Tara Strong

How are you doing out there? It's me, Tigger, I'm dark waiting
duck. It's me Bunker's deep bapcat. All right, y'all, did it
rate your favorite firefly? You desire? Hold the old knock out? My
name is Jim Cummings, and welcome to tune Jin. Well, we've known
each other a long time. Yeah. Where did we need? You were
ten? Yeah? Well she looked ten. No, was it I think
it was it ICM or was it DPN? Yeah, yeah, that's possible.
Yeah, because it was time we worked together. Oh oh, okay,
was it one hundred and one? Maybe? Yeah, I played bad
dog or something. But you know, I have no idea. It's all
the same day at this point. In a Chicken, Yeah, I was
a chicken. Yeah I remember. Yeah, you had an odd character.
Yeah, she literally in the character description that said she's very hyperactive. She's
a chicken who thinks she's a dog, and like a high energy and like
a lot of like anxiety, but and she want to be one of the
dogs. And like right before the audition, I called my mom and I'm
like in Toronto, and I'm like, would it be funny if like every
time she has a pee or a bee. She gets stuck on it,
like, you know, I can put up with the growling jokes. So
she had more bake references, even you why asking me why every time across
rob that these like weird little She's like, yes, do that. And
then that book the part you just I got chills. I remember, Yeah,
that's crazy. I remember that first day because first of all, I
just moved here from Toronto two years prior, and even though I was very
successful there, getting my feet grounded here was challenging. I was like eviction
notice broke for a little while. And the first job I did here was
given to me by the woman that gave me my very first job when I
was thirteen. Wow, was Marsha Goodman who gave me Hello Kitty, oh
sure and remember which was literally the start of my career. And she called
me up and she's like, hey, we're doing gadget point Heather. Would
you come be Heather. I'm like, notes, she saved me. And
then one hundred and one was one of my first that I like booked out
right here and I was sitting in the room with you and eg Daily and
cats Susy and Pim Segel and Jeff Bennett, and I was like, gods,
and then he played everyone's ref reference. You know, when you go
and you book a job, I'm sorry, I totally like Railroad at your
show jump away. No, no, no, that's good, that's good.
I everybody, I'll just prop a squad. You're doing great. They'd
rather listen and see you than see or listen you get well. Anyway,
For those who don't know, when you audition and you booked the part,
often you've given a couple of different takes and you don't want which one they
picked. Also, it's not really in your head. I just booked something
that I auditioned for six months ago, so it's like, not in my
head what I did. So they play the raff, which means they play
the reference for you what you did, what booked the part? And so
they played everyone's and then they played mine, and none of you knew who
I was, and all of you went like Mpam Siegel was sitting beside me,
I'll never forget it. She goes, You're a room full of grates
and you just blew everyone's side. Yeah, I love it, Yes you
did, yeah, and now you are a room full of greats. That's
so good. Oh my gosh, that's just amazing. And I mean all
the way down from what the power puffs, the you got a pretty ridiculous
resume. Yeah, you know it's don't you find it pretty phenomenal when yeah,
you know, there's a group of us and maybe really not that many,
maybe ten, right, that have been I was going to be generous
and say, maybe it doesn't. Maybe right that have booked multiple roles that
have really impacted people in a big way around the world. For sure.
For you, it's pooh and a bunch of other things you've done. But
like I think, when you're doing it, you don't realize the kind of
impact it has until you go to cons and you see people crying and say
like, you're the reason I'm alive, you know, Yeah, yeah,
I mean it's I mean, I've had stories that will put you on your
knees. Me too, you know, it's like, really, wow,
I feel like you're giving me too much credit, But I'll take it.
And as long as it made you happy and made you, you know,
it was like a lifeline to some people. A lot of people never know
you, No, you don't. And I think our predecessors didn't know because
there was no Internet, you know, when No Blanks was running the show.
Yeah, I mean not that people didn't know who he was, but
now visually they know who we are because this stuff. Yeah, stuff like
this. Yeah, and that recognition that you know, if you're doing a
play, if you're doing something live, you know pretty quickly if people are
appreciating it, you're selling albums, you know, well, if you're on
a TV show and the ratings are high, you're doing well. But animation
people, we don't get a lot of feedback from Hollywood or even love from
Hollywood compared sitting in the room. Yeah, and so to get it from
the fans I think is one of the most rewarding things about this career.
Yeah. I agree. I'm sure we could swap some good stories. Oh.
Absolutely, Okay, I'll give you a quick one. I hope you
guys have heard this a lot anyway. No, but there was a young
boy who years ago, his parents contacted me and said, I'll just call
him Billy. And they said, well, is there any chance that you
I can get you on the phone with my kid Billy he's seven and like
ten, And I said sure. Well, he to say that he's a
fan is I can't even tell you? But he goes, let me ask
you real quick though. Were you the guy that on the Rustoleum commercial?
And I go yeah. He goes, how about how about the Haviline commercial
motor oil? And I said yeah. He goes, damn, okay,
wow, okay, Well, anyway, can we call you at ten o'clock
Saturday morning? Yeah? So I call him up. He calls up and
said, are you ready. We're gonna put Billy on the phone. Billy,
it's your friend, Jim Cummings. So he gets on the phone and
he goes, hello, it's mate. Now, I think that you should
do the voice of Bunker Steve Popcat, who was, of course the very
first tune detective, and he works out of the Hollywood Division, in the
Tune division. And I said, oh, okay, well, gee,
here's Bonkers. Good Now, I think that you should do the voice of
Lucky Piquell, his human counterpart, who of course works out of the same
Hollywood division. Blah blah blah blah blah. Oh, Bunkers, what do
you good? Now? I think that you should do the voice of the
street vendor who had a hurdy gurdy, and he was I believe of Nordic
persuasion, perhaps Swedish. And I went, well, see good now,
and we went and we did this for about forty five minutes. And I
said, yes, yeah, and it was it was a Saturday, and
and I said, okay, is your dad there? Can I talk to
your mom or dad? Because boy where I'm running out of remember bank here
and and and the DA gets on the phone and he goes, He says,
uh, I'm so sorry. I had no idea I had. And
I really mean, oh, his mother wants to talk to you. Oh
she gets Oh my god, she's crying her gut eyes out. And I
said, oh my gosh, what, don't worry about it. You know
it's it's okay. She I had no idea. Who would be doing this?
I apologize it wasn't This is a complete And I said, oh,
you know, don't worry about it. He said, you know, kids
are chatterboxes. I would have been the same way if I got to talk
to bugs, Bunny or Daffy Ducks. He goes, no, no,
no, no, no, that's not it. Billy doesn't speak. And
I said, this chatterbox, you cannot shut this kid up him. Are
we talking about the same billy? She well, he used to, but
it hasn't it hasn't been in seven years. He was like maybe three and
a half and he just quit talking. Wow, you know, yeah,
it was autistic, you know. And I said, wow, okay,
well you know, and then I just, you know, I'm humbled.
