Q. Ashley | What date was little Cecelia actually born on?
Danny: Same day as you!
Q. Sara | In so many tv shows, the delivery is the focus of a ‘birth episode’. I loved that you didn’t focus on that so much but showed us the more realistic side of ‘after the delivery’. What made you decide to write the episode that way?
Charlie: We didn’t have a choice. Because this is a documentary, we knew the cameras would never be in the room. That forced us to look elsewhere.
Also, early on in this process, Steve Carell told a story about how terrified he was exiting the hospital with his first newborn baby. That idea informed everything from that point on.
Danny: A documentary crew probably wouldn’t be allowed to film the birth. So it made us think about what else we’d like to portray.
Plus, what else can we say about birth that hasn’t already been done on TV? The baby comes out of the mom’s butt — yawn, been there, seen that.
Q. Alex | How do you go about writing an episode like this that is so significant and anticipated? What other humorous aspects of being new parents did you think of including that didn’t make it into the episode?
Danny: We just wanted to be true to our show, while avoiding the cliches of “baby episodes.” It’s tough because you can’t really have too many stakes — it’s hard to be funny if the baby’s health is in danger.
I’d like to give a special thanks to my dad, Dr. Yoon-Taek Chun. He’s a pediatrician, so he was able to give me a lot of useful information about babies and pregnancy and stuff.
Q. Samuel L Chang | Did Ed Helms improvise the Evolution of Dance dance or was it choreographed? Also, whose idea was it to have him do it in complete silence?
Danny: The Evolution of Dance is the 2nd most viewed YouTube video of all time. Ed just watched it a bunch before we shot the scene.
I forget whose idea it was for him to do it in silence. I remember Charlie and Lee being there when we wrote it. Let’s say it was me.
Q. Jackie | I really loved the idea of a contract between Dwight and Angela for a child. How did you guys come up with that idea? Also, is where did you get Dwight’s insane fact about how to make the baby a boy?
Danny: I think the contract may have been Charlie’s idea (but as I said in my last Q&A, I hate trying to credit individual writers. It’s weirdly very hard to remember who pitched what jokes or stories).
We just knew that a Dwight-Angela baby arc would have to be bizarre. It seemed totally in Dwight’s character to approach it as a formal agreement. The insane fact about how to make a boy came from my brain. Not sure if it works — give it a try!
Q. Melissa in NC | How on earth did you get a diaper on a cat?!
Charlie: A professional cat trainer.
Q. Jessica | The question I had was from the end when Jim asks if Pam used “his move.” I didn’t totally get that. What was he referring to?
Charlie: Jim’s move was tensing his pectoral muscles. Pam was making a joke but it wasn’t totally clear. Unclear jokes are my specialty.
Q. Liz | Were there any moments when the cast couldn’t keep it together?
Danny: Andy’s Evolution of Dance dance was a tough one. The sound of his pants rubbing as he danced there without music made people crack up.
Thanks so much for this! i love getting the inside scoop about the episodes! and as a resident of the home of the Kentucky Derby, i love the fact that Erin mentioned the triple crown winners… Calvin Borel is like a hero here in May!
can’t wait for more question and answer sessions!
My question was answered! Such a thrill! And such a funny, but awesome answer. Thanks guys :)
So fantastic! Thanks for putting together another awesome Q&A, tanster! And of course to Charlie, Danny and Jenna for sparing the time and input.
I like the ongoing trend of hospital employees making jokes to the camera, from, “So that is where her uterus went” to “Oh, great, you know everything” and “Got milk?” What a bunch of hams.
So Jenna’s fake husband had to be annoyed at her real husband groping her in front of the pseudo documentarians and actual filming crew. Got it.
Hank can’t hook up. If he does he likely won’t have material for his next self-produced blues album.
So we have a guarantee of blood rushing to penises throughout the season. Nice.
The sound of Andy’s pants made that joke. I was wondering if it was enhanced in post but it doesn’t sound like it. I’d have probably had to leave the room.
