Allison Tolman

“Someone asked me about how it feels to wear the same costume every day and whether it gets tired or boring, but the good thing about it is that you know what to expect, every day.”

“Our TV and movie cops are usually in heels and pencil skirts.”

“I've never had money before in my life. Ever. Never, ever.”

“The best thing I ever learned when I first started acting is that you audition, and then you forget about it when you walk out the door. Even when you have a callback, you can't bank on things until you actually book that job, or your heart will just be broken over and over again.”

“I taped my original audition for 'Fargo' with my agency in Chicago, Stewart Talent.”

“Body-shaming is something I feel really strongly about. I think about my niece, I think about my friends who have daughters being on the Internet and reading these things, and it just makes me furious. It makes me so angry.”

“It's interesting to play a female character who's not ever using feminine wiles to get things done.”

“I moved to Chicago when I was 28, and I wasn't completely idealistic about going to Second City and making a living from comedy, but I knew it would be great for the resume.”

“I've always had a day job and never been just acting.”

“I tend to play nurses and waitresses and policewomen.”

“I worked for three years in a small IT firm in Chicago. I managed our client base, so I translated into human speak for our technicians. But our company was sold, and the atmosphere and the culture really changed, so I quit without having anything else lined up.”

“'The Secret Garden' was the first musical that I fell in love with when I was a kid. My mom took me to see it, and it was the first one that I owned the soundtrack to and listened to over and over again.”

“I worked in IT, which is all boys, and I was the queen of the boys. That's what I did. I was the one who knew where the paper towels were, which was very important. And I organized happy hours and things like that.”

“I was working, like, 14-hour days on 'Fargo,' and now if I schedule more than two things in a day, I'm like, 'Whoa, you guys. That's two train rides, and I have to plan for an hour-and-a-half lunch with my cat.'”

“I originally wanted to stay in Chicago as long as I could. I love Chicago. I don't love L.A. I don't want to leave Chicago.”

“I'm aware me getting a role out of Chicago as a complete unknown is an insane anomaly, so I knew I'd have to get out here to L.A. as soon as the door opened.”

“I'm hoping I can evade a type and go for roles based on what I consider plausible and what I consider good.”

“I moved to Chicago and I did theater, and then I started writing and I stop acting and I did sketch. You know, I did all of the things that, if you were serious about doing television, don't do.”

“I went to New York for the first time when I was in college for a school trip and, uh, it did not appeal to me. It was too much hustle and bustle. And I have since now found a New York where if I lived there now, I know where I would want to live.”

“Improv training allows you to get out of your head a little bit and take more risks, which is something I would like to continue to improve upon.”