Olivia: Alright Jackson, you've read the book. Give me your five-word review of Office BFFs. Jackson: Okay, five words... "Friendship, placenta, chaos, love, sweaters." How's that? Olivia: Placenta is a bold choice, but honestly? Accurate. It perfectly captures the wild, hilarious, and surprisingly deep journey this book takes us on. Jackson: It really does. And we're talking about Office BFFs: Tales of The Office from Two Best Friends Who Were There, by Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey. What's amazing is this isn't just some fan-service cash-in. This book grew out of their real-life desire to keep working together after the show, and it even won a Goodreads Choice Award for Humor. Olivia: Exactly. It’s a scrapbook, a love letter, and a survival guide all in one, written by two women who were in the trenches together. And those trenches were sometimes... very, very strange.

Jackson: That’s the perfect way to put it. The book makes it so clear that the magic of The Office wasn't just in the writing, but in this bizarre, wonderful chemistry the cast had from the very beginning. Where does that even start? Olivia: Well, nothing captures that 'special sauce' of the show's early days better than the story of the "Diversity Day" episode. This was only the second episode ever, and it was a huge risk. Jackson: Oh, I remember that one. Michael Scott at his most cringeworthy. That feels like an episode that would get a show cancelled today, not launch it. Olivia: Absolutely. The writer, B.J. Novak, who also played Ryan, was terrified. The concept came from a real corporate diversity training some of the staff had endured. For the show, they had the cast wear cards on their foreheads with different ethnicities and then interact based on stereotypes. They had to wear them for twelve hours of filming. Jackson: Twelve hours? That sounds like a recipe for disaster. Or at least a very uncomfortable HR meeting. Olivia: You'd think so! But it became this weird, intense bonding experience. They were all in it together, forced to improvise and react in this absurd situation. It forged this sense of trust. And you have to remember the context: they all thought they were going to be fired at any moment. Steve Carell famously said during the pilot table read, "One day this photo will be worth money. Especially after they fire me and replace me with a new actor for episode two." Jackson: Wow. So it was this mix of high stakes and total absurdity. That explains a lot. It wasn't just actors showing up to say their lines; they were building the world from the ground up. Olivia: Precisely. And the showrunner, Greg Daniels, encouraged that. He valued the actors' input. A perfect example is the origin of Angela Martin's whole 'crazy cat lady' persona. It wasn't in the original script. Jackson: No way. That feels so essential to her character. Olivia: It came from Angela Kinsey herself. During the pilot, the director told the background actors to just look busy. Angela, not wanting to just shuffle papers, doodled a cat on a Post-it and invented a backstory for it. She decided her character, Angela, had found a cat named Sprinkles in the parking lot and was planning its third birthday party. Jackson: She just made that up on the spot? Olivia: Completely. She even made little invitations and passed them out to the cast, but she deliberately didn't give one to John Krasinski, because she decided her character would think Jim was too sarcastic for a cat party. Jackson: That is brilliant. Olivia: And it paid off! Later, during an improvised scene, Pam mentions Angela's cat party to Jim. The writers saw it, loved it, and the legend of Sprinkles was born. That's the 'special sauce'—this deep, collaborative spirit where a small, improvised moment could become a major storyline. It was a true ensemble, built on trust and a shared sense of the absurd.

Jackson: That collaborative spirit is one thing, but the book also pulls back the curtain on the less-than-glamorous side of things. It’s not all red carpets and awards. Olivia: Not even close. Their stories about breaking into the Hollywood party scene are hilarious and so relatable. Take their first Golden Globes experience. Steve Carell was nominated, and the cast was invited to the NBCUniversal viewing party. They were ecstatic. Jackson: Right, this is their big moment! They're finally on the inside. Olivia: Well, sort of. They get all dressed up—Angela in a dress from Macy's, Jenna borrowing a gown—and they arrive to find the 'party' is on the roof of the hotel parking garage. Jackson: A parking lot party! That’s a bit like being invited to the cool kids' party, but you have to stay in the backyard. Olivia: Exactly. But they made the most of it. And when Steve won, they went absolutely wild, screaming and celebrating. In the chaos, Angela accidentally smacked Phyllis in the face with Steve's actual Golden Globe award. Jackson: You can't make this stuff up. But it also shows how much they were a real team, genuinely rooting for each other. Olivia: They were. But the book is full of these reality checks. Jenna tells this incredible story about going to the premiere of Steve's movie, The 40-Year-Old Virgin. She's wearing this beautiful silk slip dress and feels so glamorous. She walks the whole red carpet, poses for photos, feels like she's finally made it. Jackson: I feel a 'but' coming... Olivia: A huge 'but'. She sits down in the theater and realizes the entire time, the back of her slip dress was tucked into her underwear. And not just any underwear. It was, in her words, her 'laundry day undies'—the ones with a butterfly-and-flowers print. Jackson: Oh no. That is a nightmare. But also, deeply, deeply funny. It humanizes the whole experience. Olivia: It really does. And that's the point they make over and over. The glamour is mostly an illusion. They had to learn the unwritten rules, like how to pose on a red carpet. Their first attempt was at a charity event called 'Paws for Style.' Jackson: Sounds adorable. Olivia: The reality was them awkwardly standing on a faux-wood walkway while Jenna's dog, Wesley, tried to escape her arms and Angela just froze in front of the cameras. They were a mess. They had to go home and practice poses in the mirror. It wasn't natural; it was another part of the job they had to learn. Jackson: It’s so refreshing to hear that. It reminds you that behind every polished celebrity photo, there's probably a 'laundry day undies' story waiting to be told. Their real-life awkwardness was part of their charm, and it’s what made the show feel so authentic.

