311: Ride, Sally, Ride w/ Jimmy Kimmel & Raamla Mohamed

Two words: Jimmy Kimmel. Not only do Jimmy, Katie and Guillermo gush about their favorite moments from Scandal history, they also cover some of the many appearances on late night TV and the pranks they performed on fellow Scandal cast. Then, Raamla Mohamed joins to talk about her time writing on Scandal and some of the unbelievable moments from this wild, wild episode. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Unpacking the Toolbox is a production of Shondaland Audio in
partnership with Higheartradiotazi Katie.

Speaker 2 (00:33):
All I want today is popcorn.

Speaker 1 (00:35):
I want food so bad, any kind of food, so
do I.

Speaker 3 (00:40):
But before we get to snack time, there are people
who are here to hang out with us.

Speaker 1 (00:45):
Germo, do you know, I am so freaking hyped for
these folks that are coming to chill with us.

Speaker 3 (00:52):
I am too, Like Beyond, We're very excited because today's
guest is someone who's going to take us behind the scenes.
She is the of this episode and she is a dear,
dear friend who Giermo and her laughed on set all
the time.

Speaker 2 (01:04):
We love her so much, one of our favorite people
on ever.

Speaker 1 (01:08):
The whole of her proove Scandal.

Speaker 3 (01:10):
This woman, she's so freaking fancy because she started on
Scandal as like.

Speaker 2 (01:14):
A baby writer, researcher assistant.

Speaker 3 (01:16):
She build up the ladder she was on Off the Map,
she was on Gray's Anatomy, and then she was on Scandal,
and now she's a showrunner of her own show that
Kerrie Washington executive produces, called Reasonable Doubt.

Speaker 1 (01:28):
She's killing it in the game.

Speaker 3 (01:29):
Oh, she's killing it in the game. She's got so
many shows in her that I can't wait to watch.

Speaker 2 (01:34):
We love her.

Speaker 3 (01:36):
Her name is Ramala Mohammed and she's the best Ramala.
As if that wasn't enough for y'all. Before we talked
to Ramla, We're gonna talk to somebody else.

Speaker 1 (01:47):
Somebody that's on freaking one of the most popular late night.

Speaker 2 (01:52):
Talk shows in the history of late night talks, and talk.

Speaker 1 (01:55):
About being in the game and killing the game. He
is killing that late show game for years now. And
he was a huge fan of Scandal.

Speaker 3 (02:03):
Yes, he was so supportive of the show. He had
us all on his guests multiple times. He did special skits.
We did a prank to Joshu Molina, and we just
need to talk to him because he's one of the
funniest people of all time and I'm just very excited
to bring him to you. Before we talked to Ramla Mohammed,
we are.

Speaker 2 (02:18):
Having Jimmimmy kim come on. I am the biggest Jimmy
Kimmel fan. I I can't, I can't.

Speaker 3 (02:28):
And the fact that this genius is on ABC and
we were on an ABC show for as long as
we were and those.

Speaker 4 (02:37):
Were fun days, right I mean, we had a lot
of man great bits and a lot of fun, and
you guys were the last time we ever had strong
ratings in the ten to eleven o'clocks.

Speaker 3 (02:48):
That is not true, but for everybody listening, Jimmy literally
for most of us, like was the first late night
talk show host any of us ever went on, and
we were all terrified, and you were so loving and
kind to all of us. And then you came onto
the scandal set and did a whole big special with

(03:08):
Shonda and Betsy, and then we'd come onto the show
and did lots of different bits and comedy things that
were a blast. But really the culmination of our Jimmy
Kimmel experience was with the Josh Molina.

Speaker 4 (03:21):
Yeah, that was That was the That was the finale,
wasn't it?

Speaker 5 (03:25):
And literally the finale that was you know, Josh.

Speaker 4 (03:29):
I have to say, I really I love Josh and
I love his commitment to a prank and his the
stories you guys would tell about the just terrible.

Speaker 5 (03:37):
Things though he would do to you, just like what
did he do to you? Garmo?

Speaker 1 (03:42):
He he left a voicemail with a different but he
distorted his voice and left a voicemail on my phone.

Speaker 2 (03:47):
Jimmy, he got that.

Speaker 1 (03:49):
I know I hate you, Jimmy, and he left him
message saying, uh, this is a detective from New York
City Police Department. You've done something really wrong. You need
to us. You're in a lot of trouble. I shit
my pants that whole day I was on set and
didn't tell anybody. I had anxiety attacks, like it was horrible.

(04:10):
And then the Josh finally like cap to it, and
I was like, what the fuck, man, you can't do that, Like,
don't do that?

Speaker 3 (04:17):
Is it correct to me that you gave that to him?
On April Fool's there there was an there was an
app that this is funny. Actually right before I got married,
like a day before I got married, this app comes
out and it's an app that let you do two things.
Number one, you could text someone from someone else's number,
so it looked like Gerimo had texted Katie, and then

(04:41):
you wouldn't be on the receiving end of the response text,
but you could start a lot of trouble, which I did.

Speaker 1 (04:47):
He did that with you, right, Katie, He did that
with you.

Speaker 5 (04:50):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (04:50):
The other one was you could call somebody and it
would appear to be happening to the call would appear
to be coming from another person's phone that one.

Speaker 1 (05:00):
You could hear.

Speaker 4 (05:01):
It was like a three way call, and you could
tape the results. The only problem was that the people
had to answer the phone at the same time. Earals
they wouldn't hear anybody on the phone, so it made
it a little bit tricky, but they quickly. I think
they must have been illegal because they didn't last long.
But I had a few people in my life who
I knew would really appreciate it, and Josh Molina was

(05:23):
one of them. And while he was while he was
busy wreaking havoc on everyone on the scandal set, I was.

Speaker 5 (05:30):
Busy wreaking havoc.

Speaker 4 (05:31):
I took it to Italy and I spent the whole
first day of our honeymoon creating all these fake texts
from you know, like a dirty text from our co
executive producer to his wife, just crazy texts like from
my aunt Chippy to a friend that she hadn't spoken
to for years. Like just I tried to think of

(05:53):
everyone that had a feud or a weird dynamic, and
I had it weird and I made it weird. We're
nobody knew where is coming from. And it just like
it started at the show and it caused such a commotion.
It was like people there was pure, actual tumults happening
at our show. People like, well it's coin I got this,
and you know, like people were like going kind of

(06:13):
crazy and they realized I was just sitting on my
computer dying, laughing, texting all these crazy things to everybody.

Speaker 5 (06:21):
So that's all that's my fault. I apologize for that.

Speaker 3 (06:24):
No job, like, how do you guys know each other?
Like why and why are you prankster?

Speaker 2 (06:29):
Why do you understand?

Speaker 1 (06:30):
Why are you friends with him?

Speaker 4 (06:32):
Well, if I'm just like, if we could keep this quiet,
there's a secret club. It's kind of a brotherhood of
people who do terrible things to other people.

Speaker 5 (06:41):
No, you know what it is.

Speaker 4 (06:42):
He just started telling me some stories about the things
that he'd been doing. And really, like when you guys
would come on the show, almost everyone had a story
about some crazy thing that Josh had done to them.
And so I, you know, I of course was interested
in this. I was attracted to do it, and I
started you know, there are a few people in my
life who are real pranksters. Josh is one of them.

(07:04):
George Clooney is another one. And when I think of
something particularly terrible, I will share it with them with
the hope that I will get the benefit of a return.

Speaker 3 (07:13):
Oh my god, he loves it like he gets like
it's ever dealt with this in my life until adulthood.

Speaker 2 (07:21):
It's terrible.

Speaker 3 (07:22):
That same app he called me said it was us Weekly.
I'm looking for dirt, you know, on Scandal and what's
going on. And I'm having a hard attack. How they
get my cell phone number? Like where am I listed?
I'm like calling all my team, like where is my
information public? And then of course there's the stupid stuff
of like shaving cream underneath your trailer door, gasoline underneath
your car door handle. But he just was relentless and

(07:46):
loved it and was the only cast member from Scandal
to get called into the principal's office. He got called
into Sean's office multiple times.

Speaker 2 (07:53):
Ah yeah, where he should have gotten in trouble?

Speaker 3 (07:56):
And what made you have the idea that we were
going to finally do this big prank back?

Speaker 1 (08:02):
Well, we could never get him back. We tried, and I.

Speaker 4 (08:06):
Kept telling me that nobody could get him back, and
then people and you guys think kept asking me, like
you have to do something to him, and then we
had the big finale show after the you know, after
the final episode, and uh, it seemed like the right
thing to do to get him back is to kind
of put a cherry on top of the whole the
whole experience and the prank which I watched. I don't

(08:29):
know if you guys have watched it recently. I watched
it yesterday. It really it holds up. It's a good
prank and it has.

Speaker 1 (08:35):
I watched it when we had him on. I think, yeah,
it's so good. And that old lady is so good,
the elderly woman that's like having the heart attack.

Speaker 3 (08:42):
For those yes, just google like Josh milondap pranks by
Jimmy Kimmel, scandal or whatever.

Speaker 2 (08:47):
It comes up, but it is.

