Marisa Tomei remembers an improv moment, pulled onto Second City stage

Marisa Tomei, who spent many weeks here playing billionaire Mimi Whiteman in the hit Fox series “Empire,” noted that “every time I’m back in Chicago — as long as it’s NOT in the winter! — I realize how deeply I connect with your city. It’s such a real American city … and the food! It’s such a food town.”

While in New York boosting “Spider-Man: Homecoming,” in which she portrays Peter Parker’s Aunt May, the Oscar winner laughingly remembered a totally unscripted local moment from many years ago.

“I can’t remember how it all happened, but we were at Second City watching the show, and suddenly I was taken up on stage to do some improv! It was a really long time ago, but I still remember that sense of fear — but also excitement and the curiosity I felt doing that.

“To be honest, I had kind of forgotten all about it, until [1990s Second City performer] Stephen Colbert recently reminded me of when I did that — because he was the one that dragged me up on stage!”