Leanne Morgan

27:43Yeah, I need somebody to talk to, Chuck. But okay, so calling, and then I married Chuck Morgan. But we went out to L.A., and I got to go to the comedy store. And I saw people do stand-up, and I thought, I can do that. I know I can do it. Who did you see? Do you remember who you saw? I saw Dom Herrera. Oh, yeah. Paul Mooney, and he did like two hours, and we sat there and watched him, and he told us all that Elizabeth Taylor had died, and it was a lie, but it was funny. He goes, Elizabeth Taylor has passed, and everybody went, he goes, I'm just kidding. But I saw all these wonderful people, and I thought, I can do that, I can do that, now I know what that is.

28:21But anywho, so then I married Chuck Morgan, moved me to the Appalachia Mountains, and I sold that jewelry. but I was in a living room with darling women who also had hemorrhoids and all that, and I was killing, Amy. How did you go from, man, I want to be doing stand-up to going to the club to do it? That's a big Rubicon a lot of people don't cross. They say, I want to be a performer. They say, I'm funny. The people that know me think I'm really funny. I'm the funniest person at work, whatever people say, but they don't go and do it. Yeah. Okay, well, I'll tell you, when I was doing the jewelry, the company noticed that I was booking so far in advance that they asked me to start speaking at their big things and then I knew I could do it.

29:08But I also said to women, book a party with me now or see me in Las Vegas later, which is very arrogant, but I saw it, Amy. I thought, I'm going to do this. So then Chuck Morgan sells his business, goes to work for a big corporation that sends us to San Antonio, Texas, I started doing open mic in San Antonio. And then I drove back and forth with three babies by then, three little babies. They were three, five, and seven by the time I got to Texas. And I would go to Austin, Texas, where it was one of the best comedy clubs. Dennis Miller's brother, Rich Miller, owned that club. And I got up at Chick Stick, they called it, when they let women up on Wednesday night for 10 minutes.

29:54They were like, come on, gals. All of you get together and you equal one other guy. We'll get 20 of you together and you can all talk about that stuff you talk about. And all the boys were doing Arnold Schwarzenegger impersonations. And I'll just tell you, I stood out. But I did have on a little, I'd look back on it and Comedy Central did not want me. Nobody, you know, I was not, I didn't have any edge, Timmy. I had an unfortunate Bob. I had capris on that had birds on them. And I was talking about who doo-dooed on a t-ball field, which is still some of my best material. You would have been my favorite for sure.

30:36Thank you. But I was doing that with little children, honey, and did that in Texas for about three years. And then, you know, got on a little tour with two other female comedians. we schlepped around and, you know, people probably begged, our agent begged people to take us. But anyway, it gave me the seasoning. But I always, the whole time, it was, I wanted to be on Saturday Night Live. And I just look back on it and I've said to people that I've gotten to meet from Saturday Night Live, Fred Armisen, who is from heaven. Totally the best. From heaven. And And, you know, I did a movie with Will Ferrell, and he said to tell you hello.

31:16And I told him when my show was coming out and my new Netflix special, and he said, oh, that's great. I'm too busy. I won't be watching that.

31:28But, I mean, what you're saying is my favorite thing, too. Like, teasing is a really fun love language. Like, when people tease each other, like, to me, it means they have respect for each other. And you tease Chuck, your husband, a lot. Like, I wouldn't say necessarily tease him, but he's a big part of your material. Yes. He's been a lot, Amy. Chuck Morgan and I are exact opposite, and I find that funny. It is so funny. I love how you describe him and your relationship and how his system and your system work together. What is Chuck's system? What is your system? I don't know if it works that well together.

32:13We've made it. We had a bunch of kids together, and he takes care of the checkbook because I can't deal with that. But Chuck Morgan's very introverted. I'm extroverted. I've had to talk for him for years. But he's social. He wants to be with people. But he's a fly on the wall. He likes things organized.

32:35I remember saying to him, like, I know I've got something, Chuck. I can make it in Hollywood. Let's sell everything, and I'll cook off a hot plate. And he went, are you crazy? We need health insurance. And I guess it's a good thing he kept me down.

32:54Because I did get to raise these little children. And then this happens to me in my late 50s, and I don't think I'll get hooked on dope. I mean, I'm not kidding. If this had happened to me at 20, I would be on dope, I think. Because this is so much pressure. How have you done it? Well, it's really interesting you say that. Like, I feel like the idea of coming into this kind of lifestyle in your 50s, you do have a lot of tools. Like, you actually have, hopefully, like a family that you can depend on because I know you depend on them and you have a solid marriage. And, like, it is hard. It's like a weird.

33:30But wait, I want to go back because Chuck, you say, Chuck, I want to do this. He says, let's get real. Yes. And he always supported me. But he did support you, right? And he would take care of these babies, yes. And honey, I would pass them off in a minivan to him and go get on stage. He always supported me in all of it. He just said, he's not a dreamer. I'm a dreamer. And he said, they need health insurance. He was right. he has always had a big job executive at a company yeah made a wonderful living for us i didn't have to take horrible gigs where i had to drive 300 miles for 50 and sleep in my car right so it was because of chuck morgan that really it all worked out the best way it could it really did but yes chuck morgan i've been traveling with him i'm going tampa today to be with him and I will have to hold his mixed nuts.