I don't know what to say. And she says, and his dad gets
on the phone and he said, this is so great because we have two
video cameras going here, you know, the old vhs. And he said,
we could take this to his therapist and we could say, you know
what, Billy, you do speak You talk to your friend Jim Cummings and
he's a buddy mine to this day. And he wrote a book and he's
in his thirties something like that. He wrote some kind of a book,
my Journey out of Silence or so yeah, you never know, I have
one like that almost like that. This girl was talking a lot. She
was dressed as Raven. I love that story. But it was so beautiful
that you didn't and she was and I look over and I see her mom
bawling. And I'm sure, like you, a lot of people cry when
they made me. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, So like I was like,
oh, she okay, And I went over to check on her and
same thing. She said, my daughter hasn't spoken in five years, and
when she heard you were coming, she hasn't shut up. And I'm like,
wow, that's like beautiful that we have. Yeah, you know,
going to cons and meeting people and doing stuff like that is the reward of
this job. Money's nice, but being able to affect people in that way,
it is such a beautiful reward. Yeah. You never know, you
just don't know, you know, certain things just poked through and uh.
And it was explained to me that you know, I guess his doctor was
explained to him. He says, some people see the world as if the
door is completely wide open they could walk to and certain people see it the
door through this crack. Yeah, and he just said you were on the
other side of his crack. Yeah. That could be interpreted an entirely different
way, but you guys know what I meant. You were on the other
side of his crack. Yes, yeah, God, I hope it was
the right side. Okay, sorry about that. Oh yeah, yeah.
So what's keeping you busy, what's keeping you happy? Well, We're very
lucky. This strike is not affecting voiceover, so we're really lucky to still
be doing animation. So I'm still doing Teen Titans Go and a really really
beautiful show called Gabby's Dollhouse. It's for little kids, and it's the cutest
show I've ever seen in my life. It's just and I was a power.
My daughter loves it. Isn't it the cutest show ever? Where is
it Gabby's Doll House? What do you think? I can't remember where it's
streaming, but it's like, it's just the cutest show ever. So that
I'm doing. And then I've been working on this video game for Harley for
like I don't know if you're in it, but it's like the longest it's
been like a few years. It's a it's a suicide squad game. So
I'm really stoked for that to come out. That's cool soon. Yeah,
I work a lot, and then the cons. I mean I've been going
almost every other weekend. Yeah, I've gotten a not a rut, but
a cycle of like six in a row. And it's little little it really
is, you know. Yeah, I think people don't really understand. He's
like, oh, you're just signing autographs. Well, you and I don't
just sign our give our life blood. Yeah, and we give it for
sometimes eight hours and yeah at the end of the day and I'm happy and
waken up and giving all day. But at the end of the day,
I'm like, like I've nothing less. Well, first of all, her
lines never stop, and she's and and oftentimes I'll be like, oh,
man, i gotta go to bathroom. I'll go, and I'll walk through
the con and there's Tara sitting over there, and she's sitting up there like
on a queen, like a queen on top of the table, and people
are you know, and all the guys are cheapers, you're superty, Yeah,
you know they do do that that they're so yeah, it's so funny.
Sou coup and check her out at the next con and she will be
so pretty. I mean, well, well, yeah, which one of
your characters Tara surprises you that has connected with people so much? Which one
which characters surprised you? Oh? That one connected with you? Uh well,
I'd say, like the biggest our Raven and Harley and Twilight sparkle in
very big global ways. But they're they're surprising in the magnitude, but not
in their character. Certainly, Twilight Sparkle was the biggest surprise. This is
a show originally designed for young girls. Yeah yeah, and then it spoke
to people of all ages, of all races, of all genders around the
world, and like you know, people were like I had no friends till
my Little Pony, or I don't know what it is, but I can't
stop watching it and likes completely unknown, unpredictable, beautiful fandom for sure,
the loudest fandom I've ever and the sweetest. These people are the first to
donate to any charity and help each other out and really wonderful. So I'm
no longer surprised by that, although initially that was the most surprising. I
think now the one that surprises me if I'll go like to the UK and
there's like a million ben ten fans, like these people have been like clutching
their ben ten watch for a decade waiting to mebe wow. And Final Fantasy
that has a very long fandom. That surprised me, people like that was
my game, that was were you on? That were on? That's the
big game that people really love. Yeah, So when I when I get
extra love for Ben ten or Final Fantasy. It's a little bit more of
a surprise, like everyone wants. They want a Bubbles print or a Harley
print or a Raven print for the print with all my characters on it,
or Timmy Turner, which they released a cop. This year, they finally
released a Timmy Turner pop at Comic Con. That's when I signed the most
at cons. You've probably sign a lot of cops. Yeah, there's a
thousand poos. Yeah, I mean you wouldn't you wouldn't think so. But
I mean there's like, you know, psychedelic poo, yeah poo on acid.
Yeah, I mean it's really there's really one that kind of kind of
looks like it. He's multi colored and sitting there and it's like, are
you sure, Okay, I don't know on acid? Yeah. And then
uh, I think at the bad time we had a Jim Cummings pop von
Yeah, I think so. Well, Rob has one. And there's a
place there's where is that place? It's in Hollywood. You can go get
where. Yeah, have you been there? No? They probably have you
on. I just did their show. It's like a when you go do
their show, they walk you through after and you get all kinds of presents.
It's very it's like going to like a Hollywood like museum thing, Like
there's huge pops and like, yeah, there's a million to me too.
There's like a million Harley's and a million Ravens. And then the Minutes Pop
is arguably the coolest pop I've ever seen. It's like, which one huge
miss minutes from Loki. It's gigantic. Yeah, its gigantic. Yeah,
that's a cool one. It's really cool. And you know, when you
jumped to the mc U, it's a whole other thing. Like I was
doing with you Marvel Animation for decades and people don't care that much. When
you jumped into the cinematic universe, it's next level. Yeah, oh wow,
you're now you're in the MCU. Yeah. Yeah, And I got
to do two things. I got to do Miss Minis and I got to
do mainframe in the last Guardians movie. Oh and from Yeah, it was
really cool to see my name run under stallone. I was like, that's
kind of fun. Yeah, I hope they make a Ravagers movie since they're
supposedly not doing any more Guardians would because yeah, that'd be cool. That
works. Yeah, the first movie that I was everything. I had three
lines. I was bullet number two in Who Framed Roger Rabbit and no way,
Yeah, that was my very first Is it a loop group? Uh
no, no, it was. I went to I went for an official
I can't remember audition, Yes I did. Yeah, it was weird and
uh and it was just awesome and I got to got to do that and
my name was right under Frank Sinatra. Isn't that fun? I was like,
oh, okay, no, it was right above it. So my
joke at the time was it I got top Billy. I think people don't
realize how much we still geek out over things that we book or get to
do. There was I was just on an on camera series in Toronto and
it aired on Netflix, and there's a picture and the what do you call
those? Like shots? What what do you call it? The thumbnails?
Oh yeah, show was me in a bathtub right and right under his Johnny
Depp, And I'm like, I'm in a bathtub on top of Johnny Depp.
Like I was like, that's pretty cool. That is pretty cool.
I mean, I wouldn't want to trade places with you, but I'll trade
places with him. Show. Yeah, God, but we do. We
still geek out when we book stuff and when we book cool stuff or wouldn't
get asked back to do something that you thought was gone for a long time,
like regrets. Yeah, yeah, yeah, you cannot beat that.
