Interview with Colin Mochrie
Colin Mochrie - Photo by Kris Krüg (flickr)
Originally Aired on Wake Up Winnipeg Episode 1 on UMFM 101.5 - June 2009
Ed note: Portions of this interview have been edited for length and clarity.
Paul and I had the chance to sit down and talk with Colin Mochrie, probably one of the greatest Canadian improv artists. He's best known for his work on both the British version and the American version of Whose Line Is It Anyway? Here is the Aimless & Andy interview with Colin Mochrie.
Andru Valpy: When did you start going off on your own and making your own skits and going from that point?
Colin Mochrie: Right after high school, I went to a theater school and, you know, learned how to be an actor. And I guess it really wasn't until I left Vancouver and went to Toronto and started with Second City that I actually started writing coming up with my own stuff. I mean, I'd done improv in Vancouver with the Vancouver Theatresports League, which was great, but didn't actually write until I got to Second City.
AV: How did you get involved in Second City? When did you know that you wanted to be a part of that troupe?
CM: I didn't. Actually know I wanted to. I was in Vancouver really involved with improv, and that was where I felt my skill lay and that's where I felt the most comfortable, and I loved doing it. So I just thought that would be, you know, my kind of hobby. Ryan Stiles and I grew up together in Vancouver, and he had moved to Toronto to start with Second City. I decided after a couple of years in Vancouver, it was time for me to sort of move on, and I felt I was sort of doing the same thing over and over again and wanted to sort of branch out. So I moved to Toronto and through Ryan got an audition at Second City. That was it.
AV: So you and Ryan, that was something that you knew you wanted to kind of expand on?
CM: Oh, absolutely. From pretty much the first day we worked together, it was comfortable. It felt like we'd been together forever. And I mean that in a non-sexual way, of course. Thank you.
AV: What was your first skit with Ryan then?
CM: Oh. Good question. I wish I had a good answer. I have no idea. It was at a theater sports game where we're on the same team, but I can't remember actually what the first thing we ever did together was.
AV: Do you remember what kind of has been an ongoing gag?
CM: Oh, I remember in the early days, whenever things were going bad, we would just take off our pants. It became a thing. Who would take their pants off the most during one calendar year? And for some reason, I always won.
AV: And how many times was that? What was the most you've ever taken off your pants?
CM: Okay. So we played we did theater sports like twice a week. I think I got up to 74. Yeah, that can't be good. The first thing I would make sure of before I make sure I had different boxers every week.
AV: When you got involved with Second City, what would you say your favorite memory of that was?
CM: What I loved about Second City was just the intensity of it. You know, we'd be doing shows at night, then we had to put up a new one. We would do an improv set and from that improv set try to come up with new scenes. So we'd be working on one show during the day, during the regular show at night, and improvising every night, which was great. I'd never gotten a chance to improvise every night. So you learn what your strengths are, I learned how to deal with audiences, good and bad. I came up with sort of a stage persona because I had to talk to the audience at times between scenes. Sometimes they needed you to stall a little bit while they got changed into costumes or whatever. So you learn how to, you know, talk to an audience, keep them interested. So for me, it was like a real comedy college.
AV: I read in an interview that normally you're a very shy person, but when you're with a group of people that you were with at Second City, and then from then on you perform better with that group of people.
CM: Sure. The most you know, the more comfortable you feel with people, especially in improv, you know, the more experimental you can get, the more out on a limb you can get. You feel safe because you're surrounded by people that you trust. And with Second City, and then when it moved into line, I was very fortunate and I was surrounded by funny people, but people who I knew were sort of watching your back. So you never felt like you were in any kind of danger.
AV: When you went from Second City and Studio 58 and all that, you got involved with Channel Four's version of Whose Line Is It Anyway? I read somewhere that Ryan kind of pushed that toward you. You were kind of reluctant and he kind of was the one that said, "well, give it a try."
CM: That's a complete lie. Where did you get that information?
