for joining us. Oh, I'm so
happy to be here. I mean, that's you know, the
fandom that never dies. It surely doesn't truly we're here. Yeah,
I mean I hear that. You're like, you have a
resurgence of fame. I do. I do, because now I'm
mom famous. I think they call it mom pai mom fame.
(02:55):
That's a new one. Yeah, mom fame because now the
kids at school. Because I have a ten year old,
she hasn't seen Glee yet, but it's coming. I mean,
her friends must tap there's an age that's maybe more
appropriate than others to start watching the show. Well, I
don't eve brag, but my daughter is incredibly smart. So
(03:18):
just she's watched all the seasons of Stranger Things. If
we're just I've just got it. I'm not a bad mom.
That happened and with them for all the week. Okay,
but I do think it's coming. But yes, her friends
have seen it, and so her friends like to take
screenshots of me on different shows and send it and
(03:42):
she's just constantly embarrassed. Basically, that's the that's what happened.
So um yeah, and she sees it. She's going to
be real embarrassed. I mean, how you are so good.
You've also been in a billion shows, so there's no
way to like watch television and then not see you
on something that's everything. Yes, that's true. So it's a
(04:05):
lot of texts. It is true. And what's your mom?
And but she's at this phase. And I understand you
have a daughter now, which is super cute, and I
love her name, Emma. That's one of my favorite names.
Thank you as congratulations saying, and then any children, No,
I can barely take care of myself, I will subject
(04:26):
a child to that. No, I don't. I don't want
you to, so I want you just I'll leave it
to you. Guys, you're much more responsible than a cool uncle,
cool uncle Kevin, well uncle Kevin. Yes. So anyway, so
she's at the age right now which you will get
there where you just stand and you're embarrassing to your child. Thing.
(04:50):
I come to pick up and then she's not there.
So I went into the like the auditorium where they
kind of wait for their pickup and I'm just standing
there trying to not be embarrassing. I'm I'm standing and
she's like, I said, you shouldn't watch anything. I do
you know that I'm actually a comedian, Like she's gonna
(05:15):
be that's really funny. I can't not be. I just
imagine just standing there, like literally stoic, and she's like,
you're like, that is all I did. Iath and it
was too much. Read it was too much. So she'll
see she will see Glee soon. I think which show
gets the most screenshots? Um? I think it's well, it's
(05:39):
kind of the one where I think that Terry I
was like coaching Terry on how to give birth to
a fake babo. Um, that one got a lot of
That was like and you poop on your cowboy boots.
Oh that's a good one. Yeah. And then I think
(06:00):
with Dr Wu, of course best scene. That was a
master master scene, mostly because of my performance, but we agree, yeah,
but mostly, but really because the writing was just And
now Dr Wu is like a sex symbol on nine movement, right,
that's right. Yes. What's fascinating though, is that like you
(06:24):
come in like you have been on so many shows
and you come in, especially for let's say for Glee,
the show was on in the air. You get the
job and you come in and then you just slaughter everyone, like, yes,
the writing is good. Not all of us did as
good of a job with the writing as you did.
Like for us, because we never even got to being
scenes together, we would quote your things like to each
(06:48):
other because we got to watch your scenes as just
a fan, like the walk gone down to dr chat
Like we used to say that all all the time.
We're just out of the time, Like how do you
do that as an actor? How do you show up
and just do that? That is such a skill. We're like,
(07:08):
how do you You don't know the tone of the show,
Like we're there all the time, and we're still we
were still figuring out the tone of the show. You
come in and just I mean, I guess it starts
with like how did you even get like how did
you get the role? How did it come to you?
Oh my gosh, I have so much to say. First,
I want you to know that I'm about to cry,
you know, because I really appreciate everything you're said in
(07:29):
your compliments. It's very nice, and because it makes me
remember that time with you all, and you were also nice,
and you would all come up to me and say
my lives to you know, and I and you you
were all wonderful and supportive and all of it. So
I just want to thank you for saying that is
(07:51):
really really nice, and um, I am good and so well,
why don't I go back to a question that came
a little later, which was how did you? Let's tell
us how you how you got here? I think most
(08:12):
people don't know this. This is definitely in your in
your vein of what you're doing. But I auditioned for
Terry and saying and sing in that audition, I saying, um,
I'm I'm gonna just say I'm not a singer. You
guys know this. That's why I didn't sing. I asked
(08:33):
to sing ugly like all the time, like woman, do
you guys know that song? Because yes, net one and
I know how that's so I was saying that that
was my audition and I really thought that was my
fate and it wasn't my fate. I didn't get that.