You cannot beat that. Yeah. Something you and Jim and do tire with
your work is you take people back to their childhood and reminded what it's like
to be a kid again. What takes you back to your childhood, whether
it be something you say, a book you read, or something literally just
I'm so late to the party, but I just watched the Barty Barbie movie
today. I just finished, really, I just finished it this morning before
my gig. I just we were traveling so much, you could have been
in that easy. We couldn't get to the theater. And I was like,
I just I know I'm missing something special. And you know, if
you wait a very long time, when something's so hyped, by the time
you see it, you're like, yeah, it's probably overrated. Yeah,
yeah, what a brilliant, perfect movie. Like I laughed so much and
I was really thrust into my childhood. Like all those toys in the opening
scenes, all those toys we played with right, and so to see it
from like their perspective, or to see how it would look to it if
a doll was actually watching the action when she like jumps out of her house,
you know, the way you pick up a doll. This is really
weird. And then I'd see a toy or an outfit. I'm like,
I'm pretty sure I had that. Yeah, you know, that was really
fun for me. And inmation wise, I was a big fan of uh
the Flintstones, and I got to play Pebbles on something once and I was
like pinching myself to see Pebbles tear strong like all that. It was like
a pilot or a game. It was something very short lived, but it
was still fun to do that. Yeah. Yeah, but you know,
there's lots of things that I watch. And also now going to comic cons
is a really big sort of childhood boost and like memory and heart thing because
we see people that we grew up with that were like, like that was
my childhood was watching this show or actually yeah, because pop culture exists at
these cons in a way no other place, Like you go on the green
room and you're hanging out with with huge stars from our childhood. Oh yeah,
you know. Yeah, there's William Shatner over there, munching down some
pizza. I just hung out with Christie Brinkley. And when I was a
kid and I saw I saw vacation, I was like, oh, I'm
gonna be that pretty, Like one day I would be that pretty and congratulations.
And we're hanging out and if you saw we did this TikTok, yeah,
and I go, I'm going to be pretty scary party, which is
like this trending sound on TikTok, which is bubbles. And she comes in
and she's like, uh no, and she still looks amazing. She's like,
say, amazing, and she's the nicest, smartest, kindest. We
like hit it off so much, and it's like wow, like I totally
idolized her as a kid, and to like hang out with her and make
videos about how pretty we are. Yeah yeah, okay, you know you
can live through that. Yeah, more of that please? Yeah, it's
fun. It's really fun. Wow, I like going to coun She never
hangs out with me and tells me how pretty. Okay you're close. Yeah
that's right. I'll give her a smack roll. Okay, honey, Okay,
how many times do you think you've said the word smack roll Jim in
your life? A grilliant. I'm surprised you don't have your drumsticks. Well,
I've got my drums. They're they're up there, Yeah, somewhere.
I think they're in the attic sticks more famous than gym everyone. Yeah,
well I do. I have them in my knapsack because I'm getting ready to
leave town. Yeah, but I can't leave without your drumsticks, right,
I mean I had a nickel for every time I said that, Probably have
a quarter. But speaking of inspiration, though, Tara, how inspirational for
your Holly Quinn voice was Aileen Silkin? Well, you know, one of
the other things that really put me on the map when I first moved to
town. One was one hundred, one hundred one Dalmatians that we did together
because it was a guaranteed hundred episodes and that never happens we yet maybe six
now or twelve, thirteen, twenty six. One used to be sixty five
Your Tops, right, and then the Powerpuff Girls, which was a huge
hit, and also at the same time, around the same time booking Batgirl
and to like book that part was a huge deal. Like that waiting room
was stacked with on camera and voiceover legends and it was very surreal, Like
I remember my agent leaving a message on my answering machines like, oh my
god, you're her, You're the bat, You're the girl. It's the
back. And I'm sitting next to Mark Hamill and Kevin Conwray, I'm like,
what the hell is happen? Okay? Yeah, And they were both
so good. I was about to swear, we let to swear on this
show. They're both so fucking good, you know, Like and a lot
of times when a listers drop into voiceover, sometimes they're good, but sometimes
yeah yeah, And Hamil is one of those that's built for both, like
yeah, he was just so good. Yeah. And also Arlene would come
and I remember being very enamored by her. First of all, she was
very beautiful. She was the original inspiration for Harley. Harley was not a
character conceived in comic books. They decided to give Joker a sidekick, and
they were watching like Days of Our Lives and Bruce, tim and Pauldini saw
her. She was dressed as like a harlequin, like a clown, and
they're like, let's make that the Joker's little side girlfriend, and so that
character was inspired from her as a human didn't exist till they saw her and
hired her. And also her voice was so cute, like sometimes when she
talked, it would just sort of sound like Harley. And she had like
a very unique performance to everything she did, Like you know, you'd normally
see a line and say, oh, that could be read this way,
but she'd read it just a little bit different. And she had these cute
little like squeaks to her voice and quirky things. And I remember like being
quite enamored watching her. And then they brought me in to do the video
games because they wanted something vocally different, and they still wanted it to honor
her original creation but sort of make it my own, which was terrifying.
He's already a very beloved character and a very beloved actist can do the same
thing, only different and hopefully people will like it, And it was really
scary, and thankfully people did. Yeah, I feel really very connected to
Harley. She's like, I get really pissed off when other people play her.
Now I don't like it. Yeah, Well, I often think of
the guys who started the Turtles the four of them, you know, you
know, and how many turtles we're up to about twenty five sets of Ninja
Turtles now, I mean it's one reason to love like character boy say at
Disney, like, if you book Mickey, You're Mickey till you die.
If you book and you get to do all the shows and the video games
and the toys and the parks, and then people connect with that voice,
and I think changing it up all the time unless there's a problem, you
know, no voice actor, just so people know, go, I don't
really feel like doing that anymore, you know, like if your character is
alive and breathing, you want to be doing it. Yeah, And when
they just decide for choice or because they want a bigger celebrity in it,
or it's it's kind of devastating. Yeah, so the performer that helped it
become successful, I could not agree with you more. Yeah, you know,
they've you know, I think Jim McSwain used to say, it's like
TV Guide casting or such and such, screen Gem magazine casting. You know,
Yeah, who's hot? Now, Okay, well you're the new blah
blah blah and Warner Brothers. Sorry, they were a little bit guilty of
that. You know, you know, you'd be sitting around doing a tiny
tuns or a you know, an a maniac and it is anybody got a
good burnt landcaster or you know John Wayne or somebody you know, yeah,
you know, somebody, some famous person, And it was just whoever was
in the room, right, instead of having like a rotating or a steady
person that you went to and uh. And they would even do that with
like no name brand characters like Sylvester. If there was some Sylvester, somebody
was doing Sylvester for a series, but he wasn't there. Well we'll just
get someone else for today. You know. It's like super weird. Yeah
you can. It's not the same whereas Disney, I will say this,
it's really good Disney character voices. It's on the money and it's got to
be in the pocket, and it's the same guy, right, you know.
