Dan Levy

“I've never really loved mean comedy.”

“I never felt comfortable hosting TV.”

“In my head, I'm a purist that doesn't require anything but a group of good friends and a bottle of wine. In reality, I'm co-dependent on my iPhone and fully conscious of the fact that my attention span is corroding.”

“At the end of the day, I'm from Canada, and so there will never be a time when I'm suddenly not Canadian.”

“It's that stubborn fixation on details that has invariably prevented me from getting excited about celebrating each passing year. Which is why my friends know that doing things such as throwing me surprise parties would only serve to surprise me with an overwhelming sense of panic and anxiety.”

“We've become accustomed to repurposing and living vicariously through other people's work instead of going out and making our own.”

“Following a trend too closely is a risky thing. If not properly executed, you could easily end up looking uncomfortable, over-styled, and downright foolish.”

“It's important to tell queer stories and to show queer relationships in a very normal setting.”

“There was a commonality in a lot of the private school experiences that I had of children whose lives were not their own. They thought they were their own, but they were essentially gifted this life by their parents. So they were spending money; they were going on trips - I guess, in a way, it is their life, but they didn't earn it.”

“I remember, before I started high school, I was really intrigued by the Buddy Holly/James Dean style of glasses. This was a long, long time before they were sold at every Urban Outfitters.”

“So often, I think shows get into these grooves where they know the characters hit, and they just write for it over and over and over again.”

“I know that in writer's rooms across North America, there are still conversations about how much is too much when it comes to intimacy between, in my case, two men. That's an insane conversation to be having.”

“I always try, if I can, to travel before I start a writing project. For me, travelling is my education. It inspires me, and it clears my mind and allows me to come back with a cleansed palate.”

“There was a time in my life when people called me 'Denim Dan.' I didn't like it. And fortunately for my self-esteem, it didn't stick for very long. I was 12, and I was given the name by my classmates after I showed up to the first day of school in - wait for it - triple denim.”

“'Simply the Best' has always been one of my favourite songs and a song that I've always thought was far deeper than what you imagine it to be at first listen. I found the lyrics to be really, oddly beautiful, considering you rarely stop and think about them.”

“'Real talk' refers to the act of speaking the honest truth about something or someone without fear of consequence.”

“I never pictured L.A. as a hub for amazing food, which I learned quite quickly is sheer naivete. The restaurants here are insane.”

“I grew up with my dad sitting us down at the holidays and putting on 'The Honeymooners.'”

“I had always been scared of the unknown, and I think it had a lot to do with a lack of self-confidence (and wearing thick, dark-rimmed glasses before they were considered cool).”