Amy Poehler out-delights everyone at the Time 100 Gala each year she’s there. When we brought this up to her at the annual event last night (“You’re the queen of the ball at these things,†we said), she replied just as a charming person would. “Oh, no! That sounds terrible.†Here’s how the rest of the conversation went.
No, in a good way — you always have good speeches, funny things to say …
You know you just totally jinxed me! [Laughs.] There’s nowhere to go but down!
No, no. So I was going to ask, what are your tips for having a great Time 100?
Oh! Well, get invited, that’s always nice. Wow. Honestly, it’s the coolest night, because you get to meet incredibly smart, dynamic, forward-thinking people — and also, actors are here.
Anyone you’re excited to meet tonight?
Well, let’s see. I’m actually excited to meet the three physicians [Hannah Gay, Katherine Luzuriaga, and Deborah Persaud] who cured AIDS in newborn babies. Seems like tonight should really just be the three of them onstage, and the rest of us should be, the rest of us should be uh … [motions in the back]. Oh, and Miguel! Miguel is my jam. And he’s sitting at my table! [Cackles.] And his record is awesome! Oh! He’s right there! I’ve made eye contact with Miguel!
Before you dart over to him, you had such a great “Ask Amy†video …
Awww, thank you!
But on a lighter note, since that was very serious, I wanted to ask you about Boston pride …
You know, Boston’s the best city in the world. I love it; I love everything about Boston. I love the spirit, the intelligence, the open-mindedness, the narrow-mindedness, I love how grouchy everybody is, I love how loving everybody is. I’m happy for the … you know what I loved? I have some relatives who work in hospitals, and I loved Boston hospitals getting their shine. Even though it was such a terrible tragedy, but those hospitals are the best in the world, and I was so proud to be from there. But wait … something light …
Well, what do they get grouchy about? What’s there to get grouchy about?
Are you fucking kidding me? There’s a lot to get grouchy about! [Laughs.] The weather sucks! Bostonians are East Coast people. I like East Coast people; they talk fast, they say what they think, and like the weather, they don’t have smoothed-out edges from the weather. And so in what was a terrible tragedy, I was happy to see that the people of Boston kind of maintained what’s best about them, which is loyalty, community, all that stuff. And I’m glad Joey McIntyre [from New Kids on the Block] is okay.