208: Happy Birthday Mr. President

Unpacking the Toolbox is a production of Shondaland Audio in partnership with Iheartradiotshas Katie.

Did you ever smoke cigarettes?

No, only in like movies. I would sort of a few days before a week before I because I wanted it to look real, and I did it, But I never got hooked. I never smoked them in real life.

Wow, oh yeah you did. Oh yeah. My early twenties was just like me thinking I was cool and like doing theater and being in like theater, majoring in theater. And it was like at experimental theater wing where we would just roll around the floor naked and keep taking cigarette breaks.

Make noises, like become like different animals and trees.

Yeah, and like making out and everybody was like had very fluid sexuality. I love your shirt. I'd like to also note at the airing of this podcast that Gambo's wearing the most wonderful shirt that says homosexual tendencies with a like a skeleton.

Explain this the skeleton with a leather jacket and a leather hat. Smoking a joint. I say it's a joint. It could be a cigarette or a cigar. I think it's a joint.

Who is the brand.

It's from a Lockwood fifty one. It's a queer brand that does a lot of really cool, sort of edgy provocative, like real sort of skateboarding. You know, Cake, gay Quel, all that skateboarding you do, Yeah, for all that skateboarding at but they have really really cool cool stuff.

Hey, but you know what we do do? That's a nice scandal. Do you do what we do?

Do?

Dooty, what do we do? We are fucking good scooters scooting people.

We do give a good scoot we do.

And this is a nice scandal. Fun fact. Scott Foley is a rap gift or a season premiere gift, I can't remember. One of the fucking greatest, smartest, most amazing gifts ever. He gave everybody a razor I think, yes, yep, which is like adult scooter. And our base camp was like a little bit further from our stages, and so we scooted from stage to base camp where are where our trailers are. And it's the greatest, it's one of the best. See you live in the hills, g you

My scooter's been in the garage for years because you're right, Yeah, it's fine because it was on a shelf that was so good.

Yeah, well, thank you Scott Foley for this gift. But my son is a huge scooter person. He scoots with his little fucking helmet. He's fast, ast shit. He does tricks, he does circles, he does squatting one leg, I believe it. And I scooted with him everywhere on that Scott fully scooter. Wow.

Do you guys wear helmets? Oh? Yeah, fuck that shit. I would wear a helmet too. I'm just thinking back in like Washington Heights, like on a skateboarder, So we didn't even have scooters back then or skates, like no elbow pads, no helmets, nothing. People were scraped up and falling on their heads.

And I like to scoot without a helmet. I like to run on the danger sign. But to be honest, then Albi goes, how come you're wearing I have that helmet?

And you do? I think I think it's it's necessary.

And he's actually taken some fucking spills, so I'm like, yeah, yeah, which is fine. I don't mind scraped ups. But like he's wearing a helmet.

Oh yeah, hell yah. There's another gift from Scott Foley and it's a framed photograph of my parking spot.

God damn it, Scot Foley. Those were two exceptional gifts.

They were like like unique and creative.

Did they super aarty, black and white big prince of our parking spots with our name on it? Wait? Did your say mindsets k dot load?

Did you're saying just yeah, that's it? Yeah, But it's cool. It's simple, it's like you know, it's it's clean, it's crisp, it's it's such a cool, very arty, it's such a cool piece.

And it's such a statement, like you know, when you're an actor coming up and it's a real shit show. It's such a status symbol of making it that you don't even realize how huge it is until you get a parking spot on a Hollywood studio a lot that has your name like spray painted onto it. That's your parking spot. No one else is allowed to park in it, and it is such a god it's such a moment.

Well you think, all right, this is this is permanent. That this is pretty permanent. I mean, of course they got paint over that shit in two seconds. But in our heads we think, all right, they like us, they really like us, they want us to stay.

They like me, you really like me. It's the same as the status of getting a back of a chair. Also, Hollywood, if you're on a show, you get your cast chair that you sit in while you're waiting until your scene is ready to shoot. And also along the back of it is usually your name.

Yeah, I have mine right here? Did you keep your you do? Yeah? I have a director in my room.

Oh you do.

I'm not going to reach back because I'm going to fall on my head. Yeah, I have it right, I have it right here beyond you. And it says scandal and like the you know, like when you yeah.

