In the lobby of WYNC’s offices on Varick Street, Michael Ian Black is chatting with Meghan McCain. It seems as though they are old friends catching up between sips of iced coffee. They’re not. Actually, they only met in person less than a year ago, but in this short time they have toured the nation together and learned valuable lessons from one another, though they are of very different political thinking. Black, a Democrat, and McCain, a Republican, prove that friendship and admiration can cross party lines.

Clutching the book they have penned together, America, You Sexy Bitch, I go over to greet them after their interview with Brian Lehrer. Black and I walk to the nearest Starbucks, where we speak about his book, Washington Square Park, and the first trip he took across the United States—dressed as a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle.

In the beginning of your book, you said that Ambien and Twitter were instrumental in getting Meghan to sign on to this project. Is that really true?

Yes, I was on Twitter. I had taken Ambien. And the next morning, I woke up and went, “Did I just propose writing a book to Meghan McCain? I think so and I think she said yes. I think that’s what happened last night.” I had only met her once before, via satellite. I had been a fan of hers for years. I liked the way she spoke about the Republican party, and that that she wasn’t afraid to go against party orthodoxy. She seemed like someone who spoke her mind, which I respond to.

Did she meet your expectations?

She exceeded them in a lot of ways. She’s a lot braver than I would have given her credit for. In politics, it’s very hard to forge your own path, because the way the political system works, you’re either in one camp or the other. Meghan is a Republican, but the Republican establishment that exists rejects her because she does not toe the party line. As a result, she doesn’t have a home politically. It’s a shame, because for that party to succeed, it needs to have more Meghan McCains.

You said that her mother, Cindy, was the first person who made you start to think you may have had the wrong impression of some Republicans. How so?

I had an impression of Cindy McCain based on what I knew from the media: She was rich, cold and aloof. None of that was true—except for the part about her being rich. She is really rich. [Laughs] But she was warm and hospitable and open with me in a way that surprised me because they’re a guarded family—as anybody would be in that position. To welcome a stranger into your home whose motivations probably seemed very unclear, I think, was really generous.

In the book, you explain your worry that your two children will not get to experience the American Dream as you did. What do you mean by that?

Every parent worries about the opportunities their children are going to have. My fear for them is that they won’t even see the opportunities that my generation and all previous generations saw. The American Dream is a promise that one generation gives to the other and right now, it’s hard to give my kids that promise. It’s a scary time. That being said, my children are in a much better position than 80-90 percent of other kids in this country because I make a good living. They have a lot of advantages that others don’t, and yet I’m still frightened for my socioeconomically blessed children. I can’t even imagine what it’s like for people living from paycheck to paycheck.

You studied acting at NYU. What is your favorite place in the city?

I will always have a very soft spot in my heart for Washington Square Park. It’s where I came when I was a kid on my first trip to NY. We saw street performers there. NYU is there; I spent innumerable mornings walking across that park and really feeling like a part of the city for the first time.

Do people recognize you here?

I’m not out there going, “Look at me—I was on cable.” People recognize me and are usually really nice and respectful.

The first time you traveled around the country you were 19 and dressed as Raphael, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle. What was that for?

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were doing a live tour—like Disney on Ice, but with turtles and no ice. They needed people to travel ahead and promote the show. So that’s what I did; I dropped out of college to go be a turtle. It was an opportunity to see the country and make good money. It was so weird and crazy that I thought, “I should do this.”

Do you keep in touch with your fellow castmates from Wet Hot American Summer?

That movie was populated almost entirely with friends or people who became friends. There are very few people I don’t see from that movie. The only one I don’t really see is Bradley Cooper, but that’s just because he’s in L.A. and is an A-list movie star. I’m actually shooting a movie in July called They Came Together with a lot of the same Wet Hot American Summer people.

How have your political views changed since touring the country with America, You Sexy Bitch?