Just one got it. She did wonderful, you know. And
(08:56):
so what what happened in my devastation of not getting
that was this like email that just popped up about
I guess you guys were filming maybe the first episode.
I think I think I came in on the second episode. Yeah, oh, Ryan,
Rian Murphy has written this role for you. Here's a
(09:17):
samples like two pages. Are you interested? I was, and
I read it and the two pages were incredible. They
were funny and I couldn't type yes fast enough And
at the time I didn't know, like is it just
two pages? Is there more? I'm just gonna say yes.
(09:40):
I don't even care what this is. And so I
had when you asked that, how did I come in
and groove in? It was the second episode and you
were all finding out what the tone was. And I
had the total gift of Ryan knowing my work and
(10:01):
writing something he knew I could deliver, you know, So
that that made it so much easier. And I don't
I don't know if he directed my first episode or
he directed a couple of them. So I also had
that so that it works so well, you do. Yes,
it is great writing, yes, you know, but I came
in with something made for me. I didn't, you know,
(10:24):
so that was like written to what I could do.
Your writer's dream It's like, especially when Ryan knows your work,
he can just be like, let's throw this atter because
I know she can do that. Yeah. Yeah, that's also
there's like a sense of confidence going in, being like
this is written for me. I just have to do
what I do and like be you know what I mean,
and kind of be done with it. Yeah, I mean
(10:45):
I didn't. Wasn't that confident, But I'm glad appeared though
it absolutely did look at sound whipper snappers with its
curious uniforms. But I yeah, so I wasn't. I wouldn't
say I was that confident. I would say I was
still in a state of shock and that that it happened.
(11:08):
But I knew walking in. I don't know if you
guys knew this or not, but I knew this was
a hit show. This was no we did not know
what couldn't I told you that? Yeah, I just you
could you could really feel, having been someone who's so
experienced having a couple of hit shows yourself, just if
(11:32):
you know, there was a real specialness to it. And
I could feel that right away. I felt lucky to
be there and not confident, very insecure. Your clothes spoke
of your your costumes spoke of your confidence for you.
You got some good costumes. You did get Ryan, That
was all Ryan. So I usually have very opinionated on
(11:56):
my clothes. I think wardrobe people hate me. I'm just
like and this. I also don't like the staffick and
blah blah blah, and and I need it to be
cut like this. And my jewel tones. I am a
jeweltuine girl too. Right, it's a difference. I feel like
I should be hearing some right now, because you guys
did say form I like very cold, and I gave
(12:19):
all of those opinions and then walked into my first
fitting for Glee and the clothes were there and none
of what I said mattered at all, and and it
was like this whole person that already been created. I
didn't have any input, nor did I need any input
or any input because it was so, you know, so
(12:42):
much more elevated than even what I could imagine. That's
kind of what that's Ryan Murphy for you. Yeah, Ryan
Lou just that's right. Costume masters, do you remember what
it was like when you first got to set to
actually start shooting your first day? Um? Because I think
Ryan did direct your first episode. I think he did.
(13:02):
I think that. Um, I remember that it was really
one of the busiest sets I've ever been on because
you recall, if you guys weren't on camera, you were
rehearsing oh yes, oh yeah, yes, number and so everyone
was there all the time. It wasn't like, you know,
because most of the scenes I did was with Terry
(13:24):
and Will and Kendred, the three children, which I looked
at their names, Kyle, Josh, and Me. They're full grown
humans now. They definitely have ideas and they go to
exactly so so I was more expecting just those people.
