#144 You Will Be Silent For My Interview with Peter Macon and Enjoy Tales From The Orville

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Jeff Dwoskin 0:31

All right, Penny, thank you so much for that amazing introduction. You get the show going each and every week, and this week was no exception. Welcome, everybody to Episode 144 of classic conversations where the conversations aren't just conversations. They're classic. You're welcome. All right. As always, I am your host, Jeff Dwoskin. Great to have you back. This episode. We're heading to the stars. My special guest this week. Peter Macon, actor, Emmy Award winner and star of one of my favorite shows the Orville Peter Macon is of course Lieutenant Commander Bortus you will be silent you're in for a treat. my conversation with Peter is awesome. We talk about the Orville, his love of the stage, winning an Emmy and the art of smuggling food in your own concessions into the movie theater. We cover it all. You're gonna love it. And that's coming up in just a few minutes.

Jeff Dwoskin 1:36

Hopefully a cot or if you didn't catch it, you'll head over there right after you're done here to my interview with Stuart Pankin. That's right. Stuart Pankin you loved him as Bob Charles and not necessarily the news. Yeah, love down as Earl Sinclair, the father in dinosaurs. So many great stories Stewart shared with me, including his work on Curb Your Enthusiasm working with Mel Brooks so much all packed into one episode. So check that out. That's episode 142. Episode 143, of course, was a bonus episode featuring live segments from our live show crossing the streams. If you're looking for TV binge worthy shows, check out the bonus episodes, or all the full episodes on our YouTube channel. Great stuff a lot of people ask, Hey, how can I help out the show? Jeff, what can I do to make a difference? And the answer really is follow and download the episodes follow me on Apple podcasts or Spotify. And you know, download weekly keep up chat with me on Twitter, Instagram, all that good stuff. love hearing from you. So you know, that's it. That's simple, doesn't cost a penny and you know, and tell a friend, tell all your friends, every single one of your friends. Think of a number between one and 1000 Tell that many friends. That's all I do. That's it easy stuff. Thank you very much.

Jeff Dwoskin 3:04

I do want to take a quick second tell you all about my friend Scott Curtis's podcast is called behind the beds. It's a podcast about the tragedy and triumph of stand up comedy. It's a really amazing podcast. Scott has an amazing interview style. He actually won best interview style podcast and the 2020 Discover pods awards. He beat a relatively unknown Dax Shepard from armchair expert. Not sure who that is. But I'm gonna Google it right after I finished doing this promo. If you want to really kind of dive in and learn all about some awesome comedians behind the beds is where you should go. It's a really, really popular destination for all your favorite comedians, and maybe some you've never heard of, but it's a great way to be introduced to rising talent. So definitely check out behind the bits podcast, you will not be disappointed. You can find them on the web at theBTBpc.com. Or, you know, Apple, Google, all your podcasts just search behind the bits.

Jeff Dwoskin 4:09

I do want to take a quick second thank everyone for their support of our sponsors. When you support the sponsors, you're supporting us here at Classic conversations. And that's how we keep the lights on. I know I usually saved my TV binge watching suggestions or crossing the streams. But I do want to do a shout out to the Orville now on Hulu, season one season two and the new season New Horizons all streaming definitely check this out. It's one of the best science fiction shows on now they ever you're gonna love it from the mind of Seth MacFarlane is brilliant. It really is and it keeps getting better. So you can imagine when I reached out to one of the stars Peter Macon and he said he would love to come on the show. I got really, really Excited. So I talked to Peter about Orville of course and landing the role of Board s and winning his Emmy and a ton of other fun stuff that I'm going to share with you right now. Enjoy. All right, everyone, I'm so excited to introduce you to my next guest actor, Emmy Award winner, currently starring on one of my favorite shows the Orville as Lieutenant Commander, our board is welcome to the show. Peter Macon.. You will be silent.

Jeff Dwoskin 5:31

That is the greatest line from the almost karaoke moment. Yeah, from Oroville. I found like a petition online.

Peter Macon 5:40

Yeah, yeah, there's some stuff out there. Which one? Are you talking about the decision that

Jeff Dwoskin 5:45

to get you to saying yeah, they want to hear board is saying this. Just

Peter Macon 5:49

hang on. Just hang on. I'm like, you know, just hang on. Just hang on.

Jeff Dwoskin 5:53

Hang on. I just say yeah, I just say just find the stuff you can find when you start digging around. You know, it's like at a chain, there was a change.org petition to try and get set attention to work.

Peter Macon 6:05

None of that goes unnoticed. So I'll just I'll just say that yeah, you'll see.

Jeff Dwoskin 6:12

I can't wait to it's funny to be able to actually see you only because so ingrained the board is character in my head. Have you had times where people don't realize it's you like you're walking around? Like even just people you work with? Well, dude,

Peter Macon 6:27

like, early on, like because, you know, because of the prosthetics take, you know, a couple hours to get into so I'm there often before crew is there, right? So I get there and I'm crafty. And I'm getting some eggs, or oatmeal or whatever. And people are like, Who the hell is this guy? And then I open my mouth and like, oh, wow, you're born. Never know what you look like. So yeah, that that happened. Even Suning season three people didn't I'd be around for a costume fitting or, or something. And we walk around and I say something like, oh my god, did you hold time? So yeah, they kept they kept me pretty much under wraps. No, but it was a funny thing. It's a funny thing. I mean, I was even in a target one time with my kids, this at&t Representative selling at&t Whatever, the electronics section at Target started talking to her and then I told her my name and she's like, Oh my god, your part is like whoa, that's that's that's impressive. Actually, she knew me by my name which is which was interesting, but I've been in the grocery store and people are like, Oh my god, Portis brand catalog. Yeah, no, that's that goes with the territory of having your big old mug plastered all over the place. But nobody knows what it look like.

Jeff Dwoskin 7:43

Does the recognition come from hearing you say something? And then they turn and then they kind of put it?

