And we just thought it was so funny, and it was a fun way to play her. If I think that he's laughing at something, I'll want to hit that harder. GROSS: What are some of the movies and some of the cartoons that you grew up with? And it's like, you don't know what corn puddin' is? He's so different from other men. He also co-wrote the animated films "Despicable Me," "The Secret Life Of Pets," and "Horton Hears A Who.". This is FRESH AIR. And she recommends the corn puddin'. I appreciate it. I wish I could free him so I could finally see him the way he truly is and let him shine. "You know how much I hate musicals. Grown adults burst into song, one of which extolling the virtues of "corn pudding." Comedy stars like Cecily Strong and Keegan-Michael Key mingle with Broadway . STRONG: (As The Girl You Wish You Hadn't Started a Conversation With at a Party) Here's a thought, Michael - maybe try being woke for a change, OK? PAUL: From your mouth to God's ears. And we failed. KEY: (As Josh Skinner) No. We live in Brooklyn. It was so funny, and I just loved it. She's an actress, and she's a comedian. STRONG: Well, thank you so much. And then I remembered, like, hearing my straight male friends talk about interactions that they'd had, like, with some girl that seems normal, and then it's like, oh, she just said something crazy, and how do I get out of this conversation? This is FRESH AIR. GROSS: Had you been vaccinated when you shot the series? There must be a lobby somewhere that is making sure that that's still taught in schools. STRONG: (As Melissa Gimble) Guys, we're actually in the middle of something. It's streaming on Apple TV+. It was gorgeous. UNIDENTIFIED CHORUS: (As characters, singing) First, she said something bad to get his gander. So this starts - this clip will start with Cecily Strong speaking, and I should say that the mayor's last name is Menlove. UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #2: (As character, singing) Every steak's bound to have some fat. Here with her final thoughts on this election is the Girl You Wish You Hadn't Started a Conversation With at a Party. MsMojo 2010s snl cast memembers where are they now 2010s snl cast members 2010 saturday night live cast members jay pharoah taran killam vanessa bayer aidy bryant kristen wiig leslie jones bobby moynihan cecily . And so it's like, I knew I was kind of - it wouldn't last, this safety that I was feeling by being vaccinated. Strong, 35, has been on SNL since 2012, joining alongside current . centers on a couple who gets trapped in a town where people burst into song. STRONG: (As The Girl You Wish You Hadn't Started a Conversation with at a Party) Please do not man-terrupt (ph) me when I'm wo-making (ph) a point, Michael. STRONG: I haven't. . STRONG: No. GROSS: Because she has gaydar and no one in the town does (laughter). Oh, that's really - it's a funny song, but it's also - it's a lovely song. To be a 10 or 11-year-old kid obsessed with that sort of music was very odd, but I just - I loved it from an early age. STRONG: (As The Girl You Wish You Hadn't Started a Conversation with at a Party) And I'm sorry. Cecily Strong (actress) social media, news and video. But this is a song where she has no clue that her husband is gay. And actually, my dad took a bunch of pictures. Cecily Legler Strong (born February 8, 1984) is an American actress, comedian, producer, author, and singer. She's taken all these concepts and just turned them into something confusing and wrong that she's very passionate about. In a 2021 interview with Terry Gross on the National Public Radio program Fresh Air, Strong said that because her uncle is a Broadway producer, as a child she often got to attend Broadway shows and sometimes go back stage to meet their casts.She then attended a private Catholic school until transferring for her senior year to the Chicago Academy for the Arts, where she graduated in 2002. Like, I'm so proud of the work I've done. Cinco Paul serves as showrunner, and wrote all of the original music for the series. GROSS: This is FRESH AIR. And you go like, whoa, what's that? UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #3: (As character, singing) You can't eat a fish without getting some bones. GROSS: You're nominated for an Emmy, second year in a row. So you have a few really funny references to, like, closeted gay people in musicals. He co-wrote, co-created and wrote all the songs for the satire of musicals called "Schmigadoon!" It's an ode to those songs. And you know, there is still an element of, like, you're playing with your friends. - because, you know, every kid wants to go to California. And it's like, this is still when New York City is really the epicenter, and our show is so about New York City. I am just trying to figure out how to get out of here and get back to reality. UNIDENTIFIED CHORUS: (As characters, singing) Schmigadoon, where