You know, typically it's the people that are in the
(13:46):
scene that you're filming, and maybe the scene before after,
but it's usually just not that many. But because you
guys had a whole sound stage and you were constantly
rehearsing on everybody was constantly we were saying on that
or in the scene, there was just like dozens of
people the entire cast all the time, and so I
think that was so great for your camaraderie, but even
(14:09):
for someone like me coming in because I really felt
folded in there and we were all hanging outside. This
was before people were supermaniacal on their phones, right right,
It's true, and so we actually instead of sitting in
our trailers and scrolling, we would actually be out like
sitting on our stoop and talking to each other and
(14:32):
learning something from Crafty and it was great. So when
I first came, I just loved that it was busy.
It was just all everywhere and it was busy. That
is true. I do forget about that that we all.
I always just say like the real show was like
what was happening at base camp because we were all
always outside just hanging out. Well, except for early season,
(14:55):
like season the Back the Back Nine, people would come
to base camp and it would be completely silent because
maybe like where is everybody? Where's the cast? And we
were all sleeping because we're so tired, and the only
time we could sleep was like during setups for other scenes,
(15:16):
and so the base camp would be like silent, and
then we'd all come out of our trailers looking like
a muck, like did I miss it? You know when
you wake up in your trailer and you're like, did
I miss the scene? Yeah, like no one would be
pounding on your door to yeah, but yeah, I can
see that. At a certain point, you're like I gotta
(15:37):
take care of me right now. I can't. I had
a dig a nap. Yeah. That was also the reason
why Jenna and I have to perspectives on this, because
I was not an expert napper like you Jenna, and
so I usually was one of the only ones out
there just looking for friends like someone wanted to. Were
definitely out there more you were you. You were definitely
(15:59):
part of what was happening all the world. I like
to get all the secrets. I like, you know what's
going on. I was definitely collector of information. Oh I didn't.
I didn't really do it that way. Although you were
secretly what it really seemed like honestly that you were
just interested I was. It was a very social being too,
(16:20):
you guys doing what what? Hi? How was your what
did you eat for lunch? You know What's very like
you were. But to be fair to you, is you know,
women like we gotta have a little This is like
gets real affective it does you know? You can tell?
You can really tell. So it's like you ought to
protect it. Yeah. So I'm I, um, yeah, rest the phase.
(16:44):
And I don't know if you guys know this sounds
like I'm really bragging now, but I also like executive
pretty smoothies now, but I do and I yeah, we
got to talk about that lead to it later. But
the whole point of it is that I have my
one of my secrets, as I put some of my
best friends in the movies because then it's so much
more fun. However, that means on Monday mornings, if I
(17:07):
don't do something with the schedule and they have to
get there before I am. That's a very good point,
they text. You're talking about we want to do what
you're doing, exactly what you're doing, produce things, put our
friends in it, and like, oh, good point. Then they're
going to be leaning on you for favors exactly exactly.
(17:41):
So Okay, so you've gotten You've gotten the new acclaim
from your daughter's um school and snapchats. But what was
it like for you, um in the real world, Like
after being on Glee when the show started change for
you at all? Because you had already been kind of
recognizable and not a lot of shows. What was that
like for you? Yeah, so I've been super famous for
(18:03):
a long time. No, it was so cool, it was
like I Yes, there were especially younger people on the street,
and now I was cool to like this whole other
generation of people joining it. And then I think, you know, um,
(18:25):
the stories we were telling and that you guys continue
to tell without me anyway sadly sadly talked about that.
Um no, I they really meant something to people. So
there was a real emotional um connection and uh gratitude
(18:46):
from people on the street. I will say that would
recognize me because you know, the show was telling stories
of people that hadn't been told before. It meant a
lot to them. So there was like this sort of
deeper thing and then so so that was really nice
to experience. And I will say I totally missed, missed
the entire Twitter evolution because my understanding was that I
(19:11):
was quoted on Twitter like at nauseum and it was
like finally Chris. I ran into Chris Cole for somewhere
after you know, it had aired, and he's like, why
aren't you on Twitter? People are talking about you all
the time in your lines to do this, and like,
I'm old with Twitter. The reason I ended up getting
on Twitter was because of Chris, because he was like,
(19:35):
this is what's happening and and so that was the
young the young Padwan showed me the way I mean,
ye was sort of like at the advent of Twitter.