34:25He will say, hold this. Do you have any toothpaste? Like, I'm constantly having to tend to him like I would a child. Well, I feel like for a lot of women I know our age and older, the other thing is when you have a partner, straight, because look, we're talking about straight men, which unfortunately is what we're attracted to. which I've always said my next husband's gonna be a gay man and we're gonna look for fabric together and he'll leave me alone and I'll leave him alone I mean would that not be the I've got so many gay friends men that I'm in love with yeah that that one says to me all the time would it kill you to put some height in your hair Leanne and he's always getting behind me and giving me a back comb.

35:13But I love that. And Chuck Morgan loves the gay men. They'll tend to Chuck and go, here, Chuck, here's a cocktail and some nice chicken salad on a nice cracker. And Chuck, you know, beans. But you know, men that are married live longer and women who are married live shorter. Because we have to tend to them. I know. It's real. Like women who are not married, who are single, and the married live the longest. Take that in. Take that in. And I know that's a statistic that I was very well aware of. And also, what I love when you talk about your husband and your work is you talk about the way in which

35:58he's reluctantly along for the ride that is you, you know, which is so fun and funny because he loves the ride. He loves the ride. Yeah. He does. He does. And he'll say, I've got fans. I just shot my second Netflix, and he came out on stage afterwards and was doing this.

36:21But Chuck Morgan says to me all the time, I'm going to retire from my job. He's still working for that big company, and I'll just come with you. And I'm like, no. No. Because, Amy, I can't be putting on Spanx while he's eating nuts and grabbing my breast. And I've got to get my comedy mind. Like, I have to take a comedy nap. Even if I don't go to sleep, I've got to shut my eyes. Get right. No, you need to be a part. Chuck can't come along. He can't. He can't come along. Because he needs me to tend to him. And somebody's got to tend to me. Who does tend to you, Leanne? My baby child. She's my professional makeup artist, and I say caregiver, and she said, I didn't sign up for that.

37:08But she is still strong and still has grip in her hands. You know, I don't have any grip when I went through menopause. I would wake up and try to unscrew something, and it was like a—like you're just like, well, I guess I'm just never going to get in there. You're never going to eat a pickle again. I'm never going to eat a pickle again.

37:27No, unless you just smash it on the ground. I know. I ordered all those things from Amazon that grips. Oh, yeah? That you have to have one of those grip things and then just hit it with a butter knife before you open it. But she tends to me. And what is it like being, is it nice to be hanging out with your young people? It is, but let me tell you, it is. She has been, but she, you know, gets hormonal and can be smart aleck. But, you know, that's okay. That's nature. But she's about to move to New York with my middle child, my other daughter, Maggie. Oh, wow, Leanne. That's a big deal. Because how old are they now?

38:0327 and 29. And they're going to miss these grandbabies. I've got two grandbabies that live in Knoxville. They're like 20 minutes from me. Yeah, two grandsons, right? Two grandsons, a redhead and a whiteheaded one. And then you talk so much about your son and your act, and it's so funny because of your— How is it feeling now that your son is a dad? Oh, it's precious. I knew he'd be a sweet daddy. But he's an old soul. You know, I talk about him all the time, like played the banjo in middle school after football practice. Had a garden. Still has a garden. These babies eat out of that garden. And he's from, I think he took after my people, farming people.

38:46He likes to grow things and loves history. He grows everything, gardens. And my little mama always had a garden and put up and canned. And we killed her on beef. Do you do that still? Do you still make? No. No. Now I'm, you know, kind of busy. Lucille, now, Mama doesn't can anymore, but we'll go to her house and we'll all can, just like, you know, like down the line. People bring a bushel of corn. When I say rural, I mean, I'm from farming, rural people. So when you say we all can, is it kind of like assembly line, we're all canning that day? We're sealing everything up? We're canning that day, sealing it up, chopping everything.

39:23she makes a vegetable soup, a homemade vegetable soup with tomato juice that you would slap somebody over. Unbelievable. Do you like to cook? I do like to cook. I do. And I fed all these children. Well, you know, I was doing comedy on the weekends, but I was tending to them and cooking. And yeah, I've always loved that. And, you know, being a mama. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I know. It's such a lovely way in which you talk about your family. Like you're really, you're all very close. And And I bet this happens a lot is people feel like they know you right away. So when you're doing your shows, what do people come up and say to you?

40:02Like, how do you, how are your fans interact with you? Oh, my gosh, Amy. They, like, I go on stage and they throw their purse in the air. I didn't even say anything. And at first it messed with my head when I got my first big, big panty tour is what I called it. Because I love a big panty. and they would like just at me. And I think it's because they felt ignored and I was like the only person speaking to them. And it made me feel, I should have gone into therapy because I thought I need to go home with every one of them and clean their house and vacuum out their car because they were so precious to me.

40:36But this is what they say to me. They go, oh my gosh, that is my baby child. That is, I'm married to Chuck Morgan. This is Chuck. This is my middle child. Yes, they all say that to me. Yes, I have to say, Leanne, in all seriousness, like when I came across most, I knew of you, but came across most of your work during the pandemic on TikTok. You did? Yes. And I thought, oh, my phone is really getting to know me. Like my phone now really knows what I like. Like this is exactly what I want. And that is the feeling that people get when they watch you perform is they feel seen. They really do. They feel seen.