Speaker 4 (08:49):
It will come up, you know, so I should we
should set it up though. Okay, so we told what
we told Josh was that and and you were a
confederate in this. We told you that he was going
to surprise some really big scandal fans of family while
they were watching the finale, and that we were taping
it to Aaron Good Morning America. The next day, and

(09:10):
we told him that everyone in the cast was going
to somebody's house and they were going to surprise somebody.
And he didn't know was that first of all, you
were in on it. And then secondly, we had a
very old lady sitting on the couch who was going
to pretend to have a heart attack when Josh came in,
and when Josh popped the confetti cannon, and so Josh

(09:33):
comes in and he's all excited. You guys are whispering outside.
He comes in, he pops the content fetti cannon, and
then the old grandma starts into, you know, kind of
the Fred Sanford routine.

Speaker 3 (09:44):
She's having down and he's like, oh, no, oh no,
I'm I'm sorry.

Speaker 5 (09:50):
So sorry are you? I meant this to be a
good surprise.

Speaker 4 (09:53):
And he was really really freaking out because then we
said pretended to call nine one one and the and
the EMTs show up, and the EMTs are me and
my cousin Sal which takes Josh a couple of beats
to realize, you know, we come in, we come in
with a gurney and and he sees us and he

(10:14):
just at.

Speaker 5 (10:15):
That moment realizes that he's been and.

Speaker 4 (10:18):
Then, as if that wasn't bad enough, and then, because
I never liked to just leave a prank hanging, no,
we had some fake firefighters on actually was Geirmo addressed
as a firefighter. We had a fire engine and everything outside.
So when Josh came outside, we put him on the gurney.
We wheeled him outside, and then Giermo turned a fire

(10:40):
hose on him, not me.

Speaker 3 (10:45):
But hosed him down with a fire hose, which, let
me tell you something, that is a powerful piece of equipment.

Speaker 6 (10:51):
It was.

Speaker 5 (10:52):
It is, Yeah, it puts out fires.

Speaker 3 (10:54):
Can I remember like the garage door opening at our
location and just seeing video village sound a director like
I had a place in my ear in case he didn't,
you know, like he saw the lengths to which this
prank had been executed, and I really think he was honored,

(11:15):
and I thought he felt really stupid, which I'm thrilled
about because.

Speaker 1 (11:18):
That's that was the goal. We got him.

Speaker 3 (11:22):
Josh is freaking smart, which is why none of us
want to mess with him, because we you don't want to,
don't try to get him at his own game, because
he has no threshold at all for crossing a line.

Speaker 4 (11:32):
He doesn't care, right, It was perfect because he knew
he deserved it, So it was the ideal situation.

Speaker 2 (11:38):
Yes, he knew he deserved it. I was so grateful.

Speaker 3 (11:41):
I was the most scared of an acting job in
my entire life. I was like, oh my god, I
can I can't mess this up.

Speaker 1 (11:47):
It was so great, Katie, more scared than the ribbon
dancing with josh On Kimmel. Come on, that was pretty
scary Kimmel.

Speaker 2 (11:54):
Which Kimmel, you remember this?

Speaker 5 (11:56):
I do remember. It was an Olympics thing, right, I.

Speaker 3 (11:59):
Don't know, yeah, why we did this, but I remember,
and I'm very vague. I'm gonna post this when this
episode comes out because it's it's one of the most
proud things I've ever done. And they pair me and
Molina to do Olympic ribbon dancing where we're in full
white spandex leotards, and turns out Molina's pretty limber.

Speaker 2 (12:18):
I did a split. He did a flip over me.
Why were we doing this?

Speaker 5 (12:23):
Maybe it was the scandal Olympics or something like that.
I don't know. You know, where suckers for a good
bit of work.

Speaker 3 (12:29):
It's one of my most favorite bits of material I have,
so I will be posting it again at the time
of this.

Speaker 2 (12:35):
Yeah, Germo, did you do something with that?

Speaker 1 (12:37):
I didn't do the ribbon dancing thing. I did this
other thing where there was like little dolls and I
was like insane and I kept saying stuff like cucumber sandwiches.
That's all that. My friends still say that to me.
But look look at what I dredged up from my house.
Remember this?

Speaker 3 (12:54):
So we did on Jimmy Kimmel, which also deserves this
few minutes is we did something called Eska, which, yes,
how did.

Speaker 4 (13:03):
This was a telenovella. I don't even know how it
came about, but it was. It was really good, as
I remember then. I don't think of many of our
bits that way, but we would do it on Thursday
nights after the show. It was like the Spanish language
version of of Scandal.

Speaker 5 (13:21):
It was very over the top.

Speaker 1 (13:24):
Did the high school version of all the characters from
Scandal that posters from remember Kate's No, that's not Ado.
That was a different one.

Speaker 2 (13:35):
And I can't even remember them all.

Speaker 4 (13:37):
I can't see because I don't have my glasses on Garamo, but.

Speaker 1 (13:40):
It's a poster me and Katie are like in high
school and we're like high school sweethearts, and all we
say to each other is hey, hey, hey, like back
and forth. And then she's all goth and I'm like
a nerd but yeah, and Tony's like in high school
and like a letterman jacket.

Speaker 5 (13:55):
Yeah I do remember that now. Yeah, that's right.

Speaker 2 (13:59):
Great to how much like you just really it was.

Speaker 3 (14:04):
So it was just the most wonderful to do our
show on Thursday nights and have Sean to do this
whole TGI T thing and for us to all be.

Speaker 4 (14:12):
Such a great group everybody, I mean really like, what
a great group of people. And I hadn't had that
really since I think Lost. Lost was a show that
I watched every week, and then we did a lot
of comedy bits with a lot of the cast members
and we talked about it a lot. And then the
only other show like that for us really was Scandal,
where we got to know everybo. Everybody was so really like,

(14:37):
just you know, the show was so hugely popular.

Speaker 5 (14:40):
You didn't need to do any of these bits.

Speaker 4 (14:42):
I mean, you most certainly didn't, but everybody did them
because they were fun, you know, And I love that.

Speaker 3 (14:47):
Oh, and we're all such gamers. Like the whole group
was so like, oh, you know some comedy version. You know,
all of us, you know, I mean Gearmo comes from comedy,
but like we all would jump.

Speaker 2 (14:57):
At that chance. It was such a freaking blast every
single Thursday.

Speaker 1 (15:01):
But I remember doing your show and being so nervous
and so excited.

Speaker 3 (15:06):
Well, you were my first late night talk show. I've
never been so nervous in my life. And I was
like someone had told me. I told two stories. One
that I had a a I used to be a
nanny for one hundred years and they didn't believe in diapers,
and I had to hold the baby over the toilet
and make like encouraging pooping sounds in order for the
baby to go on the potty. And I can really

(15:27):
remember this out of body experience, like being like, Wow,
this is my first like sexy late night talk show
and I'm literally making like shitting sounds.

Speaker 2 (15:36):
Toilet with like.

Speaker 3 (15:37):
A baby, Like this is really I hope my parents
think I've made it.

Speaker 5 (15:42):
Is that kid a serial killer?

Speaker 4 (15:44):
Now?

Speaker 5 (15:44):
I assume that kid's in prison? Good?

Speaker 2 (15:47):
I haven't.

Speaker 3 (15:48):
I don't know, but I don't think it's looking good.
Is the light is the light update. And then the
second story I told was I was waitressing and Brad
Pitt came in and he ordered a martini and he
ate half the olive and then I bust his martini
quickly back to the kitchen.

Speaker 2 (16:03):
I ate the other half.

Speaker 3 (16:06):
And these were like my two total stories of my
five minutes.

Speaker 2 (16:11):
And I remember leaving being.

Speaker 3 (16:13):
Like, I mean, they laughed a lot, But I don't
even know if if people think I'm psychotic, like.

Speaker 5 (16:18):
What was my life? Like?

Speaker 4 (16:20):
My first thought is, and I wonder if this is
the question that I asked on the show, is.

Speaker 5 (16:25):
Who eats half of an olive?

Speaker 4 (16:27):
Like?

Speaker 5 (16:27):
How do you eat half of al?

Speaker 1 (16:30):
How precious?

Speaker 2 (16:31):
Like would you do that?

Speaker 4 (16:35):
How much self control do you have to have to
eat half of an olive?

Speaker 2 (16:40):
Totally?

Speaker 3 (16:41):
I mean okay, So obviously us coming on your sets
for pranks and Thursday Nights was so I mean really
like it's etched in my mind of how special that was.
So thank you A for being so nice. Thank you
to us and to me. And my other thing is,
do you have any memory of when you came on

(17:01):
our set? Because I remember you did some big special
I think with Betsy and Shanna and you came on
the scandal set I did.

Speaker 4 (17:08):
It was called we Actually, this is a title I
came up with shortly after Matt Damon made the movie
HBO movie Behind the Candelabra.

Speaker 5 (17:18):
It was called behind the Scandalabra. We had this big.

Speaker 4 (17:24):
Candelabra set up and we shot it in the you know,
on set there, and like you know, it was very
ornate and very ridiculous. Yes, and yeah, I do remember
we like interrupted your production to that.

Speaker 5 (17:39):
I remember it.

Speaker 4 (17:40):
May have been like a hundredth episode or something like that.
It was it was like a special episode for your show.
I don't remember specifically what episode it was, but we
did a lot of funny bits with it.

Speaker 2 (17:53):
The other thing was when you you always would host
the Upfronts in New York.

