The Extras - Audience Warm-up with Mark Sweet

Episode Date: July 6, 2021

Mark Sweet is one of Hollywood’s foremost audience warm-up professionals and he takes us on an entertaining look at his career as a magician and comedian.  Originally from Detroit, Michigan, he eventually moved to Los Angeles and broke into audience warm-up for the "It’s Garry Shandling’s Show."  He has since gone on to do audience warm-up for over 4000 television episodes.  He shares his stories of working with Hollywood legends Phil Rosenthal, James Burrows, and Chuck Lorre and on sitcom favorites, Dharma & Greg, Coach, Everybody Loves Raymond, Two and a Half Men, and The Big Bang Theory.The Sitcom StudyWelcome to the Sitcom Study, where we contemplate the TV shows we grew up with and...Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify The Extras Facebook pageThe Extras Twitter Warner Archive & Warner Bros Catalog GroupOtaku Media produces podcasts, behind-the-scenes extras, and media that connect creatives with their fans and businesses with their consumers. Contact us today to see how we can work together to achieve your goals. www.otakumedia.tv

Hi, I'm film historian and author John Fricke. I've written books about Judy Garland and the Wizard of Oz movie, and you're listening to The Extras. Hello and welcome to The Extras, where we take you behind the scenes of your favorite TV shows, movies, and animation, and their release on digital, DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K, or your favorite streaming site. I'm Tim Millard, your host, and I have a very special guest with me today. He is a multi-talented entertainer, hypnotist, comedian, and magician.

He spent 25 years entertaining for General Motors and touring as Willy Wonka for the Willy Wonka Candy Company. I was first introduced to him on the set of Two and a Half Men when I went to a live taping as part of my work on the home entertainment extras for that show. It was the audience warm up for that show, something he has done for over 4000 television episodes. Those shows include some of the most popular sitcoms over the last 25 years and include Two and a Half Men, the Larry Sanders show. Everybody loves Raymond, Darman, Greg coach cheers, Mike and Molly, the big bang theory and mom. I had the privilege of showcasing him in two home entertainment extras for the big bang theory. And we will discuss those in more detail in a bit. Mark sweet. Welcome to the extras. Thank you, Tim.

I'm so honored to be with you on your podcast. I really am. Thanks for asking me. Yeah, you bet. I'm excited. But before we dive into your work in audience warm-up, maybe you can briefly tell us how you got started in show business. Okay. Well, I'm from Detroit, Michigan. I started when I was very young, about seven years old, doing a magic show. My father, Fred Sweet, used to manage a movie theater in downtown Detroit called the Telenews. And down the street was a little magic shop called the Fox Fun and Magic Shop in the Fox Theater building, where they actually had the Motown Review.

And we would go to a little deli that was also, they kind of had stores in the lobby of the movie theater. And one was a delicatessen and one was a magic shop. And we would go into the magic shop after we'd have a meal and he'd buy me a little magic trick for a dollar or two. And I just fell in love with the magic and started putting a show together and started doing children's birthday parties. So that's how I got into with the magic and started putting a show together and started doing children's birthday parties. So that's how I got into doing the magic. Yeah, you were extremely young. I remember seeing some of the pictures of you that we used in one of the extras and you were, you're just a young kid yet performing for all these other, other kids. Your mom was also a

big encouragement in your early years. I remember you mentioning. Tell us about her impact on you. Yeah, she was tremendous. My parents were divorced when I was about nine years old. And my mom worked for five or six pediatricians. So she knew when all these kids were born, their birthdays, and when they would turn five, she would, oh, my son's a magician. My son's a magician. My son's a magician. And she'd call me and say, I got you a show, you know, Saturday at 11. I got you a show Saturday or Sunday at two. And so it got to the point where I was doing three shows on a Saturday, two on a Sunday,

