Parks and Recollection - Joe Mande: Emergency Response (S5E13)

Episode Date: June 11, 2024

Comedian and writer Joe Mande (Parks and Rec, The Good Place, Delocated) joins Jim O’Heir and Greg Levine to break down Pawnee’s response to a hypothetical avian flu outbreak, Andy’s attempt to pass the police entrance exam, and Ron’s surprisingly good appearance on Pawnee Today. Plus, Joe discusses the ins and outs of writing his first episode of Parks, his recurring role as Morris Lerpiss, and the real story behind Tom Haverford’s paper iPhone in “Sex Education” (S5E4). Got a question for the Pawnee Town Hall? Send us an email at [e-mail]!

We're getting together to talk about all the things we used to do The laughs, the passions, the little Sebastian's, the pets we fell into And we're putting it on in a podcast, then we'll send it up into the sky We're calling it Parks and Recollection Come on, little podcast Spread your wings and fly Hello, everybody. Welcome back to Parks and Recollection. I am one of your hosts, Jim O'Hare,

the guy who played Gary, Larry, Jerry, Terry, Barry on Parks and Recreation, which is in the recollection part. But anyway, and I heard something like that. Yeah, sure. There's a co-host with me that I know you guys tolerate, but you stick around for the love of me. Thank you. He is? That's interesting because I barely tolerate myself.

It's Greg Levine. This is awesome. We're back doing another episode of our favorite show, Jim. This is so fun. We have writer, actor, producer, and comedian who's written for The Good Place, Kroll Show, and Delocated, just to name a few. Starred in his own Netflix comedy special,

Joe Mandy's award-winning comedy special. I think you know who this is by this point. Most importantly for us was a writer on the final three seasons of Parks and Recreation. And my favorite fact about him from our show a writer on the final three seasons of Parks and Recreation. And my favorite fact about him from our show was that he appeared in five episodes of Parks

as Morris Lurpus, the internet-loving roller rink worker who was terrified of his teenage boss. Let's give a welcome to Joe Mandy. Joe Mandy!

Joe Mandy! We're so excited you're here. You specified I was a special guest, so that's huge for me. You are very special. And we're going to get into all sorts of things.

But I also have to tell you, I didn't know when we were doing Parks, when you were with us, that you were also doing acting work. And then one day I'm at home and I'm watching Modern Family. Yeah. You weren't just like a co-star who dropped in for a couple lines. Yeah. You were a recurring character. Yes, that's right. Important character to the show.

That's right. Yeah, it turned into a big role. A big role. Yeah, that's right. Important character to the show. That's right. It turned into a big role. A big role. That was amazing. Because I didn't know. So I'm always blown away when I see that. There is a Parks link. I got the email to audition for that part while I was in the Parks and Rec writer's room.

And I had to ask Mike if it was okay for me to leave work a little early. To leave your current job. Yeah. To look for another job. To then To leave your current job. Yeah. To look for another job. To then go do this other job. Yeah. And then once the good play started, it was a huge issue

because I was missing like two days a week of work to act on another. On a different show. Oh my gosh. It was a lot. So when you got that gig with Modern Family, it was not intended to be recurring. It was just going to be one episode,

happy to get it. Yeah, it was like I worked at this closet company. Claire's Closet. Yeah, and then I became her assistant. And then I became her daughter's boyfriend. Boyfriend, yes. It just got out of control. No, but anyway, I just had to jump in because I just love that.

Is acting your thing? Have you seen me act yes i think you're doing it i'm not an actor yeah i don't know but then why would you have auditioned for that a great question i mean i'm no i don't know i mean i mike encouraged me he was just like yeah go for it uh and i tend to get parts on shows i write for which is always fun because i'm like familiar with the scripts. But they're not handing acting roles just to hand them out. No, no.

You had to have shown your worth because you wouldn't have got the gig. You know, you do well at table reads, and then people sort of just start seeing you as that person. Oh, that's interesting. As you're creating characters, one person maybe starts to pitch as somebody, or maybe it's developed based on the way a certain writer has been in the room. On this show specifically,

more than most, writers were on the show as characters, and they were often sort of like perverted, hyper-elevated versions of the person in the room. So it was Harris and myself, and Dave King is literally a rabbi. You know what I mean? So I know it's like... For people role. You know, so like it was Harris and myself and Dave King is literally a rabbi. You know what I mean?

So I know it's like... For people who don't know, when we do a table read, it's normally the cast, producers, you know, and the network people, all that kind of stuff and department heads. But there's also a lot of roles that have to be read and they either haven't been cast yet or whatever.

So the writers take over those roles and sometimes it is amazing how great it is. Yes, yes. And they either haven't been cast yet or whatever. So the writers take over those roles. And sometimes it is amazing how great it is. And then sometimes, not so great. Well, I mean, most writers are very introverted writers who don't want to read in front of anyone. Although we talked about this, Harris Whittles has famously said that a writer could act as good as any actor. Yes, he had a lot of pronouncements like that.

That was one. That was Harris said a lot of pronouncements like that. That was one. That was one. That was Harrison there? Yes, yes, yes. That's great. But anyway, I just had to throw that because I was blown away. And I thought you did a great job.

Yeah, and you know, I've never been asked to be on a Modern Family podcast. So there you go. Screw off. This means more to me. Maybe screw off. Yes. We should talk about our episode

because we're going to have a lot to talk to you about. But I also want to just speak about Morris Lurpus. Of course. We did an episode just recently in which Aziz's character, Tom, has to go on an internet detox, on a phone detox. And he has to give up his phone

because of a car accident. And at one point, he is holding a cell phone that he has to give up his phone because of a car accident. And at one point, he is holding a cell phone that he has made. And I said this on the podcast. I knew you were going to come in. I think you made that. I did make that. I think you made it in the writers' time. I physically made it.

But not for this. While we were writing this episode, we wanted to experience what Tom was going through. So for, I i think a full day mike confiscated our phones yeah we couldn't look at our phone that's awesome and i sort of as a bit half bit i was kind of going crazy without my phone i made one uh out of note cards yes it's like several note cards i taped together together and then like drew the screen and everything and

then and then the props screen and everything. And then the props department was just like, oh, we'll just use this because this shows a mental illness in the way that we can't replicate. And if anybody serves me, I feel like Mike didn't give up his phone, but he's like, I do need this.