Speaker 5 (17:57):
Yes, yes, the Upfront Network.

Speaker 3 (18:00):
For those of you listening, that's like, okay, the hot
shows or the newly picked up pilots go to New
York and you sort of like, you know, show your peacock.

Speaker 2 (18:09):
Feathers with the shows and the advertisers like buy ad
space or something. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Speaker 5 (18:16):
Yeah, yeah, And I just.

Speaker 3 (18:17):
Remember there being one year where Montel Jordan came out
and sang, oh.

Speaker 4 (18:23):
Oh, the most notorious thing that ever happened at any front.

Speaker 1 (18:27):
Wait what did he sing? Oh?

Speaker 2 (18:29):
My god?

Speaker 5 (18:30):
You know he's saying, this is how we do it.

Speaker 4 (18:32):
We do.

Speaker 2 (18:34):
This is how do.

Speaker 5 (18:37):
They change the words?

Speaker 4 (18:39):
It was the most It seemed like something from nineteen
eighty to it. It seemed like one of those like
on Air Network. And I felt bad for everyone involved,
especially Montel Jordan who had it like this is how
we do on Gray's Anatomy and saying my god, and
everybody was dancing and like everyone was instructed to dance

(19:01):
along with Montel.

Speaker 3 (19:02):
Yes he would sing this song and Ellen Ellen, Ellen,
Pompeo comes out and Olivia Pope comes out and we're
all supposed to come out.

Speaker 1 (19:10):
Gee, you can't you remember that?

Speaker 2 (19:13):
So Jordan is like, this is how ABC does it,
and Jimmy's in the middle, and I was.

Speaker 5 (19:16):
Like, this is no.

Speaker 4 (19:18):
I think I refuse to be a part of it
is what happened. I was like, I am not doing Like,
are you fucking crazy?

Speaker 1 (19:26):
I think I blocked it out like a horrible like
tragic memory for your childhood because it was so.

Speaker 3 (19:32):
Being in between, like next to Ellen being like this
is how.

Speaker 2 (19:36):
We get paid, like we Jesus.

Speaker 3 (19:39):
Like this was like, oh my god.

Speaker 4 (19:43):
It was a humiliating experience for all. Not only do
I still do it, Carrie introduced me this year at
Ben in no way, but they've they've wised up. They
don't do as much stupid stuff.

Speaker 5 (19:54):
They don't do.

Speaker 4 (19:55):
You know, it's pretty It's it's much better now than
it used to be.

Speaker 6 (19:59):
Good.

Speaker 4 (20:00):
It's funny because the whole idea of this this upfront.
It's hard to explain to people, but it's like showing
the advertisers what we have coming up on the on
the fall schedule.

Speaker 5 (20:08):
That's what it used to be.

Speaker 4 (20:09):
But and the whole idea was to impress them, but
it became apparent it was like we're supposed to be
in show business, like we're supposed to be people who
know how to put on a show, and we would
put on the worst show imaginable, like just.

Speaker 5 (20:24):
The worst, worst, worst.

Speaker 4 (20:26):
Stupidest, lamest, dumbest things. And I think maybe the lamest dumbest,
stupidest thing of all was that Montell Jordan's song.

Speaker 1 (20:35):
I feel like they wouldn't even tell us what we
were going to do until we got.

Speaker 4 (20:38):
There they did not tell you. I remember yeah, being
at rehearsal and going are these is anyone going to
do this? And they're like, oh yeah, everybody's going to
do it. I was like, well, I'm not going to
do it.

Speaker 2 (20:50):
It was really I feel bad they would.

Speaker 3 (20:52):
One year they called me and Bellamy, like and one
other person on an ABC show. They were like, we
heard you can sing, like, will you show up and
sing again? Like some We're gonna change the lyrics of
a popular song to be about ABC. And I just
was like, guys, I mean, if you want this to
be good, we need like a few days of rehearsal.
You know, we can't just like show up and learn

(21:14):
a song and learn choreography. I mean, I am going
to look like an idiot.

Speaker 2 (21:18):
And I never say no because I'm such a I'm like, yeah,
I'll do whatever it takes. I mean we all said no.

Speaker 3 (21:24):
And then I think that that was either the Montel Jordan.

Speaker 1 (21:27):
Year they got.

Speaker 5 (21:30):
You know what, maybe they wanted you to sing that song.

Speaker 1 (21:33):
Oh no, they were like, we could get montell I
Actually I was.

Speaker 3 (21:36):
Curious between that, Like I always was like, did Montel
Jordan please God tell me he got like paid a.

Speaker 5 (21:42):
Lot, definitely got paid.

Speaker 2 (21:45):
I'm like, at the very least, please tell me he
made a tell.

Speaker 4 (21:48):
Either that or they put him on a pilot that
they then canceled before you never.

Speaker 1 (21:51):
Picked up fun either, but yeah.

Speaker 5 (21:54):
I would have.

Speaker 4 (21:54):
I would imagine that Montell got a call and he
was like, uh, you know, maybe they made a few
calls first. They're like, okay, what about yeah, the Jackson
five song ABC and if that could be good and
they're like, yeah, no, you can't use that, Like okay,
all right, well let's uh, let's try for on the
Wings of Love. Let's see if Jeffrey Osborne will say

(22:16):
And Jeffrey I was like, no, yeah, I'm not going
to do that either.

Speaker 2 (22:19):
Oh my gosh, I'm glad we have this to share.
So the honestly these there are some of my top
scan memory.

Speaker 5 (22:28):
I'm going to try to get a video of that.
This is how we do it performs.

Speaker 1 (22:32):
I got to be on YouTube or something, right.

Speaker 5 (22:34):
I don't think it is. I can't imagine that it is.

Speaker 1 (22:36):
Yeah, because that was just internally right.

Speaker 4 (22:39):
It's just I will work on getting that for you,
and I will send it to you, and I would
suggest that you make sure it never ever get into
Josh Molina's hands.

Speaker 1 (22:49):
Oh my god, Josh, come out and dance too. I
bet you.

Speaker 2 (22:52):
Would never He's I doubt it.

Speaker 5 (22:56):
It was the whole cast.

Speaker 1 (22:57):
Do you think he was the only one that was
like manoop?

Speaker 3 (22:59):
But I bet Josh was just like standing in the
wings to make sure, whereas I'm like saying, like.

Speaker 1 (23:05):
You know, doing the same.

Speaker 2 (23:10):
Jimmy, thank you so much for being on this game.

Speaker 5 (23:15):
Oh my pleasure.

Speaker 4 (23:16):
Good good to see you guys and to chat with
you as well.

Speaker 3 (23:19):
You are just the best and I have we just
have the most fondest memories of all the stitches and
all the support over all the years and being on
your show.

Speaker 2 (23:29):
I love your show.

Speaker 4 (23:30):
I love watching all the same here. Thank you for
always being great sports. We appreciate it.

Speaker 1 (23:35):
I'm going to go and like google my appearance on KIM.
I haven't seen it in years.

Speaker 5 (23:39):
Okay, Katie, we should do.

Speaker 1 (23:41):
That together, like you should have watched each other.

Speaker 5 (23:42):
We should episodes.

Speaker 3 (23:44):
I was absolutely oh yeah one time, okay, we have
to go. But one time I dressed up for Halloween
on an episode too.

Speaker 2 (23:50):
I think you did like a star Trek person do anything.
I was like, hello, Jimmy.

Speaker 3 (23:55):
Okay, we're so grateful.

Speaker 2 (23:59):
Thank you so much, all of our love to your family.

Speaker 5 (24:02):
Thank you so much, thank you very much. Okay, all right,
I will.

Speaker 2 (24:09):
We will be back with more after the break.

Speaker 3 (24:15):
I'm really excited to have a writer on our podcast
today because I love hearing their perspective. I love hearing
about like what was going on, what they wrote, who
they liked, did they like us?

Speaker 1 (24:26):
I love. What I love about her too is that
we're all sort of I'm a little bit older, but
we're all closer in age. So when we when she
would come down to set as a writer, there's always
a writer on set while we're shooting, you felt like
it was a buddy. She's like such a down chick,
like she's so much fun, a blast, a great freaking
writer here.

Speaker 2 (24:46):
She is our dear friend. We adore her.

Speaker 3 (24:49):
Ramla Mohammed, Ramla, we have wanted to get you on
this fucking podcast forever, like and you are very busy
and very important, and you have a very big hit
show coming out for season two.

Speaker 1 (25:02):
Right, We've been talking about you forever.

Speaker 3 (25:05):
We've only had a couple. It's only you and a
here have been the two writers other than Shonda that
we've had on Oh, and I think we do that
because we feel safest Like g and I always say
like if it was yours a hero as like the
writer on set, it just felt like we came up
at the same time. Yeah, we felt like pears, can

(25:25):
you tell us how in the world you landed in Shondaland?

Speaker 6 (25:30):
Okay, So here's just crazy. So so I started off
as a writer's PA on Grey's Anatomy and it was
like season six, which at the time was like, oh,
like I hope the show stays on.

Speaker 2 (25:44):
Well, holy shit, cut to season twenty one.

