June 14, 2024 • 35 mins
The girls are back with Lydia Cornell! Don't miss this conversation with the lovely Señorita Mosley, as she continues to tell us about her time on Full House and stories from her awe-inspiring career.
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Speaker 1 (00:18):
Welcome to part two of our interview with Lydia Cornell.
If you haven't listened to part one yet, go back
and listen to that first, because trust us, you do
not want to miss a second of this. Please welcome
back to the pod the Extraordinary Lydia Cornell.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
What are some of the things. I mean, you're an
actor and you've directed and writing and teaching and mentoring
and public speaking and all of these things. What would
you say is one of the things professionally and personally
that you are most proud of?
Speaker 3 (00:47):
Oh, well, personally as my son. I didn't know.
Speaker 4 (00:50):
I wish i'd known sooner. How the joy of children.
I mean, I'm gaga right now with your.
Speaker 3 (00:55):
Grandchildren that my boyfriend, Oh, I'm a weirdo.
Speaker 4 (00:59):
I went to trade yours and started making strangers babies smile.
Speaker 2 (01:03):
I went from oh, yeah, they're like.
Speaker 4 (01:07):
It was really sweet. I mean, having a new grandchild.
And so Jack, my son is really happy. He doesn't drink,
he's got a really nice girlfriend. But they don't call me,
and I'm like, I.
Speaker 3 (01:18):
Miss I wish I had more kids.
Speaker 4 (01:20):
I know, I know, And I'm also very politically liberal,
so it's not like you know, I'm running around going
everybody should have kids.
Speaker 3 (01:28):
It is sort of a bone.
Speaker 4 (01:29):
Of contention right now. I think everyone should have the
choice to do what they need to do though with their.
Speaker 3 (01:33):
Own Yeah, but that was like wow, that was the.
Speaker 4 (01:38):
Beginning of my real journey in life where I grew
up becoming a mother. I'm not being selfish, letting go.
I have some wild Hollywood stories.
Speaker 3 (01:47):
I mean, I was in the eighties. They sent us
to Manti Carlo three summers in a row.
Speaker 4 (01:52):
I'm, you know, with Prince Albert and James Bond, the
two James Bonds.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
And I don't know that I was going to say,
I don't know that there's Yeah, I know that doesn't
sound they don't do that any yet. Yeah, no, no,
the world professionally, Yeah, I didn't make it as far
as money Carlo, but I definitely was an ass in
the LA area.
Speaker 4 (02:14):
Yeah, all over the world.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Yeah, I didn't have to travel far. I managed to
do it right here at home.
Speaker 4 (02:20):
But I had a really wild, crazy, insane Yeah. And luckily,
good news is I never got I have a couple
of meet too stories. But I don't want to ruining
human's life right now. But I have to say there
was an agent. The first agent I met before I
even got the series, pulled his pants off in front
of me.
Speaker 3 (02:40):
It was a big, famous agency, and I thought it
was just a rare event. I won't mention his name.
Speaker 4 (02:45):
But another woman in a nineties start six months ago,
my boyfriend's telling her the story, and she said, Lydia
never says his name. She goes oh with it. It
happened to her too, twenty years later. What these things
happened back in those days. In the eighties, It felt
as if they used to make posters of me in
a bikini, and I was on all fours for ABC Network,
(03:06):
they had bikini posters. TED would be very upset over them,
but remote to show. They would use one of the
women as a sex in almost every show not in
your era.
Speaker 3 (03:17):
I think it ended well.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
Not on our show in particular. We had I mean
we had sort of the first season, uh we you know,
had Jesse. The first couple of seasons had had quite
a few women coming through that were sort of the
perceived sex symbol of the episode or whatever. But I
think because it was more of a family show, we
didn't necessarily have that. We had kind of like John
(03:43):
as the heart throb, so we had like the more
the male heart throb of the thing. But but it
wasn't like that, but I definitely know that was that
was it. It was like you were sort of the
sacrificial landlight. Well you're cute, so you're gonna that You're
gonna just be the the mostly naked one, and we're
you know, just gonna like and it's I mean, it is,
it's it's so much has changed in this industry and
(04:08):
so much has not right right, and you know, I uh,
certain convictions being overturned. But I but you know, I
I think that women like you and like the women
that spoke out in these movements talking about like this
is this is what it was, and this is what
(04:30):
we were like, this is what was common and what
we were expect, what was expected of who of what
you were. It was just that was it. Well, if
you're on a TV show then and you're cute, then
you're just going to be. There's no we can say
whatever we want.
Speaker 4 (04:44):
And the worst thing is that when he did this
this agent, instead of being offended, I didn't want to
hurt his egos, so I giggled.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
And sort of twirled out of the room like, oh,
I left.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
My heats in the cards.
Speaker 5 (04:56):
That's what we're taught. Don't offend the.
Speaker 2 (04:59):
Right it well, yeah, as women were taught, don't offend.
And it's also terrifying and in that moment you people
don't think about the fact that you go ah, yeah
and you either freeze flight or There's also what women
are taught, which is fun, which is usually when women
are faced with some sort of like you know, attack
(05:21):
or something that we find inappropriate or things like that,
often we are taught as women to be like, oh
and make that person comfortable because now we have since
we're in a dangerous situation, and so you know, speaking
out about those things like and talking about the stuff
that we that you know, like it's there is no
one answer to it or how you handle that sort
(05:41):
of situation, but the fact that we can now talk
about it more openly and that you know, uh, hopefully
this idea of sort of unfettered patriarchy within this business
has shifted a little bit. And I think, you know,
with women with women telling stories written by created by
(06:05):
directed by women, I mean that was I think one
of the things we were really proud about with Fuller
House too, was that with it being based on Steph
and DJ and Kimmy as adult women, we had the
capacity to include some really interesting female oriented storylines about relationships, parenting,
(06:27):
and IVF and you know, all of those things that
we got to cover that were really, really great. And
one of the things that you that you wrote is
a screenplay called Venus Conspiracy and Deborah van Volckenberg is
in it. But the logline reads, all human suffering is
caused by Victoria's secret and.
Speaker 5 (06:48):
I love that. I love that so much.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
Or you could replace it with Brandy Melville now you
know whatever that just rotate that out. But the story
involves uncovering a diabolical plot to keep women thin and
miserable for profit. So I would love to hear I mean,
I can imagine what inspired this screenplay, which is just
life and being a woman in the world, but it's
(07:13):
just so awesome. I love hearing about it.
Speaker 3 (07:18):
Yeah, I'd love to get you in the sore. Here's
what happened for something, You'll tell you what inspired it.
Speaker 4 (07:22):
In my first movie before I got Tea who Us
for Comfort, I got Tooose for Comfort, and then I
got this movie in the Greek Isles with three Oscar
with three legends, James Old Jones, Jose Ferrera and Lela Kendrova.
Oh wow, James ol Jones has just come off The
Great White Hope. He's a Tony Award winner and he
hadn't done Darth Vader yet. But he was a gentleman
and he brought his wife to the We were in
(07:44):
nine weeks in the Greek Isles in a Byzantine monastery
called Monembasia. It's a kind of a Dismith smooth or
tiny anyway, it's not quite an island. But and then
Martin Cove was in it, and Deborah Shelton and Mary
Louise Well and I had to wear a white bikini
the whole time, and there was a scene where they
(08:04):
wanted me to drown and.
Speaker 3 (08:06):
Take off my top.
Speaker 4 (08:08):
I refused to do nudity. I just didn't want to
do it. I knew one day and my kids would see.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
It, and I just didn't want to do it.
Speaker 5 (08:13):
Oh yeah, So they.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
Tried to calm me into it. My sag union wasn't
on the set.
Speaker 4 (08:18):
We were way, you know, way on an island, right,
and my manager wasn't there, and the director said, can
you just pull your top off and we'll get you
running into the ocean where you're going to drown. This
is after you know, I had to go swim out
about a mile.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
You got a drown with your boobs.
Speaker 3 (08:35):
I felt, well, I don't.
Speaker 4 (08:36):
Want my front showing. He said, just the back will
be showing. And there's an underwater scuba diver camera and
they have to catch me, you know. And so I thought, well,
they're trying to trick me. So I had to out
with them. So I went to the ward of lady.
We only spoke she only swelled Greek, and there's a
big rock. We're hiding behind the rock with a dressing
room wood and we couldn't speak the same language.
Speaker 3 (08:56):
But through lots of hand gesturing, she realized.
Speaker 4 (08:59):
Oh, we're gonna I'll cover you with zinc ox side
white grease paint which is waterproof. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
Yeah, And we swee out.
Speaker 4 (09:07):
Witted these people and it was amazing. Nico Master rockets
and all the producers were.
Speaker 3 (09:11):
Like they couldn't use any of the breast footage.
