212: Truth or Consequences w/ Adam Shapiro

Unpacking the Toolbox is a production of Shondaland Audio in partnership with Higheart Radio.

And Katie.

What's the Weirdest Thing You've Ever Eate? I love that this podcast always.

Go back to fucking food.

Yes, I mean my parents used to make us liver steaks. Like actually, you would go to the grocery store and get you know, liver cut in like a steak, and we would eat that like once a month.

That's really good for you. I feel like that's.

What she would say. But we'd be like, oh, we gotta eat the liver steaks.

But then I'm giving it to you because you were like low on iron or something or was it like a Cuban.

No, I think I think she was thinking more the health benefits of it, and again she would give it. She would cook that for us about once a month, and also she really her and my dad loved it. And you know what's funny, eventually I grew to like it. And she would cook it really well like a steak, and then cook a ton of onions and put those on top of it, and it was actually really good. Now I'm craving a fucking liver steak.

Oh.

I don't go out of my way to be like super experimental. But like, I was just in Mexico City and there were so many crickets, oh yeah, on in the specialty drinks and everybody was eating them. And I was like, I am not I don't with that.

I don't really want to do that.

But I in Japan I had turtle soup and there were little squares of turtle, not like endangered turtles, like soft shelled turtles or like okay there.

It was disgusting to me. I did not like it.

Then we went to Iceland and we had horse and we had whale.

Bitch you talking about I don't really I don't you ate whale and horse.

Like a title like they they ate. Yeah, I've had horse, whale, turtle. I did not do guinea pig. I've done not.

I've not done bugs. What about bison, I've had bison.

I like bison. I like I've had a bison berger too. You know what I've never had, Katie, I've never had venison. Have you had venison?

That's deer?

Right?

Yes?

No?

I jerky, you're a jerky.

You're a jerky.

My uncle is a big hunter and he and like in a traditional way, like he lives in Buffalo and he if he got a deer.

I'm sure they used that. They used the skin they used.

So he has a cabin and when he scores a big thing like that, it's like they have it all cut up. They freeze it all they like salted they but anyway, so he had brought like pepperoni that he had like made that was venison.

Like I will.

Fucking booty bump a venison beef jerky right now. I'm so fucking hungry. There was a crew member.

On Scandal, old Jerky right, who.

Made jerky and he would bring me bags of it and it was so good they to.

Bring it back to Scandal, buddy right.

Our crew on Scandal were the fucking tops man like top shelf.

Can't wait to have them on. We need to have our crew on. Oh speaking of yes, we do have.

A guest today and other than gear Moo Diaz, I have to say he may be one of my soulmates of my life.

Oh I think he's mine too. I think he's everyone's soul mate for that matter, like Adam is loved to be.

He is our guest today.

Oh fuck, I just said his name.

No, it's great.

You guessed it. Guermo leaked it. It is the one and only Adam Shapiro who played Jesse Tyler. Yes, but let me tease a little bit about Adam Shapiro. He's the biggest This person was the biggest Scandal fan when he came on the show. Like, the show was already in the midst of season two, so it was a big hit, and this special guest was freaking the fuck out that they were going to come and be on Scandal. He's definitely feels way more comedic and Scandal is a drama.

Yeah, but he gets real intense in this episode.

He does get real. He delivers that he definitely had to audition for the role. He definitely was boning a series regular on Scandal.

Show enough.

Oh no, it sounds good, you guys, this is Adam Shapiro.

Wow, this is exciting. Finally in the room where it happens.

Can you believe it? Are you right next to Katie in the closet? Are you in a whole other room?

I am, you know, because of sound or whatever, I'm in a whole other room.

Where are the kids right now?

There?

It's Esqualo in Luela Laela. They're in Lasquela, which is such a blessing. So Adam like, if you want to do this podcast right quick and then meet in the bedroom for a quickie, we can get it all done.

Fuck yeah, can I come now.

As long as as long as it's with that grainy ass camera you got filmed in you right now?

What is that?

Yeah?

My god, there's something.

There's something about scandal podcasts and just just it out in us.

Talk about food, we talk about we talk about poop, and we talk about scandal.

Oh.

I know, I hear you guys through the closet door all the time.

Mike, you two.

When I come out from taping, he's like, oh, it sounded like a good episode.

Everything okay.

Before we get into the specific episode of two twelve, Adam Shapiro, we have so many notes on you, so like.

Don't worry.

So many notes wow, oh, and we're not going to get to most of them. Probably.

I want to know where were you in your life when you booked Jesse.

Who rigged the election? He helped Talis Doyle rig the election.

And a real nice fun fact Jesse Tyler in Photos season one was somebody completely different.

That's Watt fun that's right. We're boarding a Jesse Tyler and it's not Adam.

It was not Adam. Adam, where were you in your life?

I was explaining when we were teasing you that you were a huge Scandal fan before you booked the job. How did you book the job? Take us through your audition? Were you nervous? Tell me all the things?

You know?

I was nervous because a I It's like, I don't.

Want to this thing's going so well for us.

You know, Katie's on it, it's helping the household. I don't want to get on that show and ruin it. But then Linda Lowe called me in for an audition for Jesse Tyler. I remember. The only person I remember in the waiting room was actually the the young man who just announced that he's running for Congress for California, Ben Savage. What yeah, Ben's Savage.

Just announced he's running for Congress.

Ben Savage Tyler, Ben's Babageway actor.

No, Ben Savage from Like Boy Meets World Bro?

Shit?

What Fred Savage and Ben Savager brothers?

Oh?

Yeah, Fred Savage and Ben Savager brothers, and also have either of them been in horror movies because if they haven't, Gearmo does.