Speaker 6 (25:47):
Yeah, yeah, exactly. So I had a friend, Gabe Jannis,
who was a writer's PA on Private Practice, and he
was like, oh, there's this job opening. So I was like, okay.
So I interviewed with Mark Wilding and Meg Marie and
Austin Gooseman and I know it's not crazy, and I
got the p A job and I was so excited. So,
but I was a big Gray's Anatomy fan.

Speaker 5 (26:08):
I had to.

Speaker 6 (26:11):
Yeah, Like I was like, I know, it's okay to
be a fan, but I like knew, like when I
walked to the offices, like to have the interview. I
knew the names because they had a blog, you know,
and so I want to be a writer and so
and obviously, Seanda, there weren't that many like black female writers.
And so when I found out that she was this

(26:31):
black female right, I was like, I'm sorry what like?
And the show, I mean, that show was so huge,
you know, like it's still huge, but like at the beginning,
it was just it was like ussy TV. It's like,
don't spoil it, how dare you tell me what happened?
So I was just like, I So getting that job
was a big deal for me. And then I remember

(26:51):
I went to the first table reading Allen Pumpale was
like reading the voiceover and then like Patrick Jimsy and
I was just like.

Speaker 2 (26:59):
Oh my, I would have had a Horde attack.

Speaker 6 (27:03):
It was like the people coming out of the screen.

Speaker 5 (27:06):
Yeah I was.

Speaker 6 (27:07):
And I was so green. I mean I didn't know,
like I didn't you know the blue page, Like I
had to collate the pages, so I had to learn
the order of the pages. I mean, this is happening,
you know. Yeah, so this is like two thousand and
nine or whatever. And so then Shanda was producing. It
was her first show, that she was producing that she
hadn't written, called Off the Map. So Bands, Yeah, Jenna

(27:28):
Bands was running the show and she asked me to
be her assistant because it's her first shr running gig.
And then I kind of just went from off the Map,
then Scandal is a researcher and then.

Speaker 2 (27:39):
Wait, so Scandal you started as a researcher. I don't
even think I knew that.

Speaker 6 (27:43):
Yeah, so that was season one. I was season when
I was a researcher. But we only had seven episodes,
and it's you know, that was crazy because I remember
when I read the Scandal script, I was like, this
is amazing, you know, and then we got the seven episodes.
I was like, okay, what kind.

Speaker 1 (27:59):
Of stuff were you reach searching? Were you like, how
how do you like torture someone on a tar? Realistically?
Like what what were you reach?

Speaker 2 (28:07):
A legal jargon?

Speaker 6 (28:08):
Right, like legal d I spoke a lot to Judy Smith,
you know, who was like essentially the real Olivia Pope,
and it was a lot of Scandal. So I read
like the Monica Lewinsky's book and I read, you know,
so I would read different books or look at articles.
We did that plane crash episode.

Speaker 1 (28:22):
Remember that, that's right.

Speaker 6 (28:23):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly. So I found the NTSB, you
know inspector who like talked to Mark Wilding about the
you know, and we I got like consulted. I found
I found the Madam, the DC Madam.

Speaker 1 (28:37):
No way, yeah, yeah, so I was that's so excited.

Speaker 6 (28:42):
It wasn't really And it prepared me because I got
to be in the writer's room and pitch as a researcher,
which you kind of like helped me, you know, learn how.

Speaker 2 (28:51):
Good pitching and like understand.

Speaker 6 (28:53):
Yeah, without the pressure of being in the writer's room,
because I mean I was I think at the time
when I became a writer, I was I think I
was the youngest writer in the room and I was
like thirty thirty one. So it wasn't so there was
these were you know, kind of seasoned writers. As you
guys saw the scripts, I mean, the scripts are always
really good. So I felt like it was like I

(29:14):
felt like I was a little League player who was like,
now go out like Rookie. You remember that movie Rookie of.

Speaker 2 (29:19):
The Yeah, I love it movie.

Speaker 6 (29:22):
I felt like I got some magic arm that was
going to go away soon.

Speaker 1 (29:25):
So look at you now, look at you.

Speaker 3 (29:28):
Now show running your own show? Tell so how did
you get made a writer? How did that transition happen?

Speaker 5 (29:34):
So?

Speaker 6 (29:34):
I did the Disney I did the Disney Program between
the seasons because there was so much time, and I
think people, you know, people don't really realize this. I mean,
you guys know, but it scanned. Was it ended up
being such a big hit. But that first season wasn't
a guarantee at all.

Speaker 5 (29:50):
No.

Speaker 3 (29:51):
No, I remember from being like you're on reading the
list and having absolute heart attacks because it said on
the bubble, Scandal is on the bubble because we weren't
even necessarily a second season pick up. Yeah, So then
you go to the writer's grip, You go to the
ABC explain for anybody listening, like what is that? You
go and you have to like not audition to get in,

(30:12):
but you.

Speaker 2 (30:13):
Have to audition to get in, right.

Speaker 3 (30:14):
You have to like send in writing samples they select
you exactly.

Speaker 6 (30:18):
And I really just did it because I was like, well,
I guess Scandal only has seven episodes and I'm going
to be done working in October and I need a job,
so I guess I'll wow program. It wasn't like it
wasn't like, oh, I'll just do this. It was like
I don't know, it's gonna have on scandal, so I
guess I'll just do this. And then I got to
come back as a writer. I'm scandaled through the program.

Speaker 5 (30:39):
Wow.

Speaker 1 (30:39):
How long was the program? Rama?

Speaker 6 (30:41):
It was about a year?

Speaker 1 (30:43):
A year.

Speaker 6 (30:43):
But part of that part of that time I was
on the show.

Speaker 1 (30:46):
That's so exciting.

Speaker 3 (30:47):
That's so cool, Ramla okay, and tell us what it
was like. So you and the here we felt so
close with because you guys got you were writers on
set a lot like you just were.

Speaker 2 (30:59):
How do that?

Speaker 5 (31:01):
What was that?

Speaker 3 (31:01):
What do you have any memories from being on set
or things where you were like, I don't know anything
that stands out to you when you think back on
I mean, could you spent a shit load of hours
on set with us?

Speaker 6 (31:11):
Like oh yeah, so yeah, it's funny because I think
your mind thinks differently that So a lot of times
the lower levels were on set because the room moves
so fast and you want to keep you know, the
upper levels and the heavy hitters.

Speaker 2 (31:24):
Being able to pitch in the writing room.

Speaker 6 (31:26):
Yeah, in the writer's room, and so you know they're
like Okay, we'll go cover set. And to be honest,
I learned a lot covering set, you know. Just I
also think it allowed me to have an understanding better
of how you guys work, you know, because I spend
so much time with you guys right right, and also
knowing the sets, like I would know, oh, okay, well
this hallway ends here, so you probably can't write longer

(31:47):
than this. But I also I got to know, I
got to work with directors. It was like a learning experience.
It was you know, and so and it was also
it was terrifying. I feel like it's like, you know,
getting thrown in the water, you.

Speaker 2 (32:01):
Know, just like yeah, yeah, and you can't swim well.

Speaker 1 (32:04):
And then because every and everyone looks at you for
for answers, right, because I remember there were times that
rarely myself, but other actors would be like sometimes I
would say too, would be like, I'm not sure about
saying this. I don't know if I want to say
this or can I say something else? And then you
guys had such a great I mean, if you were
freaking out inside, we couldn't tell because you had great outside.

(32:24):
But then because you got to figure out three years.

Speaker 3 (32:29):
Yo, really scary if Kerrie Washington, who is a brilliant
actress but also a brilliant person, is being like why
am I saying this?

Speaker 2 (32:39):
And you're like, oh, you know what.

Speaker 6 (32:42):
You know what?

Speaker 5 (32:42):
You know.

Speaker 6 (32:43):
What I always found helpful is well, one, I was
a big fan of the show, Like they would make
fun of me, like I don't know if you guys remember,
but like I would be crying on set during certain.

Speaker 2 (32:53):
Really oh my god, yeah.

Speaker 6 (32:55):
Like it and we were like holding each other len
rocking and crying. I know you were you were literally
doing that. Oh. And then like there were moments with
like fits and Olivia because I was a big Olitz fan,
and so I would be like, why can't they just
cant they just get together?

Speaker 5 (33:16):
Right?

Speaker 2 (33:17):
They need to just be together. They need to just
be together.

Speaker 6 (33:19):
And they would be like, what is wrong with you?
I was like, this show was made for me. I
love it. So yeah, So I was so I think
also because I was a fan of the show, I
felt I really knew the show, Like I would remember episodes,
I remember what happened, and I have a good memory
when I'm on set, like I can even now I
can say really yeah, like I can I can tell

(33:41):
you the shots, like I can be like, no, we
started here, then we went closer, and then we went around.
Then I just that that has always been something that
I was able to do and I just got better
at it.

Speaker 1 (33:50):
That's valuable, right, I mean, that's valuable in that room, yes, right,
so in the room that way, yes.

Speaker 6 (33:56):
So I'd be like, hey, guys, we did this thing
or we have this this act was really good, could
we you know? So that was kind of my contribution
when I went back, you know, to the room when
I was still learning how to pitch and write, you
to do all this.

Speaker 2 (34:08):
Stuff and look at you now like who would it like?
Would you?

Speaker 3 (34:11):
I mean, is this just such a pinch me moment
to be like And now you and Carrie Washington work
together so closely, like you've you've moved on from Scandal
and you have such a beautiful relationship with her. Can
you talk to our listener to listeners about how that
has progressed and grown and how you guys work together now?