It all sort of happened at the same time because
we also were not on it at the very beginning
either I sort of forced everyone to do it, but
did ye. But I I also love that you came
(19:58):
on and work to like crazy on Twitter and we're
so foundational because you were in the like first season,
which obviously I think it was the biggest And what
sticks people's minds the most that do you do you
still have like years after, because I feel like you're
part of like the o G Glee family. Yeah, so
(20:19):
like when people think of Glee, at least like for me,
I think of you. I think of everyone that was
involved and the kids were and also because you were
so memorable and had like the best Oh my god
for years after like what was like what was that like?
In addition to like when it first came out in
the show weirdly became a thing and then the show
(20:43):
keeps somehow coming back over and over and over again.
And now your kids do you still have do you
have outside of your kids, Like do you have people
coming up to you too that recognized you from the show. Well,
now it's it's really different because no to not strangers.
So I would say the kids at school, I love
(21:04):
it because you know it makes my daughter popular. Um,
you know, so I feel like that's coming around now.
Um you know, nobody saw anybody on the street for
a minute there. But yeah, but so I think that's
that's changing now as people. I feel like it's there's
(21:26):
a whole new wave happening right now. And I totally
totally right. So I see things on Twitter more and like, uh,
we'll be tagged in things and I'm like, oh, I
guess it's re airing it again somewhere. So I think
what's interesting is that, uh, this show capture what's happening
right now on culture, totally totally relevant. So I feel
(21:51):
like this second, Mike, it will be interesting to see
you know how people respond this time around for sure.
And I think, you know, again Ryan's writing like I
I'm going to say that a nauseum and everybody and
you feel that way too. But I when I wasn't
doing anymore, and I know that they wanted more, but
(22:13):
it was really started to focus and I totally understand
that on the kids more right, and so I was
more like third storyline out from you guys. So I
do totally understand that, but it was hard because I'm
telling you that writing, as you know, is so good,
and then you you know, you're auditioning for other things
and you're looking at other things to it. Yeah, I know,
(22:36):
that's very true. That's a very good point. It's a
good point when people don't think about two I guess
people that maybe aren't actors when you do get something
that is so good, like, how grateful we are to
be able to get to do that because audition for
a lot of crap. You got to cling to the
good ship, only to the good ship. Yeah, and it
(22:59):
makes a different because you, as you know, you're now
you're trying to be funny, but the writing itself isn't funny,
and it's not it's just not the same. You really
shine when as you know that writing like running up
the page. Are Yes, it's so easy. So yes. Speaking
of which, did you love doing sort of all the
(23:21):
maniacal things that Kendra got to do, the influencing Terry
and all that, just the plotting, the accomplice to the
to the villain. Oh god, it was so great. I mean,
I really I do you know that there's like a
whole wicki Glee Wicky online. Did you know that? Well,
(23:44):
there's a whole rite up about me, of course, and
I was funny. Is I just want under other information?
This goes along with what you're saying. This interests herself.
This is about Kendra, which is a great talent, scheming, bribery,
(24:06):
very good. Yeah, they're right. And vulnerabilities, her arrogance, her
seams failing. I know that was that could have we
should have gotten a baby out of that, right, That's
how it. Yeah, strength manipulation and weaknesses common sense not
(24:28):
listening to her schemes. That's a weakness. Answer your question,
Oh my gosh. I loved every second of it. I
just thought it was so hilarious that this you know,
like Kendra. You know when I played Kendra, it's like
just like taking an eraser and just wiping all intelligence out,
(24:48):
like just I just make which is and I'm just like,
you know, no, we're gonna have this baby, and here's
how it's gonna go work, because we're gonna get hers
and it's gonna be fine. And this is what's gonna
hap happen, you know, like there's just it's just like
this train of maniacalness. So I loved it. I find
(25:10):
the crazier people are the funnier it is to me.
It just gets me when someone gets really mad at
in traffic. Oh yeah, you laugh so hard, like they're
breaking out, and they're just like and I'm just laughing.
