Jeez Jon

Ups And Down About Living In L.A.

In good news, I have job.  Yay!  It starts the middle of next month on a new show... and that's all I can say right now.  Obviously, once it's underway and I know what the sitch is, I'll pass along the info to you all.  It could be the worst show in the history of reality television (which would be saying something) but honestly, I don't care.  It's a job, it's employment, and that's all I care about.  So, keep your fingers crossed.  I won't exhale really until my first paycheck clears.  And this honestly comes at a great time.  Apparently, the unemployment rate in California is now 10.1%.  Yikes.  That is scary stuff. That's not good news.  The state finally got around to getting a budget signed, trying to close up a $42 billion shortfall.  Couple massive cuts with lots of unemployment in the Golden State equals a not terribly pleasant situation.  So, again, very, very happy I have a job. 

In the surreal portion of living here, at Trader Joe's in Eagle Rock today, I saw Colin Ferguson, the lead on SciFi's Eureka.  Like most TV actors, he's shorter than I figured (which means, shorter than me), but still very handsome in person.  I kept a very respectful distance, and geeked out quietly to myself.  I've lived here for almost 10 years now, and seeing celebrities are still neat for me.  I keep my distance, I don't say anything, I am respectful, but I can't help looking.  It reminds me that I hope to be that person that one day, in someone's blog, they can write "Hey, I saw that funny Jon guy at the Trader Joe's.  He's a bit shorter in person, but it was cool seeing him nonetheless."  Now, like the rest of us out here in La-La Land, I just have to weather through this financial crapstorm first.  Yikes.

Does This Mean Mitt Romney Is King Friday?

I watched Gov. Bobby Jindal's response after Obama's speech earlier this week, and his "I'm talking you like you're 4 years old" tone really bugged me.  Apparently, it bugged someone else as well:

Such genius. [Hat tip: Krystyn]

Jon's Oscar Wish List

I used to be way into the Oscars.  I know oodles of Oscar history.  One of the best birthday presents I've ever received was the 60 Years of the Oscar. Tom and I used to throw Oscar parties for years in Chicago and out here in LA.  But, over the past few years, my interest has waned. Maybe it started when Crash won over Brokeback Mountain. I'm way more invested on Carla winning Top Chef next week than Milk squeaking out a dark horse win for Best Picture.  I dunno.  But, in keeping with the season, I'll dole out who I think should win in each of the main Oscar Categories. 

[Note: I have not seen Frost/Nixon, The Reader, or The Wrestler.  Just FYI.]

KEY: An asterisk (*) marks who I think should win, while a tilden (^) notes who I think will win.

Best Picture
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk *
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire ^

I've seen three of these, and the best one of the bunch is Milk.  So brilliant, so great, so moving.  Slumdog is very good as well, and probably will win, and Benjamin Button can go jump off a cliff. 

Best Actor
Richard Jenkins, The Visitor
Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn, Milk *
Brad Pitt, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke,  The Wrestler^

Sean Penn gave the best performance of his career as Milk, but Rourke's personal life/film character parallels will probably be too rich for the Academy to pass up.  That and the passing of his damn little dog.  Still, Sean Penn deserves this award.  I'm hoping he'll win, but I'm not holding my breath.

Best Actress
Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie, Changeling
Melissa Leo, Frozen River *
Meryl Streep, Doubt
Kate Winslet, The Reader ^

Winslet as the momentum, and she was brilliant in Revolutionary Road.  But Leo owned that character in Frozen River.  You can't imagine anyone else playing that role.  While Streep did a great job in Doubt (and I wouldn't mind if she won), my heart is with Leo.  Apparently, there are some rumblings that she may pull an upset.  I'm not getting my hopes up about it.

Best Supporting Actor
Josh Brolin, Milk
Robert Downey Jr., Tropic Thunder
Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight *^
Michael Shannon, Revolutionary Road

Okay, I'm in a bit of a pickle here.  I'd be totally fine if either Brolin or Downey won.  Brolin brought a lot of layers to the role of Dan White and as an actor who specializes in comedy, it would be nice for a comedic role to win an Oscar again.  But, my heart is with Ledger. When I was doing my SAG Award ballot, I asked myself "Would I vote for Heath Ledger if he was still alive?" And my answer was (and is) yes.  He took what was an iconic character and took it into places I couldn't conceive, and did it with skill and panache.  It's a fantastic performance and I think he deserves it.

Best Supporting Actress
Amy Adams, Doubt *
Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona ^
Viola Davis, Doubt
Taraji P. Henson, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler

Penelope Cruz has the critical momentum and was the highlight of a very overrated film.  But Amy Adams was the heart and soul of Doubt. You saw her character make subtle changes throughout, and her work was done with such specificity.  She's turning into one of my favorite actresses.  Love her.