Speaker 4 (09:15):
So like, yes, I run into the ocean, Yeah, pop
off in the back.
Speaker 3 (09:19):
It's naked. You know, you can see the movie.
Speaker 2 (09:20):
It's right right, but the front it's like, you know,
the lifeguard knows was just white. You can't see it's
like clay makeup. Yeah, so that's brilliant.
Speaker 4 (09:29):
My big, first, big incident of having to like really
stand up for my own rights, you know, even though
the film was a wonderful thing to do.
Speaker 3 (09:36):
I love that movie. We had a great time on
the set.
Speaker 4 (09:39):
Then I come to La and I ever von Valckenberg
because it's the part as my sister.
Speaker 3 (09:43):
She was a Broadway actress.
Speaker 4 (09:45):
She'd also hired, sorry hired to do a movie of
the Week for Chuck Freeze Productions out here, and they
fired her the minute they saw her because she had
gained five pounds, and they said, we're not only firing you,
we're gonna sue your agent for the weight game. And
I what, this can't be possible. That was the seed
(10:06):
of the beginning of me riding the screen flight.
Speaker 2 (10:08):
Yeah, I was gonna say. I seemed to her like
that was like a thing.
Speaker 4 (10:12):
Wow, you was skinny, and it was there's no way
this could be even true. So I started thinking about it,
and then when I got sober, this movie came out
of me fully formed because I've been. It opens in
Pompeii with the goddess Venus, and we're missing her head
the sculpture, and it's like this really mystical opening, and
then we're hurled into living day Pompeii and the ad
(10:34):
buyer in a toga is buying the statue of Venus
and he goes, she's too thin. Add more to the waist,
and then we cut to the ninety has to start
in the nineties because women are allowed to be a
little more of their own size today, right, You're allowed
to be yourself a bit.
Speaker 3 (10:48):
But yeah, yeah, when I was coming up, you were
not allowed to gain a pound.
Speaker 4 (10:52):
And in fact, I was told the producers yelled at
me for eating a burrito and a taco and then the
bag of Eminem's. They said, don't you know you're a symbol.
You can't eat starch.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
In those days, it was called starch, right, wow.
Speaker 4 (11:05):
So the food flew in the air and I went
crying to my dressing room and I remember, ooh, I
gotta do water pills or something.
Speaker 3 (11:12):
And I wasn't blieming, but I I just start myself.
Speaker 4 (11:16):
And when I turned thirty five, I remember walking into
Reuben cannons off with the casting director.
Speaker 3 (11:22):
And he goes, you look pretty good for an old lady.
I was thirty five.
Speaker 4 (11:27):
So you guys have no idea what the eighties were
really like if you were a second No.
Speaker 3 (11:31):
You know what I mean?
Speaker 2 (11:32):
Yeah, oh it was. It's only now are we seeing
women be able to age past thirty and have roles
written for women who were in between right sex symbol
and grandma, you know.
Speaker 6 (11:46):
What I mean.
Speaker 2 (11:47):
For a while, it was like once you weren't that.
It was like, well, you're of no use to us now,
thank you. Come back when you were a wrinkled raisin
and you know, and you're just like, what are you
talking like? There's so much and I love seeing it
now again, talking about you know, women creators and stuff
like women's lives in between all of that are so
(12:07):
layered and rich and multifaceted and fascinating. It's so nice
to see, you know. And and women like Olivia Coleman
and uh Melanie uh like Lynskey Yes from Yellow Jackets,
women who I think are beautiful and gorgeous and amazing
(12:27):
but they're but are talented and who make it fascinating
to watch the human experience, because that's what acting is,
and it's not like to me, I'm like, I don't
want to watch an actor just because they're attractive. In fact,
I don't. I want to watch someone who is interesting
to look like. I want to watch an interesting human.
I don't care if they're good looking or not or whatever. Like,
(12:49):
give me an interesting human. So I love that this
has been such a focus of your of your career
and of your work. And like, I think off and
you know, people talk about, you know, they as a
feminist to myself, but you know, so many people talk
(13:10):
about that it would be impossible to be a sex
symbol and a feminist. And I think that people then
are greatly missing the point of what feminism is, which
is that it's all about the choice to be any
of those things and to express yourself and be whoever
and however you want to feel as a woman. And
if that's sweatpants and no bra and like no makeup
(13:34):
and never cool, if that's dolling yourself up every day
and get getting all this stuff done, cool, Yeah, that's it.
It's all about how you want to do.
Speaker 4 (13:44):
It, really, and we like, you know, plastic surgery is
really something that I feel sorry for people who've had it,
but I don't.
Speaker 3 (13:52):
I'm not. I would never judge them. You know.
Speaker 4 (13:54):
It's like what we were kind of forced to feel
that we had to have it. I didn't tried both
talks a few times, but I thank god didn't have
the money during the time after my husband left, right,
you know, I'm so glad because I want to be
gracefully even though I'm using on my other computer, I
use the zoom filters and all that, right, you know,
(14:17):
and you know it looks you're up higher.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
Well you're right, yeah, well angles are everything, you know,
But that's but that's like the thing that and I
love seeing, you know, I have two daughters who are
sixteen and thirteen. Oh wow, And you know, seeing my
daughters like kind of dress and be more themselves and
you know, like it's it's a really exciting time I
(14:42):
think for young women. Yeah, in terms of like the
potential and the opportunity to really truly be like whatever
expression of female identity you want to be like that,
you know what I mean, there's kind of I love
that the road has widened ye considerably because because it
was you know, for women who lived through that time
(15:05):
of like you had to be a perfect you know,
this perfect thing, like that's impossible.
Speaker 3 (15:11):
God, you have no idea, And men were very disdainful.
Speaker 4 (15:14):
I remember I had an audition when the oct running
director looked at me and he went, you're one of
my favorite actresses. You're very funny. I wanted to come
in and read for my pilot, and I hadn't quit drinking.
My drinking career hadn't ended yet. And I brought an
entire bottle of vodka stuffed in the gym bag to
the CBS Lady's room executive ladies, and the genes, my
(15:36):
genes were so tight. I was doing stiletto heels and
it was like I walked in the room. I stumbled
into the room. I think I fell off top of
the casting director.
Speaker 3 (15:44):
I was drunk. It's horrible, but I.
Speaker 4 (15:48):
Thought, seven men on a couch looking at my body
up and down, is she perfect enough? It wasn't about
the affecting That's how I felt. Right, of course, it
probably was, but it was all in my head.
Speaker 3 (15:59):
They were just.
Speaker 2 (15:59):
Well, I would yeah, I would say probably, I'd say
you probably weren't wrong. Yeah that at nine times, you know,
eight times out of ten. Particularly then it was it
was more about what you look like than who you
were and what you brought to a character.
Speaker 1 (16:13):
And this is why male executives shouldn't be the only
ones in charge, because women don't want to see perfect
women on TV.
Speaker 5 (16:20):
We want to see.
Speaker 1 (16:20):
Ourselves reflected in the characters that we watch on TV.
So I don't want to see like perfect bodies and
bombshell like, I want to see someone that looks like me,
who's flawed and he has blemishes and everything.
Speaker 2 (16:31):
Right, but flawed both internally and externally and just human.
I you know, like, give me, give me a photo
on Instagram that has some skin texture to it? Good God, please? Yes,
I know your skin doesn't look like that. There's your
fuzzy You look like you're made of velvet. What's wrong
with you? Stop? You know, like I'm like, am I
my eyes blurry? Why are you so velvety?
Speaker 6 (16:54):
You know?
Speaker 2 (16:55):
Like it's wild to me? Yeah, And again that's what
you go for it. You want to do it, but
like also, you know, but you don't have to. You
don't have to. I think it's it's more it's it's
really this message of like learning that you can doll
it up or dress it down, but that the inherent
worth is all about the inside stuff.
Speaker 4 (17:15):
Oh I love it, Yes, we got that's so wonderful
that you said that. Hey, we were dogs sitting McFly.
Oh we love dogs.
Speaker 5 (17:27):
He's welcome to join the podcast. Dogs are welcome.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, we're total dog people are here.
Speaker 3 (17:41):
In the movie, the woman is this, she's a Venus girl.
Speaker 4 (17:44):
She represents the pharmaceutical empire called Venus, which is the
front they own everything a biotech company and they own
all this shell companies and they own like the media too,
so MTV and you know general moods and mood slings.
Speaker 3 (17:57):
It's a comedy that it's got a real plot.
Speaker 2 (17:59):
Driven scary right, kind of like idiocracy when you're like
ahah right yeah, like yeah yeah, you're like this is hello,
this is true.
