Tim Meadows gets a boost from improv work and his famous fans Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert
The Chicago improv scene is known for launching the careers of some of comedy’s most beloved superstars.
But it can also provide a mid-career boost.
Just ask Tim Meadows, an alum of The Second City and iO Theater, who returned to Chicago during the aughts to be closer to his kids following his divorce.
An opportunity to improvise regularly with Second City alums Joe Canale and Brad Morris was a saving grace.
“I was in a state of being somewhat depressed, and I was kind of questioning my talent and my career,” said Meadows, 63, who had followed a 10-season stint on “Saturday Night Live” with a few film roles at the time.”It was sort of a re-affirmation to myself that I had talent and that the things that had happened to me in my career weren't a fluke.”
Meadows, Canale and Morris are now known as Uncle’s Brother. The trio, along with Matt Walsh (of “Veep” fame), will headline iO Fest with two sold-out shows on Friday at iO Theater.
“I think we bring different strengths to scenes when it's called for,” Meadows said. “We know when it's time to be the straight man or when it's time to be the main person. We have an enormous amount of trust with each other and we support each other's choices onstage. And then the other thing is that we try to make each other laugh.”
The festival appearance is happening during a successful year for Meadows, who starred in the hit movie musical “Mean Girls” in January. With forthcoming roles in Max’s superhero TV series “Peacemaker,” a Netflix Christmas movie with Lindsay Lohan, and a new musical from Pharrell Williams and Michel Gondry, Meadows’ career is moving full steam ahead.
But he remains humble about his accomplishments, thanking the peers who helped him along the way.
“I owe all of this to Tina Fey,” Meadows said of the actor, comedian and “Mean Girls” writer. “I don't know why Tina likes me so much. When I was on ‘SNL’, she wrote one of my best sketches, which was the census sketch with Christopher Walken. She's given me these gifts in my career. I don't even know how to pay her back or say thank you.”
He also credits Stephen Colbert with offering support.
“He's looked out for me during periods when I didn't have a lot of work on my table,” Meadows said, and highlighted his character, P.K. Winsome, on “The Colbert Report,” and his appearances on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.”
The two men met on the Chicago improv scene and, when Colbert briefly wrote for "SNL," Meadows championed his sketches. They have remained friends and often make each other laugh during The Second City artistic advisory board meetings, Meadows said.
“And as he's gotten bigger and bigger, I always say, ‘I don't know why this guy still wants to be friends with me,’ ” Meadows said. “He's friends with the Obamas. But he still texted me on the Fourth of July and said, ‘Happy Fourth of July, Meadows.’ I was like, ‘He should be texting people more important than me.’ ”
Both Meadows and Colbert worked at iO (formerly ImprovOlympic), which Meadows described as “punk rock” during its stint at CrossCurrents on North Wilton Street in the 1980s.
“It was underground almost,” Meadows said. “It was like a dark bar and stage. It was like CBGB in New York. When I go now, it's exciting to see young people continuing to learn how to do [improv]. It's good going back. I'm glad it still exists. I hope it always exists.”
Beyond improv, Meadows has made memorable appearances on TV shows “The Office,” “Brooklyn Nine-Nine" and “The Goldbergs.” The latter inspired the 2019-20 spinoff sitcom “Schooled,” which prominently featured Meadows’ character.
Meadows is best-known for his raunchy “SNL” character “The Ladies Man,” which he reprised for a film in 2000.
“The thing I still love about it is that it's the most subversive thing that I’ve ever done,” Meadows said. “I created that character because I was making crank phone calls to people, businesses and radio stations. And I was not a nice person when I was calling these people. That character came from a guy who would do and say terrible things to people on the phone. And so when I got it on the show, my big fear was that people would recognize the voice and come after me.”
Luckily for Meadows, no one ever caught on.
Originally from Michigan, Meadows said he now splits his time between Detroit and Chicago. He can be seen around the Windy City doing yoga in some of the local studios, getting barbecue from Carson’s Ribs, listening to live music at the Green Mill or taking in a show at The Second City.
“When I come this time, I'm going to watch the White Sox play the Mariners one day,” he said.
While longtime admirers are sure to approach Meadows in public, he may be just as likely to hear from new fans. Young people have watched him in both the 2004 “Mean Girls” film and the new adaptation, for which he said he approached his role as an older version of his original character.
He recalled a recent moment in the airport when two little girls kept looking at him and smiling. Eventually, their father asked if they could take a picture with Meadows.
“It was like they saw Mickey Mouse or something,” Meadows said. “They were just all smiles and like, ‘We loved you in the movie. We saw you in the first one. My dad let us see the other one.’ … For somebody who's been in show business for 30 years, to have a kid come up to you like that, it's touching.”