WIRX “Decoding Carnivale” call-in with Clancy Brown • 01-26-05

This is the transcript from Clancy’s radio call-in segment on Southwest Michigan’s WIRX/Rock 107.1, with Shelley Morgan.

SHELLEY: We kinda had to, like, wait a couple of days to do this, just cuz schedules didn’t quite work out together. But it’s time for “Decoding Carnivale” – HBO, Sunday nights, 9 o’clock. You will see this gentleman playing Brother Justin Crowe. It’s Clancy Brown on the phone from LA. (“Carnivale” theme song starts up.) Hello! And I want to talk about the end of “Carnivale” first…

CLANCY: What happened at the end? What was the last couple of…?

Shelley: What happened at the end was… Ben was, like, being buried alive by the happy little family…

Clancy: Yeah.

Shelley: I believe I saw them on an episode of “ The X-Files”.

Clancy: (laughing) That’s what a lot of people say!

Shelley: Wow!

Clancy: Yeah, yeah… We’ve seen that family before. It was a little media shorthand going on there.

Shelley: (laughing) So it’s not just the stuff that happens in “Carnivale” that comes back. It’s stuff from OTHER shows that come back, too.

Clancy: Well, ya know, ya steal from the best. That’s what you do.

Shelley: Good to know! Through the show, at least through a section of the show, “Me and My Shadow” a recurring theme -- the character of Stroud in the deserted mining town of Babylon, that we saw and visited last season, singing “Me and My Shadow.”

Clancy: That’s a very good choice of song.

Shelley: It was. And then, of course, the next cut that we go to is Brother Justin pushing Norman in the wheelchair, singing “Me and My Shadow.”

Clancy: It’s on all sorts of levels the perfect song.

Shelley: It was beautiful!

Clancy: You can have a whole… You could write a whole critique about the meaning of shadows in this show.

Shelley: I believe, if I ever go to college again, my master’s thesis should be the meaning of shadows in “Carnivale”.

Clancy: Absolutely. So, good, I’m glad you liked this episode.

Shelley: I definitely liked this episode. It was very fun.

Clancy: Some people did not.

Shelley: Oh, you’re kidding!

Clancy: Oh, I mean online. But, ya know, we have very hard critics online, very tough critics online. But I think, as the season goes on, people will enjoy this episode more. But I’m glad you liked it. I liked it. I thought it was fun.

Shelley: It’s very fun, and I can’t say that I didn’t really like… Well, I guess the first episode I didn’t. There were times I liked it and times that I didn’t. But it propels you to what’s gonna happen next, and it sets up so many things. And in setting up those things that are gonna happen next in the show, it’s not like this doesn’t make sense and that doesn’t make sense. It does it in such a way that you’re so entertained by it. I just think it’s a really fun show. It’s a difficult show. But I think it’s a really fun show. And it’s one of my favorites!

(Music/Station Break)

Shelley: (“Carnivale” music starts up in background) Clancy Brown, star of “Carnivale” on HBO, on the phone with us to help us decode that show, because it can be a little difficult, huh? Some interesting and kind of disturbing moments on Sunday’s “Carnivale”…

Clancy: To me, the most upsetting image in the whole thing was -- and I love him, it’s just like… when my friend Tommy Dolan is slicing up meat and eggs and talking about flesh falling off bones of little children. That one kinda turned my stomach.

Shelley: There were so many different powerful moments in “Carnivale”…

Clancy: That one just kinda really got me, for some reason. You never know what’s gonna get to ya. Some people got upset with the monkey licking the guy. I thought that was kinda cute.

Shelley: Where do you get a monkey in the middle of nowhere in Texas?

Clancy: Aw, there’s all sorts of strange pets in Texas, c’mon.

Shelley: (laughing) Well, it’s not indigenous to Texas, so somebody’s been a-travelin’.

Clancy: I don’t think those people were indigenous to Texas, either.

Shelley: We’re talking about the family Ben kinda ends up running across as he’s searching for The Crone. And there was another disturbing thing that happened last night. It was after they have him hanging up naked, upside-down, and they’re whipping him. And then they tell the littlest one, the youngest one, to go bury… and bury him RIGHT this time!

Clancy: Yeah! (evil laugh) Bury him RIGHT this time!

Shelley: Which means they’ve done it to other people.

Clancy: Of course. And they’re giving their brother a chance to learn, to teach himself from the mistakes he’s made in the past.

Shelley: To make good.

Clancy: Yeah, to make good on his previous mess-ups.

Shelley: How do you bury someone alive the WRONG way?

Clancy: Uh… Too shallow, I would imagine.

Shelley: (laughing) You’re probably right.

(Music/Station Break)

Shelley: Clancy Brown hanging on the phone from Los Angeles, talking to us about HBO’s “Carnivale.” In fact, not just talking to us, Decoding “Carnivale”. So thanks, because I think we just might need the help with this show. (“Carnivale” theme song starts up.) The writers helping us a little bit, which is nice for a change, helping us understand “Carnivale” a bit more this season, don’t you think?

Clancy: We haven’t quite just given you the number picture with the numbers drawn in. This is where we’re laying out the numbers. But don’t worry, in the next few days, we’ll connect the dots. So…

Shelley: The one thing that happened last week that I didn’t get a chance to talk to you about, kind of showed itself this week in that, last week, when Ben was driving and he saw Sofie walking along the side of the road, he first saw the Tattooed Man walking along the side of the road. And then it turned into Sofie.

Clancy: Um-hmm.

Shelley: And then, at the end of the show this week, Sofie is sleeping in Lodz’s trailer and, um, the radio was on, and the radio tunes itself to a broadcast of Brother Justin.

Clancy: Yeah.

Shelley: And Sofie’s eyes turned black.

Clancy: Did you think they turned…? I couldn’t tell whether they turned black or whether that was just the lighting, to be honest with ya.

Shelley: Okay.

Clancy: I mean, I really couldn’t tell…I don’t think they did turn black. I think it was just the lighting. And I’m gonna break the rule of this show and say I’m pretty sure they didn’t turn black because, when her eyes turn black, it’s pretty specific. I think they turned black once before, and it was a dream sequence…

Shelley: Uh-huh.