41:16They feel like there's some version of them that doesn't get spoken of or spoken to. And you talked about it a little bit, and I really agree with you. Like, there's this whole group of people that are looking to be entertained and to spend money and to come to your show. And I think not just women, men and women, but they're often ignored. I know that's what it was. I do. And I feel like on Netflix, my special— Which was a huge hit, by the way. Thank you, thank you. And who knew that was going to be that, didn't we? Should we brag about how many people was it? What was it? I don't even know. Millions?

41:55Millions. Millions and millions. Huge hit. And I was not expecting that. I really wasn't. I couldn't believe that Netflix was going to give me. I have one other special that somebody put on Hulu. I don't even know who. And I have a very unfortunate hair color in it. I'm not even going to say what it's called. Because it is so awful. What is the color? Is it a blonde that went wrong? It is a blonde that had no dimension. We've all been there. That was the color of that yellow mustard. In fact, I got to go get my roots done, and I want to take your blonde in for a demo because I'm really liking your blonde.

42:31And for those of you out there, it's not easy being blonde. It's a lot of work. A lot of work. It's constantly in the chair. It's constantly, and now that I'm older, white comes out or gray comes out all the time, and I don't know what I'm putting on my head, but it's Tennessee. Tennessee girls know how to do blonde. I swear, Amy. Everywhere I go, and when I was in L.A. doing that TV series, they were like, who is doing your color? It is a darling little girl in Tennessee who knows how to do blonde. One day I tried to calculate how many hours I've been in the hair chair getting my hair dyed blonde, and it was many days in a row.

43:12Like, it was like a couple weeks. Somebody told me what I spent in a year. We couldn't tell Chuck Morgan. Because I have two girls, and I was getting their hair highlighted, honey, because I'm from the South. I mean, I'm not an animal. I was getting their stuff. We were getting spray tans, whatnot. Yeah, sure, of course. But when I did the movie with Little Reese Witherspoon and Will Ferrell, she looked at me and said, you need dimension in your hair. I still had that terrible hair color. And I thought it was pretty. And it was like the color of mustard. No dimension. And she just looked up at me.

43:46You know, she's about right here. Beautiful. She went, you need some dimension in your hair. And you said, hi, nice to meet you. Nice to meet you, little Reese Witherspoon. How was it doing that film with Will and Reese? Well, I thought I was going to get the shingles because it was my first movie. Have you had the shingles shot? I have had the shingles shot, which I thought was going to kill me in a hotel room in Nashville, Tennessee, before I got on an airplane. That's a booger, that vaccine. That one is a big one. But everybody needs it. You definitely get it. Because I've had shingles twice, honey.

44:16Oh, God. Shingles is the worst. The worst. And we are the chicken pox generation. Like, we all had chicken pox. Have you ever had it? No, because I was so afraid of getting the shingles that I got the shingles vaccine. And it's for life. It's a shingles vaccine. Oh, we don't have to get it again. Nope. Oh, hallelujah, honey. That's why I think it's a booger. I think that's why it's a big one. It's a book, too. You got the two one? Yeah, you have to go a second time. And that is hard to remember to get the second one. Have you had your colonoscopy? Oh, yeah, I get those all the time. Oh, yeah. Because I've always had IBS, my darling.

44:48So I started getting those early. And how great are the drugs, right? Before you go out. Right before you go out, you're like, just wait one more second. Can I lay here? Just talk a little bit more about. Yeah, it's the best feeling in the world. and we're old enough now to get the pneumonia shot. Are you going to get that? I guess so. When do you, okay, I'll be 50. Well, I'll be 60 in October. Incredible. You look incredible. Thank you. 60 is the new 30. Yeah. What are you going to do for your 60th birthday? I think I'm going to go on a vacation with these grandbabies and my children. You know, I'm not at the point where I can hire Earth, Wind, and Fire yet, but I think I'm going to go on vacation with all these babies.

45:32That's nice. That must be really— I mean, a lot of friends in my life are turning 60, and it feels like it's kind of— it feels—it's an interesting birthday. It feels like— I know, because I thought 50, you took to the bed over that. That was wonderful. That was wonderful. Well, then maybe we must— if we're to learn anything from our 50s, which to me is teaching me that the best is yet to come, then we should continue that lesson in our 60s, right? Yes. I know. But like little Maria Shriver, you see her on and she's thriving. Got on cute chains. We just need so much. We need to stack our chains.

46:10We need to stack our bracelets. That's what we need, more jewelry. We need more jewelry. We don't even care about jewelry. Well, you wear a lot of big earrings. Do you like big earrings? I was during the big panty tour before I had a stylist. Okay. Now these women tell me. No. Pull it back. Yeah, I made some missteps. I was dressing myself. Of course. Honey, I always had on a girl, but I was doing some missteps. And I was also inflamed. After COVID, and when my tour went like gangbusters because everybody wanted to go somewhere. Yeah, exactly. There are pictures of me, and I'm sweaty looking. I had drank wine and eaten chicken pot pie during COVID.

