Posted on 04/19/2005 2:39:42 PM PDT by silent_jonny
~snip~
... I went out to the set and the offices of the Fox hit TV show 24 of which I've become a huge fan.
I only heard of the show late last season but it wasn't enough time to watch it, so I started watching it from the beginning this year, and when it was time to go to Afghanistan I bought all three previous seasons on DVD and took them on the airplane and I watched on the way over there 18 episodes, bam, bam, bam, just got hooked. I mean, there's no commercials in the DVD, so I didn't even have time to go to the bathroom. Well, I did, I hit the pause button but I'm just trying to illustrate how I couldn't tear myself away. After the trip to Afghanistan was over on the way back home I watched the remaining six episodes of season one and got as many in on season two as possible. I mentioned this when I got back, that I had watched all these episodes, and it turns out that the creator and producer of the program, a guy named Joel Surnow, happens to be a huge fan of this program, a longtime fan. I am one of his idols. So he calls, "If you're ever out here, come by, we'd love to show you how we do our magic." So I took him up on it. I went out there yesterday, got there about 2:30 and left at 10:30. They were still shooting scenes, working on the last two episodes of the year, still shooting scenes about ten, 10:30 when I had to tear myself away.
If you're watching on the Dittocam you see this smoke jacket, what an appropriate day to have a smoking jacket and to wear one. This was given to me by the crew at 24, and it's got the 24 logo here on the left-front pocket. It was so much fun, these guys, I'm telling you, folks, there's a movement going on out in Hollywood that stunned me. I mean, there were hundred people there, in and out, a big party, and they did it in my honor. It was just so much fun. The thing started at four o'clock, it was a smoking room party and they had all kinds of people from the show, from outside the show, that came in. It was actors and actresses on the show who had been killed off but can't tear themselves away from the set, they keep coming back. It was just a hoot. Everybody dons their smoking jackets and lights up, sits around, snacks and so forth, pictures galore. I got to sit in on a casting session. They're casting a couple of lead female roles for next season, got to see how that's done. But these guys are all conservatives. You know, in fact Vince Flynn, the great novelist Vince Flynn has been hired just for the past two weeks, he's trying to help them come up with story lines for next season, but Vince is such a groupie of mine, he didn't help them yesterday with any story lines; he was too busy talking me and asking me questions about myself and the radio -- I'm kidding about him being a groupie. He's a big fan. They all were.
Folks, it was a huge shock, I'm out there in Hollywood, and, you know, when I show up normally where there's a security guard, I have to have a bodyguard to protect me from the security guard when it's in Hollywood. But this guy was waiting for a football for me to autograph. The eight hours just zoomed by. I watched a couple scenes, actually four or five scenes being shot as they're trying to wrap up this season. But it was just a tremendous, tremendous good time. And I can't thank them enough for all of the courtesy that they showed and the kindness out there. It was once in a lifetime trip. A lot of pictures taken from it, and when I get those pictures, we will post a whole bunch of them on the website. And they should be coming in rather soon because they were all digital. There was a person doing nothing but taking pictures out there for this thing. They did it up right. Just an amazing thing. It's the only Hollywood set I have ever been on that's actually bigger than what it looks like. It's huge if you watch this show, and most everybody does.
I've got to tell you something that happened, the funniest thing happened at the smoke party last night at the set of 24. They brought in this babe to be a bartender. She was about 5'12", and might have weighed I'm guessing below the waste, maybe 50 pounds, above the waist another 50, maybe 75, if you get my drift out there. I walked up there, grabbed a Diet Coke, go back and resume conversations, travel around, go to different room, come back. The last time I went to the bar I said, "Could I get another Diet Coke from you?" She said, "What's my name?" She had been introduced to me when she first arrived. She said, "If you don't remember my name, if you can't come up with my name, I'm not getting you anything." So I looked around, there was nobody there that I could ask, so I just said, "Lavern." "Do I look like a Lavern to you?" "Well, what does a Lavern look like? I thought it was Lavern." So I started guessing names and she'd hold the drink out to me, this tall glass of Diet Coke, and as I said each name she's pull it away. (Laughing) I mean, just a flat out tease. She finally told me her name was Joni and made me pour it myself, and I still enjoyed it! I still had a good time.
I saw him on a talkshow recently, and it was funny to see what he's really like compared to his character. While Mackey is a very gritty, believable hardass, Chiklis himself is a jolly, easygoing kidder. It's always fascinating to see how well a good actor can assume a completely different personality onscreen and make it 100% convincing.
Similarly, Harrison Ford comes across in interviews as an aging "surfer dude", is rather soft-spoken (and his speaking voice is at least half an octave higher than his "acting" voice), and usually has a goofy grin on his face, whereas in most roles he's a very "manly man", strong and assertive.
Already pinged on 4/19/05. Thanks anyway.
Collier wanted on your Rush ping list, that's why I pinged you.
No problem; I didn't understand the ping. I'll add Collier to the Dittohead Ping List.
Lost has so many re-runs, and the basic plot is so complicated, I would think that if you just start watching it, pretty soon you'd be as confused as everybody else.
Are you the writer????? :) Now I'm curious!
Do they show the 24 on FX???
They used to, but I don't know about this year. What FX usually does, after each season of 24 ends, they'll show an all day marathon of that previous season, in sync with real time. I always look forward to that :)
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