Peter Macon 7:48

Yeah, yeah, kind of a big voice. So when I'm like, How much is this toothpaste? They're like, Oh my God, what's going on? Yeah, yeah. And that's fun. It's fun, because I enjoy my anonymity. And it's also really interesting how my cover is blown. In the most random like the DMV or people were like, I recognize your voice. So yeah, it's fun. It didn't make any sense when I was 15 years old, but it I've grown into it now you've

Jeff Dwoskin 8:18

grown into your voice I had to grow into my ears. You can't see because I got my headphones. But did they get any better in season three new horizons with the time it takes to put on the makeup and stuff and

Peter Macon 8:33

absolutely I mean not as much to the credit of KMB effects shout out to Howard burger KMB effects Garrett mo Tammy Lane makeup artists who you know is a lot like creating a sculpture every day like the same sculpture every day and at the beginning you know first figuring it out it took about four hours to get everything right and fitted and painted. And then by the end we got to get down to like 9090 minutes but that's me also helping them knowing when I could talk no one when I could pick up my phone no one when I could be when I could fall asleep which is every time in there at five in the morning you know after a late shooting have to come back and it was you know like i There's a point where if I start nodding off they'll put the pillow behind my head and so that they can sort of have a steady canvas you know to work on but it became a flow man and be became like I know I should flare my nostrils when they're putting this part of the application on so that the glue will stick better and hold my nostrils flared for five seconds so the glue will set and then I can let my nostrils unfair so that like later on when it gets hot or like you know the makeup starts to get hot that piece of adhesion won't won't come on down because I gave the I mean it's really technical stuff and it was fun to learn how to help them apply the makeup. So you know the learning curve for the for all of us. But yeah, I mean I would get in, get the physical pieces on get them set and then you know they spends about a third of the time getting the applications on. There's like three different pieces and then the rest of the time sort of finessing and painting. And so when they get into the finessing and painting that's when I can not go to sleep. It really is what happens to you when you fall asleep in the makeup trailer, be warned, because the lights come out looking like unrecognizable.

Jeff Dwoskin 10:21

Does that happen? You slip into character like more like cut because you're like,

Peter Macon 10:25

absolutely you wouldn't what was it? Uh, was it What movie was that? It was a David it was a Willem Defoe in Ponce David Lynch movie, where he played like he had like these, these prosthetic teeth and he had like, anyway, the once you get in once the makeup goes on. And it's, again, much the credit of how well this makeup was designed, how well the makeup was designed. For me specifically, I look at myself in the mirror and I don't recognize myself at all. Now there are limitations with you know how much I can rotate my neck, chicken, turn my head and stuff around. And so that sets physicality just off rip, you know, that you know, in so you know, the neck turn, you know, it's like, I mean, I always pictured if er and Sam the eagle had a love child, it would be bored. Because, you know, Sam, he's very character, you know, he's right. On the ers just you know, in His disposition. But the makeup definitely helped to define the physicality of the person which and once your physicality is sort of sketched out, you can kind of map out how this person goes, what their posture is, like, in what what their disposition is, if that makes any sense. So yeah, it was extremely helpful. And that's what made it so much so much fun is to have all of that makeup on. It was not fun when it was hot. And there was one time a bunch of ants crawled into my head and got sealed inside my head. And that was torture, but for the most part was great fun. And it was fun to walk around and forget that I had it on. Right. So you know, on lunch break, just take a walk around the lot, you know, just to get some exercise and fresh air. And I'm like, why do people Oh, that's right. It's fun to have this. I'm just you know, talking on my phone or talking to my kids and FaceTime. And I'm like, why is people staring at me like, Oh, that's right, and it's makeup on? And it's weird. Yeah, this is fun. I mean, I love that stuff, too. Like Halloween. I've always loved costumes and you know, that kind of stuff. So it made for great high jinks and you know and then the Elan you go in like, I mean, the the whole episode where I wanted a mustache like what is once a mustache and he just add that on top of everything else, then it's like, I'm just having a good time getting my best Tom Selleck, or my Bert my best Burt Reynolds. You know, just really kind of just having a laugh with it.

Jeff Dwoskin 12:36

It was fine. You say that I was gonna I was gonna say I want to add his Tom Selleck. He's a tri tri guy, right so and so I had my whole time so like ended up looking more like really 70s porn star with not too far off the mark. But I remember thinking, oh my god, I can't imagine like having a full like full prosthetic. I couldn't handle the mustache. I couldn't even like you couldn't even move. Because it would like fly off. You know, it's like that's a really funny episode. By the way. The Yeah, no,

Peter Macon 13:05

that was good fun. It was good fun. I mean, those big thick mustaches are always fun. Especially on an alien. 500 years in the future. Yes. It's always it'll always be funny. It's universally funny.

Jeff Dwoskin 13:15

Oh, yeah. It was fun. It was actually funny. In season three. They called it back.

Peter Macon 13:19

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, just last night's episode with the the beer foam. Right, right, right. Yeah. Yeah, it was. Yeah, it was fun. Like, which wasn't beautiful, by the way. But that's another story. But yeah, like one time for Halloween. Like I used to work up at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, Oregon. And for those of you who don't know, it's like the oldest Shakespeare Festival in the western hemisphere. And it's like they had a great makeup department. But for Halloween and daytime, I would just wear a tracksuit and some glasses and a wig and a big thick mustache. And just like it was a creepiest, most wonderful, perfect customer very, very little. You know, it was just it was so great just to be nonchalant and casual and just go in places and you know, buy a carton of milk and it changes the meaning of like, why is he buying this milk?