Speaker 6 (34:29):
So with Carrie, you know, Carrie and I would like,
you know, I'd be on set and we'd spend time together,
but it really wasn't until you know, she kind of
asked me about Little Fires Everywhere, and I love and
so so at our at the cast dinner, she's like, hey,
so I'm doing the show a Little Fires Everywhere. I
was like, oh that's great. Yeah I saw that. Congratulations.
She's like, yeah, no, I want to I want you
to meet the showrunner. And I was like, oh, like

(34:52):
I was thinking, like.

Speaker 2 (34:53):
What you were like for what to be your friend?

Speaker 6 (34:58):
So she's like, no, I wanted to meet that when
you I mean, let's take a hot so you know, see,
I would love for you to be a writer on
the show. And it was funny because you have to
understand the writers. You know, our interactions mostly are on
stead and we have good interactions and it's fun, but
you don't really get a sense of like what you
guys think of us as individuals or you know. So
it really wasn't until then that we started working together

(35:21):
on Little Fires and got closer and you know, now
obviously Reasonable Doubt that is it's kind of funny, like
I'm just like, oh, that's Carrie. You know.

Speaker 5 (35:28):
I'm just like, right, is this Carrie?

Speaker 6 (35:30):
Yeah? Yeah?

Speaker 2 (35:31):
What is her title on Reasonaal Doubt? She executive producer.

Speaker 6 (35:35):
She's an executive producer on the show, and she directed
the pilot.

Speaker 1 (35:38):
She's such a great director too. I mean that she
directed us on Scandal, and she was remember her being
so wonderful and so knowledgeable and and and so great
talking to us. I mean it was Carrie. But and
then she would just whisper stuff in your ear separately
from your scene partner that they wouldn't hear, and you
were just like, this is brilliant. Like she was just like, yeah, Well,

(36:01):
here's the thing.

Speaker 6 (36:02):
I will say this is that I have found that
actors who are directors are the best because they know
how like you know, I'll say something, but they know
how to say it to you guys to get the
thing right, like Tom, Like Tom is a producing director,
he's an actor.

Speaker 3 (36:16):
Totally tell us really quickly, and then we're going to
talk about this episode. When is Reasonable Doubt Season two
coming at us? And how does it feel to be
a fucking showrunner?

Speaker 6 (36:27):
Reasonable Doubt premiere is August twenty second of.

Speaker 2 (36:30):
This August twenty second, okay, the.

Speaker 6 (36:33):
Twenty second yeah, on Hulu. How does it feel to
be a show runner? I heard I heard a quote
that said it's like being beaten to death with your
own dreams.

Speaker 1 (36:45):
Oh my god, that's so accurate. That's perfect, pretty accurate.

Speaker 6 (36:50):
I don't I mean back in the day, I didn't
understand how Shanda ran all those shows, and I definitely
don't understand it now. So when you're running one and
you're like that kind of a lot at a time, lady.

Speaker 2 (37:01):
Yeah, unbelievable.

Speaker 3 (37:04):
This show is so incredible and it just looks like
I'm not asking you for a part, but I'm asking
you for a part because it just really.

Speaker 2 (37:10):
But not for the reason.

Speaker 3 (37:12):
Well I'm gonna be available second, but no, mostly because
it looks like it's so fucking fun, Like your cast
loves you. Like I was looking at all the videos
of the rap party and I'm like, what is going on?
This looks like the most fun time ever. Yeah, in Atlanta,
you all just seem really close. But please tell us
that Scandal is still your number one.

Speaker 6 (37:35):
Well, he's honestly, I'm gonna say this. I love reasonable doubt,
but I will say the model was Scandal because you
guys were so close and I saw that creating a
good environment, you know, with the cast, really does trickle down.
You guys came in, you were prepared. It was easy
to write for you because you know, you all were
great actors. But also it was never it was never

(37:56):
like a oh, we can't put we can't put a
HATI and gear moment scene together because they don't.

Speaker 2 (38:01):
Like to pain each other.

Speaker 6 (38:02):
Yeah, yeah, all that all that stuff that some shows
you know they have to avoid, you know, people and
work together and you see, so that's fun. Remember when
we put you and Joe Morton and a scene, you know,
like it's like, let's see how that goes. You know,
it was fun to do that. But but I will
say that like it was really And again, I think
because I spent so much time on set, I know

(38:22):
I know everyone's jobs, and I know how important it
is to kind of make people, you know, feel heard
and seen and and create like a good environment. And
and I think that's that's kind of what I learned,
besides obviously how to write and like, you know, be
at besides the Shondaland masterclass that I got for free.

Speaker 1 (38:41):
Yeah.

Speaker 5 (38:42):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (38:42):
One of the one of the biggest memories in my
brain set in my brain or how is how much
fun we had me and you specifically, I mean because
it's me, but I remember me and you just cracking
up and just having so much fun whenever you were
on set. I was always so happy when you were.

Speaker 6 (38:59):
I remember I would tell them the Friday night stage
twelve nights, it would all be just laughing.

Speaker 2 (39:06):
I would get so loopy, you wouldn't.

Speaker 3 (39:08):
You would come out of stage twelve there's no windows,
and it would be pitch black. You don't know what
time it is. It's like you're in a Vegas casino.

Speaker 2 (39:16):
Everybody's confused. You're living at.

Speaker 3 (39:18):
Craft Services because you don't understand when you're supposed to
be eating or like what's happening, and you just get
loopy as all hell on a friturday.

Speaker 2 (39:26):
You just it's like the best.

Speaker 1 (39:29):
We'll be right back, guys.

Speaker 2 (39:35):
Ramala.

Speaker 3 (39:36):
This episode that you wrote that we're going to talk
about was is so fucking good.

Speaker 1 (39:43):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (39:43):
Today we are talking about episode three eleven called Ride
Sally Ride, and it aired on February twenty seventh of
twenty fourteen, so ten years ago.

Speaker 6 (39:53):
Oh wow, that's crazy.

Speaker 1 (39:54):
And this episode was written by Ramaala Mohammed. Well me,
Ramalah it was. It was directed by Tom Verica.

Speaker 2 (40:02):
Yow, you got the Winner Winner director.

Speaker 3 (40:04):
It was guest starring Paul adel Sign as Leo Bergan,
John Tennya's governor, Andrew Nichols, Nazanine Boniatti as a non sealif,
Vanya Asher as.

Speaker 1 (40:12):
Ethan eben ham Is, Tanner Shaw, Rhys Rios as reporter Peter,
and Jennifer Pao as Vanessa Chandler.

Speaker 3 (40:20):
Synopsis of what was going on When Sally announces that
she's running for president against Fitz, Olivia, Melly, and Cyrus
scramble to find a way to shut her down. Olivia
and the OPA team look to Fitz's new running mate,
Andrew Nichols.

Speaker 1 (40:32):
Meanwhile, Quinn wants to get into Be six thirteen, but
once is how badly she wants it when she has
to abduct the son of Daniel Douglas's medical examiner. Then,
when Olivia's name is thrown back into the public as
fits his other potential mistress, Melly has a plan. Olivia
needs a fake public boyfriend.

Speaker 6 (40:48):
Damn.

Speaker 2 (40:48):
This episode was chock full, like pal.

Speaker 6 (40:52):
Yeah, yeah, it was so okay, so few a few
things I remembered. This was so Carrie was pregnant and
she like between one weekend when she came back, she popped.

Speaker 1 (41:05):
Oh damn, like it got burger.

Speaker 3 (41:08):
All of a sudden, you go from like pretending to like, okay, yeah,
she doesn't really look pregnant, to like, oh my god,
she looks pregnant.

Speaker 1 (41:14):
Really.

Speaker 6 (41:15):
Yes, it was literally from Friday, Friday then Monday in
the same and it was the scene where she had
the white coat and she was me with Melly in
the restaurant, and I was like, and well, because we
hadn't I don't think we quite talked about yet, like
kind of how to block it and do different right,

(41:35):
his hair was so small and she and the crazy
thing is that even in person it took her she
had to turn around to look pregnant, but you know,
the camera, it just it was like bam. And so
she had that on and I was like, oh, okay,
so we you know, Lynn Pallows trying to like, you know,
do different things. And yeah, so really I do remember

(41:57):
that because I remember seeing it on the monitor and going.

Speaker 1 (42:00):
It's funny because in this in this episode, Carrie wears
a coat that is super layered and symmetrical and you
can't really see her body, so I wonder, and she's
wearing it for most of the episode.

Speaker 6 (42:11):
So I wonder, so that was so she had that
gray thing on.

Speaker 1 (42:15):
Yes, yes, yes, that I think was pre pop. Oh
that was pre pop. They should have they should have
made brought that jacket on post pop.

Speaker 2 (42:24):
That scene.

Speaker 3 (42:25):
Mellie you know, and Olivia are like, how do we
make Fitz's you know, public appearance better? So they're like, well,
let's they have a lunch. So it seems like that
they're friends and they're not enemies.

Speaker 6 (42:36):
But she wouldn't be Yeah, it's like, you know, she
wouldn't be sleeping. Melle wouldn't have lunch with her if
she was sleep sleeping with her exactly.

Speaker 1 (42:43):
You guys. It was like it was like watching an
episode of housewives.