Clancy: In the first season, or, or some kind of vision or something.

Shelley: And they were very specific to show you that, as opposed to whether it was in the shadows like this.

Clancy: Yeah, I think it’s always a clear moment. And I wasn’t clear about that moment. And I honestly don’t remember in the script that her eyes were black. I don’t recall that.

Shelley: But the one thing they should have showed you in the flashback to what happened last season was that Sofie found out… She saw the moment of her conception, we’ll just put it that way.

Clancy: Uh-huh.

Shelley: And, um, that her father, pretty much, was the Tattooed Man.

Clancy: You’re really connecting the dots now. You’re really like, you’re really like… (chuckle) You should hop on the internet and start sharing theories.

Shelley: You’re so proud of me, aren’t you?

Clancy: I am! I think you’re gettin’ into the rhythm of watching this show again. Everybody else is, too, finally. I think it’s been too long.

Shelley: Yeah. Here’s my thought. Here’s my theory…

Clancy: Okay.

Shelley: Apollonia tried to kill Sofie because Ben was in the carnival, and she knew that something was supposed to happen, and that maybe something is supposed to happen between Ben and Sofie, not necessarily on a relationship/sexual level, but something… She’s involved in it somehow.

Clancy: Yeah, Apollonia pops up every now and then, you know, from the other plane. And I’m not really sure exactly why or what Apollonia’s otherworldly motivation may be. I think it was clear that, yeah, she was trying to kill her daughter last season. But I’m not exactly sure why. And I say this sincerely, and I’ve done the entire season now. It’s still not clear to me.

Shelley: Okay.

Clancy: Okay?

Shelley: Okay.

Clancy: So, you know, work with your theories, cuz… And I have to tell you, as I watch the shows, because they are so visual, things do become clear.

Shelley: Um-hmm.

Clancy: Ya know? And also, when I’m shooting and reading them, I’m not paying that much attention to the Ben story, as much attention to the Ben story. When I see it, I can then enjoy it a little bit more. But I’m diggin’ the shows from a fan perspective, at least watching Ben’s journey. And I’m still confused – Ben AND Sofie’s journey, as a matter of fact.

Shelley: Okay.

Clancy: I’m still confused, so… But fascinated! I know what’s going on with me. (chuckle)

Shelley: I would hope so!

Clancy: But I’m not really sure what’s going on with them, but I’m absolutely intrigued, and I think it’s all, I think it’s all being built well.

Shelley: I would agree with it being built well.

(Music/Station Break)

Shelley: We have to finish Decoding this week’s episode of “Carnivale” with Clancy Brown, who plays Brother Justin Crowe on HBO’s “Carnivale”, and you have questions for me, huh?

Clancy: Yeah, let me ask you this… What did you make of the scene with, um, with Ben and the crippled guy and his retarded charge/daughter/granddaughter, whatever she was?

Shelley: I thought that it was very much a savior sort of moment…

Clancy: Uh-huh.

Shelley: That guy, looking into Ben’s eyes, saw something good, something holy, something he had never seen in his life before.

Clancy: So, he was… You think he was changed by his contact with Ben?

Shelley: I believe so.

Clancy: You think? But the look in Ben’s eyes, when he grabbed him?

Shelley: Um-hmm.

Clancy: Was… I mean, I really thought he was gonna strangle him. I thought he would…

Shelley: Yeah, he was very angry, very disturbed by what had happened, that the old guy was offering up his retarded daughter for a little bit of sumthin’-sumthin’ in the back of the truck.

Clancy: Yeah. And did a little part of you want him to smack the guy around?

Shelley: Sure! Oh, yeah!

Clancy: Really?

Shelley: Yeah, because that was disgusting.

Clancy: Yes, it was disgusting. But it would have been just as disgusting if – this is what’s brilliant about the show – it would have been just as disgusting if Ben had taken it out physically on that poor old, crippled guy. As decrepit morally as he was, it would have been wrong for him to abuse the guy the way he was abusing his daughter. I just thought it was a brilliant moment, and I thought Nick – another moment where he proves he’s one of the best actors in America.

Shelley: He played it right on. I mean, it was…

Clancy: A great, great moment… Okay, let me ask you this, did you do a little end zone dance when Bud Everhardt showed up, and you found out that you were right about Stumpy having a gambling debt?

Shelley: Uh, yeah, I did. I stood up and went, “YES! I KNEW IT!”

Clancy: Didja do a little strut? You should be proud of yourself. Pat yourself on the back. Good call, Shell.

Shelley: I was, I was very proud!

Clancy: (laughing)

Shelley: I’m like, “Yay! I was right!” (laughing)

Clancy: Yeah, you got it. You nailed it right on the head.

Shelley: And I am a “Carnivale” Master.

Clancy: (laughing)

Shelley: At least, for this episode. Ya know, I could be completely, completely wrong next week. Because THAT’S the best part of the show. Clancy Brown, thank you so much for joining us today to help us Decode Carnivale, a couple days late. We’ll do it again Monday, as this Friday – if you haven’t been watching “Carnivale” this season, HBO is going to rerun the first three episodes, starting at 8:00. So Tivo, VCR, whatever you can. And then a NEW episode on Sunday at 9:00. HBO’s “Carnivale,” and we get to Decode it every week with Clancy Brown, right here on Rock 107/WIRX!

WIRX “Decoding Carnivale” call-in with Clancy Brown • 01-17-05

This is the transcript from Clancy’s radio call-in segment on Southwest Michigan’s WIRX/Rock 107.1, with Shelley Morgan.

SHELLEY MORGAN: I was watching it last night, and I had to turn away from the Golden Globes – as if that was a really difficult thing to do – because “Carnivale” was on HBO last night. And, because we have the connections we have, Clancy Brown, the guy who plays Brother Justin Crowe on “Carnivale” is hangin’ on the line. So, uh, are you ready? Cuz I have questions!

CLANCY BROWN: All righty!

SHELLEY: “Carnivale” last night… Man, you know, it didn’t take very long to kick into gear!

CLANCY: This episode had a lot of set-up in it. There’s a lot of stuff…

SHELLEY: Stroud!

CLANCY: He’s the man, isn’t he?