Speaker 4 (18:09):
And they catch her she's supposed to be a size
to and they catch her like the castapo these advertising
sects and undercover photos, eating donuts in her car and
like they catch her and they catch her wearing a
girdle and she's like I'm giving up. She starts to
jump off the cliff where they're filming the video and
she doesn't you know, It's like you think she's gonna
(18:32):
she just jumps on the three feet of stand and
runs away from recruit and she discovers its plot and
it's all like a plotted thriller. But Marco Robie said,
we're looking for the next big event movie, not Barbie.
Now I have all these women's groups that want to
get the movie made. They wanted to years ago.
Speaker 3 (18:49):
But men looked at me like I was crazy when
I used to pitch this movie.
Speaker 2 (18:52):
Right, and then something, how are you talking about? You're like,
you're making us miserable when you're literally driving us insane, right,
it's crazy, right, Like.
Speaker 3 (19:05):
So now it's time has come and I'm really excited.
Speaker 2 (19:07):
So what an awesome like life experience, you know what
I mean to be able to go from that like
this is you know, you have a personal experience with
what the world of that sort of pressure is exactly.
And yeah, and then also like when you're a woman
who is also who is attractive and also smart and
(19:31):
also that you know all these things, it's like somehow
something has to get discredited. If you're if you're smart,
you can't be pretty. If you're pretty, you can't be smart,
because like you don't get to have both.
Speaker 3 (19:41):
Well the America Pharira's speech.
Speaker 4 (19:43):
You know you saw Barbie right, Oh yeah, yeah, the
America Perira's speech. I went goga because I wrote that
speech twenty years ago. I'm sure we all did.
Speaker 2 (19:52):
You know.
Speaker 4 (19:52):
Yeah, it's impossible to be a woman and you have
to pretend to be humble or else be you know,
you can't be happy for other women, or you can't
be too happy for right.
Speaker 2 (20:02):
You can't be too much. You have to be thin,
not enough, right, you have to be thin but not
too skinny, but not too big, but not too It's
not too much of anything. Don't take up too much space,
you know. Don't be too loud, don't be I think
it's maybe part of the reason that I just am
uh loud, because I can be.
Speaker 3 (20:22):
Are you guys you're still acting, right, can I love?
Speaker 4 (20:24):
I've been reading up about what you're doing, so, yeah,
are you producing and all that stuff too?
Speaker 2 (20:30):
I I am, Yeah, I'm producing, uh and and working
on some writing and working on producing a couple movies
and some other things, and then acting and doing like
you know, some of the fun some kind of stuff too.
Speaker 3 (20:44):
You know, I had a stalker. A couple of years.
Speaker 4 (20:46):
I accidentally moved my stocker into the house ago, but
this is actually more than a few years ago.
Speaker 3 (20:51):
Kelsey Grammar and I had the same stalker and I
thought he.
Speaker 2 (20:55):
Was at least you shared. You know, that was convenient.
I mean, two for the price of one. And I
was accused of them.
Speaker 4 (21:01):
Of The stalker went to TMD and sold a story
claiming to be a war hero, and then he sued
Kelsey in myself.
Speaker 2 (21:12):
You know, big classic sounds weirdly familiar.
Speaker 3 (21:16):
Yeah, And so then the TMZ put out a picture
of me. This is what they do. Instead of putting.
Speaker 4 (21:23):
Out a horrible picture of the stalker, they put out
a picture of me looking like a psychopath psychotic stalker
wants to bash my face in And I'm like, why
did they pick a picture of me him?
Speaker 3 (21:33):
I look crazy?
Speaker 4 (21:34):
And underneath the haters wrote, she's so ugly she needs
her face to be bashed.
Speaker 3 (21:38):
You know, I went, why are they so mean?
Speaker 4 (21:40):
Why can't the tabloids be kinder to women, you know,
on top of being and then they got the story wrong,
let me wrong?
Speaker 2 (21:49):
Well, yeah that's that.
Speaker 4 (21:50):
Yeah, I never sued Kelsey and they have not corrected
the story.
Speaker 3 (21:53):
So in my book, I tell the whole funny story.
Speaker 4 (21:55):
It's very funny. It's like a twelve episode crime and
the crime comic My odd but Chelsea die on the
same side. But then no one ever knew. Oh, to
make a long story short. Women, you have to fight
your own battles, and you have to do it with
a sense of humor.
Speaker 2 (22:13):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (22:13):
Sorry, my voice is so ridiculous.
Speaker 2 (22:15):
It's never no, you're no, please, it's totally no, you're good,
You're good now your book hiding my brain in my
bra How can we get our hands on this book?
Because I am I'm dying to hide it in my brain.
Speaker 4 (22:31):
But it's not out yet. I'm so sorry. I have
to apologize to.
Speaker 2 (22:35):
No, no, no, please don't don't. We are women, We
apologize too much. Don't apologize.
Speaker 5 (22:40):
Put us on the put us on the list.
Speaker 4 (22:43):
Read thank you for even asking my My mother died
in twenty twenty one and the first version of this book,
the agent, my agent said to me, it's too funny,
the book's too funny. Where are the dark parts, where's
the real story? And then I had to really get
real and so it's funny and dark and it's basically funny.
(23:04):
But I found letters my mother wrote after she died,
begging forgiveness. I never she never sent them. It opened
up an entire new can of worms. I took care
of her and her husband, my stepfather, when they had dementia.
And so that last bit isn't written yet. It's written,
I haven't quite quite put it in the right order.
Speaker 2 (23:24):
Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (23:25):
The agent now is like excited about it that he's
been waiting, and he's somebody who's a big producer too,
and said, I want to see a TV series in this.
So in the book or my series of when my
husband left he took a lot of my money, and
oh yeah, I forgave him and we still have a
good relationship. But I got it all back in some
through prayer, I mean, through recovery work and through forgiving
(23:50):
and not really worrying about it.
Speaker 3 (23:51):
It's really strange and miss right. He's a funny guy.
Speaker 4 (23:55):
But anyway, what's beautiful about that story is that there's
a lot of fall up in the book. And there
was something I was going to say that was really
but anyway, a book is hard to write when you
really want to make your whole Yeah, oh, I know
what it was. After my husband left, I rented rooms
on Airbnb in Beverly Hills, on my big Beverly Hills house,
and I had roommates from all over the world, from Russia,
(24:18):
an alcoholic roommate from Russia. I had crazy adventures, a
women from Poland, a stripper from Budapest, women from London,
all over the world and it was kind of fun.
And that part of the book is called Strangers with Keys.
So my partner, my other partner, and I've written an
entire TV series about crazy roommates.
Speaker 2 (24:38):
Oh my god, yes, a full house.
Speaker 3 (24:41):
I mean it was right, yeah, and you won't believe
the stories.
Speaker 4 (24:44):
So anyway, he wants that series, and he wants to
see the book as a series. And it's got too
many stories in it, so it'll be a very when
it comes out. I hope it'll make you laugh.
Speaker 2 (24:54):
That's all I well, I cat just from speaking with
you and hearing some of your stories. I'm very, very
excited to read it. And now it's making me remind
myself that I need to go and work on my book,
that I'm what are you writing my second one? Well,
nothing yet. That's the thing is I've been writing out
a lot of ideas and like outlines and reading other
(25:15):
books and being like, okay, here's the kind of what
I want. I had written a memoir in two thousand
and nine. Andrea also has her book Full Circle that
she wrote. When did that come out? Twenty twenty nineteen.
But yeah, but I think I'm I think I'm gonna
write a second one.
Speaker 3 (25:31):
But it's good.
Speaker 2 (25:32):
I suck at writing.
Speaker 5 (25:33):
Yeah, time for part two.
Speaker 3 (25:34):
Yeah, I'm writing a book on Stalin as well. And
I started back before I got the series, and I
got to.
Speaker 2 (25:39):
Get back to oh okay, I'm a big history nerd,
so that I will also be fascinated by that.
Speaker 4 (25:44):
Kind of Phylvia agloss stalls plot to kill Trotsky and
it was in the Medicivil War.
Speaker 3 (25:49):
I was obsessed with this story, and by long hand,
I wrote, i'mlines.
Speaker 4 (25:54):
And that book is like hundred pages and now I
got to condense it to five hundreds.
Speaker 2 (25:58):
Oh wow, Oh that yeah, that was I always like
reading about the the the women sort of that you
don't care about that had incredible impacts on how things
really turned out. And we think it was just a
bunch of dudes making decisions but really it was not.
Speaker 4 (26:18):
Exactly and I have to say how funny she was
in my episode.
Speaker 5 (26:32):
Oh gosh. You know, we loved your episode. We reviewed
it a few weeks ago and you were so good.
You were so good, But we had.
Speaker 2 (26:41):
Some issues with We have some thoughts on Senorita Mosley.
Speaker 1 (26:47):
And I'm curious about your thoughts too about Senorita Moseley
kissing one of her students' fathers.
Speaker 3 (26:55):
Like I couldn't believe it.
Speaker 4 (26:59):
Towards I think the director said you kissed him, and
I went, I kissed him because he wasn't doing it
fast enough.