a half hour magic show. My grandfather would drive me from venue to venue. And that's where I first started to kind of learn how to not only stand up and perform, but understand an audience and the dynamic of what that was all about. Because that's most of it is understanding how to get their attention and hold their attention. Didn't she have a phrase that kind of stuck with you? She did. Wow. You did your homework. She would always go, make them glad you came, make them glad you came. And it's funny because years later, I mentioned that to someone and they said, isn't that a lot of pressure on a kid to tell them, make them glad you came. But I didn't take it that way. I only

took it as, you know, just go, go do a good job. That's, it's amazing how things our parents say just resonate with us. And that's such a positive, positive affirmation on how to approach what you were doing at that time. It stuck with me because of, you mentioned that in, in the piece that we did with you, the sweet spot. And my mom an instrument on my life, too, and it just resonated with me. Well, you know, to this day, she's 91 years old and healthy, as you can be at 91 years old, and still will say things along those lines. And we'll still joke about the make them glad you came. I told her what somebody said, and she laughed when that put a lot of pressure on it. But we don't take it that way.

We took it as a, it's never about the money. It's about doing the best job you can do. That's great. I was first introduced to you on the set of Two and a Half Men. I had just started working for Warner Home Video. So I went to a live taping just as an audience member. I had such a great time. I remember thinking, wow, I want to document this for the fans. Oh, very cool. You know, there was a, it took a little bit of time because we

didn't actually get a chance to do that until Big Bang Theory. But kind of before we get into all that, maybe you can tell us what exactly is the role of a warm-up comedian on a sitcom? I feel my role is to welcome the people, relax them, let them know we're glad that they came and they're devoting this time because a lot of people think these shows are done in a half hour and they can take three to five hours, not to mention the people get there maybe two hours or more before and they're nervous about getting in and getting tickets and where their seat is located. So I just want them to feel comfortable, really. Then I usually do some material when it's time to start, maybe 10 minutes ahead of

the playback. I'll start and do some material. We'll play back an episode, typically. After that episode, I'll introduce the cast. They come out and then they get positioned for their first scene. And the way it's set up is a long bleacher, like you might see in a high school or something. But then imagine there's different sets all across that gymnasium floor, in our case, the stage floor and a big soundstage. And the cameras then move down from set to set. So they'll do the first scene when they're ready and say, cut, and then I'll work. And they'll do that scene again, second time, third time, maybe a fourth time, maybe come back and do what's called a pickup where they pick up a small piece of the scene.

And in between all of that, I'm up there performing and trying to keep them engaged. And then the minute they're ready on stage is to stop on a dime and turn that energy back to the actors, the director, the producers and back to the show. You know, just in being there from so many of your tapings, working and seeing you at work, it's really about kind of, I don't want to say distracting the audience, but keeping them engaged maybe is a better, is that, is that a better way to say it? So that their energy, they're, they're ready to laugh and, and when the next scene is ready to be shot. I, I, I believe that's true. Um, I think people just have a short attention span, you know, particularly now with cell

phones, everyone's just immediately, they, they miss their phone. They want to be on their phone. They took my, you know, ahead of the show, I'll walk through the audience and say, thanks for coming or kind of welcome them just to make it easier for me. When I start, it just compresses the amount of time I have to do at the beginning once they've seen me and they're kind of comfortable and they'll go, oh, they took my phone away. People get a little uptight about that today. Yes. So the mission is to keep them engaged, keep them interested. Hopefully that three to five hours will fly by.

Because if you think about it, if you go see a concert, even someone that does a long time on stage like a Bruce Springsteen who might do two and a half hours or three hours. Well, that'd be a break for us if we got done in two and a half or three hours. Yeah. Well, kind of going back a little bit to your career, I wanted to also ask you before you got into the warm up a little bit about you played Willy Wonka for five years. And I just found that interesting. Maybe you could tell us a little bit about that experience. Well, what happened was the birthday parties that I did as a kid morphed into me doing larger shows, corporate shows. Even though I'm from Detroit, people think of entertainment. They think of these in New York or California. However, in Detroit, because of the auto industry, there was lots of work, lots of private parties, credit unions, country clubs. It was endless.