SHELLEY: He was… That was a nice little move with the homemade knife he had.

CLANCY: He is the man! He is a force of nature.

SHELLEY: I must also say that Brother Justin – a force of nature, too! Cuz he’s preach-afyin’, doin’ the whole thing on the radio, and no one else hears the things that Stroud hears.

CLANCY: But isn’t that true in life? I mean, (chuckling) don’t you find?

SHELLEY: (laughing) That I’ve seen?

CLANCY: You go through life, and you thought you heard something, and you didn’t. I find… It’s especially true when you’re married. But you’ll find that you’re convinced that you heard something that your wife said, or your boss or, ya know, your mom, or whoever, and THEY thought they said something completely different. So, that’s kinda what’s going on, I guess.

SHELLEY: All right. So, we had a quality kill in the first five minutes of the show…

CLANCY: Yeah, but did you notice, no real blood on that…

SHELLEY: No. Because he didn’t need to make a mess.

CLANCY: I guess so.

SHELLEY: It was just to get him outta there.

CLANCY: It was a clean cut.

SHELLEY: And then we had another quality kill later on when Stroud shows up at some Sheriff’s house and gets him all bloody. Talk about bloody!

CLANCY: Some Sheriff? That was the Sheriff who was the son of the woman who knew Henry Scudder. Remember, this whole show sort of folds back on itself when it needs to, and nothing was done last season that didn’t have some kind of resonance this season, and so on and so forth. So, you know, you always have to pay attention here. You never know what’s gonna be important later on. We know that the guy was a Sheriff, and that Varlyn killed him, and got a piece of the clue, and you know…

SHELLEY: And also got a nice little wardrobe, with the Sheriff’s badge, so he can walk around get into just about anywhere that he needs to get into! He’s a bright little guy! He knows what he needs to do to get the job done, to get the archangel job done.

CLANCY: Oh, yeah. Varlyn is the perfect person for this job.

SHELLEY: He’s very stoic.

CLANCY: He’s kind of attractive, don’tcha think?

SHELLEY: Uh, no… He doesn’t really do anything for me.

CLANCY: Powerful…

SHELLEY: Well, there’s definite power there.

CLANCY: Humor. He’s got great humor. He had a little smile on his face during that whole thing.

SHELLEY: Well, you gotta enjoy your work. Cuz if you don’t enjoy your work, you might as well not even be around.

CLANCY: Exactly. I see a spin-off, actually.

SHELLEY: (Laughing) Do you?

CLANCY: You’ll see what I mean as the season progresses…

SHELLEY: So we’ve got Varlyn out of prison. We’ve got Ben showin’ up at the looney bin.

CLANCY: Um-hmm.

SHELLEY: To talk to Father Kerrigan, who is completely out of his mind.

CLANCY: Right. Until Ben touches him.

SHELLEY: And that calms him down.

CLANCY: Calms him down.

SHELLEY: After Ben sees a really nice… little flashes of some little ritual, with a snake and blood and a naked guy, and wow!

CLANCY: Yeah! Well, ya know, what’s strange about that is, and I know this from experience, what Ben does in the show, is the exact opposite of what happens with Nick in real life. Whenever Nick, like, touches someone – especially a woman – they become all wacky and Beatlemania-ish.

SHELLEY: Really?

CLANCY: Oh, yeah.

SHELLEY: You’ve seen that happen?

CLANCY: I’ve seen it happen. He’s a force of nature, in and of himself.

SHELLEY: So, his stock in Benton Harbor/St. Joe must be going up pretty high!

CLANCY: That’s what I’m working toward. (laughing)

SHELLEY: (laughing)

CLANCY: That’s what I’m trying to do – trying to just move him up the ladder there, a little past Russell Crowe, a little past Tom Cruise. You know, let’s just keep him going up, keep him going up.

SHELLEY: That’s so nice of you.

CLANCY: Oh, yeah.

SHELLEY: So when you guys come and do an appearance, you know, it will be Beatlemania here.

CLANCY: Right, when we open the mall.

SHELLEY: Clancy Brown & Nick Stahl, opening the mall… (laughing) I cannot wait!

{Editor – Now, before anyone asks… They were KIDDING about that mall-opening thing! I only wish that they weren’t… LOL!)

(Station Break)

SHELLEY: Clancy Brown, hangin’ out on the line. Clancy, of course, plays Brother Justin Crowe on HBO’s “Carnivale.” And we get to talk to him each and every Monday (“Carnivale” theme song starts up), as we “Decode Carnivale.” Cuz there’s a lot of stuff happening on that show, and you just can’t quite always pick it up, just yourself. So, we’ve talked about how awesome Nick Stahl is (giggling), so what else do we need to talk about?

CLANCY: We didn’t talk about my buddy, Stumpy, though.

SHELLEY: About how Stumpy was trying to scam some money from Samson?

CLANCY: Yeah, that might be significant.

SHELLEY: I initially thought that, when Samson said that they were coming up light, that Stumpy had been somehow gambling on the fights. Because we heard him listening to the radio the week before…

CLANCY: That’s two and two! Puttin’ two and two together, good for you! Now you’re getting’ it! That’s how you watch this show!

SHELLEY: (laughing) But then again, you never know. So, that’s a theory?

CLANCY: It’s a theory! Keep theorizing. At least you’re connecting the dots. That’s nice.

SHELLEY: So, what was the deal with the dice? It was obviously a scam…

CLANCY: Um-hmm.

SHELLEY: So, I didn’t understand how, if you put the… There was supposed to be a picture, if you lined up the dots, there was supposed to be a picture. And obviously, there wasn’t anything. So, how does he not get his butt completely kicked by fifty guys?

CLANCY: You… Well, you know, it’s a guy thing! There’s no guy who’s gonna say. “I don’t see it” in a group of guys who are dyin’ to see it.

SHELLEY: Oh…

CLANCY: Ya know? It’s a Discovery Channel, male dominance subtlety. It also harkens back to the Man Eating Chicken moment last year, ya see?

SHELLEY: Okay.

CLANCY: Ya know, we gotta remember that Stumpy is not above completely ripping somebody off, and then pulling them into the con.