I mean, I've been doing Pooh most of my life, right,
most of my life, and I'm old, you know. And Ruci and
Rucy and Wayne, the voice of Mickey and Minnie were married. They were
married, the cutest couple ever, unbelievable, and they did it till they
died. Yeah. I worked with her on a show called Jaker's and he
would come with her to every session. She'd sit beside me in the studio
and they were the cutest humans. And she'd hold my hand and she'd look
at way and she goes, isn't he handsome? And when he passed,
she's like, my hand hurts from not getting able to hold It was like,
oh my god, they are like the cutest. Yeah. Yeah.
She was a very sweet sweete so sweet. I mean, most voice over
people are pretty wonderful humans. There are a few that are all, but
most of us are pretty sweet. One of one of my favorite things.
Very early on in my career I can't remember, but there was people who
did a doll talking doll Teddy Ruxpan Yes. And then there was another one,
Mother Goose and Mother Goose obviously you know, she was an animated,
little animatic doll, very impressive little critter and it was Roosy and we and
I was kind of like clean up man. I'd be guard number three or
the Evil Night or you know, in all these Mother Goose fairy tales that
she would tell and we were getting doing the Frog Prince and Russie rest her
soul and you know it's true. Darling could cuss like a sailor, which
was so cute, which I know, going out of here, you're going,
what did you just say? Who's the mother of what? Now?
What kind of mother was it? And and uh and she would and she
could not get through this one line she goes. And then when the princess
leaned over and picked up the little frog, turned him round and kissed him
right on the tip of his little and she couldn't get through it. And
she stopped and she stopped, Okay, give me five minutes of his little
Oh my god, I'm just gonna say it. Can I just get it
out of me, you know? And then then she said it she got
and then like twenty minutes later we had to take Yeah, you know,
she cursed like a sailor. The voice of Mini mouse cursing like a sailor.
What is wrong with this picture? Pretty cute? God blesser, lesser
hard and YouTube wing. Yeah, but but yeah, well the guy's doing
it now are pretty dark good Yeah I don't know that, but but yeah,
yeah, but yeah, I mean it's nice when they when they keep
the same people. Because also the fans appreciate that. Yeah, the fans
are pretty verbal about their favorite's doing certain parts. Yeah, And I think
it's a mistake for Hollywood executives to think, oh, they need an a
lister because that person can only do that voice that way. First of all,
I think I've done hardly at least ten different ways. Right, There's
like the first video games, and then there was a really really dark movie
where she was like darker than the Joker and she was from Chicago, And
then there was the DC Superhero Girls, and then there's other video games and
they all range in pitch and intensity in different Like you and I work a
lot because we're very versatile. So to make the assumption that we couldn't tweak
it a bit for a more adult version of a show or for a bigger
movie is not right. And I get that like names, certain names,
Garner, big blockbuster money. Sure, but it's also, you know,
pretty devastating when you've been doing something for a long time and you are a
big part of why that character speaks to so many people, touched so many
lives than to not. It's like helping bake the bread, bread nut,
getting to eat it. Yeah, it feels it feels right. Yeah,
that's why. Also impressed with the new Rugrats Rabo that they just brought back
everybody, which I thought was very important. Yeah. I think. I
think, honestly, that's why the Powerpuff Girls bombed. I mean, you
know, they had all the guys and not the girls. Why yeah,
we're all still here and money. I never got that made no. I
mean, if anything, the guys would sound different other than the girls.
I mean, you know, I think Teen Titans Go works because it's all
the same cast. The original Teen Titans ended at this very insane, pivotal
story arc that has not been addressed, and it's actually caused a tremendous amount
of stress the fandom for decades, and everyone's begging for season six and p
s. I would love to do it. I don't understand why they can't
do it. At the same time, Go is a comedy, the og
is a very serious, well done animated series that definitely holds up. I
like the darker stuff. I like the old back Yeah, me too.
But what I'm saying is it works because they kept us right, like even
if Powerpuff Girls veered in a different direction animation, and like you're saying Rugrats
win in a different direction, right, it's CG. Keeping the original cast
I think is essential to enabling the show being successful. Yeah. Well,
I mean it's a you know, you dance with the one that brung you,
right, you know the reason you're doing this sequel or this next season
is because we did the first one. Yeah, how about that? Yeah?
Right? Yeah, and god forbid they pay you? Right? Yeah?
How have you found the new rugratstar work? Getting the old gang back?
You know, it's really funny. So our friend Charlie Adler, who
is so hilarious, directs this show and yeah, oh god, I'm sorry.
Yeah, I came in to do my part, and well I was
on Zoom the first time, and you know, initially, and it's still
this way, all of Dill's lines were in the stage directions, like baby
del grabs Tommy's toy, throws up on him, poops and goes to sleep,
and I'd be like, it'd all be like the noises that a baby
would make doing these, and we'd have to like look at the storyboards.
And now the beauty is they have, because of computer programming, storyboards that
you can watch in real time. Right, And so the very first day,
I was like looking at Dilly and like I had to do a bunch
of pooping and screaming and doing whatever, and I just looten. I just
looked at Charlie and I'm like, you know, it feels good to put
this old dipie back on. And that's good because he was probably wearing one.
I mean, he could rock a diaper. Yeah, he was very
good. How is the recording changed from the original series? Competiti You came
in a bit later in the show's run. You came into when the pick
of the Pals, because didn't you debut in the film Baby Dill came out
in the movie. You know, they needed a big story to take it
from series to film, and the big story was a new baby and I
had, you know, having two boys now like and living through that dynamic.
They really did address it in a beautiful way. I remember crying.
I had no kids at the time. I remember crying at the premiere and
I'm like, you can't cry. It's a cartoon and you're in it.
But it was very well done. It's very emotional and beautiful. And then
we would go to the really really dope studios Classy Tubo on Highland, which
had so much history. They didn't real lonsters there and the rats and the
thornberries, and you know, when we go to various studios around town,
they're lovely, but there was something very artistic and unique and special about this
place. And now we're all on Zoom, so you know, we're just
I don't know that it's ever really going to go back. And I appreciate
the fact that we could work During COVID, a lot of people kind of
lost everything, and the fact that we were able to, you know,
voice over the only leg of the industry that really didn't miss a beat.
And if you were already set up with a home studio, you're pretty set.
And we're still we're still working from home most of the time. I
think I've gone in maybe twice. I love it. I mean I love
it because, uh, you know, I did the running around, I
did all that rat racing stuff. And I live in Malibu for the first
time, and there's really nothing quite like living near water. I think we're
supposed to. Yeah, and it's very It's been very healing for me.