46:57Right. And my breasts were like two feed sacks. I'm trying to do better. I really, and people said to me, you've got to train like you're in the Olympics to tour. And I'm, you know, I've got like 70 days between now and November. So I had to - Are you going on tour in November? I'm touring now and I'll tour until November. Okay, talk to me about your tour because Tina and I have been on a tour. I saw that. And similarly, like you're on the Big Panty Tour. we're doing a restless leg tour I feel like we're covering a lot of the same women I know I wish I could be with y 'all I know and being on tour is strenuous even though you think people are like but what's your routine what do you do don't do you know do you well I quit I really really tried not to I was drinking alcohol during the big panty now this tour this the just getting started tour and I tell people So I named it that because I just feel like I'm getting started in my 50s, and women throw their purse in there.

48:00But I'm really trying to eat better, and when I put that darn luggage down, I should go in that gym, Amy. And I don't want to. I mean, is there anything sadder than repacking the exercise clothes that you brought that you didn't use and pretending like, oh, I didn't know I had them in here. That's so weird. I do that every week. I knew I brought my sneakers. I would have went to the gym, but just like, who are we kidding? I do the same thing, and then I started packing my own bands. Oh, I bring the band, never take them out. You can put them on a hotel door. Hotel door, do that. Not once. But I try to.

48:41I do have to have a comedy nap, even if I don't lay down and sleep. I just have to stare into space to get my mind right in a hotel room. Then we go and do sound check. I eat cheese. And I shouldn't. I always have a little bit of cheese, a gluten-free cracker. Who am I kidding? A little ranch dip, some carrots. And then do you like, do you ever have, you probably don't have any like hecklers that you have to deal with a lot. No, every once in a while there'll be some little drunk woman that yells out C-section or, you know, wanting to be heard. That's exactly what, we didn't have the whole tour, knock on wood, we had the nicest crowd.

49:20And then one time there was a lady who was a little drunk. It was like a 6 p.m. show, by the way. Can we try to do like four or 6 p.m. shows? I do fours. I love a four. I do a seven if I add. It's a four, not a ten. Never. No way. What are we? And a woman one time was like just chatting and then said like, Amy, Amy. And I was like, yeah. And she was like, hi. She said hi. It was so nice. Yeah, I get nice people. They don't mean anything ugly. They just yell out stuff. Yeah, girl. Yeah, girl. You know, and you're like, I can't think. What was I saying? And I just say now, what was I saying? And then, you know, a woman will yell out, bingle, you know, and I can keep going.

50:02That's what's sweet about people my age watching me. Because they're like, they can't think of their name either. No. So we're all in this together. Everyone's like, where do we park? Where do we park? And eating popcorn, bloated. I can't eat popcorn. I love it. Oh, it gives me heartburn. And I get, I'm nervous about choking. Oh, I just, now I choke all the time. I'm nervous about choking. I get very nervous. I feel like in general, I've turned into a toddler where I look at food and I'm like, that's not going to get down there. Hot dog, grape. Grape tomatoes, grape tomatoes. No way. Do you? Because I do.

50:43I get to where I cough and I'll cough in a restaurant and get choked and my kids will go, You want to hear another depressing statistic? More women die from choking than men because they walk away from the table because they don't want to bother anybody. I'm so sorry. So nobody can even— It's the most—it's like they're like, don't worry, I got this. I'll give myself the Heimlich. And they die. What kind of sleeper are you? Are you good? Like, how's your sleep? I'm prioritizing my sleep. Same. in this show business world because I had to learn lines for that sitcom. And I realized then, I thought, I got to be sharp.

51:25I got to know what in the world I'm saying. So I do like to take a little melatonin, some kind of blend with, you know, GABA, L-thenanine. Oh, wait, what is that? GABA what? GABA and L-thenanine. Okay. If you take one of those, and you can get them over the counter, But just if you have a combination of things like chamomile, it's got to have more than melatonin in it. Okay. And sometimes I take non-melatonin. I'm always buying sleep things because I don't want to get hooked on pills. Yeah, you can't take a sleeping pill. I mean, and, you know, it's so funny. You talk to boomers, and they're like, I don't take sleeping pills.

52:04I just take two Tylenol PMs every night. And you're like, ma 'am. I know. And then people say, I take Benadryl. And I think, does that cause Alzheimer's? You're not supposed to take that. I know. Anything that knocks you out, you're not supposed to take. I do look at screens at night, and I shouldn't. Same. I love my phone. My phone is my best friend. I love to scroll and look and see. And then, but I'd really try. Like, I have a sleep mask on. I have my Invisalign tray in. I have to keep it on. I like 65 to 67 degrees at night. I love a cold room. A cold room. Yeah. What does Chuck think of it?

52:40He's freezing. It's freezing in here. And he doesn't like to spend the money because Chuck Morgan is a very tight money person. He's a numbers person. Okay, so he does the numbers. He does the numbers.

52:57For adults with Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis symptoms, every choice matters. Trimphia offers self-injection or intravenous infusion from the start. Tremphaya is administered as injections under the skin or infusions through a vein every four weeks, followed by injections under the skin every four or eight weeks. If your doctor decides that you can self-inject Tremphaya, proper training is required. Tremphaya is a prescription medicine used to treat adults with moderately to severely active Crohn's disease and adults with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis. Serious allergic reactions, increased risk of infections or lower ability to fight them, and liver problems may occur.

