My goodness. I now understand why you don't often see him as a talk show guest. No pun intended. To me, it's rude to appear on a talk show and not to liven up for it.

+Bonnie Rose whereabouts, just out in LA?

"Mr. Guest, I'm a huge fan. Could I please have your..." Zyoop!. Head sliced off. Or, he could just give you that icy stare and say, "No." Just as bad.

agree 100%. Guest doesn't self promote and doesn't want to prove anything. As you say that makes the interviewer have to think and interact which is how it should be. We get hilarious anecdotes and unexpected stuff (the incompetent ticket collecting was a personal favorite).

Guest is also very defensive and won't just let stuff go. He also doesn't like to be put in a box and will take issue with any way you describe anything he does. Beyond that he's actually a good interview.

DemboThrash Everything you said is totally correct and insightful.. however you must also admit that Guest is a bit insecure. Every chance he has to sound slightly wounded and defensive (about his high school, about spinal tap being a real band vs the monkees, about andre the giant, about the house of lords, etc.) he takes it. He takes himself a lot more seriously than he takes anything else and didn't seem to appreciate Kevin's tone at those times. If he was trying to hide his visceral reaction at all he wasn't doing it very well. He also goes out of his way to pretend he doesn't remember doing things, to make it seem like none of his work is very important to him. Another thing insecure people do to avoid the judgment of others.

DemboThrash - It's that most people don't understand metaphor and don't think abstractly. It's clear he's coming from a place of great love, and he's giving us everything he's got. The whole bit about it being too cold then too hot in the studio, and the coffee run was a total giveaway. There's an old SNL skit that says it all about Guest where he plays a talent agent who is about to commit suicide by leaping from an open NYC skyscraper window when the receptionist tells him on the intercom that she's sending someone in to see him, and he climbs back off the ledge before Ed Grimley walks in the door. That was funny on a whole other level and it stuck with me for life.

@Bikewithlove - I disagree about the cold/hot/coffee bit. I felt like at first people thought it was a joke, but when nothing was happening he kept harping on it - extremely awkward, IMO. Also there's no joke at all about asking someone to go get you a coffee - not just a coffee but a coffee from somewhere specific in the neighborhood, then acting surprised when people much lower on the totem pole than you go get it. How is that funny? He was being unreasonable and thought that pretending it was a joke after the fact got him off the hook.

bh617 - Everyone is insecure to a degree; it's normal. The trick in life is to stop running away from it and to get used to wearing it. Nothing betrays insecurity like hiding it. Chris has figured out how to make a living off of it, and this whole interview is about it. Through the whole thing he is working on our own insecurity that the interview will somehow go wrong. If you watch closely you'll notice that Chris knows everyone on the set intimately. These people are more like a family than we might realize. There's a deep thing going on during this interview, and they're all in on it. It's mesmerizing.

bh617 You're absolutely right. I wonder when Jamie Lee Curtis will figure out she married a jackass.

...he makes my heart giggle just by looking at him, he's so silly sometimes.

Clever as any person/ comedian going around

Wow, that was profound. :/

@@yorocco1 I guess you hate it when you go to hug someone really sexy and your face smashes right into the mirror...

Aye, think it's all that reservedness and fear of pretension running throughout all of British culture; makes one seem arrogant and sociopathic much of the time, when it couldn't be further from the truth. Some societies are just really good at negotiating public displays of emotion to prevent weakness from being mistaken as an invitation for abuse-- something that's shared among both Asian and most Protestant cultures-- but it often feels abrasive and uncaring, nihilistic, if not narcissistic. Don't think Jamie Lee Curtis would've stayed married this long to someone like that, if that's any gauge.

He's very polite and respectful though, a perfect gentleman. Same cannot be said of Chris. Not that I'm judging really.

Leonard Rossiter was that way. Just a wonderful actor. Not funny in real life.

You mean 'fictiitious' actor/director. Look closely and listen...thats clearly Michael McKean. Listen even how he says how great Michael McKeen is....and the fact he doesn't mention Laverne and Shirley.

My favorite movie of all time is Waiting for Guffman. Having said that, I'm always a bit disappointed by most of the CG interviews I've see, because of exactly what you said. He always seems aggravated/uncomfortable/disinterested. How a guy who's so funny and lighthearted in the movies can be as anti- that in interviews is a total mystery.

​@@alfiend331 Aye, think "defensiveness" is the word. Seems CG was a decade ahead of the times, had the forethought of protecting one's reputation by not committing to anything or spilling the beans on anyone. Noble enough, when you get down to it, but, gory, does it come across as abrasive and arrogant, judgemental and antagonistic, guns firing in all directions at all times to prevent another's barbs from manifesting. "Off-putting" seems an understatement.

True, but if he didn't have the goods he wouldn't have been successful.

Thank you!

The time mark of 13:05 should be pinned at the top.

I know your comment was posted some 50 years ago, but I think it was just slow to start. Perhaps he was as annoyed with the stupid crap at the beginning as I am ;) I'm fortunate in that I can skip it, he had to sit there for 15 minutes listening to bullshit.

