One on One: Jill Brennan-Lincoln

but thank you even though that's a lie. But in my case, I'm telling the truth because I'm looking at a photo of you on my right and now I'm looking at you on the zoom on the left, and there's no difference. The only difference is you're wearing glasses. How the heck do you do it? I'm doing great. How about you? I'm doing fine, doing okay. So yeah, yeah, thanks for coming on. This is gonna be uh, this

is gonna be fun. It is gonna be fun. I just watched the episode last night, and I watched it with my to my eleven year old and my seventeen year old, and like, mom, you were the town floozy. I was like, I was, So your first episode was season one, episode one, and you were in the pilot episode. I was do you think I forgot? Where were you in the pilot? I was like this teacher and I came in and I will never forget because it was

your pilot, and you know, as all pilots do. It ran a little late, and I was waiting and I was I had heard, I had I was in New York at the time, and I had done a play with Ed Herman, so I heard he was in it. I was like, oh, it must be good, and um, I was just a small part. I showed up. I think I'm not sure if I found out that the Rory was going to be was a Houston from Houston and I was from Houston. I was sitting outside. It

was great. But then I you know, played this small teacher and then I came in as Crazy Carry, and I was like, I guess the teacher just you know, had really had it and just you know, really went a different direction, right, but Barry and everything. But it was fun. I was thrilled to get to come back for Crazy Carry. That was awesome. And then you portrayed Carrying season four episode thirteen, episode twenty one, came back in season five, episode fifteen. Yeah, yeah, you were the teacher.

So how'd you get the role for the pilot? Did you audition or how did that happen? I did? And you know, it's funny. My husband I were talking, you know how when you've worked a long time, you have like if you have to audition quickly, you have a couple of characters in your back pocket that you play with, you know. But I read it and I thought it was hysterical because I just thought she was so unaware of how possibly disgusting she was and overt she was.

I thought it was more and I just thought, I mean, I'm telling you. I thought the jokes were great. So we got in there. So I kept practicing, you know how I might lean over when I was auditioning and reveal my cleavage because I was sure that's who she was. And when I got into the audition, I actually did that, and the button popped open on my shirt and I just was like all there, and everybody just cracked up, and I was like, oh, I think this went well today.

Funny how that stuff happens and it just works out for the best. It does. It does it's right, you know, and and ninety nine times out of a hundred, it doesn't work out, and it's like, you know, she came in and there was this thing. But you know, I felt the same way when I went. I felt like I was in the right room because some some things didn't go well, but they laughed and I was just like, God, this is these are the right people, you know, so

you get that sense. Um, so did they tell you right after you finished the first one that you'd be coming back? No, they didn't. They called because there was like a ton of people who auditioned for it. You guys were like really a hit already when I came in. Okay, so it was like there were some you know, there were some heavy players sitting out there wanting to do it, that recognizable people, and so it was a long list

of waiting. But yeah, it was great. I was you know, I had done a couple of things at that point, but I mean I really wanted to be on the show. Everybody that I knew that had ever done theater right in New York was ending up on the show that I really respected, So um, you know, it just had that feeling. The show just was so quick, so well written, so smart, It was fun. Everybody wanted to be on it,

so I was thrilled to get it. Tell us a little bit about those waiting rooms, because I've walked into those waiting rooms and seen recognizable stars and thought to myself, Oh god, what have I gotten myself into it? Oh yeah, you're like, either I'm going to get this because I like I memorized and it's like, all there, I've made every choice. They can't take it away from me, right, Or I've been in so many rooms with Jane Lynch this one. I remember seeing McKenzie Phillips. I was like,

what is Mackenzie Phillips doing here? And you know, you just have to be in those situations. You start to learn as you do it right. You have to nail it right. It has to you have to be on it or you don't have a chance, or their agent has to ask for a lot more money, which was you know, luckily happened to me this point. I remember one of my first auditions in New York. I walked in and I to my right I saw Alec Baldwin. Oh gosh, and I went, are you kidding me? Are