53:38Before treatment, get checked for infections and tuberculosis. Tell your doctor if you have an infection, flu-like symptoms, or need a vaccine. Explore what's possible. Ask your doctor about Trimphia today. Call 1-800-526-7736 to learn more or visit trimphiaradio.com. This episode is brought to you by Visible. Why does it feel like summer ends as soon as it begins? One day the sun is finally shining bright, and next thing you know, there's football on the TV again. It's time to soak up the last dog days of summer and that means staying connected to what you love. Visible Wireless can help you do just that.

54:14With Visible, you get unlimited 5G data and unlimited hotspot powered by Verizon for just$25 a month. So you can treat yourself before the summer ends. Visible is more than just a wireless plan. It's unlimited wireless designed to always keep you connected with no contract to tie you down. Switch today at visible.com. Plans start at$25 a month or get the premium Visible Plus Pro plan and save$10 on your first month with promo code HANG. Terms apply. See Visible.com for plan features and network management details. This episode is brought to you by Subaru. There's something about being on the road that has a way of leading to those unexpectedly memorable little moments.

54:55And in the all new 2026 Subaru hybrid. It's like the destination isn't even important. It's the drive, baby. And let me tell you, I'm in that car and I feel like a million bucks. Quiet ride, comfortable, love my Subaru, can't get enough. With up to 581 miles in the Subaru Forester hybrid and even more 597 in the Crosstrek hybrid, you can go further between stops and stay in the moment longer. Visit Subaru.com slash hybrid to learn more. The Subaru Forester hybrid and Crosstrek hybrid. Love goes the extra mile. This episode is brought to you by eBay Live. Here's how it goes. First, you're watching the eBay live stream telling yourself, I'm just looking.

55:38And then boom, you see a vintage Rolex go for an absolute steal. Suddenly a rare beanie baby pops up, adrenaline hits, and you're bidding. You might lose that first one, but you bid again and win. and that winning rush? Incredible, because you beat everyone to it. Meanwhile, on eBay Live, you don't just watch the action, you're in it. Download the eBay app to stream and shop live. eBay Live, things people love.

56:08When this comes out, your show will be coming out in a couple of days. Congratulations. Thank you, my darling. Chuck Lorre is the producer. It's on Netflix. It's a multi-cam. Multi-cam. And loosely based on your life. It's based on my comedy, but not my life. Because we thought that would be weird. But let me tell you that the premise is my husband walks off and leaves me after 30-something years of marriage. And now I'm sitting here, what in the world am I going to do? And I cannot tell you how many fans said, Chuck Morgan doesn't deserve you. I knew this would happen. He sucks. He's kept you down long enough.

56:47He's jealous. And I was like, whoa. No, that's not what's happening. My own little daddy got a call from one of his friends who was in his 90s and said, I'm so sorry. And I said, daddy. Yeah. And I go, daddy, Beverly Hillbillies isn't true either. This is not true. But it is based on my comedy and my sensibility. So when Chuck Lorre came to me and sat on my back porch and held my grandbaby and said, will you do this with me? I was like, what? and then Netflix, I mean, has been so good to me and has given me these Netflix stand-up specials, Amy. And that's the stamp. But they better, Leanne. You're crushing it.

57:30They better give you those specials. They're lucky to have you. Oh, you angel. Thank you. It's true. You earned it. You're selling out everywhere. You're huge. Oh, my darling, thank you. They pay you a gazillion dollars for them. They're super popular. You're such a fresh voice. And so in this show, you have great cast members that you're working with. Kristen Johnston. Okay, so Kristen was the person that we talked to today. We always like to talk well behind people's backs before we interview them. So we talked to Kristen today. Oh! And we got a question from Kristen to ask you. She's so great.

58:07Oh, my gosh, honey. She's so great. A pro and was so good to me, and I learned a lot from her. I went in that thing terrified. I didn't know how all that worked. Yeah. Honey, the first three weeks, first three episodes, I said to my baby, Tess, who was living with me, I can't do this. What is this? And she was like, you're going to give me the shingles. I was hysterical. But, you know, it was just terrifying. You're like learning everything new. Camera blocking. What? What is that? Right, right. A script. All of that. Right. Crafty. Right. All these terms. But don't you feel, Leanne, and you know this, don't you feel like life is just a series of terms?

58:45to keep you out of the room. And then once you learn the terms, you're in the room. Like, it's like now you know the terms. I guess so, Amy. Because you are the prize. You have all of the goods. Like, the kitchen changes, but you have the food. Wow. I mean, you're nothing without the food, so you have all the food. You're just talking about getting to know another kitchen. But, you know, what, a week of learning the terms, and now you got it. Oh, Amy, did you pay attention to school? You are so smart. Oh, I didn't get best looking. I'll just put it that way. I didn't get best looking, okay? So Kristen's question was, what did you think of L.A.?

59:25Like, you're talking about Hollywood and it being an idea in your mind since you were young. You knew you wanted to get there, and you get there. Was it what you thought it would be? At first, I'll be honest. When I got there, I was kind of scared. I'm not used to that traffic. We were in Knoxville, Tennessee. And I knew that weather was going to be beautiful. And I always loved that. And I loved the house that I rented. And it was very Hollywood Hills kind of looking. And I was tickled over that. But the fires came. We got evacuated. Yeah. And we got robbed. Our rental house got robbed by these acrobatic people.