Like I went through a painful divorce and I went through a lot of stuff,
and like being at the ocean and just regrouping was very wonderful. And
it's a little bit far from everything. You're a little far too, And
I love my boyfriend and I love my dogs, and the fact that I'm
like, honey, I'm going to work and I just walked down the hall
and then I can play with my animals is kind of great. Yeah,
you know, I like it. I think the only thing that's challenging is
on camera. You don't really know how you did. Although I know SAG's
fighting for this, I don't. I hope they don't hate me. I
like doing the auditions for on camera at home because I'm such a perfectionist and
I've always liked doing my auditions on home voiceover or like voiceover we've been doing
on Christopher a while. Yeah, but you know, when you want to
memorize something and make sure you're getting it all right and you're hitting all your
beats. A lot of times when you go into an on camera audition and
there's a panel people going impress me, your nerves takeover and you don't do
as well as you would have liked to. So the fact that you can
do it perfect and send it off it is pretty great. It's funny because
I'm the complete opposite. Like I love the adrenaline of the judgment, you
know, I feel like that propels the characters. Yeah, and also you
don't get the feedback right. The casting director can't say, oh, make
it bigger or smaller, like you do miss some of that, But I'm
not like that. I like especially voiceover since I started. When I used
to go into the agency, i'd get kind of pissy and I didn't show
it. But I didn't like people telling you what to do in the in
the agent's office right when you get to a callback in the pretty But it's
like, I've been doing this since I'm thirteen. Yeah, don't tell me
how to do this. Yeah, yeah, I would like to wait for
people like listening outside the door. I will spend anywhere from ten minutes to
three hours in an audition if I want to make it perfect. That's that's
the thing too. It takes so much longer, Like when you're go in
person. It's just like, oh, okay, I got one shot,
and like I'm a theater kid, you know, so it's like, Okay,
I gotta be ready, I gotta hit this. You know. Maybe
you get two maybe three if you're lucky, and then it's over and like,
okay whatever, Like the rest is to the wind. At home,
it's like, oh man, I can really Oh I can do this better.
Oh I can do this, you know, but I like, I'm
a perfectionist. I liked it. I like that. What about you do
you like going? Well? You know, I don't mind it. You
know, I haven't lately. I've never been to the agency that I'm with
now, never one time. Oh, I mean I went there literally to
say that I went there, But as far as recording or doing anything,
nope, Yeah, I'm we used to go in a lot. Yeah,
and I missed that. Who are you with now? I'm still with DPN?
Oh okay, good? Who are well? Uh, I'm by the
time it happens, I'll be at DPN. I hope. Are you coming
here? Yeah? I don't even care. I'm just gonna say yeah,
because because it's gonna be an X amount of time has gone by. This
is live streaming, Jim, So everybody, Yeah, well that's now,
don't they? You know what I have to say, Like, sometimes when
you're feeling you're not working a lot or something slow or something didn't go well.
It's like they call it, you know, deck chair at the on
the Titanic, right, Like everyone's getting the same breakdowns, everyone's getting the
same thing. So what Like what's it to you to be wherever you are?
And I have to say, like Jeff Dannis, Natania Rose, oh
yeah, are literally my angels. Like when I was going through hard ship,
Jeff would like take me to lunch and sit with me. He held
my baby for the brists, like these are my these are my family,
you know. And Natania, I feel like she's a hard she's a hard
ass, but she's so fucking smart and I feel like I feel like I
said to her when I feel like I could be like the little girl in
the playground and you're holding my hand and saying telling the bullies like back the
fuck up. Like she's just always got my back, you know. And
she's great when you're when you're working with people that speak on your behalf,
they should be good humans. I think that needs to matter, you know,
humans. You know what I want to talk about? Oh what what
it is I want to talk about? I know what you're going to say,
Oh, okay, you didn't think I was gonna talk about that didn't
bro okay, So I'm quite brilliant at accents. In fact, I played
an on camera British girl for Sabrina and my friend was one of the executives
and she said she went home and they were watching dailies and there was a
scene at the Trevy Fountain where I went, oh fuck. And She's like,
all the people were watching and like they thought you were British till you
went oh fuck. So I'm like, oh, that's so, I'm good
at it. And if I don't call the accent, I'll call the area
and I'll talk to a local, or I'll search, you know, as
many accent kids as I can. Yeah. One of the hardest I've ever
had to learn was Cajun I'll buy that. Yeah. It's like Southern mixed
with French, mixed with like all kinds of crazy shot crazy. So we
were all told we had to learn it for the Zombie Yes, yeah,
the Zombie Island. Zombie Island with the glorious Jim Cummings. I'll come in
with what we thought were pretty decent and then Jim speaks, you grew up
in the Bayou. Yeah, and they're like Okay, no one else is
doing this accent. Oh Jim is Yeah, you guys just all the southern.
Yeah, just be southern. Oh yeah, yeah, God, I
almost remember that. You're the only one they could do green you mails,
I'll look terrible. Well, it's well, you know, it used to
take me off when I would see a movie and they go, oh,
we're you know, well we're going where out there at the bayou and yeah,
I'm new and they was comb or pile. I go, that's not
how they sound. Yeah. It just kind of pissed me off because you
know, I was out there on that, but you're like that, and
you know, I couldn't tell you one thing. Mary, you see you
that when I was out there like that, and that guy you talk about
good and they have no idea what the hell the guy just said. But
I can remember the first guy and this true story. I think I've told
this far, but when when teenage mutant Ninja Turtles needed a Cajun alligator and
I was leatherhead and uh, and they said it has to sound like an
old, crusty crustacean pissed off Cajun, And I said, I got the
guy. And the first guy because I was a deckhead when I was nineteen
on the river and uh. And it was my first time on the river
and it was Leon's LeBlanc. He was problem Napolu there in Louisiana and it's
Louisiana, by the way, it's not Louisiana, and uh and and he
just couldn't believe that I was. I was there, and he goes,
this is my lastest time on the river. And they don't sent me a
Yankee college boy. And I said, well, I'm actually not going to
college. You better go. You ain't going to make it out here.
And no. And I said, well, and the thing about when you're
starving to death and you're nineteen and you're live in New Orleans, go be
a deckhand because you can eat that day. You don't have to wait two
weeks for the paycheck. You can eat that day, you know. So
I did and uh and I just you know, I remembered this guy.
And they said it has to be an old, crusty cajun. So I
just did him. I just literally did. It was name was Leons LeBlanc.
And I've I've told this before, and I just have to believe that
you know something, because it wasn't long after that I moved out here and
start doing it. And I often wondered if his grandkids were sitting there watching
the turtles, you know, and hey, Grandpaul, come in here,
because it's him. It's a really good he's a well I'm limito you one,
I'm going to deed. You get on out there with them turtle and
then you know, and you bring them back. You get me some yeah
uh. And anything that slithered, that fell out of a tree or pooped
or came out of a hole or oh you see that right that boy does
good eating right down, everything was good eating and over rise o talk about
good. Speaking of eaton, let's talk about your veganism, Tara. You
know, I it's it's so important to me, Like I feel very strongly,
and it's one of the reasons I do cons Yep. We are here
to make other people feel good. We are here to spread light, energy
and magic. And I believe love is the most powerful force in the universe.
And I think if we've touched someone in a certain way that made them
feel seen like special, beautiful, smart, creative, whatever it is,
like I take every opportunity to do that at CON's And like you said,
a lot of those kids are on the autism spectrum and people aren't so kind
to them in the real world. And when you see them crying, to
get that kindness, to have someone understanding them is very important to me.
