Day 779: A Break for Christine Baranski and the Concept of a ‘Guest’ Actor

Pauline made a very excellent point the other day about Christine Baranski.  For those who don’t recognize the name, she plays the reoccurring part of Leonard’s mother on ‘The Big Bang Theory’.  However, she is best known for her work on ‘Cybil’ and in films like ‘Chicago’, ‘The Grinch who Stole Christmas’ and ‘Mama Mia’.  Or, if you’re my son Grayson, you would remember her voice work from classics like ‘Scooby Doo in Where's My Mummy?’

Christine Baranski is extremely talented and the Emmy voters love nominating her.  Since ‘Cybil’ she’s been nominated three times in the ‘Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy’ category, once for ‘Frasier’ and twice for ‘The Big bang Theory’.  PLUS, this year she was ALSO nominated as ‘Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series’ for her work on ‘The Good Wife.’ 

Now, to answer Pauline’s question about the competition… the ‘Guest Actress in a Comedy’ category was completely stacked to the gills with talent this year.  All seven women are past Emmy winners (Jane Lynch was the only one without an Emmy going into the 2010 Awards, but she won Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy that night for ‘Glee’). 

Needless to say, the competition was rough.

However, I really hate to be cynical, but Character Actors don’t normally win the Guest Actor/Actress categories.  The awards normally go to Sentimental Favorites or Hollywood Heavyweights.  Aka, it normally goes to a household name.

Case in point, since 2000, here are the big names who won for best Guest Star:

Actor in a Comedy: Bruce Willis, Anthony LaPagila, Stanley Tucci, Gene Wilder, Tim Conway, John Turturro, Justin Timberlake, and Neil Patrick Harris.

Actor in a Drama: Ray Liotta, Charles S. Dutton (twice for two different shows!), John Goodman, William Shatner, Michael J. Fox, and John Lithgow (BTW: do you guys remember my post about John Lithgow in ‘Dexter’ last real?  I predicted this win… however, he was in almost every episode.  He should have been in the Supporting category, not the Guest category)’

Actress in a Drama: Sally Field. Patricia Clarkson (twice), Alfre Woodard, Cynthia Nixon, Sharon Stone, Ellen Burstyn, and Ann-Margret.

Actress in a Comedy: Jean Smart (twice), Cloris Leachman (twice), Christina Applegate, Laura Linney,Elaine Stritch, Tina Fey, and Betty White.

As you can see… the Guest category isn’t used to champion raw up-incoming talent or those brilliant actors who have toiled away in relative anonymity for years playing bit parts.  No, it’s normally given to a household name as a gift… as if to say, “Thank you for still working”, or “Thanks for putting your movie career aside to work on the small screen for a week”.

Even wins that people could conceive as being an upset, really aren’t.  In 2005, Bobby Cannavale took home the Guest Actor in a Comedy award over Alec Baldwin, Victor Garber, Jeff Goldblum, and Fred Willard.  On the surface, Bobby was a huge underdog.  However, in 2004, Bobby Cannavale was the darling of the international film festival circuit for his work in the Independent Film Masterpiece ‘The Station Agent’.  (If you have seen it, you should!)  Bobby has been on television for years… in ‘Third Watch’ and ‘100 Centre Street’… however, the Emmy’s never recognized him for his talent until after he made a name for himself on the big screen.

I know!  I’m being cynical.  However, there are exceptions!

In 2001, Michael Emerson, who later became Benjamin on ‘Lost’ won for his work as a serial killer on ‘The Practice’.  He edged out James Cromwell, Patrick Dempsey, and Oliver Platt.

In 2006, Christian Clemenson took down Michael J. Fox and James Woods for his work on ‘Boston Legal’ as Jerry ‘Hands’ Espinson.  Incidentally, his popularity and Emmy win led creator David E. Kelly to promote Christian to a full cast member for the shows two remaining seasons.