It's like, okay, so we're all going through the social experiment. But I kind of think that moments like that's kind of where Morris kind of began. Yes. Right. And I mean, I'm sort of famously internet poisoned. So I like the Morris character sort of came out of my dynamic in the room of just like,

everything's on the internet. Everything's for free. Like, you know, what are we fighting about? We can just find the answer right now, you know? In fact, in that episode, there's a run in which Tom is just talking about the internet to Ron,

just like get it all out of his system and it's scene after scene of just Reddit is this and Tumblr is this. And I feel like that was just you on autopilot. Absolutely.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, totally. Is that still your world? I've since gone to therapy and she, my therapist, sort of reeled me in. She convinced me to quit Twitter like pretty early on. I quit Twitter like 2015, 16,

something like that. And I'm, I'm more selective about what I, although I mean, I'm fully addicted to TikTok. My TikTok, I love it. And I,

Do you do them? I haven't seen you on there. I'm not really a TikToker. I'm a TikTok... Watcher. Watcher. Yeah, me too. TikTok-y.

Yeah, I just... And like the more... The thing is like, once it figures you out, it really... It's amazing. It's amazing. If they make it illegal in America,

I will raid the Capitol by myself. I'll be with you. Me and like a bunch of 12-year-olds are going to raid the Capitol. The new January 6th are TikTok. This is way TMI as they say, I have sat on the toilet where I can barely get up because my legs

are numb because for an hour and a half I've been watching TikTok. Actually, I've been there. Both of my legs have fallen asleep. And then you're like, what? When I grew up, my grandma used to say to us, if your legs are numb, never stand up. They'll break. Now, I know that's not real.

Sure. But because shit's in our head from 100 years ago, I sit on that toilet and then I have to maneuver to try to get back. Oh, sure. The shift. Yeah. It's a lot of leg back. She's not wrong. I mean, like, they won't snap.

But like, I almost fell down. Well, you could fall easily. Yeah. But it's kind of exciting. Yeah. What's going to happen? To feel gravity again. You know what I mean, like, they won't snap, but like, I almost fell down. Well, you could fall easily. Yeah. But it's kind of exciting. Yeah. What's going to happen? To feel gravity again? You know what I mean?

Absolutely. Yeah. But see, at my age, it's not so exciting because if the hip goes, let's face it, that's the beginning of the end. It's bad. So I do not want that. Yeah. Yeah.

But no, that damn TikTok has sucked me. Well, that's why you should start standing on the toilet. Okay. All right. And just, okay. I was going to describe it, but I don't know if we need to. toilet. Okay. All right. And just, okay. I was going to describe it, but I don't know if we need to. Yeah.

Well, let's talk because this sounds like a shark tank. Standing. You built a better mousetrap. Okay. This episode is called Emergency Response. It was written by Norm Hiscock

and Joe Mandy, directed by Dean Holland. I call that the dream team, people. The dream team. The dream team. That was a bit. And originally aired on February 14th, 2013. Just a lovely Valentine's Day episode.

And Jim will give us a little blurb. The Pawnee Commons Park Project is in jeopardy of becoming a paunch burger unless Leslie can raise $50,000 fast. To raise money, she and Ben decide to host a fundraising gala, but with the town of Pawnee infected with a hypothetical avian flu, Leslie's hands are tied, leaving the rest of her friends to plan the party without her. Meanwhile, after

failing the police entrance exam, it seems like Andy, oh, this is heartbreaking, may not be cut out to be one of Pawnee's finest. Here's what's interesting. The blurbs over the seasons, you know, in the beginning, there's this simple, quaint episodes, an A and a B story, but the B story collects a lot of people. And now we're the 12th, 13th episode into the fifth season. And you have a park project in jeopardy becoming a paunch burger.

That's fascinating. And then there's just a raise $50,000 which at the time we would have built an entire season around. And then, you know,

there's a hypothetical avian flu emergency response. And at the same time, Andy may not become a cop. Yeah. It's just... It's a lot. It's a lot.

It's a lot to cover. It's a lot for 21 minutes. Yeah. And we did it somehow. We did it. Yeah. It's just... It's a lot. It's a lot. It's a lot to cover for 21 minutes. Yeah. And we did it somehow. We did it. Yeah. This episode features Matt Walsh as Leonard Cholm. Yep.

T-C-H-U-L-M. The no-nonsense head of the Indiana Department of Emergency Preparedness. Who's impotent, we find out. Who's impotent, yes. Yes, we find out. Yes. And we get a cameo from Colton Dunn as Brett Hull. Love that.

I'm reading the note and I forgot his name was Brett Hull. I didn't remember his last name. Yeah, that's incredible. Is this the first episode

you were with us? This was the first episode I, my name was on. Yeah. So how long have you been with us at this point?

That was my first season there. Yeah. So 13 episodes in, I got to share an episode with Norm. So you're comfortable in the room at this point? That's argu season there yeah so 13 episodes in i got to share an episode so you're comfortable in the room at this point like i would that's arguable no yeah by that but yeah yeah i don't know if everyone's ever comfortable in the room yeah yeah i it's but you knew people coming in yeah no it was an easy transition it took me a couple weeks to it was an intimidating

room for sure i mean i had i had sort of like made a name for myself already with like stand up and had a couple TV writing jobs before this but this was it really felt like being in the big leagues you know going from like Adult Swim and Comedy Central to NBC and I'm basing it all just on the quality of the

snacks in the kitchenette walking into the snack room it's just like we have 50 cereals of the snacks in the kitchenette. Walking into the snack room, it's just like 50 cereals. Yeah, this is big. It was an amazing pantry. It really was. A hundred years ago,

I did one of the episodes of Drew Carey. And the first day I got there for the first episode, Drew said, Jim, let me show you something. And this is when the show was, Drew Carey was huge. And he walks me into the food section and he goes, look at this. He was so excited.

They even had a chef there who was making beef and turkey. Like, it was incredible. And he said, you know a show's doing good when it's, you know, this. And he goes, and then as the show does worse, this stuff starts going away. And then I did Drew Carey again years later. No beef guy. And things weren't, there was no chef any longer. But anyway, he was, of course, as always, such. No, beef guy. And things weren't, there was no chef any longer. But anyway,

he was, of course, as always, such a wonderful, wonderful dude. But yeah, there's nothing like walking in and you're like, oh, this is good.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. So, yeah, but this was my first like network writing job. So yeah, it was kind of scary. And can I, I know we're going to get

into the episode. Can we get into how you got the job? Yeah, please. Yeah. So, you've heard of the Illuminati, right? Yes, we have.

