Employee of the Month and Other Big Deals

If you have enjoyed the comedy of Mystery Science Theater 3000, or the more recent movie-mocking gang, Cinematic Titanic, you have comedian/print and radio essayist Mary Jo Pehl partially to thank. There are a few writers that have the power to bring a smile to my face, far less writers can make me laugh uncontrollably. I have grown to rely on Pehl to always be in the latter writer category. Her recently released book, Employee of the Month and Other Big Deals, features some of the comedian/essayist’s strongest (and most amusing) tales. This collection of essays partially chronicles her life as she moved from Minnesota to New York, then ultimately Texas–with all the great and funny tales in between. Upon learning of her new book, I contacted Pehl for a brief email interview about her stories, as well learning which writers entertain her…among other big deals (to clearly borrow from her title).

The blurbs in praise of this book are the who’s who of good comedy, including Trace Beaulieu who said: “Mary Jo Pehl can do what very few authors can—make me laugh out loud.” How gratifying was it to see your peers say things like this and of a similar vein?

I suppose I put them on the spot since we travel together and they’d have to face me. Still, I really respect and value their sensibilities, and so was hoping they’d think of something good to say about the book.

How cathartic was it to write the write the introduction, where you were able to discuss your other previously published “book” (a term I assume you prefer I use loosely).

A friend sent me this quote by Robert Cormier: “The beautiful part of writing is that you don’t have to get it right the first time, unlike, say, a brain surgeon.”

I remember reading an essay or story by Ann LaMotte in which she spoke of a high-profile failure. I was so struck by how candid – and funny – she was about the whole thing. That resonated with me, just to own up to it and to realize there are no perfect systems. It’s very freeing to be honest. It’s very freeing to be able to laugh at one’s self. It’s very freeing to admit there were mistakes along the way!

I hope it was clear that the whole thing wasn’t the publisher’s fault. He was a sweet fellow. It just wasn’t a good match and I hadn’t thought it through nor did I take enough responsibility for the end result.

In the introduction you also mock the quality of your journal-writing as a child, but would you say that all of that journal-writing helped to make you a stronger writer?

I think it has always clarified my thoughts and my process. Sometimes I think so many things about something that I have to write to sort it out. A flow chart for myself, I suppose! Hard to say if it’s actually improved my writing. I hope so. I hope I’ve made some progress from labored taco chip analogies.

Your self-made pants that figure so prominently in your essay, The Crush, did you ever wear them again after (not to spoil things for folks who have not read the book) the incident?

Ha! Great question! I’m sure I did! I thought I was pretty bitchin’ in ‘em!

When you write about your family, do you ever vet the stories by them, or are they all fine with you writing about them–no matter the subject?

I don’t vet the stories through my family. I know their sensibilities and none of the stories are particularly inflammatory. However, a person here and there has taken me to task for what they perceive as a harsh portrayal of my parents in the story about living with them. I don’t see it. I say nothing in that story that I haven’t ribbed them about personally! My parents’ are so great: my mom loves it any time she’s portrayed. I could call her a puppy-killing, lard-ass, meth dealing tyrannical despot and she’d show her friends: “Look! Mary Jo wrote about me! That’s me!”

That said, I was concerned about the story about my sister losing a child. Because we are very close, I asked her if it would be okay if I wrote about it. She said yes. I’m not sure she’s ever read it, or what she thinks of it.

Who was your editor on Employee of the Month–and how did they help you to make it a stronger book?

The splendid Tom Dupree, with whom I’d worked on the MST3K Colossal Guide. He has this great way of understanding what I’m trying to do and being encouraging and supportive, and yet administering tough love as needed. It definitely, hands-down, no two ways about it, unquestionably and indubitably made it a stronger book.

There are Postcards from China (and Postcards from Peru) that pop up periodically in the book, were you hesitant to depart from the traditional essay format with these comedic snippets?

Nope! Not hesitant in the least! It was really exciting, actually, to discover a way to have the bits in there. The postcards were derived from longer, more traditional travel essays, and I just felt like those essays, though they had appeared elsewhere, were a little plodding. It was fun to reduce them to their essence – the intent of which was to entertain and make you laugh. And that’s when it struck me – why couldn’t these just be postcards? When you’re self-publishing, you have room to experiment.