​@@ptanyuh I know you posted some 25 years ago, but I think the comment 75 years ago had the right of it; few get how wry Mr. Guest is, can't read that sensibility any longer or understand its orientation. Rare half a century ago, rarer even now, so many mistake such teasing with being curmudgeonly (though I agree KPCS's opening segment is incredibly awkward and borderline disrespectful to the guests. Guess KP's sticking with "the great reveal" for them, suffering the unfavorable optics and what, presumably, must be thousands of complaints).

+Jeremy Benson I agree, if you compare this to any of his other interviews, he is DEFINITELY enjoying this one. It's ridiculous to say he doesn't like Kevin, either.. he hired him for one of the two main roles in Morton & Hayes. They've been friends for decades. He's also friends with Samm.

if you want to see a dead wood interview, watch the Jason Lee one.. that guy has the personality of a dead moth, to quote don rickles

100%.

I can see it.

That's actually a really great idea.

TighelanderII I wish Guest had given more details about Michael there. He doesn't seem too comfortable with 'gossip'. I would've loved to hear some O'Donoghue anecdotes, which are hard to come by. Catherine glosses over it in her interview as well iirc.

Sure

thanks

Know what you mean. Actually, I’ve never seen him so relaxed and jovial. Usually he’s more difficult to interview.

He's also the Private Vanderbilt from F Troop ofmockumentaries and the Peterbuilt tractor of the House of Lords.

No, it's not just you. Fairly accurate description, in fact. God, HAL was a cretin. At least, Mr. Guest doesn't have that annoyingly condescending tone of voice, that happy sadism pretending helpfulness and allegiance. Hate that mf-ing AI!

No. Chevy would be truly annoyed. Guest is just dry.

​@@ai-man212 Seconded. What was Chevy's dysfunction anyway? Entitlement? Well-disguised narcissism? Simple contempt? Some grievance about being perceived as an ugly jerk? How do you throw away so much for so little, not enjoy what you were doing, what got you to your heights: collaboration, daring, earnestness, self-effacement, earned respect, absolute joy from the work? Happiness, success, incredible freedom and riches for grievance. Simply bonkers. Think it was the public's rejection of his talk show all those years ago? Some loss of faculty or connection? Some personal tragedy we're unaware of? Simple disinterest or exhaustion from playing the game? A desire to retire? Miss his sensibility. It was a nice counterpoint to what everyone else was doing.

+WhoWouldWantThisName i take issue with that a little bit.. as sidekicks go, Samm Levine is less of a 'who?' than most. He's a working actor with a lot of credits over the last 15+ years and has an encyclopedic knowledge of film history. He also does a great job guest-hosting when Kevin isn't available. Now Kevin's girlfriend, there's a nobody.

Levine. Samm Levine.

@@basehead617 Aw, was digging your comment (five years on), 'til that last bit; Jame Fox brings something of different value to the table, besides sharing a name with a fabulously talented actor: producing cred and talent, cultural perspective, trivia, popular show segments, practical and technical knowledge... Nobody's a nobody except for those who call others one.

Totally agree, it's a really odd feature of the show. 6 years on, though, they either know something we don't or they missed your comment. Perhaps, guests enjoy the novelty as a warm-up of sorts. Whatever the case, you're right; to those of us watching, it's incredibly awkward, and the suggestions you relayed are rather good ones they should've heard of by now. We're probably missing something. Would be fun to learn what that might be.

@@dontpanic1812 Haha, yeah I knew his name, I was just making a sarcastic point of suggesting that Sam's an unknown to us outsiders. Yes, those in Hollywood know who someone with some supporting role experience and such is, but to us non-film junkies Sam is one of those we don't likely recognize. I only know him from `Freaks and Geeks', good show BTW, and I thought he was good on it. He's still one of those that is mostly known by other actors because they have been on so many auditions together. I have nothing against Sam and I made this comment 6 years ago, so I have only a rough idea what I was talking about at that time. I do remember those long drawn out pre-interview segments that left the guest just sitting there waiting in silence and the audience frustrated over it, at least I was, because I came for the guest not Sam or any other sidekicks. You know I had forgotten about this show and I was a regular fan of it. Kevin is really good at interviewing and not many are. I used to have time for 3 hour long shows of this kind but not anymore. This is also why I don't watch Joe Rogan. Now if they made edited down segments of interviews, like covering a particular subject, maybe running 20-30 minutes, sort of like `Crowder Bites' that would be a great addition to the channel.

they've also played Wembley Stadium.. not as the main act though

Even Fred Willard made fun of him... and all he knew came from Chris.

totally agree

+Mike McLellan Actually, by Guest standards, it seems like they kinda like each other (Guest even hired Pollack for one of the two main roles in Morton & Hayes). If you want to see a really boring interview on KPCS, check out the Jason Lee episode. Guest is just dry and sarcastic, Lee has literally no personality at all.