And my favorite underdog of them all has actually won TWICE!  I’m talking about, none other than, Kathryn Joosten who plays Mrs. McClusky on ‘Desperate Housewives’.  Kathryn has been working steady since the mid 80s and has never done more than a hand full of episodes on any one show except for ‘The West Wing’ and ‘Desperate Housewives’.  I hate to admit that I watch, but Kathryn is the best thing about ‘Desperate Housewives’, Mrs. Mclusky is one of the best characters on television… and THANK THE LORD!  Kathryn was recently promoted to a fulltime Housewife!     

Sadly, I can only point out 3 significant ‘upsets’ over the last ten years in four different Guest categories.

Day 778: A Break to Praise Jim Parsons, Again

So, why isn’t ‘The Big Bang Theory’ the type of show the Emmy’s would honor?

Because ‘The Big Bang Theory’ is a traditional studio audience sitcom… a style of sitcom that is no longer in vogue.

You see, back in 1999 things began to change… two critically acclaimed sitcoms broke onto the scene offering, not only big laughs, but a new style of filming… they were filmed like a drama but they were funny… and most importantly, didn’t utilize a laugh track like M*A*S*H… they followed the style first introduced by ‘The Wonder Years’ and those two shows from 1999 were ‘Ally McBeal’ and ‘Sex in the City’.  Both were nominated for Emmy’s that year… and ‘Ally McBeal’ won.

Since then, in the last 12 years… the Emmy for best comedy has only gone to a traditional studio audience sitcom 4 times… ‘Everybody Loves Raymond’ was the last to win back in 2005.  For the next four years, only one studio audience sitcom each year was honored with a nomination… and this year?  Not one made the cut.

As for the Leading Actor in a Comedy category, the odds weren’t any better.   In 2003, Tony Shalhoub (Monk) and Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm) broke onto the scene staring in non-traditional comedies, and that year Tony won his first of 3 Emmy Awards for playing the title character in ‘Monk’.

Since then, only Kelsey Grammer (in 2004) has been about to score a win in the traditional sitcom column… that is until six years later when Jim Parsons pulled the upset of the year.

I call it an upset, not because he didn’t deserve it… but because the odds were against him.  He was the youngest actor in the category and he had received the least amount of previous nominations.  If you are not aware of Emmy Voter trends… they seem to like honoring the same people year after year.  Tony Shalhoub has won three times and Alec Baldwin has won twice… and both were in the category with Jim Parsons.

Also, unless your name is Paul Reiser or Charlie Sheen… if you’ve been nominated a few times, the Emmy voters like to make sure you get a golden statue before you go off the air.  In addition to Jim, Alec, and Tony… both Larry David and Steve Carell were on their fourth nomination without ever winning!

In short, Jim Parsons took down the four most establish comic actors on television.  Relative unknowns almost never won this category… and I call Jim Parsons an unknown because he had only been on TV for three seasons and had no other substantial body of work making him a household name prior to ‘The Big Bang Theory’.

The last time a young unknown third seasons actor took home the big prize was 1986.  His name was Michael J. Fox… and he went on to win 3 more Emmy’s and become a television icon.

Folks… Jim Parsons win is big news.  And I am really excited to follow his career.

Day 777: A Break to Praise Jim Parsons

I just couldn’t let the Emmy Awards pass without taking a moment to praise Jim Parsons and congratulate him on his Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series.


For those of you who don’t know who Jim Parsons is, well… he is the 37 year old actor who portrays Dr. Sheldon Cooper on ‘The Big Bang Theory’… a show so smart, funny and entertaining, you almost forget it was created by the same guy who brought us ‘Two and a Half Men’.


‘The Big Bang Theory’ is one of the best sitcoms on television and hands down, IT IS the best sitcom on television filmed in front of a live studio audience.


Truthfully, I’m a bit embarrassed to admit that I only just started watching ‘The Big Bang Theory’ last spring.  Numerous friends had been recommending it to us and for some reason Serena and I never gave it much thought… we are loyal fans of ‘How I Met Your Mother’ and… well… we just hadn’t thought about ‘Big Bang Theory’.


