LUKE KIRBY : I needed a job. But I was playing someone who had been this iconoclast. Everybody inside a certain generation had an opinion about him. Then, I picked up a book in which somebody had transcribed Lenny’s routines onto paper. And the introduction was like, “Let’s focus on the words and not people’s idea who he was.” But, just critically, I still felt doomed for slaughter with this role even though it’s a good habit not to be worried what people think of you in any capacity. It turned out really, really nicely. People reached out in a way that was so special. CAROLINE AARON (actress, Shirley Maisel) : Shirley and Moishe weren’t in the pilot. But I got a call saying that Amy Sherman-Palladino was thinking of me for a new series. My daughter and I had spent the past year watching episodes of Gilmore Girls. I was thinking, “It doesn’t matter what the role is; my currency will go so far up with my daughter!” KEVIN POLLAK (actor, Moishe Maisel) : I came up as a stand-up comedian. Then I did a movie called A Few Good Men , which changed the course of my career. I learned how to underplay and that less is more. When I was told that Moishe was verbose, loud and obnoxious, I realized that I’d spent my whole career trying not to do that! CAROLINE AARON : Tony and I had been friends for thirty years. We lived around the corner from each other in L.A., and I remember when he told me he was moving to New York to do a new series. During my first costume fitting, I said, “Who’s playing my husband? Tony?” They said, “We can’t tell you.” When they finally said that it was Kevin, I was thrilled. I’d done a movie with him years ago called House Arrest. We had a blast. KEVIN POLLAK : Lo and behold, I get the best notices of my career. Maybe I completely blew all my career choices for the past thirty years. TONY SHALHOUB : My chemistry with Marin and Rachel fell into place almost immediately. These kinds of things you can’t plan or predict. I was not familiar with Rachel’s work, but just that level of skill, that level of professionalism and discipline and confidence! God, I wish I had a tenth of that confidence when I was coming up. Seriously. She inspired us all.
MARIN HINKLE (actress, Rose Weissman) : I read the pilot and was taken by it. There was this incredible description of Rose entering a room, and it was something like, “She’s in a feather-trim satin dressing gown, like something out of an MGM musical.” And then she criticizes her daughter and the size of her grandkid’s forehead. I remember thinking, “This is a person not like me, but it would be so much fun to play her.” I had never done any period work. LUKE KIRBY (actor, Lenny Bruce) : It was like, “You want to come in and audition for this day of work?” I had to read Lenny’s “Airplane Glue” bit. He did it on Steve Allen’s show, so I could watch it on YouTube. I crammed for forty-eight hours. RACHEL BROSNAHAN : I did not think for a single second that I had it. One of my best friends, who’s a casting director, was like, “It’s a long shot, but shoot your shot!” After my first audition, I thought I failed so miserably that I did some intense retail therapy. When I finally got the call, it was the shock of my life. The very same day I found I had lost another part for a film because they didn’t think I was funny. AMY SHERMAN ! PALLADINO : Rachel was the only one who knew instinctively to step into the microphone. You don’t move around and pretend it’s not there. At the very least, she showed us right there that she’s got balls. MICHAEL ZEGEN : An audition can make you crazy because you’re nervous out of your mind. I remember seeing all these guys with suitcases that they had flown in from L.A. to test with Rachel. Like, what kind of chance do I have? But Rachel and I had crossed paths years ago when she was still in college. We read for a play, and we ended up walking back to the Village together. So, I did know her. Then she came out of the audition room and went up to me and said, “Can we run this scene together beforehand?” I was ecstatic. And by the time we read together, I think people in the room felt our chemistry. MARIN HINKLE : I really embraced the audition process. I’m not a fashionista, but I didn’t want to wear my jeans or sweatpants. So, I went to a costume shop and bought velvet robes and feather boas. I have fine hair, so I wore a wig. Every time I had a new audition, I wore more interesting period clothes from the 1950s.
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AMY HAS SAID SHE WROTE THE PART WITH ME IN MIND, BUT THAT MAY BE REVISIONIST HISTORY. I THINK SUSIE WAS PART ME, PART AMY AND MANY PARTS WOMEN SHE’S ENCOUNTERED IN HER LIFE.
clockwise from top: GIDEON GLICK AND ALEX BORSTEIN, TONY SHALHOUB, LUKE KIRBY, MICHAEL ZEGEN, KEVIN POLLAK, CAROLINE AARON, MARIN HINKLE
” ALEX BORSTEIN actress, Susie Myerson
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