Okay. Jim actually did a play for them. Oh, cool. Yeah. No, I... Give me the code. Give me the sign. Yeah.

I had been writing for Kroll Show. I lived in New York at the time. And I was here in LA working on Kroll Show for a couple months. And I think it was like my last day in L.A. I got asked to come in and talk to Mike and Morgan and Dan Gore about a possible writing job. But did you pitch to them to even get in the room or your agents did? I just got an email being like, yeah, they want to meet with you. And so I walk in and like, you know, I went to college with Harris Whittles.

We were in a sketch group together. So we go way back. I had become friends with Alan Yang and a few other people who were there. And at the time I was also, I was opening for Aziz a lot on the road as a standup. So I was, you know, friends with some of the cast members as well

and walk into the room for what I assume was like an interview. But what it really was, you know, friends with some of the cast members as well and walk into the room for what I assume was like an interview. But what it really was, I immediately found out was Mike and Dan just grilling me for embarrassing stories about hair. Which I was like happy to provide. So like we spent the entire hour. I was just like giving them dirt on hair, you know, because they just wanted to make fun of him. Of course. And I was like, yeah, that's fine. You know, I was like, I don't care.

I'm on board with that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So then I flew home to New York and just like went back to my life. And then, yeah, it was like a couple months later, I got a call being like, you're hired. We start on Monday. Yeah. Wow. Yeah, it was crazy. I feel like interviews, I've heard that, you know,

especially with Parks, and I know Mike and Greg and Dan too, that once they've read you and they, you know, hear about you from your age and your reps, they kind of have an opinion of you as a writer.

What I've been told... Can you hang? Yes. What I've been told is that by that point, if they're meeting with you, they already like you. They just want to see,

are you going to be the type of person we want to hang out with for, you know, 14 hour days or whatever? Because if your personality is abrasive or off in some way, it could ruin the dynamic, the chemistry in the room. So, yeah. So I, you know, I, but at the time I just thought like, oh, this is, you know, this is just a funny meeting, mostly about my friends. So, yeah, yeah. All right, in our synopsis, the ultimate showdown for Lot 48 has begun with Leslie and Councilman Jeremy Jam presenting their proposals to Pawnee's Planning Commission.

Leslie presents a well-thought-out case for her park project, while Jam reveals his plan to sell the land to Ponchburger. and Leslie that the board won't support an underfunded project and the final decision will rest on Leslie's ability to raise the extra $50,000 needed to finance her proposed park. I mean, honestly, I read that. I'm like, we, season two, season three, that would be a 13 episode. That's an arc. That's an arc.

Yeah. But it's a testament also to the, you know, this being a character comedy and the more you spend time with your character, the more you like them. But the better they get at what they do. Right. You can sort of, you understand their abilities. Yeah. The Leslie now is different than the Leslie three years ago. So, I mean, right off the bat, we have Leslie and Jam's presentations.

And their approaches couldn't be more different. Leslie has the scaled model, looks amazing. And we only catch the end of her PowerPoint, but it ends with Dynamite, which we realize is an acronym for daring, youth-friendly, natural, amazing, merry, inviting, tourist, attraction-y, eco-friendly. Leslie loves her acronyms.

She does, yeah. Damn, she loves her acronyms. And then Jam has the showman, you know, selling of trying to sell a Ponch burger. He presents the greasy lard bombs and fries. And I love this. You know, Jam, he's such an

in-your-face, obvious jerk. So that when no one's standing, he says, like the record show, there was a standing ovation. Which is obvious to everybody. There's no standing ovation. It is not a psychic. And a lot of time is spent on this little joke.

Yeah. Well, it also, you don't realize there, for some reason, is like a court reporter in this tiny meeting, taking notes, official notes. For that joke.

For that joke. For that joke. Yeah, but just to go on with it, he goes, I love the work I show. There was a standing ovation. And unless they, no, there's not. Jam, history will decide.

History will decide. History will decide. No, no. It's been decided. There's no standing ovation. But in his mind, it's on the physical record. It's the record.

It's the record that counts. Damn, he's an ass, but we love him and hate him. Yes. All right. That was our cold open. It's the record that counts. Damn, he's an ass, but we love him and hate him. Yes. All right, that was our cold open. Let's keep going. In our synopsis,

Ben and Leslie decide to throw a fundraising gala for Pawnee Commons, and they get to work right away setting things up at Lot 48. But their gala prep comes to a screeching halt when Chris bursts onto the scene in a cop car,

telling everyone a disaster has occurred. Let's start with that, even though there's another scene before it. When Chris comes screeching up. Screeching up? Yes. Two things struck me. One, in a post COVID world, how

oddly traumatizing. I know. It was. Weirdly official. Yeah. Yes. The triage stuff in the episode is like, yeah, very reminiscent. Yeah.

And you can imagine a city from a Pawnee to a New York to whatever are going to have things like this now. And probably five years ago, they didn't. Yeah. They probably, yeah.

They have versions of the protocol, the Leslie Knope protocol. Yeah. And two is when Jerry says, Gail, my kids, and starts running off. Can you take us to that moment? Yes. First of all, let's back up in Jerry's behalf. The way Chris presented it, it was scary.

Yeah. I think Jerry has the only appropriate response. I really believe he did have the only appropriate response. But then, and let me give you a background. So he's panicked. He's got to get to them because something terrible is happening. So he just runs off. And then as he's running, he falls, blah, blah, blah.

So there was a whole big discussion about the fall because they wanted to bring in a stunt dude. And I'm like, it's a fall. My God. Because he's going up a curb. Yeah, he trips over a curb. Jim O'Hare can, believe me, just let me walk outside today, I'll trip over a curb. They were concerned. And I had to convince them

to let me do the damn thing. But it was super fun. I had to watch it a few times to make sure I was right. Jerry farts too on landings. Oh, wait a minute. I did not know that. Do they put a noise in there? Yes.

No, they mic'd your ass. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. Well, that whole run would have been a fart then. Yeah, right. Like, Jim, if you're sure you want to do it, we know you're going to fart when you land.