Then, in late spring when most of the shows Serena and I watched religiously began to end for the season, we decided to give it a shot.  I downloaded the first seasons from iTunes and well… by the time we left for home leave we had burned through all three seasons… and we both agreed.  ‘The Big Bang Theory’ is better than ‘How I Met Your Mother’.  We are hooked and we are HUGE fans.


Everything about the show is perfect… especially Jim Parsons.  It’s hard to single out one performer in an ensemble show packed full of such talented actors… but… well… Parsons is a lucky bastard… a role like Sheldon Cooper… a character who bridges the gap between being completely annoying yet loveable, and intelligent while constantly showing endless ineptitude… he’s a character that isn’t supposed to exist.  Sheldon Cooper is the Holy Grail character for comic actors… and Jim Parsons is a lucky bastard… because not only does he get to play the part… but he gets to make it look easy… Sheldon and Jim are the perfect marriage of character and actor.


Although, I have so many gushing things to say about Jim Parsons performance as Sheldon, if you had asked me, “do you think he’ll win an Emmy.”  I would have said ‘No’ every time.  Certainly not because he didn’t deserve it… but because ‘The Big Bang Theory’ isn’t the type of show the Emmy’s honor… at least anymore… and Jim Parson’s isn’t the kind of actor they honor either… or so I thought.

Day 776: The Chair, Part 32 – The Stroller, Part 7

As Costello’s arrival time grew nearer, the likelihood of his physical arrival actually happening was becoming more and more… unlikely.

While Serena took over monitoring the news, I navigated through Heathrow’s website… and it didn’t look good.  Planes were being diverted all over Europe: Paris, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Frankfurt… you name it… and planes headed for London were probably landing there. 

However, still no word from US Airways… radio silence.

And then around 7:45am.  Costello called.

He was in Manchester… the good news was he made it to England… the bad news was… well, it was going to be a while before he made it to London.

So, I went to work.

Day 775: The Chair, Part 31 – The Stroller, Part 6

From Costello’s end of things, everything was going very smooth; he made it through security, checked the stroller free of charge at the gate, and boarded the plane.  His layover in Charlotte went equally as smooth.


However, on our end, in London, things weren’t going quite as well… a snow storm was on its way.  


And before I continue… I should explain.  For the British a ‘snow storm’ really means snow flurries.  And their reaction to these flurries is a lot like a reaction in Atlanta, Georgia… which means… they don’t really know how to react… so… the over-react.


The morning of Costello’s arrival, I woke up early so I could head out to meet him at the airport, he was scheduled to arrive around 7am… so, I had gotten up, well… earlier than I normally do.


While I made my coffee I looked out the window.


Very light snow flurries.


Nothing was sticking on the ground.


Nothing major.


I made a bagel and cream cheese… plopped down on the couch… turned on the TV… flipped to the news… and the story of the day:


SNOW STORM CRIPPLES LONDON!  HEATHROW AIRPORT CLOSED!


I sat there for a second… I cocked my head to one side… thought about it for a second… crinkled my brow as I thought… looked out the window again… saw that nothing was falling… looked at my watch… Costello was scheduled to land in a little over an hour.


“Huh… okay... well, isn’t this craptastic.”


Serene appeared, “What’s wrong?”


“Well, everyone on the news is freaking out so much I thought there was a Zombie attack last night… but no, apparently it’s snowing.


Serena looked out the window, “I don’t see anything.”


“I didn’t say it was here.”


At this point, Serena looked at the TV and read the screen.


“Oh, no.  Poor Jeff.”  (aka Costello)

Day 774: The Chair, Part 30 – The Stroller, Part 5

Plan C… The Hail Mary

The one thing I love about Costello is how dang inventive he is.  Due to how quiet and reserved he is with people outside his inner circle, you would never know.  But, to those who are close to him… he’s freaking hilarious and has more moxie than one person should have.

