From WHYY in Philadelphia, I'm Terry Gross with Fresh Air Weekend.

Today, Molly Shannon, as a cast member of Saturday Night Live, she was best known for her character,

the Catholic School Girl, Mary Catherine Gallagher.

She co-starred in HBO's The White Lotus and co-stars in a new series with another SNL alum,

Vanessa Baer. Shannon has written a new memoir. We'll talk about the tragic as well as the wonderful

turning points in her life. Also, we'll hear from writer Dilia Efren. Her new memoir about

second chances is about falling in love after her husband died, and soon after learning she had

the same disease that killed her sister Nora Efren. Dilia survived.

And Ken Tucker will review the new album by the duo he describes as Indy Rock's newest obsession.

Like most fans of my guest Molly Shannon, I got to see her first on Saturday Night Live.

She became known for her characters, the Catholic School Girl, Mary Catherine Gallagher,

the breasted dancer Sally O'Malley, whose catch phrase was,

I'm 50, and the co-host with Anna Gasdire of the Public Radio Show Delicious Dish.

She joined SNL in 1995 and stayed for six seasons.

Shannon starred in the film Year of the Dog, co-starred in the HBO series Enlightened,

and The White Lotus, all created by Mike White. Co-stars in the current HBO Max Comedy series,

The Other Two, and will co-star in the new Showtime series I Love That For You,

which premieres later this month, starring SNL alum Vanessa Bair.

Shannon's new memoir, called Hello Molly, helps explain the pain and loss that fueled a lot of

the drive and commitment in her comedy career. The book begins when she was four, and her father

was driving the family home from her cousin's high school graduation party. Her father had been

drinking at the party and crashed into a pole. Her mother, her three-year-old sister, and a cousin

...