SHELLEY: The thing that I like about the show is the cool little touches, the little touches that were happening last night, as Ben’s in his visions that he’s having, as he’s standing in the chapel. You see the baby Jesus statue turn and look at him. The little touch as Sofie is walking down the road, and you see the shadow behind her. I’m assuming it was Apollonia, with a veil over her?

CLANCY: Um-hmm.

SHELLEY: Um, I mean, there were just these cool little visual touches that, if you don’t watch closely, you’re not gonna pick up on them.

CLANCY: That’s right! (chuckles) That is correct! The important thing is not so much the baby Jesus as the Madonna, in that one vision. And that will pay off very quickly. We’ll understand what the vision was fairly directly.

SHELLEY: And Sofie, if I’m reading it correctly, ya know, Apollonia’s behind her. She’s always gonna be with her, no matter what. Sofie’s talking about not being able to read the cards now that Mama’s not there, but the cards keep showing up.

CLANCY: The cards keep showing up! After being destroyed and blown to the four winds…

SHELLEY: Um-hmm.

CLANCY: I really don’t know what it means, I don’t know who’s leaving the cards for her, whether they’re just appearing or whether it was Apollonia’s shadow… Well, I think it WAS Apollonia’s shadow, but… What exactly that means, I’m not sure. Whether she just can’t get rid of her, like most children and their mothers, or whether, ya know, she’s actually there on the other side, looking out for her, or haunting her, or whatever… I’m not really sure how that plays out. Or at least, if I am, I cant tell you right now, but…

SHELLEY: Okay. And speaking of things from the other side... Ruthie’s seeing dead people.

CLANCY: Is that right?

SHELLEY: Yeah!

CLANCY: That’s right, she uh…

SHELLEY: She saw the ex guy.

CLANCY: Right. Right before Samson asked her on a date. You just might, rather than have her hurt feelings, you might just say, “Well, ya know, the guy’s dead. He didn’t stand you up. He’s dead. And since you’re all dolled up with no place to go, why don’t you and I, uh, ya know?” I thought that was some pretty quick thinkin’ on his feet. Whether he was telling the truth or not, who knows? Cuz Samson’s a liar.

SHELLEY: Well, he was tellin’ the truth! I knew. I knew, well….

CLANCY: You think that guy’s dead?

SHELLEY: I think that guy’s dead. I think it’s one of the things that happened when she was dead, and came back from the dead, that she’s gonna start to see things that she doesn’t understand.

CLANCY: I thought it was just a brilliant opportunity taken advantage of by Samson.

SHELLEY: (laughing)

CLANCY: (laughing)

SHELLEY: You weren’t reading anything mysterious or mystical into it at all, it was just…

CLANCY: It was a great pick-up line!

SHELLEY: Oh, it was a great pick-up line! Yeah, yeah, yeah… But I think it’s more.

(Station Break)

SHELLEY: Rock 107/WIRX. Big thanks to Clancy Brown for taking time out today to help us “Decode Carnivale” on HBO. It was on last night at 9:00, it’s gonna be on HBO2 tonight at 8:00, and if you didn’t see it last night, you might wanna watch it tonight, cuz it was NAKED CITY last night on “Carnivale”! (giggling)

CLANCY: Yeah, it was a real skin show last night.

SHELLEY: (laughing) It was, wasn’t it? Because we not only get the Cooch Show…

CLANCY: That’s always so much fun, isn’t it?

SHELLEY: (laughing) Cuz it’s just so twisted!

CLANCY: (laughing) Oh, and it’s so hilarious – ya know, what they do and their choreography. It’s just so funny.

SHELLEY: It was way before porn. We’re very jaded now.

CLANCY: And they walk around, the strippers walk around like they’re SURPRISED their clothes are coming off! (chuckling)

SHELLEY: Exactly. It’s like, “Ooh! Look, hey! Here’s a nipple! I didn’t know it was there!”

CLANCY: “Oh, dear!”

SHELLEY: (laughing) Like, “My clothes, they’re just falling off!” It’s all very innocent.

CLANCY: (laughing) It’s all very innocent… and baffling!

SHELLEY: We not only see that, we see the new maid and Brother Justin have this MOMENT between the two of them.

CLANCY: What was that about?

SHELLEY: Um, I think that was… I think that was him kind of reading what kind of person she was.

CLANCY: Okay, good for you. That’s what I think, too. Although I’ve been informed that maybe it was me making her do it.

SHELLEY: Ya know, I thought that was a possibility, too. But I was giving Brother Justin a little bit more of the benefit of the doubt.

CLANCY: I… I really don’t know how to interpret it. I would stick with what we know about Brother Justin, that somehow, he’s looking inside her, and that’s her own…

SHELLEY: Her own pain, her own…

CLANCY: And I just got a glimpse of it.

SHELLEY: Well, we all got a glimpse of it!

CLANCY: (laughing)

SHELLEY: Yes, we did!

(Station Break)

SHELLEY: Oh, hey! Let’s do it! Let’s finish up “Decoding Carnivale” – HBO’s “Carnivale” on each and every Sunday night, and it will be on tonight again, on HBO2, at 8:00, in case listening to the “Decoding” thing is piquing your interest. Clancy Brown, hangin’ on the line, and being so gracious about doing that, each and every Monday. We really, really appreciate that. (“Carnivale” theme starts up) Clancy, I gotta talk to you about somethin’. Something that I learned last night, that I had absolutely no idea about. We find out that the tiny Japanese women who do tattooing, do it with an open robe, and pretty much close to naked.

CLANCY: Well, some of ‘em do, I guess. This one did!

SHELLEY: (laughing) Yes, she did! So that’s what was happening last week, as Brother Justin goes to see the tiny Japanese woman.

CLANCY: Yes… (teasing) I guess you were wrong, weren’tcha Shelley?

SHELLEY: Well, of course, I was!

CLANCY: You were wrong! That’s part of the fun, isn’t it?

SHELLEY: It definitely is! But you gotta give me some credit for hoping that, ya know, Brother Justin is getting rid of some of that sexual frustration. We don’t see him flogging himself any more.

CLANCY: No, ya don’t!

SHELLEY: (laughing) And I mean that in the literal sense of the word, and not the figurative sense of the word.