Jeff Dwoskin 14:09

I used to work at Little Caesars Pizza at headquarters. And then every now and then I got to dress up as the mascot for events and so I'd be in costume. There I basically won the job because I was just tall enough and but it was so fun. When people don't know it's you and you can go around and you can engage with people that's that's the that's the closest I've ever come to kind of that but I used to love Halloween also dressing up and yeah, we'll do so you mentioned play you you have a lot of theater background. Yeah. Do you miss the theater? Do you go back to the theater occasionally? I mean, I know that don't worry if it was a hard gig but no, I

Peter Macon 14:46

mean, I do miss the theater. I haven't done a play. Since I want to say 2016 had the opportunity to do a lot of Shakespeare and like the last play I did was in Dublin is the National Theatre of Ireland May, we did a production of a fellow there and I definitely miss the I missed the boards a lot I miss I miss being on stage, the electric connectivity, the live, it's happening right then it's there, those people in the audience, you know sometimes like he just got to change with the changes and it's great. It's a great proving ground. I think for actors. I mean, I ideally, I would do at least one play a year, because I think it's so incredibly important. And then behind and I grew up in the theater, and it's just there's, it's unlike something like any other experience that you will have as an actor, the preparation and then the go, you know, like eight o'clock curtain, unlike you get that 730 Half an hour. And that's when like, it's common, you know, and I had rituals, backstage rituals and things that I would do, you know, like the best thing, the best time I had onstage today would be playing Macbeth at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and we did 150 performances. So we ran from, I think February to late October, early November. And you know, there's there's is a huge there's a bunch of fights, but it is a huge fight scene in it. And it's just, it's a dance and like my, you know, like the the guy was playing Macduff shout out to Kevin Kennerly is built like a bulldog, you know, so he's like, he's probably like six inches shorter than I am. But his neck was probably three inches wider than mine. But so it made for a great dynamic for a fight. Because, you know, I'm six feet tall, and fairly fit in this guy was five, six and just fit to but just stick so his center of gravity is lower. And so the fight choreography was fantastic. Because in two different dynamically opposed bodies. And we did that 150 times and playing that role, which is what is my favorite? It's my favorite Shakespeare play in the canon. This is so much fun after like 75 performances 60 performances, it's muscle memory and it's been in the played even opens up more. I mean, it's almost like a you know, like the Russians, the Russian school of speaking Jim generically, but Russian School of Theater was like you rehearse nine months for you just ended it and so playing board is for five years so far is sort of akin to that where you just like living in the skin of this character for that long. You just find new new discovery new dimensionality. But yeah, I definitely miss miss the stage, just because it's just so exciting in it's where my heart was where I fell in love with being an actor came from watching people on stage.

Jeff Dwoskin 17:32

Sure. It's a whole different I do stand up comedy. So it's

Peter Macon 17:35

you get it? You know what it is? Yeah. I mean, I've done some stand up to and like, that's, that's, that's, I mean, it. Yeah. I mean, that's like, I mean, where you're out there by yourself, is you in the audience, and it could go horribly, horribly wrong.

Jeff Dwoskin 17:50

The best stories are the ones that went horribly, horribly wrong. Nobody wants to hear the stories when it went amazing.

Peter Macon 17:55

It's boring, man. But when you bomb, it's like, that's, that's the good stuff.

Jeff Dwoskin 18:01

That is the good stuff. Absolutely. Yeah. But there is there's that energy where you don't know what's about to happen, you don't know how they're gonna react, even though you've done this time and hundreds of like, and it's just like, it's that thrill every single time.

Peter Macon 18:15

It's different. Every because you have different sets of different audience different, different vibration going on someone's cell phone rings, you know, I remember I was doing a play, I was doing a production of a book To Kill a Mockingbird. And, you know, I mean, it's a very fairly stilted sort of play, like the second act, you know, that's just in the courtroom, and you're just playing Tom and I'm on the I'm on, I'm in the witness on the witness stand. And he's very vulnerable moment. And, you know, I'm in the audience of 700 people and like this, clearly an old person's phone rang, because, you know, it was the whole, like, trying to find out first it just rang, it's like, I saw my phone, I'm not know, and then you know, rang again, and then the ring again. And like, you can hear the frustration and this poor person whose parent whose children probably gave them that phone to keep them safe or whatever, make sure they're okay. But you know, didn't give them a tutorial about how to turn it off in the theater. And it says ringing and I just, you just have to, you know, to sort of wait and be in it. And I was like, well, there's no way you know, and this is while it's happening, and like there's no way that any information that comes out of my mouth as this character is going to land on the audience because everyone's listened to the phone. So we got it and the cacophony of sounds trying to stifle the phone and stuff like that. So just waited, you know, you need to stop talking. And it seemed like it was like 10 minutes, but it was actually probably less than a minute, but you know, and once and then once the phone went silent, and it started again, the audience erupted in applause you know, as like this, this mutual acknowledgement of like, yeah, that was an event that happened that was awful and it was awkward, but it was also like you handle that because I've barked at people on stage like we're doing another show. And it was kind of play where you could just start yelling at the audience bucket bone off, you know, or what have you. We just like people like Oh, no, but it's like you forget. I mean, and I think especially now, you know, since COVID, it's like we're so insular. arised, right. We're so like talking to our computers and having meetings and zoom talks and stuff like that. We're so desensitized already, where we were already desensitized, because of, I think, streaming and cell phones, people watching movies, on phone, people not really going to movie theaters, I've thrown a burrito at somebody in a movie theater. Like, they were like, you know, they answered their phone in the middle of this movie. And I'm just like, just knee jerk, when I was enjoying that burrito. And I live just, it was just this reaction of the second through the burrito over in their direction, because they were, you know, talking on the phone and movie theater. So like, it's just the kind of I'm just kind of built that way. And Cena was the best example of, you know, patients and coexistence to teach my children but I'm just kind of wired that way of the, for the, the sanctity of the, you know, the event of like, you go to a movie, it's an event, right? I want to I want to quiet I don't want to, I don't know, ask me questions. And I want to watch I want to see I want to watch the refrain. You know, like, when I go to a play, I turned my phone off just because I'm just that kind of guy that like, Oh, I didn't know my phone did that when it was still powered off? So I just turned it off. Sometimes I leave the phone in the car. You know, I mean, just because I just don't you know, because it's it's a really sacred kind of like, I feel like a little kid and like someone sitting down to tell me a story around a campfire. And I just don't want to miss any, any, any amount of like any minutia, any any nothing. So yeah, I miss it. I miss that space, because it's electrifying. And it's gratifying. And, and often I had no idea what happened. You know what I mean? Like people like you were so great. Did this that sounds like I don't remember because I was just in it.