the Sun shines bright from July to June and the air's as sweet as a macaroon, Schmigadoon - Schmigadoon, where it's warm and safe as a new cocoon and our hearts all glow like a harvest moon, Schmigadoon - Schmigadoon, where the men are men and the cows are cows and the farmers smile as we push their plows. GROSS: And the waitress delivering the corn pudding is the younger woman who's pursuing him. UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #2: (As character, singing) Every steak's bound to have some fat. STRONG: (As Melissa Gimble) OK. Well, that one's on you. STRONG: (As The Girl You Wish You Hadn't Started a Conversation with at a Party) Please do not man-terrupt (ph) me when I'm wo-making (ph) a point, Michael. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Our technical director and engineer is Audrey Bentham. She's taken all these concepts and just turned them into something confusing and wrong that she's very passionate about. GROSS: That's music from "Schmigadoon!" . You not only - because you were expelled, you not only weren't allowed to attend the ceremony; you weren't allowed within a three-block radius of where the ceremony was, and you were threatened with arrest if you overstepped that boundary. STRONG: That's usually just Colin and I. So I really was like, come on, everybody. There's a song called "Something Wonderful" from "King And I" and another song from "Carousel" called "What's The Use Of Wond'rin?" Seven of the comedy sketch show's cast members left the . And is it hard for you to keep a straight face when he's having trouble keeping a straight face? This past summer, Strong published a memoir called "This Will All Be Over Soon." GROSS: There's times on "Update" when Colin Jost has been laughing, like, so hard because you're so funny. KEY: (As Josh Skinner) I'm not saying anything. This is FRESH AIR. My Uncle Ed is a theater producer in New York, my dad and I went to his shows and saw "Guys and Dolls," "The Secret Garden." I was into the soundtracks. ; Cecily Strong was not featured in the opening credits due to her . That's outrageous. The Apple TV+ satire series Schmigadoon! I'm Terry Gross. I was a new cast member. What was it like for you to go from this heightened sense of anxiety and depression to flying to - was it Vancouver? UNIDENTIFIED CHORUS: (As characters, singing) You put the corn in the puddin' and the puddin' in the bowl. And so I think they thought that might be a good outlet for me. And it's been great to talk with you. GROSS: And he's not just a Broadway producer. I think I took my first drama class when I was 3. In her second season, she co-anchored Weekend Update with Seth Meyers and then Colin Jost. And he was trying to help me find things. KEY: (As Josh Skinner) Are you serious? UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #7: (As character, singing) Who wants corn puddin'? Is that an idea that you originated? (As characters, singing) And then he gives her a snack. Cecily Strong attends the 73rd Primetime Emmy Awards at L.A. LIVE on September 19, 2021 in Los . And so that's partly why I just wasn't even there. And this is from the February 20, 2017, edition of "Saturday Night Live." I'm still trying to wrap my head around all of it. (TV-14. We have to show our IUD. Several familiar faces were gone, and many fans were left asking where was Cecily Strong. He's a queer one, that man o' mine. And so - but everything that is evidence that he's gay, she sees as a really positive quality. So we did her on "Update.". GROSS: A turning point in your young life (laughter) was in 1999 when you were a sophomore in high school. CHE: (As himself) So I assume you're not happy with the election. You know, and then it took a while to really understand - here's all of the things we're going to put in place. Also, Keegan has, you know, this young farm girl pursuing him, played by Dove Cameron. UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #4: (As character, singing) Who wants corn puddin'? He co-created and co-wrote the series with Ken Daurio. STRONG: (As Melissa Gimble, singing) And it may be a waste. KEY: (As Josh Skinner) No. Cecily Strong's character loves musicals and is initially charmed. But I want to play the theme song from this because I think it's you and Ken actually singing the song. That's just so funny. And the contrast between that and the depression and anxiety you describe in your memoir, which - a lot of your memoir is about living through the pandemic, like, the first almost year of the pandemic. Otherwise, it's hard to get an impression on the show. The co-production with Off-Broadway's The Shed . It was like as soon as I started singing, I knew what to say. All rights reserved. STRONG: (As The Girl You Wish You Hadn't Started a Conversation with at a Party) Do you even know what women have to do when we go vote, Michael? HARADA: (As