Not know that. No, you don't know that's it. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's ludicrous.

That's who was in the room.

I remember seeing him there and I'm like, oh, Ben, sama're just gonna get it and I and he probably saw me walk in and was like, oh god, this guy's married to the to the girl that all the scenes with.

But anyway, so with the audition went well, and Linda gave me a bunch of redirects.

She did yeah.

Scenes. Do you remember what were the audition scenes?

I think one of them was the phone call between you and me where I'm like, were you call me? And you're like, hey, guess I guess who got into law school?

Yeah?

I guess who's a lawyer?

Who's a lawyer?

No?

Guess who graduated law school?

Yes? Yes?

And then as the other.

Phone called the one, You're like so fucking pissed at Hollis Doyle like.

You like yeah, and now, Katie, you know you know this about me, But I think my strongest suit as an actor is acting like I'm on the phone.

That is a special skill.

Fucking Shapiro's phone acting. It's great remarkable. He has done one thousand phone commercials where I.

Have a real I have a whole three minute reel of me talking on the phone.

Ye are you serious, which we have to post when this episode comes out to.

It's I mean that is I'm.

Really really bad at it, Like I consciously try as an actor to like I've I've gone as far as to like write the other side of the conversation to pretend I'm pausing and hearing what the other person may be saying.

I mean, I really have tried. Can you show us right now?

Well, there's a there's there's a lot of tricks in the trade.

One is where your eyes go when you're on the phone. It's just sort of like random.

Right looking around, sort of whoa. Now the times have changed because now we have ear pods, right.

So we don't write, so you don't even have to when.

We're acting phone acting. You don't have to even put your hand up to your eyes.

So if you're on the earpod, you could just do something like this.

Yeah, but you still have to look like you're thinking about I'm so glad.

The podcast is hearing what you look like while you're.

But then but then you have to do things like uh, uh, you know you have to like, yeah, try to get your yes.

Yes.

You gotta be like, uh, make.

That shit real.

That that's what I'm saying a conversation. Yeah, and so you A lot of times I use the my next line as the line I'm trying to get in. But Kim, you know, so it looks it's a nice sort of wow.

For all you fucking actors listening, this is some real to.

Get your notebooks out and your number two pences Katy. Do you remember, Katie. Whenever we had phone scenes, they would call the actor even if we were off that day, and we would have to stop what we were doing and do the scene with the actor who was on set and do the phone scene with them, which I loved. And oftentimes if I had a phone scene like that, and they'd be like, do you want you know, Katie or Carrie or whoever to be on the other line, And most of the time and I'd be like, no,

What the fuck is this person doing? You know what I mean? I feel like I'm better.

Every thing I hate about phone calls is that sometime you can tell in movies and TV when they haven't been on the phone with each other, because yes, they're in two different scenes. Like sometimes I'm like, why this person is clearly not reacting proportionately to the conversation that's going on, Like one person's flying off the handle and one person is like it just feels like they're in different worlds.

It's not easy.

I had to I had to do a FaceTime call on the affair, and I didn't have my actor on the other side of the face time.

That was hard because really had them. I mean, you're supposed to be seeing each other.

Dick, where was that actor?

No, she wasn't being a dick.

She was just like technical shit that they just couldn't have the other person there, right.

Yeah, Yeah, they couldn't have it there because they had to be recording my phone and.

They would just suppose it later.

So I had her other side of the conversation on at the video so I could I could go to the little video bay and watch her side before I shot.

But yeah, you've done a lot of FaceTime acting, Adam.

I just last night I watched a little movie, a horror movie called The Den.

You watched it, Adam, Do you know me at all?

Motherfucker? I'll searched you on IMDb and I looked for those horror movies that you were in.

First of all, scary movie, right, so freaking scary.

Mikey left the room. He was like, wow, I can't be in the room for this and he left. It's very sort of hostile Blair Witch Project, like it's in that vein it is. But anyway, Adam, Adam has a Most of your scenes are on sort of FaceTime on the computer.

The whole concept of the movie is that everything that's recorded and shown in the movie was recorded on a computer or a cell phone. So the only real bits of footage you get from the characters or when they when they're FaceTime at each other.

On the last night, I said this is the photo at G I said.

Do you recognize who this is? And she was like, who the fuck is that?

That's you?

Adam, Hermo texts me.

So the greatest thing about coming on our podcast is if you've ever been on a horror film.

Ever, I will find it.

Giermo fucking finds it. He doesn't care how small your role is. He doesn't care if it's a good, red box piece of shit horror film. He will go out of his way to bring it up and talk to you about it, which is one of my most favorite things about on Piecast.

Well, that's remarkable. I love the den. I love the den.

He texted me this photo of Adam with a fucking plastic bag.

He's being suffocated.

Yeah, I gotler.

Alert spoiler alert. Adam does.

Because all the camera in that movie are via people's computers or cell phones.

It's like you, only there's a cutting.

So for that, we actually had to put a plastic bag over my face for the amount of time it would actually take for somebody to suffocate and die.

Did you have a safe like Hending, I had a same thing.

And also, the plastic bag looks like it's over my head, but it's just in front of my face, so they could.

They did a really really good job.

They did a good job.

What we didn't have on that on that movie was an intimacy coordinator, which we could have used for sure, because what you didn't see in the final cut, is I I had a sex scene that just with that real with Melanie. Yes, And they cut it out of the movie because the initial audiences thought that.

Katie, what did you say, Katie? It was too bad?

It was so bad.

Wow, it probably was really awkward.

I basically what happened was, You're supposed to really feel for Melanie's character and she cheats on her boyfriend with me, and it's just kind of a it's like you're like.