Jeff Dwoskin 21:38

I mean, actually, I know exactly what you mean. I after if someone were to say, if I were to do 30 minutes of comedy and get offstage, and someone says What did you just do? I'm like, I don't know. I did you remember that joke? And like, I kind of that's why I record everything I do. Because yeah. And so I'm like, you know, I just it was the moment and then it was almost like because you're i It's almost like an out of body experience.

Peter Macon 22:01

It is it is your your conduit is channeling and I watch a lot of stand up to and you just watch people, you know, they have the jokes, it's everything's written, they've done them before, but it's all it's about transition and how they get there in their, the flow of your frame of your consciousness is and how, what you're, what you're thinking about what you're reacting to, and it's all relatable, right? You know, I mean, like, I was watching a stand up comic, I forget who it was, but he was talking about the North Korean army or military and how they like the high step when they marched in the mean. And he's like, what, what would happen if that guy was in the hood, and we like hit come step and Larry, and he was like, stepping like that right? Walking, right? It was incredibly funny. And this is a bit that I was watching it probably like four o'clock in the morning when my friend she was visiting. You know, we really funny together same since humor and stuff. And so she came to the matinee of Beth and at one point just didn't even think about it. But there was one point I was walking across the stage stage like stepping Larry like walking across the stage like the North Korean military, just like and it was only funny to her because like she had made sense because she knew exactly what but it fit into the realm of the character because you know, Macbeth is losing his cookies and it's going nuts, but it was like I just love incorporating all of that live, you know, synergy. It's while it's happening, and then it's over. Long story short, I miss I miss being on stage.

Jeff Dwoskin 23:20

Here. I have a question for you. I want to go a little deeper on one thing. Did the theater itself sell burritos? Or did you bring a burrito to the theater?

Peter Macon 23:31

I have been known to not want I don't agree with snack prices at the movie theater. And it happened about catching this movie on my lunch break from something and there's just nothing like you know sneaking food into the theater and they did not sell burritos. I got it from a taco Ria and then jumped I think it was in San Francisco and I jumped on the train and it was wrapped up in tin foil is like pinto beans and currently does like that. I'm hungry right now. So

Jeff Dwoskin 24:01

I'm hungry too. So trying to pack in your own burrito.

Peter Macon 24:07

You took the deep dive on that one. Like that's good. Yeah, no, man. I've smuggled ice cream into theaters like you this is not like that comes from my mom man. Back in the day, she'd take us to the movies. And she's like, Yeah, the prices for the popcorn loss have way too high. So she would literally like make all this popcorn and put it you know in the giant mom purse and like we'd go to the movie theater and like just pass the exam pass it down. It takes up precedents you know that some movie theaters make their money and it's like I'm the snacks I don't want to die. I don't want to buy $14 popcorn sorry, I won't do it just on principle. Like we'll

Jeff Dwoskin 24:41

do. I'm worth Yeah 100% I have we have been now you gotta time it right with the popcorn because otherwise you walk in it can't still have that popcorn smell.

Peter Macon 24:49

No, that's That's where you're wrong. Because once you walk into the movie theater, that's all you smell anyway, right? I mean, like you walk into a movie theater, you're like, I am not gonna buy any popcorn. I am not gonna buy any popcorn. I'm not not going to buy the popcorn you open the door that popcorn smacks you in the face that smelly like, and next thing you know you're in the line. Yeah, I'll

Jeff Dwoskin 25:05

take it to a tie now, but you're trying to be an incognito like when you're bringing in contraband, Twizzlers and all that kind of stuff. It's like popcorn. It's like you're like, going into winter. It's easy, right? Because you can just,

Peter Macon 25:18

you can't go on in like in a Speedo and be like, Well, I have a condition. Pick your battles, but I'm just saying like, people that work at movie theaters don't care. They're not paying attention. Like I wonder what it was at shortcuts. There was a three hour long movie, you know, that movie with Tom Cruise? And like, and all like, yeah, a friend of mine. And I bought him like, we bought him like, what do you call those things? A bottle of wine that like not the leader, but I forget what it's called the Big anyway, there's a long movie, and two hours in, we're just pulling from the bottle, like it's lemonade. And then we set the bottle down. And it's it's a Late Show. Thankfully, we started at like, nine, you know, no one's there. It was like 12 people in the movie theater. Right? And like, I think the bottle got kicked. And it just rolled out I mean, it was six managers at the time. I mean, I you know, misquoting the movie there too. But now there's, you know, go and see Shrek and stuff like that. So children, but understanding that there's a way to do things, and it

Jeff Dwoskin 26:18

sounds like going to the movies with up there would be quite quite a joy. When I'm in LA, I'm giving you a call. Alright, so Emmy Award winner. Yeah, that must have been super cool for animated tales of the world as narrator so he grew into your voice and then at one you and me.