And I like to be a voice for the voiceless. And one of the
most insane atrocities in this country, in this country and around the world is
how we treat factory farmed animals. It is unbelievable that no one and I
mean no one, because obviously the vegan and the vegan community are people who
do care, but most people don't care. And when you are in this
community and you're sent these videos which are readily available online where it's a daily
torture chamber, where the people that work in these places are stabbing, kicking,
punching, herding, killing their friends in front of them. By the
way, these people are walking freely in your neighborhood. Right If you could
go up to a cow and stab it and like it doesn't affect you at
all, that's not a normal And a lot of these animals, even if
they're not absurdly beaten, you know, there's still a lot of them never
get to see daylight, so never outside. It's really inhumane and like,
my heartbreaks that, like these little baby pigs, I can't just go rescue
them and save them. And I understand that many people don't want to give
up meat, so I think at the very least the fight should be to
end cruelty and the unnecessary cruelty. And if we cut down on meat consumption,
so we ended factory farming and had kind farms where animals are treated well,
we could actually do a really big, big, make big impact of
saving the planet. Right, so much of global warming is because of factory
farming. People don't understand it, want to look at it. And anytime
you tweet about it or write about it, because eating meat is such an
addiction, people get furious with you. And I'm not saying fuck you to
people eating meat. I'm saying, let's care about how animals are treated.
And people say, fuck you, I'm not going to do your lifestyle.
They get very angry, and I'm like, why aren't you angry at the
person stabbing a cow, Like, weren't you angry at the atrussits that are
going on every day by the millions to animals. And by the way,
a cow is a big dog a pig. I think pigs would be treated
better if they didn't have such a bad glow up. Like as babies,
they're so cute, but when they're bigger, they're not as cute, and
people don't want to keep them, so I think it's justifiable to eat them.
But like, personality wise, if you play with them, they're the
same as your dog. Yeah, you wouldn't stab your dog. People get
very mad at you, Lynn, but they do the same shit in America,
And I just wish people cared, and I wish people wouldn't get angry
at vegans for pointing out truths, because those are just the truths. These
animals are sad and scared, and when you eat an animal or pay for
their torture, you are consuming sadness, torture, fear, And I just
wish people thought about it more. And you know, my boyfriend eats meat.
My son will have stuff here and there. And I don't like have
a judgment, and I don't want to make people feel bad when they're enjoying
their food, but I do want people to stop the cognitive dissonance that you
think that thing is hopping on your plate like it's having a hard time.
I just wish people cared more about how yeah, yeah, yeah, It's
clearly you're passionate about many things. Animal roots and another thing is being a
mum. It's one of the things you adore the most in this world.
When you became a mother, How, if at all, did that change
your approach to your work? You know, I feel so lucky, and
I know you understand this is that most I mean a lot of a lot
of jobs don't enable you to be a hands on parent. And even sometimes
with on camera you're flying somewhere, you're doing something. You don't always have
that kind of opportunity to really be involved in making breakfast, taking them to
school, right, and so most of our jobs, even when we were
going to studio, we're nine to one, two to six, you could
still make breakfast, drop your kid off at school, and go volunteer on
lunch and pick them up. I've occasionally brought them. I mean well,
I mean to say, if you remember change diapers in La studio, I
worked up till I delivered, and then I brought my babies. If you
remember, I would bring any and I'd bring them till they were like two
or three. When my son started preschool, he was crying and he didn't
understand why the other kids weren't missing Nickelodeon. Like they grew up with very
colorful environments and amazing people doing funny voice. I never saw you at Disney.
I never saw Yeah. I feel really fortunate that I got to ye
bring them when they were babies in the more. Yeah. No, they
they always say to me, Mom, like we had the best childhood and
it's because of you, Like you made it so fun. And gratitude is
the one of the biggest ingredients in happiness for sure, and being grateful brings
more wonderful things to be grateful for. I really believe that. And I
think the funnest thing for me is when they find me in things they don't
know I was in. I don't know if you have this experience with yours,
but like my kids are like I remember coming in the house and my
son was like, well, I'm good in here. He's like, I
was just watching Family Guy and Stewie gets sent to an orphanage and there's like
a million kids there, and you voiced every single one. Oh wow,
that cool, or like Rick and Morty, or like video game find me
on things that aren't like my regular things, and yeah, yeah, I
just had that with Jim. We were on the very first episode of the
podcast. We were talking about it Grand Theft Auto five. Oh right.
He was like, no, I have bought guns from you so many times.
Yes, yes, yeah, I remember years ago when I first came
out. My nephew Boris called me up and he goes, oh, Jim,
yeah, did I just buy an M sixteen from you in an old
Amico gas station And you were like on the down low and the cute tea
and I wasn't supposed to tell anybody, and yeah that rings a bell.
I go, yeah, it goes. Wow, that was pretty cool.
Anyway, I'm gonna be back tomorrow. I think I'm gonna get a shotgun.
I go, okay, I'll be there. I'm sure I'll be there.
That's sobody. Yeah. My kid was playing Injustice and I walked.
I walked in one day after work. He's like, mom, I just
killed everyone as you. I was like, okay, he was, oh
me sweet, Yeah that is so sweet. Are they all dead? Yeah?
Okay, we just check it. Yeah, when my little pony hit.
I was, you know, coming to volunteer hot lunchip Sammy's school and
it was like he was in fourth grade and he was like, Mom,
if the kids like talk about don't talk about my little pony. And I
call him and they all like mom, You're like, oh yeah. The
next season and went Rold's bark, Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah,
yeah. I've had stuff like that. I remember when my older girls
were were younger, I you know, we'd take turns. One year,
I'd walked them around Halloween, and next year my wife went and so it
was my year to stay home. And uh, I'm my year to walk
them around. And we get back home and my wife says, she goes,
Okay, I just had the cutest experience. These little nine year old
and seven year old boys came up to the door and took a treet.
Took a treet. So I'm giving him candy, giving him candy, and
they post standig one and they looking around, looking around, and she goes,
is there anything else? Boys? She goes, just dark Wing Duck
live here for reals. She goes, yeah he does. He's actually he's
out right now protecting looking out for kids. Who are trick or treating?
And he goes, I told you, you booger, you know, and
then they want to tell them, said he and I've got my shirt one.
Yeah. Well, speaking of doing voices for characters, we like to
do something on this podcast where we'll exchange character voices. So Jim will give
you a line, you do it in a character voice like Timmy Turner or
whatever, and then vice versa. Would you want to do that? Okay,
yeah, okay, Well here as I'll let you pick Twilight Sparkle.
Maybe I am the terror the flaps in the night. I am the terror
that flaps in the night. I'm scared. Okay, your turn. Now
you give me one of yours and tell me who'd be. Okay, you
be dark Wing Duck. Okay, and say how many bps? Girl?
Accupine me? I'm gonna be the prettiest girl at the party. That was
terrible. Well, your job is safe, your gig is solid, rock
solid? All right? Well, all right, right, here's one more.
Uh, and I'll let you pick Okay, maybe Harley. Okay,
have you got an extra smack rol of honey for me? Hi? Open
you got an extra smack honey? I do I think we all do.
I've got all the smackrels. That's a wonderful thing. Oh that was thank
you. You like that a little too much? Yeah, I like that
a little too much. Chris is recording this, you know, so we'll
be visiting my world's going to see that. Yeah, I think so,
I think so. So. Have I asked you what's coming up? What
should everybody be looking out for or like even cons or anything like that.