Speaker 2 (42:47):
Yes, it was the best.

Speaker 3 (42:50):
I wrote the most fake giggling I've ever heard in
my entire life.

Speaker 2 (42:55):
And the scene ends so strongly. I love it.

Speaker 3 (42:57):
Where Mellie's like, here's the list, here's how else fits
his public appearance will be helped go get a boyfriend.
And here on my list of eligibrale bachelor's different in age, height, race, job, whatever,
like here they all are pick one, just pick one, yeah, can.

Speaker 1 (43:15):
I see pictures please? I would have been like, well,
where are the photos. The names are fine. In description photo.

Speaker 6 (43:21):
Photo, she's just saying, she goes, I don't care. She's like,
I don't care who it is.

Speaker 1 (43:27):
I need to see a phone.

Speaker 6 (43:28):
Good luck girl. Oh and then I remembered this started
season three as Tom Verica's idea to kind of do
these black and white stills that oh yeah, moved.

Speaker 4 (43:38):
Yeah.

Speaker 6 (43:39):
Oh, I forgot about these. These are really cool. Those
those are really cool to.

Speaker 2 (43:42):
Do, so cool, so so cool.

Speaker 6 (43:45):
Oh I remembered.

Speaker 2 (43:48):
This, Oh, god in a hardware store, god store.

Speaker 6 (43:55):
But I remember the scene with Charlie when y'all kidnapped
the kids.

Speaker 1 (43:58):
Little boy, that little white boy, and I don't know remember.

Speaker 6 (44:02):
But like, you know, Disney has this roll you can't
be in a car without seat belts. So the couple
takes you guys will forget the seatbelts. So we were like, hey, like,
you gotta play your seatbelts. So then George improvised seatbelts.

Speaker 1 (44:15):
Seatbelts. That's what he did.

Speaker 3 (44:18):
He says it it that's great, and they don't want
us improvise on one one.

Speaker 1 (44:25):
Yeah, seat belts.

Speaker 2 (44:26):
And George has three kids. He's such a dad like that.

Speaker 3 (44:30):
By the way, when I watch this episode, I don't
remember doing any of this, and I'm like, holy crap,
I kidnapped a kid at the worst boy to totally fine,
Quinn totally fine with it. Quinn has no moral compass whatsoever.
She's not like, she wants to be in B six
thirteen so bad, and she needs money so bad, and
she just wants to be busy.

Speaker 2 (44:49):
She's so bored that she's like, yeah, I'll kidnap a kid.
I'm like, this is crazy.

Speaker 1 (44:54):
We also were full on aggressive and and and yeah yeah,
and the kids whole thing.

Speaker 2 (45:02):
You're right, oh my Yeah.

Speaker 3 (45:04):
The kid was like I'm not supposed to talk to strangers,
and I'm like, it's okay, honey, listen. Do you know
that I know your friend's sister from soccer And don't worry,
I'm going to take you to get ice cream first.

Speaker 1 (45:12):
Is this switch that sweet? You switched real quick?

Speaker 6 (45:15):
He was like, okay, yeah you did. He switched it
real quick. Yeah. So that those were that was when
I was watching it.

Speaker 3 (45:20):
I laughed, okay, odd non Salif and Harrison right have
a steamy sex scene.

Speaker 6 (45:26):
Yeah, episode I forget something. At some point we had
talked about on Salif and other episodes and someone in
the room was like, what if Odd Noon was a
woman And we were like, oh, that's interesting because really yeah,
so then we went back and we're like, I guess
we haven't said he She like we haven't hadn't said
it yet, and we were like, oh, what a surprise.

(45:48):
And then also then it could be a steamy situation
for whoa.

Speaker 3 (45:53):
Yeah, we just say Odd non Salif over and over again.
You just hear that, like Harrison is freaked out by Odd,
but you don't know any thing else.

Speaker 6 (46:00):
Yeah, exactly.

Speaker 3 (46:02):
Oh that's interesting that you at first were just like
assuming it's a guy, it's got to be a guy exactly,
but it's the hottest girl ever in a red trench car.

Speaker 1 (46:10):
And then he's in that chemistry between those two.

Speaker 3 (46:14):
Yeah, he's been so scared of her the whole time.
And then she's like high h and then and then
you're high hello H or something like that. It's a
really bad accent, and then they just fucking go at
it on his desk and like, yeah, very hot.

Speaker 6 (46:30):
It was always amazing, like for Network TV, you know
what we were able to get away with. I mean,
Seanda's very like prescriptive, like she knew how to you know,
make it so it's felt hot still, but it wasn't
you know, it's not cable ty.

Speaker 2 (46:44):
It was going to pass standards in private.

Speaker 3 (46:47):
We will be back with more after the break.

Speaker 1 (46:53):
In this episode, what stuck out for me is that
you remember your stand in Katie, Katy, she has a
scene in this episode in a line.

Speaker 5 (47:02):
Yeah, she's so good.

Speaker 6 (47:04):
And it actually, you know, thank you because to stand
ins headline, who else? Paul?

Speaker 2 (47:12):
Who?

Speaker 6 (47:12):
Who was? Who was Cyrus's stand in.

Speaker 1 (47:17):
Was in? What scene is he in? Rama?

Speaker 4 (47:19):
He was in the.

Speaker 6 (47:21):
I think that the darby Paul. That seemed because he's
setting up or something. But I saw, oh he's one
of the stand ins.

Speaker 1 (47:30):
Oh my god. Yeah, and that's the same scene that
Cat is in. She's miking Leo Berge Ok.

Speaker 6 (47:34):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I saw Paul and I don't know
if yeah, but he was or the White House something.
But I was like, oh, this is.

Speaker 3 (47:42):
Also the episode where Fits throws of Scotch glass at
Cyrus's head and Cyrus ducks and the glass just completely
explodes against.

Speaker 1 (47:51):
The wall in the over Nice scurries away.

Speaker 6 (47:54):
Yeah, And I was I was trying to remember. I
was like I wonder how we did that, because obviously
we throw I feel like someone must have thrown it.
But I remember going, gosh, it was really it was.

Speaker 1 (48:05):
Really it looks really good. It was close to his head, Yeah.

Speaker 2 (48:10):
Really close to his head. It was very like, holy ship,
Tony Goldwin's got an arm. That's what I think.

Speaker 1 (48:16):
You know, that was George Props or somebody throwing that glass.

Speaker 3 (48:20):
Yeah.

Speaker 6 (48:23):
I also, you know the other thing is that the
DC stuff looked really good. Liked bech the green speak stuff.

Speaker 1 (48:31):
It always looked good.

Speaker 6 (48:33):
I think were just at like Exposition Park and they
put a green screen up.

Speaker 2 (48:37):
Ye, but it never looked We never went to d
C once.

Speaker 3 (48:40):
We never except at the end we only wore winter
and fall coats in one hundred and twenty degrees.

Speaker 2 (48:46):
Angelus Weather, Well, you guys.

Speaker 6 (48:48):
You guys went at the end, right the very end.

Speaker 1 (48:49):
Did at the end? Yeah, we went, yeah.

Speaker 3 (48:52):
The last second, the last episode of the entirety of Scandal,
and it was the best.

Speaker 6 (48:57):
Yes, rama.

Speaker 3 (48:58):
Is there anything like looking back on the whole series
that you're like so proud of, like a quintessential scene
or monologue or something where you're like, oh my god,
I was really like proud of how that came out
and that I wrote that.

Speaker 6 (49:12):
Yeah, you know what I would say, I would say
Mama Pope's monologue was probably the like thing I was
the most.

Speaker 1 (49:18):
What episode was that in Rama? Do you remember it was?

Speaker 6 (49:22):
It was the season six and she's like talking about
black women and being out of more ridiculous whatever.

Speaker 3 (49:28):
You're gonna come back on when we get to that episode?
Oh yeah, yeah, if you don't mind, Yeah, yeah, I'll.

Speaker 6 (49:34):
Come back on. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (49:34):
That was.

Speaker 6 (49:35):
That was a fun one. It was I'll talk more
about it when I but it just was like she's
saying crazy things and I was like I got out
of this relationship and gotten like broken up with and
then like my ex was dating some basic girls.

Speaker 1 (49:49):
Oh no, no, you were in your fields. You were like,
I'm letting it.

Speaker 2 (49:52):
All out, Mama Pope speak for me.

Speaker 6 (49:55):
And it was like two am, and I was.

Speaker 1 (49:56):
Like, ah, y Rama, La, do you do you as
you're writing, do you picture the actor that you're writing
for saying the words? And does that help you?

Speaker 6 (50:06):
Yeah? I mean like, well here's the thing. I mean,
that's the best thing about being on a show for
a while, right, like at first, you know, but between
just learning how to do the craft. And I will
say the hardest thing about being a TV writer, especially
a young TV writer. It's not especially not like I
could write. It just was I didn't have three months

(50:27):
to write, you know, I had a couple of days
to write some scenes. It's the pressure. And so what
happens is that you learn how to write under the pressure.
And so that's the skill that you're trying to develop,
is can you still write well and fast? You know
I could write well but not fast, but that who

(50:47):
you know, that's good to know. One if I can write,
I can't write if I can't write fast, So I say, yeah,
So I think as the season went on, like as
the seasons went on, you know, of course, like I
wrote a scene I remember when you and Quinn and
Charlie where Charlie is kind of like just pretend you're
my girlfriend and you know, yeah, and so you know,
once you know the characters, you can kind of imagine,

(51:08):
you know how, And then and then of course with
the crossover episode, it was I was a fan of
How to Get Away with Murder and obviously I knew
Olivia Pope's voice, and so you know, writing like the
hair salon scene with them was fun because I kind
of imagined how that would be.