Peter Macon 26:36

Yeah, that was super surreal dude, because I was I was in my second year of grad school. And most before my second year of grad school, like I was in between my first and second year of grad school, like I went traveled, and I had no money, but I had no business doing it. But I did anyway, went to Amsterdam and and then went to Ibiza. And you can pretty much that writes itself. But then you come back. And I got this call for this job that I had to turn down earlier years ago, because I had moved from San Francisco to New York. And when I lived in San Francisco, I got offered this job but it was non union, right. So my agents at the time were like, No, you can't do it. But even I was in this incredible project about John Henry that I folklore and I love. And you know, it was for the part of John Henry. And I was like, Man, I really would love to do this to get my voiceover career started. But they were like, No, you can't do it as non union. And so I just let it go. So then cut to like a year and a half later, I went to Spain, came back from Spain, no money. And I was in New York. And this is like September 9 2001, and got a call on my cell phone, which I could barely afford to have at the time. And they're like, Yeah, well, we shot the movie or we shot the you know, we shot the animation, we filmed everything. And the animator, guy's name was Andres, a little Cummings of Russian, very impressionistic animation. And they said that they learned that we don't think that the American audiences are going to be able to understand the story without support or foreign audiences will understand the story without a narration. So they added this narration to it. They're like, Would you be willing to come in and record the narration for it, and I was dead broke. And I'm like, I didn't have an agent at the time of voiceover agents. I wasn't, I was probably in arrears in my union dues. I was really kicked out of the Union at the time. I'm like, hell yes, I'll do it. Again, made like $350 recorded it in like two hours the next day, and after the call, and then the next day, I jumped on the train and went back up to left New York. And then 911 happened, like literally like, I was like, on the train. And it was happening. So it was sort of fortuitous that I got out of there. But I was like, right downtown recording in New York anyway, so cut to them another year, and I'm getting up. It's like, been in the morning, and I get a call from the registrar's office saying that that had won an award. And I thought it was like my friends pranking me, you know, before I'm going to clown class, which was horrifying class for two years and most humiliating and wonderful class series of classes I've taken in my career, just devastating. But so I thought they were playing a joke on me. And I'm just like, Yeah, whatever. So like, go to the call the registrar's office and like, you won an Emmy. And like, what, for? What What have I done that's like, I've been in school for like, well, this, you know, animated tales of the world, HBO and I was like, Oh, that thing like you can win awards for it. So it was a it wasn't a Primetime Emmy was like a creative Emmy, which is still an Emmy until they flew me out to LA from New Haven and got the award and stayed in the Senate Peninsula Hotel and got this thing, they don't give you a box to carry it in. They either ship it to you or you take it on your own. And so I'm going through the airport and like this little Filipino dude, the security guard. He's like, very sharp. He's like pointing to the lightning bolt wings on it and he's like, I don't know if I'm gonna let you take this on the plane or like, do you want me to check my me like how am I supposed to do this? Like, you know, so then the whole time on the plane, people are like, what you want it for what you When it for and they're, you know, expecting, you know, I don't know, days of our lives or whatever the hell I'm like yeah, to get me to tell the world. It's an anime cartoon that I narrated and they're like, immediately lose interest. It's like, so it was bittersweet, but it was it was great. Yeah, that was 20 years ago for crying out loud. But yeah, that that happened. And then my friends just came over some friends of my wife, let me be clear. And what was like, is that a Grammy, it was like super glamorous award to win. But I just, I mean, it was it was amazing and sort of unprecedented to win an award like that while I was still in grad school, and but I had had a life before grad school. I was working professionally for like, 13 years. So maybe it wasn't that big of a deal. But

Jeff Dwoskin 30:45

no, it's a huge deal. It's a big deal. I think it's awesome. And yeah, it's an Emmy is an Emmy and I and so

Peter Macon 30:52

definitely dresses up the old default fireplace that it's sitting on right now.

Jeff Dwoskin 31:00

No, that's awesome. That's awesome. So alright, so talk to me about like, just getting the role of board as you know, auditioning for Seth MacFarlane. And then because you parlay that too, they had you on Family Guy. You're on a couple episodes of Family Guy.

Peter Macon 31:14

Yeah. I mean, I don't know. I mean, it was I think it was, you know, just sort of being in the camp, fuzzy door, you know, like, because that came less than a year ago. No, no, no, that's not true. It came like a year and a half ago. But yeah, that just they just set this called and asked me he's like, Hey, cuz the role of Peters boss has been voiced. You know, I think Bryan Cranston did it. And Carrie Fisher was the last was was his last boss. And I think what Carrie Fisher when she passed away, like, you know, recipes, Carrie Fisher, but like he just called and it was like, hey, like, and I think this relates to your question in that, like, they saw I think probably like he said, like, 100 100 people for borders. And they looked in New York, and they looked in London, they looked in, you know, wherever the hell they looked. And I want to say Seth is a Seth. Seth has a really, he's a really great guy. He's really great guy to work with work work for, you know, I respect him as an artist. I respect him as like, you know, like the boss, because he he's very specific. He works harder than anybody that I've ever seen. And I think that my voice helped, obviously, a great deal to get me this role. And it was like, you know, I had a job already, right? I had this job, you know, because I was in LA, struggling brand new baby. And I have this job that was supposed to shoot in Botswana. Right? This is ces 2017. So this is the COVID is, you know, so people were still doing stuff like this going to Botswana, the shoot movies, but it was for an Amazon series based off of this novel that, in hindsight, never saw the light of day. But I was like, No, I have a job. I don't want to spoil this. And my manager was like, No, you got to audition for this. And I'm like, No, I got a job. She's like, No, this is Seth MacFarlane, this is gonna be a big thing. I'm like, if I mess around and lose the job that I already have trying to get this other job, I'm gonna be so mad. He's like, trust me, this will this will be worth it. Trusting. Like I've had the same manager for I think 19 years. So she's a friend. So I trust her judgment. So I was like, okay, you know, and like, it was like the first I'd never I mean, I'd been guest star. I'd been like semi quasi reoccurring a couple of shows. But this was four series regular. So you know, there was a whole, you know, and I had, I've tested a tested for a series regulars stuff before. And it's really kind of heartbreaking to get to that stage of it. And it comes down between you and three or four other actors. And you get that far, and you don't get it. And I had just happened to me with his other show. And so I was kind of butthurt about it. And I was like, you want to go through this, but she was like, it'll be worth it. If you get it. It'll be life changing, game changing experience, not just monetarily, but like, but just creatively, right. And so I read the breakdown, and it was like they had to describe describe the board. So it's like, you would describe the thing from Fantastic Four. And then the main just kind of a big rock builds, they didn't really give much to go on, which I think was great. Because then because I've got the job.