AV: I don't know. I read it from some interviews that you did.
CM: What happened was I was at Second City and the producers, Dan Patterson and Mark Leveson were sort of doing a cross-country audition tour. And they came to see the Second City show and they had the cast audition the next morning at eight in the morning, which is, you know, prime time for comedy, especially if you've done a show the night before. And because improv is, you know, in its best form, an ensemble sort of sport, nobody really stood out during the audition because everybody was being very supportive of each other because it's what we had learned to do. Consequently, none of us got hired the next year. I had moved down to L.A with my wife because she had written a show that had been picked up and made into a series and they came through again, and I auditioned again. But because I didn't know anybody, it was like, “Well, screw you, look at me”. There's probably a lesson in there somewhere. So from that, I got Whose Line.
AV: When you got into Whose Line and you started working with Ryan and then Brad Sherwin and everyone else, How would you describe the first episode? And then later, as you progressed on to the series.
CM: The first episode, I, what's the word, sucked. I had totally sucked myself out. I met the other performers a couple of hours before we shot, and although they were very sweet and very supportive, I thought, “Well, I don't know these people. I'm in a foreign country and even though we have a common language, there's enough difference about it. Will they understand me?” So ultimately I didn't do very well. And the next year they were shooting some shows in New York. And at that point, I was pretty much a regular, and he talked them into giving me another chance. And when they brought me back, they paired me with Ryan, who I'd been working with for years. So I felt very relaxed. Also, I was in America where I felt fairly relaxed, and from then on it just got better and better, and yeah, every year they would give me more and more shows until I ended up being on pretty much everything.
AV: What was your favorite game to play while you were on Whose Line?
CM: It would change from, well, pretty much show to show. If something went really well, that would be my favorite one. I would say the consistent favorite one would be probably the ‘Greatest Hits’. What I loved about that was first you got to sit down, which for lazy people is just marvelous, and it was a chance for Ryan and I just to sort of riff and have fun with each other without any of the gimmicks that a lot of the other games had. So we had a chance to just sort of do whatever, then come up with some weird suggestion and hand it off to the singers. And I enjoyed watching the singers. So that game was always a lot of fun.
AV: How did Captain Hair come about? Was that on the American whose line or was that on the UK one?
CM: Yeah, that was an American one. We were doing the game Superheroes, and I was the first one. And Drew asked for a superhero name, and someone came up with Captain Hair, and Drew being Drew decided to make that the running joke of the entire episode. And then it grew into something much, much bigger.
AV: And working with Drew and Ryan and how were they when the cameras are on and how are they when the cameras are off? What was that experience like?
CM: Pretty much what you see on the show is what you see offstage. It's probably everyone's maybe slightly exaggerated characters, but they're pretty much, Drew is like he was like the biggest fan of the show. He would just laugh at everything we did, which is always a great ego boost, and was always very supportive of all of us and very kind and generous. He's pretty much like what you see on television, except dirtier mostly. All the other guys are pretty much the same. What you see, Greg has that sarcastic side, but he's a real marshmallow, a really sweet guy. Ryan is pretty much what you see. Everyone was a little quieter offstage because, you know if you're on for 24 hours a day, that gets pretty tiresome.
AV: How long would a taping go for?
CM: We would tape for four hours, and from each taping they could get anywhere from 3 to 4 shows. So the beauty of whose line was it was so cheap for the network. We would shoot three weekends out of the year and they could get anywhere from 30 to 40 shows in those three weekends. So it was a great money saver for them.
Paul McAvoy: Got a question for you, I know a few years back you guys did a few pay-per-view specials, some live Whose Lines specials. Do you guys have any plans to do anything like that in the near future?
CM: We're always open to anything. I don't know. There has been talk that they're trying to get a series back, but who knows? I mean, certainly, I think everybody would be into it. We've all worked with each other since whose line was canceled in various incarnations. So we keep in contact with each other. So it would be fun to do it again. It truly was the best gig I've ever had.
