

In fact, after bidding the swabber adieu with a spirited, actually sincere-sounding “you have a wonderful day,” Hall divulges that she’s been staying at a Marriott down the street because of the construction. Talking to the Nine Perfect Strangers star makes me feel like I am in on a secret. “Off the record,” she says, eyes widening, “how are you?” She carries her phone into her barren living room, and after cheerfully telling the test-taker to take her time setting up, she turns to me with a conspiratorial gaze. It’s a technician, there to swab her for COVID-19 so she could appear on Jimmy Kimmel Live! the next night.

The crew handling her home’s ongoing renovations has already left for the day, so the knock comes as a surprise. We’re Zooming, her from her expansive Los Angeles backyard, surrounded by tall trees as if perched at the edge of a forest me, from my modest Manhattan apartment.