Speaker 3 (27:05):
And at one point I just grabbed Bob's ship.
Speaker 2 (27:08):
Really that kind of sounds like Bob though, because Bob's
were like I can imagine he would be like, it's.
Speaker 5 (27:13):
Kind of awkward like that.
Speaker 1 (27:15):
Yeah, yeah, but yeah, that was our thing was like, wow,
you read him mostly getting friendly, you know.
Speaker 2 (27:23):
Like it was. And then we were also amazed at
the part where Senorata mostly comes to the house. Yeah
I'm asked for It's just like, hey, Mash, sorry, I'm
going to come over to your house and hangs it
up all over your house in Spanish. And obviously teachers
have plenty of time and money to do this.
Speaker 1 (27:43):
So yeah, it was we were like, she was very forward,
she had no boundaries.
Speaker 2 (27:58):
Yeah, it was so yeah funny, it was impressive. But
do you what do you remember about shooting the episode?
Speaker 3 (28:04):
It was so much fun. And the guys all took
me to lunch.
Speaker 4 (28:09):
Yeah, they Dave Coolier, Bob and John Samos. They all
took me to lunch at some place in Culver City
on a with a Korean.
Speaker 3 (28:19):
Did you guys used to.
Speaker 2 (28:20):
Go to the used to go to Little Girl all
the time, but there was times was in Culver City. Yeah,
that we used that everybody used to go to at
lunch time.
Speaker 4 (28:27):
They were so much fun and just down home you
need a lot of women would go, oh my god,
you were with this guy. But they were just good friends.
They were really sweet. And I was friends with Yea
Franklin for years earlier and Bob Saggett through John Lovetts.
We were okay, I need saget floor and it was
just fun. I just had a last I had dark hair.
(28:48):
I dyed my hair dark, which is really more my
natural color.
Speaker 3 (28:52):
Quite that dark to play in Quantum Leap the pilot.
Speaker 6 (28:56):
Okay, I played the Ava Gardner Air Force wife, right,
and several other roles as a brunette, and then full
house came along and I thought, oh, statish teacher.
Speaker 4 (29:07):
For some reason, in this industry, if you're blonde, you
can't do drama.
Speaker 3 (29:11):
In my era, you were blonde.
Speaker 4 (29:13):
You were only through comedy, Brnette, we can play drama
or ethnic characters.
Speaker 1 (29:18):
Right, No, yeah, so many tropes, so many stereotypes.
Speaker 3 (29:21):
Yes, yeah, yeah, you gotta love it.
Speaker 4 (29:24):
Though, we have to evolve with me, roll with the
create our new.
Speaker 2 (29:28):
Industry, exactly, exactly. Well, this has been such a wonderful
and incredible conversation, Lydia. I'm just I'm so thrilled that
we got to have you on this again. Like we
we grew up and got to meet and come into
contact with so many really uh like talented, mind blowing
(29:52):
people in this business, and you're definitely one of them.
And I'm so glad that we got to reconnect and
find out what you're up today because you're still a badass. Like,
thank you, This is just yeah, I'm all of you, truly, thank.
Speaker 3 (30:09):
You so much.
Speaker 4 (30:09):
You guys have beautiful spirits, beautiful hearts and gorgeous faces,
and I can't wait to see what you're doing next.
Speaker 5 (30:15):
To Thank you.
Speaker 1 (30:16):
You're so sweet, you are just such an inspiration.
Speaker 3 (30:19):
Thank you.
Speaker 5 (30:20):
Thank you so much for that time and for sharing
your life with us, so my whole day.
Speaker 3 (30:26):
I'd love to have you on my podcast too, so
I let you know when we're here.
Speaker 2 (30:28):
Yes, yeah, please let us know. We would love to
return the favor.
Speaker 1 (30:31):
Before where else can we find you on the socials
or you please plug your podcast tell us.
Speaker 4 (30:37):
I have a huge following on Twitter, well almost seventy thousand,
sixty five thousand, but that's.
Speaker 3 (30:43):
Not that big.
Speaker 4 (30:43):
I'm here to you guys, Facebook, Twitter, you know, all
the regular LinkedIn Instagram. Okay, trying to see off social
media while I'm writing, but it's really hard.
Speaker 2 (30:53):
Right is it? At Lydia Lydia Cornell, Yes.
Speaker 4 (30:56):
Lydia Cornell, l y d I Lydia again Cornell and
on YouTube and I have a podcast called God Shops
True Stories of Synchronicity.
Speaker 2 (31:06):
Got it?
Speaker 4 (31:07):
Not religious, It's about coincidence and uncanny, yady.
Speaker 2 (31:11):
I love it. I want to check that out.
Speaker 3 (31:13):
And a comedy therapy channel. So I'm gonna up based
on the book. I'll keep you posting.
Speaker 2 (31:18):
Oh, my God, please do yes, thank you God, I
love you.
Speaker 5 (31:23):
Love it.
Speaker 2 (31:23):
Oh so lovely to talk to you. Thank you so
much for joining us today, Lydia. We really appreciate it.
Speaker 5 (31:28):
Yeah, I love you guys.
Speaker 6 (31:29):
Thank bye.
Speaker 2 (31:34):
God.
Speaker 5 (31:34):
I love her, she said, a girl like.
Speaker 2 (31:38):
I really do. I have a big girl crush on her.
She is rad.
Speaker 1 (31:42):
I can't believe at age thirty five, they told her
you're too old for this business, and here she is,
age seventy, still kicking ass right. I was still working,
and I'm.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
Saying, like, we tell us, we can't tell us, we
can't do it.
Speaker 5 (31:54):
It's like they dared.
Speaker 2 (31:55):
She's like, hold my beer, you know, yeah, women these
days it's like, oh I can't. What do you say? Okay, yeah, sure,
hold this love. She's yeah, I really oh man. I
was gonna say I'm going to stalk her, but given
the story that she told, maybe that's not wrong. I
don't not like that. But I'm gonna write like, I'm
going to find her in a very way that makes
(32:16):
her not uncomfortable, in a legal way, and then yeah,
a very legal way and with lots of notice and
not at all being weird. But she's really awesome and
I mean, we didn't even touch on the fact that
her great grandmother is Harriet Beecher Stowe. He wrote Uncle
Tom's Cabin, which is still one of the most I
(32:37):
think important pieces of literature in American history, and like
she's an inventor, she's just yeah.
Speaker 1 (32:45):
She's many hats, And there was just I'm like, yeah,
how do we prioritize what we talk about with her?
Speaker 5 (32:52):
Because there's I could have talked to her all day,
Like it was so good. I'm so grateful to her that.
Speaker 2 (32:59):
I'm so part and I'm so grateful that we were like,
let's have her on the show, Like that was sort
of a let's do it. And what a what a guest,
What an awesome, awesome treasure. And I can't wait to
read Hiding my Brain and my bra because I can't.
That's also where I hide my brain. I just shove
it in there sometimes when it falls out the chapstick
(33:19):
and yeah, yeah, yeah, some boob money. You know. It's
like when you go to have you ever I don't
know if you've ever been to like a liquor store
or like somewhere like on the corner, and they're like,
we will not accept boob or bra or sock money
if you ever have your never traveled to those areas. Yeah,
they don't want.
Speaker 5 (33:36):
They don't want bra money.
Speaker 2 (33:37):
You know there would be a no bra or sock
money because sometimes you just keep your cash in your
soccer in your bra. But it's no.
Speaker 1 (33:46):
Yeah, that's hysterical.
Speaker 2 (33:49):
Yeah. I think I'm just gonna hang that sign up
in my house. Please no bra or sock money. I
don't know what you're using it for. Just don't just.
Speaker 5 (33:58):
Don't please go buy a wallet.
Speaker 2 (34:01):
Oh please. Well that was a fabulous episode and I
I am just what an inspirational human being. She is
really incredible. I mean, I'm there. I feel like there's
very few people who can say that they have accomplished
that much in their career. So we feel extremely lucky
to have had the chance to talk with Lydia today.
And thank you Lydia Cornell for joining us, and thank
(34:23):
you to our Fana Ritos for listening. We adore you guys.
Thanks for listening to another episode of How Rude Tanner
Rito's with our wonderful guest, Lydia Cornell. Make sure that
you're following us on Instagram at how Rude Podcast. Or
you can send us an email at howardpodcast at gmail
dot com and make sure you're liking and subscribing to
the podcast wherever you're listening so that you can get
(34:44):
all of the newest episodes as soon as they are released.
And we'll see you guys next time for another recap
episode here on the how Rude Tanarito's podcast. And remember
the world is small, but the house is full boom,
and you should probably be careful who you give keys
Tom not.
Speaker 5 (35:04):
But it's an ear out your money from your bra.