That's right. I did not realize that. It's like the littlest little fart. Oh, I got to go back. I got to go back and see it. Okay, I didn't know that. I guess know you're going to fart when you land. That's right. I did not realize that. It's like the littlest little fart. It's so funny. I guess once you've had a fart attack, you just have farts. I was there for the fart attack thing and I couldn't have been more

adamant that we had to do it. It was a debate in the room. Can we do this? Should we do this? Is this too much? I think very few people said it was not too much. I was like standing on my chair. Like, we have to do a photo shoot. I will leave the show.

But of course, because Amy, being who Amy is, says to me after the table read, are you okay with that? Right, right. Of course I'm okay with that. My life's been leading up to a moment like this. Yes, I have worked 40-something years at this point to do this. I need to go back and hear that for myself.

Oh, it's so funny. I turned the volume up, and it's just enough that you notice it, but it's not too much that you have to build a whole story around it. You know what's just a little interesting fact about that scene is you know that episode takes place in december january i i forget because the the next episode it starts snowing that's yeah we had jackets on during that scene it was 105 degrees of course and you guys were wearing jackets that was like seasonally appropriate but it was like there was a medic there being like they're gonna die like they can't be wearing jackets it That was like seasonally appropriate. But it was like there was a medic there being like, they're going to die.

They can't be wearing jackets. It was so, so hot. And I was running in that jacket. Yeah. So it was like a debate. Right. Exactly. So Dean was just like, it's an unseasonally warm day in Indiana.

We're not going to do this to the actors. So if you look around, everyone's wearing just normal T-shirts and dress shirts. Yeah. It gets, when we did the Harvest Festival, I thought I'm dropping today. Today's the day I go down. Because we were shooting at the same location as the pit, which is like in the Van Nuys or whatever. 105 degrees, no shade. Yeah.

It was crazy. It was hot. So many of those days. So yeah. Yeah. And it is like a testament to just people who've worked in TV long enough. It's like, no one's going to care or notice that they're not wearing jackets. Like, you know what I mean?

There is like a continuity thing, but at a certain point it's like, no one's going to care. And no one's paying, like, sure, some people will pay attention to it. There are trees that are not native to whoever you're shooting. The street signs are a little different. At some point you just, everything looks the same. And then the thing what people say, if that's what they're focusing on, then you're not bringing the goods anyway.

I know. Think about that. I give Greg a lot to think about when he leaves here. Mostly, why is he doing this? That's the main thought he has every time we do this. Most of it's stuff for therapy. Okay, let's jump back quickly to a Macy's.

Oh, right. First of all, another thing that was jarring for me, you see the exterior of a Macy's in this town of Pawnee that has places like Ponch Burger to a Sweetums and food and stuff and everything. It's kind of weird to see Macy's, but also, I guess,

it also makes it normal. Tapani is just like everywhere else. There's a Macy's there and what are they doing? They are registering for their wedding. Macy's paid for that.

Really? Yeah. Really? Well, there you go. That's why we have Macy's. Yeah. This is why we have the podcast to learn things like this.

Macy's paid for that. Sometimes they're in a Volkswagen car. Right. Yeah. And that helps us get a giant tent for the party later. Oh, yeah. Yeah, yeah.

Because they only have an X amount for budget every week. Exactly, yeah. But when you're doing a big episode. Right. And I have the feeling, I mean, Morgan Sackett was our line producer. And if there's a better one out there, I've never met a better line producer than Morgan. He made magic happen. But you can only do it. The money is only what the money is.

Exactly. This is sort of like the nitty gritty of making a TV show is that to your point, oh, I guess they have a Macy's in this town. I don't think anything on this show in particular felt egregious when we would integrate stuff like that, which was like a relatively new thing on TV shows like this. It was like, can we do this without it being gross and distracting?

There are great YouTube clips of soap operas that pretty much go from a really intense relationship drama, and it's the morning, and they're having breakfast, and it's like a 30-second cereal commercial. Talking about the beauty of the cereal, how good it is. But I think about that when I'd watch like, I remember watching 24 and being like, wow, it's interesting. Before I was, I worked in TV. I was like, it's interesting that the good guys and the bad guys all drive Audis. Yeah. Right. Right. Right. Right. What a coincidence. What a coincidence. I think on our show, we generally always had iPhones for everyone.

But then one season, I think it was Samsung. No, it was all Microsoft Surfaces. And everyone, I guess, at that year was like, I guess we're all going to use the same new technology, but then we're back the next year. It's the stuff that pays the... Not to get off topic, but I'm working on a

show right now that takes place in like the NBA and the NBA in real life is just so like immersed in branding

and there's corporations on jerseys and on the floor and stuff that like we have to do that or else

we're gonna to just have to make up corporations. You know what I mean? It's a weird world right now to make it seem real and genuine. You have to integrate stuff. I would imagine they almost have the upper hand because you need them more than they need you.

Right. But you're saying that it's natural to the world. It's natural to the world. If you were to do this other thing, it would stand out in a way. oh yeah right but you're saying that it's natural to the world it's natural to the world that's what I'm saying so if you were to do this other thing it would stand out in a way

right and it's you probably didn't even notice it for this episode because the joke in this scene is that they're setting up their

wedding registries so that's where you go for that kind of thing right right it's to me here as we're doing this podcast and looking at the

nitty gritty of it it's like oh a Macy's that's interesting right well I love as they're registering this podcast and looking at the nitty-gritty of it, it's like, oh, a Macy's. That's interesting. Well, I love as they're registering. And it all just goes to a very good joke about citrus reamers and it's the only way to

ream your citrus. But it's so funny to see and to come up with either a bit or a storyline that feels so right for the character. We don't have to figure out and have a line or two exposition to understand why they have an opinion about this. And it just makes total sense that Tom would be there with this

and that he would absolutely love it. And he's just so excited to be there. And he says, love, love fades away, but things, things are forever. He is so super famous. It's so good. Let's push super famous. I love it. So good. Let's push on with our synopsis. Yes.

The disaster preparedness drill is in full effect at City Hall, and with Leslie fighting against a hypothetical avian flu, as Pawnee's emergencies are, there's no way she'll be able to continue planning the gala scheduled for later that night.

Meanwhile, Andy is full of nerves as he waits to take the police entrance exam. Ah yes, meanwhile. Meanwhile does a lot of work. Okay, so speaking of that, the episode devotes only three scenes to Andy's police exam narrative.

