Second Day in NYC was jam-packed and exhausting. I woke up early and met up with one of my fellow TDS interns in Times Square. After breakfast, we made our way to MTVN/Viacom headquarters for our first orientation.
Once all the formalities of orientation were over, I trekked towards the Upper West Side to gallivant around my new neighborhood. I’m still in awe about how great the area is. I’m two blocks from Central Park West and four from a Lowe’s Theatre (I’m going to be seeing so many movies!). I met with my new roommate in her apartment and am really looking forward to living with her. She’s very kind and I think we will get along great.
After leaving the apartment, I made my way back downtown to the Union Square Barnes and Noble’s. Jimmy Fallon was set to sign books at 7:30 PM, but I got there at 3:30. Good thing, too. There was already a line of about fifty people. I bought the book, Thank You Notes, and took my place in the queue. I was able to get a seat seven rows back from the stage and had a great view of him, the host and James Poyser (keyboardist for The Roots). Finally at 7:30, Jimmy came out and the discussion started.
The host asked Jimmy about how he got started doing impressions (Doing a James Cagney at two years old.) and his first comedic competition (He won first place by impersonating celebrities talking about Troll Dolls).
Jimmy related that he had to audition twice for SNL and that it was the only thing he wished for growing up. However, he was able to do something very few could. He made Lorne Michaels laugh during his audition by impersonating Adam Sandler. Lorne Michaels proved to be a very supportive and influential person in Fallon’s life. When leaving SNL, Michaels told him to consider going for Late Night when Conan would retire (FIVE YEARS BEFORE IT WOULD HAPPEN!) and Tina Fey encouraged this as well. When the five years were up, Lorne asked him again and Jimmy agreed he would do it. At first, it seemed that the NBC execs weren’t too sure of Jimmy, but Michaels said he wouldn’t produce the show unless Jimmy was the host. Talk about a great friend.
When asked about the process of starting Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, he said it was pretty crazy. Having three months to prepare for the first show, he, an editor and a writer/producer began taping video blogs to get the audience into the process by choosing the set and logo. As for The Roots, a friend encouraged Jimmy to reach out to them, but only so they could recommend someone when they said no. Two months later, they were onboard. Jimmy said that they used Lorne Michael’s office to meet with Questlove and Black Thought. Questove had two questions for Jimmy. First, whether they could have artists sit in with them from time to time and if this is Lorne Michael’s office, where’s the popcorn? It turns out Questlove was such a fan of comedy, he knew that Michaels always had a bowl of popcorn in his office during SNL.
According to Jimmy, finding the first guests for a show was a very worrying process since many agents don’t feel that a new show will last long. Luckily, he was able to snag Robert De Nero, who is one of the toughest people to interview due to his monosyllabic answers, and Justin Timberlake. Tina Fey said she would be a guest on whichever show he needed her. The writers then struggled to find their key bit like "Top Ten" or "Headlines." After trying "Lick it for Ten" and "Wheel of Carpet Samples," they tried "Thank You Notes" which has had a great reaction from fans. It’s definitely my favorite segment of the show besides their parodies of reality TV (Nothing beats The Real Housewives of Late Night or Jersey Floor).
The main highlights of the discussion was Jimmy impersonating Neil Young, Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen singing classics like "Party in the USA", "Whip My Hai"r and the theme song to "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air." Afterwards, he gave us a few Thank You Notes from the new book. Jimmy was hilarious during the entire discussion and had the audience laughing throughout.
Then, I FINALLY GOT TO MEET JIMMY FALLON! I told him about my internship and asked if he had any advice for someone wanting to break into TV comedy. He said to work as hard as I could to stand out and to speak up with ideas for bits or jokes. He was so nice and both he and James signed my book.
It was such a great experience and I can’t wait to attend more like it this summer. The girl sitting next to me during the discussion said that by following @NBCSTORE on Twitter, they’ll let you know when stars like Amy Poehler will be signing at 30 Rock. I’ve already requested to follow them. :)
*I have another video I will post later*
You can also check out videos of the entire event @ barnesandnoble.com/upstairs
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