I've done tons of guest spots and in parts where the character invariably dies or is dead.
If there was any show I could guest star on, I would want to guest star on 'Star Wars: The Clone Wars' because I am such a nerd and I love that show. If there was ever an opportunity to be on that, I would snatch it up.
I love dress shopping, and I love talking about the wedding food. That's what makes me happy. If you tell me to do a guest list, I cry. I hate it.
No guest is so welcome in a friend's house that he will not become a nuisance after three days.
I will remember the night I won the New Comedy Awards, as I was young and unformed, so that sticks in the mind. I've also done a fantastic gig at the Royal Albert Hall, which was amazing. Appearing in the Christopher Guest film was also a real highlight, even if I was only in it for a couple of minutes.
I remember reading 'The Guest' and thinking, 'This is going to be something!'
I'm the only talk show host, I think, if there's such a category in, what's called, the book of records, to have a guest die while we were taping the show, yeah.
Guest roles are how you get initiated into the industry. It's fun. Over the course of a few years you realise you've done many shows. You get a chance to prove yourself, and that's how you get jobs because of people who have worked with you in the past and trust you.
As an attorney, I could be rather flamboyant in court. I did not act as though I were a black man in a white man's court, but as if everyone else - white and black - was a guest in my court. When trying a case, I often made sweeping gestures and used high-flown language.
A lot of people said to me, 'Enough with the guest vocalists for a while. We want to hear the Mexican play the guitar!'
In the guest star situation on a show, it has a feel of a foreign exchange student - you're worrying the night before where you're going to sit for lunch. 'The Big Bang Theory' was like that. I was supposed to only do one episode. What was different was the cast and production staff was so welcoming, even though I was only scheduled for a week.
With Christopher Guest films, we have a lot of say.
There are so many restaurants that cook for themselves and think they are different. But it is always about making your guest feel special.
There's a couple of movie parts that I can't remember. There was always something kind of lurking, because when 'The Office' started, I wasn't a regular. You're a guest star, so they don't really need you. They didn't say that, but I've seen the show - with or without me, it's still funny.
In the past, I had a knee-jerk approach to work, and it showed on screen. I was doing movies for the wrong reasons - trying to juggle dates, do too many guest appearances, take up projects under pressure or for emotional reasons.
When someone stays with you and they're not your guest, even when they are your guest they get on your nerves. When people visit for long periods of time, that just happens.
I was the first guest star asked to appear on 'Glee,' which we all know became huge.
Chris Guest is the godfather of improvisational comedy.
When I was born, my parents - my mother especially - couldn't come to terms with that fact that they had another baby girl. I know these stories in detail because every time a guest visited, or there was a gathering, they repeated this story in front of me that how I was the unwanted child.
I have to say, working with Dan Stevens in 'The Guest' and seeing his transformation was incredible. Also Kate Winslet. Off set, she's loud and sweary, but when she walks on set, she has this calmness and is so centred.
I just look back, and I say, you know, Christopher Guest just raised my whole career to another level.
The first time I was on 'Johnny Carson,' I remember being so scared, but the minute he started talking to me, I felt a little more comfortable because I just knew he was going to take care of me. Hopefully, I have learned something from watching him for so many years that I can offer that to a guest.
It is fun to do the one-off guest stars on stuff.
Actually, guest star roles are really hard. Since you have to walk into a show where the cast has been working together for a long period of time, it can be a real challenge. And you have to feel your way around that while still making an impact on the overall effect of the show.
I'm glad I was born when I was. My time was the golden age of variety. If I were starting out again now, maybe things would happen for me, but it certainly would not be on a variety show with 28 musicians, 12 dancers, two major guest stars, 50 costumes a week by Bob Mackie. The networks just wouldn't spend the money today.
It's just as easy for me to be building a fence somewhere and scraping by on unemployment in between doing a guest star spot. I've been there.
Arranging an official dinner in an embassy is a little like writing a script for a play. The prolog is the guest list, often the most difficult part of the whole creative operation.
I don't know what my next dream role gig is, but I have so, so many shows that I'm like, 'Oh my God, can I guest star on 'New Girl?' Like, that would be amazing!'
When I signed onto 'Superman,' editors Matt Idelson and Wil Moss gave me a rough outline that JMS had turned in for the remaining issues of the 'Grounded' arc, which amounted to a couple of sentences for each issue, spelling out in general terms where the issue would take place geographically, specific guest stars, things like that.
When I think about athletes, probably my favorite guest of all time among baseball players was Ted Williams.