Oh, what she's They were saying that to be nice.

Adam is an amazing phone actor, and he's and he is.

Wh what are you about to say?

No, Katie, I don't know if I believe that.

No.

We do this joke all the time, which is Adam has played a lot of like best you haven't had a ton of sex scenes.

In your career.

Yeah, I'm not usually the person fucking in the movie. I'm best friends with the guy who's fucking in the movie, and then I'm in the next scene where I'm.

Like, yo, I was last night, give me details, bro.

Yeah, And so the problem has always been that, like I'm the person that has to do that crap. But this was the scandal was the best because it was giermo Or, it was George Newbern.

We we got to have a little smoo cherou on Scandal, you and me Katie.

This episode two twelve, didn't we have a little smooch.

Yeah, we had a quick quick smooch when you come into the office and you're kind of like a little Ellis of the girl I work with, because.

Yeah, you're learning with another bitch in the office.

Now, wait, we will be back with more after the break, Adam. So you get the call, you get redirected by Linda Lowey, You're nervous, You're like, I don't want to fuck up Scandal. I'm a fan of the show. When do you get the call that you book it? And I don't remember it at all?

Yeah, it was funny because you were just so busy and you were working on the show that you weren't really involved in a lot of the stuff, Like I didn't We didn't really run the lines together. It was just kind of really it was fast.

And as you guys know in scandalland not only are the is the dialogue fast, the shooting fast, but like the auditions are really fast too, because once Linda Lowey is told, all right.

Here's the guest star. This is locked in, this is in the script after the table read, She's got like two days to turn around.

The guest stars to be at the fitting a couple days before they're on set. So it was really fast.

And then this is what was complicated about booking Scandal. Of course, I never book anything where there's not where it's just like, oh yeah, completely available.

Ever never happens that way.

At the time, I was doing another political White House show called sixteen hundred ten, Oh Shit Comedy, a comedy with Josh Gadden, Bill Pullman, directed by Jason Weiner and I and I was the White House press correspondent.

I was like I was in the press pool in that show.

He was the Dan Bugatinski on a comedy.

I was straight up Dan Bukatinsky on sixteen hundred pen.

So, wait, were you shooting that at the same time that you had to shoot Scandal. Yes, it was like a potential conflict there.

There was a conflict. There was.

I had to shoot like two of the days I was supposed to Scandal.

I was supposed to be at sixteen hundred PEN. So I was doing sixteen hundred pun and I called Jason. I'm like, bro, I have to do Scandal. I got I got a guest starred. I'm playing Katie's boyfriend from the past, Jesse Tyler from Sichron. I rigged the election.

And he was like, we'll get you out by lunch, so I was able to actually split my days. I did the morning at sixteen underd PM and I did the afternoon at Scandal.

I have zero recollection of them.

Two days in a row.

The only reason I was baby faced as Jesse tell because I was because I had to be baby faced on sixty a hundred pan, because I had to be like a clean cut reporter. So that's the only I I auditioned for Scandal with with my beard, but then I had to shave for sixty under PA.

It's like, yeah, this stresses.

And we want to switch it up sometimes too, so you're like, I'm gonna be scruffy for this character.

And this is funny.

Every time I do a character, I like a different you know, like this one's just gonna be a creepy mustache and this one's gonna be like short hair tea.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I.

Like to I don't think you've ever had a go tea.

You know what, I don't grow facial hair well on the side, so it just always looks like I have a Goateea.

My husband is so hot, and I love facial hair. I think it's the most handsomething the entire world. And the two times he decided to shave his whole face was when he met my granny Pat, who's my favorite person in the world other than you two. And on our wedding.

Day wow, and Jesse Tyler apparently, and.

You shaved your face for our wedding day and for everyone listening. We got married between seasons one and season two of Scandal, and we didn't I'm sorry, Germa. We didn't invite anyone from Scandal to the wedding because we.

Did get picked up.

Yeah, Like we didn't think I was gonna get picked up. I didn't think I was ever going to see anybody again. I was like, I'm getting fired, Quinn's gonna die, Like what is even happening. Also, if we invite one, we have to invite everyone, and we literally couldn't afford another thirty.

Yeah, we couldn't afford like fifty more people at the wedding. Yeah, I remember now that I.

Know, I'm like, oh my god, Gierma wasn't there, Linda was there, Jeff wasn't there.

All these people were there.

And then I've said on the podcast before, remember after our first dance or some speech during the reception, everyonebo.

Was chanting shouting who is Quinn?

Wow? Good?

Because it was it was right after the season one finale and we.

Were hoping that sixteen hundred penn and Scandal both got picked up for a second season.

I remember that's what we were hoping for during the wedding.

What wasn't like working together? You guys like you two on set working together?

Well, you know, it's it's funny because Katie and I have worked together in every possible facet of this business.

You could imagine.

We've produced together, we've acted together. We've acted together in short films, YouTube videos, we were in a feature film together.

Yes, tell me about what it was like with us working together on this episode.

Well, the funny thing was is I I'm not exaggerating. I was a huge Scandal fan. I was a bigger Scandal fan than Katie was a bigger share. Now Katie's getting it because there's time has passed.

And she's watching it back.

Yeah, and she's watching it and she's like, holy shit, this show's amazing. Like when I come into the bedroom and Katie's watching Scandal and I want to talk about something, She's like, shut up, the watching Scandal right, and like so good. I didn't know. And that's how I used to be. I used to watch Scandal and live tweet and Katie would come into the room like wanting to talk about something that doesn't have to do with Scan and I'm.

Like, Katie, it's TG right now.