Speaker 2 (35:06):
Yeah yeah, yeah, no no Bra or Zucker
Speaker 3 (35:16):
M hm.
Welcome to part two of our interview with Lydia Cornell.
If you haven't listened to part one yet, go back
and listen to that first, because trust us, you do
not want to miss a second of this. Please welcome
back to the pod the Extraordinary Lydia Cornell.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
What are some of the things. I mean, you're an
actor and you've directed and writing and teaching and mentoring
and public speaking and all of these things. What would
you say is one of the things professionally and personally
that you are most proud of?
Speaker 3 (00:47):
Oh, well, personally as my son. I didn't know.
Speaker 4 (00:50):
I wish i'd known sooner. How the joy of children.
I mean, I'm gaga right now with your.
Speaker 3 (00:55):
Grandchildren that my boyfriend, Oh, I'm a weirdo.
Speaker 4 (00:59):
I went to trade yours and started making strangers babies smile.
Speaker 2 (01:03):
I went from oh, yeah, they're like.
Speaker 4 (01:07):
It was really sweet. I mean, having a new grandchild.
And so Jack, my son is really happy. He doesn't drink,
he's got a really nice girlfriend. But they don't call me,
and I'm like, I.
Speaker 3 (01:18):
Miss I wish I had more kids.
Speaker 4 (01:20):
I know, I know, And I'm also very politically liberal,
so it's not like you know, I'm running around going
everybody should have kids.
Speaker 3 (01:28):
It is sort of a bone.
Speaker 4 (01:29):
Of contention right now. I think everyone should have the
choice to do what they need to do though with their.
Speaker 3 (01:33):
Own Yeah, but that was like wow, that was the.
Speaker 4 (01:38):
Beginning of my real journey in life where I grew
up becoming a mother. I'm not being selfish, letting go.
I have some wild Hollywood stories.
Speaker 3 (01:47):
I mean, I was in the eighties. They sent us
to Manti Carlo three summers in a row.
Speaker 4 (01:52):
I'm, you know, with Prince Albert and James Bond, the
two James Bonds.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
And I don't know that I was going to say,
I don't know that there's Yeah, I know that doesn't
sound they don't do that any yet. Yeah, no, no,
the world professionally, Yeah, I didn't make it as far
as money Carlo, but I definitely was an ass in
the LA area.
Speaker 4 (02:14):
Yeah, all over the world.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Yeah, I didn't have to travel far. I managed to
do it right here at home.
Speaker 4 (02:20):
But I had a really wild, crazy, insane Yeah. And luckily,
good news is I never got I have a couple
of meet too stories. But I don't want to ruining
human's life right now. But I have to say there
was an agent. The first agent I met before I
even got the series, pulled his pants off in front
of me.
Speaker 3 (02:40):
It was a big, famous agency, and I thought it
was just a rare event. I won't mention his name.
Speaker 4 (02:45):
But another woman in a nineties start six months ago,
my boyfriend's telling her the story, and she said, Lydia
never says his name. She goes oh with it. It
happened to her too, twenty years later. What these things
happened back in those days. In the eighties, It felt
as if they used to make posters of me in
a bikini, and I was on all fours for ABC Network,
(03:06):
they had bikini posters. TED would be very upset over them,
but remote to show. They would use one of the
women as a sex in almost every show not in
your era.
Speaker 3 (03:17):
I think it ended well.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
Not on our show in particular. We had I mean
we had sort of the first season, uh we you know,
had Jesse. The first couple of seasons had had quite
a few women coming through that were sort of the
perceived sex symbol of the episode or whatever. But I
think because it was more of a family show, we
didn't necessarily have that. We had kind of like John
(03:43):
as the heart throb, so we had like the more
the male heart throb of the thing. But but it
wasn't like that, but I definitely know that was that
was it. It was like you were sort of the
sacrificial landlight. Well you're cute, so you're gonna that You're
gonna just be the the mostly naked one, and we're
you know, just gonna like and it's I mean, it is,
it's it's so much has changed in this industry and
(04:08):
so much has not right right, and you know, I uh,
certain convictions being overturned. But I but you know, I
I think that women like you and like the women
that spoke out in these movements talking about like this
is this is what it was, and this is what
(04:30):
we were like, this is what was common and what
we were expect, what was expected of who of what
you were. It was just that was it. Well, if
you're on a TV show then and you're cute, then
you're just going to be. There's no we can say
whatever we want.
Speaker 4 (04:44):
And the worst thing is that when he did this
this agent, instead of being offended, I didn't want to
hurt his egos, so I giggled.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
And sort of twirled out of the room like, oh,
I left.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
My heats in the cards.
Speaker 5 (04:56):
That's what we're taught. Don't offend the.
Speaker 2 (04:59):
Right it well, yeah, as women were taught, don't offend.
And it's also terrifying and in that moment you people
don't think about the fact that you go ah, yeah
and you either freeze flight or There's also what women
are taught, which is fun, which is usually when women
are faced with some sort of like you know, attack
(05:21):
or something that we find inappropriate or things like that,
often we are taught as women to be like, oh
and make that person comfortable because now we have since
we're in a dangerous situation, and so you know, speaking
out about those things like and talking about the stuff
that we that you know, like it's there is no
one answer to it or how you handle that sort
(05:41):
of situation, but the fact that we can now talk
about it more openly and that you know, uh, hopefully
this idea of sort of unfettered patriarchy within this business
has shifted a little bit. And I think, you know,
with women with women telling stories written by created by
(06:05):
directed by women, I mean that was I think one
of the things we were really proud about with Fuller
House too, was that with it being based on Steph
and DJ and Kimmy as adult women, we had the
capacity to include some really interesting female oriented storylines about relationships, parenting,
(06:27):
and IVF and you know, all of those things that
we got to cover that were really, really great. And
one of the things that you that you wrote is
a screenplay called Venus Conspiracy and Deborah van Volckenberg is
in it. But the logline reads, all human suffering is
caused by Victoria's secret and.
Speaker 5 (06:48):
I love that. I love that so much.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
Or you could replace it with Brandy Melville now you
know whatever that just rotate that out. But the story
involves uncovering a diabolical plot to keep women thin and
miserable for profit. So I would love to hear I mean,
I can imagine what inspired this screenplay, which is just
life and being a woman in the world, but it's
(07:13):
just so awesome. I love hearing about it.
Speaker 3 (07:18):
Yeah, I'd love to get you in the sore. Here's
what happened for something, You'll tell you what inspired it.
Speaker 4 (07:22):
In my first movie before I got Tea who Us
for Comfort, I got Tooose for Comfort, and then I
got this movie in the Greek Isles with three Oscar
with three legends, James Old Jones, Jose Ferrera and Lela Kendrova.
Oh wow, James ol Jones has just come off The
Great White Hope. He's a Tony Award winner and he
hadn't done Darth Vader yet. But he was a gentleman
and he brought his wife to the We were in
(07:44):
nine weeks in the Greek Isles in a Byzantine monastery
called Monembasia. It's a kind of a Dismith smooth or
tiny anyway, it's not quite an island. But and then
Martin Cove was in it, and Deborah Shelton and Mary
Louise Well and I had to wear a white bikini
the whole time, and there was a scene where they
(08:04):
wanted me to drown and.
Speaker 3 (08:06):
Take off my top.
Speaker 4 (08:08):
I refused to do nudity. I just didn't want to
do it. I knew one day and my kids would see.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
It, and I just didn't want to do it.
Speaker 5 (08:13):
Oh yeah, So they.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
Tried to calm me into it. My sag union wasn't
on the set.
Speaker 4 (08:18):
We were way, you know, way on an island, right,
and my manager wasn't there, and the director said, can
you just pull your top off and we'll get you
running into the ocean where you're going to drown. This
is after you know, I had to go swim out
about a mile.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
You got a drown with your boobs.
Speaker 3 (08:35):
I felt, well, I don't.
Speaker 4 (08:36):
Want my front showing. He said, just the back will
be showing. And there's an underwater scuba diver camera and
they have to catch me, you know. And so I thought, well,
they're trying to trick me. So I had to out
with them. So I went to the ward of lady.
We only spoke she only swelled Greek, and there's a
big rock. We're hiding behind the rock with a dressing
room wood and we couldn't speak the same language.
Speaker 3 (08:56):
But through lots of hand gesturing, she realized.
Speaker 4 (08:59):
Oh, we're gonna I'll cover you with zinc ox side
white grease paint which is waterproof. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
Yeah, And we swee out.
Speaker 4 (09:07):
Witted these people and it was amazing. Nico Master rockets
and all the producers were.
Speaker 3 (09:11):
Like they couldn't use any of the breast footage.
Speaker 4 (09:15):
So like, yes, I run into the ocean, Yeah, pop
off in the back.
Speaker 3 (09:19):
It's naked. You know, you can see the movie.
