Jamie Kaler is an accomplished actor, writer and stand-up comic, and has had recurring roles on Will & Grace, The King of Queens, Significant Others and the Seth Green animated show Robot Chicken. His recent film credits include The Family Stone, Underclassmen and Spanglish.

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Jamie's Blog, Week Three

This week in “The Shirt Contest,” the Boys get embroiled in another one of their competitive moods. Let’s just say Project Runway comes to Chicago. It was a really shooting this one. I got to show a little more flesh than normal. As a redhead, it’s always great to show the world a little more of my pasty white skin (note heavy sarcasm). I’m almost as white as Jim Gaffigan, but my skin is covered with freckles and red fur. All of you redheads out there know what I mean. Nudity is not one of our strong suits. Even if I was Mr. Olympia, people would still scream, “Put your shirt back on. You’re burning my eyes out!” It would be nice to go to the beach without wearing SPF infinity! Okay, enough of the “ginger” talk. It’s depressing me, and when you see my bare skin this week, just remember that I didn’t write the episode. It wasn’t my choice for you to see my bare flesh. I am merely a pawn in a greater scheme. And at this point, I think the writers are deliberately thinking of ways to torture me. And I will pay them all back one day! Ha-ha-haaaaaaaaaaa (evil laugh).

We also have a great guest star this week, Hayes Macarthur, who plays a very funny turn as a collaborator of PJ. It’s supposed to turn into a career opportunity for her, but things never seem to go as planned. That’s as much plot as you deserve.

Have you all seen who was on the plane yet? Because this is the last week I won’t talk about it. Next week, we’re talking about it, so if you haven’t seen it, get on it!

I just finished reading Rebels on the Back Lot. It’s a book about the making of six films from the ‘90s, including Pulp Fiction, Being John Malkovich, Boogie Nights and others. After reading it, I’m amazed how any film ever gets made. To combine commerce and art is a delicate process. It’s the same with TV shows. For us, the cast and crew of MY BOYS, it’s about our craft, whether it’s acting, writing, directing, casting, cinematography, editing, lighting, or any of the other many jobs that are included in the production of just one episode of our show. We all got into this business because of a love for what we do.

So what is the formula for a successful show? Can’t you just look through history and piece together the next great show? Take a little bit of Cheers. Throw in a cup of Seinfeld. Add just a spoonful of The Dick Van Dyke Show. And bang! Commercial success. It happens every year. Hundreds of pilot episodes for new series are written. “It’s like Northern Exposure meets Roseanne.” “It’s The Honeymooners, but Ralph is a columnist for The New York Post.” “How about a WW II prisoner of war camp as the setting for a broad comedy?” (Yes, that one actually worked as Hogan’s Heroes) A few pilots are shot. And even fewer are aired. Out of those, only a couple will survive to see a second year, let alone a third. So, what is the secret? I have no idea. It’s lightning in a bottle. So, I want to hear what you think. Tell me your favorite shows and why you think they work on both a creative and commercial basis. How do some shows like Arrested Development win the Emmy for best comedy and still not find an audience (a travesty, by the way), while others receive terrible reviews but are huge successes? If we can figure this out, we will rule this town.


The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer/speaker and do not necessarily represent the opinions of Turner Entertainment Networks, Inc.”