+YonatanDoron I somehow never noticed this until now but thanks to you i cannot unhear it

T seikert Guest directed a tv show that Pollak starred in (Morton & Hayes.. lasted 6 episodes in 1991) so they have known each other a long time

Jason Chenoweth Yes, he's channeling his inner Nigel Tuffnel

@Troy Evitt If only he were as entertaining as Nigel T. Had to stop watching.

+Rubber Chicken Films he does not

+bh617 Thanks kinda what I was thinking, but his response was...odd.

+Rubber Chicken Films His response was pretty odd - my money's on a big "no" though, reading between the lines. He reminds me of Harrison Ford in interviews - very unusual dry sense of humour that I think is meant well, but can easily come across like he's just a grumpy arsehole looking down his nose on the whole thing, but I don't think that's what it is. I think these people just aren't thrilled about the whole snowbiz interview thing and that humour comes out as a result.

+David _ It would be hypocritical of me to judge him for being a comedy snob (as one myself to a certain extent), I just always find it interesting that people love Keaton or Chaplin, but not Benny Hill (whom Chaplin thought was the greatest). Wonder what he thinks of Jacques Tati or Mr. Bean....but I agree about the dry sense of humour.

+Rubber Chicken Films It's a great point you make. Maybe his reaction's influenced by herd mentality disgust surrounding saucy 70s humour, and it blocks any potential objective take on the comedy value of the show. Or maybe he just didn't find it funny. I guess we'll never know. But I think it's a great point/comparison. Bottom line, I don't think many people will publically commit to liking anything universally condemned by the values fo the time. Peer group pressure works.

Hey he said he'd do it as Kunte Kinte, they didn't take him up on it. In general he seems to shy away from mocking actual real people. He was uncomfortable telling the story that put even a dead comedian in a bad light.

No. He is funny all the time. His dry wit and brevity are above your head.

​@@eileenhetherington3704agreed

That's funny. Though I see what Mr. Guest is doing, the fun he's having with everyone, his demeanor precisely reminds me of Jordan Peterson's. It's really weird how Mr. Guest's detractors here don't recognize the similarity, don't support the characteristics they cherish in another whom they're constantly defending, or if of the other ilk, can't get past the similarity either to see how deviously funny he's being. What floors me is after seeing this interview and that similarity, I have a greater appreciation for both, something I never would've imagined regarding either of them, especially cranky Mr. Peterson who's making better sense again these days than are his ever present detractors.

Hilarious, eh?

I was thinking the same thing. Maron does his intros days after the interview. Doing it with the guest just sitting there seems like a hollywood power move or something. Maybe I'm completely wrong.

John G. Hill Is it any different than going on any of the late shows or any other show that the guest sits in the green room while the host does a monologue in the first 10 to 20 minutes of the show? Other than they aren't in a green room and they are sitting at the table waiting for their turn.

Fred Ubar First of all, no monologue is 10 to 20 minutes. Second, it is very awkward and many guests have spoken out in confusion, waiting for the sign to speak. If the preamble was highly entertaining it would be one thing, it is more like a group jerk-off, and every one of these podcasts does this out of habit.

@@JohnGeorgeHill Someone earlier suggested including the guest in the intro, allowing their participation in those discussions. When I read it, I thought it a great idea, noticing it was posted six years ago! I feel like you do, like most do, but can't help wondering we may be missing something, like guests enjoying the warm-up banter or maybe contract constraints by sponsors or the theater determining the format.

You should see my tool

+SRNF I don't agree at all. Kevin goes through basically a guest's entire career from childhood to early entry in the biz to both major and minor projects.. far more information than you get out of almost any other interview. Not sure how that's boring or pointless, unless you don't find the person's career interesting to begin with.

Wtf is that to mean? What the hell are you trying to convey besides ennui, confusion and utter dismay? A love for banality? A 7-22-7 haiku... meaningless abstraction and black contempt, craven celebration of incomprehensibility, insanity's dark cloth of discontent. 10-10-15-10 satisfies an ugly sin, Correcting illness. A disrespect dimmed Turns fate's encompassing wind. Evil locked away. Gautam Saini, Gautam Saini, Gautam Saini see The palms of Gandhi, The Oasis of Muadi, The Lion seeing thee. Sutuhnkah venk, Sutuhnk venkah, Sutuhnk vekahini.

I don't think he likes talking about himself. Probably doesn't think he's special in any way. A lot of his stories are very mundane because he's a regular guy. Imagine a carpenter on this show. Chris is a craftsman and takes that seriously, he doesn't talk about the nails he uses because it's not interesting to regular people.

​@@TheKitchenerLeslie Great analogy, though he'd be wrong about people's interest; plenty of folks dig the inner minutia of the comedic process. Figure you're right, though, and figure his demeanor when being interviewed also has a lot to do with a cultural aversion to tooting one's own horn-- that British sensibility that's practically the national identity. Saw a comment elsewhere that noted a public response of his to so many responding unfavorably to his interviews over the years to the effect of he feels he's naturally dour in real life (as you noted), unlike any of the satirical characters he's played, considering such "silliness" the serious work of his career, separate from who he naturally is, hence people's disappointment. Struck me as a little odd, but completely understandable, too-- a craftsman not at work amid an interview.