How They Got it Made [with Carter Bays, Series Co-Creator]

On this week's episode of How We Made Your Mother, we welcome the most special of guests: The co-creator, co-writer, co-showrunner and Executive Producer of How I Met Your Mother, the legendary... Carter Bays! If you’ve ever wondered how you get a show on the air, especially one that is all framed as a flashback, or one that is framed as a flashback and uses even more flashbacks (and flashforwards) in that flashback, or one that is framed as a flashback and uses flashbacks and flashforwards that also has its characters evolve and change, oh and also has maybe 65 or 70 scenes per episode and sometimes will take a few minutes break from comedy to go full drama, oh and has a really long, bizarre title, oh that is being written by two guys who look young enough to be their own kids… … well this is the podcast episode for you. This is How We Got it Made. Later this week, look out for a bonus episode, where Carter and Craig talk about how they met, played music together, were hired by Letterman, and all their stops on the road to HIMYM. Spoilers: In this ep of the pod, we don't dive into a specific HIMYM episode juuuuust yet. NEXT week, we begin our official episode rewatch, starting with the How I Met Your Mother pilot. Rewatch with us and subscribe so you don’t miss an episode! CONNECT WITH THE SHOW: Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages) Substack (Join the mailing list, get announcements, and read more from Josh and Craig) Instagram HOW YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE: Donate to our ongoing campaign to support congenital heart disease research AND MORE: Josh’s “Museletters” on Substack Josh’s Official Website Josh on Spotify Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing) Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS: Nutrafol: Start your hair growth journey with Nutrafol at nutrafol.com and enter the code YOURMOTHER ADVERTISING INQUIRIES: hwmym@wearebv.com AND IN CASE IT HELPS: 00:00 The Impact of 'How I Met Your Mother' on Personal Lives 04:46 The Journey of Pitching the Show 14:54 Creating a Unique Narrative Structure 20:05 Casting Challenges and Triumphs 30:14 The Audition Experience 35:48 Creating Robin Scherbatsky 44:09 The Pressure of Network Tests 49:30 Listener Stories and Reflections Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Om Podcasten

HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, a groundbreaking sitcom that ran for 208 episodes on CBS from 2005-2014, unfolds entirely as a flashback, using a time-bending narrative structure that spotlights the lives of five friends navigating love, friendship, dating, careers, failure, and success in New York City. The show has remained vibrantly alive in our collective pop culture memory, with fans around the world still sharing stories of how HIMYM is not just a hilarious comedy but also medicine for the soul in hard times. Now, JOSH RADNOR (who played “Ted Mosby”) has teamed up with series co-creator CRAIG THOMAS to explore, episode-by-episode, the mystery at the heart of what has made this show so durable and beloved. It’s time – much like the older, wiser narrator Ted does in the show – to look back on this adventure that occupied a pivotal decade of their lives: how the show changed them, how it changed its fans, and how it changed the culture. With plenty of special guests joining us along the way, this podcast will use HIMYM’s trenchant themes as jumping-off points for larger discussions about life, loss, and love. This is HOW WE MADE YOUR MOTHER: A flashback podcast for a flashback show.