AV: I actually read that you never officially were told the show was canned, that you just kind of stopped getting the calls.
CM: Yeah, pretty much. We were told we were on hiatus and that's been five years now. I'm guessing that we're probably canceled.
AV: Towards the end or at least later on in the American series of Whose Line they started bringing in. A lot of guests like David Hasselhoff and cheerleaders and contortionists. Why did they go that extra mile to bring in those extra people and, you know, get away from the normal group?
CM: I wish I could tell you. The show sort of became a success in spite of the network. From the very first show, my wife was in the green room for the very first show and she was with all the executives and they didn't know who she was. So they were talking quite freely in front of her and they were saying things like, you know, what we need are stars. We got to get people like, you know, Julia Roberts or George Clooney or Dustin Hoffman or someone. And this went on for like, you know, ten minutes until one guy said, you know, what they're doing is kind of hard, but they never really got it. They didn't understand why we weren't getting the audience not realizing we were up against Friends and Survivor, two of the most popular shows in history. So I guess they felt if they started adding David Hasselhoff, it was going to increase their audience somehow. I don't know if that actually worked. I always felt bad because it sort of took away from, you know, the guys like Greg and Brad and Chip who were there. You know, I always thought, you know, it was great if they would come in, like for one game. But there were times where, you know, they were in there for 4 or 5 games. It just seemed a little too much. My big one was Richard Simmons.
AV: How was that?
CM: That was memorable. God bless him, very energetic and willing to do anything. And the scene that we did where we did the living scenery with him, I think it was the scene that had the biggest, longest laughs of any of the scenes we ever did on Whose Line.
AV: Who is your favorite guest that they brought in?
CM: Florence Henderson was great. She was again willing to do anything and she was very funny and charming. Robin Williams was great. You know, he was an idol. And, you know, he raised all her energy by 150%. Whoopi Goldberg was great. We had Sid Caesar on. And for me, that was like it was like a dream come true. He was one of my heroes when I was a kid. And to actually be able to do a scene with him was just amazing.
AV: I guess that leads me to one of my next questions, out of everyone in your whole career, because you've met some pretty interesting people along the lines, is there any single person that stood out that really you were really excited to meet, or really nervous to work around?
CM: I guess Sid Caesar would be totally up there. Well, I was very fortunate. I got to work with most of the guys from SCTV. They're actually sort of not, close friends, but people I feel very relaxed talking to, and that SCTV was a big show when I was growing up, and it was one that really inspired me. Actually, they had an SCTV reunion a year ago to raise funds for Second City alumni who were going through tough times, and they asked me to join them. So, you know, I was working with Catherine O'Hara and Andrea Martin and Joe Flaherty and Eugene Levy, and Martin Short. And it was a surreal, exciting experience. It was one of the highlights of my professional life.
AV: Now, aside from Whose Line, you've done a lot of extra work. You've done some touring. Where has your favorite venue been, like everywhere around the world, if you had to pick one? Where do you what stands out in your head?
CM: Oh God, all around the world. That's a good one. We played a place in Texas for 10,000 students. It was basically a basketball court, but it was a beautiful, big arena and it had the best acoustics, usually when you go to arenas or big places, it tends to lose something in the sound. But it was great and it was a great audience and they were all hyped up. So that was the one that really stands out.
AV: What was the worst?
CM: Again, a place in the States. It was, I have even blocked the name. It was somewhere in Pennsylvania. It was a school where I was introducing myself and my mic went out. Then it was a lunchtime sort of show. The bell rang and half the audience left to go to class.
AV: What did you think at that moment?
CM: I thought I should have stayed with Marine Biology.
AV: You became the Snack Fairy.
CM: Yes.
AV: What was your reaction when your publicist called you and said, hey, Nabisco wants to call you and do the snack fairy?