We kind of needed it. We've been building it for many episodes. We kind of had to you know, this is episode what, 12 to 13 of the season. We've been building it for many episodes. We kind of had to, you know, this is episode what, 12 to 13 of the season. That's generally when the first arcs end and you push on to another one. So the second half of the season. Yeah. So it makes sense to kind of wrap

it up. But it's three scenes, but it feels so full. Yeah. You know what I mean? Yeah. And one of my favorite Andy Dwyer scenes of all time is the lie detector test. Oh, yeah. It's like sometimes they're just like scenes that are so good

that they feel bigger than what they actually are. And that's one of them for sure. Did he riff on that or was that? I mean, he riffed a lot. So I'm sure he added stuff to it. I remember when we were coming up with that in the room and the joke of the hypothetical,

you pull your father over for speeding, like, what do you do? And, Dad, you're alive. You know where my mitt is? Yeah, I just, that was,

I remember just laughing so hard at that. And that's so Andy. That is so Andy. But the one that really got me too, re-watching it is when they said,

you know, a kid wants to see your gun. What do you do? Like, I give it to him. I give it to him. And then he tells the story like, you know, because that's what

I would have wanted. Right. I've always wanted to hold a cop's gun as a kid. But it's a great comedy game, right? It's just like,

you know, he's going to have terrible answers for it, but really genuine, sweet Andy answers, which makes them, it's very endearing. And when you have a character like Andy, who you love, but is a dope,

you're like, he should not be a cop. No, no, no, no, no. No, he should not have a gun. The streets are safer without him. Yes, yes. So it's like, he has to fail this to find his correct path. But I will say, as a viewer,

your heart breaks a little because you know he can't do this. Yeah, right. You know that, you know, we all have our capabilities that Andy should never have a gun in his possession because someone's going down.

But there was time, there was a fair amount of time in the room devoted to how do you end the storyline in a satisfying way? Because yeah, as Joe's saying, how do you do this without making it seem like

Andy failed? Right? And so I know we're getting to the end of it. But when the chief talks to Chris and says he gave 100% written, it also shows how dedicated he was and how hard he tried at this. And that he's not a complete failure in a joke. Like the 13 episodes of this have not been for nothing. Oh, that's an interesting interpretation. Oh, I always thought it was like,

oh, like all cops are as dumb as Andy. But he just... Well, it didn't seem odd. Like how he got 100% did seem odd. Yeah, yeah. That's interesting. I thought it's like, it's a win for Andy

that he's not just a complete failure, but I like the other side of it. Well, that's what makes great art. Yeah. We can all interpret it. We can all interpret it in a different way. But also what was funny because when Andy's talking to April about, you know, there's the personality taste. Well, that I think, you know, that I'll pass for sure because people are always like, oh, but he has such a nice personality.

Because he doesn't get that they're saying. Yeah. That's all that's going on there. So he thinks he's going to nail that. And it turns out to be just the opposite. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. So, guys, let's talk about this going on there. So he thinks he's going to nail that, and it turns out to be just the opposite. Yeah, yeah. Okay, so guys,

let's talk about this disaster preparedness drill. Yeah. So Leonard Cholm. Cholm. We've had a lot of crazy names on this show, but Cholm is a... Cholm's on there. Cholm's on the side of your house.

And to spell it with a T, like Y. Yeah. It's just... Other than to be perfect. Yeah, it reminds me of Chance Frome. Watching Mike Scherur come up with day player character names is like watching a

great jazz musician. He really gets into a flow state and just starts typing random letters and he's like, that's the name. It's like John Nash in A Beautiful Mind. His mind goes somewhere and all of a sudden he's figured this out. But I also remember

he would come up with silly names but then not be happy enough with those names. Really? Yeah. But that is a fun game actually to go on the IMDB

to the cast section of Parks and Rec and go down to the bottom and just look at the names. They are insane. So Chom. So Ch insane. So Chom. So Chom. Leonard Chom,

it's all business. His mother is having a colonoscopy that day and he doesn't know if anyone's there to drive her home and doesn't have a great relationship

with his mother, but that's okay. And, you know, Leslie, I love this bit where she thinks the whole thing might actually be a nightmare and it's a sweet thing

where I think the joke, I think a lot of people, oh, she's going to pinch herself or something. But no, the Leslie Knope version is trying to see if she can fly. Which indicates that she is a lucid dreamer.

Yeah. That she can choose to fly out of her dreams. Which is cool. No pun intended. It is a dream for me to be able to be a lucid dreamer. I think it'd be so fun.

Well, you can buy tea off the internet from a shaman. I've done this once. Really? I did not have a so fun. Well, you can buy tea off the internet from a shaman. I just done this once. Really? I did not have a good experience. See, that's what scares me. I would do it, but I'm afraid of the bad experience. I had a lucid nightmare.

So I was running, someone was chasing me, and I knew I was yelling at myself, like, wake up. Oh, no. I don't want that. It's awful. This is a dream. Wake up. I'm having a lucid dream this is awful

to be so aware of the nightmare yeah it was bad but to be stuck in it but yeah I can get you the shamans yeah I have a delicate system

I think it would kill me yeah you would be bad yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah

yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah

yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah

yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah

yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah The comedy game of Leslie's DVD and her emergency preparedness that we then end the episode and the tag with even more of it is just a perfect setup for Amy Poehler.

So good. It's so funny. And the little bits of like you see her holding her mic to someone and then you cut to that person talking. You see them holding the mic themselves. So it's not perfect. No, but she understood the continuity.

So she was also, yeah, placing the mic in the right place. It is like, it is why Amy is who she is. That's why she was amazing on SNL. That just screamed SNL to me. Those great characters. And, you know, as TV has changed just from 2013, or what was it?

Yeah, 2013. Tags don't exist anymore. And like, that was so fun to do like a true tag. Yes. The episode's over. In fact, it's a to be continued. Oh, that's a good point. And then after the to be continued, we still did true tag. Yes. The episode's over. In fact, it's a to be continued. Oh, that's a good point. And then after the to be continued,

we still did a tag to let her do like five more characters because it was just such a fun game for her. Yeah. I remember Greg Daniels would talk about cold opens and tags this way,

which is like, it's this extra little tiny show that you get to start an episode before like he loved cold opens that were not connected to the narrative. The office did that all the time. It had nothing to do with the before. He loved cold opens that were not connected to the narrative. The office did that all the time.

