Watching The Office

When not playing Darryl on The Office, Craig Robinson is so busy with his movie projects, the latest of which is the comedy Miss March. The actor briefly talks to Chicago Tribune about his movie —-

Q: You have a master’s in education and taught in Chicago and Indiana in the mid-1990s. Why move from teaching to comedy?

A: Comedy kind of chose me. It was something I had to do, plain and simple.

Teaching was awesome, and it made you a little crazy. It was great because I taught music at Horace Mann; I would do what my mother did pretty much. My mother used to teach music; she was my music teacher at Whitney Young High School, in fact. I would always have a Christmas program where the kids would sing. The parents loved it. I met some really, really talented kids. I would love to see what they are up to today.

Q: What did you learn about dealing with immature students that you have applied to dealing with actors and agents?

A: Um, well … sadly, it’s not a joke. You heard about this Christian Bale [rant]? Wait, I’m not even gonna go there. … Yes, they are all babies. They all respond like children. [Laughs] I don’t know.

Q: Is that you singing the songs in “Miss March”?

A: Yes, that’s me. I recorded those. I always play music with comedy. Now I have a band, some of the greatest musicians on or off the planet. At this point, they are called The Nasty Delicious. It really enhances my show to the point that I got people singing along. It’s the Craig Robinson Comedy Dance Party. That’s when I have my most fun now, when I’m onstage with the band. We play anything, a lot of covers: “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This),” by the Eurythmics, [Michael Jackson's] “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough.” … We’ll do Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit.”

For more of this Q & A, check this.

The lovely Jenna Fischer was on Ellen today and had a bit of fun with Bumpits (watch the video to find out what that is!).

There’s also a clip from an upcoming Office episode, Two Weeks:

While this news from a UK source says Ricky Gervais is reprising his role as David Brent from The Office and is set to do a cameo in its USA version (thus finally coming face to face with Steve Carell’s Michael Scott), Greg Daniels, The Office USA’s show runner says, there is no truth to the story.

Speaking with E!, the writer and producer says —

• “We love Ricky, but have not had any discussions about an appearance on the U.S. show. And we haven’t given any thought to the final show because it is probably a zillion episodes away.”

If the writers of the show haven’t even began thinking of the finale, then here’s one of the scenarios they should seriously consider.

I would have to be really excited about the prospect of David and Michael meeting. I can imagine the amount of awkwardness and tackiness these two will cause. I’m sure the episode will become a highlight and a milestone and I’m pretty sure it’s what many fans of the show would like to see, too.

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Here’s a trailer to John Krasinski’s upcoming movie — Away We Go. This film is directed by Sam Mendes co-starring SNL alum Maya Rudolph. Sam Mendes and John Krasinski has worked before on another film — Jarhead.

Recurring The Office star, Rashida Jones, has moved on to another Greg Daniels project, as you must know. She is playing a supporting role in the Amy Poehler comedy, Parks and Recreation. She speaks about her new show and the other actors she is going to work with in an interview with Collider…

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John Krasinki was on Leno the other night and shared a clip from an upcoming episode, New Boss:

Michael:     The Willy Wonka, golden ticket promotional idea is probably the best idea I have ever had. It’s probably the best idea anybody’s ever had. Three days ago, I slipped five pieces of golden paper into random paper shipments. This entitles the customer to ten percent off of their total order. It will be a day for them that is full of whimsy. And full of excitement. And full of fantasy.

Jim:     One my clients found a golden ticket.
Michael:     Ooohohoo! La di doo! Do to pa ta Tell me! Was it, a spoiled little girl with big lips, or an odd little boy, with a cowboy obsession. Invite them on the tour!

Michael:     I placed a bunch of golden tickets into five seperate boxes and somehow they all ended up at Blue Cross. How did this happen?
Darryl:     Were the boxes near each other?
Michael:     Irrelevant.
Darryl:     I put three pallets on the truck to Blue Cross once a week. They use a lot of paper.
Michael:     Ok I’m going to ask you something and I want you to be honest. What is a pallet?