Best Director
David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon
Gus Van Sant, Milk *
Stephen Daldry, The Reader
Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire ^

Danny Boyle will win, and that's fine.  Gus Van Sant did the best film of his career, and I honestly don't see how he can top it, and really deserves it.  I'm kinda pulling for a tie.  Anyone else?

For the rest of the categories, I'm pulling for Wall-E for Best Animated Feature and Best Score, Milk for Best Original Screenplay, Slumdog for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Original Song (for "Jai Ho"), Iron Man for Best Visual Effects, and The Dark Knight for anything else. 

Maybe Sunday's ceremony will rekindle my love for Oscar.  I dunno.  All is know is that Carla should whip Hosea and Stefan's bald asses on Wednesday's Top Chef finale. 

History Of The Economic Meltdown

The current economic crapstorm we are all in right now has been broken down very well... via a cartoon, of course.  Watch it below:

The Crisis of Credit Visualized from Jonathan Jarvis on Vimeo.

[via Consumerist]

So impressive and scary how quickly this came about. This American Life devoted an entire episode to this back in September.  Hands down, it's one of the best hours of radio I've ever heard. 

Not Fitting Into A Box

It's human nature to label things, to mentally organize your surroundings.  This is safe, this isn't, etc.  The problem is when you attach this to people. Human beings tend to be far more complex than a simple tag or label.  Like any adult, I view myself as several things as once.  When it comes to the world of acting, attaching labels are par for the course. You are either a leading man or woman (meaning someone so attractive that oodles of people want to boff you) or a character actor.  In the minds of producers and casting directors, being a character actor means you are specifically one kind of character, which is kinda bullshit. And is also my problem. See, I don't fall into one category easily.  People agree that I have talent, and people agree that I have a great look.  I've always had some sort of representation for 13 years straight now, so obviously not only am I doing something right, I'm a sort of commodity where agents and such believe they can make money from me working.  The problem is casting peeps and producers aren't quite sure what to do with me. 

There's an adage here in the biz: If you're an actor in LA, there are at least 20 people who look exactly like you.  Now, take a gander at my picture in the upper left hand corner.  Go ahead, I'll wait.  See?  I'm pretty attractive, but I do have a different look. I don't look like a lot of other people. So, instead of 20 people out here looking like me, there's maybe five. The LA market is very rich and complex, giving me a lot of room.  So, you can imagine what it was like for me in the smaller, more conservative market of Chicago.  No one there looked like me.  I had friends tell me that, saying how much of an asset that is.  Well, it wasn't.  The six casting directors in Chicago liked me well enough (well, 5 did), but they weren't sure what to do with me.  Yes, I nabbed a couple things while I was there, but not nearly enough to keep me employed.  The bulk of stuff available for actor types in Chicago are either industrial films (which require a rather bland look) or musical theater (not a strong enough singer).  So, I hit my ceiling very early.  Tom and I decided to motor west, which was the best decision. I had more auditions in my first 3 months in LA then in 3 years in Chicago.  There is a lot more work out here, and more people willing to take a chance on a goofy-looking-yet-attractive guy from the Midwest. 

After a few years of being out here, I started noticing an odd pattern. There were a few auditions where I would stick out like a sore thumb.  One audition for an FX show years ago, I walked into the waiting room and saw that for the role I was up for, it was between me and 4 guys in their 50's.  My sole audition for Veronica Mars was for a nerdy guy, and when I walked into that waiting room, I saw my competition... by looking down.  The bulk of the actors up for the nerd roles out here tend to be small and short.  My 5' 10 1/2" frame was towering over the rest of the actors who were 5' 4" at most.  It was like Gulliver at Lilliput, I swear.  So, again, I was being thrown into auditions where people liked me but weren't sure what to do with me.  The commercial last year that I booked and then replaced was like this as well: I read for one role but got cast as another.  Hell, that's what happened with Bones, too.  People like me but don't know what to do with me. 

I was just on avail for a commercial this week, and I didn't get it.  One of the many reasons why that really stung was the role I was up for wasn't a nerd or a geek or a chemistry teacher.  It was just an average husband, a Joe Six-Pack type of guy.  Here I was looking at the possibility of playing a regular guy, showing other people that yes, here's what I can do!  See, you can cast the goofy-looking guy as a just an Average Joe.  But no, didn't happen. 

I'll keep going, of course.  Obviously, I'm doing some things right.  I'm still getting auditions, I'm still either getting gigs or coming close to getting them.  It's just a bit frustrating to know that people look at me and are just at a loss because they aren't sure what to do with me.  We'll see. 

I'm On The TV... Sort Of!

My episode of Bones is on tonight on Fox 8pm/7pm CST. I play a nerd at a sci-fi convention, and I have one line, which ends a scene.  Pay attention and I'll totally make you laugh.

ETA:  My line got cut out.  I'm still listed in the credits, and you can clearly see me, so I still get the residuals.  But, my line got cut.  Couple this with me not getting the commercial and I am not having a good week.  At all.  Grrr...