It had nothing to do with the story. Right. And we did that for a time being until I think our stories just became so massive. You'd write cold opens

that would then just get cut away because we didn't have the time. But it is. It's like this little extra, like you're going to watch a 20-minute show. We're going to give you

another minute show and another 30 seconds. It's a sketch. A little sketch. A little three-act sketch. Yeah. I love thinking about minute show. It's a sketch. A little 3X sketch. I love thinking about it, though. I love tags. I just always have.

I had forgotten we had that tag at the end of the episode. Me too, yeah. It delighted me. We shouldn't forget the name she gave herself during that whole mess was Willow Tremaine. Willow Tremaine was the anchor. Donatella Breckenridge. Dr. Donateellebreckenridge.

She didn't go to a fake medical school for nothing. Winifred Mayreese or Maypiece? Great question. Who knows? Isabella Winchester. And then Jessica Rabrit. Rabrit. Right, Rabrit.

Rabrit. It doesn't even roll off the tongue. It's like Rabrit. Yep. That's like Mike being, that's like, you have a problem. This is an addiction. Yeah, yeah. It's like rat bread. Yep. That's like Mike being, that's like, you have a problem. This is an addiction. Yeah, yeah.

This is an addiction. This is a character coming up with seven more character names just to like get your fix. At like 10 o'clock at night. And remember, she's done these type of DVDs

for every different emergency. And she's so happy. Every folder she has, every binder has a DVD inside. You have to imagine. That's the great thing. Yes.

Yeah, and she's so happy it's Avian Flu. She's got imagine. That's the great thing. Yes. Yeah, and she's so happy it's Avian Flu. She's got this. It's Mission Imponiable Nope Protocol. That's right. Yeah. All right, let's push on

in our synopsis. With Leslie tied up at City Hall, the group bands together to pull off the event. Ben takes the lead, assigning Donna to find chairs

and Tom to source catering. And with Jerry still MIA, Ron is left to stand in for Leslie on Pawnee today. Meanwhile, back at City Hall, the flu has infiltrated the walls of Command Central and it becomes clear Councilman Jam is quietly sabotaging the drill in order to derail Leslie's gala.

Okay, we have a classic storyline where we have this B story that offshoots from the A story. It's like a very special way that I think we do story at parks where everyone's together

for a while and the B story doesn't really take off until the second act when everyone kind of splinters. And what I loved about this one is

you have a crazy, silly two scene or two line runner really Donna, which she's terrible at finding chairs. And I love when she comes back out of breath with a chair. I found one chair, got a lead. A lead. And it just sort of walks off.

Not in a hurry. I'm going to do my best here to get chairs. Donna was never in a hurry. No, no, no. There was no hurry for Donna. So we a hurry. I'm going to do my best here to get chairs. Donna was never in a hurry. No, there was no hurry for Donna. So we have that. Great. Donna's taken care of. Donna's got the chairs. And then we have Tom. Tom meets with a very sassy

chef from Orlando. Played by Paul Vogt. I know Paul. Yes, I do. He's great in that part. Yes. Very strong take on Tom. and knows exactly why he's here and i don't think we even have a scene again until he comes up with a solution that's right that's how jam-packed the episode is but also how you don't need to build on it yeah exactly um and then we have ron on ponny oh my gosh Whoever came up with the thought to put him... I know. That is

so wrong and perfect at the same time. And then Joan Calamezzo. Just an absolute wreck. Joan Calamezzo played by Mo Collins who has already done our podcast. I had lunch with her last week just coincidentally and we happened to be talking about

a bunch of different things and that episode came up and she credits Dean Holland, who directed the episode, because she said it was so over the top, because he pretty much said to her, do what you want to do. And she said, she really credits the editing, because she goes,

otherwise you'd be like, this is too silly or too whatever. I was worried. She was worried too. She was planking. She was on the floor. She was drinking. With her feet. She dragged the thing with her feet. Trying to like, yeah, pick up a juice box, right? Or whatever. Yes,

with her feet. But it is like, I think we got it both ways where she was just like in the same position for the whole thing. But then she also was just like going nuts. And it is like just a very effective comedic game of just like popping back in. And each time he takes a phone call,

she's in another insane position. And it is insane. Not just like she's plumped a different direction. She's planking. Yeah, planking. She's planking. But the secret, I think, to that being so good is that the counterpart to that is Ron, who is so stable.

So stable, yeah. He is the same. Every time we cut back, Ron is there sitting the same way, and Joan is the one who's crazy. Right. And what is she saying? I have allergies? Well, that's the thing we talked about in the room. Do you remember this?

I think it was Mike's take, maybe Dan. Someone was talking about how whenever someone is hungover or whatever, they don't want to say that. They don't want to say they made something up. So she just says she's been on a week-long booze cruise, but she has a horrible allergy. It's like, I had shellfish or I have allergies. We know what this is. Ron taking these calls is so funny.

I like what he says. Please call now if you have questions about tonight's gala or one of my other interests. Woodworking novels about tall ships meet that sort of thing. You kind of see a twinkle in his eye that he likes this. He's having fun. He likes

talking about the things he likes. He tells a caller how to fix wood scratches with a walnut. Gives advice on how to deal with the dog. We watched an hour of YouTube clips of that being like a real thing. Yeah, it was fascinating. I also love this one little bit where he says,

your house isn't haunted, you're lonely. That's really, really good advice. That's really damning. Guys, before we push on with our synopsis, we should also just call out when Leslie finds out that the entire exercise is a sabotage tactic

how Jam just holds up a paper reading your move and then oh he's such a dick and then Leslie it is with a heavy heart that I say this

we have been jammed we have been jammed because she hates that saying so much I mean one of my favorite lines in the episode, maybe my whole time there, is you've been ghost jammed. That's when they're all dead.

And just the way he kind of jerks his head when he says ghost jammed. I had to rewind that. You've been ghost jammed. Yeah. All right, let's move on with our synopsis. Realizing they've all been jammed, Leslie decides to sacrifice the town

in order to save the gala, instructing any remaining vaccines be flushed down the toilet and all infected birds be given CPR. You know, her plan works and after announcing the city has been hit with a tornado quake, which reminded me recently of our hurricane in Los Angeles,

Pawnee officially fails the disaster preparedness drill for the 13th time in a row, ending the lockdown just in time for the gala to begin. Meanwhile, back at police headquarters, Andy's personality evaluation is not going well.

Let's just pause and give Colton Dunn his flowers for someone killed these birds. Liz is like, no, no. One of the funniest deliveries. But I'm going to kill these birds. He's got a plan. He's got a plan.