CM: You know, it's pretty bizarre. I got my agent called and said Nabisco wants to do something. They're sending you something. So I get I open it up and it's like a tutu and a wand and some cookies. I say, oh, what the hell? And then they explained the thing and I thought, well, you know what? I'm doing some renovations on the house. So yeah, okay. And it was actually interesting. We shot one commercial in Argentina and one in South Africa because apparently, it's cheaper to shoot there than in the States.
AV: Okay?
CM: I know it makes no sense to me, but I thought, well, I'm getting to travel doing the Snack Fairy.
PM: You got a vacation out of it.
CM: Yeah, exactly. And I got to be part of the parade of advertising icons.
AV: I read about that, you were with Mr. Peanut.
CM: The Michelin guy and the Doublemint twins.
PM: That's an elite circle there, too.
CM: It really is. Although I was warned I wasn't allowed to talk to the Keebler Elves. They were my enemies.
AV: So aside from that, what have you been up to recently?
CM: What have I been up to recently? I'll just keep repeating questions until things come up.
CM: I've been doing a lot of, like, low-budget films, people who are just sort of starting out and trying to get stuff going on. I always get called for projects that have no money, which is fine. You know, I'm happy to help out people who are trying. And if my name somehow started, that's great because I figure if they do make it big, they'll remember that and use me again. And then I'll soak them for big money. So I've been doing that. Brad and I, we've been touring for six years. In the summer we usually quiet down because theaters are a little quieter then and June is charity month, so my wife and I have been hosting charities, and performing at charities, so that's basically what my month has been.
AV: Now you and your wife had actually written a mini-series for the CBC, was it? Yeah. And how did, what happened was that because I know you made six episodes and then.
CM: Yeah
AV: What Happened?
CM: Okay, we're getting into bitter territory. We had always. We worked together. Well, we should actually do something where we can write and produce and be in charge of it. So we came up with what we thought was a great concept, went into the CBC, talked to George Anthony, who was in charge, and after ten minutes he said, Yeah, let's do it. And I thought, in my naive way that, Oh, okay, so I guess we're doing a TV show. Well, that's just the beginning. You know, you have to apply for the CTF to get some money. They turned us down for some reason, so we had no money. So Deb and I put our own money in to sort of finance the pilot. We did the pilot, and CBC said, okay, we'll do it. So we thought again, okay, we got a series. So we had to reapply the CTF again. They turned us down, so we figured, Well, I guess that's it. But then this producer in Ottawa, God bless him, Derek Diorio, said, You know, if you do it here, we can do it for cheaper. I can raise the money. So we did it. We did six episodes at an incredibly low budget, but the crew was amazing. They all worked 150% and with nothing, made this look great. So we did that. And then the CBC was going through some sort of flux and they showed five of our episodes and they showed the Olympics. Then they showed our last episode. They'd fired all their publicists. So I noticed we weren't getting any publicity. And I called up someone and said, "You know, I don't know much about the show business, but if you have a show coming up, shouldn't you kind of tell people it's something coming?" And they said, Well, it's not your week for publicity. I thought. I don't think this is going to end well. And sure enough, again, I don't think anyone actually told us we were canceled. I'm on hiatus from like two shows. Who knows? It could all come back.
AV: And that was in 2006. So since then, you've been touring. Do you have any plans to come, I guess out west to Winnipeg?
CM: I would love to. We've been we were in Winnipeg I think a couple of years ago. We were at the Burton Cummings Theatre and I think we played somewhere else. I hosted one of the galas and my wife was there last year and oh, actually we hosted one last year. So yeah, I'd love coming to Winnipeg.
AV: Well, we'd love to have you back for sure.
CM: Okay, work on that.
AV: I'm on it right now, Colin.
CM: Thank you.
AV: If you had to create a song about your life, what would you title it?
CM: Wow. Um. I guess I. Oh, what would I? That’s a, damn good questions, guys. I would call it. It's never what you think
AV: That works. We're going to copyright that for you right now.
CM: Please do.
PM: What kind of music are you listening to lately? Anything. Any college friendly? Uh, rock.