Clearly you are a damn funny writer, but I am curious, which writers entertain you?

Why, thank you! Where do I even start… E.B. White, David Sedaris, Nathaniel Philbrick, Sarah Vowell, Mary Elizabeth Williams, Kevin Kling, Evelyn Waugh, Anne LaMotte, E. B. White, James Thurber, Dawn Powell, Wallace Shawn, Lynda Barry… and on and on.

I enjoyed the diagrams/art that accompanied some of the book’s essays. Who provided art for your book and how much did you enjoy seeing the comedic diagrams that accompanied your writing?

Len Peralta did the illustrations. There were a couple of things that I thought would be heightened or augmented with illustrations; the story of me trying to get out of a guy’s car just felt like, “You have got to see this”. With the bridge drawing, I wanted to give a sense of Wodney’s artistic rendering of his cautionary tale — as he was driving a car. Len is tremendously talented, I wanted to work with him, and I think the illustrations are just the right touch!

I love the honesty with which you write in your essay on scuba diving (and the struggles of getting on your wetsuit). Is it harder to write essays like that where you expose yourself half naked (in a manner of speaking) flaws and all to the reader?

Like I mentioned at the top, it is very freeing to me to be honest. To be sure, my ultimate goal is to be funny, not to perform some personal catharsis at the expense of the time of the reader. I find that that when I’m just honest about it, and exposing my own foibles and vulnerability, people can relate.

So will you be selling the book if folks come to see you at future Cinematic Titanic shows?

Yes, indeed!

What did I forget to ask you about?

Irritable bowel syndrome.

Unfortunately they need to rethink their execution, based on the first night. My problem with it, the audio from the Ustream feed was muddled–not because of Ustream’s technology but because Fallon had filled the room with his Late Night staff (too many folks, honestly). Few of them are used to being on TV, and some of them were on the verge of mumbling when they spoke, others speaking at the same time. I think it would work better if Ustream provided a screen in screen shot–with the actual NBC show in the corner, while the Ustream stays as the dominant screen. Even better, Fallon would be better off inviting three or four staffers to do the Ustream show, rather than the whole staff.

I still like the core concept, I just hope they improve things based on moments that worked (when Fallon pulled out a custom made guitar, using stained-glass, which lit up as he mock played and the whole staff sang the old WKRP in Cincinnati theme, for example). I’m willing to give it a second try, with hopes for a more enjoyable experience.

Tim O’Shea: You recently wrote about Skidoo (the Otto Preminger film with Groucho Marx as a gangster named “God”). I have seen the film as well and I wonder would that be a film that the Cinematic Titanic gang might like to tackle? Or is it just so weird on its own merits that to mock it would dilute the potency of its sheer badness?

Frank Conniff: I don’t think we could ever get the rights to “Skidoo.”

On the one hand, it would be a fun film to riff on, but on the other hand, it is, as you say, bad on its own merits and maybe it doesn’t need the Cinematic Titanic treatment to be enjoyed.

O’Shea: What kind of criteria do you have for selecting a film for consideration for the Cinematic Titanic crew? Is your criteria much the same as it was during your MST3K days or do you think your standards have evolved (for lack of a more apt term)?

Conniff: It’s pretty much the same standards as the MST3K days. I think we have a little more leeway as far as “adult content” goes, but otherwise all of the films we’ve done so far at Cinematic Titanic would have fit right in at MST3K.

O’Shea: As a writer/performer in a collaborative effort like Cinematic Titanic, what do you consider to be the strengths you add to the dynamics? Do you think your humor works best in some sort of tandem
with particular cast members or does the humor just benefit equally from all cast members?

Conniff: I think the humor benefits equally from all cast members. As was the case at MST3K, at Cinematic Titanic our sensibilities are all in synch with each other.

O’Shea: What do you enjoy most about the visual comedy potential gained from the multi-tier silhouette (versus the standard single row format)?

Conniff: Well, in this case I get to be one of the silhouettes, so I really enjoy that aspect of it.