Peter Macon 34:00

You know, I'll be bitching and complaining about it otherwise, like, what kind of information to this is not enough information. So I read and that was kind of that. And then a couple of days later, they know like, they was actually a week later, you know that I'm on pins and needles and I remember because like we had to sort of stole the Botswana job, you know, and not lose it if I didn't get the Orville and so then they called me for tests. And Seth was there, right? And Chef, I don't know if anybody you know, so you see Seth, you know, when he's like posting or singing concerts or whatever, he's all done up. But real Seth like everyday regular Seth is has a baseball cap on that has ko hog on it. And you know, these really thick glasses, you wouldn't even know that it was him. He's just sort of an he's just not not a like a type big personality kind of person who's just kind of back in. He's like the drummer, right? He's like an back in cut. And I was producers in the room and you know, like, I did the scene and and I tried and this is what's so great. And this is relatable to how we want that working down the road. Would on material is that like, his whole theory is like you write something and it's written specifically for this character, because it's juxtaposed with other just think of them as like instruments. So like I'm say a cello, right? Boris is like a cello. And Gordon is like a piccolo or No, he's like, he's like a clarinet. Right? And then you have John Lamar, who's like a trombone. And so my point is, is like, so when I read it, it was a scene about Mortis goes to at Mercer and asks him for paternity leave, because he needs to lay an egg. And that's, you know, huge news. He's like, What do you lay eggs? And like, Yes, sir. And he's like, are they? Are they? Are they large? Are the eggs as big in the lineup as they are quite large? Yes. And I was, in the audition, wanting to make I wanted to comment on the size of the eggs, and how if it's just for people imagining if you're laying an egg, people are gonna think, Oh, it's coming out of your butt. And if it's a big, large egg, it's probably huge, really painful, and like, you're gonna comment on it. And I was still trying to be smart about it, not trying to throw it all away. But he's like, No, it's the funny lives. And if you just say it matter of factly. And that was a note that I got in the producer session, which was great. And then I just flipped my whole tactic and just said it flat out. And it was it was really funny like that. So he has an ear for the different elements. And that will make something funny. And he's like, don't put a hat on a hat. Don't Don't try to make it funny to say it. Because it's written funny. Not that he was like, Don't Don't mess up my shape. It's not It's funny, but like, it's funny the way that it is because it's in an ensemble. It's an ensemble joke. Right? Right, right, right, right. For the whole job to land. Everybody has to play their note, they're staying in their lane. So that was really, really cool to even get an adjustment in the producer session, as opposed to Okay, thanks. That was great. I'll see like that our people, or whatever. And then that night, I was at a party. And you know, and I'm stressing out and I'm just like, man, you're gonna get this baby and my wife and you know, like, and we're living in like, your family's growing and I don't feel like support them. But I was at this party, and I get a text message from Seth MacFarlane, like first of all, how the hell did you get my number but it was like, Oh, he's Seth MacFarlane, you can get anybody's number and he just he texted me and he was like you have so we're so happy to have you be on board and I didn't that's how I found out I got the job is he texts me personally which was which was super dope. I mean, it was it was it was a life changing experience and after struggling for so long in theater and struggling financially it's theater you know, doesn't you can't you can't pay your student loans off with that money certainly. But it changed a lot it changed you know, I was able to do a lot for my family and for my debt. Which is gone right back up but that's what it is

Jeff Dwoskin 37:36

right now. You bring burritos to the theater cuz you choose to now

Peter Macon 37:41

that was yeah, now. Steve stealing the burrito and then sneaking into the movie theater on an artist's salary still need to be entertained.

Jeff Dwoskin 37:49

It's cool that he texted you it kind of shows like how he wanted to create that bond right away I it's interesting when you saying that he would looked at so many people for borders because your character is one that he uses a lot you know, he tells a lot of stories and covers a lot of very serious topics in the Orval and he uses your character for a lot of that are the hallmark line and kind of the heavy you're kind of heavy but then it balancing the your approach to it is like about a girl that episode is it's brilliant and it's it's so you guys male mount for those who don't watch the Orville

Peter Macon 38:29

Why are you listening

Jeff Dwoskin 38:32

to it we're gonna convert we're gonna right so maybe maybe they missed the note that it's on Hulu

Peter Macon 38:38

now that's that's probably yeah

Jeff Dwoskin 38:41

yeah but it's an all male species and and Clyde in and board is played by Peter have a girl a female child, which is considered a basic white society right? And just dealing with that and that becomes a thread right I mean, there's a kind of takes through there's aftermath and the next episode sanctuary takes continues that story in season two with a planet with all the female masculine 's that has escaped but it's it's interesting to like because your character is so progressive your mates Clyde and is of old school, it just resonates now, I think more than ever with a lot of relationships are coming down to you know, having to deal with loving the person you love and are close with having a completely different ideologies you and dealing with. Yeah,