It's really literally laughing in their faces and they get
(25:30):
even more angry, and you're like, and I'm not doing
it to be like ha ha, I'm not doing it
meanly like funny, getting my funny bone. So the fact
that you know, Kender was just like and working to
this and now I'm now we're gonna get her baby,
and that's how this is gonna work. You don't get
rid of that. I mean, it was just great. It
(25:51):
was great. I loved the skating NASCAR. It was just
so stupid. Could you relate to that at all? Drawn
And no, no, you know I don't draw on my
life that much. You don't need to when you're that talented.
That's what I say. Wow, wow, wow, No, I think
(26:17):
I just as my husband puts it, he's been around,
We've been together since nineties seven, so he was around
for all the Glee stuff. He was my all the things. Yeah,
so gorgeous. And you know, he lovingly says to me,
you're so great at playing stupid idiots, and and I do.
(26:37):
It's my favorite. I really enjoy it. And but I'm
also so smart, you guys. Well, like speaking of smart,
like executive producing, tell us about UM your production company
with our our good friend tell its share share, Okay,
I will share, so Um Kristin Cheneweth and I um
(27:00):
who we did not meet only what was her character's name,
only April Rhodes. I mean we got to work with
her a lab. My god, I know she was like
mama to you guys, and but I never met her
actually on set, I was in the makeup chair the
first time I ever really noticed her. And in the
makeup chair, and then you know how they put polaroids makeup, right,
(27:25):
So I'm getting a makeup done, I'm looking at this
girl and I don't really know her. I don't, I don't,
I don't know her at all. And I look, I go,
she's got an amazing tan. That was it that hooked
me for this person, for what her tan. So then
(27:47):
years later we started the show called GCV good Christian
Bitches so good, thank you? That was That was another
about Bobby Harlan Steele. Magnolia's wrote that that was that
was you know, another total blessing, like that world class
cat and that like you guys pass and you're in
the shore. I mean this was Marison Nichols. This was like, yeah,
(28:10):
that was heaven anyway. So we we met and fell
in love on that and instant. It was crazy. We
were just like in the rooms texting all night long
every night. And when that show was prematurely canceled, certain people, um,
we're offended and advertisers and they pulled out and the
(28:31):
show was over. It was great anyways. Um, so we yeah,
we wanted to continue being around each other. To be honest,
she is in my adult life and everyone falls in
love with christ and Channa. So I just was like, I,
(28:53):
you know, we need to continue this love affair. And
I just found a way. I created a movie for
her and we um did it on a Hallmark channel.
We filmed it. It was about adoption. She's adopted. She
inspired me to adopt, who was a very important story
for both of us, and so we did this movie.
(29:13):
And it was so good that when I turned it in,
so I created the story and everything, and then I
do I don't write. I'm not a writing show owner.
I'm a creative executive. So there every day. And so
at the end I turned to my producers kind and
they made it the Hallmark Hall of Fame, which happens
once a year on that channel. And that was out
(29:35):
of a hundred plus movies. It was great. It was
really yeah. And so then we were like, okay, well
we need to continue this. So we are. You know,
we have this production company called Sparkling Shine. It feels
very appropriately. I'm interested to know which one do you
(29:56):
think which is just setup? C I know, but I
just Christians is a Sparkle, You're the shine. I would
say the same. Oh my god, it's clearly obvious that
is the truth. Yeah, so we you know, this is
a very new thing. And she is so smart, Kristen,
(30:19):
and has wonderful um like she knows when something's going
to be great, she knows what stories are good. And
uh so we've basically sold to to Disney Plus, to Netflix,
to Hallmark and we have I'm more I'm talking like
two and a half years so we have I'm gonna
get this board right now of like six projects that
(30:40):
are unreal. We need to have a sidebar. Yeah, I know,
um running an empire, I know, but it's not. It's
really so simple. It's not like we have some like
fancy office and we're like, you know, have people running about.
It's not like that. It's just it's just telling stories,
(31:04):
you know. I mean that's why Kevin I did the
podcast and so we can hang around each other and
I can bug him more than I already do. Yeah,
and your faces are so very cute and attractive and
they should be just out here doing these conversations and
making people happy. Likewise, it's all good lighting. Yeah, that's
why I'm literally sitting in a window. I need to
(31:26):
be blown out as much as possible. Great, it looks
so good. I thought I was doing good. But then
the sun started going down and it's like it's this,
this is not this natural light. But you got a sunflare.