CM: Oh, God. I am so lame. I am so. You know, the Rat Pack.
PM: Yeah. There's nothing wrong with that.
CM: Yeah. Oh, that's pretty much the thing that keeps playing in our house. That. And my wife loves classical music. I can, you know, take it or leave it. But a good Frank Dean or Sammy, I'm there.
AV: Is there any one particular album by Frank or any of them that you listen to on repeat?
CM: I guess Songs for Swinging Lovers.
PM: Nice. Very nice.
AV: In your career, what challenges have you faced? Like, what has been the most challenging?
CM: It's really hard when you have one skill. Actually, I mean, if whose line hadn't come along, I'd be totally screwed. I have no skills other than improv. So when Whose Line came along and gave us focus, that was great. Unfortunately, the downside to that is then people don't really know what to do with you. I mean, everyone on that show was great. And aside from Wayne, because he has obviously so many talents singing and dancing, and they don't really know what to do with you. We weren't really playing characters. We were kind of playing. We were ourselves. The characters we did were sort of quick characters here and there, and so there wasn't really anything they could sort of slot us into, like, "Oh, he's the, you know, the guy next door" or and there's also a sort of a stigma with improv actors that, you know, they'll come in and they'll just they won't say the lines as written, they'll just make up their own stuff, which isn't true. But there is that stigma. So I guess it's one of those things. Improv gave me my success, but in a way, it also can hold you back. So that's been a frustration.
AV: Growing up. When you were studying to become a Marine Biologist, did you see yourself being as successful as you are now?
CM: No, no, no. I mean, I'm glad it worked out. My thing once I got into acting, my thing always was I just want to work. I didn't care about being famous or the world's richest guy. I just wanted to work all the time because it's what I love doing. The fact that it sort of became successful was a surprise, I think, to everyone.
AV: Along the lines of that. Now that you are successful, what piece of advice, if you could give to one young comedian or improv student who's really trying to go along the lines of you, what advice would you give them?
CM: Oh, my advice is, do it wherever you can, whenever you can. We used to do improv in a small club in Santa Monica, where the improvisers always outnumbered the audience. But it's from those times that you learn where your strengths and weaknesses are. And my other piece of advice is just hang in there. My thing is I was going to hang in until everybody else died or quit, and it worked for me.
AV: If you could go back to, you know, the age of ten and tell your future self something, what would you say?
CM: Oh, geez. Massage your scalp more.
AV: As far as future projects, do you have anything coming up that you want to share?
CM: Brad and I are still continuing touring. My wife Deb and I are in the midst of trying to come up with a new series idea, so we're trying to work on that.
AV: Last question, if you had to define the word success, how would you define it?
CM: For me, success is being happy in every area of your life. I've been really fortunate. I've got a great marriage. We just had our 20th anniversary. Our son is now living in New York, going to school, and studying to be a director. He's a great, great young man. So for me, success is being I've got the best of all possible worlds. I'm having fun in my career. I still love doing it. I still love my wife and son and every day is fun.
AV: Excellent. Well, Colin, how can our listeners find more information about you?
CM: Just call. Me directly. I'll talk to you. There's colinmochrie.com. You can find our itinerary so you can see where we're playing. Also, we're coming up with we had the colinandbradshaw.com site which is currently being renovated, but we're pretty excited. There's some new stuff coming we're going to do start doing video blogs and being more involved in that. So keep an eye out for that.
AV: Cool. Colin, thank you so much.
CM: Thank you.
AV: It means a lot to me to talk to you. I've been a huge fan. I've been following you since the English version of Whose Line Is It Anyway?
PM: And yeah, as have I. Thanks for thanks very much for this.
CM: Oh, well thanks for having me on, anytime.
AV: We're glad to have you. And Colin, let's keep in touch. Let's get you to Winnipeg.
CM: We'll do lunch.
AV: Sounds good. Colin, thanks so much.
