This show was canceled May 9, 2014 according to The Wrap.
Your humble blogger had the opportunity to visit the set of the TV sitcom “Community” at Paramount Studios, and casually chat with some of the cast members about the very special Christmas episode airing December 9 on NBC. We were also treated to a private lunch with Yvette Nicole Brown (Shirley) at the Paramount Dining Room. If you recall, I also had the chance to interview the entire cast, except for Ken Jeong, Senor Chang, at Comic-Con in San Diego, California a few months ago.
From L to R: Sarah Auerswald, Alexandra Bower, Donna Schwarz, Barbara Jones, Elise Crane, Sugar Jones, Elizabeth Bakulski, and Suzette Valle. Front row L to R: John Oliver, Yvonne Condes and Joel McHale. Photo by S. Valle
A group of Los Angeles and San Diego bloggers were treated to a behind-the-scenes tour of stage 32 where “Community” is filmed. We were placed around the same now-famous table where the quirky study group congregates (and notice they never crack a book!), and were joined by the actors who were filming their parts that day. Joel McHale (“The Soup”), Alison Brie (“Mad Men”), Ken Jeong (“The Hangover”) and John Oliver (“The Daily Show”) were filming the Valentine’s Day episode so I can’t say much about it right now. Between takes, they came into the room and had a pretty unstructured conversation with the “mommy bloggers” about what it’s like to be part of this new show, and especially their thoughts on the stop-motion episode they filmed for Christmas.
Though I can’t reveal much about this particular hour of “Community” right now either, I will tell you that the sound of music is heard, inspirational words are exchanged, and friendship is again reinforced — yet another facet of this multi-talented ensemble cast is exposed much to my surprise.
The claymation show is called “Abbed’s Uncontrollable Christmas,” and just like every other episode there are clever moments, sharp sarcastic lines, laughs, and for some perhaps even a tear or two. But this special program ends with a real message – something the viewers can actually take away. Alison Brie put it best when I asked her back in San Diego why we should watch the show. She told me the show isn’t just about making us laugh; it will also make us go aww at the end of almost every episode. The Christmas episode definitely accomplishes all of this.
A word of caution about the Christmas Episode. Since this show is animated and airs at 8pm kids will be tempted to watch it, but there’s a couple of references that may not be appropriate for children younger than 14 years old.
Later we headed to our scrumptious lunch where Yvette Nicole Brown was our gracious hostess. We had complete access to her, and she was very forthcoming with much of her personal journey getting to where she is today. Did you know the funny woman was a legal secretary and reads her own contracts, or that she started as a singer with Motown? Me neither!
Miss Brown took her time to also listen to us and asked us what each one of our blogs is about. When it was my turn to explain my blog topic, the discussions lead Yvette to express her opinion about the influence Hollywood and the actors themselves have on their adoring fans.
“We have a responsibility we can’t ignore. We are role models whether we like it or not, especially those of us who have roles that involve children.” This was music to my ears! Yvette went on to explain that actors have a responsibility to make sure young ones don’t get the wrong messages from the actors’ behavior off camera as well.
What started as a fun, light visit to a sitcom ended with an inspiring chat with an actor who gets it! Yvette Nicole Brown gets it in a way I hadn’t heard it come from someone on the inside of the entertainment industry before; her feet are squarely on the ground, and her mindset as a rising actor and role model for those who follow her career and watch “Community,” is cognizant of the influence she can have on them … much like growing up in a community.
“Community” airs Thursdays at 8pm on NBC.
Wow I am so jealous of you and all the ladies. The cast of community seems so cool especially Alison, Yvette, and Ken. Joel definitely did come off as a bit Jeffish but he still is awesome. Love how Yvette talked about getting into the business, how you just have to want to be in showbiz and how she worked her way up. Thanks so much for sharing this with us.
So glad you stopped by! I'm loving that Sony put this together for the bloggers. I hope other studios are following this trend to connect with fans and viewers via Social Media — a kind of grassroots type thing — it sure makes us feel closer to the people who come into our livingrooms every evening.
Now, how to keep certain undersirables (Kate, Jersey, etc) out is an entirely different topic!