Yeah, the red shredded paper.

Yeah yeah, gave them to us. Yeah.

After we wrapped, we also had scandal warming coats.

Yeah. Oh I didn't keep that.

I didn't either, and god damn it, I wish I had. But look, we keep it real here on unpacking the toolbox up. Now, tell the people, Tell the people, Tell the gladiators what we're talking about today, which is episode two eight entitled Happy Birthday, Mister President, which aired on December sixth, twenty twelve.

And it was written by the Shonda Rhymes.

Wow. Yeah, that's why this one's so fucking hot, okay.

And it was directed by Oliver Bolckelberg, who was our cinematographer, our DP for years and then he started directing a bunch of episodes. He's amazing.

That's right, he's amazing. It was guest starring Kate Burton as Vice President Sally Langston, Norm Lewis as Senator Edited Edison Davis, Bryan Lesher Is Tom Samantha Sloyan as Janine, Stony Westmoreland as Hal Virginia, Louise Smith as Secretary of State.

Kavita Pattil as Doctor Number four, Kiko a Jenna as Press Secretary Britta Kagan, Troy Winbush as Mars Lcott, Stephen Collins as Reed Wallace, and Tyreese Allen as Doctor Carroll.

Wow. I'm very excited to talk to me about this episode because Shonda, she wrote the shit out of this episode.

It's an oldie, but a goodie.

Yeah, it's a banger. It's really fucking chock full, as they all are but this one really okay, let's remind you, let's jog you gladiators and your memory banks about what's going on. So this is what's happening. In two o eight, Happy Birthday, Misster President, the hospital is a buzz. In the aftermath of Fits being shot, Olivia remembers the end of the campaign trail and a significant pin she gifted

In the past, we follow Fitz and Olivia's escalating affair during the days following Fitz's election, with some frightening results as Hollis takes care of a reporter looking into defiance. The tension the affair and the lengths that Hollis and Cyrus will go to scares Olivia into resigning.

And finally, as Sally has sworn in his acting president,

Oh hell yeah, he does. And he does that, like you said, with the camera work. Even the shooting of the president is done in such an amazing, like innovative way. It's almost sped up, right, Yeah, like he speeds up. It's the film shooting.

Yeah, it looks like really weird. It's so powerful though.

Yeah, and you see it's like the blood spray too, when you see them sort of get hit by the bullets.

Yeah, oh god. And we see Edison calls Olivia and he's they're throwing him in the bunker and he's calling it. He's like, what's going on? Live, Like they're putting me in the bunker. And then I just wrote the line Carrie's dress is amazing.

Oh man, I didn't look up who made that dress, but the dress is amazing.

Oh my god, it's so ridiculous, Lin Paolo, It's like it's insane, and she's got her hair all pressed out, and she's got this like ridiculously beautiful, flowy white of course dress that has like sparkly.

In the front right on her booby. It's so fucking fucking Edison. I was like, Oh, here's Edison again. I had a question, had not Edison again? Jeez? How long do they have to stay in that bunker? Those people like they're like, let's go, We're gonna hide you guys away, which happens in real life? Like this is crazy.

I don't know, like if this were to well, I'm like, if this were actually happened, this has actually happened. I have no idea what protocol looks like in terms of like I think they probably have to that's probably be I'm gonna trust the scandal writers and say that this

I don't know. Well, also, because the shooter is still at large, right, they didn't catch the shooter so in that case, I could see how they have to hide these people away because if they're all killed, then we're just you know, thrown into chaos.

Chaos.

Meanwhile, sometimes nobody shot and we're still in chaos.

Okay. So then we see what causes the whole backstory to unlock, is that we see the pin, this beautiful American flag pin that fell off, you know, during the shooting. We see what the origin of this pin story is, which is Olivia gave Fits this pin on his inauguration day, and we learned that the pin was actually an Eisenhower pin, and it's so fucking smart, Shonda rhymes, of course she wrote this episode.

It's so beautiful, it's so beautiful. But of course, the minute that Mellie walks in and sees the pin in the flashback, you know scene on fits his lapel and she's like, oh, where'd you get that? And he was like, oh was Eisenhower's motherfucker's lying to her already, Ja.

Is lying to Melly. She's just like, where's this pin from? And they don't even say like, oh, Olivia got it for me, or.