you even because he'd already kind of hit it right. Yeah, Yeah, I'm taking what on earth is he doing here? You know? And then I said, no, that's not the question. What am I doing here? And he's on the phone. It sounded like it was. He was wearing a tennis outfit

and he had his tennis racket. It was all very casual, and he was sort of you know, running around New York doing things and having tennis lessons and doing auditions and going to lunch and setting dinner, rupping, and I'm like, wow, okay, this is serious now, right, yeah, yeah, yeah, those rooms, man, those rooms, I don't miss them. I don't miss them at all. There it was, and then you have to keep your act together, stay focused, not get distracted. It

was I could never tell, didn't you find? I felt like they were game plays in those rooms too, a lot of attitude, sometimes psyching each other out, and then sometimes they were really fun where you were just literally having it. I would do better when the room was fun, when people are goofing off having a good time. The

serious rooms where we were all desperate. More pilot rooms, right, we're auditioning for a pilot a lead that they were tents, So how could you get through that with especially when you're audition for a comedy, right, I think it's I think you're I think it depends on how bulletproof you are when you walk in. If you know your lines and you're just completely confident you can go in and have a good time. That's right, that's right in the room and just psych people out, because that's the guy

or that's the girl that just pisses everybody off. It's like that kind of work on my stuff here, you know, and like you can just feel the tension in those rooms. Everybody's just like but I mean, but that when you go back to that, how could you really do that when you got fifteen pages? Right? Like you know the night before right, you know, and that's what the stress on. Right, It's like, Okay, here they are. We'll see you tomorrow

at ten. Thanks a lot, no sleep. By the way, Alec Baldwin is there, right, and he's and he's relaxed as hell about it. Months he's probably talking to his agent talking about the offer they just made, right, that's right, all uh, yeah, we got to get more money. I mean, I want to do this, but you know it's like gosh, heck um, all right, so we like that carry and Luke had a fling and supposedly made out made out under the bleachers. I think I mischaracterized it in the

last couple of podcasts. I did as actually doing the deeds, so it was just making out right. I don't know, I never knew. I think it's a mystery. I let my mind wander a little. Yeah, maybe maybe you shouldn't do that. He decided they just made out. I think Harry think they did. The team so the way that Carrie delivers her lines are absolutely hilarious when you read

the script. What was your reaction to it, I thought I just thought it was I just thought she was gloriously bold, over sexed, and unaware that it was completely inappropriate when she had a husband. That's because she lives in that town. I otherwise you have to play her like some sneaky, gross, horrible woman that's trying to have an affair. I just really think, I don't know, maybe they had an open marriage, or Barry was just checked out flirting all the time. She was just the party girl.

Don't you think she was like the wild girl in high school? You know, yeah, there's there's always a couple. Sure, Yeah, you actually you know now that you mentioned it. You remind me of somebody from high school. You really do, and I don't. I don't. I don't want to say your name. But she was very popular. Well I was not, No,

I was. I was a theater nerd. So this is fun to play because this is really not Um you know, that's why my kids were like, you were the town flousing, your boobs are hanging out, and I was a good one. Um No, it was really good writing though, Like that one line, I think there's like we're in the I was watching it last night. I'm it's like we're before the bachelor party. We're in your diner. Stripper comes in for Liz right, and um, you asked, I wrote it down.

It was so funny. Is this how a turkey leg is supposed to look? And she just comes right back and she says, take your pants off and let us see. Come on, I mean, come on, it's this lovely little town. I mean, it's just such a good writing. It was funny, really, like the things that because we talks fast, the things we could say, I know, it was wild. Um okay, And so then, so what else do you remember about that day shooting in the diner with a stripper and

the whole thing. What else can you tell us? Well, I remember that kid was super cute, and I did other things because I was watching it last night and nobody did. But like, we were all on that show, so he had another show at some point, so obviously we weren't the only ones who thought he was cute. But I mean, come on, I might at work in the diner and there's this gorgeous guy that ends up being a star. I don't know what I saw him on stripping for us. And you know, kath Leen who