CLANCY: No, he’s gettin’ tattooed!

SHELLEY: A very elaborate, very painful tattoo.

CLANCY: In a way... It’s probably as painful as flogging. Maybe it has the same effect! You know, PAIN is a necessary side effect, if you remember from last season.

SHELLEY: Well, certainly, because you need to take on the pain that Jesus felt…

CLANCY: Right.

SHELLEY: As he was being crucified.

CLANCY: That was an unavoidable side effect.

SHELLEY: Sure!

CLANCY: So, ya know, just go ahead… Live in the gutter, and then in the next episode, we’ll make you ashamed of yourself.

SHELLEY: Oh, I’m never ashamed of myself.

CLANCY: (laughing)

SHELLEY: These are just natural reactions that I’m going to have. I’m a red-blooded American woman.

CLANCY: Oh, okay, well…

SHELLEY: I’m always thinking along those lines!

CLANCY: Maybe that’s why the show isn’t quite as watched as it should be, is because all these red-blooded Americans are tired of having themselves fooled. (laughing) That could be!

SHELLEY: Nah! That’s not it! It’s just too smart for most people.

CLANCY: You think so?

SHELLEY: Yeah, I think so…

CLANCY: All right. So most red-blooded Americans are stupid? (laughing)

SHELLEY: Uh, no. I’m saying the red-blooded Americans are watching.

CLANCY: Well, I wish more of them were!

SHELLEY: This is why we’re performing this public service…

CLANCY: No, I appreciate that. And it is a public service. I just need more people to watch this show!

SHELLEY: Ya know, and maybe, if you keep showing your ass, they might!

CLANCY: Yeah…

SHELLEY: (laughing) How about that?

CLANCY: Yeah, well, you know. You sign up for the journey, you sign up for the trip. You know, I just want to do a shout out and a big thank you to the director of photography and the lighting cameraman for putting enough shadow in the right places! So…

SHELLEY: You looked good!

CLANCY: Yeah, isn’t that nice? They did a good job putting the shadows in the right places.

SHELLEY: Did you do a lot of squats before?

CLANCY: Ah... No, I didn’t.

SHELLEY: Ya didn’t? Cuz I know, a lot of times, when guys are gonna do the shirt-off thing, they completely pump up their muscles and do that. You didn’t do that?

CLANCY: No. But Jonesy does… Tim DeKay looks great in this show. Tim DeKay is definitely the beefcake in this show.

SHELLEY: Oh, I would beg to differ. So, when are we gonna get to see you naked again?

CLANCY: I dunno… I dunno.

SHELLEY: Cuz you know, this is pretty much all I’m really interested in.

CLANCY: I’ll tell ya what’s really strange about this… I was sort of, like, cruising the internet, just to make sure I didn’t embarrass myself too badly last night. And nobody mentioned the weirdest thing about those shots -- to me. The weirdest thing about me in those shots: there’s not a hair on my body!

SHELLEY: No, that’s true.

CLANCY: And that’s not natural. There’s not a single friggin’ hair on me! Nobody’s seen that. Take a look at it. There’s not a hair on me.

SHELLEY: Okay.

CLANCY: (laughing)

SHELLEY: Okay, I’ll freeze frame and look closer. I’ll zoom in.

CLANCY: That’s weird enough. That’s as weird as it gets, as far as I’m concerned.

SHELLEY: Well, if you’re a spawn of Satan, maybe there isn’t hair! Maybe they’re hairless.

CLANCY: That could be one way to interpret it. (laughing) Once again, it’s that misdirection. It’s like, you think you’re looking at this thing, but really, what’s weird and what’s informative is this thing over here. It’s like the Sheriff. Ah, it’s just an angry Sheriff. Whoops, wait, no, there he is. He’s integral to the rest of the story.

SHELLEY: We’ve brought him back.

CLANCY: Yep.

SHELLEY: And we get to kill him.

CLANCY: Kill him for a reason.

SHELLEY: Always! Nobody dies for no reason.

CLANCY: No.

SHELLEY: There’s always a reason.

CLANCY: Not on TV, anyway.

SHELLEY: On “Carnivale” they kinda do.

CLANCY: Yeah, “Carnivale” always gives you a reason someone dies.

SHELLEY: We’ll find out, even, there’ll be something else about Lodz, I’m sure. Even though it was, ya know, so Ruthie could live. There’ll be somethin’ else.

CLANCY: Oh, yeah. I can about promise you that, without gettin’ in too much trouble.

SHELLEY: Well, we don’t want to get you in trouble.

CLANCY: No, no…

SHELLEY: Cuz we like it that you do this with us every single week.

CLANCY: (evil laugh)

SHELLEY: As Clancy laughs maniacally.

CLANCY: Shelley, Shelley, Shelley… Last episode was answering a lot of questions from the first episode that, ya know, they wanted to… The answers the critics were looking for, and the critics weren’t satisfied with those answers, so… This episode, we’re kinda back into how we tell our story. Which it seems, like, all set up… until the thing happens.

SHELLEY: And it looks as if there’s going to be some pretty fun stuff happening, some pretty huge, some pretty like, “Whoa, you’re kidding!”

CLANCY: Yeah, there’s some fun stuff going on.

SHELLEY: Can’t wait to see it!

CLANCY: Alrighty!

SHELLEY: Thanks Clancy.

CLANCY: Any more questions you have before you sign off?

SHELLEY: I think we’re good.

CLANCY: You think you’re good. Okay. (laughing) All right… Seeya later, Shelley.

SHELLEY: Have a great day!

CLANCY: Bye-bye.

SHELLEY: Bye. And don’t forget, “Carnivale” on tonight at 8:00, on HBO2. And now you have all the answers, as you watch the show!

The Adventures of Dirt Girl & the Dust Bowl Kid


"Dirt Girl" Beth & Clancy


"The Dust Bowl Kid" Kim & Clancy

Hey there,

We've been hanging onto this for six months now because, well, we had to! And once the episode airs, we'll be able to say more. But (cutting room floor willing), there will be some pretty funny-looking additions hanging around in the dusty background of Brother Justin's New Canaan ministry, next episode -- namely, me & Kim!