Get either get on board and start live tweeting right now or get out of the room because I'm watching this show. So I was a big fan and I and my first thing I did when I got to set was go to hair and makeup and and I walk into the hair and makeup trailer and Tony Goldwin's sitting in his seat and he's getting his makeup done, and what is on his face a huge bandage from a gunshot wound he got to the head.

Now you didn't know about Yeah, as a Scandal fan.

Spoiler alert, I mean spoiler ever.

I walk in, I go spoiler alert Tony, He's like, oh yeah, I get shot in the head. I'm like, whohoa, don't say that. I'm like five episodes behind, because you guys shoot about five episodes in front of what the audience.

Is seeing right right. So that was a huge spoiler alert and I was like, man, this is gonna suck. Everything's getting rudined for me.

I love that.

Oh yeah.

But then Katie came into the trailer and we were getting our hair makeup done at the day.

That was really fun. That was great.

This was directed by Jo's wark Don't get Me started on, Don't get GMO started on.

Oh no, oh no.

So Janeo is a Jane is a very famous director on Scandal, and he's also a very polarizing director. He had people who really loved his style and some people who did not prefer his style.

And we can just leave it at that.

And I also listen, I also admire that he directed one of my favorite favorite horror.

Sequels, Jaws two. What Yes?

And we talked about this in between us, you know, arguing about stuff on set. We I I talked to him all the time about he signed my DVD.

Yes, wow, wow, wow, Well that's pretty cool. That's that's great. That's great cool well. I loved him. We had a blast. I was also very very excited because there was a guest star in this episode who had been guesting for a few episodes, and it was Norm Lewis.

And as a as a Broadway fan, to all of a sudden be working with Norm Lewis out of the blue is so crazy, you know, I like it to to like if you're a huge basketball fan and you booked like a Burger King commercial and then in that Burger King commercial just happened to be Michael Jordan, and you just all of a sudden, you're like colleagues with Michael Jordan for a huge like but like but not in basketball, Like I wasn't on Broadway with Norm Lewis.

Like I just was in La down the street from our house with Norm Lewis, and it was so trippy for me. And there's a great picture of the four of us, you mean.

On our We have a corkboard in our kitchen.

It's an entire backwall of our kitchen and it has our like favorite memories tacked up on it.

And there's a.

Candid shot of us walking on the lot and it's me, Germo, Adam and norm Lewis.

And I had my finger in my ear, like I'm like in an a cappella group, so I'm obviously like singing to normal move.

Oh wait, I know what I wanted to ask you tell us real quick about the creation of the Scandal Wives Club and its favorite memories of away times where we traveled and the Scandal wives were kicking ass.

First of all, and I don't know if the audience knows this, but the Scandal Wives Club is is anybody husband's wives, boyfriend's girlfriends of anybody on Scandal, right, And I called it the Scandal's Wive Club.

When did I start doing that, Katie? Like season two?

Like early season yeah, middle of season two three something yeah.

And I would always, uh, just when I would see another Scandal wife, I would be like if I ran

Like twenty times as we're going through security.

Yes, and also everyone's lives changed, like because of Scandal, Adam and I moved out of a one bedroom apartment to a house. Mikey and Garmo moved out of their apartment they'd been into a house. Like, people got married, people started families, like we were with all of that together.

Yeah, it was a huge deal in everybody's lives. And I thought that, you know, the people that kind of understood my position in all of that the best were the people that were also dating or married to people on Scandal. And now, what I don't think the audience realizes is that the Scandal wives are so much more interesting than the Scandal guts are so fun.

I remember, Yeah, before we would go to an event or whatever, a Scandal thing, I would have to tell Mikey, Mikey not get too drunk with Marika, and Marika, who's married to Scott Foley, was like, you guys need to pull it together like me till because you guys were it was like the real housewives, like oh.

Mike, like, you guys were real we when we got together. First of all, you know, you got Nondaesoma, like ten time all pro, freaking amazing athlete turned exceptional actor in Hollywood producer, like is there anybody on the planet more interesting than Nasa?

And then you got like me and Mikey and Marika.

Who are like the Three Musketeers, such characters, I mean it. Then you got like the casting director of Scandal is herself a scandal wife, right.

And the best is Marietta.

Oh, then you got Marietta George Newbern's wife, who is the greatest chef and funniest person and most so fun She's unbelievable.

Then like Porsche brought in Ellen de Generous. Yes, Ellen de Generous was a Scandal wife.

It was just like, oh oh how about Don Ruth dan Bukatinsky's husband. Oh yeah, Dansey's husband is maybe the funniest person I've ever met in my life.

Yeah, sort of all happened because Linda Lowe, who is again, as Adam said, the casting director, and married to Jeff Perry. They would have pot luck hangs on Sundays. Oh yes, like a lot where everyone would like bring a dish and we would drink and hang out and we would show up at maybe like one or two o'clock in the afternoon of Sunday and do this pot luck till like six seven o'clock and just like hang.

Out, watched they would watch the episode right that watch.

The episode, Plann.

We were taking notes for tweets for tweeting.

Yeah, just like hang Out And it was really and then besides those, God, we haven't talked about those enough. I can't wait when we have Linda on to talk to her about that. Okay, guys, Unpacking the Toolbox episode two.

Twelve, Yeah, get into it called.

Truth or Consequences. It aired on January thirty, first of twenty thirteen.

It was written by Peter Noah, who.

Was a writer on Scandal for I want to say only one season. He was a big deal that we got him. I think he was like a journalist and maybe even was a big writer on the West Wing. And then he was only on Scandal for a year.

But no yeah, he wrote on Peter Noa wrote on West Wing too.

Oh wow.

And now now he's the co executive producer. I'm the good doctor, which I will say I don't watch The Good Doctor.

