I Was There Too

Celebrate the true holiday of the season, The Wookiee Life Day with Matt and special guest and professional camera man Larry Heider who has worked on countless TV projects including the infamous and wonderful Star Wars Holiday Special from 1978. Join them as they discuss how this special came to be including what Larry observed behind the scenes and all the great photos he took along the way. Plus...

Live from the Now Hear This Festival, actor, author, cat lover, and vanguard podcaster Marc Maron joins Matt to talk about his role as the Angry Promoter in the 2000 Cameron Crowe film Almost Famous. Marc tells us all about the pants his character wears, how his scene has now since established a catchprhase in the intro of his popular podcast WTF with Marc Maron, and why this role fits just right...

On this very special 50th episode of I Was There Too, Matt invites you all along on his journey to fulfill a lifelong dream of getting professionally squibbed. Substitute host and podcast brethren Mark McConville interviews Matt and andrew from J&M Special Effects throughout the process and fellow podcast soulmates Paul F. Tompkins and Jeremy Carter beautifully provide the taut action drama of...

Yub nub! On the final of three very special Star Wars trilogy episodes of I Was There Too, Matt is joined by Kevin Thompson who played the Ewoks Chubbray and Paploo in the original 1983 film Return Of The Jedi. Kevin tells us how he went from being a street mime to auditioning for the movie, how they shot swinging off the speeder bike, and the true danger that comes from being in the stunt world....

On a very important bonus episode of I Was There Too, we will finally have the answer to the question asked last episode: Who physically played the body of The Emperor in the original version of The Empire Strikes Back? We know that Cio-Cio the chimp was used for the superimposed eyes of The Emperor. But did Elaine Baker or Marjorie Eaton ultimately appear onscreen? Matt shares some new informatio...

On the second of three very special Star Wars trilogy episodes of I Was There Too, Matt is joined by Clive Revill who voices The Emperor in the pre-special edition 1980 film The Empire Strikes Back. Clive tells us about how director Irvin Kershner reached out to him for the role, finding the voice for The Emperor, and his thoughts on the final physical representation. Then, expert witnesses Pete t...

On the first of three very special Star Wars trilogy episodes of I Was There Too, Matt is joined by Anthony Forrest who plays the sand trooper mind-tricked by Obi-Wan Kenobi at the Mos Eisley roadblock who said 'These arent the droids were looking for,' in George Lucas 1977 film Star Wars. Anthony tells us how he was cast as the sand trooper after also being cast as Luke Skywalkers friend Fixer in...

Jazz and Bass veteran Putter Smith joins Matt this week to talk about playing the assassin Mr. Kidd in one of Matts all time favorite Bond films, Diamonds Are Forever. Well hear how he ended up getting a script for the film and doing a screen test with Paul Williams, getting to carry Sean Connery alongside fellow assassin Mr. Wint portrayed by Bruce Glover, and getting his arms burned for his deat...

Is there a guest as wonderful as Lauren Lapkus? Probably not. Lauren joins Matt to talk about playing Vivian, one of the control room workers dealing with the chaos that unravels in Jurassic World. We hear about how Lauren had to get NASA clearance to shoot her scenes, what it's like to be in a mega-blockbuster, and her experience auditioning for Star Wars Episode 8. As a bonus, Lauren tells us wh...

Rick Overton walked into his audition for Beverly Hills Cop and director Martin Brest asked him about a prophylactic. Why? He's still not sure. Rick joins Matt to talk about doing martial arts with Eddie Murphy on set, preparing for his role of Bonded Warehouse Night Manager with mirror douche work, and getting to improvise in the film. Then, we hear of Rick's experience playing Franjean, a browni...

Accomplished actor Clancy Brown joins Matt to talk about his role as the tough as nails prison guard Captain Hadley in the 1994 Frank Darabont film The Shawshank Redemption. They chat about how Clancys difficulty saying some of his character's colorful dialogue in the audition eventually got him the gig, why he turned down offers to work with correctional officers to help him with his role, and re...

It's no secret that Matt is a huge James Bond fan. He hosts the James Bonding podcast along with fellow 007 fanatic Matt Mira and is very excited to dig into one of the most classic Bond films of all time, 1964's Goldfinger. Matt is joined by Linda Gidley for a discussion on what lead a young woman not even old enough to drive at the time to become one of Pussy Galore's Flying Circus Pilots in Gol...

Jamie Donnelly aka "Brush-a Brush-a Brush-a" Jan the Pink Lady is back to talk more about the 1978 musical Grease. We'll hear if Jan was a snacker onstage as much as she was in the film, what would be the future of all the Grease characters, and possible inspiration for the end of the film. Plus, Jamie shares stories of stagnant LA river water, Seabreeze shammies, and Johnny Depp finger...