You magically got a sunflair into your zoom, and I'm impressed.
(31:48):
That's how I'm looking at it. Where are you? Then
we were in l A forever and then you know,
the world shut down and we have family here, and
I was like, I gotta go, Let's just go. I
don't know how. I didn't know at the time. I
was like, let's just go be three months. It's a
small town, right, I was just like, let's get out
(32:09):
of like ground zero for a second and take a break.
And and what ended up happening is it was just
really beautiful and really peaceful. And my daughter can go
out on the street and play with kids. You can
just go and and I had that as a kid,
and I thought that was so great. So after a
(32:30):
while it was like, well, and I have a family
member who does need us to be here too, and
um so it's so we ended up staying and and
we're happy. And I travel anyway, so it doesn't really matter, right,
You can you can get movies picked up, and you
can act from anywhere. Yeah, it's true. Yeah, I'm terrible.
(32:51):
I want to I want to be honest with you guys.
I know you think I'm amazing, and rightly so, but
but I am here bowl at on camera auditions just awful,
just terribly, Yes, which makes me think it's really my
personality that people have been casting. Well, I'm in the
same way so I relate. I enjoy doing it because
(33:15):
I have terrible nerves. So I enjoyed doing like self
tapes from home. But I think, yeah, I only get
things when I convince people in the room that I'm
right for it, not necessarily based off of my mediocre
acting ability. It's yeah, I think that's what's happened to
me too. I'm so glad we're talking about it. It's
not just me. Oh no, No, it's definitely. And I
(33:36):
have friends who strictly book just off of self tapes.
I don't think i've booked off, actually booked anything since
since Glee. To be honest, everything else has been like
to do this. Yeah, I'm an offer only, So I'm
offer only, and that's only because I don't book of
self tapes. Going back to Glee for a second, did
(34:09):
you have trouble not laughing or was it people not
having trouble not laughing at you in like while filming
scenes like we did that with Jane a lot. We couldn't.
We'd have to keep it together. Oh, she is such
a national treasure. Truly, I've never actually acted with her,
but I'm glad because I wouldn't. I don't know how
(34:32):
it's sort of a nightmare. It's impossibly Yeah. I once
did a series with um um, oh my gosh, really
Jennifer the star of the Office Steve Steve Carell. So
I did series with him, and he was so funny.
The only thing I could do to even make a
scene happen was bite the inside of my cheek I
(34:55):
did with her. I did an episode of the Office
pret and I realized at watching it back that I'm
frowning the entire time because I was the only way
I could stop myself. That's already, that's that's and a
lot of that is for me, not me trying not
to laugh the entire time. You know. One Kristin chenu
Wit actually taught us early on when um, when we
(35:19):
were shooting, we were trying not to laugh, and she
would say dead puppies did puppies did puppies, And that
would make me laugh even more. Kristen, especially in her
Boy's gonna do anything that's not going to quell any
laugh horrible. I still use it. I use that for
myself sometimes. Do it makes me when I have laugh
(35:41):
attacks like dead puppies, because usually it freaks everyone else out.
If I'm with people like we shouldn't be laughing, Like what,
I'm like, that worked, you know, distract them. I'm going
to take that, and I yes, to answer your question,
definitely laughing with it. I think that there was there
was a scene in where I think it was my
(36:01):
first episode where Ryan had the children. We were at
a dinner table and Ryan had the children just run
around while we're just having a normal house It's so good, right,
it's the best. And and I don't even notice it,
like if they don't know this, and um, I kidder
(36:21):
remember what was said at the table. But it was
so hard, especially honestly, um Matthew was having a really
hard time getting through that scene because he was just
his character was just experiencing the who anyway, so he
didn't have that much to say to at least like
drive through the pink, right, He just had to watch
(36:43):
this screaming. It was screaming, I like this, and I
was like, here's what we're gonna do. Okay, Yeah, we've
got this situation. I'm gonna be staying here or whatever
it was I was saying, and we would get to
the end and collapse because it was so kind And
I do laugh at my self like a lot, Like
we've already established ridiculousness really makes me laugh, right, really ridiculous,
(37:08):
and so I just will laugh at myself then like
I can believe myself. Yeah, I get that. I feel
that in my in my core I do. That's seen
also is so anxiety inducing and it's so perfect. Just
how do you have any favorite kindred lines? Um? Definitely, um,
(37:31):
the whole line is this, I know the last line. Um,
well there's two. There's two things that really make me laugh.