But I do watch of the first five minutes of The Good Doctor because it comes on after The Bachelor and we're usually still leave the TV on, so you're one.

It's a productor okay.

Guest starring Greg Henry is Hollis Doyle, Debor Mooni is Verna Thornton, Susie Poor far as Becky flemm Normal Lewis is Senator Edison Davis, George Newburn.

Is Charlie Shannon Cochrane is Susan Sawyer, j Rene Banga as Louise President's Secretary, William Stone Mahony as Defiance voting clerk, and Adam Schapiro shas and Jesse's Jesse Schyler.

Also, this was the fourth time I played a character named Jesse. Really, another little little fun fact there. I don't know what it is about Jesse's, but I audition it.

For a lot of Jesse's.

Well there you go.

So weird. And I hate that name, do you do. I can't stand it. I don't like it for a girl or a boy. I just think it stinks.

Okay, synopsis, Let's see if we can pass this off. I'm gonna stop at some point and GE's gonna pick it up in an Adam, you got to hit that last paragraph all on your own at the best scandal pace that you got you with us.

Okay, it's like we're.

Doing a fucking scanal scene right now.

Okay, I'm ready. Here we go.

With Olivia quickly unraveling, the Oka, tem puts their heads together to figure out what has their boss so distraught. In the process, they learn the truth about the rigged White House elections.

Believing that Holly Story was responsible for the rigged election and the attempt at assassination of President Fitz, Assistant US Attorney David Rosen has Hollis arrested.

Flashbacks reveal what really haven't dured the sychroon explosion of the role Quinn's Akay Lindsey to our ex boyfriend played in the holls a moment. Finally, Nelly struggles to get a resemble fits back on her side. When all that spells, she has one last card pole that was really good. Adam, Wow, that I am sweating right now.

The pressure now, you know the pressure we felt? That was really good.

You know what else sucks?

That I had to play a character in the past because I didn't get a chance to like work with Giermo or anybody.

Yeah.

Yeah, I was just I wasn't in scenes with like anybody from Scandal other than r Lindsay Dwyer.

Yeah, and that's even. That was like not Quinn Perkins, Like still she had.

A side braid.

Tyler was the worst.

When I watched this episode, I'm like, what is this side braid?

Okay? Flashback two years.

Is when Jesse Tyler is in Defiance, Ohio, swapping out the memory cards and the voting machines to wring the election for fits and he gets a call from Lindsay Dwyer who tells him that she's just passed the bar.

Adam. Do you remember working with the voting machines?

Because I have to say, other than amazing phone working, unlike me and Garamo, you are very good at working with technologies.

Yes.

I love playing hackers. I've played a lot of hackers. I've been in two different movies called Hacked another.

Yeah, I love it.

Well, they weren't horror movies, so he's not getting no one of them was one of.

Them is kind of a horror movie, h.

Hacked, Hacked.

Let's talk about your scenes in this episode, and then we'll just briefly talk about some of the like big highlight scenes of this episode. But great, you work closely with the rigged voting machine in the first scene, and then the next time we see Cytron, right, explain to the listeners what the fuck sitron.

Is Cytron, Well, Sietron is basically if you're if you're up on the news of today, Cytron is dominion. Okay, So dominion voting machines, the one that Trump said were like rigged or whatever like that in Scandal that was called cytron. We made these voting machines whatever, and.

So I had the ability to swap out the data card inside of one voting machine to change the whole in Defiance, Ohio, and Defiance Ohio in Scandal Land in the real world is like Palm Beach, Florida, when like Gore lost by like a couple Yeah, so I basically just rigged one machine in Defiance, Ohio, and that may Sheene tipped the election to President Fitzgerald Grant.

I have a question for you, what the fuck why did Jesse Tyler do that?

Because I got paid five million dollars from Hollis Doyle.

If you got paid five million dollars, would you rig an election?

Well, no, you made didn't you get paid a million?

I think what is wrong with this person?

You're right, Garama, I got paid like a million.

And you were fighting when you found out that he that Hollis Doyle was making billions. You were like, I want five million or I'm gonna start talking to reporters.

Yeah.

Yeah, And your.

Next scene, I have the note Jesse so cranky and on weird call with Hollis asking for five million more and coffee spills on laptop and he flips out.

This is another This is another one of my most fun facts about Scandal. So one of the big sponsors of scandal was Microsoft. Right have we talked about That's right? We have Microsoft with specifically had a couple of rap parties that are really cool. Microsoft entertaining space in La. Microsoft was really really cool and they were a big

It's it's a MacBook. Oh shit, And I go to the Genius Bar and they can't fix it and I'm so upset. And Katie, you have a line like the fucking genius Bar.

Yeah, yeah, do you say yeah, like say yeah, I'm talking about the Genius Bar.

Yeah, of flashbacks?

Yeah, so that those are actually tiny little sort of little digs at Apple.

Isn't that interesting? Wow?

Interesting?

I still don't understand why in your actor prep of this character. Did you prepare this character at all? Of why he would rig the election? Why did he want that money? What was he pa he.

Was a scrupulous duties Then he's a hacker. He'll take my hackers will take money to do anything.

When you create your character created that software, right, that could that could?

Yeah, created the software Like I think Jesse Tyler did that because he's a little bit of like an anarchist.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Did you really think about that at the time or are you thinking about that now?

Just right now, just right? Yes, you know, I'm not I'm not Lewis. I just do my lines and I leave.

I was just here thinking, like, I wonder what actor prep he like put into this Other than like, I'm sure your most biggest concern was the pace with which you said the words and the accuracy with which you said the words.

The only prep I did was just making sure I was just extremely off book.

Oh.