Florence, singing) Sometimes it may seem like he is too good to be true, like there's a man that I can't see just aching to break through. And you had a boyfriend who got a bad case of COVID, but fortunately not bad enough to end up in the hospital, and he recovered. It's a kind of - there's references to other songs in it, including "You're A Queer One, Julie Jordan" from - that's from "Carousel," right? Was it your idea to do her, or did someone say, oh, you should do her? And you shot "Schmigadoon!" She's been a cast member of "Saturday Night Live" since 2012. And in many ways, that was Ken. PAUL: Yeah, it's called "Make Him Watch It," and we make each other watch a movie we've never seen before. My mom is in Mexico. Oh, he'll have to marry me. But I remember, you know, "Camelot" and "South Pacific" and "Guys And Dolls" and hearing those a lot. And whenever a musical theater song would somehow pop up in my mix, he would say, skip. And I always wanted to be an actor since I was little. So it wasn't, like, a big shock or anything I thought would - you know, that it was something she couldn't deal with. You know, I wasn't a super popular kid. We're leaving. And this is how important it is to manage it. So a few weeks after talking to Cecily Strong about starring in the series, I spoke with Cinco Paul, who wrote all the songs. Cecily Strong and Keegan-Michael Key star as a couple of trying to reinvigorate their relationship by going on a hike designed for couples who need to reconnect. 'Schmigadoon!' star Cecily Strong and co-creator Cinco Paul embrace musical satire The Apple TV+ satire series . STRONG: I mean, I think I just felt smaller and smaller and smaller. I am eating ice cream, and the voiceover says, like, well, McDonald's now has ice - soft-serve for 37 cents or whatever it was. A married couple, played by Cecily Strong and Keegan-Michael Key, have gotten lost in the woods and emerged to find themselves in a small town called Schmigadoon. She's been in the entertainment business since 2012, officially making her a ten-year veteran of the arts. Her new memoir, "This Will All Be Over Soon," will be published tomorrow. It's streaming on Apple TV+. You know, the first show we did, we did the table read on Wednesday. Yes, he is not anyone from the film industry. 'Cause Kevin can wait, but Syrian refugees can't, OK? Luckily for us, but maybe - who knows? She co-anchored "Weekend Update" with Seth Meyers and then Colin Jost but stepped down, preferring to do sketch comedy. I know from your new memoir that when "Saturday Night Live" did some episodes with everybody at home, that you were - you didn't want to participate at first, and you didn't do one or two of the shows because you just didn't feel ready to perform, I mean, because you really were in a serious state of depression and anxiety. KEY: (As Josh Skinner) We already tried together. STRONG: I almost enjoy it more to see when someone's laughing. Strong joined "SNL" as a featured player in 2012. SNL's Cecily Strong stars in it as Melissa and is also a producer. Let's get back to my interview with Cinco Paul. And I was just part of a wave of kids who were expelled. Because at "Update," you only get to rehearse on Saturday, really. And, you know, everybody that was there was supposed to be there. She Knows Broadway Well. Was this all through movies? STRONG: I almost enjoy it more to see when someone's laughing. GROSS: To her participation. That strikes me as a little bit crazy. But apparently, some cosmic verdict has been reached. GROSS: There's times on Update when Colin Jost has been laughing, like, so hard because you're so funny. We all know that so many performers on Broadway historically have been gay, and it's only in recent years that they've been able to be out. And I had that above my bed until we - I moved out - I think, till I went to college. (SOUNDBITE OF MARVIN HAMLISCH'S "MULTI-TASKING"). If you're just joining us, my guest is Cinco Paul, and he co-created, co-wrote and then wrote all the songs for the satirical musical series "Schmigadoon! And usually in those songs, that's like, he's wonderful. Schmigadoon! GROSS: Let's hear you as the Girl You Wish You Hadn't Started a Conversation With at a Party. Otherwise, it's hard to get an impression on the show. This Mueller report completely exonerated the president, and therefore everybody on the Trump train - woo, woo (ph). KEY: (As Josh Skinner) I'm not singing, and you're not singing. ", "Carousel," "The Music Man," "The Sound Of Music," "South Pacific" and "Brigadoon." And that's what I'd always rent whenever we'd go to the movie store. One is the bad boy, you know, which is the Billy Bigelow character. And that really changed everything because then suddenly that became my tribe, you know, the theater kids. PAUL: You know, when we were early on conceiving of the show and the journeys that our characters would