Peter Macon 39:33

I mean, it speaks again that this is great writing because what that does is okay, it's easy to vilify, vilify a client, right? Because I mean, Koch kids, okay, let me back up. If you're writing a show about hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of different species of organisms, right, and the planetary union is, for all intents and purposes, a human construct. It's a human collection. It's a human barometer of morality. It's based on that. Right? And so then so we it's it, I mean, so it's easy to vilify climbing, climbing, you know, as we know, was born female. Right? Right. So, I mean, he was an anomaly. So he has a personal in his personal skin in this fight of like, what his life was like being born female growing up in an all male world. And so not only that, but he's just 100% MCLIN, you're gonna mean so we can say as human beings from the planet Earth, that it's wrong for someone to be born an anomaly, but like Clyde didn't even ask Dr. Finn. And if you're, if your child is born with three legs or something like that, would you, you know, like, you made it and you know, back in the day, like Greeks were people in societies even now, like if you're born, you know, if you're born with Down syndrome, if you're born with, you know, whatever defects or, like people physical defects, you know, like they like Greek mythology was they were really big on throwing, like, infants out, look at Oedipus, he was thrown out into the cold. Anyway, my point is easy to look at client as the bad guy, but he's really just being 100% true to what his world view because of where he grew up in what his world is. And then you look at borders being progressive. So what does it mean to be a progressive Marklin? Well, that means you're alienated from the whole world that you come from. So like, there's conflict on both sides, which makes for great, great storytelling, great writing. And it's and it's a lot a lot of layers to play for the actor. And I think that that is just, it presents itself as complex as it should be. It's not a two dimensional argument. I mean, it's very personal, you know, it's very gray. Right? You know, and, and I feel like people watching the show from the feedback that I got early on, people watching the show thought that it was going to be a big old yuck fest, and just jokes and like family going space until they go to until that episode, and they go to court and have to go to Michaelis to to fight the system of saying, you know, like to fight for gender reassignment, and then he loses, right? So you're like, Ah, man, you know, just when you thought like, Oh, this is gonna wrap itself up in a very sort of Western Happy Ending kind of way. It doesn't. But then what that did was that gave us a springboard for more story to be told. And so this season, you know, New Horizons, there's like, it's not over that whole storyline is not over. So I think that and I think that that's just great writing and like, you just set yourself up, you just keep creating problems that you have to solve but you don't really get the fully solved but like, you have to keep at it. And that's I think that keeps you know, the audience intrigued because it's just not a cut and dry simple problems messy in the fact that klaten and borders have to go to therapy, which I think is hilarious, but then you'd go to that episode with a porn addiction in Mexico you realize that this couple I mean, it's bittersweet I mean, it's funny but it's like painful because the reason why you know board is retreats into this in the simulator world and like his porn graphic, you know, whatever he's retreats even says that I've retreated into myself as opposed to trying to is based on the fundamental stance that these two mates have against what to do with their child and so that creates this huge wedge and that huge wedge almost kills everybody on the ship because he you get like he got a virus for mold. You know, who gave him some dirty porn like almost destroyed the ship but that's what I'm saying it all ties together and that's what's so great because so much like life right? You know, one decision you make can have multiple multiple like it's Choose Your Own Adventure kind of thing and have so many different results from very simple crossroads. Oh,

Jeff Dwoskin 43:35

it's amazing. It's I in about a girl when Lamar and Malloy Scott and J Lee sit you down as to watch Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. And then you you say later, I have witnessed events that have opened my eyes. Yeah, it's such a brilliant thing. And then when you give them the topo your son I was gonna add at the end you give them a Rudolph, I was gonna say none of these aren't dates don't have happy endings. They have real endings. I agree. Which I think is what's one of the great things about the show. So in about a girl he does have the the gender reassignment and primal the episode that dealt with the porn addiction that you mentioned. Right at the end. One of the consequences is though, you're a hero of saving 30 people on a planet that's being destroyed by Sun 45 people died. Yeah. Wasn't for everyone. No,

Peter Macon 44:23

no. Yeah, no, no. I mean, that's, I think that that's, I mean, who I don't want to see that because that's not real. I mean, I want to see, you know, when you watch a tragedy, that most tragic part about being witness to a tragedy is when the person that's like the person is fighting against the tragedy, and they still lose, right? I mean, I think that that lands and that resonates with because it's about the spirit of trying to win, even if you don't win, you try to win, you know, and I feel like that lands with us that gives us inspiration to fight to continue to try to make the world better, even if you lose like, you know, no one wants to watch it. blubbering no one wants to watch four hours of Hamlet where Hamlet's like Doom the whole time. And you know, like you want to watch and try to try to win in that's, that's what hurts the most. And, you know, like, I think that's what's great about this show is that it's not trying to be tidy like that it's keeping the mirror up to our face, because then you don't get to be so apathetic. You don't get to be like, Oh, they fixed it all in the future. Spaces. Great fact of the matter is a lot of people are going to die horribly, going to Mars, trying to get mean and that's just real. You know, a lot of people have died horribly in the pursuit of space Chase, in a lot of people die horribly, since it's senselessly like, for no reason, you know, that's just that's real. But there's a lot of there's a lot of beauty. There's a lot of great things in life, but let us not pretend that life doesn't have like the, you know, with the balance, you know, I mean, it's the age old No, Lucifer and Christ you know, like the whole you can't have one without the other.

Jeff Dwoskin 45:50

Exactly. There's something about it that makes you want to keep watching because it doesn't wrap up. It's not the Love Boat, it doesn't wrap up tidy at the end. And everyone as much as I love The Love Boat. No disrespect to the love but no disrespect to the Love Boat, because which I really love. I know we're running out of time. But I did want to bring up one thing real quick before I know and see the new horizons. Season Three, Episode Four that just came out. Yeah, your character maybe wasn't one of the main characters in this particular episode, you do have one of the greatest costume scenes, or whatever you wear Scott Grimes is flipping flipping the helix, the helix, and they cut to you and you're trying not to puke. Yeah, it was so subtle, so fast. But it was just it was just like it just it goes to like how well you've in the even that much prosthetics and everything like that you kind of embody this character. And you can really everything comes through you don't even you don't look at some some characters. You know, okay, press your seams a little bit, but like, but you're yours. It's just like, well, you know, it's so it's just so cool. So thank you

Peter Macon 46:53

for mentioning that because I watched it last night, and I forgotten about it. And I remember when we were shooting it like I had thought about it a lot. Because it's like you said it's very fast and happens very quick in the midst of all this chaos and like I understood what the editor was Tom Constantino Shut up Tom trying to achieve with that little break moment because it's like you want to keep like again, it's like that trying to achieve that balance of comedy and drama. And like I didn't You can't you didn't I didn't want to overdo it. I didn't want to under do it was like one of those things and only had like a couple of couple of takes a couple of shots at it. I think I did it like three different ways, you know, but like they're still super efficient. And like because I knew that it was just like one moment cut to flash away cut away. I watched that last night and I was like, I laughed out loud. Because I was like, Oh, that's right. That's right. That's right.

