Alec Baldwin interviewed Rosie O’Donnell on his podcast this week, and they covered the usual O’Donnell biographical topics: growing up without a mom, A League of Their Own, Madonna, 9/11 stuff, child-rearing. And Rosie’s old daytime talk show! O’Donnell says she initially signed on to do the show for five years and wound up doing six — though the show’s backers wanted her to do more. Grab your Koosh balls:
Rosie O’Donnell: They said yes, but in year one it was such a big hit that they said, ‘Please give us two more years. Please. We’ll give you, you know, the Oprah deal.’ So I agreed to do six. Now in my fifth year they said, ‘Please sign –
Alec Baldwin: That’s when I begged you to do the Jackie Gleason spinoff and you turned to me and said? You leaned into me very calmly – and you said, ‘I can’t.’ I’ll never forget this. You leaned into me and said, ‘I can’t.’ You said, ‘I’m about to sign a deal. I’m gonna make, quote, that sick Oprah money.’
Rosie O’Donnell: Exactly.
Alec Baldwin: I remember sitting there going, fuck. That goddamn sick Oprah money.
Rosie O’Donnell: It was. It was sick Oprah money, yeah.
Well, now you know how to start all your salary negotiations from here on out. “I would like sick Oprah money, please.â€