Like he just said, oh, it belonged to Eisenhower and that was it.

She but that pin she learns in this episode having an affair.

Oh yeah, she learns.

This is the episode where Melly figures it out because of that fucking pin, so he's sworn in. We see a fight between James and Jeff James and Jeff James and Cyrus because James can't go to the inaugural balls because Cyrus isn't out yet that he's in a committed relation, committed homosexual relationship.

And Olivia is sort of lurking in the hallway like hearing this argument right.

Right, And then Fitz goes to the inaugural balls and all that, but guess what he leaves early and he meets Olivia Pope in the oval Oof office and she says, mister President, I could never shoot a scene like this with a straight face.

Doesn't he say say it again or something like that, mister President?

She say it again and she says, mister President.

Trying to get those inaugural balls worked up?

Yeah's right? Then the ass inaugural old balls. All the crazy thing is like I the whole time, this scene is so hot because and we know because we had Shonda Rhimes as guest on this first and the first episode of this podcast we ever did, and she said, I'm gonna have Olivia and Fitz have sex on the desk in the Oval office. Well, here you have it, folks, because Fitz gets down on his knees and he goes to sloppy third yo.

But if first, Olivia is a resisting, resisting, resisting, and she's like, we cannot do this anymore. She even says, look at where we are. We can't do this anymore. We have to stop. And I love when Fitz is like, no, I can't stop. I'm not gonna stop. Can you stop? And she's like m mmm. And that's when she saddles on the desk and he just that skirt up real cute, real slow. She's like, oh so hot.

Could they have shot this scene? I would have broken one thousand, wouldn't have made it past calling him mister President with a straight face like there's no fucking way in hell. So kudos to carry Washington.

Kudos, yes, But it's it's a steamy, steamy, fucking scene. It goes there like she's unbuckling his belt, he has her hand up her skirt like you could see it. It's it's super like it.

Was for like network television. I mean the ones are where a ten PM show?

No wonder we were, I mean.

It was it was really really hot, and I was uncomfortable. I like look away a couple times because I was.

Like, I know these people, you know what Katie I did the how stupid? I was like, how stupid are you? Girmo, why are you like looking down? Like I literally caught myself looking.

Down at it too. It was like too much to ta, Yes, it's too much to take. I think I wonder if our gladiators listening felt that way. They probably were right there with them. But I think it's probably because we personally know the two of them and it's fucking weird, Like yeah, I mean, it's just bizarre. And then we backflashed to the present day. Sally's acting president and it's all on news channels and she fucking lands on the front lawn of the White House, which is such a

Meanwhile, Yo, I wrote in my notes Homegirl listed off like eight things. I was like, wait, what bring my suits, my stockis, my socks, my toothbrush, my my my onesie, like.

What my songs, my underwear, my toothbrush, my flat iron, my Cricks concealer, my moistrising. And that's funny because I heard it and I was like, oh wow, that's really not.

A lot like conservative. You were like yeah.

I just was like, oh wow, that's like exactly what someone would need to be at work for four or five days and nothing more. And also they listed no makeup, and I'm like, well, yeah, Kerry Washington doesn't need any makeup. She's fucking perfect.

Oh.

There's tons of going back to after he's been elected president, but he's preparing for his inauguration day and he's preparing for his inauguration speech. They go and move to Camp David to prep his inauguration speech. And the reason they do this is because that night on the Oval office in the desk was caught on the camera and Fitz is running with his navy shirt and Hal is like, there are cameras, sir, and he's like what He's like, there's cameras, and Fits is like, where am I going

Want, yes, but I love that Fits has sort of his first reaction is like, oh shit, there's cameras. They saw everything. But then he's like, Okay, where are there not cameras? Like he's like, I want to know where I can screw in the White House. I was like, oh.

Man, they move Cyrus, Olivia and Fits but not Melly to Camp David so that they could just like write and work on his speech and his plan of his first hundred days and do it.

This is all in the flashback, right.

Flashwake, But like there's gotta be cameras in Camp David. This is total bullshit. I call bullshit on this, right.

Man, I don't fucking know. But also, is that like a you know what I mean? Is that like fucking with someone's privacy if the cameras are like inside like in the bedroom, and like you know what I mean, maybe there aren't. Maybe there are cameras.