Well, on my social I'm at to our strong everywhere I talk about my
cons. I'm also soon going to be releasing a class and a million years
ago, I had a website called voice Stars. I think you were on
it because we get asked all the time, like how do you get into
voice over? And I kind of let it go and I get asked.
We get asked every day. Yeah, and I also get asked a coach,
which I don't do, primarily because I'm too busy, but also I
don't like being mean. And the truth is, you're not going to make
this in this business, even if you're the most challenged, beautiful human,
unless there's a serendipitous moment that puts you on the map. There has to
be a little bit of magic, and not everyone gets that. And I've
really hated classes that promise you work or take money from hopefuls because it's like
everybody wants to do it, and the fact is, we know really talent
to people that are hurting, like it's not it's not everyone's gonna get that
chance. And so people ask me all the time. And so my boyfriend
Willie said, well, why don't you do one that's more of a community,
that's not like promising work, but like giving your secrets and making me
people feel like they're part of something. And so I don't want to say
too much because we ended up expanding from that idea into something pretty special and
I already recorded it. I wrote it was funny once I started to sit
down and write, because I'm like, you know what, if people are
going to sign up for this monthly, I want it to be valuable.
I want to give them all my secrets, and i want like inside stuff
that might be kind of weird that other people don't do, and I want
to structure it like from start to job. And I'm like, it's got
it. If I'm sure you've done this where you go to speak at of
college and you just speak because you know it so well. I think if
people are going to pay for these classes, it should be structured. So
I sat down and I wrote Class one, Class two, and it's over
a hundred pages. I couldn't stop, and so we went and recorded them
in a professional studio, and there's about there is ten videos of me giving
all my secrets. And then there's going to be other things where we have
people come on and get to talk to people. Some of you'll come on
and join sometimes, but it's more of like a community than pay me this
money and you'll get work, because we can't even guarantee ourselves. There's a
little yeah, there's a little of that out there. There's a lot of
that. I think people are paying to audition. That's so gross to me.
There are sites that charge people to pay to audition, and nobody in
our world got there doing that, So it's such a scam. And I
just don't like. I don't like people being scammed. Really, I just
I don't like bullies. I don't like I you know, no, I
just I have such a problem. I mean, I grew up with a
mom who was obese, a sister who is different, and I would witness
what it looks like when they come home from being bullied all day. And
I think that's another reason I'm so great with my fans. I've seen it,
I lived it, and to be bullied for being different is so terrible.
And I think that some of these places feed on those people because they
know about the person acting classes. Yeah, yeah, I don't like it.
Anyways, I'm gonna hopefully do it well and I'll be announcing it on
my social Yeah, like how you have to work your way up the ranks
in class and like, oh my gosh, it's more and more money,
and then they make it seem all exclusive when really it's just a buyer's club
of course. Oh yeah. I was in Toronto. I studied at Second
City. I went all the way through, I was on stage. It
was a great, great experience. I moved to LA and I'm like,
I should probably do Groundlings because at that time I would love to have been
on Saturday at Live. And I'm like, I know a lot of people
get picked from there, and so I called them as someone who's already performed
on the Second City stage, like, no, you have to start at
level one. I'm like, really, like really, and I think I
talked my way into like not pre level one, but level one and I
failed. I failed. I failed, and I was like what really?
And they just keep you going and I was like, you know what,
I'm not going to pay for anywere Yeah, I had that exact same experience,
like I was on the one hundred for a few episodes, Like you
know, I've done done stuff here and there, and I'm taking this class
in Vancouver. I'm not going to name the studio, but like the same
thing where it's like, oh, you have to audition for this class and
like you're going to start out the beginners, And I was like, what's
Like, I have a theater degree and I've been acting for ten years now,
like beginners, those classes should be to serve you, right, to
help you, Like, if you've already been acting, you should be at
this level. How do we get you to the next level? Right?
How do we get your game even better? Like what would and to go
back to those places if you've already done it. It's honestly why I didn't
go to college. I started at thirteen. I did theater, I did
TV and film. I did a ton of animation and I booked a few
movies the summer I was supposed to leave for college, and there was a
few different performing arts colleges and I won't say their names for the same reason,
and you what say the names? And the course outline was the beginnings
of singing with limericks and how to audition. And I'm like, why am
I going to spend a fortune learning how to do things I've been paid to
do for a decade? And I ended up saying no to school, doing
the movies and then flying, and especially when you're first starting out, like
a couple hundred bucks is big money, you know, you bet like you're
breaking the bank just to do that. And then they play kate you you
know, like I really like classes where they're hard on me, Like I'm
you know, I played football all my life as well, and you know,
I like that constructive criticism, you know, because I want to get
better, you know, and it's not going to get better if somebody's like,
oh, that was fabulous and then behind their back, Yeah, yeah,
I don't like it. There's so much bullshit in the business that you
don't want it when you're It shouldn't be there when you're trying to work on
your craft, right, and also the show businesses in general, and I
mean mostly when I'm speaking about this, directors and actors, because this is
what I know so closely, is you can go to school and you can
train and you can work, and it doesn't guarantee you work. If you
want to be a doctor or a lawyer, you go to these you go
to that school and you study and you get to work. That's not how
it works in entertainment. So to keep taking it manage of hopefuls in that
way really pisses me off. Yeah, same with me. Yeah, yeah,
I agree, I agree. Yeah, you know, it's like,
you know, just give me a give me a shot, give me a
chance. Yeah, but uh yeah, then get out of the way.
Yeah yeah, and all over. Their rules are so absurd. You know,
you can have a kid that hasn't had any training that comes in and
kills it in something because they came with this gift. Right, to make
in this business, you kind of have to come with some gifts. And
there's not going to be someone that got a book on how to teach a
class that's going to enhance that gift. Right. And also, if you
don't have the gift and you're wasting all that money. That's not great either,
you know, And there's no rhyme or reason. Like I have people
that I've helped get into the agency that have had three hundred auditions that haven't
booked anything. And then I have a guy that write out of the gate
booked fifteen spots for Turbo tax. Like there's no rules, right, So
like, don't keep paying for those classes, and yeah, the rules are
what gets you there. Classes should be to enhance your your craft and also
to bring you confidence, right because acting in general is so a successful career
is built on confidence and even if you don't have it for that moment,
you have to fake it. They have to go in the room that you're
gonna be able to pull off this job. And if that class is going
to give you confidence and boost you, so like, Okay, now I
know that this works because I saw at work in this class and I'm feeling
confident about how to do this, then that accelerates your career. If it's
not doing that, yeah, yeah, yeah, it's not working. Wow.
So true. Yeah. I always say the only thing you can really
control as an actor is how good of an actor you are. You know,
you can't control what auditions you get, you can't control what bookings you
get, you can't control your direction, but you can control how good of
an actor you are by constantly staying in class, you know, practicing homework,
exactly doing your homework. Yeah, that's true. And you know,
whenever I've had to audition for this or that or the other thing. I
actually I use Don Carnage as an example. They'll they'll I always give him
one the way that they ask you know, the according to the dr.