Yes, thanks to the unbelievable kindness of two wonderful gentlemen, co-moderator Kim & I were invited to spend a couple days on the set of "Carnivale" this past June. And even more amazing -- we got to be background extras!

We aren't entirely sure if the scenes we are in will be in this episode or the next, and there's always the possibility we could be cut out entirely. But in the previews for this week's episode, they show a line of people queued up at a soup wagon at the New Canaan site, and another of Tommy and Justin discussing the growing ministry (in front of an outhouse!) We were background players when both of those scenes, (and a few others, too), were shot. So, this may be the weekend that the episode airs.

We sure don't look like ourselves in this episode. (At least I HOPE we don't!) When "Carnivale" dirties you up, they DIRTY you up! We'll be serializing a report on our experiences here, on the Official Clancy Brown Fan Club Weblog where we'll be able to share a few pictures of our trip. But let's just say that Carny dirt is the gift that keeps on giving... three days and about six showers later!

Kim and I have put up the photos above so you can get an idea of who to look for. I've got a baby in my arms or in a burgundy baby carriage in every scene we're in, a faded green rag of a dress (which probably looks MUD-colored on camera) and a brown hat to cover my modern haircut. Kim is in pigtails with a cowboy hat, wearing overalls and a pair of men's clod-hopper boots, and is carrying around a suitcase most of the time. We were in most shots together, but did get seperated for a time, so we're not ALWAYS standing near one another. There's a scene where we're all tramping down a road, and Kim wasn't in that shot (so it was just me and my rubber bay-beh, and a long line of fellow Okies.)

Anyway, we'll be able to tell you more about this adventure after the episode airs. (We still have promises to keep.) But please allow us to say how completely professional everyone on the "Carnivale" team was, and how unfailingly kind they were to a couple of newbies in their midst. These are all good people, doing amazing work, week after week. They are a class act, to be sure.

It was an experience neither of us will ever forget, and we have many, many people to thank. But to DK, and most especially CB, we cannot express how grateful we are for your generosity and kindness. It was the trip of a lifetime! Thank you for everything you did for us, and thank you for everything you do for ALL of us!

We'll have more to tell you about this adventure soon. For now, feel free to laugh at the photos of Dirt Girl & the Dust Bowl Kid above. Frankly, I thought Clancy was gonna bust a gut when he caught his first glimpse of us. And Dan just giggled evilly and suggested that maybe we should get our teeth dirtied up a bit, too. LOL! (Diabolical man...) :)

Gentlemen, for the six inch thick muddy ring around our bathtub, the hotel maid thanks you. (And we thank you, too!) You're the best...

Cheers!
-- Beth & Kim

CarnyCon • the Online Carnivale Convention OPEN SOON!




Coming Soon! CarnyCon Opens to the public Thursday, February 24th, 2005!

www.CarnyCon.com

Hurry! Hurry! Hurry!

Ladies and Gentlemen, Madames et Messieurs, Damen und Herren, step right up...

Prepare yourselves to enter the wondrous, the exotic world of the mysterious Carnivale!

Stroll our midway. Feast your eyes upon the amazing and the bizarre. Partake in a friendly game of chance, or enter a different realm and communicate with "the other side."

What fortunes may be foretold within? What secrets may be revealed? What treasures might be purchased, should one throw one's self with abandon into the thrills & chills of our tent revival/auction? And who might you run into in the press of the crowd?

There's only one way to find out...

Join us for CarnyCon, the Online "Carnivale" Convention, opening Thursday, February 24th!

Remember... Admission is FREE!

Decoding Carnivale with Clancy Brown
January 10th, 2005

This is the transcript from Clancy’s radio call-in segment on Southwest Michigan’s WIRX/Rock 107.1, with Shelley Morgan.

SHELLEY MORGAN: Hey, it’s close enough to 4:20. It’s never too early for 4:20, is it? I didn’t think so, because it’s time to “Decode Carnivale.” (“Carnivale” theme song starts up) Clancy Brown, the star of HBO’s “Carnivale” on the phone from LA, where it’s raining and crazy there, huh?

CLANCY BROWN: The house that you see on the news was just around the corner from us.

SHELLEY: No!

CLANCY: It’s just been a big pain in the ass getting’ in and out (chuckling), ya know, dropping my daughter off at school and coming home. I mean, it’s crazy here. And then the biggest storm is supposedly coming in tonight! (laughing)

SHELLEY: And so you’re gonna get even more… Oh, fun.

CLANCY: Yeah, we lost power last night. A big ol’ tree right in front of John Wells, who’s the executive producer of, uh…

SHELLEY: “ER”!

CLANCY: “ER”, yeah, among other things… And a big ol’ tree in front of his house fell down and took out power. So I got to yell at him, “Goddamit, Wells!” (laughing)

SHELLEY: It’s all your fault! You shoulda dug up that tree years ago!

CLANCY: Yeah, we all had great fun.

SHELLEY: So, it’s good that you got to see the show ahead of time…

CLANCY: It sure is! Cuz I wouldn’t have seen it otherwise!

SHELLEY: I liked it… but I didn’t like it.

CLANCY: Yeah?

SHELLEY: Yeah, I liked it because… It’s cool, it’s kinda cool to reacquaint yourself with your old friends.

CLANCY: Yeah.

SHELLEY: However twisted they may be…

CLANCY: Right.

SHELLEY: But… I don’t know! There was definitely a different sensibility, a different feeling. It wasn’t shrouded in mystery. It was, “Here’s this, and here’s this, and here’s this, and here’s this…”

CLANCY: Yeah, and once you got all that stuff, then it sort of stopped for a second, as Ben started driving, and started breaking into buildings, and looking for files…

SHELLEY: Yeah.

CLANCY: And you’re like, why is this so tedious? (chuckling)

SHELLEY: I’m going, okay, I know it’s going to take… I know I’m going to find something out.

CLANCY: Um-hmm.

SHELLEY: It was really interesting at the beginning to have Samson do the whole, “Here, we’re catching you up and telling you this, and it’s in a riddle kind of thing.” He did a great job with really weird lines!

CLANCY: Yeah, yeah. I don’t really know why that’s there.

SHELLEY: You’re just… like going, “THE FATE OF MANKIND!”