Speaker 2 (09:20):
It's right right, but the front it's like, you know,
the lifeguard knows was just white. You can't see it's
like clay makeup. Yeah, so that's brilliant.
Speaker 4 (09:29):
My big, first, big incident of having to like really
stand up for my own rights, you know, even though
the film was a wonderful thing to do.
Speaker 3 (09:36):
I love that movie. We had a great time on
the set.
Speaker 4 (09:39):
Then I come to La and I ever von Valckenberg
because it's the part as my sister.
Speaker 3 (09:43):
She was a Broadway actress.
Speaker 4 (09:45):
She'd also hired, sorry hired to do a movie of
the Week for Chuck Freeze Productions out here, and they
fired her the minute they saw her because she had
gained five pounds, and they said, we're not only firing you,
we're gonna sue your agent for the weight game. And
I what, this can't be possible. That was the seed
(10:06):
of the beginning of me riding the screen flight.
Speaker 2 (10:08):
Yeah, I was gonna say. I seemed to her like
that was like a thing.
Speaker 4 (10:12):
Wow, you was skinny, and it was there's no way
this could be even true. So I started thinking about it,
and then when I got sober, this movie came out
of me fully formed because I've been. It opens in
Pompeii with the goddess Venus, and we're missing her head
the sculpture, and it's like this really mystical opening, and
then we're hurled into living day Pompeii and the ad
(10:34):
buyer in a toga is buying the statue of Venus
and he goes, she's too thin. Add more to the waist,
and then we cut to the ninety has to start
in the nineties because women are allowed to be a
little more of their own size today, right, You're allowed
to be yourself a bit.
Speaker 3 (10:48):
But yeah, yeah, when I was coming up, you were
not allowed to gain a pound.
Speaker 4 (10:52):
And in fact, I was told the producers yelled at
me for eating a burrito and a taco and then the
bag of Eminem's. They said, don't you know you're a symbol.
You can't eat starch.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
In those days, it was called starch, right, wow.
Speaker 4 (11:05):
So the food flew in the air and I went
crying to my dressing room and I remember, ooh, I
gotta do water pills or something.
Speaker 3 (11:12):
And I wasn't blieming, but I I just start myself.
Speaker 4 (11:16):
And when I turned thirty five, I remember walking into
Reuben cannons off with the casting director.
Speaker 3 (11:22):
And he goes, you look pretty good for an old lady.
I was thirty five.
Speaker 4 (11:27):
So you guys have no idea what the eighties were
really like if you were a second No.
Speaker 3 (11:31):
You know what I mean?
Speaker 2 (11:32):
Yeah, oh it was. It's only now are we seeing
women be able to age past thirty and have roles
written for women who were in between right sex symbol
and grandma, you know.
Speaker 6 (11:46):
What I mean.
Speaker 2 (11:47):
For a while, it was like once you weren't that.
It was like, well, you're of no use to us now,
thank you. Come back when you were a wrinkled raisin
and you know, and you're just like, what are you
talking like? There's so much and I love seeing it
now again, talking about you know, women creators and stuff
like women's lives in between all of that are so
(12:07):
layered and rich and multifaceted and fascinating. It's so nice
to see, you know. And and women like Olivia Coleman
and uh Melanie uh like Lynskey Yes from Yellow Jackets,
women who I think are beautiful and gorgeous and amazing
(12:27):
but they're but are talented and who make it fascinating
to watch the human experience, because that's what acting is,
and it's not like to me, I'm like, I don't
want to watch an actor just because they're attractive. In fact,
I don't. I want to watch someone who is interesting
to look like. I want to watch an interesting human.
I don't care if they're good looking or not or whatever. Like,
(12:49):
give me an interesting human. So I love that this
has been such a focus of your of your career
and of your work. And like, I think off and
you know, people talk about, you know, they as a
feminist to myself, but you know, so many people talk
(13:10):
about that it would be impossible to be a sex
symbol and a feminist. And I think that people then
are greatly missing the point of what feminism is, which
is that it's all about the choice to be any
of those things and to express yourself and be whoever
and however you want to feel as a woman. And
if that's sweatpants and no bra and like no makeup
(13:34):
and never cool, if that's dolling yourself up every day
and get getting all this stuff done, cool, Yeah, that's it.
It's all about how you want to do.
Speaker 4 (13:44):
It, really, and we like, you know, plastic surgery is
really something that I feel sorry for people who've had it,
but I don't.
Speaker 3 (13:52):
I'm not. I would never judge them. You know.
Speaker 4 (13:54):
It's like what we were kind of forced to feel
that we had to have it. I didn't tried both
talks a few times, but I thank god didn't have
the money during the time after my husband left, right,
you know, I'm so glad because I want to be
gracefully even though I'm using on my other computer, I
use the zoom filters and all that, right, you know,
(14:17):
and you know it looks you're up higher.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
Well you're right, yeah, well angles are everything, you know,
But that's but that's like the thing that and I
love seeing, you know, I have two daughters who are
sixteen and thirteen. Oh wow, And you know, seeing my
daughters like kind of dress and be more themselves and
you know, like it's it's a really exciting time I
(14:42):
think for young women. Yeah, in terms of like the
potential and the opportunity to really truly be like whatever
expression of female identity you want to be like that,
you know what I mean, there's kind of I love
that the road has widened ye considerably because because it
was you know, for women who lived through that time
(15:05):
of like you had to be a perfect you know,
this perfect thing, like that's impossible.
Speaker 3 (15:11):
God, you have no idea, And men were very disdainful.
Speaker 4 (15:14):
I remember I had an audition when the oct running
director looked at me and he went, you're one of
my favorite actresses. You're very funny. I wanted to come
in and read for my pilot, and I hadn't quit drinking.
My drinking career hadn't ended yet. And I brought an
entire bottle of vodka stuffed in the gym bag to
the CBS Lady's room executive ladies, and the genes, my
(15:36):
genes were so tight. I was doing stiletto heels and
it was like I walked in the room. I stumbled
into the room. I think I fell off top of
the casting director.
Speaker 3 (15:44):
I was drunk. It's horrible, but I.
Speaker 4 (15:48):
Thought, seven men on a couch looking at my body
up and down, is she perfect enough? It wasn't about
the affecting That's how I felt. Right, of course, it
probably was, but it was all in my head.
Speaker 3 (15:59):
They were just.
Speaker 2 (15:59):
Well, I would yeah, I would say probably, I'd say
you probably weren't wrong. Yeah that at nine times, you know,
eight times out of ten. Particularly then it was it
was more about what you look like than who you
were and what you brought to a character.
Speaker 1 (16:13):
And this is why male executives shouldn't be the only
ones in charge, because women don't want to see perfect
women on TV.
Speaker 5 (16:20):
We want to see.
Speaker 1 (16:20):
Ourselves reflected in the characters that we watch on TV.
So I don't want to see like perfect bodies and
bombshell like, I want to see someone that looks like me,
who's flawed and he has blemishes and everything.
Speaker 2 (16:31):
Right, but flawed both internally and externally and just human.
I you know, like, give me, give me a photo
on Instagram that has some skin texture to it? Good God, please? Yes,
I know your skin doesn't look like that. There's your
fuzzy You look like you're made of velvet. What's wrong
with you? Stop? You know, like I'm like, am I
my eyes blurry? Why are you so velvety?
Speaker 6 (16:54):
You know?
Speaker 2 (16:55):
Like it's wild to me? Yeah, And again that's what
you go for it. You want to do it, but
like also, you know, but you don't have to. You
don't have to. I think it's it's more it's it's
really this message of like learning that you can doll
it up or dress it down, but that the inherent
worth is all about the inside stuff.
Speaker 4 (17:15):
Oh I love it, Yes, we got that's so wonderful
that you said that. Hey, we were dogs sitting McFly.
Oh we love dogs.
Speaker 5 (17:27):
He's welcome to join the podcast. Dogs are welcome.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, we're total dog people are here.
Speaker 3 (17:41):
In the movie, the woman is this, she's a Venus girl.
Speaker 4 (17:44):
She represents the pharmaceutical empire called Venus, which is the
front they own everything a biotech company and they own
all this shell companies and they own like the media too,
so MTV and you know general moods and mood slings.
Speaker 3 (17:57):
It's a comedy that it's got a real plot.
Speaker 2 (17:59):
Driven scary right, kind of like idiocracy when you're like
ahah right yeah, like yeah yeah, you're like this is hello,
this is true.
Speaker 4 (18:09):
And they catch her she's supposed to be a size
to and they catch her like the castapo these advertising
sects and undercover photos, eating donuts in her car and
like they catch her and they catch her wearing a
girdle and she's like I'm giving up. She starts to
jump off the cliff where they're filming the video and
she doesn't you know, It's like you think she's gonna
(18:32):
she just jumps on the three feet of stand and
runs away from recruit and she discovers its plot and
it's all like a plotted thriller. But Marco Robie said,
we're looking for the next big event movie, not Barbie.