I mean you have to you know it, you're smart because I always like
to give at least two or three auditions. You're the same, right,
yeah, yeah, And I always do one, uh the way they write
it, the way they asked, all the requirements. Well he's this,
he's that, he's you know, and then I the second one I do
is the way it should be. Yeah, you know, and and I
mean really different. Think that's what I mean. If there's an alien and
like she's really ugly, but you give her like a sexy voice, like
that's funny, like perfect. Yeah. Yeah, I had this character Don
Carnage that they did that with, and it was they wanted him to be
a typical British pirate. All right, dear me, TI, get over
there, whether it's just so stole the master or do whatever you do with
that. And and but instead I met him come in from Kuba or somewhere
like this, from the Caribbean and uh, and it was just so weird
and different, and said, well let's get that guy. Yeah, and
they you know, they'll catch the curveball. That's right. You never knows.
Give them what, give them what they want, then give them what
they didn't know they wanted. Yeah, that works in on camera too.
When I was doing Big Time Rush, the guy that plays the band's like
manager, Steven Glickman. In the original auditions, they called for someone like
very sleek, like like how you pictures some sleek realtor or something, you
know, like whatever, it's like agent guy, how would you know about?
And so his manager said, you gotta see Stephen because he's not that
type, right, you gotta see him. And they they were trying to
find this character and they couldn't find They brought in Stephen and he blew them
away and he changed their minds. A lot of acting is changing their minds.
Sure, yeah, yeah, for sure till they agree with you.
Yeah, then they're finally on the right track. Yeah, exactly. Oh
don't change yeah, yeah, I don't change them now. Oh man,
that's so cool. So am I going to see you anywhere soon? I
really can't even know where are you going? Where? I don't know?
I was well, I was thinking, because I've seen you a couple Yeah,
and what's next for you? I was just this one schedules Sioux City,
like the next eight weeks booked? Yeah, Sioux City. You know
you have booked. I got a written. What are you doing nineties?
Is that a good one? I haven't done that yet in Tampa Bay.
I want to do that. I want to like bring all the Powerpuff Girls
and do that. Yeah. Yeah, the New York Comic Con. Because
I was thinking we could tell we could tell everybody to come see you.
I really want to go to New York. Yeah. My kids there at
school, so I'm not in that con yet, but I'd like, where
are they My youngest goes to NYU cool? Oh yeah, I'll tell you
where I'm going and why are you I'm going to uh Cincinnati, Okay,
Houston. We'll tell everybody to come see you. Yeah, that's that's the
idea. I just tell everybody you're coming San Francisco, Columbus, Pittsburgh,
Columbus, maybe anyway anyway, but go see Tara everybody. I don't know
what you're looking. Yeah. And if I'm there, Ken see me too.
Yeah. Yeah. It's wild how many conventions there are these days.
You could do two a weekend if you wanted to. Oh yeah yeah,
and people do people do? I think that's crazy? Yeah, yeah,
yeah, too much, that's too much. Yeah. Tom Penny comes and
cleans up on a Friday, makes everyone come on Friday, then he goes
somewhere else for Saturday. I don't know that. I think that's nuts.
I can't do. That is really hard. Yeah, we've done really Yeah.
We've been doing that on Sundays for the last few months. Yeah.
Yeah, and it's those are always exhausting days. And we do the podcast
at the convention, so like after a full day of Jim doing convention stuff,
you know, and then we do like an hour and a half podcast
after, which is yeah, he's a real soldier for that, and then
go into a coma right after after that. You know, it's just like
oh man, yeah, but we have fun. We have a couple of
drinks. Oh yeah, yeah, you do you make it fun? Yeah?
Yeah, I mean my boyfriend a fun We like went on a double
date and now we're such good friends with the girl that voices Dora the Explorer,
Kathleen Hrlis, And I didn't know her because she worked out of New
York. She still does. She's a New York person and we all know
each other, the people in LA that did a ton of animation, and
so she kind of slid into my DMS and she's like, I'm gonna be
at this con. We've never met, and we went on a double date
with them, and we had so much fun. Like first of all,
her husband, Reggie's adorable, and the four of us had so much.
We got really drunk and she started singing the Door of the Explorer song and
this this like family walks by and they looked at her really weird, and
she's like, I'm Dora. Oh God, I can do this. I'm
like I like this. Check. We had we double date with them.
Oh that's funny, make it fun. Yeah, that's cool, good good
good. Yeah. We had a We had a blast with Joey for Tone
a couple of weeks ago. Yeah, he was hitting the bar. That's
funny. It's a good time when whenever it's like your birthday or something,
I'll look on and I'll just google Twistrong and Gym Cummings and a lot of
a lot of them. Are us drinking at a bar to contre Yeah?
Yeah, yeah, that's right. Yeah, I remember the one we went
two years ago. We're sitting in the water. Yeah, where was that?
I don't I think it was Florida, Florida, or you go to
Puerto Rico that might have been it. Huh, yeah, I think it
was. It was beautiful. Yeah, and you get to see the world.
I did a con in Ireland, I did a con in Dubai,
I've done UK. It's fun. You had to travel and see different places.
Yeah, that's phenomenal. Yeah, I would like to do the Dubai
one. Pretty wonderful and like talk about surprise huge Ben ten fans huge.
And also in the UK and a lot of overseas places get different merch than
we do, so they bring like really crazy stuff and I'm like that's cool.
I want one of those. Wow, do you have toys in yourself?
I love getting toys of myself. Oh yes, too many? Boy
do I ever? Yeah? And then my studio up there, In fact,
we rid of them here anyway. They were like forty little backpacks.
Yeah, there's little cutie pie. What are who puts them out of forget
lounge fly? Yeah somebody? Yeah yeah, and there's like hundreds of them.
Yeah, there's hundreds of poos. Well, dozen's lounge fly sand bags?
Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah that's right. Did you mention
loud fun I'll take some bags, take some cute power puff and this minute
sto oh hell yes yeah, let's merchandise. Yeah, well I would.
I think they should be a little what what are those little dolls? Little
punko pops? Yeah, puncos, I mean of you are you kidding?
I told them that there should be a terror verse one. Where is it?
Yeah? Yeah no, I said, like I think I've been more
pops than anyone else on the planet. Like, well, so and so
did this and this. I'm like, okay, there's fifteen Harley's, there's
twenty Raves. Yeah, there's miss Minutes. There's my character from well I
met you, this, this, this, this all is everything, like
make a funco of me with all my funco characters that you've made in the
thing. How about that we're trying to get the same thing done with Jim,
because the same story and yeah, I'll make one with the gym and
hello little trying to blow up. Yeah, let's do that. Or you
and I we could team up. Yeah, then we could really be insane,
you know, you know, yeah, we could do that. Let's
do that, Jim and got that, got that world. Well, thank
you so much. I'm saying I'm so happy that you've been had. Thank
you. Yeah, that's I think I said that right. I'm okay.
So at least I wasn't anywhere near your crack. That's true, damn it.
You don't have to rub it in. Oh my gosh. Well that's
fantastic. Thank you so much, my dear friend.