Oh yeah in the bedroom, in the bathrooms they can now right there's there, yeah, right, so that they could they couldn't screw in the bedrooms in the White House because Melly's in there. Right, that's right, I get it. I get it. Okay, okay. So they're having so much sex and it's so cute. They're laughing, they're coming up with his plans for the first hundred days. They're arguing, but.

It likes up against the wall.

She's pushing against no you, no you, no you gives me a gag.

But it's hot. It's hot. They're naked, like, yeah, it's it's so steamy, it's so it's a lot.

It's really cute. And then that all comes to a big, fat end because Nelly shows up at Can't David with a nice cooked lasagna.

This motherfucker said, h I live.

She's like, how the dinner? The kids went to school, and I figured I would just like check up on how it's going.

And it's that look on his face like, oh God, I did this is not my doing.

Live and Live is like feels like the other woman.

Yeah, really is the other woman.

She feels really bad, and so he's pissed. She's pissed. She's pissed. She's pissed, and they haven't really spoken in a few days. They returned back to the White House. They're not talking, and this is actually a huge moment for Scandal, I feel like, because fits is like, what's wrong, what's going on? And She's like, you know what I'm feeling, just really Sally Hemmings Thomas Jefferson about this?

Is that what was? Tell me what that? Tell me? What that is?

Well, Sally Hemmings was the black slave that Thomas Jefferson was in love with. Oh sh and I'm pretty sure I want to say she had some babies, but she is the black slave that Thomas Jefferson was sleeping with for I think a really long time. I think he was like in love with her.

And they loved each other, like they truly loved each other.

So Sally Hemmings had five babies with's Thomas Jefferson. Yeah. And so what I think is so amazing about Scandal is like, this is episode two oh eight, and so we've been watching an affair between a white president and a black woman for fifteen episodes, and this is the first time that Shonda is bringing up this very very very famous relationship that in some ways like really mirrors

But also, if I'm not mistaken, Katie, it was. Race was never brought up again. I mean, it might have been. I could be wrong, but I don't think it was. It was really they made it a thing which I really.

Loved, not in their relationship. We did it for the lawn Chair episode with forty b bands. We talked about police brutality, We talked about that there.

If it's in.

Olivia, no, this is I want to say. I mean again, guys listening, we've only watched the first two seasons of Scandal, so we'll correct ourselves if when we're wrong, but it's really my only memory of it too. We will be back with more after the break.

Katie tell me, is this the scene where she says, we can't do this? Like and fit has this ridiculously fucking the best acting I've seen, so fucking that's coming.

The best acting on the show is coming right now. So she gets in his face in the hallway and she says, like really quietly, like in his face, like I don't know, I'm feeling really sallly hmming is Thomas Jefferson about this whole thing right now? And he is taken aback, like you see him like this, And then again we don't see them together until like the fucking winning scene of this episode, in one of the greatest scenes.

You can see his like lip quivering and his eyes are watery. It's like beyond like fucking kiss.

I didn't write some of the writing in this, that Shonda rope, but it's like she Olivia is saying to him and the Rose Garden like I can't do this anymore. I can't live like this. All I live, breathe and thinking is your thoughts. You own me, and it's all about this slavery thing. It's like bringing about this slavery situation, like you own me. She says, like I can't do anything you want me. I'm there. You want me to

You owe me sooga. But then Fitz says, and I did write down some of these lines.

He tell me, maybe tell me, tell me belongs.

You own me. You're the love of my life. I belong to you. And he oh, looks so fucking good. And she's like, what the fuck? But you know, at the same time, it's making her fall in love with him even more. Oh my, because she's like, oh my god, this guy really really loves me. He fucking he nails this scene. I mean they both do, him and Olivia, but it's this. This was my favorite scene in this episode.

Me too. This is the winning scene. This is krem dela Creme and honestly one of the best, most passionate. You know why this scene is so amazing and why it's because we believe and know that they love each other so much despite race, fite president not president, despite despite it all, it's like they are sick in love with each other, and like they're acting and her writing and the commo of it all and being a prose garden is like till the end of time people were olits through and.