played Liz, was a blast. She was a blast, oh yeah, yes, and a Della Wise brothers, Oh my gosh. You can't ask for anything better than that. They were hysterical. So we weren't on, you know, doing the scene. We were genuinely laughing and having a great time together. So it was a one day that's good day. Good a lot

of good days in that diner. That was a good atmosphere in there, you know, I like, I really did, because because you could you know, it was outside to begin with it It had the big windows and you could see everything and it was just didn't you know, you didn't feel hemmed in at all, but most of those sets it was just like kind of closed off and um yeah that was a great place to shoot. I love that. Um So you so you watched the episode last night or a couple of the episodes that

you were in. Yeah, okay, and it was that Is that the first time you've done that in a while? In a while? Yeah? So what what does it feel like? Because for me, it's for me it's weird, but I mean, are you used to it now? But what was it like for you? Well? I started watching them and I was like, you know, this is just good. This is good.

This is it, you know, because sometimes you watch your stuff and you're like, oh man, that is just I'm I mean there I had some cringe worthy moments where I was like, whoa, that's a little bige a few of those, but I thought, God, we were good. It's funny, and I ended up really enjoying it. I mean, especially that one, the Renaissance wedding and then the Jews and Chinese food where we have you and I are talking and the kid comes up and we're talking about inappropriate

stuff and he walks up. Come on, that was funny. You were funny. You were fun to work with because you were always the character was always not into it. It was such a great It was such good writing. They put crazy carry up against this guy. She can't see no right right. I loved it. It was great. The kids laughed. They don't laugh a lot. Oh really, they laughed really, But I mean my boobs were hanging out. That was half of it. So what was your favorite

memory being on the set? Um? Oh, there's so many. I loved going out when they would do the little town square stuff, you know, at the wedding and then everybody would come together, you know, whenever you had those scenes where it was everyone from this season and the cast. And but I really do a lot of different things. I love the makeup room, the makeup trailer. Those girls could make you look ten years younger. I would always

walk away with notes. I loved everything I wore. I used to try to steal the necklace or something because they were always finding something. But um, probably my favorites were around that time with Liz and the and the Delawiz brothers and we'd be off and we'd just be cracking up, and you know, Dom Deloise was their dad. And I had done some play with them and Liz with the first thing she said to me. The Kathleen who played Liz came out to me and she was like,

you gotta really fast here. She's like, you got tucked fast, I mean fast. And I was like, yeah, yeah, yeah, I would be okay, I'm gonna I'm gonna talk fast. But I loved meeting you. You were fun. You always were like, you know, blight bit sarcastic and funny and quick. I just thought it was the nicest group of people. I did freak out one time when like I got a line correction for an and I think I left out an and or a butt. And I was like, wow,

so okay, now I'm here, I'm coming word perfect. Huh yeah. Yeah. There was no less we'd have, you know, like like you, some other actors would come on, you know, New York Train, New York Experience Theater, actors, you name, people come on and they would just not be able to do it,

and they would freak a little bit. And it was sometimes said to watch they didn't understand initially how fast they had to go, and they couldn't comprehend it because they never their brain, never had their brain and their emotions never had to engage that quickly. Yeah, and I just you know, and and they all eventually got it right because you know, they you have to and it's amazing what people can do when they have to do it. And they all pulled through. Everybody pulled through and like

just killed it just where they were great. They were great. But initially it was like, wow, they had the same reaction you did, and you know what, and it was also sorry, but but it was also the same reaction we had when we were first there. It's like, oh, faster, fast, that's the only note we got fast to go faster, so then, you know, because we weren't all up to speed right right away. So yeah, it was quite shocking. No. No,