Which is amazing because he works at animal control. Well, yes, he has two plans. He's like, I can use a gun or I can just drown them in a bathtub, which means he knows how to catch them. He's thought about this. Yes. Yeah.

It's so good. Anytime him and then with Harris doing that animal control. Yes. So good. So good. So we've talked about Andy's exam, but later we have Chief Fugelberg revealing that he failed the personality exam. Now, we used to have a Chief Trumple, right, who had retired.

And so we got Fugelberg. I came up with that name. Oh, that's a man. Yeah, that's my best friend in high school. That was his last name. Really? Yeah. Perfect.

Do you do that when you write? Do you try to sneak in friends' names, last names? Yeah, usually I do it. Yeah. Okay, so Leslie realizes the only way out of the drill is to level the town. Pretty much, we have to get to game over.

Right? So we can end this thing and I can go on with the other project I need. Which, you know, kills her because, you know, she wanted, like everything she wants,

100%, she wants this to be nailed. Yeah. But she also has to make the big decision. Right. What is for the greater good? Right.

It reminds me of the Model UN episode in the previous season in which she's so excited about something she knows she would be great at. Like any other day, this would be her favorite day of the year. Yes.

Right. And it kills her, but her other selfish need, or in this case, her selfless need takes over the normal way that she as a character has to be. And it's

because this episode's so jam-packed that there was a whole sort of added layer to this storyline that she was still trying to ace this test while this is all going on. And we had to sort of just remove that element because we just didn't

have time, I think. Yeah. But in the end, it's like, you don't really need it. Cause you know, her,

she wants to, you know, like you get it. You don't need to like emphasize that part. I think it might've been a different situation. Had they for the past 12 years got a hundred percent, but she was like, okay.

She wants, but she wants to do it. She wants to, and she wants to nail it. Yeah. But I think then when she gave it up, it was like, okay. She wants, but she wants to do it. She wants to, and she wants to nail it. Yeah. But I think then when she gave it up, it was like, oh, 13 years. Okay, whatever. Next year. We'll do next year. Next year on the road. Right, right. But that's such a good point, Jim, that if Leslie had always run these, and she has a perfect record, it's like she's about

to be the best city in Pawnee, in Indiana, right? And then, I have to fuck this one up. But it's oddly more satisfying for Pawnee, in Indiana, right? And I have to fuck this one up. But it's oddly more satisfying for Pawnee that they're terrible at it. And they continue to be terrible at it. Yeah. Okay, so they flush the vaccines down

the toilet. She orders the officers to give CPR to the remaining infected birds. And then at the end, bummer. Well, thank you for your time. I think we're done here. I will see everyone at the gala and I will see you in hell to jam. And the way she said And then at the end, bummer. Well, thank you for your time. I think we're done here. I will see everyone at the gala and I will see you in hell to jam. And the way she said it

and the way Amy delivered it, it was so like pure. Yeah. Do you know what I mean? Like it was like action movie. Yeah. She really feels this way about it. And it's fun.

Yeah. It's pretty satisfying. Yep. I agree. And the next episode, he literally is, he's saying like I hate parks

parks are stupid so it is like he is a personification of her nightmare and we've talked about it there are very few characters on this in the series

who don't get redeemed in some way right like Jam will wind up feeling for him in the seventh season with storylines with Tammy

and everything and it was Manzoukas Jason Manzoukas who pointed out that like him in the seventh season with storylines with Tammy and everything. And it was Manzoukas, Jason Manzoukas, who pointed out that Dennis Feinstein is pretty much one of the only characters who's just purely unredeemed. You never see the good side of him. But Jam, we will eventually.

Jam, we do down the road. All right. Well, let's wrap our episode up in our last synopsis. With the emergency drill over, Leslie emerges from the lockdown to realize her friends have pulled things off in her absence, and the soiree is in full swing. Leslie makes a toast to the town, and with mouse rap playing in the background,

she and Ben have another idea. Perhaps they should turn the gala into an impromptu wedding. Which, you know, is so sweet. So sweet. That scene is really sweet. I loved how Adam delivered it. So excited. Right?

Yes. Yeah. Endearing. You see Ben legitimately get excited for this idea. Yeah. And that, oh, I'm not, you know, sometimes people tease like, oh, we should drive to Vegas today.

We should, whatever, do something crazy. He's suggesting, oh, we should drive to Vegas today. We should, whatever, do something crazy. He's suggesting their wedding. And that idea goes from like a silly thing to, I really want this. We should do this tonight. And he knows she wants the whole town there for her wedding. No, it is. It's very sweet. It's kind of all perfect.

Right. These people are all there. They've gotten their money. They've raised their 50 grand for the park. Right. So it really is the perfect night. And we took a problem and made it a joke, which was that

we were discussing, well, if it's a wedding, won't they be upset that their family isn't there? And so instead we just made it like, that's perfect. Our parents aren't there? Great. That's a bonus. Well, especially his. Right. Ben's parents are troublesome.

Yes, exactly. We've met his parents and they're tough. Yeah, it's so lovely. And it just gets you so excited for this next episode. Even the wide shot of the tent is purposeful. It's not just they succeeded, but we're setting the stage that this isn't a terrible idea. Especially because the

soiree goes from such a disaster to such a beautiful, ridiculous thing. I have to say, on Jerry's behalf, because I've got to talk about this. Jerry was told early on that there's this horrible thing that's

happening. He just wants to protect his wife and his children. He runs off. He falls, he's gone. He farts. He farts, yes, which I will be checking out soon. But then he's back in the mix. He's helping get things done, but he has not had time to put, he doesn't know what's even going on

to put on a tux or anything. And this whole thing is wonderful. And they're all heading in and Leslie says, thanks for dressing up, Jerry. Now that is the perfect kind of line that when the fans come up to me, we always felt so bad. Because really, what do you say? And Jerry just gives a look like, he wants to explain, but there's nothing to explain.

It is what it is. It's a perfect Jerry moment. It's also a fun picture. So Jerry says he made it all the way to Muncie. I don't know why, but I picture Jerry moment. Yeah. It's also a fun picture. So Jerry says he made it all the way to Muncie. I don't know why, but I picture Jerry ran all the way there. Yes, I picture the same thing. Yeah. And then ran back.

