I recently began listening to a podcast of Alec Baldwin's WNYC show Here's The Thing. Baldwin introduces his show as a chance to get to know more about people who interest him. I'm so used to Baldwin's 30 Rock character and his frequent SNL appearances that I was curious to hear Baldwin in "sincere-interviewer" mode.
The podcasts that I listened to were interviews of SNL producer Lorne Michaels, SNL star Kristen Wiig, former SNL star and comedian Chris Rock, and actor Michael Douglas (in that order).
Baldwin seemed stiffest with Michaels, and one thing I immediately noticed was Baldwin's tendency to finish his interviewee's sentences (always a turnoff to me, even though I am guilty of that sometimes). The interview with Michaels did lead to some interesting information- I had read a book about SNL (Live From New York, which I highly recommend), but never learned much about Michaels himself, who started in Canadian radio as a comedy writer and then eventually came to Hollywood.
Baldwin seemed at ease with Wiig, who gave a very self-deprecating interview about her beginnings, her writing process and trying out for SNL. After listening to the interviews with Rock and Douglas, I have to recommend Here's The Thing, as even though Baldwin continues to finish sentences or interrupt, it also became clear that these were less interviews and more free-flowing conversations that brought out some of the thought processes and goals of the stars (Wiig said that she wants to direct movies or move to Paris and paint, for instance, while Douglas seems to want to lay low before taking on his next project).
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