It's Not Unusual

The cast of ABC's The Unusuals.

Michael is alive! Don't worry, this is not a spoiler for Wednesday's season premiere of LOST. Although his character Michael was killed in an explosion on the dramatic season finale of LOST last year, Harold Perrineau lives on as Detective Leo Banks in the new ABC TV show The Unusuals set to air in the spring. The show also stars Amber Tamblyn, sans travelling pants and Adam Goldberg – you know, “that guy who played Chandler’s crazy roommate on Friends” or “that guy from Entourage” or “the guy from How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days”.

The self-proclaimed “modern day M*A*S*H” is a new take on the typical NYC-cop-show, promising equal parts drama and comedy (yes, that's right folks, it's a dramedy). Although the show is set in the Lower East Side, it actually shoots all over the East Village, on my street and around the corner from my apartment. This morning I inadvertently walked right thorough their set on First Avenue between 12th and 13th streets as I was walking head-down to avoid stepping in a slippery ice patch. I glanced up just in time to stroll right past Harold Perrineau.

An interior set shot from an East Village building much like my own.

In New York, celebrity sightings are not unusual (pardon the pun) but being right in the middle of the set action evokes an excitement in me that I need to explore further: the bite of the elusive acting bug. Had I not been on my way to work, on a Federal Holiday nonetheless (thanks White-Republican-Architects-Who-Don’t-Believe-in-Observing-MLK-Day), I could have stood there all day and watched them shoot scenes from across the avenue. (Sidebar: I think Barack Obama’s first act as President should be to make it mandatory that all businesses close to observe MLK Day – too bad he’s not being inaugurated today). Add part-time-actor to my long list of alternative career paths: Lawyer, freelance writer, clothing designer, jewelry designer, actual-interior-designer-instead-of-bullshit-pseudo-architect.

Production street parking closure sign in front of my building.

My acting resume includes background extra in a technology-company commercial that only aired on the West Coast, and supporting actress in the very-independent film “Wizard”, a spoof on the classic “The Wizard of Oz”, where I play Brenda, the Good Witch of the South: a slutty trailer-park throwback with magical powers. Picture Joy from “My Name is Earl”, add a magic wand and pink tiara, and you’ve got Brenda. And when I say independent I mean it: basically my friend Cliff got bored one day, decided to make a movie, and cast all of his friends Kevin Smith-style. I wish I had a link to post, but unfortunately YouTube will not let him upload the movie (Copyright infringement? What?) So it lives on his private Facebook page alone. This spring, I will be heading back to Florida to play a role in the budding Director’s much-anticipated follow-up to “Wizard”, “Burb Wars”, a – you guessed it – spoof on Star Wars, where the Empire is the evil Homeowner’s Association and Luke et al are blue collar workers. Family Guy has done it. Robot Chicken did it less famously. And now it’s our turn to butcher George Lucas’ classic.

In the mean time, I think it’s time to start looking into some beginning acting classes. Although it’s not something I think I would ever try to do full-time, I wouldn’t mind having the occasional background role. If I could ever get past my own awkward self-awareness or ever felt I could add “unemployed whatever” or “aspiring whatever” to my career title, maybe it could become more. But that, for me, would be very unusual.

Cast images from ABC.com