Speaker 1 (51:22):
Oh you wrote that scene in the hair salon.

Speaker 6 (51:24):
Yeah yeah, yeah, it's so good.

Speaker 2 (51:26):
It's such a great scenes.

Speaker 1 (51:28):
Yeah.

Speaker 6 (51:29):
Yeah. So they're fun. They're fun moments. But I honestly,
my sometimes my favorite part about even because sometimes I
get the scripts and I hadn't read the other writers scenes,
you know, and so you read a scene by you know,
Chris van Duson or you know, Jenna or Heather Zaire
and you're like, holy shit, like you know, we have

(51:49):
a little outline and you kind of you know, know
a little bit about what it was. But sometimes as
we got later into the seasons, you know Chris, I
remember Chris had a scene. I was like Olivian Fitz
fight and I was.

Speaker 1 (51:59):
Like, no, good luck to you, oh.

Speaker 6 (52:02):
God attack, and he came back with this like amazing then,
So you know, so that was also I was, I
was that was exciting for me. Again I say, I'm
a fan of the show. That was exciting for.

Speaker 1 (52:14):
Me to get to read it right right.

Speaker 6 (52:18):
Yeah, And and and similar I remember when Shanda wrote
that when I read uh Shanda's monologue posts first monologue
about you have to be twice as good. Yeah, And
I went in her office the next day and I said,
you know, I said, a lot of this is not
something that black people that you hear a lot, but
it is something that we all kind of know that
our parents have said.

Speaker 1 (52:38):
And I said, that's gonna that's hit it.

Speaker 6 (52:42):
Yeah, it's going to resonate. So that was always the
fun of, like, you know, waking up and seeing like, oh,
what are the other scenes gonna be?

Speaker 1 (52:50):
Wow?

Speaker 3 (52:50):
Okay, any other favorite acting moments or favorite writing moments.
I I mean that that Rowan monologue on the bench
is another one of those is classic iconic. He rips
Olivia a new one, basically saying, you know, she comes
to the bench to be like I heard, you're not
head of command anymore like Jame's head of command. And

(53:11):
he was like, like, run, Olivia, run because he also
kill the Gerald Grant that third.

Speaker 1 (53:20):
In this episode. Correct me if I'm wrong, Ramulah. In
this episode, when they're on the bench Olivia and Rowan,
she says, when you were in B six thirteen, and
he gives her a look and she said, I'm sorry,
when you were in the Smithsonian that was code for
B six thirteen.

Speaker 6 (53:34):
Right, yeah, yeah, exactly.

Speaker 1 (53:36):
I was like, oh shit, I hadn't caught that before.

Speaker 6 (53:38):
I was like, no, exactly. You know, you know it's
funny about that scene because I really did. You know,
that's the other thing being on set. That's great, right,
you get to be there to watch. Yeah, like you
you watched Joe Morton deliver that monologue and it's like theater.
I mean, he's a theater. Yeah, actors. So it's not
like it's not like the before moments just broken up

(54:01):
to be put together. You know. He just rattled that
off and I guess you're just picking the best parts.

Speaker 2 (54:06):
Wow.

Speaker 1 (54:07):
And then the score, the score that was playing in
that scene is so ominous and dark and it's so good. Yes,
so so good. My other one of my other favorite
lines Katie or acting moments is Sally Langston and when
she's talking to Leo Bergen and she says, I did
not murder my husband. The devil did it when he
stuck inside me and made me do it. I thought
that was fucking like, she's unbelievable, crazy, unbelievable. So good.

Speaker 6 (54:33):
And the commitment, Oh so this is okay. So Daniel
Douglas Langston. Right, yeah, so we worked. I guess we
called him Daniel Douglas and then we called him Daniel Langston,
and so we were like, I guess we'll just call
him Daniel Douglas. Lakes someone mess up.

Speaker 1 (54:51):
We just decided Douglas Langston.

Speaker 3 (54:54):
Oh well, that's perfect. I love shit like that. But
how could you keep it all straight? I mean that
kind of thing must have happened all the time.

Speaker 6 (55:00):
It was a lot of names. It was a lot
of yeah, like you know, and also some things don't clear.

Speaker 2 (55:05):
With a new name or oh my, whatever it is, but.

Speaker 6 (55:09):
Trying to think, oh my. Also, I will say this,
you know, Paul Atolsten came in, you know, in the
middle of that season and just that energy against Cyrus.
I did love when he has his feet up on
the desk.

Speaker 2 (55:21):
That's my favorite seat of the episode.

Speaker 6 (55:23):
He has.

Speaker 3 (55:25):
Leo Bergen is sitting in Cyrus's seat and his power
seat behind his desk, really warming it up because he
thinks that Sally's going to win and he's going to
be your chief of staff, and Cyrus has something like
that's like, get your balls right out of here. All
I remember is that he said balls and Cyrus. I
feel he doesn't say balls a lot, so it really
struck well.

Speaker 1 (55:43):
And he also says, get your feet off of my desk,
and Leo or I'm gonna or I'm gonna take him
and shove him down your throat, and Leo says, well,
there are size eleven, so it might be difficult to
fill him down my throat. I was like, oh my god,
it's so good.

Speaker 3 (55:55):
But Leo Bergen is just like one of my favorite
all time, similarly to Charles like rhy this amazing line
between comedy and drama that's just like Scandal did so well.
It's like a real dark comedy sort of like everything's
throwaway and insane what they say, but they have no
moral compass and you kind of just insaye with Hollis

(56:16):
Doyle like they're just yeah, great comedic characters in a
really like dark show that needed it.

Speaker 1 (56:24):
Yeah, But also I feel like if it wasn't for
those actors, like it could have gone a whole different way.
It could have been, you know, but kind of boring.
But their delivery is so it's so it's so so
so funny and so good. It's just so different from
what you expect those characters to say, which makes it work?

Speaker 6 (56:40):
Yeah, exactly, exactly. And I also remember this was the
first time we saw Leo and Abby, like.

Speaker 1 (56:48):
Yeah, I know that.

Speaker 3 (56:49):
I was like, oh, is this sort of the bud
of their like what we they end up being together?

Speaker 2 (56:54):
Like they end up dating?

Speaker 6 (56:56):
Yeah exactly. Yeah, yeah, so it's kind of like the
start of seeing there, you know a little bit.

Speaker 3 (57:00):
They're banter, They're like always at each other's throats and like.

Speaker 2 (57:04):
Kind of a hot way.

Speaker 6 (57:05):
Yeah, exactly.

Speaker 3 (57:06):
One other thing, Olivia is trying to like quit and
not be the campaign manager because she knows he's not
going to win. Oh, and he's like making out with
her and he's like, oh, I do not accept your resignation.

Speaker 6 (57:17):
Yes, and then at the end and then the end
he's like Olivia and then she's like I'll be here
and she's like I'm not quitting, I'll be here. And
then she just leaves and you're.

Speaker 2 (57:24):
Like whoa, whoa, oh no, no, you know what it was.

Speaker 6 (57:28):
Door open, door closed, Lauren, door open, door closed.

Speaker 3 (57:32):
So hot, and then door closes and they're just like bam,
like making out so fast. It's like they can't even
fucking help themselves, but she also has the job of
putting Andrew Nichols on the ticket and what his public
opinion is.

Speaker 2 (57:46):
And he's a playboy.

Speaker 3 (57:47):
He's always like been dates too many people, and he
sort of says this interview with her, well, you know,
the one I always wanted kind of got away. And
what we learn at like the big twist at the
end of the episode is that it's Melly. And the
end of the episode is Melly in between both men
with them in her hands. She's got Fits in her
left hand and in her right and they're up on

(58:07):
that big stage with the lights on.

Speaker 6 (58:10):
Oh my gosh, Yes, I thought that was such a
great storyline because even later, which I'm sure you guys
will get to like, he Fits is like jealous totally
just like such an such an interesting color. It's like,
oh you have some nerve.

Speaker 3 (58:26):
Yeah, yeah, he gets all like I want my cake
and eat it too, Like I want to have sex
with Olivia and she's the love of my life. But
also like Melli isn't allowed to be with anybody.

Speaker 1 (58:34):
Exactly right, exactly exactly an asshole.

Speaker 2 (58:37):
That's why I don't like I was always sort of
team Jake. I was always like I.

Speaker 3 (58:41):
Don't understand what is happening. So you stayed true as
an Olitz fan in that writer's room, beginning to end.

Speaker 6 (58:49):
Till the end.

Speaker 1 (58:50):
Till the end, you got real low and.

Speaker 6 (58:54):
I love stuff. I was a huge Felicity fan, so
a lot of you know, it's just like a lot
of things happening with Scott Foley joined the show. Yeah,
so but I felt like Jake it, I guess, I
don't know. It just was like I really was attached
to one minute and that season one and all those things.

Speaker 2 (59:13):
One minute, good God.