And there were a couple of very busy agents that liked me. I was very clean. In those days, you didn't say hell, you didn't say damn, you didn't say. It was a different world. It really was back in those days. And I had a very clean comedy magic act. And they liked me and they used me a lot. I would do 15 dates a month that morphed into me doing the auto shows, which we can talk about later.

But the second year I did the auto shows for General Motors, there was another magician there who just passed away, Johnny Thompson. And he asked me, he said, you know, I'm going into Las Vegas for a year to the Aladdin. And I'd like you to meet my agent in Chicago, who, Gene Bullard, who booked trade shows. Okay. You know, I just, because of my mom's trading, just said yes to everything, basically. Sounds good. So I fly to Chicago in the American Airlines, you know, one of those meeting rooms and did some close up magic. And they liked me and they asked me if I would do a three day trade show as Willy Wonka. So there's a real Willy Wonka candy company. They were out of St. Louis. Okay.

And this was right after the movie, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory with Gene Wilder. Okay. So I did the trade show and they loved it. It was just me in this Willy Wonka costume. If anyone wants to look it up, somebody did a piece on me called Collecting Candy. It's online. He did kind of told the Willy Wonka story. They could check it out. And then they came to me like the first day, do you want to do a shopping mall tour? Well, I'd love to, but I'm kind of busy because of the auto shows. they go, we'll work around your schedule. Wow. In show business, I had never heard of that. Usually things are a certain day. And one of the drawbacks of show business is you can only be in one place at one time. And so there's always conflicts because

certain things are a certain day, but they want to work around my schedule. Oh, my. So I would do the auto shows. And then the minute that finished, that would finish in April and May, June and July. I didn't have much work and they would book me to go on a three mall week shopping mall tour. week shopping mall tour. Then that morphed into a six week mall tour, 12 weeks. And I did everything from shopping malls to they got a big PR firm in Chicago called Edelman. And they would book me on the morning talk shows and local markets, different things, go to hospitals, do charity work. I did the Today Show with Willard Scott back in the 100 years ago. And I did the Macy's Day Parade. Oh, wow.

Some fun stuff that I would normally not do. And at first, Willy Wonka, you know, you would have this generic purple tail kind of chintzy costume. But I ended up going to I got a good tailor, good materials. They built me a nice costume, things that fit. And I just got into it and it was fun and it was fun. And I would do that. Boy, I would do, I was on the road 250 days a year. I do a hundred days for General Motors, 80 days for Willy Wonka, other work in between. So you were, you know, you're busy, you're doing the General Motors trade shows, and you're doing the Willy Wonka thing. Yeah.

So how did you then start to transition? Because you're in Detroit, right? That's right. How did you transition out to LA and get into warmup? What happened was I started coming to Los Angeles to do the LA auto show. For one thing, Willy Wonka would have me in San Diego, different places for candy conventions. I see. Part of the Willy Wonka tour was going from San Diego once up the coast to Seattle and around and up in Utah, in Salt Lake City. So, I mean, I was getting out here

and then you'd run into people like you'd run into Jay Leno at a comedy club. Oh, you got to come to LA, man. And I'm thinking, yeah, I'd like to, but I'm like, I'm pretty busy. Or I opened up for Jerry Van Dyke, the comedian in Mackinac Island, Michigan. And we did a corporate date at a place called the Grand Hotel, which is kind of a famous place in Michigan on Mackinac Island. And 400 realtors and it just killed. I mean, it went great. They were ready to roll. And I did a half hour and he did his hour.

And you got to come to LA. You got to come. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know. But I do get out there. But, you know, it was like that kind of thing. I planned to, but it was hard to walk away from all that work, really, for me. in the late 70s in Detroit or early, maybe around 79, 80 called the Comedy Castle. And they started bringing in comedians and they brought in Gary Shanling. And we just hit it off. We just hit it off. And he goes, Mark, you got to come to L.A. Da da da da da da da da da. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

I plan to. And same story. It was just like one thing. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I applied too and same story. It was just like one thing. It was like these coincidences or synchronicity. Something was happening. Okay, so then I thought, why couldn't I do Willy Wonka and the auto shows from Los Angeles? Right. Just fly out from here.