Grrrr...

Last week, I had two auditions and two callbacks, both for commercials.  I was put on avail for one of them last Thursday. Usually, you get notice about an avail within two days.  Today, Wednesday, after pestering by my agent, I finally found out I didn't get the commercial.  Being on pins and needles for almost a week is not a great feeling.  So, right now, I'm put out and pissed.  I should be fine soon.

It's All In Your Head

When I first moved out here to Los Angeles almost 10 years ago, I was being managed by Evil Swine.  He had a small group of actors and we would hang out together a good deal. We'd do casting director workshops together, help Evil Swine with some office stuff, give each other lots of support, etc.  One of these guys, who I'll call Bill, was more successful than the rest of us.  Bill was a good actor and very smart but... well, he's kind of a dick.  I respected him a lot, but I really did not enjoy his company.  At all.

One thing we all did together was an acting class with a casting director... let's call her Nancy.  Nancy was also from Chicago who moved to LA to act and ended up in casting.  For roughly 6 weeks, we'd meet every Sunday in a small theater in the eastern part of Hollywood and do scene study work. At the time, Nancy was casting film and TV, not theater.  The bulk of my experience was in theater, so during the class, I was making the adjustment from playing to the back of the house to playing for a close up.  And this transition was not easy for me.  But, I was getting it, albeit slowly.  At the end of our last class together, she did individual evaluations with all of us.  When I sat with her one-on-one, she sighed.

Nancy:  Jon.

Me:  Nancy, thanks for the class. I really feel like I've learned a lot.

Nancy:  Good.  Um...

Me:  Yeah?

Nancy:  You moved out here to act in TV and film, right?

Me: Yup.

Nancy:  Is there anything else out here you wanna do?

I stared at her a second.

Me:  Uh... no.

Nancy:  Oh.  (sighs) Okay...

Needless to say that pissed me off.  It further motivated me to work harder to adjust my lens, so to speak.  And it also put her right onto my shit list, as you can imagine.  A few months later, Evil Swine called, saying I had an audition for a new TV show that Nancy was casting. I figured she did this as a favor to him, so I went in there, hell-bent on proving her wrong.  It was for a co-star role, which in Hollywood TV Hierarchy is one step up from Extra.  A Co-Star is a small role, ranging from one line to up to 12, and the billing of a Co-Star also establishes a certain pay scale, etc.  I went into the audition and charmed both her and her casting partner.  Both were all smiles at the end and then I left.  Evil Swine called me later, saying that I didn't get the part but they both felt I read well.

During the run of the Quirky Comedic Drama Nancy cast, I was called seven times, the last of which knocked me into a huge spiral of self-dobut that took me months from which to recover.  Meanwhile, Bill had gotten cast a series regular on the Quirky Comedic Drama, which took some of the fun out of the show for me.  Petty, I know, but it's true.  Anyway, Nancy's opinion about my talent obviously had changed, and because of that, we were always chatty whenever I'd see her. Hell, she was the one to give me the last dish I'd heard about Evil Swine.  Ever since the Quirky Drama ended, she left casting and is now a full-time acting teacher and coach.  This past Sunday, she sent me a message on Facebook, asking if I'd be interested in auditing her acting class on Monday.  I was a bit trepidatious, since acting classes out here are rather hit or miss.  I then went to her website and saw that the class was being guest taught that week... by Bill. 

The combination of me not being in an acting class in two years with Nancy and then seeing someone who I don't like whose been WAY more successful than I put me into a tizzy. I was beside myself with nerves.  Staring the prospect of being taught by someone who's rather jerky at a class by someone who I know respect at an acting class I hadn't been to was a lot to handle all at one.  I stopped and took a breath.  It was really freaking me out.  And then, like a bolt of the blue, it hit me:

The prospect of going to this class was so frightening to me I had no other option but to go. I HAD to go to that class. I had to do it.  And with that, boom, the nerves died down. I took a breath, and went on with the rest of my day.  It was all in my head: all the nerves, the freaking out, the wondering what these people would think of me in comparison to how they were doing, etc.  It's all in my head.  That realization put everything, everything, in such a sharp focus for me.  I've stayed in that mindspace since... which has been helpful, 'cause I've had two auditions and a callback already this week.  Tomorrow, I have another callback, a lunch meeting, and then a job interview in the afternoon.  All that freaking out?  It's all in my head, and therefore, easy to wrangle.  I'm not curing cancer here, I'm not doing arms negotiations with Hamas... I'm just being an actor guy.  That's all. 

Oh, I went to the acting class on Monday.  It was okay.

Like Iron Man, Except Glasses Instead Of A Suit

Inspired by Brett, here's the superhero version of me, via The Hero Factory:

I had no control over the name of my hero.  But it's appropriate, nonetheless.