Then this also the scene where I spilled the coffee. Katie. We had to improvise. Do you remember this? We had to improvise a fight.

The kids overseeing it, Becky.

Becky is oversea, right, she's watching you guys.

Tell yeah, yeah, she's watching us from like another building. Yes, And you and I had to just sort of improv a fight and it was getting so real.

Oh I remember this? Yes? What were we talking about?

Well, it was just you know, it's just like you always do this, and and you know Katie, when Katie improvises, she uses real stuff out of room.

Oh, she was getting real.

I do not, Yeah, you do, Katie.

What are you talking about, Katie?

But sometimes that Katie improvises, she talks like you were real, Like we're like, it's.

Like it's me and Katie. You know, I'm out like Jesse and.

Lindsey dwy I see no difference between me and Lindsay Dwyer. I am a fuckingly git actress. It's just that you can't see my acting. It's not my fault that I'm so toeming.

You know what's funny is Lindsay Dwyer is actually a lot like Katie Low's.

It's it's Quinn Perkins that's nothing like Katie Lows.

Oh sure, well Perkins had to be Quinn Perkins. Season one is like Katie Lows and then as soon as.

Because that was when you were sort of Lindsay Dwyer still and you didn't even know who Quinn Perkins was.

But yeah, we had to improv and we were really fighting.

Like I said, guys, unpacking the toolots. Get all the information here about food, farts, pooping, and scandal.

You're welcome.

We'll be right back, guys.

I want to get back to this episode, but really quickly. Adam, do you remember when you first found out that Quinn and Hawk were going to be like a romantic item and how did you feel about that?

Oh?

Well, I was excited as a as a fan because everybody wanted Quinn Hawk and I was like, Huckleberry Quinn done. I went to photoshop.

I started making Huckleberry Quinn things.

You're the best.

And I love Germo and I was like, oh good, I'm so glad. It's like a dude I trust and he's cool.

Right.

Because I'm not trying to mac on his wife.

Hell ya, Okay, this is the best.

I was like, this is the greatest fucking scenario a person who could.

Be in Yeah, like July, it's I mean, if Katie was on a TV show for ten years with just like a really hot.

Funny Jewish dude who is straight, I'd be like, soap, I'd be so jealous. It's just every day it was just you and Max Greenfield just making out. You have not Mercedes.

You have nothing to ever be concerned about. There is no Adam Shapiro anywhere else in the world. No one, No one comes close. Okay, okay, what are some I'm looking at my news? If there was any other fave flashback Jesse and Quinn, because Becky texted Jesse that they go to the Genius Party get Jesse's old computer, which, by the way, two years later we go back to that genius bar to get your computer.

Get that computer's right, that's that's the proof that ties Becky's account number right to the payment.

I mean, Jod, this story is so woven.

It's like it's so much.

Also, it's another time that like Shonda, you know how many times you probably talk about this a lot on the podcast, but how many times did Shonda write an episode? Then the episode filmed, Then a couple weeks later the episode comes out, And when it comes out, the thing happening in the episode is happening in.

The real world in the fucking news whoa like it?

Like other TV shows would pull headlines and write articles about things happening in the world, Shonda would write episodes with this sort of like like she could see the future, like this is going to be in is shoe in America? Like even the you guys searching for my lapt is so similar to like bo Biden's laptop. It's like a, oh, all we talk about is like that laptop, laptop, laptop, And it's like you guys actually like have to go and recover this laptop.

Yeah, a few other and then I want to read.

I want to read some fun facts.

But wait, a few other favorite scenes of this episode and Adam, if did you watch the episode or no?

Oh I watched the episode?

Okay, great, so let's talk about a few of our favorite scenes. My One of my favorite Thaddy.

I have to note is that Amy Rosoff, who's my best friend and my wife, plays Hollis Doyle's lawyer and she knocks the shit out of the scene.

Tricia Trainer is her name? Ya talk about fast paced talking? Yo, homegirl could talk fast?

Killed it? Okay?

Any favorite scene, any winning scenes of this episode.

For me, Katie.

One of the scenes that I loved so much is when Quinn inspires the gladiators to spill all their secrets, where Olivia sort of becomes the next client. C Yeah, and everyone starts spilling everything they know and Huck is just staying quiet and Harrison is like, if you don't agree with something, cough.

Or you know, make a noise or whatever. Yeah, it's such.

A classic, amazing gladiating Queen.

Spills the tea about Huck being the one that injects her with what is it that and takes her from that fucking hotel. Yeah, and changes her identity. And that's also this is the scene, Katie where you see me carrying you on my back talk about farting. I'm one hundred percent sure that I farted the minute I hoisted you.

On my back, Honey.

I can't believe you did that like that.

Just carrying a human being on your shoulder is impossible. And the only person I've ever felt comfortable and confident with that even happening was Pete Holmes. And it's because he's six six like I like other people can't do. Adams never care me like that. We've been together seventeen.

I carried you across the threshold when we when we bought Darby's.

He carried me over his shoulder.

Oh yeah, put my ass over his shoulder like that is an awie.

Yeah, my lower back's not going to handle that well.

Yeah.

I remember Tom Verica being on set and he helped me through it, and he was he was saying, actually that that that position of carrying someone sort of distributes the weight evenly in a way where it's not super stressful on the body. But I'm sure I farted when I did that.

It was good to know, good to know. I love the hucking' Becky scenes. Oh yeah, I.

Love seeing you and Susie poor Far because she was she was like the first time we had seen sort of like a female on the show, like somebody just as.

Dark to Becky and Jail, and that he figured out.

Fun fact about that scene, Susie Poorfar was probably like six months pregnant pregnant were shooting that scene.

