Amy Poehler parlayed a successful run on Saturday Night Live into a role as a local government official on Parks and Recreation—but the earliest days of her career found her in a different City Hall.
Three years before her SNL debut, Poehler appeared on an episode of Spin City, the Michael J. Fox-led sitcom about a group of employees in the New York City mayor’s office. Poehler’s turn came in the Season 2 episode “Single White Male,” broadcast on May 6, 1998. At that time, Poehler’s TV work had largely consisted of sketch appearances on Late Night with Conan O’Brien, including the recurring character of Andy Richter’s little sister.
Though Spin City was one of her earliest TV credits, the gig offered the future SNL star a decent amount of screen time.
In the episode, Poehler plays Susan, a prospective roommate for Carter (Michael Boatman), who has just kicked his coworker Stuart (Alan Ruck) out of the apartment for being a nuisance. When Susan arrives at City Hall to meet Carter about the vacancy, she encounters Stuart, who scares her off with an animated claim that Carter is a devil worshiper.
She reappears minutes later, sitting for an interview with Carter while Stuart continues to thwart the meeting. Susan appears to be the perfect candidate: a flight attendant who’s never home and gives away free airline tickets, loves cooking, and is a gourmet chef.
Later, Carter arrives home to discover that Poehler’s character has stolen all his belongings, stripping his apartment bare.
Just a few months after her appearance on Spin City, Poehler would land her own sketch comedy series on Comedy Central. Built around the improv troupe of the same name that she co-founded, Upright Citizens Brigade debuted on August 19, 1998. Poehler starred alongside Matt Besser, Ian Roberts, and Matt Walsh in the series, which aired 30 episodes for Comedy Central through April 2000.
Poehler joined Saturday Night Live as a featured player for the start of its 27th season in September 2001. She was quickly promoted to the repertory team, debuting in that status in January 2002.
Poehler wasn’t the only SNL cast member who gained early career experience on Spin City. Her future “Weekend Update” co-anchor Seth Meyers made his TV debut in a Season 5 episode.
Watch Poehler’s Spin City appearance at the top of this post.