Speaking of how awesome Sarah Baker (Josie the nurse) was, this has been driving me crazy — didn’t she look vaguely familiar? Hasn’t she been on some other show? I know that voice from somewhere …
I finally figured it out — she played Emo Sarah on Lance Krall’s VH1 comedy Free Radio! OMG!
Awesome! Thanks so much!
Thank you Danny, Charlie, and Jenna.
Jenna answered my question!! :) (The one about dealing with the crying baby). I feel ridiculously pleased about that!
Thanks for arranging these Q&As Tanster, they are so informative.
I loved this! First of all, Q&As are always amazing, but the line “We wanted to evoke a sense of water, to symbolize the vast ocean of possibility stretching out before…..zzzzzz…sorry I just feel asleep”. Haha! That made me spit my drink out! Danny was hilarious in that Q&A.
On another note, I’m glad we got some imput from Jenna. It amazes me that they filmed that scene in a closet, now I can’t wait for the DVD extras!
That was one of the funniest Q&A’s I’ve ever read!
i KNEW lee was cast because he’s the only one allowed to “manhandle” jenna’s breasts! ha, nice way of putting it, jenna!
i can imagine that the crying baby would break jenna’s heart. it would break my heart too. my first instinct would be to pick that sweet baby up and give it a cuddle.
Thanks again for putting this together! These Q&A’s are awesome, even better than the DVD commentaries.
The writers’ answers were hilarious. I wish I were a fly on the wall in the writers’ room…
Awesome Q&A segment! Tanster, thanks so much for always being our link to my ideal “Second Life”!
I am always mad at myself for reading these Q&A’s so quickly!
Full of awesome, as usual. And hilarious. And informative.
Melissa’s “How on earth did you get a diaper on a cat?” is my favorite question!
Great Q&A! Thank you :)
#1, Becky – hello, fellow Kentuckian! :) This entire Q&A was hilarious, but the thought of Calvin Borel being a writer on The Office made me laugh the most. Thank you, Danny and Charlie!
And tanster – it took me a few minutes as I was watching the ep, but I nearly started jumping up and down when it finally hit me that the nurse was Emo Sarah! The voice was definitely the biggest hint. She’s great.
wow i totally missed the whole ‘jenna is engaged’ memo. when did that happen?
HAHA wow i just finished reading the whole Q&A and some of their responses actually made me lol. only with office writers would Q&A be ‘good writing’.
This Q&A Session was Hilarious.
Here’s hoping Quentin Tarantino directs the episode with the homeless man finding Dwight’s abandoned weapons! ;)
whoa-my friend and I took Jim’s comment about Pam using his move as sexual, which was apparently not the case :/
Half of the responses made me crack up — I was laughing out loud throughout! This was an AWESOME Q&A!! Even while answering questions about an episode Charlie and Danny are hilarious. Thanks so much for being so generous and taking the time to do this Q&A–it was truly interesting and so, so funny.
Funniest. Q&A. Ever.
True story!
my question was answered! Great Q&A thanks tanster!
Oh, one more thing–Dream Come True Girl is such a great song, and would have been perfect in this episode, Danny Chun! Sometimes wish the show was scored–It’s not sappy to have a little music now and then, it’s sweet and warm!
I swear, The Office cast and crew are the BEST in hollywood.
[with the exception of Meryl Streep]
Thank you so much Tanster for putting this together! I was very excited to see my question answered… it will be interesting to see what makes it to the DVD extras in a few months!
Fantastic post! Can’t wait to see the scenes that got cut on DVD (hopefully!). My question (birth song) was answered! Thank you sooo much, Tanster! :) #11, Jaz — I wish the same thing everyday ;)
@16 (Megan) – jenna got engaged last summer.
she wrote a blog about it
yay, my question was answered! Love these Q&A’s! Please keep them coming!
Hilarious Q&A, Danny Chun cracks me up! Anyone on twitter should follow him (@dannychun). He always makes me giggle :)