"Saturday Night Live" alum Kevin Nealon once strutted around in a heavily padded sweat suit, threatening (along with Dana Carvey) to "pump you up."
These days, TV audiences recognize Nealon more for portraying a guy who'd rather lift a bong than dumbbells. On Showtime's hit comedy "Weeds," he plays Doug Wilson, a seemingly straight-laced accountant who's nearly always stoned.
He talks about the show and his soon-to-be dadhood (his wife is actress Susan Yeagley).
Q: Doug Wilson sure loves getting high, but sometimes he seems clueless about where and when to indulge his habit. Are you more of a savvy stoner?
A: I never really smoked pot. I would go to a lot of concerts growing up and get that secondhand smoke that was prevalent, and you would kinda get high from that. . . . I think Doug is like a kid. He is always trying to choose between what he wants and the right thing to do, and he usually ends up choosing what he wants.
People are also reading…
Q: What was the worst stand-up gig you've ever done?
A: Probably opening for the Pointer Sisters one New Year's Eve. They added an extra show, but they didn't let me know it would be for $20,000-or-more losers (people who had lost money gambling) and they also gave them noisemakers. Before I went out, the guy backstage said, "Do your normal amount of time — so about 20 minutes." But about two minutes in, it sounded like a flock of geese invaded the room. After eight minutes I walked off.
Q: What does Mr. Subliminal (one of his sketch characters) think of your impending fatherhood?
A: I think it's going to be great to have the baby finally and get our lives back to normal. (Crazy.)