Olivia: And that authenticity is what defines their friendship, which had to evolve long after the cameras stopped rolling and they weren't seeing each other every day. Jackson: That’s the real test, isn't it? When the 'work family' scatters and you have to navigate real life. Olivia: And their lives went in very different directions for a while. The book has this story that perfectly captures it. Angela had just had her first baby and was in the thick of chaotic new motherhood. She sent Jenna a text that read something like: "Is it normal to be bleeding this much? The baby just pooped on me while I was breastfeeding and I think my nipple is bleeding too." Jackson: Wow. That is a cry for help from the trenches of parenthood. Olivia: It was. But Jenna received this text while she was hosting a poker night with a bunch of single, child-free friends. She was in what they call the 'sexy life' phase. She just stared at her phone, completely horrified and having no idea how to respond. Jackson: I can just picture that. The disconnect is immense. How do you even bridge that gap? Olivia: It was tough. For a while, they drifted. But their bond was too strong. And the stories of how they supported each other are just incredible. The ultimate test of friendship, though, has to be the placenta story. Jackson: The... the what? You mentioned placenta in your five-word review, and I was hoping you were kidding. Olivia: Not at all. When Jenna gave birth to her son, she wanted to have her placenta encapsulated into pills, which is a thing some people do to help with postpartum recovery. But she needed someone to transport the placenta from the hospital to the person who does the encapsulation. Jackson: And she asked Angela. Of course, she did. Olivia: She handed Angela a cooler with her placenta in it. As Jenna says in the book, "When your friend has transported your placenta in a cooler, you’ve crossed the best-friendship finish line right there." Jackson: That's a new friendship goal for all of us. Forget being a bridesmaid; are you a placenta-transporter? Olivia: It's the ultimate level. And that deep, ride-or-die friendship is what led them to their next chapter. They were both feeling a bit lost in their careers, tired of the grueling TV schedules and missing their kids. They wanted to create something themselves. Jackson: And that's where the Office Ladies podcast comes in. Olivia: Exactly. They realized there was this huge, passionate fanbase that was still rewatching the show, and no one was doing a definitive rewatch podcast. So they decided to do it themselves. They built their own table, as they put it. They became 'Boss Ladies.' Jackson: I love that. They took the collaborative skills they learned on set—the trust, the improvisation, the mutual support—and built a new career out of it. It brings everything full circle.

Olivia: It really does. It shows that the show wasn't just a job for them. It was a nine-year masterclass in partnership. Jackson: That’s a great way to put it. This book isn't just a collection of funny stories, though it is incredibly funny. It's really a blueprint for how a shared creative struggle can build the foundation for a lifelong friendship and a powerful partnership. Olivia: Exactly. And Angela's advice at the end of the book is the perfect takeaway for all of us. She says to find that friend who makes you feel ten feet tall and bulletproof. Build them up, encourage them, and show up for each other. Jackson: I love that. It’s about linking arms and walking into any crowd, as she says, 'fake-laughing like you own the world.' Olivia: And you will. It makes you think about the 'work families' in our own lives and the unexpected, profound friendships that can come from the most ordinary places—even a paper company in Scranton. Jackson: It's a great reminder to appreciate those connections. We'd love to hear from our listeners about this. What are some of the friendships you've forged at work that have lasted? Find us on our socials and share your stories. Olivia: This is Aibrary, signing off.