Yes, yes, yes, right.

I love the Quinn stuff leading the table like you said, I absolutely love that, and that there's there's no hard feelings. It's all in service of Olivia Pope, Melly getting o B check up and reminiscing that the only place there a team her in Fits is in the delivery room.

Yeah, so she has the pregnancy induce straight. That's what brings fits back and fucking oh.

And then then then there's the great scene of like sort of Harrison telling Olivia like.

I got your back and in only in only the way Harrison could that, like we got your back.

You're the white hat, you're Olivia Pope. You know, like it's just that's sort of like that loyalty.

Yeah, that was like when the show, Like I just really was like, oh man, this this group.

I remember them shooting that scene and I remember Carrie and and a Columbus having a sort of a conversation out how how special that moment was that these two you know, black characters are having this moment like they those two could run the world in that moment, you know what I mean, And they're just having this bonding moment, and it was so significant and special to see these two black actors on the screen having that moment, you know what I mean.

Such a good point.

Were there any other scenes that stuck stuck out to anybody as winners? Because then I got to tell you all something else.

For me, one of the one of the fun things that happens. One of the memorable lines is when when Cyrus is having a scene with Mellie where she's freaking out about you know, fits being so you know, and he saw the baby Jesus or whatever, which I love when she says that line and she leaves the room and he says to himself, breeders just.

So fucking fun.

Yeah, Oh I love that line.

I also love when Huck goes to Olivia's apartment and he gets into bed with her.

It's so special, it's so so so special.

Killing people.

You have to stop killing this.

This episode was every episode was.

And by the way, so sad r I p that you're going to have to come on when we do the Scandal Wives Club episode because this is the only episode we see Jesse Tyler in because I died.

He dies.

How do you remember how you tell us your tell us your death story.

You know, well, Girmo saw me die last night of a strangulation. Yes, this is the first time I've ever been blown up by a mail bomb.

Nice.

And I'm not the only one who dies, right, I think like twelve people people.

But let me let me tell you.

Guys, we got a Scandal body count. These are the murders throughout the series of Scandal. Bang bang bang bang.

Well good, that really good.

We are only.

Counting murders in this body count. Let's get everybody caught up. We got Amanda Tanner in episode Okay, she's murdered by Charlie George Newborn who was hired by Cyrus Jeff Perry. Okay, she's drowned. She's injected in the toe with some bad ship that kills her. Instantly, and then they leave her body in the Potomac.

Who's the second.

I know who the second one is? Who is it? A little scissors to the neck action, who's married to.

He was murdered by Billy Chambers but also kind of Quinn Perkins because she pulled the damn scissors out.

We'll never know, will we.

There's no way she gets.

Our third death.

Ooh, this is by the way, Gio, I mean, Adam, We've never done this segment before. This is new. Body count is our newest, our newest listing of Scandal. Number three is Britta Kagan in episode two eight Oh she is uh she is dead and.

Murdered by uh Bencheets.

Yes, murdered by a remote controlled sniper rifle. And that brings us to sadly r I p our fourth body count murdered death today, the one and only Jesse Well.

I will say I was the fourth person killed on Scandal, but in a in the actual timeline, I was the first person killed.

Oh that's true, Adam, That's so.

True, true because I was I was a flashback. Jesse Tyler's death is the is.

Not only does he is he responsible for fits being elected, but his death is the beginning of the unraveling of everything.

Like why I Quinn Perkins gets saved and it's like, yeah, I mean it's it's everything, like the seventh it's everything.

I love it.

This was not the first time Shonda Rhimes killed me off in the episode in which I first appear.

Did she kill you off in Graze?

Yeah, I died of a shooter, a shooter in the hospital.

Adam, You've died one thousand times in your career.

I die a lot.

I once you had a director tell me early in my career that I was going to die in things a lot.

And why do you say that? I remember this well?

He you know, he said that a lot of times, the first person to die in a movie is has to be like it sort of instantly likable and funny, and because you don't have a lot of time to develop the character.

So he's like, when.

You come into these auditions and you're you, a lot of times people are like, oh, perfect, that's the guy will kill off.

We're gonna gonna love him.

People are gonna like us, yeah, strings, And it's true, died. I've died I don't know fifty times, numerous times.

Okay, we got some fun facts on today's two twelve episode. Obviously Adam Shapiro, who portrays Ressi Tyler, boyfriend of Lindsay Dwyer's Katie Loves's real life husband.

Surprise, that's nice.

Another fun fact, as fits leans over Melly at the end of the episode, his tie goes from loose and to the side to tight and in the center of his collar and back again several times.

Ever, I watched it happen when I was watching it last night.

Yeah.

Movie magic, movie magic.

Another fun fact, It was Kerrie Washington's birthday the day this episode aired.

She told thirty six.

Wow.

Time and then the last fun fact.

Sights on the so called Dark Web sell the services of hitmen like Becky for anywhere from five I have K to fifty K, depending on the style of murder. What don't expect to get your money's worth. Experts and law enforcement officers who have studied these sites claim that not a single murder has ever been attributed to one of them.

Wow.

Can you imagine some dumb ass going on a website to try to hire a killer like you do that shit in person?

Not listen, you gotta do it.

I would assume you do that shit in person.

Yeah, you do it in a dark alley or a yeah like, or you do it in a parking garage. Yes, come on, as.

We wrap this up, I want it. Let's just get through. Let's just like do a little bit of a tweeted two tweeted tweet tweeted to tweets.

Of the Yeah, that does not sound like no bird, that does not sound like a bird. That sounds dirty, But I know that's that's a.

Bird swings flapping.

Oh yeah, kind it is and kind of a wet bird.