Pam:     Dunder Mifflin this is Pam. Oh hi David. No, I’m sorry he’s not back from the, Civil Rights Rally. I’ll have him call you the minute he gets back from the Lincoln Memorial.

Pam:     When Michael’s skirting a phone call he gave me a list of places to say he is…. Stopping a fight in the parking lot. An Obama fashion show. Whatever that is. Trapped in an oil painting. I’m gonna save that one.

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These are some really lovely shots here, these new promo photos for The Office:

There are individual shots of these, too. And you can check it all out here.

The Office’s Rainn Wilson wrote this piece for CNN’s commentary section, condemning religious persecution and in support of his faith. If you don’t know it yet, Rainn practices Baha’i, whose roots are traced back to Iran.

Follow after the cut…

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You can tell that Ricky Gervais and Elmo are really having a blast with their scenes together, in this video outtake. Gervais’ episode on Sesame Street will be aired in November, according to AP.

The non-spinoff spinoff to The Office premieres April 9th on NBC and here are two teasers that were released this week.

I love this bit! Ricky Gervais, as usual, is hilarious. Watching The Office’s British version as an Opera is so weird though…

An opera group seek approval for their operatic version of The Office from Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant…

Here are some promo photos for the new Greg Daniels series starring Amy Poehler, Parks and Recreations, premiering on NBC this April —

Thanks to Holly for these.

You can now download The Office episodes via your Playstation (PS3, PSP) as Sony announces early today that it has tied up with NBC Universal for the release of movies and TV episodes via the game console. Among the selection? Episodes of The Office, of course.

Here’s part of the press release —-

New movie download releases, such as the irreverent hit comedy Role Models and the Academy(R) Award-winning movie Milk, will be available beginning today for download to own. Other recently released and library titles from Universal Pictures and Focus Features, such as Wanted, Hellboy II: The Golden Army, Death Race, The Incredible Hulk, Burn After Reading, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, and The Big Lebowski, will also be offered for download to own in SD (Standard Definition) or to rent in both HD (High Definition) and SD.

An initial lineup of NBC Universal television programs will include popular and hit shows such as NBC’s The Office, Heroes and 30 Rock, as well as SCI FI’s Battlestar Galactica and Eureka. Episodes will be available for purchase the day after they air in both SD and HD. Previous seasons and additional programs will be added in addition to content from the extensive NBC Universal television library. NBC Universal and PlayStation Network will also be heavily promoting the availability of HD content by launching a joint campaign to create awareness of these hit shows in the highest quality experience.

NBC Universal will provide PlayStation Network users with a variety of attractive ways to purchase and view movies and TV shows, including varying price points depending on the content and format (HD or SD).

“In just over seven months our video delivery service has grown by leaps and bounds, making PlayStation the premier purveyor of online movie and television content for nearly 9 million PlayStation Network registered accounts in the US,” said Peter Dille, Senior Vice President of Marketing and PlayStation Network, SCEA. “The addition of NBC Universal television content adds to our Network’s diversity while Universal Studios Home Entertainment’s movies establishes PlayStation Network as a premiere platform to access content from every major motion picture studio. Whether consumers choose to be entertained at home through PS3 or on-the-go with their PSP, PlayStation delivers an unparalleled combination of versatile and rich entertainment hardware, software and online services.”

Source via Office Tally

As you know by now, Amy Poehler’s new TV series, Parks and Recreation (coming in April), is about Leslie Knope a national park director and her team of misfits. One of the site’s website has just been discovered on the internet. This is the official website of the park itself: City of Pawnee Parks and Recreation. Amy Poehler’s character, Leslie, has a little note on the site. It would be a good chance to get to know her character this early.

Parks and Recreation’s show runner is The Office’s Greg Daniels.

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