So okay, Dr Woo sing it's the best. I just
watched it this morning. It is truly the best, the best,
and it's truly every line right, every line, Um, you
know much for Toson and you screwed up my kids
(37:53):
d n A, you know, just too good, so good.
I mean, I know some powerful midsized law firms. Really
makes the laugh is I think Dr Woo says something like,
you know, um, I mean clearly both aren't pregnant, and
(38:16):
I go, I'm offended. I'm so ridiculous that those are.
There's just like golden the lore in that sane this
one line. I just people said it a lot to me.
I think maybe I think it was from show Mance.
Birth isn't like it is in the movies. It's bloody,
(38:38):
it's messy, and you get poop all over your cowboy boots.
So I remember when we that episode was screened to
us and we all died. We had Matt Kendra for
the first time, right, we were meeting Kendra in that line,
I'm mind the poop all of your cowboy boots. So
(38:59):
that one just really just stuck with me. And and
so those were sort of sort of my my highlights.
I will say, you know, people talk about spinoffs and
all these things. The one spinoff I would like to
see is you and Jesselyn Terry and Kendra. Terry and
Kendra would just be like, go on tour because your
(39:21):
guys brand of um delusion was different and complimentary and
like the worst way possible, and your chemistry together also
was so your comedic timing with one another was brilliant.
We need more of that. I love her. I We've
we've worked together once or twice since then and have
(39:44):
always been to see each other. UM Yeah, and I
agree the the level of delusion is really the enjoyable
part of this, right, you know, it's just that they're
just I agree with you. I think that would be
a really fun, fun spin off where they I don't
know what they've done, but they've really gone on and
(40:07):
created like a whole They probably robbed banks now or something.
Rob I mean, I think they're more sophisticated and they're
like full con artists, Like they go around the country
and like con people, poor poor people. They were working
at fts for sure. Absolutely. Yeah, it's funny because I
(40:28):
did this character in Screen Queens. So I've done a
couple of other client shows and they're all related. These
characters are related and uh somehow. So in that one,
I was like in a trailer park with some baked
armadillo and someone was like, oh my god, it's Kendrick Giardi.
(40:50):
She now lives in a trailer park. And then the
other character, I did a couple of episodes of nine
one one on and and I was like, dr woo,
how did this happen here? On? That's right? Reunited a
hot fireman? What is going on? What career? Right? It's
(41:10):
so versatile Verstal and so you know, he's so talented,
and I was like the guests. I was like the
guest and he was the Master at that point, like
anyway and still lovely anyway, Um, but's Angela Bassett mostly.
But anyway, that character I know beyond right and I'm
(41:33):
my character and that is also a complete moron. So
clearly you have a type. I have a type for
type for you. Ryan has a type for you. Really,
so this is what happens in Ryan Murphy's mind. He's like,
oh my god, I have this role. It's a an
idiot called Jennifer I have Yeah, so that one, so
(41:58):
that that that was also sort of Kendra. Now I
was stealing packages off of people's I was I was
a crime person. That sounds right. I would like like
the justification behind it probably made a lot of sense
to her. Yes, people need to pick up their packages sooner.
See lease packages out. What a stupid idea. And maybe
(42:25):
it was delivered incorrectly, I don't know. Came to your doorstep. Hey,
I think you need to add this to your board
of shows that need to get Kendra and Terry. That's
like Bob and Mark the newest America's Sweethearts. The one
thing I want to say, my one regret from Glee.