Jeff Dwoskin 47:41

It was perfect. I was just so it was like so subtle. So perfect. It was everything. Yeah. The nine to five battle scene where they play Dolly Parton was another one where I've just like, damn, this is brilliant. How does it even come up with this?

Peter Macon 47:53

I know man, just take a walk and sets mine and Just you wait, I hope that we can have another chat after everything has aired because all of the things you're touching on seeds get planted, and it'll make like the Dolly Parton like who has a six minute space battle with Dolly Parton nine to five as a soundtrack. That's just like that's that's the end of like, the so diametrically opposed. Like that is just That's some good shit. I mean, that is like that's like the It doesn't get any better than that. Like, where you just have like the juxtaposition of those two things. That's frickin sets. Mind, man. I mean, like, I be so lucky. I mean, we're so lucky to have that kind of mind operating out there. Like, you know, like the stuff he's doing with Ted right now and like Family Guy American that it's just like that contribution to the zeitgeist of what's happening. We are very very fortunate to have such a smarty pants in film and yeah, it's just so fun and I talking about this right now I just I just miss I really miss working on the show. So I hope that there's more to come but yeah, just because it was just so this in the pocket in that zone that you just wait, I hope that we can have a chat on when all is said and done. Because now because in everything we can talk about everything in there because there's this stuff I can't talk about obviously and don't want to spoil or get sued. So well yeah, it'd be fun to have a chat. Yeah, well

Jeff Dwoskin 49:12

do that. Absolutely. Well, I know you gotta go and I got stuff to do but I thank you for spending so much time with me. It was Yeah,

Peter Macon 49:18

man. And thank you for having me in for sure. Let's let's circle back because I feel like this is like this will be a great for people who are listening, a great way to bookend everything that we're talking about unless Putin is you know, let's not make that joke. Let's stop myself with if barring any cataclysmic events, let us reconvene down the road after everything is aired, and then we can really, really, really talk about everything. Because I think that'd be a great treat for for people who are listening to this to get the book end.

Jeff Dwoskin 49:52

Absolutely. Give me Cholula and then Chiluba, and we'll be out here.

Peter Macon 49:59

What's the sounds like the looky

Jeff Dwoskin 50:01

urinating logia o cha cha Jimmy. Caught Sorry,

Peter Macon 50:09

sorry, it's geologia Okay, sorry. Yeah, yeah, I will give you a you will be silent is what you get from that from pronouncing it wrong.

Jeff Dwoskin 50:21

So nervous. I'm so nervous.

Peter Macon 50:22

Quarter piece of cake. We'll call it. We'll call it square.

Jeff Dwoskin 50:25

Because my friend, thank you so much. I really appreciate you. I appreciate you.

Peter Macon 50:29

Thank you. All right, bye. Bye. All right,

Jeff Dwoskin 50:31

how amazing was Peter Macon? And yes, I know. I screwed up and I said the modeling word wrong. Right. So Peter can't see my face because it's audio but it went all red. I was so excited. But I just I can't pronounce Macklin. It's just one of those things I can't drill in are either so you know, so you know, I try. I tried. Right? And that's that's really what it's all about. So yes, I was embarrassed. But hey, life happens. It was still an amazing conversation just because I blew it at literally the last second. Hey, that's life. You got to own it. Anyway, Peter. Megan, how amazing was that great stories. He's so amazing as Lieutenant Commander board as the shows that have aired since the interview. Just showcase his amazing this in the show's amazingness even more, no spoilers here. Check out get her on the Orville. All right, well, with the interview over that can only mean one thing. That's right. It's time for another German dash egg and the family of hashtags at hashtag round up. Follow us on Twitter at hashtag round up, download the free always free hashtag round up app at the iTunes App Store or Google Play Store. tweet along with us. And one day one of your tweets may show up on a future episode of Classic conversations, fame and fortune awaits you.

Jeff Dwoskin 52:00

Today's hashtag inspired by my guest and his amazing role on the Sci Fi show the Orville we have #SciFiDadJokes brought to us by sci fi tags a weekly Game On hashtag or armed up take a dad joke and give it a science fiction spin and you get #SciFiDadJokes. Here's hilarious ones. What's the most popular sci fi song and 2001 You can call me how? Okay, we get it. It's a dad joke. Stand down. What is Han Solo's favorite type of granola bar? Chewy? All right, this is gonna take forever. We get it a dad jokes. What are glasses called on planet Vulcan spectacles? Why did Spock go mining for gold? He wanted to live long and prospect. dramas and crickets now you're just being mean. Tuscan Raider are the newer. If the Silver Surfer and Iron Man team up they'd be alloys. Darth Vader is the worst dad hands down. What did the enterprise and toilet paper Aven Garmin. They both circle Uranus and look for Klingons Oh, the sound effects are back. All right. I hope you're enjoying these #SciFiDadJokes because they're the daddy ish. Daddy. Malicious most daddy. Alright, here's the more Obi Wan Kenobi opened a dispensary called the high ground. Our #SciFiDadJokes with great power comes great electricity bill. All right. I kind of feel like you're mocking me there. All right, we're done. No more dad jokes. Love the hashtag. Got to move away from the dad jokes. All right. Well, with the hashtag game over and the interview over can only mean one thing.

Jeff Dwoskin 54:06

Oh, my goodness, Episode 144 has come to a close. Can you believe it? All the fun we're having. Boom, it's over. But don't worry, we got more episodes coming. And if you're not caught up, you got plenty you can do. I want to thank my special guest, Peter Macon. And of course, I want to thank all of you for coming back week after week. It means the world to me. And I'll see you next time.

CTS Announcer 54:31

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