Now I have all these women's groups that want to
get the movie made. They wanted to years ago.
Speaker 3 (18:49):
But men looked at me like I was crazy when
I used to pitch this movie.
Speaker 2 (18:52):
Right, and then something, how are you talking about? You're like,
you're making us miserable when you're literally driving us insane, right,
it's crazy, right, Like.
Speaker 3 (19:05):
So now it's time has come and I'm really excited.
Speaker 2 (19:07):
So what an awesome like life experience, you know what
I mean to be able to go from that like
this is you know, you have a personal experience with
what the world of that sort of pressure is exactly.
And yeah, and then also like when you're a woman
who is also who is attractive and also smart and
(19:31):
also that you know all these things, it's like somehow
something has to get discredited. If you're if you're smart,
you can't be pretty. If you're pretty, you can't be smart,
because like you don't get to have both.
Speaker 3 (19:41):
Well the America Pharira's speech.
Speaker 4 (19:43):
You know you saw Barbie right, Oh yeah, yeah, the
America Perira's speech. I went goga because I wrote that
speech twenty years ago. I'm sure we all did.
Speaker 2 (19:52):
You know.
Speaker 4 (19:52):
Yeah, it's impossible to be a woman and you have
to pretend to be humble or else be you know,
you can't be happy for other women, or you can't
be too happy for right.
Speaker 2 (20:02):
You can't be too much. You have to be thin,
not enough, right, you have to be thin but not
too skinny, but not too big, but not too It's
not too much of anything. Don't take up too much space,
you know. Don't be too loud, don't be I think
it's maybe part of the reason that I just am
uh loud, because I can be.
Speaker 3 (20:22):
Are you guys you're still acting, right, can I love?
Speaker 4 (20:24):
I've been reading up about what you're doing, so, yeah,
are you producing and all that stuff too?
Speaker 2 (20:30):
I I am, Yeah, I'm producing, uh and and working
on some writing and working on producing a couple movies
and some other things, and then acting and doing like
you know, some of the fun some kind of stuff too.
Speaker 3 (20:44):
You know, I had a stalker. A couple of years.
Speaker 4 (20:46):
I accidentally moved my stocker into the house ago, but
this is actually more than a few years ago.
Speaker 3 (20:51):
Kelsey Grammar and I had the same stalker and I
thought he.
Speaker 2 (20:55):
Was at least you shared. You know, that was convenient.
I mean, two for the price of one. And I
was accused of them.
Speaker 4 (21:01):
Of The stalker went to TMD and sold a story
claiming to be a war hero, and then he sued
Kelsey in myself.
Speaker 2 (21:12):
You know, big classic sounds weirdly familiar.
Speaker 3 (21:16):
Yeah, And so then the TMZ put out a picture
of me. This is what they do. Instead of putting.
Speaker 4 (21:23):
Out a horrible picture of the stalker, they put out
a picture of me looking like a psychopath psychotic stalker
wants to bash my face in And I'm like, why
did they pick a picture of me him?
Speaker 3 (21:33):
I look crazy?
Speaker 4 (21:34):
And underneath the haters wrote, she's so ugly she needs
her face to be bashed.
Speaker 3 (21:38):
You know, I went, why are they so mean?
Speaker 4 (21:40):
Why can't the tabloids be kinder to women, you know,
on top of being and then they got the story wrong,
let me wrong?
Speaker 2 (21:49):
Well, yeah that's that.
Speaker 4 (21:50):
Yeah, I never sued Kelsey and they have not corrected
the story.
Speaker 3 (21:53):
So in my book, I tell the whole funny story.
Speaker 4 (21:55):
It's very funny. It's like a twelve episode crime and
the crime comic My odd but Chelsea die on the
same side. But then no one ever knew. Oh, to
make a long story short. Women, you have to fight
your own battles, and you have to do it with
a sense of humor.
Speaker 2 (22:13):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (22:13):
Sorry, my voice is so ridiculous.
Speaker 2 (22:15):
It's never no, you're no, please, it's totally no, you're good,
You're good now your book hiding my brain in my
bra How can we get our hands on this book?
Because I am I'm dying to hide it in my brain.
Speaker 4 (22:31):
But it's not out yet. I'm so sorry. I have
to apologize to.
Speaker 2 (22:35):
No, no, no, please don't don't. We are women, We
apologize too much. Don't apologize.
Speaker 5 (22:40):
Put us on the put us on the list.
Speaker 4 (22:43):
Read thank you for even asking my My mother died
in twenty twenty one and the first version of this book,
the agent, my agent said to me, it's too funny,
the book's too funny. Where are the dark parts, where's
the real story? And then I had to really get
real and so it's funny and dark and it's basically funny.
(23:04):
But I found letters my mother wrote after she died,
begging forgiveness. I never she never sent them. It opened
up an entire new can of worms. I took care
of her and her husband, my stepfather, when they had dementia.
And so that last bit isn't written yet. It's written,
I haven't quite quite put it in the right order.
Speaker 2 (23:24):
Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (23:25):
The agent now is like excited about it that he's
been waiting, and he's somebody who's a big producer too,
and said, I want to see a TV series in this.
So in the book or my series of when my
husband left he took a lot of my money, and
oh yeah, I forgave him and we still have a
good relationship. But I got it all back in some
through prayer, I mean, through recovery work and through forgiving
(23:50):
and not really worrying about it.
Speaker 3 (23:51):
It's really strange and miss right. He's a funny guy.
Speaker 4 (23:55):
But anyway, what's beautiful about that story is that there's
a lot of fall up in the book. And there
was something I was going to say that was really
but anyway, a book is hard to write when you
really want to make your whole Yeah, oh, I know
what it was. After my husband left, I rented rooms
on Airbnb in Beverly Hills, on my big Beverly Hills house,
and I had roommates from all over the world, from Russia,
(24:18):
an alcoholic roommate from Russia. I had crazy adventures, a
women from Poland, a stripper from Budapest, women from London,
all over the world and it was kind of fun.
And that part of the book is called Strangers with Keys.
So my partner, my other partner, and I've written an
entire TV series about crazy roommates.
Speaker 2 (24:38):
Oh my god, yes, a full house.
Speaker 3 (24:41):
I mean it was right, yeah, and you won't believe
the stories.
Speaker 4 (24:44):
So anyway, he wants that series, and he wants to
see the book as a series. And it's got too
many stories in it, so it'll be a very when
it comes out. I hope it'll make you laugh.
Speaker 2 (24:54):
That's all I well, I cat just from speaking with
you and hearing some of your stories. I'm very, very
excited to read it. And now it's making me remind
myself that I need to go and work on my book,
that I'm what are you writing my second one? Well,
nothing yet. That's the thing is I've been writing out
a lot of ideas and like outlines and reading other
(25:15):
books and being like, okay, here's the kind of what
I want. I had written a memoir in two thousand
and nine. Andrea also has her book Full Circle that
she wrote. When did that come out? Twenty twenty nineteen.
But yeah, but I think I'm I think I'm gonna
write a second one.
Speaker 3 (25:31):
But it's good.
Speaker 2 (25:32):
I suck at writing.
Speaker 5 (25:33):
Yeah, time for part two.
Speaker 3 (25:34):
Yeah, I'm writing a book on Stalin as well. And
I started back before I got the series, and I
got to.
Speaker 2 (25:39):
Get back to oh okay, I'm a big history nerd,
so that I will also be fascinated by that.
Speaker 4 (25:44):
Kind of Phylvia agloss stalls plot to kill Trotsky and
it was in the Medicivil War.
Speaker 3 (25:49):
I was obsessed with this story, and by long hand,
I wrote, i'mlines.
Speaker 4 (25:54):
And that book is like hundred pages and now I
got to condense it to five hundreds.
Speaker 2 (25:58):
Oh wow, Oh that yeah, that was I always like
reading about the the the women sort of that you
don't care about that had incredible impacts on how things
really turned out. And we think it was just a
bunch of dudes making decisions but really it was not.
Speaker 4 (26:18):
Exactly and I have to say how funny she was
in my episode.
Speaker 5 (26:32):
Oh gosh. You know, we loved your episode. We reviewed
it a few weeks ago and you were so good.
You were so good, But we had.
Speaker 2 (26:41):
Some issues with We have some thoughts on Senorita Mosley.
Speaker 1 (26:47):
And I'm curious about your thoughts too about Senorita Moseley
kissing one of her students' fathers.
Speaker 3 (26:55):
Like I couldn't believe it.
Speaker 4 (26:59):
Towards I think the director said you kissed him, and
I went, I kissed him because he wasn't doing it
fast enough.
Speaker 3 (27:05):
And at one point I just grabbed Bob's ship.