O’Shea: Of the Cinematic Titanic projects you’ve done to date–is there one line that a cast member has said that no matter how many times you hear it, you can’t stop laughing? For me it was a Casey Kasem scene in Doomsday Machine, when one of the cast said (in perfect Weekly Top 40 tone): “Now here’s Steely Dan”.

Conniff: I think the line in “Oozing Skull,” “Is that a small desk, or wooden pants?” was brilliant.

I don’t remember who said it, but I do know that Trace [Beaulieu] wrote it.

O’Shea: To fully enjoy comedy like Cinematic Titanic, I think it helps to have a Dennis Miller (in his prime/pre-9/11) level of pop culture knowledge. The gang pulls references from anywhere and everywhere. So, in the Doomsday Machine installment of Cinematic Titanic, one of the cast (yea, I’m lousy with voices, sorry) says “A gumball machine head on a robot? I’m sorry…that is lame.” Was that the first time the gang jokingly reference MST3K?

Conniff: It might be; I don’t really remember if we did other such lines before that.

O’Shea: In a recent blog post you noted that Neil Patrick Harris is a longtime MST3K fan. In all the years doing things like MST3K and Cinematic Titanic, can you think of your best encounter with someone famous and/or that you respect–that turns out to have been a longtime fan of your work?

Conniff: The fact that brilliant comedians like Dana Gould and Patton Oswalt love MST3K has always been very gratifying to me.

O’Shea: With the increasing popularity of Adult Swim type shows–is there ever any chance that Cartoon Dump could make it on to television–or is that a project best suited for live theater?

Conniff: We will always do the live show, but we would love for Cartoon Dump to be on Adult Swim one day.

O’Shea: How did Cartoon Dump come about–and what is it about the project that appeals to you most?

Conniff: The project came about after my friend Jerry Beck and I began talking about a new way to present the cartoons he uses in the “Worst Cartoons Ever” lecture that he gives at Comic Con and other venues.

What appeals most to be about “Cartoon Dump” is the freedom I have to write anything I want to write for the show. Also, the audience response that we’ve been getting at the Steve Allen Theater has been very gratifying.

O’Shea: Comedy is an ever-evolving craft, as you well know. MST3K and Cinematic Titanic-type comedy clearly influenced many comedians of today. Is there ever a movie or TV show that you watch and you realize the creators have clearly been influenced by your work?

Conniff: I think our influence has been real but subtle, so I don’t usually notice it overtly.

O’Shea: Creatively, what else is on the horizon for you in the near to long-term?

Conniff: My goal is to keep working on stuff like “Cinematic Titanic” and “Cartoon Dump”: projects where I am free to express myself with complete creative freedom.

Before diving into the interview, here’s the official take on Cinematic Titanic: “Cinematic Titanic is a feature length movie riffing show and is an artist owned and operated venture created by Joel Hodgson, the creator of the Peabody award-winning Mystery Science Theatre 3000. Cinematic Titanic features the original cast and writers of MST3K, which is Hodgson (Joel Robinson), Trace Beaulieu (Crow), and J. Elvis Weinstein (Tom Servo). Filling out the ensemble is Mary Jo Pehl (Pearl Forrester) and Frank Conniff (TV’s Frank). Cinematic Titanic’s focus is to riff on the movies we love, which are ‘the unfathomable’, ‘the horribly great’, and the just plain ‘cheesy’ movies from the past.”

And now for the official word on Pehl: “Writer, actor, raconteur, bon vivant and former Mystery Science Theater 3000 writer, Mary Jo Pehl’s work ranges from television to theater, national radio to regional magazines. Her hilarious and thoughtful takes on life have delighted audiences in print and stage.” My thanks to Pehl for her time.

Tim O’Shea: For a collaborative comedic effort like Cinematic Titanic how hard was it for you to get back into the rhythm and dynamics that had been polished during MST3K? Or is it like riding a bike, and everything just fell back into place?

Mary Jo Pehl: It was kind of surprising how easily we fell back into it. I hadn’t realized that it was in my blood! Not only that, I had recently worked with a couple of guys here in Austin who do an homage to MST3K called Master Pancake Theater. They invited me to riff live with them, so I got a little experience actually riffing live on the films and not just writing the jokes. It was good training to actually being in front of the movie.