My own political philosophy hasn’t changed—in a lot of ways, it was reinforced. I think my mind is a little more open than it was before about the conservative philosophy and lifestyle. I’m a liberal—will probably always be a liberal—but I feel like I at least caught a glimpse of what American conservatism is supposed to be about. And that there’s a lot to admire about it.

Are you going to work on this year’s presidential campaign? They’re going to want you to now, since you wrote this political book.

Oh no, I’m not going to do anything for the campaign. I’m not posting yard signs anywhere. I’m not stuffing envelopes.

Those are all the questions I had. But if you want to add anything…

Just that New York City is the greatest city in the world. Is that pandering enough?

Yeah—that’s fine.

OK, good.

It’s 6:45 on a warm October night, and Mike Impollonia is patiently waiting in line to get his face and arms spray-painted green, orange and black and covered in fake blood. This is the 27-year-old’s third year working at Blood Manor, “New York’s premier haunted attraction,” located at 163 Varick St., running every night this month except Oct. 24.

What’s your costume for tonight?
An evil-looking bouncer that will take the groups through the Vampire’s Lair, which is where the vampire exotic dancers are. This is the first year we’ve had an official male dancer who’ll be in there all season, wearing hot shorts along with the girls.

I’m sure he’ll have a lot of fun. Do the dancers have a “no touching” rule?
All of Blood Manor has a no touching rule! If a customer touches any of the performers in any way, they’re removed by security right away. The rule is that we can’t touch the customers and they can’t touch us. Sure, we’ll get up in their faces and get real close, but we never touch them.

Does that rule get broken a lot?
Usually not, but some people can be out of control. One time, a very, very drunk woman was going from room to room and propositioning every single one of the male performers. Just grabbing them all over. We eventually had to call security on her.

When do the crowds get the most out of control?
Later on into the night and closer to Halloween, or when people come here after they’ve had a few drinks. Drunks are the craziest. They’re usually the ones who get aggressive, jumping around and touching stuff or bumping into things and breaking props.

Breaking props?
Yeah, but that also happens unintentionally. Some people get really terrified and just go nuts, start tearing things apart. One time, a group of teens—people usually walk through in groups of six—got so scared in a room I was working in that one of them ran right into a huge grandfather clock. There was glass everywhere, the kids were screaming and freaking out like crazy. I had to calm them down, call security to clean up the glass and keep new people from coming in. It was a mess.

Is it hard to stay in character throughout the night?
It can be exhausting. But we unwind during our break, when we all just hang out and relax together. The owners are really nice and always give us food, like pizza and hot trays of Chinese or Italian food. They also keep huge fridges stocked with water and juice, along with multivitamins and cough drops, because our throats get pretty sore from roaring and screaming at people all night. I always lose my voice by the end of the season.

That sounds pretty rough! What keeps you coming back to work at Blood Manor every autumn?
It’s an amazing atmosphere, very high energy and fun. Plus, just the ridiculousness of it, that I get paid to do this—otherwise I’d probably be doing this for free.

What surprised you the most about Blood Manor when you first started working here?
Honestly, how well we all get along and how much fun it is. The people are great and we all bond really quickly every year because we’re working so hard and going through all this awesome craziness together. We try to keep in touch throughout the rest of the year until the next Halloween season, and then it’s like seeing your family again. It actually literally is like my family—I met a girl who was working here last year and after talking we realized we were distant cousins.

Which room is your favorite this season?
The last room, which is called Zombie Apocalypse. But I don’t want to give too much away, because it’s this awesome, gruesome, shocking finale. Let’s just say that they put a lot of thought and work into making it really scary, but also fun and interactive.

What costumes have you worn?
Let’s see…Dr. Frankenstein, a crazed, cannibalistic butcher, a werewolf…I actually had an allergic reaction to the werewolf costume, because something about the mask and the makeup that goes along with it really irritated my skin. I loved that costume though! I begged them to let me wear it again, just during the first night, for old time’s sake. But they said absolutely not, because they didn’t want me to get sick from it again.

