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There is something mysterious and exciting about working in the writers room of a late-night show.
(Also heres a shout-out toTheLarry Sanders Show.)
And the moon was at night and the sun not at night?
We asked some late-night writers, live, at 92Y.
Read a short excerpt from the conversation or listen, below.
Every once in a while, your voice sneaks through.
It was about white men not being great, so pretty on-brand for me.
Pieces about the Green New Deal or universal childcare.
Kat Radley:Voice is interesting for us because you switch.
Ive written pieces for all of the correspondents, contributors, and Trevor.
You have to shift quickly from one voice to another, but your voice is always in there somewhere.
I get friends who text me if theres a poop joke on the show they assume that was me.
Josh Gondelman:Desus and Mero have a real wide strike zone for stuff theyre willing to do.
Theyre so smart and so silly that the breadth of references is totally bonkers.
I personally like making them react to, like, real dork stuff.
I was like,Ive earned my pay this week.
Its always like, It does this!
AndFull Frontaldoes this differently.
You know, Busys on a couch, and Sam stands.
Like real deep comparisons that are really thought-provoking and important.
Also people need time to figure out late night, and everyone does it a little differently.
From the get-go, those shows were unique and excellent.
But I think people just evaluated it in a different sphere, which is a bummer.
Womens voices are really shrill.
People dont want to hear them.
Theres still an aversion to a woman whos trying to be funny.
Like, they use that wordtry,as if theres a baseline assumption a mans going to be funny.
Kate Sidley:Theres also this false and frustrating concept that there is lady news?
I pitch sports constantly for my show because thats what I know a lot about.
I dont know anything aboutThe BachelororThe Bacheloretteor things that are considered, like, ladys subjects.
So when those shows do get a chance, theyre evaluated by different criteria.
Ziwe Fumudoh:I know a lot aboutThe BachelorandReal Housewives.
I wear a lot of pink.
I love feminine stuff.
Late night reflects the world we live in.
How many women CEOs are there, right?
It doesnt really matter; we just need more opportunities for women.
We dont need to pigeonhole ourselves.
You have to be your true self.
Thats all you might do as a performer and a writer, and thatll connect with people.
As you all know, coveringDonald Trump is a unique challenge.
He always wants to learn as much as he can about every side of all the issues.
Jenny Hagel:There are two levels of Trump.
There is the stuff where he had toilet paper stuck to his shoe and the wind blew his hair.
Then theres his really insidious immigration policies and him trying to eliminate protections for LGBTQ people.
Its easy to get caught up in the toilet paper on the shoe.
Thats scary, and thats real.