Through and again we've we've mentioned there's a million times, but the chemistry between Tony Goldwin and Kerry Washington is just it's you know, it's spectacular, like if that wasn't there, And of course including Seanna's writing and the act all of it, but their chemistry is just so present. It's so real that you can't you can't look away. You believe it, You believe it one hundred percent, you know what I mean.

Oh god, Tony's acting, it's so good. You own me, you own me, I belong to you.

Yes, I'm sick too.

I can't eat, I can't think, I can't like all this shit.

Is made me cry. Oh my, oh man, it's so good. But again, and Olivia has that look on her face like like she cannot believe the words that are coming out of his mouth, but she's loving.

We should start. I just had a real brain inspiration. I think we should start re enacting other characters scenes from this, says Quinn and Hauck, or is just Katie and Geirmo because I love.

That so much and I think our listeners will love it. Just think.

Joe Morton, some of those monologues.

I want to be Sally Langston, like sh talk about great acting. You hate her more than ever in this episode, like she is a hateful, hateful double woman.

That's horrible to tell you, guys, what Sally Langston is doing in this fucking episode. So she was promised on the campaign trail that she was going to nominate the next Supreme Court justice. But ha HAA a little bit of a conflict here is that Verna Thornton was promised for being part of the goons who rigged the election,

And her voice Katie reaches a pitch that I have never heard before.

It was yes, it's like very animalistic rage.

Yes, yes, wait he got very.

What you said animalistic like an animals like it was crazy. It was so crazy.

And it was It also made me think, okay, homegirl says a Supreme Court justice nominie cannot come back from that I'm air quoting scandal, which was like he committed a little crime when he was fifteen. Meanwhile, now thinking too thousand fucking you know twenty twenty, twenty two, twenty three, like the shit, that's the scandals that are happening within the Supreme Court justices and they're already on the bench and nothing. Nobody's bat in an eye, you know what

It was like people are they they were writing the show to have some moral compass. Of course, we even though Olivia Pope kills someone with a chair, but like whatever.

But also Katie, like, during this time, it still wasn't crazy in our world. So it was it was real, you know what I mean? This shit was it was real.

Yes, And then Sally's all pissed. They go to Melly and they say, Sally Langston is making a play for the White House. She just landed on the lawn. Go leave this hospital, find something to wear, get on the podium and tell the American people that we don't need Sally Langston. Our president is still alive in kicking. Don't pretend like he's not. And my god, does Melli it up her pull on her bootstraps.

Yo, tell Mellie that she can maybe not be in the White House anymore, and that bitch will be like, what do I have to do? She like she like she conjured up some inn and was like, yeah, I'm gonna shut this down.

Animal, she's a political animal. But getting ready for that, Olivia has to go and get her clothes of what she's gonna wear, and so she walks past all of Fit's clothes and he's like in the midst of possibly dying, and she sees that navy sweatshirt, you know, the one that says Navy on it, and she just gives it a whiff and cries.

Oh, she said she gave it, gives it a whiff and cries, she sure does.

Man.

That's another there's a lot of powerful scenes in this episode. When she takes that whiff from that that sweatshirt. Yo, Katie, did you notice? And that see she breaks down, but then she has this moment where she's like, she stiffens up and she's like, I cannot do this shit. Pull it together, Olivia, And she pulls herself together, and she shakes the sweatshirt and folds it really sort of sternly and puts it. Oh it was so good.

Yeah, she's she's so amazing, bringing it back to the Sally Hemmings Thomas Jefferson line of it all when she is smelling the navy sweatshirt. After that, we flashed back to inauguration time and Fitz has invited Olivia to look at the Constitution and they touch it and it says

I already touched it, touching it.

I've been touching it. And then she touches it, and I don't know, like I really had a moment like to see a TV show where a black woman touches the constitation you see her finger, like yes, yes, you see her finger touched the Constitution where it was like all these white men who wrote it, and I don't know, I'm so glad Shonda wrote this episode and wrote it like this. And I mean I was moved like multiple times over. I just was like super moved and really felt and proud.

I felt really proud, yeah to be on the show because in moments like this.

Like I was such a small cog in the wheel of this show that was yes, it was like you know, water cooler and OMG moments and binge worthy and we were tweeting and all the things. But what's so great about Shonda Rhymes is that she was actually also like moving the needle in the way that she knows how you know.