I remember getting a call. I got a call, Oh really really yeah yeah, And he was like, Jill, this is Gilmore girls and so like they always that, they want you to me to tell you like be off book and you got to move it. There are no positives. And I'm like, oh yeah, I'm a little insulted with my agent, right, I'm like, oh yeah, because you've done this so much, I got this. I'm gonna it's called acting on the line, you know. What I mean, we

can do this, we can do this. But even the first time I got into that scene with you, one of my first scenes with you, I was like, Wow, this is fast. This is this is getting to the you know, there's a joke one two three without it feeling like a sitcom, right, this is this is fast. But yeah, I remember being on there and I remember seeing some people struggle a couple of times. It's just

the game moves quickly there. Um. But once I got into the rhythm of what you guys were doing, you played the scene with you guys, then it's sort of you got you got it right, right, Um, what was going on? You did great because you kept your own rhythm and it didn't seem rushed, which is you know, the whole art of it, right, That's what you need to capture for your character. You get caught up in

our rhythms and our speeds. If you're matching, matching, matching, it's not gonna it's gonna be incongrus I agree, right you You kept your own kind of personal rhythm for the character, which is so hard to do on that show. So good on you for that. So so you haven't acted in a while do you miss it? Well, um, good question, I do. But I you know, I went and I had two girls, right, and by the second I the first one, I was like, I gotta find some sort of job that's gonna be a little bit

more stable, and I'll still do this. So I was doing, you know, teaching right right. I was teaching acting classes at a university at APU as there's a Pacific university. And then you know I would still do it. I would. I was still doing a lot. I was doing a lot on Boston Legal. I was like thirteen fourteen episodes, had a great time, this crazy character called U Grace. It was a takeoff on Gracie Jane. It was fun. And then the second kid came along and I would like, now,

I it's not fair. Now do you ever think this yourself. I never would have even thought about like stepping away with self taping. But you had to show up. I mean, you got the fifteen pages, you had to drive, then you had to be ready to go. Oh my word, if I would have never fall going anywhere with the kids screaming in the back, I could have self taped all the way through that. But you know I did.

I just and then I fell into starting a BFA and acting program and I realized I was pretty good at produce sing, so I like became the chair and started this. I don't know, I'm having a great time. It's like a second career. I like teaching acting and we're getting ranked and been in the Hollywood Reporter for having a great showcase. So I love it. I am thinking, though, I'm like, I'm missing acting some I'm missing it a little,

and there's so much content out there. I was like, I don't know, maybe I should self tape and no one wants to see it. You know, it gets a little hard out there. It's hard. Yeah, it's very it's very difficult. Yeah. Yeah, I'd be lying if I said I didn't it was fun. It's like a vacation when you work well. We need you back. We need people like you back, So get your butt back. So we're gonna play a little game for called rapid Fire. I'm gonna ask you, Okay, I'm gonna ask you questions. You're

gonna fire just like the show. You're gonna not give it any thought, just boom right, Okay, Reddy, how many cups of coffee do you having a day too. Are your team low Can, Team Jess or Team Dean? I think I'm team Logan. Who is your favorite Gilmore Girl's character? Um? I loved Paris? What would you order at Luke's Diner? Oh? Oh, Hamburger? Would you rather go on a road trip with Taylor or Michelle? Michelle? Would you finish the lyric? Please? And where you lead? I will follow dot dot dot. Oh,

I don't remember. I don't remember any anywhere that you tell me too. It's okay, you don't have to apologist Jackson's Vegetables or Suki's baked Goods. Would you rather listen to Drella's Harp or The Troubadour's cover songs? Troubadour's cover songs? Sheldon Prepper, Stars Hollow High, What Shelton Prep or Stars Hollow High, Stars Hollow High. Joe Brennan Lincoln, Congratulations, you have passed rapid Fire with flying colors. Thank you for

really good about that. We're happy for you. Uh, thank you so much for your time and coming on. I know you're incredibly busy. Keep going with that program that you're developing over there. Were you at Aso's a Pacific University and congratulation on that. I wish you much success and say hello to the family for me and all the best. Yeah, and it's good to see you. You look grazy. Oh, thank you. I'm you know, we're just out here. We're going crazy, that's all, you know, just

trying to keep you together. Good to see you. Take care, Joe, all right by Hey everybody, and don't forget follow us on Instagram at I Am all In podcast and email us at Gilmore at iHeartRadio dot com. Oh you're Gilmore fans. If you're looking for the best cup of coffee in the world, go to my website from my company scott ep dot com, s c O T. T yp dot com, scottip dot com Grade one Specialty Coffee