(42:49):
I never got to sing I was going to say
she never got a song. I never got a did
you guys notice that we did notice that it's not
really an organic thing. When you really look at your
storyline that Kendra would like show up and do a
number at the school, it doesn't really make sense. But
I wanted to know that I lobbied for that. I
(43:11):
bet you don't. What would you have sung your audition song? Yes, yes,
you know, like as they run, as they like drive
off with the baby. She's seen a woman, I know,
high class broad you know, just like saying it you
in Cowboy Boots with She's self aware? Yeah, what's you know?
What's really interesting is that there's like a little bit
(43:32):
of like a Southern accent. Her name is Kendre GARDI.
I remember when we watched Showmance and you know, we're
looking at the character names and I didn't realize her
last name with Garady was like, oh, that gives me pause.
I clearly didn't pick up on that. I was like,
(43:53):
I'm obviously saying this was a Southern accent. Maybe you
can do it in your spin off show. You can
you and Jescelyn can do some songs and Cowboy Boots, well,
we could, but I just don't. I really don't. I mean,
I think the Magic of Blue wasn't really I mean,
I'm being very humble right now. And but also in
saying that we were a but I was an exceptional
(44:16):
side show. You know. The real meat and potatoes that
kept everyone coming back was you, guys, and and how
you all work together as the team, and how you
made these incredible numbers, and how much your heart was
in the stories you were telling you, how much you
loved each other. Yeah, thank you, Well, we loved you
(44:40):
and we still love you. Um, thank you so much
for coming on and chatting with this. I think people
really nice excited to hear from Kendra herself and Jennifer.
Thank you the goddamn star, Jennifer. There you go. I'm
for more a superlatives to go on. Yeah, yeah, let's
(45:03):
go further and you did. Yeah I got you. Thank you.
Um you guys. I can't even express what a pleasure
it was to see your faces today. Truly truly gift
and I hope to see you all again and I'll
definitely be paying attention to this podcast now. Oh good,
(45:25):
just this episode. Thank you, just the seriously, if you
have any direct offers for Jenna or me. We are available.
Well that's that's actually really good. We won't be sending
in tapes. I'll show before I am. I won't. I
won't get mad. Yeah, we're hard work you at least. No.
I mean, this is this is the this is the secret.
(45:48):
And I know that you guys have thought about this
because you're like, oh, I put my friends in it.
But as you you know, this is what you're doing
right now. You get to do your job with people. Friends.
Really like that you come on. I wanted to frust right,
and you picked you to come on. And just so
the audience knows right now, and did not love me
(46:08):
for myself to be honest show okay they asked me.
You did. Came from the record from her. You pick
your people and that's who you get to spend time with.
And I feel like these days that is what it's
all about. So I it's right and you can sidebar
me anytime. I'm so available, available, but like busy, well
(46:32):
you know yes all that I really do, um, especially
both of you. I definitely have a lot of warmness
in my heart for you. That is real and that
goes on you know that, oh, that was then. No,
when I love people, I do love them forever. So
you guys are in likewise. I feel honored. Yeah, thank you, thanks,
(46:56):
thank you. It's really good to see you. She's what
the light, what a joy. I love her and visit her. Yes,
just make us laugh all the time. My cheeks are hurting,
my face hurts from smiling this entire time. It's good
to see um old friends like that. I mean, we
(47:18):
didn't get to spend like a ton of time with
her on set, but there's just a knowing camaraderie you
have with these people that we we love so much.
So we're just so grateful to have Jennifer on. And
it's really nice too that, you know, the more people
we talked to, like because we're not as close with her,
we don't talk to us regularly, as we talked to
a lot of other people that were on the show,
and how we all have come away with the same
(47:41):
feeling of that time and how special and close and
just magical it all was. And that's really sweet to hear,
and especially because we were so busy that hearing her
perspective of spending off screen time with us was really
nice as well. She's brilliant. What a joy. Um Well,
thank you Jennifer Aspen for coming on the show. I
(48:04):
know that people were really excited. Fans were excited to
hear from hear from her and um revisit Kendra again.
Truly just brilliant. Um Well, thanks for joining us, you guys,
and join us next week for another brand new episode
of And That's what you really missed? Do you like
that I did? Bye Bye Bye
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