Yeah, there was some real stuff in these in these episodes that were lessons too or or reminders that people needed to be reminded of certain things, and she does it in such a beautiful way. But I feel like there's a story behind when they shot that scene. Did they shoot that? I feel like, did they shoot that scene in They couldn't have shot that in DC? Right?

No?

That I don't think is that recreated that?

Yeah? Totally, I think. I mean I could be wrong, but I think I don't think we ever. I don't think anyone ever went to d C until the final the second to final episode of the whole series.

I don't know.

But it was fucking real. Yeah, I mean did they did a great job. And when they do touch the Constitution, she cries and says, I'm in love with you too, and it's over the Constitution and it's so lovely.

Yeah, Constitution made her say it.

Yeah, Yeah, she's like, my boyfriend took me on a date to touch the Constitution.

I love you, and that's where the pin goes miss right.

So the pin goes missing in that constitution scene, and then Melly comes to Olivia and says, oh, I wanted to give this back to you, and how told me that Fitz didn't bring his wife to see the Constitution. He chose to bring you. And it's the first.

Which because I would have wanted to be there, been there.

And then she has the most amazing dialogue that's like we all did This is all passive aggressive too. She's like, we all did what we needed to do to get fits in office, and now it is our job to keep him there, meaning like I will keep playing wife, you keep playing mistress, whatever we have to do to keep the president president. And it's like this is all flashback, but this is when the whole charade and all the

They're patriots, they died for us, for fits to be have been in office, die for.

A greater cause. And Olivia is just looking around like all these people are fucking out of their minds.

And he also Cyrus mentions Lindsay Dwyer, which is Quinn Perkins of course, and says she's gonna you know, she she's doing her country a service.

Lindsay Dwyer is doing her country services, doing her patriotic duty, all for the greater good of this country.

But also it all goes back to Olivia again because Olivia is the one that gives the Jesse Tyler name right to Hollis Doyle, which Huck gives to her because she knows that somebody has been sort of meddling and asking questions and sort of in there, so she wants them out. So it all goes back to Olivia. So Olivia is somewhat responsible for this explosion, for Jesse Tyler dying.

It's why she saves Lindsay Dwyner because she feels so sad. Yes, she will not let another person die for this sin that she did, this choice she made of bringing the election. She will not let anyone else go and that's why she sends Huck to get Lindsay.

Oh man, we'll be right back, guys.

Okay. In the ending of the episode, Olivia resigns. She writes a resignation letter she signs Olivia Pope. She includes the Eisenhower pinn that she gave on the inauguration day. She leaves it on the fucking desk of the O office. She pieces out and she starts Olivia Fucking Pope and associates.

Yes, uh so good. But do you think that Olivia knew? Because Lindsay Dwyer slash Quinn Perkins is an exceptional worker at OPA, do you know what I mean? She has that drive.

I didn't know.

So do you think she knew or she just took a chance. She just wanted to save this girl.

Because I hope she wanted to save her and felt like, I'm just gonna keep her in my keeper round, under my wing, to keep her around to make sure she's safe. And then it sort of like ends it up that all right, Like now this is just how it is, Like I'm watching this girl like she's mine.

Oor man score for Olivia that Quinn Perkins ends up being this freaking you know boss Chiller.

Yes, it's so crazy. And the very very end of the episode they're swearing in Sally Langston and like the BackFlash of his pin that fell off. They have the pin and Melly picks it up off the floor in the hospital where it fell off where he's like bleeding out, and she puts it next to his shot up body. And then the very very end, the last two minutes, you know how he scanned do those last fucking thirty seconds they go but crazy that they dream at it's Huck that shot the press?

Oh man, how did you like Huck's work?

At the end?

I really liked it. Again, this was one of those scenes where I had to learn how to assemble and disassemble a motherfucking rifle, which is so not me. I can barely send like a video text to someone like I'm.

Just scared for links for Google link because he doesn't know how to get it off his phone. He doesn't a.

Picture of me and I'm the most impatient person. When I get frustrated, I'm not good at something and I can't learn it. I get frustrated and I get mad, and I remember being there and be like, Okay, let's do it again. I was just so because I wasn't getting it. And God bless Jeff Props, who just was, you know, the nicest and the most patient person, and just little by little, one piece by one piece, and

Like you had an assemble of an automatic rifle.