Matt gathered some of the best anecdotes told on I Was There Too about experiences on the set of Aliens, The Big Lebowski, Poltergeist, and many more. You'll hear from Paul F. Tompkins, Aimee Mann, Gilbert Gottfried, Lisa Jakub, Phil LaMarr and more on topics ranging from food, flesh, and pancakes to making & breaking comedy. It's a perfect way to jump into the podcast for new listeners and a...

One of America's best and most versatile actresses Piper Laurie joins Matt to talk about initially approaching the role of Carrie's mother in Brian De Palma's Carrie as a comedy, her experience working alongside Paul Newman and George C. Scott in the 1961 film The Hustler, and many other gems from her fantastic autobiography 'Learning to Live Out Loud: A Memoir.' Plus, Amanda Lund joins Matt to sh...

Jamie Donnelly and Barry Pearl portrayed Pink Lady Jan and T-Bird Doody respectively from the 1978 musical Grease but did you know that they've been performing Grease in the theatrical production prior to the film? Jamie and Barry join Matt this week to talk about auditioning for their film roles, the fly by during "Beauty School Dropout," the intense heat as they shot the gymnasium scen...

Prolific actor Peter Jason has a million stories about John Carpenter's cult classic They Live, Deadwood, and so much more. He joins Matt to talk about what it was like for his character Gilbert the Resistance Leader to get squibbed, the levels of Godhood in David Milch's John from Cincinnati, and Con Stapleton's submarine monologue from Deadwood. Plus, we hear how Peter got "t-boned" by...

Presented by the Alamo Drafthouse and recorded live from The Ace Theater in Downtown Los Angeles, Matt hosts a special Alien Day Q&A with Aliens stars Ricco Ross (Private Frost), Jenette Goldstein (Private Vasquez), and Carrie Henn (Newt). Plus, in honor of the great H.R. Giger, Matt shares a sketch from Superego where H.R. Giger takes his very suburban family through a fast food establishment...

Actor Kurt Leitner played Lester, one of the students in the classroom of Dead Poet's Society, a film that was highly influential for Matt. Kurt tells us about going from being a body double on set to becoming one of the supporting poets, organically coming up with the name Lester for his character as well as the character name of Spaz, his chicken walk making it into the trailer, and why his char...

Joshua Burge is one of the nicest human beings on this Earth. He joins Matt this week to talk about his role as Stubby Bill in The Revenant. Joshua tells us about auditioning for Alejandro Iñárritu  learning how to shoot flintlocks, throw axes, and ride horses through survival bootcamp, the origin of the name Stubby Bill, and having a call and response with Tom Hardy's character on set. Plus, in h...

Recorded Live aboard the JoCo Cruise, Matt welcomes singer-songwriter Aimee Mann to talk about her role as Nihilist Woman, Franz's Girlfriend in The Big Lebowski. Aimee tells us about having to create dialogue in German, what it was like working with the Coen brothers, and whether or not her character gave her toe away willingly. Then, Paul F. Tompkins returns to talk about playing customer servic...

Gilbert Gottfried is the most wonderful tornado you can ever imagine. He joins Matt this week to talk about his role as Iago the parrot in Disney's Aladdin. Gilbert tells us about the audition process, having to re-record dialogue for the animated series that was deemed too dirty by a viewer, and the remarkable story of how a family reached their autistic son through a puppet of the parrot. Plus,...

The final chapter in the Spielberg Saga is here as Sean Frye joins Matt to talk about playing Steve, Elliot's older brother's friend in E.T. The Extra Terrestrial. Sean shares some great insight on all of the scenes from the film as well as what it was like working with Henry Thomas, E.T. himself, and going over to Harrison Ford's house. Plus, Matt gets a little crabby as he counts down his Top 10...

Part Two of the Three Part Spielberg-Aganza-Palooza continues with a discussion of 1981's Raiders of the Lost Ark. Martin Casella once again joins Matt to talk about his experience as Steven Spielberg's assistant on the film. Martin provides some wonderful insight on what went on behind the scenes including the origin of Marion's famous dress, Spielberg's must-see-TV habits, and what lead to the i...

Season 2 of I Was There Too with Matt Gourley begins with a discussion of 1982's Poltergeist, the 1st film in the IWTT Steven Spielberg Extravaganza! Martin Casella joins Matt to talk about his role as Dr. Marty Casey, the man who literally rips his own face off, scenes that didn't make the final cut of the film, and his relationship with Steven Spielberg and what led to Spielberg himself being th...