In an earlier post I mentioned my New Years Eve Theme Parties.  And well, Costello always shocked people with how far outside the box he was willing to go.  For my “Heroes of the Red Scare and Cold War” party, where most people arrived dressed as world leaders and celebrities, Costello arrived as the ‘Duck and Cover Turtle’…

I can see you… you’re processing it.  ‘The Duck and Cover Turtle’… what is… AH!

Do you have it yet?  Have you ever seen the old safety commercials from the Cold War?  The ones where all the kids get under their desk to save themselves from the A-bomb?  Well, do you remember the animated character that hosted those commercials and taught the kids to get under their desks?  AHHH… yes, that’s right!  The ‘Duck and Cover Turtle’.  It was flipping Brilliant!

The following year at my “Villains of the Bible” New Year, Costello took a slightly different approach when he showed up as Jesus.  His response to the shocked looks as we walked through the door?  “What?  I was a biblical villain!  If you’re a Roman!  You people need to lighten up!  Where’s the water, I have a party to start.”… 100% and completely WRONG!  But that’s Costello.

So, how far outside the box did he go with the stroller?  Well… he pretended to be married… with a kid… and one on the way… okay, be pretended to be me.

When the ticketing agent told him it would be $50.00 to check the additional item he told them this whole sob story about how his wife was flying and son were flying on another carrier… and he wasn’t even supposed go on the trip because he couldn’t get out of work… but then he was able to get out of work, but not until after his ‘wife’ had already booked tickets… anyway, with the grace of a con-man, Costello circled his story back to the stroller.  “She left yesterday and Delta wanted her to check the stroller at the gate and there was no way she could have made it through security pregnant with a three years old and this.  It’s not even a real stroller, it’s a cart for a car seat… which Delta agreed to check… but they wouldn’t take this because strollers have to be checked at the gate… and… listen I wasn’t going to argue with Delta or my angry pregnant wife… it just wasn’t going to happen.”

Now, one key factor to this story is that Costello was standing at a US Airways counter… in Atlanta… blaming Delta for being unreasonable while also painting himself to be the loving, helpful, and flexible husband.  This is classic Costello maneuvering.

He gave a plausible story, which endeared him to the woman behind the counter, which also involved Delta, the king of Atlanta, playing the part of the villain.  US Airways, being a member of Star Alliance has no affiliation with Delta... and when in Atlanta… this is a recipe for getting what you want… within reason… and that’s what Costello got.

The woman behind the counter of course felt for him regarding his fictitious wife, however, her hands were tied… she couldn’t comp the cost of the extra piece of checked baggage without calling attention to herself from management.  However, as soon as Costello mentioned Delta… the woman behind the counter proposed an alternative solution.

She gave him a gate check tag for the stroller, “If I give you this here, you can check the stroller free of charge as you board the plane and they aren’t going to hassle you about anything at the gate.  Just leave the stroller by the entrance of the plane as your board.  The down side is that it won’t be checked the whole way to London; you’ll need to pick it up as you leave the plane in Charlotte… I’m sorry, that’s the best I can do.

Costello smiled… “You can do that?  Thank you so much.”

EVIL!

Day 773: The Chair, Part 29 – The Stroller, Part 4

Plan B…

We really had no other option.  Serena and I told Costello to check the stroller as an extra bag… if they charged him any fees, we would pay him back when he arrived.  For the most part, airlines allow strollers and car seats to travel for free… HOWEVER, when you are not traveling with a child, they are not as keen on giving you a free pass.  A couple of weeks before Costello’s trip, British Airways charged me 35 Pounds to check Grayson’s car seat… because I wasn’t traveling with Grayson.  He had arrived in London 10 days before.

So, we were prepared to pay $25 to $50 to get the stroller to London.  It would still end up being cheaper than buying one in England… however, the saving probably would not have been worth the hassle at that point… but we were locked in.

However… Costello had a plan of his own.