I mean, duh. You're on the road anyway, right. I'm on the road anyway at that point. So the only thing I was walking away from was country clubs and some private parties. But I'd had enough of that anyway. I didn't need it really at that point. And so Gary really just come to LA and he ended up having me do the It's Gary Shandling show. So in 81, 1981, I moved to Los Angeles. Everyone first said, everyone, you got moved to look in Santa Monica. And I remember looking in Santa Monica at a dumpy condo for $180,000, which today would be a steal. But it was nothing. It was just a dark, depressing, I thought, I'm moving here. And a realtor got me aside. You seem like a nice guy. Take PCH to Topanga Canyon, go over the hill, Woodland Hills, Brand new. They were just building the Warner

Center area. I didn't even know where I was really, but it seemed I could operate from there. And I bought a condo there and that's a townhouse there. And I moved out and Gary had me do the It's Gary Shandling show. At the same time, literally Jerry Van Dyke introduced me to Barry Kemp, who created Coach and New Heart. Barry, we did a couple of pilots. He came to see me at the LA Auto Show, do the auto, my work at the auto show, which was doing magic with product information, drawing people into the exhibit. Right. So that was kind of my job, but I would do it every hour, get up and do it again, get up, do it again, eight times a day. He saw how I worked and he had me do coach and that went for nine years. It's Gary Shanley showing for five years.

And then what happened was on all of these shows, there's always one or two writers, you know, get their own deal. And then they'd see you and they were comfortable with what they it was. It worked there. So maybe that could work for me. Right. Right. The Hollywood way of once you get work. Yeah. Network that the younger ones go on to get their own deal. the younger ones go on to get their own deals. They get their deals and they, they figure, well,

why not use their best sound guy, camera guy, warmup guy, this guy, that guy. Now here we are at 2021 and I haven't stopped working. So that's how you broke in. When did you kind of get attached to Chuck Lorre or first work with him? Okay. At coach, just to back up a little bit at coach one night phil rosenthal pulled on my pad leg literally because i'm up in the bleachers and they're on the floor right and he just goes hey mark i'm doing this pilot between scenes i'm doing a pilot called, would you do it? Of course.

Mother's training. Of course. Of course. Well, I mean, plus you want the work. And of course. And he's a great guy. And I did. So that, how I got into Everybody Loves Raymond.

And that went for nine years. But while I'm doing Coach, on the hiatuses from Coach, I would do Roseanne at CBS Radford. And Chuck was there. I didn't really know Chuck there at a personal level, but that's where we first got acquainted. So I've worked for Chuck Lorre for decades. Chuck Lorre for decades. Wow. And then the first big show that was his show that I read, I hope I have this in the right order was a Darwin gray.

I was personally a big fan of Darwin gray and everybody loves Raymond. We'll get back to that in a second, but sure. So that's the first show where Chuck kind of hired you to. Yeah. So they called, we want you to do the pilot for Darman Greg. And it was brilliant. I mean, it was just so, and so many ways ahead of its time. It was so funny. So interesting, great original material.

I remember Alan Rachins who played like the hippie with the ponytail. Right, right. His dad, I'll never forget to this day, he had one line where they said something to him, and he goes, you're bogarting my vibe. You're bogarting my vibe. And I just laugh at that. That one joke, I don't know, it just stuck with me. Yeah. If somebody gets overly serious, you don't know, it just stuck with me. Yeah.

If somebody gets overly serious, you're bogeying my vibe, you know. I don't know. It just seemed funny to me. But they had hundreds of lines like that that were that good. And everybody was so nice. And that's where I first worked with Mimi Kennedy, who I just finished a mom show that just ran for eight years. I did it the first seven because of the COVID. I couldn't work last year.

