Ellie Kemper

“I always have ice cream in the house. I have a bowl of it, and then a bit more. One of the greatest pleasures in my life is going back and getting a second half-bowl. The first bowl is just the prelude.”

“One nice thing that I have discovered about Los Angeles is the enthusiasm with which people dress.”

“I think, regardless of gender, women and men need to be brave, take chances with their work, and be open to feedback. But I do think 'politeness' is an issue that can hinder your work if you aren't careful. Kindness is important, but being overly polite - thinking you can't disagree with someone about your own work - be careful about that.”

“I joined an improv comedy group. Ours was named 'Quick Fire!' with an exclamation point. It was when I auditioned for that team and got on it and felt like... I'll just say I felt like I was good at it.”

“My painting teacher in high school used to say, 'I can't paint like I want to, but through practice I'll get better.' But I don't think that's true. I think sometimes you just can't paint.”

“I loved 'Freaks and Geeks.' I don't know a better show.”

“If you're going to plan a wedding, then a certain amount of suffering is not a choice.”

“I am fully anticipating that something - perhaps many things - will not go according to plan on our actual wedding day. If some of the flowers are wilted, or there aren't enough vegetarian meals, or the priest calls me the wrong name, I will embrace these errors.”

“'Kimmy' first and foremost is a show about a woman overcoming the odds. I think that they write the show in a way that you're not beaten over the head with it, but showing and not telling. I think that's really powerful.”

“For a few months, I'd have a green juice every day, but one day, I realized I'd rather eat those ingredients than drink them.”

“If I'm alone, I tend to cook for myself. I do a pretty good job of preparing healthful foods. My go-to is everything in a bowl like quinoa, avocado. Later in the day, scrambled eggs. I'm not a gourmet chef. I cook in bulk very well.”

“It took two months from the day my fiance proposed to my first Google search for 'wedding planning: how?' Now, let me interrupt myself here and share how much I hate using the word 'fiance.' It's so fancy, and it's hard not to sound like a jerk saying it. Which is why I will be using my own word for fiance: gloob.”

“If I don't do some sort of exercise in a day, I do get in a terrible mood. That's always been true.”

“I need to make sure that when I'm running out to the drugstore I'm not wearing a Biore strip or something. Not that I expect anyone to recognize me, but on the off chance they do, I just don't want to embarrass myself.”

“It's interesting because with a lot of people who I've met in comedy, it seems not to matter what your background is. In terms of formal schooling - I feel like that's a nineteenth century term - but in terms of where you went to high school or college, or wherever, all that really is irrelevant, I have found, in comedy.”

“I look forward to physical activity; it's a release from stress and a nice distraction. It puts me in a better mood. I never used to take classes before, but then I tore my plantar fascia so I couldn't run. I started taking SoulCycle classes, which I know are polarizing. People have strong opinions. Even though I can run again, I still go.”

“I'm a little disappointed in myself because before getting pregnant, I resolved to do all these things during my pregnancy to nurse a healthy pregnancy. And so I'm finding in these final weeks that I didn't do any of them.”

“I can't do impressions.”

“I've participated in the Nautica Malibu Triathlon a couple of times, but only in the running portion.”

“Growing up, I had one very specific idea of what a wedding should be, and that was the wedding of Fraeulein Maria and Captain von Trapp in 'The Sound of Music.'”