Yeah. Falling, tripping, and falling all the way. God bless that big man. Well, we've come to the end of our episode, but not the end of our podcast because Jim has a great segment of Jim's crap. It's the stuff we didn't get to. I will tell you, we hit so much of the stuff. I love Leslie's talking head, and she says the number one selling

burger at Paunch Burger is the greasy lard bomb. Yeah. Right, the scene before that, she sort of dismissively says, no one wants your greasy lard bombs. And it cuts to her saying, that is their best selling. That is their best selling. Just so you know, I would be thrilled to try

a greasy lard bomb. Absolutely. I think that would sell very well. And then finally, great things have happened. Leslie wants to thank all of us for all your hard work this week. Give yourselves a hand. And everybody applauds right away. But your applause are premature. We're all like,

she's built us up. No, do not accept that. And Joe, that's some of the crap that we didn't get to. That's good crap, Jim. Thank you for your crap. My favorite segment, gifts, parties, and jobs.

Yes, I was going to mention this. Yeah, perfect. Every episode of Parks generally has a gift given, a party thrown, or a new job. Or not a job. In this case, the gala, given, a party thrown, or a new job. Or not a job. In this case, the gala, we have a party.

Leslie takes a new job as, I guess it's her acting job as emergency czar. Andy fails the police exam. A rare not job. A not job. And for gifts, I'm going to say that they're

looking for gifts for their wedding. Right. They're registering for gifts. That's valid. We for their wedding. Right. They're registering for gifts. That's valid. We got all three. Right. Final thoughts on our episode.

I'll start with our awesome guest, Joe. I mean, I fondly look back at this episode as being sort of like my initiation. You know, like I got to write this with Norm Hiscock. Shout out to Norm. And he really guided me through the process of writing an episode. We split the story lines up and we each wrote half the episode and then we

met at Nate and Al's diner with our computers and combined our script and then emailed it to you, I'm sure. And then, yeah, I remember being at the pit, 104 degrees outside and Amy, I'm just like munching on snacks

and then Amy coming to Video Village being like, this joke's not working, I need a new one. And then being like, oh, that's my job. I was like, I didn't really even think like, why am I here on set? And she's like, I need you to write a new joke right this moment. And then that,

you know, trial by fire and then sort of understanding like what my role was. Did you do it? I did it. Yeah. And,

yeah. I know we've said this before but people listening, the writers of the episode were on set with us during the shoot. Yes. Yeah.

And Norm, for whatever reason, he might have been in the bathroom or something, but I was by myself and Amy was like, give me a new joke. And, you know, and, he might have been in the bathroom or something, but I was by myself. And Amy was like, give me a new joke. And, you know, and then, yeah. And then personally, Jeremy Jam, John Glazer, he sort of gave me my first job in TV.

I wrote for Delocated. And so, like, having him there was kind of special. That's awesome. Yeah. That's amazing. So those are the things I look back on. Well, for me,

it was just another great episode. There's so much going on in this episode. You could never go, well, I'm bored here. A little heartbreaking for Andy, but I know, just because I know what happens down the road, it will all work out. It is heartbreaking because there is no one sweeter or dumber.

And you don't want someone like that to be hurt. But he's got April who's got his back at all times. So it'll be okay. Oh, and we just, I want to acknowledge a perfect April joke as well, which is for a good luck charm, she gives him a rabbit she found and chopped off all the feet.

So it's a footless rabbit. You normally get a rabbit foot, but she gave him a rabbit she found and chopped off all the feet. So it's a footless rabbit. You normally get a rabbit but she gave him a footless rabbit. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Very creepy. And a cool skill she has, I guess. I guess taxidermy. Yes. It's another great episode

but what I like about it is thinking about it in concert with the one that's about to come. So you have this one, which is a crazy Pawnee city storyline with these fun runners, so people working hard towards something. And then the next episode is going to be this sweet family story in a way. Well, yeah, that's interesting.

I didn't think about it that way because most episodes we always talked in the room about like they're needing to be a work story and an emotional story. And this episode's almost all work story. Right, right. Until the very end and the whole next episode's all emotional. Exactly. Interesting, yeah.

Yeah. We also do MVP. Do you have an MVP for this episode? Who you think would be like the stand? It's like a character moment. There's so much going on in this episode. I think I already said my and Colton Dunn

just not understanding what he's being told. Seemingly about to go out into the real world and kill all the birds. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I think that's my favorite. That's great.

It is great. I mean, Joan, as a, for our guest stars, like Joan Calamezzo is so funny. This, not saying much at all,

but just the energy when she first starts. You know it's going to go crazy from there. But seeing Ron do those calls was so funny. Because it was Ron doing Ron, which is straightforward, blunt advice and blunt takes on things. But when he enjoyed it, it was very satisfying. Oh, yeah. Yeah. I loved, again, all of it uh joan and

colton and all that but i have to call out and she had very little in this episode but when donna does a hit and run yeah that's what i call what it does a hit yeah just a one-liner and you're like that is hysterical yeah her delivery uh one chair. And I have a lead on another. And just saunters off. Doesn't run, like she's not in a panic. So anyway. Yeah.

But it's hard, you know, again, because I know she wasn't in as much as others, but I love any time Red is on screen. I'm surprised you don't make yourself MVP each time. That's a funny bit

you should do. I think we all know underneath that that's what's going on would you agree to that Greg? yeah absolutely well listeners let us know who your MVP is by tweeting at

teamcocopodcast or by using the hashtag hashtag parks and recollection Joe thank you so much for joining us this was amazing Joe I was excited coming in and it was as awesome as I wanted it to be. Oh, that's awesome.

That's great. Well, thank you, Joe. It's been a pleasure. Thank you all for listening. Texas episode to your group chat. Start group chats if you don't have group chats. That's kind of fun.

Five-star reviews, please, wherever you're listening. And from all of us here at Parks and Recollection, goodbye from Punny. Bye-bye. Bye. Parks and Recollection is produced by me, Lisa Berm,

and engineered by Joanna Samuel. The podcast is executive produced by Jeff Ross, Adam Sachs, Colin Anderson, and Nick Liao. Paula Davis, Gina Batista, and Brit Kahn are our talent bookers, along with assistance from Maddie Ogden. Our theme song is by Mouse Rat, a.k.a. Mark Rivers, with additional tracks composed by John Danek.

Thanks for listening, and we'll see you next time on Parks and Recollection. This has been a Team Coco production. © 2013 Team Coco