CLANCY: (laughs)

SHELLEY: How about that?

CLANCY: Geesh…

SHELLEY: I just thought this a little TV show…

CLANCY: Yes…

SHELLEY: I guess not, I guess we have higher aspirations for this.

CLANCY: Yes, of course. Yeah, it seemed a little… That part was… I mean, like the show’s not pretentious enough! (Laughing) You know? It just kinda had that at the top! Like, oh, you guys… come on.

SHELLEY: I mean, it was cool to get the quick recap of everything that happened in the first season.

CLANCY: Uh-huh.

SHELLEY: Then, you know, it started right back up.

CLANCY: Yeah.

SHELLEY: Right from the flaming bus and the whole thing!

CLANCY: No kiddin’. Well, it just picked up right where we left off.

SHELLEY: And I love that, rather than, “Three Months Later…”

CLANCY: Yeah, exactly. My favorite thing was… This is why Nick Stahl is the best actor in America. The first ten minutes, he’s having a conversation… with a curtain.

SHELLEY: (at the same time) With a CURTAIN! I know! (laughing)

CLANCY: And it’s… You actually are interested in it! I mean, it’s really good! He’s great!

SHELLEY: Oh, he’s amazing!

CLANCY: And then the next time you see him, the next big up-chuck of exposition, is the guy that comes back into the Temple and he hits him over the head with the phone… And then they just start talking, and the guy is just lying there. And he never gets up! (laughing)

SHELLEY: No, he doesn’t. Well, he just got hit in the head with a 1930’s telephone.

CLANCY: Right, he just got hit in the head with a 1930s telephone, and he’s lying there, he can’t get up, he refuses to get up. And then, at the end, he gives us one last piece of information… and then he passes out -- after about ten minutes.

SHELLEY: Well… you know.

CLANCY: I don’t mean to make fun of my own show, because I love this show, and I love the dialogue and everything else. But those were two moments that just proved to me that Nick Stahl is THE best actor in America! (laughing)

SHELLEY: Okay! (laughing) Thank you for that!

(Station Break)

SHELLEY: How ‘bout we Decode some more “Carnivale? (“Carnivale” theme starts playing) Clancy Brown, Brother Justin Crowe from HBO’s “Carnivale” on the phone. Hey, last night, Clancy, we got a few more clues into what’s going on with your character – some lost Gospels or something. What the…? What’s up with that?

CLANCY: The Lost Gospel of Mathias… William Talbot Smith, and he’s listening to the radio broadcast… Actually, William Talbot Smith actually existed. He was an occultist back in the day.

SHELLEY: Really?

CLANCY: Yeah. And so, somehow, Dan Knauf got ahold of his memoirs or something, and decided to put them in the show.

SHELLEY: Well, this makes sense!

CLANCY: Yeah, and so he’s looking for me or the…

SHELLEY: He’s looking for The Usher.

CLANCY: The Usher, yeah.

SHELLEY: Cuz it says, “The Usher shall declare, Thou shalt be strong.” And you said it at the same time he was reading it.

CLANCY: … He was reading it. Right, exactly

SHELLEY: Which was just chills, baby!

CLANCY: Oh, yeah?

SHELLEY: It was just awesome!

CLANCY: That was a good moment then, huh?

SHELLEY: Oh yeah, well, c’mon… You’re… You got some good dialogue!

CLANCY: I have fun. I have fun preaching, that’s for sure.

SHELLEY: (laughing) And so, then, he shows up at the end and gives you the Gospel of Mathias.

CLANCY: Right.

SHELLEY: And Henry Scudder’s name was on the inside.

CLANCY: Which I can only assume that this is some kind of Gospel that has been handed down through the generations.

SHELLEY: Right, it’s one of those Lost Gospel kind of things…

CLANCY: Right, but that specific book goes to some Avatar or another. I mean, I really don’t know what that means.

SHELLEY: Well, maybe we’ll find out this season and maybe we won’t! (laughing)

CLANCY: Yeah, right.

SHELLEY: When Scudder dies, Justin will receive the divine blood. Now, is that good blood or…?

CLANCY: Yeah, what was that? That was at the tree, right? Cuz I have to kill him with my own hand or something like that?

SHELLEY: Yeah! So is that good blood or is that bad blood?

CLANCY: Well, I think, at this point, clearly, nobody knows! I don’t even think Justin knows, ya know? I think he knows that now he’s got information that he has to do it. And then he’s been handed this book, which he’s very happy to have.

SHELLEY: Uh-huh. It might be a…

CLANCY: But I don’t think he knows exactly what team he’s playin’on. Well, he does know, in a way. He knows he’s playing on God’s team. That’s Justin. Justin is convinced that, even if it seems dark and awful, it is still God’s will, so...

SHELLEY: And Justin got a little this week!

CLANCY: (with a smile) Did he?

SHELLEY: Of course, he did!

CLANCY: (playing out the rope) He did?

SHELLEY: Didn’t we see him go to the whorehouse?

CLANCY: Well, we saw him walk into the…

SHELLEY: Oh, come on!!!

CLANCY: (slyly) I’m not saying anything! I think maybe that’s one of these, one of the reasons this show is so brilliant, is that it presents something to you, and then you fill in the blanks, and you’re inevitably wrong.

SHELLEY: (laughing) I dunno… He had lustful thoughts.

CLANCY: (Hook, line….) Did he have lustful thoughts?

SHELLEY: (exasperated) OF COURSE, he did…

CLANCY: (sinker) Really…?

SHELLEY: Those lustful thoughts, at least, were projected on your face.

CLANCY: (Really having fun with this now) REALLY?

SHELLEY: YES!

CLANCY: You think so?

SHELLEY: Of course, I think so!

CLANCY: You know, lust can look like anger, can look like confusion…

SHELLEY: But, ya know…

CLANCY: Ya know, I’ve done these scenes before, where you have to pretend like you’re makin’ love, and you…you… You make funny faces. (chuckling)

SHELLEY: Well, yeah!

CLANCY: And those funny faces can be anything, in reality.

SHELLEY: Yeah? Okay…

CLANCY: It’s always the context. (laughing)

SHELLEY: But I saw the camera angles that were being cut between you and her.