How do the performers keep their heavy, elaborate costume makeup looking good all night long? It must be ready to melt off after midnight.
Oh yeah, my werewolf makeup used to fall off in chunks toward the end of the night. But we have makeup artists behind the scenes and we can always ask them to do touch-ups during our breaks. That’s really important, because if the latex paint starts peeling off, then the costume gets messed up, and you have a harder time getting into character. And you don’t want that. You want to be as scary and realistic as possible!

Photo courtesy of Remy Melina

[photosmash id=26]

The owners of Walker’s, Tribeca’s favorite neighborhood eatery at the corner of North Moore and Varick streets, are rolling out an Italian alternative to their American fare next door at the new pizzeria Girello (“Walker” in Italian, posing a potential confusion for the multilingual).

“This is a real departure for us,” said Gerard Walker, co-owner of the eponymous restaurant. “We’ve been the neighborhood regular for the last 30 years, so we decided it was time to become the neighborhood Neapolitan thin-crust pizza joint as well. We love the idea of evoking the same warmth with varying cuisines—that’s why we created Girello.”

Whereas Walker’s has all of the ambiance of a nostalgic American saloon, Girello has been decorated with a decidedly European feel—it looks like a simple, clean trattoria in a fading southern Italian town. “We had the option of expanding Walker’s into the space,” co-owner Scott Perez said, “but we thought it’d be fun to create the same sort of friendly environment using superior products, just different flavors.”

Walker and his partners, Perez and Martin Sheridan, first opened Walker’s three decades ago and have enjoyed steady, prosperous business there ever since. The secret to their success? “Err on the side of the customer,” Walker confided. “New York restaurant customers are the best in the world. If you treat them well and serve them quality food, they’ll return. Never ever take them for granted.”

Walker says it’s the customers who keep him in the business. “I have the opportunity every single day to make somebody’s night special. A customer I haven’t seen in a while will come in, and I’ll say, ‘Where ya been?’ And he’ll look at me like he can’t believe anybody would remember him. You make someone’s day like that. How many people get to show up to work and do that?”

Perez is quick to add that it’s not just the customers that keep Walker’s (and soon Girello) in business, it’s also the staff. “There’s such a joy and an instant gratification in working with people who understand how to treat customers well,” he said.  When the restaurant was the only spot in the neighborhood that remained open during Hurricane Irene, both men agreed it was the combined goodwill of the staff and customers that made the experience such an enriching one.

Girello may have missed the hurricane, but the new restaurant has not been without its own complications. The toughest aspect of opening the new joint? “Perfecting the dough,” Walker said. “For water, yeast and flour, there’s a lot that can go wrong before you get it right. We actually had emails from chefs all over the city writing in about ‘dough behaviors.’ Luckily, we mastered it. We mastered the dough.”

And dough there is in abundance. With nearly 30 toppings to choose from and the choice of either a margherita or white base, Girello is the controlling pizza-topper’s dream. When pressed for a favorite combination of flavors, both Perez and Walker are without answers. “Nah,” Perez said. “It’s all good. It all comes from the same dough, right?”

Also on offer are a handful of Italian and Italian-American sandwiches (including the New Orleans-style muffuletta), salads and appetizers; look out especially for the pancetta wrapped shrimp and the oven roasted P.E.I. mussels. And in true Walker’s style, Girello offers plenty of alcohol to wash down a meal—a selection of Italian wines and a more international choice of beer, including Peroni and Heineken, along with specialty brews like Victory Hop Devil IPA and Ommegang Witte.

“It’s all just been a lot of fun,” Walker said with a glow. “Opening Girello now has reminded me of what it felt like to open Walker’s all those years ago—makes me feel like a young man again. Maybe that’s what we mean when we say Walker’s is the sort of place that makes the old feel young and the young feel like they’ve been there forever. Judging by the way I feel, Girello is following that tradition.”

Girello, 16 N. Moore St. (betw. N. Moore & Varick Sts.), 212-941-0109; 11 a.m.–11 p.m.