Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Laughter is good for the soul


This is all I have to show for attending the taping of According to Jim. You cannot take any electrical devices into the show. You are advised to leave your cell in your car, or it may be confiscated. They have their rules.
Actually, I also have a very nice program with this great casts' credits on it as well.
I can't remember a time when I have laughed so hard for so long. My friend, Peggy, organized a group of people who attended this taping as a fundraiser (Cota for Zac) for her friend's son, who is awaiting an organ transplant. When I mentioned to my hair stylist, Rosy, that I was attending the sitcom, she told me it was her husband's favorite show.
On this particular night, we got a treat by seeing an episode that hadn't been shown before. It featured a little girl, playing a spoiled brat pop star. Turns out, Jim's daughter played the little girl. She sang two songs during the episode, and when Jim brought her out (so sorry I can't remember the cutie's name!) to introduce her to the audience, he mentioned that she had never sung before doing that role. Well, she did a very credible job. I'm sure we'll be seeing more of this talented young lady in the future. Just look for the "Belushi" name.
While we were waiting for the show to begin, the warm up comedian came out to greet the audience. Well, it was non-stop laughter after that. Jim Belushi and Larry Joe Campbell, who plays Andy, play off of each other so well. This particular episode, "The Ego Boost," provided much laughter. It was written by Warren Bell and Christopher J. Nowak and directed by Jim Belushi.

Jim came out to warmly greet the audience before the show started. Scenes with Courtney Thorne-Smith,who plays Jim's wife, were taped prior to this evening since Courtney was still tending to her new baby. Jim anwered a few questions from the audience before the taping got underway. If you've never been to a taping of a show, there are many stops and starts. They reshoot each scene at least twice. The role of the warm-up comedian extends beyond the initial greeting.
I had never heard of Ron Pearson before. How anyone can get up and continually make an audience laugh so hard and cover an endless myriad of subjects amazes me. Ron was well traveled as evidenced by the number of audience members from various countries, Sweden, Finland, Australia, Holland, and France, with whom he could somewhat converse and relate experiences. But the most amazing thing this world-renowned juggler did (yes, he has that on his resume as well) is balance a ladder on his chin while juggling. Awesome.
The According to Jim set is really nice. At one point, Ron mentioned that this sitcom costs between $750,000 to $2m per episode! It's our civic duty to watch, don't you think?
Now, would I rather be guest-starring on the show instead of watching from the audience. You bet. Especially since in this episode the guest star had a very funny punch line near the end of the show. But those gigs are a little harder to come by. After watching this taping, I will be tuning in each week. By the way, According to Jim is shown all over the world. Our foreign visitors confirmed that. It's on ABC. Check your local listing. And if you want to attend a taping, this one would be a good one to experience.

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