1:00:03They found them on film. And they shimmied and climbed up each other's shoulders. and the people who we rented from said, we don't want you to see the video. It'll freak you out. But they were like acrobat people. And the good news is we didn't, I was working Palm Springs, had a show that night. So they cased us out, is what the criminals call it. Must've seen an Amazon package of a supplement and then said, let's get her. But it was me and my baby and we didn't have anything valuable out there. She had a bunch of Amazon earrings. They wanted dope. Earrings is what they told us in guns. Well, we don't have guns.

1:00:40And then they looked at her medicine, and it was like yeast infection, thyroid. She goes, I bet they looked in here and thought, who are these pitiful, sick people? Me, all my supplements. They didn't get anything. And so it really didn't freak me out. Yeah, of course. But by the time we were leaving, we were out there seven months, I grieved when I left. I really thought it was sweet, and I realized this, because when you're in the middle of the United States, you're like, California, you know, everybody was precious. It is a working-class town. People were precious to me. And then all these men on the set, because I like to flirt, and I love all men, and they were like looking up real estate in Tennessee.

1:01:29Like some of them, you know, were in their 50s and never married. And I go, oh, if you moved to Tennessee, everybody would want to breed with you. And so they're all going, where's Morristown, Tennessee land? Here's a house for$400 ,000 that's, you know, got three bedrooms. And so, and I did like for all the men to eat crafty. Southern women like to see men eat. And so they would say, no, you go first. I'm going, no, you go first. Let me watch you eat. So I fell in love with everybody on that set. You're right. I mean, Hollywood, in quotes, is a working-class city. The people on set are all hardworking people.

1:02:08Hardworking, darling. Yeah, that's right. I had a ball, and I fell in love with everybody. And I loved everybody at the grocery store. And everybody was sweet, and they go, where are you from? Where's that accent from? And let me say to your audience that is huge and you getting this big old podcast doing, this is my accent. This is how I really talk. You know, people think it's not. But I'm from farming people. But anyway, California people thought it was fun. Yeah, I bet. And sweet to me. And I bet people start talking in your accent back to you a lot. They do. It's been a real struggle for me not to.

1:02:42Because I'm that way anyway. You do. And you can do impressions. I pick it up a little bit. Like, I interviewed Idris Elba recently. I know. And it was hard for me to not try to start talking in a British accent. But you must get that, too. I do. I do. I get people do. And I, yeah, I do. And people are fascinated by the South, I think. I think so, too. What did they get? If you had preconceptions about California that were wrong, what do people get wrong about Tennessee? Ryan Stiles plays my husband, and he thought that we all pack guns. And I said, I've never shot a gun in my life. He goes, you sure, Linnian?

1:03:22I'm like, we're not going around packing guns or holding guns. My people say packing. I think he thought we all are like the old west. And then people all, and I do love country music, but I'm more of an R &B. But, I mean, I think people think we're all, you know, barefoot. And I did go to college and I finished. I will never let you know my GPA. but I think they, you know, have misconception that we're dumb people. But we have, you know, nice universities and we get our hair done. You have the best blondes in the biz. We have the best blondes for sure. And I am sad that you got broken into though because that is too bad because people do think L.A.

1:04:12is dangerous and it proved to be. But the captain of the police department lived across the street, darling, got to know him. He was like, take my cell phone number. Here's some spray. If you're out walking, that's good for animals and people. I was like, what?

1:04:30So, you know, he taught me how to live out there. Okay, so before we wrap it up, I want to ask a couple rapid fire thoughts. Okay. And see what you think. What's your favorite holiday? Thanksgiving. Me too. I love Thanksgiving. I love Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving, I love the colors, and I love to go to TJ Manx and buy little turkeys and pilgrims to sit on a table. Because you talk a lot about Christmas and the prep that is involved in Christmas and the nightmare that is Christmas. Oh, the nightmare that is Christmas. And it falls on mamas. Yeah. And then you take to the bed. Yeah. And feel sick, get a sick headache.

1:05:08My mom would say, I've got a sick headache. I've got to lay down. Because you have to wrap all that do all that i love what you said when chuck asks you on december 24th is there anything i can do how can i help on december 24th and then usually i have to do sexual favors to get any help while you're doing all that and cooking and doing and then you got to do it and then get all that ready speaking of tylenol pm i'm having a flashback that i was hosting Thanksgiving, I thought I had taken two Tylenol. I took two Tylenol pills. And I was like, oh no, I'm going down. I just had to take like a four hour nap in the middle of Thanksgiving.

1:05:49Yeah. It wasn't so bad. Math. How do you feel about math? I don't like it, Amy. You don't have to do it anymore. I don't have to do it anymore. No. And I'm so thankful. There are people who can do math for us. And I'm thankful. But I say in my act in that first special, Chuck Morgan is a math genius. And then he bred with me and we have three children who can't do math. They took after me. But they're fun, you know? Yeah. They're fun. They can play the banjo, do makeup, fun. What about, have you ever seen a ghost? Do you believe in ghosts? I do believe that there are demons, Amy. Let me tell you.