Well, just going back to, to Dharma and Greg, that's kind of the first, first show I was just looking, looking that up. It looks like it ran from 97 yeah um and everybody loves raymond started in 96 so were you working on both of those shows simultaneously simultaneously and so what would happen was it got to the point i i don't know how to say this um and that sounds obnoxious but a couple of these guys, I don't work for that many different people really, but the people that I work for seem to appreciate the work or felt the value in it. And I, certain shows were typically in those days,

shows were Tuesday night and Friday night. They kind of shared a camera crew. So the camera crew would work whatever days for the Tuesday night show, film it on Tuesday. Then they'd wheel the cameras down to another stage, literally. And they would do another show, a different show on Friday night because the sets remain on the stage, but the cameras, they would take down. Right. So a very interesting thing happened is changing the subject slightly, but you'll get a sense of where I'm going with this. When I was doing Coach, not only did I meet Phil Rosenthal, but Alan Kirshenbaum was another great writer and And they kind of came together from New York.

And at Coach, back in that day, there were two shows a night. They would rehearse. They would do a show quickly at 3.30 to 5 with an audience. Break for dinner. Kind of one take, pretty much. Few exceptions. audience break for dinner, kind of one take, pretty much few exceptions, but with a live audience, let the audience go. We would go to dinner and the commissary thing, which was like a rehearsal room there. And then they would do the seven o'clock show. So back in the day,

all the departments would sit together. The hair people all sat at one table. The makeup people all sat together. The camera guys would sit together. All the actors would sit at a different table together. So I'm the warm-up guy. One guy. I would sit at the end table, you know, eat a little salad or something. But the writers, they're very friendly with me, Alan Kirshenbaum and Phil Rosenthal. Hey, come sit with us. So I got to know them. Oh, okay. You know, now you're with the writer producer guys, not just, just the warmup guy all of a sudden. So I got to know them a little bit and they would ask me about other shows because I was doing other shows as well. And I just in conversation, I wasn't one thing about me. I'm not there. I'm there to do my job.

Make them glad you came. Right. Right. Right. Well, I mean, basically, that's my intention. That's why I'm there. I'm not trying to get on the show as an actor. I'm not trying to be a writer on the show. Oddly enough, I know anybody with a brain would pay. Why not create one? Why not be the guy? Why just be the warmup guy? But I like my job and that's what I know. And that's where I was comfortable. So I thought, how good can I make that? You know, that's what I wanted to do. But I remember telling Alan Kirshenbaum one night, hey, Mark, what are the shows? And I'd say, well, you know, boy, my buddy, Gary Shanling. Now we're on the Larry Sanders show by this time.

OK. With Gary. Do you know that he changed the night of the show to Thursday? Because that was the only night I was available. And I swear to you, I think it planted a seed in his mind because they just came from New York. So they didn't have that L.A. Tuesday, Friday has to be or else. Right. Right. So in those days, after the TV season, after pilot season, which could run the month of, you know, end of March, April.

Right. Yeah. Right in there at the third week of April. And then they kind of make their decisions what show they want and they would announce them in May, let's say. So now it's May or June. I'm in, or it's June, I think. I'm in Las Vegas. I would go to the Riviera, different hotels, but I was at the Riviera for a long time doing this comedy hypnosis show that I would go do, that I love doing. And so I get a call, Alan Kirshenbaum. Well, these guys don't typically call me. They have the line producers call or whoever's job that is to set the crew. But he called me. Hi, Mark. Hi, Alan. What night are you available? What night can you work? I always think he's putting me on. He would say this to me, but I honestly, I took it as a joke. Right.