O’Shea: Do you think your personal Pehl specific brand of comedy with Cinematic Titanic flourishes in response to a certain genre of bad movie, or are you open to all forms of camp?

Pehl: I’m an observer of all kinds of camp – but that’s not the same as endorsing all sorts of camp! Many things I just ask, “But why?” I definitely think my humor has been shaped and refined by responding to and mocking movies for such a big chunk of my life. I also think there are aspects of my humor and writer’s voice that doesn’t have an outlet with Cinematic Titanic, which is great too.

O’Shea: It’s kind of hypocritical of me to ask this, given that I already mentioned MST3K, but are you flattered, annoyed or indifferent when people compare/contrast Cinematic Titanic and MST3K?

Pehl: I think I’m mostly interested on an intellectual level. This is kind of a DIY project, an artist owned and operated endeavor, so I’m always curious to know what is and isn’t working. Comparisons to MST3K are inevitable and usually flattering. There are, of course, the misinformed or insulting observations which are annoying, I suppose. When anyone starts a new project or endeavor that is meant for public consumption, of course you’re going to get haters and hopefully, ‘likers.’

O’Shea: As a person who participates in both RiffTrax and Cinematic Titanic projects, would you say that the two groups approach the movies in a different or similar manner?

Pehl: For starters, RiffTrax is using current, big budget movies (with the exception of their shorts project). CT is staying with the older, patently bad, low budget, schlocky movie. (Which isn’t to say there isn’t some crossover there!) A big budget movie can be a stinker, and some of the low budget stuff actually has some redeemable aspects.

O’Shea: How much revision occurs in a typical Cinematic Titanic production?

Pehl: Lots. Lots and lots. We’re still refining our writing process but in every case, there is no “final” script. Even after we’ve taped the show, we’re changing, editing, refining up until the last ADR [additional dialogue recording] opportunity.

O’Shea: From your perspective, what does the multi-tier silhouette (versus the standard single row format) add to the comedy mix?

Pehl: We get to use our whole bodies and express jokes or viewpoints more physically. We are not locked into place by puppets that are being operated by humans on the floor of the studio and therefore can only move a few inches right or left! Case in point: in Doomsday Machine, Josh [Weinstein] does a hilarious little MC Hammer “salute”, doing the dance riff from Hammer Time.

O’Shea: How often do you have to stop filming because someone in the cast can’t stop laughing at a line?

Pehl: There have been a couple of instances where I daresay its been obvious the actor has particularly enjoyed a particular line. But I think it’s only happened once when a person, for instance, ME, couldn’t get a line out. It’s in an upcoming movie so I don’t want to give it away but I kept choking with giggles every time the line came up. I finally had to attempt it in an ADR, and still could barely deliver it.

O’Shea: Is there ever a time when one of the other performers takes a comedy angle that prompts someone to express concern that it crosses a line? Or are you all so in sync that it never gets close to that?

Pehl: Oh, sure. We’re constantly reviewing lines in the first place and sometimes someone will just say they don’t like the line, either it’s just not funny or it crosses someone’s sensibilities. Every joke, every line is open for discussion and it seems to me that everyone is working toward bettering the script and not necessarily protecting their egos.

O’Shea: How has your comedic writing style grown or been otherwise impacted by your NPR work and other non-Cinematic Titanic efforts?

Pehl: I think my writer’s “voice” has become stronger, which comes with writing constantly and, ahem, growing older. I also wasn’t locked into writing 3 or 4 second riffs that fit in between movie dialogue or was dependent on a visual image! I’ve had the opportunity to learn how to develop ideas and themes in my essays.

O’Shea: Any chance you might write a follow-up to 2004′s I Lived With My Parents and Other Tales of Terror?

Pehl: Perhaps. And I don’t know if that’s a GOOD thing! Actually, I am working on rewriting/redoing a version of that glorified pamphlet. I’m a little abashed about the end result of that project. We must never speak of it again.

O’Shea: Is there anything you’d like to discuss that I neglected to ask?

Pehl: You forgot to ask when my birthday is and what I’d like. Oh, I’m so glad you asked! February 27. Target gift cards and Godiva chocolate will do nicely, thank you very much.