So some scandal tweets at the time, Adam, will you read something jump in?

Do you have some of these, oh scandal tweets at the time? All right, well, you wrote meet my husband.

At Katie q Low's on January thirty one, Carrie Washington, she turned one hundred and six, Meet my husband, Adam Shapiro. He's hilarious and adorable and is on Scandal tonight. I'm excited for you to see.

And then you put my website shaffy Dot.

Now, oh, you had a website that remember when we would have websites back.

In the day.

Wait, I'm pretty sure shabby Dot that is still up. Let me type it in the big pretzel on the It's there.

It's still there, So if anybody wants to go shabby down that, it's a nice little actor.

Website about me. I love it.

Funny.

Wait, this is a good tweet. Happy birthday, Carry Washington, The reason I'm a Gladiator. That woman is too amazing hashtag scandal Thursday by Kadija Granger.

Nice.

And then we have one from bri Yonce hashtag in other news, I'm ready to watch the side chick win tonight hashtag scandal. I'm with her or him whoever that.

Was at May. Lady eighty four tweeted, I'm not opposed to.

Huck doing something gruesome to Hollis hashtag scandal agreed.

Uh oh uh oh oh, Miss Veronica, I love KC Chiefs. I love KFC. She says. Wait.

Edison is on again tonight, rocks back and forth, throws TV out the window. Seriously, is he goes on a killing spree hashtag scandal hash hashtag I can't.

Edison was so fucked on this show, like, you can't be the love interest that comes in between Olivia and Fitz.

There's no way, there's no way A's.

And Mellie got a lot of like that too, right, you know, just from being married to Fitz who At Nikki five two eight nick drip intravenious, she tweeted Meinie Leak said you should leave a baby inside until it's ready to come out. Guess Mellie doesn't watch much.

Hashtag Real Housewives of Atlanta hashtags that's funny at Sea says at Scandal four one one no.

Hashtag Scandal season eight, Olivia walks.

Into her apartment and Edison is sitting there asking her why she didn't pick his calls up for eight years.

Yikes, Bellamy Bellamy Young said hashtag Gladiators, you better take today to nap and hydrate because you are gonna need the help to make it through tonight's heart stopping Scandal ABC episode hashtag ass scandal.

She was gone, Bellamy.

Right, great tweet at Save the Curl.

Curl Gladiator tweeted who else thinks that Olitz are going to take that Rachel and Ross break as some glass Adiators think?

I like it, Ahi, guys. I just want to say I love you both.

I love you both my real life husband and my work husband. I couldn't be a more fortunate lady on this planet to be so well cared for and honestly, Adam.

Hearing you talk about the Scandal Wives, I.

Was I'm gonna get a little emotional here and then we're gonna go. But I was the most luckiest actor in the world that on this ride.

You were my person.

Uh wow, I agree, because you are the most supportively, loving, kind, funny and also like talent, always game to hold my purse and root for a scandal and you were just never You were always the fucking best and you still are the fucking best.

And I love it was my favorite honest it is my favorite thing ever.

I Mean a lot of people always ask about, you know, being married to another actor, you know, and what's that like, And I'm like, well, the only difference is that I'm happiest when Katie books things. There's nothing better than when Katie.

When Adam books, it's the best because I get all the high from getting it and the stories about it and the money for our family and all of this, but I don't have to actually go.

To the pressure of actually doing the work.

It's like exactly, even when Adam books, it's like the best.

You could chill, lay back, but like, this motherfucker is going to work for a minute.

I feel so happy and proud of it. It's like it's like, so it's the greatest. It's just the greatest.

The other thing I loved about UH is live with the fact that, you know, Katie, do you talk about the proximity to our house to They'll set like how close we lived to scandal. The best part about that was whenever there was a really delicious food treat, I was only like two minute drive away.

And you know this is pre COVID, so anybody could walk on set.

I mean, if you haven't, I'd be like, the food truck is here, Adam, there's an ice cream truck. Carry got cupcakes, Adam Kerry got the whole Candy Bottom would show up.

I'd be like, hey, guys, what's up. Everyone's like, oh, what are you doing here? I'm like, just here for the tacos. See you later.

Yes, Oh, the next episode up is two thirteen. Nobody likes babies. I don't remember what the hell it's about.

You could say that again, but you're.

Gonna find it here. And Adam Shapiro, you were the best Gladiator. Is there anything you want to say in closing out Gladiators Gladiators, anything you want.

To say to the gladiators listening?

Oh yeah, I do want to say one thing. I love the Gladiators. Like when I and because I tweeted so often, Like I.

Could be walking in a random city, working or whatever, and somebody will come up to be like, I'm a Gladiator. I'm like, I'm a gladiator, and then they'll tell me their Twitter handle and I'm like, I'm not kidding. I know exactly who they are, who they are, and I just that community was so awesome. I mean just so supportive. And you know, I love you guys, Gladiators for life.

Thank you for coming on unpacking the toolbox. It was the most fun.

This was so much fun.

Thanks for having me, guys. I love you.

We love you, Adam, We love you Adam.

I mean, how.

Fucking great is your husband? I want to just I want to cradle him in my arms. He cries and I gently like his air.

He's honestly like the greatest. Great People always ask me. They'll be like, what's the most important best decision you ever made in your life? And I always say marrying Adam Spiro. Oh, it's non negotiable. He's the most wonderful, one of a kind human being. And he was amazing as Jesse Tyler, and he was amazing The Scandal skintle wives, and I hope you guys had Today's episode was long, but there.

Was a lot.

Yeah, there was a lot in it. Go watch it on Hulu. Do yourself a favor and come back and listen to Unpacking the Toolbox. Bye bye, guys. 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.

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