He'd say, I'd say, well, Alan, he had a show called Yes, Dear that went for five years. I mean, I could do it Monday. I could work Wednesday or Thursday, but I'm booked Tuesday and Friday. He changed Yes, Dear to Wednesday night for me to do the show. Wow. He truly did. He told me he did. Yeah. And he would say, I know this sounds so obnoxious, but he was such a good friend of mine. And he'd say, I'm calling you before the director. That part was I'm sure a joke, you know, but anyway, so he changed it and it kind of opened it up where there were years I was doing Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. You know, that's a lot. And then there were certain nights, even though like Everybody Loves Raymond was booked on one year, I think they moved it to Thursday or something. But for

some reason, some of the episodes had to be Friday. But on that year, I was doing According to Jim on Friday. So they moved the show time up to three o'clock and I would work Everybody Loves Raymond till five. One of the writers, Tom Caltabiano, who was a writer on the show, Good Friends with Ray, and they just made the adjustment. He went by then we're down to the last scene or the so he would do the curtain call. I would have a hard out at, let's say, five to drive over to do According to Jim or 530. Maybe I don't remember the time exactly. And so there were nights I did two shows. There were nights I would leave Everybody Loves Raymond, drive to Fox Studios to do, I think, Two and a Half Men. I would leave Everybody Loves Raymond to do Two and a half men on those nights where a show was booked on a particular night.

But then for I don't know if someone got sick or the different reasons or they weren't. They had to push it. And it wasn't my normal night. And everybody, Les Raymond made that adjustment for me, which was very generous. That's amazing. I know. It made me think as you're talking, I mean, how many people in Hollywood do what you do or at that time did that play into it as well? I think there's enough people, but like anything else, I think this is just me off the top of my head. I think the comfort level is a big thing. People like to be comfortable with who they have and what, and to know what is expected because my job isn't really about being a comedian or

being a magician or being a hypnotist. It's kind of about holding this energy and bringing a certain joy to the work and holding that with the audience and on that stage for a given amount of time and then giving it back to the show the moment they're ready. Hopefully at a peak time, it's got to be timed out in a way where kind of leave them with a laugh. And now you take this and you run with it like handing the baton. So in my training back to Michigan again, you know, you only did a half hour or something. You didn't do hours and hours and hours. You didn't have to. They wanted your best. They wanted it concentrated. So as you got

better with better jokes or better tricks or better timing or entertainment value, you would, it just got, it's kind of like high def TV. You know, it was always there, but now TV, more lines than the, whatever makes high def, high def. It just got more high definition. It got better definition really. I've never said that before, but it was better quality, I guess. But then for

me as a performer, the disappointment with warm up was if I didn't feel that quality was there in every moment. Okay. Meaning he just can't be standing there. And yet how do you do five hours with an audience? Yeah.

So I, I had to have the quality. I just, I can't, I just, so like I would go to the, it's Gary Shanling show back. If you don't mind me backing up and they would say to the It's Gary Shandling show back, if you don't mind me backing up.

And they would say at the beginning, but I just started doing warmup then. Gary's getting in the shower. You start. Okay. Cause I'm used to doing what they tell you to do. And so I would get up there and there'd be a third of an audience and they were seating people. And, and in those days, all the writers sat in the audience

and it was a new, like, I think the Brillstein company produced the show, but I think it was maybe one of their first sitcoms. And it was just a different, and then you'd be up there and up there and up there. And finally you'd bring out the cast, but I had done 45 minutes already and then you'd perform a little bit and then the cast and then cut. And then they'd walk out and talk for 20 minutes, 30 minutes and you're up there and up there and up. Well, I don't like, I'm used to just everything being like a show,

like timed out, like it's Hamilton or something, you know, like a Broadway play. Like that's how I was trained in a way, not just to, I didn't like the, what do you do with all this dead time? And what I learned with the audience, it's not an audience like you're in a theater or you're at a corporate date with a spotlight on you. It's 200 people. You're right up to that front row. They're looking at the stars. They're distracted. There's a hundred people on stage. There's the actors, the camera

people, the writers. So how do you corral all of that focus? So I had to little by little. And then on Friday night, I'd work for Barry Kemp at Coach. Barry was a theater guy. He'd have you do five minutes, 10 minutes, maybe bring out the cast. First take, second take, moving on. First take, second take, moving on. And it was a hot crowd because they were at Universal on the tour, all tourists, pretty much. And then they get to see a show. it was a show that moved along and they could do it in two and a half hours because in those days they did pickups after the show.