Speaker 6 (59:15):
I just I was really it was like I just
I felt it, you know, I really felt it. And
so even though he wasn't perfect, but you know.

Speaker 1 (59:23):
Of course no fit no Fita.

Speaker 6 (59:25):
Is kind of perfect until he got unperfect, but that
was his fault. Rowan ruined him, right.

Speaker 3 (59:31):
Also, the introduction of Jake is hard with the whole
surveillance videos and yeah creepy.

Speaker 6 (59:37):
Yeah, but still honestly, was just he just it just
did have that.

Speaker 2 (59:42):
Like I don't know, I didn't I endn't fire. Yeah,
I mean here's the thing.

Speaker 6 (59:46):
It wasn't like it was a house divided and like
people felt differently. Yeah, but I think that's what made
it such a great love triangle, right, is that totally
people felt strongly about who.

Speaker 2 (59:55):
They who they want totally.

Speaker 6 (59:56):
I just wanted to say one thing that I did
notice is in the SHO show is it's so well shot.
I remember, we have such great camera operators. Oh yeah,
you know dps and I mean Tom's a really good director.
But the camera's moving. And the thing is that people
don't really realize it's that I have to I wanted
to point out is focus pullers. It is so difficult,

(01:00:18):
hard to switch focus as the camera is moving and
get it right on the reactions and the things. And like,
consistently watching the show, I was like it was just
inframe stuff happening.

Speaker 1 (01:00:32):
Top notch, Like it was top and especially it's funny
you bring that up, especially in this episode specifically, the
camera work and the moves and the zoom men's zoom
zoom in's and all that stuff was very it was
very noticeable, right, Yeah, amazing, the camera work was Yeah.

Speaker 6 (01:00:46):
And I actually I was upset with Tom for quite
a few episodes and he just you know, he is
very very good with actors, but really he really is,
like he was so great at like knowing the shots
he wanted and the vision that he saw. It was
really it was like really lovely to work on.

Speaker 1 (01:01:04):
There were no panels in this episode, right, I remember
the panels they would bring in the panels.

Speaker 2 (01:01:10):
But we usual a lot I feel like in OPA.

Speaker 6 (01:01:12):
Yeah, yeah, those were the rules were that, and I
think OPA we kind of used that. We did a
little bit with Andrew Nichols. They did it like you
can see it. Yeah, it was like remember when you
got you would do the photos and then the interview.
It was like the inner.

Speaker 1 (01:01:27):
Touch yea yes, yes, yes yes.

Speaker 3 (01:01:29):
At the end we'd read We're going to read a
little bit of our scandal tweets of the time.

Speaker 2 (01:01:35):
It's like our time capsule.

Speaker 3 (01:01:39):
Oh then we whistle. I know that's our little sound
effect that we do. So we liked it. We love ones,
especially when they talk mad shit about Quinn or Hawk.

Speaker 2 (01:01:48):
It's really fun.

Speaker 1 (01:01:49):
I hope there's some we mean ones in here. I hope,
I hope.

Speaker 3 (01:01:53):
Oh this is the best at Ray Stars tweeted on
February twenty eight, twenty fourteen, I love Millie hashtag scandal
like why people called Melly Millie.

Speaker 1 (01:02:03):
Kelly Hawk hawk Hawk Listen.

Speaker 2 (01:02:06):
No, it's not.

Speaker 6 (01:02:09):
Literally, my assistant Jess was talking about because she's watched
she's watching Scandal and she's in season four and she's like,
I don't remember, but Milly. I said, who's Milly?

Speaker 1 (01:02:18):
Who's Melly?

Speaker 6 (01:02:19):
First of all, I said her name is Melly and
she said, she said to me, no, it's not.

Speaker 3 (01:02:27):
I love that ship. Like I'm just like, wow, people
love this show so.

Speaker 1 (01:02:30):
Much, right, we also feel bad people call me hawk
on the street all the time. But then you feel
I'm just like yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, you feel bad
correcting him. You just got to move on, right, Yeah.
Eric Kelly tweeted, everyone in Scandal speaks so aggressively with
their entire face. That is all this tweet is a
little aggressive, Eric Kelly.

Speaker 2 (01:02:51):
She's not wrong, though not so aggressive.

Speaker 6 (01:02:54):
But you know, you guys had you guys did to
talk really fast. I was thinking about that too, and
I said, yeah, act people can't act and talk that fast.

Speaker 3 (01:03:02):
There were times in this episode where I was like
Olivia was talking and I was.

Speaker 2 (01:03:06):
Like, that is so fast.

Speaker 3 (01:03:08):
Like it's like what we would get into, like the
fever pitch of the season where we would be so
warmed up and it was becoming so second nature, Like
it wasn't like, you know, the first episode might be
a little bit wonky, like when we would be here
at ten eleven. I mean, this was when we were
really soaring. Yeah at True Crime. Whorer Mandy Murder tweeted,
who thinks lives? Real pregnancy will be next season? Scandal pregnancy?

Speaker 1 (01:03:31):
Nobody?

Speaker 2 (01:03:32):
You didn't get it, nobody, nobody.

Speaker 1 (01:03:36):
Smooth tweeted, dude from Scandal be wearing suspenders with no belt?
Though passable, but I hate it.

Speaker 2 (01:03:42):
That's about Harrison.

Speaker 1 (01:03:44):
But also if you were suspenders, you're not supposed to
wear a belt. That's what I mean. Yeah, I wear
suspenders with my belt all the time, but that's you're
not supposed.

Speaker 5 (01:03:53):
To do that.

Speaker 1 (01:03:53):
If you weren't, it's one of the other. So smooth
the pants up exactly, Yeah, get it?

Speaker 3 (01:04:00):
Got it so funny together, that's so funny at gen
Voss tweeted, anyone know what DC restaurant Live and Melly
were dining in during last night's Scandal?

Speaker 1 (01:04:09):
They weren't in DC, but then Gin responded, I think
it was called a studio set in La Shady Shade.

Speaker 6 (01:04:21):
I like when they with each other.

Speaker 3 (01:04:22):
But then Jen Voss was fighting back, saying, I was
hoping for authenticity some stuff was shot here.

Speaker 2 (01:04:29):
Nope, nothing.

Speaker 6 (01:04:34):
To production design, you know.

Speaker 1 (01:04:36):
Yeah, it's so good, that's right. I feel like the
restaurant stuff was usually in an actual restaurant.

Speaker 6 (01:04:42):
Yeah, we did shoot it in a restaurant, but but
you know, but you know, the set decorators and you know, amazing,
they still they would have to come in and make
it look to dress it.

Speaker 3 (01:04:53):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah like not l a yeah,
la exactly. Next up EPISOD so three twelve, we do
not touch the first Ladies.

Speaker 2 (01:05:05):
Ramola, you're the greatest.

Speaker 3 (01:05:06):
Is there anything closing that we forgot to ask you
or that you want to add about this episode or
about your time as a writer and on Scandal, and
we will be bugging you again to come back.

Speaker 6 (01:05:17):
Oh no, I mean I think you guys probably, I mean,
I think we all agree on this. It was such
a it was a magical time. You know, it was
just like it's like what show. It was such a
crazy show to work on, but also like the fact
that all of us were experiencing it together, you know,
having fun. I think I feel so just lucky and

(01:05:40):
blessed that I was able to learn so much, you know,
as a writer on set, in the room and all
these things that you know, like when we had the strike,
we're fighting for right is to be able to produce
episodes and be on set these things. I just you know,
we just got to do so yeah, yeah, I think
I think you know. And also, you can't take a
wit like you were on Scandal, like you guys are

(01:06:01):
on scand yes, exactly.

Speaker 3 (01:06:03):
Yeah, Scandal was such a big like like I still
I run into people all the time, and like you said,
you're assistant, which, by the way, you have an assistant, Ramla.

Speaker 2 (01:06:15):
I mean that is so amazing and so well deserved.

Speaker 6 (01:06:18):
You are.

Speaker 2 (01:06:19):
We love you and we always loved you, and I'm
so glad.

Speaker 6 (01:06:22):
We love you so much. I love you guys. And
I also I also love that it's like when when
were we doing this? Like twelve years ago, and it's
like no time has passed.

Speaker 1 (01:06:31):
Yes, oh my god, I can't believe it's been twelve
years ago. That's crazy.

Speaker 2 (01:06:35):
Thanks Ramla for coming on.

Speaker 1 (01:06:38):
Thank you, Thank you guys for listening me.

Speaker 6 (01:06:41):
I really had fun.

Speaker 1 (01:06:41):
Yeah, thank you guys for joining us on Unpacking the Toolbox.
If you enjoyed the show, please subscribe, share with your friends, rate,
or leave us a review.

Speaker 3 (01:06:53):
Unpacking the Toolbox was executive produced by Sandy Bailey, Alex Alce,
Lauren Homan, Tyler Klang, and Gabrielle Collins. Our producer and
editor is Vince de Johnny, with music by Chad Fisher.

Speaker 1 (01:07:05):
Scandal is a production of ABC Signature, and you can
follow along by rewatching Scandal on Hulu.

Speaker 3 (01:07:11):
Unpacking the Toolbox is a production of Shondaland Audio in
partnership with iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from Shondaland Audio, visit
the iHeartRadio app or anywhere you subscribe to your favorite shows.