1:06:32I was in a comedy club, Birmingham, Alabama, Stardome. They have a bunch of theaters in there. I was doing the main stage. There was a girl that goes around comedy clubs and talks to dead people. Oh, like a medium. Medium. And she was cute as she could be. She was sitting in the green room with us, and she said, we were all sitting there. It was kind of awkward. And she goes, oh, they're in here right now. There's dead people in here. And I go, in this green room with a bad sofa, with a half bottle of ketchup, watching, what was that show? Heidi Klum was on it with that little man. Project Runway.

1:07:11Project Runway. I go, so if I die, I'm going to have to walk around in this green room watching Project Runway with a half bottle of ketchup. But she said yes. I mean, isn't it convenient, though, that whenever the medium is around, the spirits are also. They don't say, no, there's nothing in here. Oh, it's great. Gen X, why are we the best generation? I think because we have sense. I think we've still got sense. Not that young people don't have sense. But there's some grit. I think there's grit left in there where, you know, we had to work. Like I had to do terrible jobs. But I think that makes grit.

1:07:54I think we're the ones that have got grit, but still open-minded. Can I say that? I think so. I mean, no one's paying attention to us anyway, so we can say whatever we want. That's the thing about Gen X. Did you cry at your son's wedding? Yes, like I died over, and I love my daughter-in-law. Yeah. But I was jealous of her. I'll just say it, because he was my baby. That's my boy. And then you have to hand him over, and it's hard. But then you realize, oh, I'm getting now another child. Yeah. And she's going to have these babies for me. And I get to have his babies. She's going to have these babies for me.

1:08:29For me. I like that. And those are my babies. And why do you love the Today Show? Oh, my gosh. I love the Today Show. I like to sit in my gown. And I like to drink coffee. And I like to see who the celebrities, who they're going to have on. And I just, over the years, I love little Kathy Lee, you know, drinking wine, talking. Yeah, there's been so many hosts that have come through. Hoda? Did you, were you there for, like, did you feel really sad when Hoda left? I felt so sad. When Hoda left, is she not a light? Yeah, she seems wonderful. But I got interviewed by her right before she left. She was leaving.

1:09:03And I love her and little Jenna. Yeah. You were so funny and great with her recently. Thank you. You guys were so great together. And she's so lovely. She's so darling. She is. She really is. And I found myself saying, at the end, I went, tell your mom and daddy. I said, hey. She went, okay. That's the president. Yeah. I played Jenna. She's so down to earth. I played her on SNL. You did? Wait. Oh, my gosh. Tina and I did a Bush twin sketch, and we talked about it, and she was so fun. Anyone who has a sense of humor about themselves, like, it's pretty. That's like anyone who can laugh. And she talks about, I had a ball, Lynn, because we talk about our college days.

1:09:39She had a ball. She had a ball in college. And she'll talk about it, which I think is cute and fun. I know. Agree. Agree. And what do you think is the best word to say in your accent? Like, what sounds the best? Butthole has been a favorite.

1:09:58I love it. Butthole.

1:10:05Kristen said Cracker Barrel. I love Cracker Barrel. Cracker Barrel. And we talk about that in our show. we've got a scene where Kristen Johnston imitates me saying Cracker Barrel. I'm like, we're going to Cracker Barrel. And I love Cracker Barrel. And you're talking about after a colonoscopy, when you are empty and weak, go to Cracker Barrel and get the meatloaf with mashed potatoes and fried okra. Ooh-wee. Okay, so you're on tour right now. And then when this comes out, your show will be out. And then, so are people, you're going to be balancing doing the show and touring. Yes, I did. Yes. Well, the show will come out, and let's hope people like it.

1:10:45They're going to love it, Leanne. Can I ask people to run it while they're vacuuming in the back? Yeah, just do it over and over. Yes, please. And also, look at how different— I mean, the fact that you're doing a multicam on a streaming— like, the business is so interesting. And that's what they wanted. They go, Leanne, will you please do a multicam? And I've loved sitcoms all my life, but then I got into the office in Parks and Recreation, and I was like, I would love to do that. That kind of style. And they were like, well, would you consider doing a multicam? And they were darling, and everybody there, I went, okay.

1:11:26And has it been good to hear laughs? Yes. And I realize now that, yes, like doing the movie, if I, you know, improv, Nick Stoller would say, do it again, Leanne. Like, what are your breasts going to look like when you have a baby? and all that. And then I wouldn't get a laugh. Nick Stoller's a director. He's not a man on the street who just yelled that to you. That's important to know. That doll, I know I probably embarrassed him to death because I would ask him questions about my breasts because they look so big on screen, Amy. You look terrific. Reese Witherspoon's head was the size of my breasts.

1:12:00How tall are you? 5 '8", maybe 5 '7 now from shrinking. Because you look like a model. Amy! You angel. I'm fat as mud. No, you're not. The stomach. Leanne, stop. I've got this stomach and these mammal breasts. No, you don't. You stop that right now. And my neck, when I first saw it, I thought, whose neck is that? The neck is a thing we're all struggling with. I don't know what to do. And I don't want to get that surgery where they take your ears off.