take, I really wanted Cecily's character Melissa to be involved in what I think are the two big tropes in these old musicals. And then he turns off the tape to say, like, oh, and off the record, you're a great student, and we're sorry to lose you. And that was the germ of the idea. I can hear you. And I'm now back to worrying about someone I love with COVID. And so we play with that trope as well. But to then think I'm - not only do I not fit in, I'm not welcome. And actually, my dad took a bunch of pictures. She's a cast member of "Saturday Night Live" and stars in the series "Schmigadoon!," a satire of classic musicals from the '40s and '50s that's streaming on Apple TV+. What's YOUR favorite Ceci. GROSS: Cinco Paul wrote all the songs for the satirical musical series "Schmigadoon!" I mean, I think it's certainly been a part of my life since I was little. So here you are on "Weekend Update" as Judge Jeanine Pirro. Here to explain is Jeanine Pirro. And it is - there is something weird about these old men, you know, sort of creating works of art in which there are these May-December romances. She has no clue that he's gay, but she knows that, you know, he's different from the other men. STRONG: (As Melissa Gimble, singing) Never had corn puddin'. And she just told me she's got COVID. It turns out that her own uncle is a producer on Broadway, and that meant she had a lot of access to the stage when she was a child. Why did you want him to hate musicals? STRONG: No. And I was like, I'd also kind of had a breakup kind of the night before. Is this still going on, your podcast? And I'm - that's according to doctors, Michael Che. Just like the idea, you know, that it's like, you can have so much passion and feelings about these things that you don't really understand and haven't given much thought to and using them to sort of put down other people. I got the recipe. What did you do to try to capture her voice? What's true love really mean? It's like, why are we learning this? And my mom made a little poster for me for my room growing up that said Cecily on Broadway. Do you remember it? STRONG: It's actually - I mean, it's funny timing. And you go like, whoa, what's that? During a 2021 interview with Terry Gross on the National Public Radio program Fresh Air, she said that because her uncle is a Broadway producer, as a child she often got to go to . GROSS: Oh, you wrote the song? STRONG: (As Melissa Gimble) Then what are you saying? And like, hi, I haven't seen you. It was at the 2019 Christmas party, that Cecily's agent made her meet him. GROSS: So the Cecily Strong character loves musicals. GROSS: And this was pretty early in the pandemic, right? She has over 500k followers on her Instagram. GROSS: Why don't we hear "Corn Puddin'"? And I was really, like, a kid who sort of wanted to stay under the radar, anyway. She is best known for being a cast member of Saturday Night Live. And I suddenly thought, wow, the opening to this is very much like the opening to "Brigadoon." And you shot "Schmigadoon!" You know, we were getting ready for one of those - I think they were two "Update" specials because it was an election year. I saw my first Marx Brothers movie when I was 10 on TV, and I fell in love with the Marx Brothers and became obsessed. CINCO PAUL AND KEN DAURIO: (Singing) Make him watch it. I'm Terry Gross. It's streaming on Apple TV+. But I was just always performing around the house. But she does not, you know, embrace them in the way that I do. So we just were relying on testing. You're in a safer place, safer in the sense that you can go outside without having to go down an elevator and walk through a lobby and be - you know, be in the middle of Manhattan. and "The Lorax.". I did, like, a video for kids - for schools to show about kids with parents with drug and alcohol problems. It became my community, you know. This was performed after Pirro made anti-Muslim remarks about Representative Ilhan Omar. STRONG: (As Melissa Gimble) Guys, we're actually in the middle of something. No. Cecily Legler Strong (born February 8, 1984) is an American actress and comedian who has been a cast member of Saturday Night Live since 2012, making her the longest-tenured female cast member in the show's history. I mean, to me, there is a trope in these musicals often. Mean, horny men lying on in-home hospital beds and white prison gangs who control the remote on Saturdays, thank you for watching. STRONG: (As Melissa Gimble) Come on. GROSS: That's pretty great. Talk about the process of writing that. Cecily Strong is an American actress and comedian who is best known for being a cast member of Saturday Night Live from 2012 to 2022. . God, this whole musical is so much fun. KEY: (As Josh Skinner) We already tried together. Here's all the safety measures - until I finally felt safe. That was weird. 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