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Issue link: http://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/665995
"I had a lot of fun beIng a bulls fan and lIvIng on the West sIde of ChICago In the '90s—It Was a hot tIme In the CIty." really top-notch and intelligent people. I really feel that we're lucky enough to say we do. SR: Who makes you laugh the most on set? AC: You. SR: Thank you. I— AC: It's not even a thank you. That's actually true. I don't want to pigeonhole you at all, because you are a very multifaceted individual and we've had many intellectual conversations, but Jesus, there was a dearth of people who could get my musical theater references before you showed up. Now it's a breath of fresh air. SR: Happy to be there. So which is cooler: your three consecutive Emmy nominations for supporting actress for Veep or the 1991 MTV Movie Award for best kiss that you won for My Girl with Macaulay Culkin? AC: Emmys, Emmys. SR: Emmys? AC: Emmys, Emmys, Emmys, Emmys. Much cooler. SR: What was that time of your life like, that child actor life? AC: There are two ways to answer that. One is from the point of view back then: That was just my life. I still went to normal school when I wasn't working. I didn't know any different, so I was going through normal 10-year-old things. The second way to answer that question is in retrospect as an adult looking back and you go, "Oh my gosh, that probably was a huge, enormous shift." I think it did teach me to not trust people very well because you just don't know people's intentions. SR: Sure. So you grew up completely in Chicago. AC: It was really important to us that we kept our support system around us and that we kept a certain amount of our lives as normal and as familiar as possible. We didn't have a problem with Chicago, so why leave? SR: Exactly. What did you enjoy most about growing up in Chicago? AC: The Bulls, because it was the '90s, man. It was heaven to a Bulls fan. Oh my God, it was so great. SR: I'm a '90s Pistons fan, so we weren't friends. AC: No, we weren't. At least you weren't a Knicks fan or a Lakers fan, ay yi yi. I had a lot of fun being a Bulls fan and living on the West Side of Chicago—it was a hot time in the city. [Laughs]. I'm so cheesy. What else did I like about growing up in Chicago? I really liked that I could just take a trip on the Eisenhower for 10 minutes and be in a John Hughes movie. It sounds ridiculous to think of it that way. At that time, every- thing that was "cool" took place there, like The Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Even The Fugitive. You just felt like you were in the coolest freaking "City of Big Shoulders" Carl Sandburg city. SR: What was your experience like at the University of Chicago? AC: It was great. I look back on the walls of academia so fondly. When I go back or when I think on it, a weight just lifts, and I think that that's how I felt while I was there. It was the first time that I was able to just be myself and not have to prove anything other than whether or not I could write a paper and make an argument, which is great. I felt really supported and happy there. SR: Do you make it to Chicago often? AC: Not as often as it should be, but I do. If we can't make it for Christmas, then we make it for summer, which, by the way, is nicer weather. SR: Chicago in the winter is beautiful, but that lake wind can really knock you up—I mean knock you out. AC: I'm sure some people got knocked up because of the lake effect since they just didn't leave their house. SR: Exactly. You have to keep warm. AC: Exactly. SR: When you're back, are there any places that are a must to visit? AC: We always end up at Café Iberico—best tapas. I always need a Johnnie's Beef, on North Avenue. In my first pregnancy, I craved—it's not Chicago-style pizza; it's what people don't realize is Chicago-style pizza, which they call tavern-style pizza, which is the thin, thin crust that they do in squares. We get it from a place called Villa Nova Pizzeria. I believe it's in Stickney. I'm showing off my West Side Chicago [now]. SR: You're a West Side Chicago pro. You and [husband] Shaun have a daughter, Penelope. How has being a mother changed your perspective towards your career? AC: Oh God, how hasn't it? It's just really made 118 michiganavemag.com