Speaker 2 (27:08):
Really that kind of sounds like Bob though, because Bob's
were like I can imagine he would be like, it's.
Speaker 5 (27:13):
Kind of awkward like that.
Speaker 1 (27:15):
Yeah, yeah, but yeah, that was our thing was like, wow,
you read him mostly getting friendly, you know.
Speaker 2 (27:23):
Like it was. And then we were also amazed at
the part where Senorata mostly comes to the house. Yeah
I'm asked for It's just like, hey, Mash, sorry, I'm
going to come over to your house and hangs it
up all over your house in Spanish. And obviously teachers
have plenty of time and money to do this.
Speaker 1 (27:43):
So yeah, it was we were like, she was very forward,
she had no boundaries.
Speaker 2 (27:58):
Yeah, it was so yeah funny, it was impressive. But
do you what do you remember about shooting the episode?
Speaker 3 (28:04):
It was so much fun. And the guys all took
me to lunch.
Speaker 4 (28:09):
Yeah, they Dave Coolier, Bob and John Samos. They all
took me to lunch at some place in Culver City
on a with a Korean.
Speaker 3 (28:19):
Did you guys used to.
Speaker 2 (28:20):
Go to the used to go to Little Girl all
the time, but there was times was in Culver City. Yeah,
that we used that everybody used to go to at
lunch time.
Speaker 4 (28:27):
They were so much fun and just down home you
need a lot of women would go, oh my god,
you were with this guy. But they were just good friends.
They were really sweet. And I was friends with Yea
Franklin for years earlier and Bob Saggett through John Lovetts.
We were okay, I need saget floor and it was
just fun. I just had a last I had dark hair.
(28:48):
I dyed my hair dark, which is really more my
natural color.
Speaker 3 (28:52):
Quite that dark to play in Quantum Leap the pilot.
Speaker 6 (28:56):
Okay, I played the Ava Gardner Air Force wife, right,
and several other roles as a brunette, and then full
house came along and I thought, oh, statish teacher.
Speaker 4 (29:07):
For some reason, in this industry, if you're blonde, you
can't do drama.
Speaker 3 (29:11):
In my era, you were blonde.
Speaker 4 (29:13):
You were only through comedy, Brnette, we can play drama
or ethnic characters.
Speaker 1 (29:18):
Right, No, yeah, so many tropes, so many stereotypes.
Speaker 3 (29:21):
Yes, yeah, yeah, you gotta love it.
Speaker 4 (29:24):
Though, we have to evolve with me, roll with the
create our new.
Speaker 2 (29:28):
Industry, exactly, exactly. Well, this has been such a wonderful
and incredible conversation, Lydia. I'm just I'm so thrilled that
we got to have you on this again. Like we
we grew up and got to meet and come into
contact with so many really uh like talented, mind blowing
(29:52):
people in this business, and you're definitely one of them.
And I'm so glad that we got to reconnect and
find out what you're up today because you're still a badass. Like,
thank you, This is just yeah, I'm all of you, truly, thank.
Speaker 3 (30:09):
You so much.
Speaker 4 (30:09):
You guys have beautiful spirits, beautiful hearts and gorgeous faces,
and I can't wait to see what you're doing next.
Speaker 5 (30:15):
To Thank you.
Speaker 1 (30:16):
You're so sweet, you are just such an inspiration.
Speaker 3 (30:19):
Thank you.
Speaker 5 (30:20):
Thank you so much for that time and for sharing
your life with us, so my whole day.
Speaker 3 (30:26):
I'd love to have you on my podcast too, so
I let you know when we're here.
Speaker 2 (30:28):
Yes, yeah, please let us know. We would love to
return the favor.
Speaker 1 (30:31):
Before where else can we find you on the socials
or you please plug your podcast tell us.
Speaker 4 (30:37):
I have a huge following on Twitter, well almost seventy thousand,
sixty five thousand, but that's.
Speaker 3 (30:43):
Not that big.
Speaker 4 (30:43):
I'm here to you guys, Facebook, Twitter, you know, all
the regular LinkedIn Instagram. Okay, trying to see off social
media while I'm writing, but it's really hard.
Speaker 2 (30:53):
Right is it? At Lydia Lydia Cornell, Yes.
Speaker 4 (30:56):
Lydia Cornell, l y d I Lydia again Cornell and
on YouTube and I have a podcast called God Shops
True Stories of Synchronicity.
Speaker 2 (31:06):
Got it?
Speaker 4 (31:07):
Not religious, It's about coincidence and uncanny, yady.
Speaker 2 (31:11):
I love it. I want to check that out.
Speaker 3 (31:13):
And a comedy therapy channel. So I'm gonna up based
on the book. I'll keep you posting.
Speaker 2 (31:18):
Oh, my God, please do yes, thank you God, I
love you.
Speaker 5 (31:23):
Love it.
Speaker 2 (31:23):
Oh so lovely to talk to you. Thank you so
much for joining us today, Lydia. We really appreciate it.
Speaker 5 (31:28):
Yeah, I love you guys.
Speaker 6 (31:29):
Thank bye.
Speaker 2 (31:34):
God.
Speaker 5 (31:34):
I love her, she said, a girl like.
Speaker 2 (31:38):
I really do. I have a big girl crush on her.
She is rad.
Speaker 1 (31:42):
I can't believe at age thirty five, they told her
you're too old for this business, and here she is,
age seventy, still kicking ass right. I was still working,
and I'm.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
Saying, like, we tell us, we can't tell us, we
can't do it.
Speaker 5 (31:54):
It's like they dared.
Speaker 2 (31:55):
She's like, hold my beer, you know, yeah, women these
days it's like, oh I can't. What do you say? Okay, yeah, sure,
hold this love. She's yeah, I really oh man. I
was gonna say I'm going to stalk her, but given
the story that she told, maybe that's not wrong. I
don't not like that. But I'm gonna write like, I'm
going to find her in a very way that makes
(32:16):
her not uncomfortable, in a legal way, and then yeah,
a very legal way and with lots of notice and
not at all being weird. But she's really awesome and
I mean, we didn't even touch on the fact that
her great grandmother is Harriet Beecher Stowe. He wrote Uncle
Tom's Cabin, which is still one of the most I
(32:37):
think important pieces of literature in American history, and like
she's an inventor, she's just yeah.
Speaker 1 (32:45):
She's many hats, And there was just I'm like, yeah,
how do we prioritize what we talk about with her?
Speaker 5 (32:52):
Because there's I could have talked to her all day,
Like it was so good. I'm so grateful to her that.
Speaker 2 (32:59):
I'm so part and I'm so grateful that we were like,
let's have her on the show, Like that was sort
of a let's do it. And what a what a guest,
What an awesome, awesome treasure. And I can't wait to
read Hiding my Brain and my bra because I can't.
That's also where I hide my brain. I just shove
it in there sometimes when it falls out the chapstick
(33:19):
and yeah, yeah, yeah, some boob money. You know. It's
like when you go to have you ever I don't
know if you've ever been to like a liquor store
or like somewhere like on the corner, and they're like,
we will not accept boob or bra or sock money
if you ever have your never traveled to those areas. Yeah,
they don't want.
Speaker 5 (33:36):
They don't want bra money.
Speaker 2 (33:37):
You know there would be a no bra or sock
money because sometimes you just keep your cash in your
soccer in your bra. But it's no.
Speaker 1 (33:46):
Yeah, that's hysterical.
Speaker 2 (33:49):
Yeah. I think I'm just gonna hang that sign up
in my house. Please no bra or sock money. I
don't know what you're using it for. Just don't just.
Speaker 5 (33:58):
Don't please go buy a wallet.
Speaker 2 (34:01):
Oh please. Well that was a fabulous episode and I
I am just what an inspirational human being. She is
really incredible. I mean, I'm there. I feel like there's
very few people who can say that they have accomplished
that much in their career. So we feel extremely lucky
to have had the chance to talk with Lydia today.
And thank you Lydia Cornell for joining us, and thank
(34:23):
you to our Fana Ritos for listening. We adore you guys.
Thanks for listening to another episode of How Rude Tanner
Rito's with our wonderful guest, Lydia Cornell. Make sure that
you're following us on Instagram at how Rude Podcast. Or
you can send us an email at howardpodcast at gmail
dot com and make sure you're liking and subscribing to
the podcast wherever you're listening so that you can get
(34:44):
all of the newest episodes as soon as they are released.
And we'll see you guys next time for another recap
episode here on the how Rude Tanarito's podcast. And remember
the world is small, but the house is full boom,
and you should probably be careful who you give keys
Tom not.
Speaker 5 (35:04):
But it's an ear out your money from your bra.
Speaker 2 (35:06):
Yeah yeah, yeah, no no Bra or Zucker
Speaker 3 (35:16):
M hm.
Hosts And Creators
Andrea Barber
Jodie Sweetin
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