1:12:38I can't do all that. Why did they forget to put them back on? What did they take? I don't want to have to go through surgery if I don't have to now at my age. Same, same. And you're so right. Like, the thing that nobody talks about is they have to take everything off. And move it around and do it. And put it around it. Like, I'll get microneedling and I have to hold my knees. Yeah. It hurts so bad. That's not even a surgery. I went to get lasers, and I know that some doctors give nitrous for lasers. I've started sucking on gas. I suck on that gas, and then I go through everything that ever happened to me in high school, college, what I'm buying everybody for Christmas.

1:13:19I think, can they know what I'm thinking? Well, because they would think I'm psycho. So don't do nitrous is what we're saying. It's not good. And don't smoke. Don't smoke cigarettes. And I enjoy my children. Oh, I said, okay, get ready for this because you're younger than me. Your grown kids, you're talking about fun, is your grown children or your best friends. So fun and darling. Oh, that's so good. Oh, it's so much to look forward to. Oh, I love to hear that. I mean, Leanne, I feel like there's so much to look forward to. And I feel like that is exactly what you keep reminding us about. Like, that's what your work is about.

1:13:56Like, the best is yet to come. There's so much to look forward to. life is to be enjoyed. Life is supposed to be fun. This is like, if we're lucky enough to be doing the stuff that we love and we're lucky to be loved by the people that we love, like, that's it. Like, that's what life is about. Yes, and try new things. You know, a lot of women that have seen this happen for me in my 50s, they're like, oh, I can go back to school. Oh, I can go, I can become a yoga teacher. I've always wanted to do that or whatever, but it's never too late. It never is. It's never too late. And keep dreaming. I know that's sappy, but, you know, It's good to have something to look forward to.

1:14:31But yes, every stage of children, all that is wonderful. Wonderful. And then at the very end, right before you die, lift the heaviest weights you've ever lifted. And drink a bunch of protein shakes and blow up, you know what I'm saying, with your stomach. Only eat ice cream when you are willing to go to bed. Eat it right on the toilet. And just eat it right on the toilet so you're just close by. That's the truth, honey. What do you watch, read? Where do you go to laugh? Okay. I have been loving four seasons on Netflix. I went through that. Will Forte, Tina Fey. Oh, my gosh. So funny. Carrie Keeney.

1:15:17Carrie Keeney, Silver. Yes, and her husband worked on my sitcom, was on my crew. And she came to a couple of episodes. I loved her from 9-1-1, Reno 9-1-1. Yes, so funny. But I got to tell you, Tires on Netflix just came out. Shane is so funny. And it is crazy. It is crazy, nutso, bizarre, dumb. I love dumb. And I love it. That has killed me. I was watching, this isn't funny, but that Canyon Ranch. Every once in a while, I like a good soap opera. Like they're on the ranch. Somebody's taken their land. Somebody's been murdered. Are you like a Taylor Sheridan fan? Do you like— I've watched some of Yellowstone and all that, too.

1:16:01But Canyon Ranch is on— Canyon Ranch. Is it—no, Ransom Canyon. Ransom Canyon. Ransom Canyon. Ransom Canyon. Okay. And what I love about it is there's a couple that are doing it, and she has her gown on. And I think they must be doing that for people my age to have a love story because they're doing it, and she's got a gown on. Mm-hmm. And that's Minka Kelly. Minka Kelly, who is beautiful with that Josh. Gorgeous. Josh DeChamber. Do she? Do a melt? They do it. She's got a gown on. And I just, every once in a while, need a little love story. Yeah. And with murder. All right. Ransom Canyon, tires, perfect.

1:16:43Leanne, it's so good to have you. Thank you so much for coming. Amy. You're so great. Thank you, Leanne. That was so fun. And it was so fun hanging out with you. You're a good hang for sure. And we know we talked about something very important. And in this Polar Plunge, we need to address it. And it is the burden of being blonde and how hard it is to keep that up. And we spoke a little bit about it. But I just want to reiterate what Leanne and I made very clear in this podcast. You need dimensions. You need different dimensions. And it sounds like Tennessee is the only place to go. So I just want to give a shout out to all the stylists working hard out there in Tennessee to give blondes everywhere finally a leg up.

1:17:32You know? Because we can't have more fun if our hair isn't right. Thanks, Leanne. Thanks so much for listening to this episode. And talk to you soon. Bye.

1:17:48You've been listening to Good Hang. The executive producers for this show are Bill Simmons, Jenna Weiss-Berman, and me, Amy Poehler. The show is produced by The Ringer and Paper Kite. For The Ringer, production by Jack Wilson, Kat Spillane, Kaya McMullin, and Alea Zanaris. For Paper Kite, production by Sam Green, Joel Lovell, and Jenna Weiss-Berman. Original music by Amy Miles. All I ever wanted was a really good hang. Looks like the back-to-school list is back. You mean the list that comes with its own list. No teddy bears this year, no purple anything, no whatever we found last week. Which is why we're shopping at Walmart.

1:18:23Walmart? Glitter headphones to match your backpack, check. K-pop Demon Hunter's notebooks, check. And all the boring stuff that's somehow not boring. Oh, check out these folders and crayons starting at just 25 cents. Check, check. Okay, this is so my vibe. And check. Who knew? This back to school, check out the whole list for less at Walmart. Prices vary by location. I didn't like what you said, Odin pauses. about the future. This is the love story of real hinge couple Odin and Edward, written and read by me, Curtis Garner. Listen to the free audiobook now.