Yeah yeah, but I I love it. I love that moment. I love the moment where he Huck turns around to look for the bullet and you see that it's Huck. Oh. I was so excited. Man, this is gonna get good. And this is also I think this is where the hashtag what the huck started. Oh, this is really one. And then the next episode is where it's sort of you know, a lot because people were like, oh, what the heck, oh.

Oh oh, let's see if there are any fun fucking facts.

Yeah.

Well, Mark Harrolic did not reprise his role as Press Secretary Marvin Colegate. Did he get fired.

From the season. I don't know. You know, sometimes people get jobs.

I'm gonna say that that's what happened because he's so talented. I've worked with them before. He's amazing. And he's also friends with a casting director and Jeff. I feel like they've worked together a million times.

And listen, when you get it, when you get a curring role or a you know, a featured role or a guest starring role, there's no guarantee of continued work. So as an actor, you have to continue searching for work. And he probably booked a show or a movie where he couldn't get off and he was working, so they have to recast it.

And that's when they replaced him with Keko a Gina, who replaced him as press secretary Britta Kagan, who tragically in this episode her character was killed as a result of your fucking girlfriend, Becky.

What a bit bitch. But also, can I just take a moment and speak about Kaiko I hope I'm saying her name right. Kaiko A Jenna, who is another regular on a beloved show of mine, Gilmore Girls. She's one of the leads in gilmart Girls. Yeah, play your name is Keiko Keiko. She plays Rory's best friend Lane on Gilmore Girls.

For she did one hundred and kidding me, one hundred and.

Fifty four episodes on Gilmore Girls. And that girl can talk faster than any of us.

Oh yeah. I remember auditioning for Gilmore Girls and they would tell me to talk faster, and then the casting director gave me the note, you talk out of the side of your mouth.

Two. So does Milo into Meglia, what is she talking about? He's the biggest side mouth talker in the world and it's the sexiest thing ever.

I remember auditioning for Gilmore Girls and they were like, you need to talk faster, and I was like, oh honey, I got this and I'm talking so fast. She was like, also, you only talking to the side of your mouth? Can you not do that?

Are you cute? I'm so confused right now because again, Miglia, who is a regular on Gilmore Girls. Who's hot Rory's you know, boyfriend? For is any Yes, he's on this is us and he's on a name Vinimiglia. I could be KAMLEI.

I think that's right. I think that's it.

I could be completely wrong, Lea, but I think it's Vini Meglia. But homeboy has the cutest lisp and he just talks out of the side of his mouth. Is always funny that you know they were telling you, producers was telling you not to do that.

Okay, Keo is killed and I'm so bummed. She should have had like a much bigger party. And then I have continuity error. Referenced in Dirty Little Secrets, we learned that as a part of the Defiance Conspiracy Lia deal, Verna Thornton was to receive a seat on the Supreme Court, the first Supreme Court justice to be nominated by the Grand Administration. But in season one, episode two, a news anchor reports that Patrick Keating is to be the president's

So how do we expect these writers to keep all these facts together? Like that's a teeny tiny continuity or that I would never catch unless our producers for this podcast told us, you know what you read.

And also we're not even in season five six yet. I bet these continuity errors are going to get imagine if you were on Gray's Anatomy like season twenty.

Can you imagine?

No, I can't. I cannot imagine. Guess what time it is now? Scandal Scandal, Scandal Scannel tweets of the talent.

Oh, I get very gassy when we do our tweets at the time portion of this podcast.

Katie, me too, Germo and hungry. Okay, Yes, the Scandal writers. Oh my god, I forgot that the Scandal writers had their own handle.

Oh yeah, they were.

Yet god, everybody was so everybody was on Twitter. It was the costume department, the wardrobe, the hair, the makeup, the writers, everybody, Scandal writers wrote, The Scandal writers just watched tonight's episode together on a big screen and it is amazing. Ten nine Central people, big screen not required. That is such a writery writ tweet. I've upseid.

Really, it's so well written. Yes, okay, and then we have Chan at my friend Chan tweets one thing you won't do is text slash call me while Olivia Pope is on I need to find out who shot her boo hashtag scandal agreed, Chan agree.