CLANCY: Uh-huh…

SHELLEY: And where you were supposedly looking…

CLANCY: Uh-huh…? (still not giving Shelley a break)

SHELLEY: So then…

CLANCY: (laughing)

SHELLEY: You got up and went to the whorehouse.

CLANCY: Oh, this must be in the preview, right?

SHELLEY: No, this was last night!

CLANCY: (Not realizing she’s talking about Iris now) No….

SHELLEY: YEAH!

CLANCY: No, cuz all I did was walk in the door last night.

SHELLEY: Well, I know you just walked in the door!

CLANCY: Yeah.

SHELLEY: I’m sure you’re just there to save souls…

CLANCY: She’s a little tiny Japanese girl!

SHELLEY: (teasing) You were there to save souls, I’m sure…

CLANCY: Sure, I was!

SHELLEY: Yeah.

CLANCY: Ya know, I’m the one that…

SHELLEY: Yeah, you’re the Good Guy, I forgot. (chuckling)

CLANCY: I’m the one who took over Chins and turned it into a mission, rather than a bordello.

SHELLEY: Yeah, uh-huh…

CLANCY: Okay?

SHELLEY: Well, then obviously you had seen the inside of it before…

CLANCY: So, I’m doing a little one-on-one soul-saving, perhaps.

SHELLEY: (laughing) Yeah, that’s what that is…

CLANCY: Perhaps. Could be, just as easily as what you’ve projected onto it, Shelley… (laughing)

SHELLEY: Oh, well, I’m gonna project…

CLANCY: (razzing) Shelley… Get your mind out of the gutter, Shelley! (laughing)

SHELLEY: That’s impossible! It’s impossible for me to get the mind out of the gutter!.

CLANCY: (evil chuckle)

(Station break)

SHELLEY: WIRX, Clancy Brown, otherwise known as Brother Justin Crowe on HBO’s “Carnivale”, hanging out with us this afternoon, talking about “Carnivale’s” season premiere last night. And they kinda pretty much picked up where last season left off. There was a big fire in the Carnivale. And last night, Clea Duvall’s character loses her catatonic mom, Apollonia, in the fire at the Carnivale. And she was just.. She was, I dunno, pretty amazing!

CLANCY: Clea was brilliant, I thought, in last night’s… She’s such a good actress. She’s uh… She was all upset.

SHELLEY: She plays Sofie.

CLANCY: Yeah. And she was…

SHELLEY: She wanted to apologize to Jonesy, and he wasn’t having any of it.

CLANCY: No!

SHELLEY: Because he had caught her, at the end of last season with, uh…

CLANCY: With the girl, Libby.

SHELLEY: Libby. They were makin’ out, and Libby was naked.

CLANCY: Yeah.

SHELLEY: Or almost naked.

CLANCY: Yeah!

SHELLEY: And Jonesy wasn’t too thrilled by that.

CLANCY: And neither was she, actually. Neither was Libby.

SHELLEY: Though Libby seems to be over it.

CLANCY: Well, you know, women are smarter than men that way. (laughing)

SHELLEY: Yeah, you think?

CLANCY: They can,.. They can, sort of accept what the situation is and ask for forgiveness a lot easier than macho men like Jonesy.

SHELLEY: Yeah, you’re right. He is pretty macho.

CLANCY: He is. He’s lookin’ good. He’s lookin’ like John Wayne to me.

SHELLEY: He DOES, doesn’t he?!?

CLANCY: Yeah.

SHELLEY: There’s this whole kind of goodness around him.

CLANCY: Yeah.

SHELLEY: There’s the shady dealings of the Carnivale, and there’s the whole Brother Justin thing, and you don’t really know whether he’s good or evil.

CLANCY: Right.

SHELLEY: But then, you’ve got Jonesy, and he’s the moral pillar… Except, ya know, he did do Rita Sue.

CLANCY: Yeah. Yeah, he’s not THAT moral! (chuckling)

SHELLEY: I know, but there’s something about him… There’s something that’s inherently good about him.

CLANCY: Yeah. He’s John Wayne! You know, he’s the icon. He’s the baseball player, he’s wounded. He’s good. He’s a good, good man. He can fix anything. Every woman should want to marry him.

SHELLEY: Okay!

CLANCY: And then, when he cheats on ‘em, they’ll forgive him.

SHELLEY: Because it’s…

CLANCY: Because he’s…

SHELLEY: John Wayne.

CLANCY: John Wayne, exactly.

SHELLEY: Works for me.

CLANCY: Next week, because our power was out here, at my house in LA, I didn’t see the previews, so I don’t know…

SHELLEY: Well, you were talking to Stroud on the radio.

CLANCY: Oh, yes! Oh boy, is he good or what?

SHELLEY: He was pretty awesome.

CLANCY: That was like the scariest shot of that actor I’ve ever seen, in this episode, when he’s listening to Brother Justin and those shadows played… That looks like a scary dude!

SHELLEY: He was maniacal.

CLANCY: John Carroll Lynch. He’s so good in this show. Very fun to watch.

SHELLEY: I’m very excited to see how, number one, he gets out of jail…

CLANCY: Uh-huh.

SHELLEY: If he’s gonna be your apostle and your archangel.

CLANCY: Yup, he’s my apostle and archangel. He’s the guy.

SHELLEY: It’s gonna be sweet, man. Everybody wants one of those, don’t they?

CLANCY: Yeah, but you don’t want to marry him! (chuckling)

SHELLEY: No! (laughing) I understand that.

CLANCY: You just wanna have his devotion, but no vows.

SHELLEY: (laughing) But if he’s an apostle, he’s gonna be off wandering around, and that’s not what you’re looking for in a man.

CLANCY: Exactly. Proselytizing.

SHELLEY: Exactly. Okay… So Clancy, thanks for checking in with us today and trying to help us decode “Carnivale.” We definitely, definitely appreciate it. And, of course, HBO will be showing it a couple of times this week, and then new episodes each and every Sunday night, on HBO. Clancy Brown, Brother Justin Crowe, thank you so much for hanging out with us today.

Happy 46th Birthday, Clancy!



From your friends & fans at the Official Clancy Brown Fan Club...