Reed at Dresshon on December sixth, tweeted first lady set him up at jerm meets World. Fits done, been shot, dead to the earth. Who y'all think did it? Hashtag scandal I love and this person thinks the first lady set him up, which, by the way, we haven't really talked about that.

That's right.

Yeah, they really did make it seem like she did it. You think, how well, what before he gets out of the car, she says, yes, yes, we shouldn't go. We shouldn't go. I have a weird feeling, let's not go. And then when he gets shot. They did a shot in this episode where she lifts up her head and she's like looking around kind of weirdly. I don't know. I think they kind of framed her a little bit.

I never thought that when she's in the limo in the previous episode saying let's not go. I don't want to go. I just chalked that up to woman's intuition, Like I thought, she feels something, she feels something's off, it doesn't feel right. I almost respected her and loved her even more because of because of that little piece and that in the limo where she didn't want him to go. I never equated that with her possibly setting

People thought that Mellie was possibly doing it. At Marvine XO tweeted with hashtag scandal, Milly I love when people call her Milly. Milly knew some shit was gonna go down.

I don't care. I don't care.

I don't care, I don't care. He just tweeted IDC period, IDC period, which is I don't care, and I never knew that till today period. Yes.

Yeah, but also you'll check it out. It's funny how it's all women that are saying this about another woman. I wonder as a guy, I thought, oh no, she just she feels something's off, so she doesn't want to go. I never But of course the women are like, mmm, she knew something was up.

She's yeah, right, that's right, Oh yeah, I mean yeah. At Samantha D. Godwin tweets, haha, you know it's a spicy episode. When at Scandal four, when one informs everyone to not tweet at Tony Goldwyn tonight, well done, sir, well done. Hashtag scandal.

And then we got that about I don't know not to tweet Tony tonight. I don't know what that. I don't know what that.

Oh, because it's so sexual. This episode was so sexual.

Oh, perhaps well. And then we have Golden Girls six seventeen and she says, everyone at work is trying to figure out who shot the president hashtag scan So it was me, everybody, it was a Huck.

You guys all remember, like we're about to go down a really dark journey with Huck. We're talking warderboarding. We're talking dark and dark darkness underneath the Pentagon and what's really going underneath the streets of DC. The next episode we have up is called blown Away.

Little did I know that I was gonna venture out into the world of nudity on prime time television.

You guys just weren't lucky enough to see it. But everybody who was in the room who shot with Huck that day when he was getting tortured Sawyrbo's dick and balls.

My country breakfast, two eggs and a Dolson.

You've never heard that.

You're welcome, Katie qlows, You're.

Welcome a country breakfast, country breakfast. Look out. I'm teaching that to my son right away because I think it's fucking hilarious. He's not gonna get it.

Folks, this has been a pleasure and a dream.

We can't wait to be back again for Blown Away. We may or may not have a guest. You may or may not hear about the country breakfast that Hucks serves up while he's getting tortured in the Pentagon. What a dream?

What is awesome? Thank you, Thank you guys, Thank you gladiators for listening and going on this journey with us. This is like creating Hello.

Should we say, oh, Fiva la vida, everybody, Viva la vida. And thank you Shonda Rhymes for writing this episode or this episode was five years This is.

A good one. Go watch this. If you guys haven't watched it and you heard the podcast episode, go to the episode on Hulu.

Happy birthday, mister President. Could you imagine doing that? Mister President? Say it again? And then he says, wait, no, what did you say say?

I like it?

What you say say it again. Oh good. So you'll play Olivia and I'll play fits.

We gotta put we gotta do that, We gotta pitch that. If we could like read.

That scene me, I belong to you.

That was so good, That was so good. I got cho Bye, y'all, bye everybody. Thank you guys for joining us on Unpacking the Toolbox. If you enjoyed the show, please subscribe, share with your friends, rate, or leave us a review.

Scandal is executive produced by Sandy Bailey, Alex Alcea, Lauren Homan, Tyler Klang, and Gabrielle Collins. Our producer and editor is Vince de Johnny, with music by Chad Fisher.

Scandal is a production of ABC Signature, and you can follow along by rewatching Scandal on Hulu.

Unpacking the Toolbox is a production of Shondaland Audio in partnership with iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from Shondaland Audio, visit the iHeartRadio app or anywhere you subscribe to your favorite shows.

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