They let the audience go. Okay. Then they would work from 10 to whatever, midnight or whatever it was, picking up little pieces, not doing it at the same time that much in front of the audience. Okay. Yeah. So after about five or six times at the It's Gary Shandling show, when they say Gary's getting in the shower, start happy to start, but I want to do the best. But I started seeing how it really worked well and how it didn't work as well. So I started not pushing back, but sure, whatever you need.

But do you ever play music before they come in or? Right. You know, I don't really need to do 45 minutes now. I'd rather save it for the body of the show. Little by little, I started pushing back. Gotcha. Because I thought it would give them a better product. Not for me as much as for them.

Right. For both, honestly. Because you were in tune with the audience. Yeah. I want to do well. Right. And I want them to do well. I don't like that feeling of you just up there.

You had maybe what, quite a bit of years under your belt by the time you started working Two and a Half Men. I did. Oh, yeah. When I first saw you and I got to experience it, it was a well-oiled machine on Two and a Half Men the night I was there. And probably it's closer to what I would think is your performance now. Yes, yes. I got really in sync. It just kind of, I'm dealing first off with the best people in the business,

the smartest people in the business, people that really pay attention. They don't just like, you know, flip the dial and go, this is the way it is. Every Chuck Lorre is very interesting. I would watch Chuck Lorre watch the audience of the playback at the Big Bang Theory. He'd be watching the audience. He had seen the show.

He'd been to it. He wrote the show. He'd be watching the all, he had seen the show, he'd been to, he wrote the show. He's watching them respond to pick up those nuances. Here are the laughs, maybe where he thought they would be, or laughs where maybe they didn't expect them to be. Or whatever he's looking for. I don't want to put, I can't speak for him. But that's how attuned he is to every department.

So I think he, with that same attention, picked up on what I was trying to do for him and for the show. And again, back to my mom, make them glad you came. You want to do a good job for these people. Yeah, I could just show up and I could, see back in the day, they didn't have the DJ. Back in the day, they didn't give them pizza two hours in. It was just me.

So I'd be up there. It's a big difference to be, just be up there by yourself for five hours in a quiet room. Right. Or, you know, imagine the Tonight Show without the band and without the hoopla of just a guy talking. There's a big difference between Charlie Rose at a desk or the Tonight Show with the band and the whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Yeah, it's a different. So it was just me back then. They didn't have the band. I mean, the DJ. There weren't.

Yeah, all the shows back starting at Two and a Half Men. When I did the pilot for Two and a Half Men, there wasn't a band. It was just me. Okay. Two and a half men. When I did the pilot for two and a half men, there wasn't a band. It was just me. That I think at that time, by then I was doing according to Jim and a couple of them I had to miss. But by the time I came back, Chuck said he wanted me to be there. By then they had the band, the pizza, you know, they filled it out. That stuff all helps of course. Well, fans are probably also a little bit interested in your perspective. Not that you worked or interacted with the cast.

They're obviously down on the floor. They're, you know, prepping, preparing with their lines. Yes. They're blocking and everything. I'm just a little bit curious because I worked on two and a half men as well for Warner Home Video. Just what was your perspective on that show and that cast? Did they interact with the audience much? Well, to a point, to a point, they don't do a lot of interaction with the audience, but they are very, very attuned and appreciative of a good audience. And I know that for a fact. John Cryer, as an example, is an actor I had worked on on some other shows prior to Two and a Half Men. On the very last episode, 12 years later, at Two and a Half Men, I saw him and thanked him. And two and a half men, I saw them and thanked them.

And I haven't, you know, I leave them alone. My approach is they're busy and let them, you run into them at a craft service table or here or there, but I don't seek out the actors or want to get, I don't want to intrude in any way. I'm there to do a job. Everybody has a department and I try to stay in my lane. Yes. Right. Right. So I see John Cryer at the end and he whispers to me, he says, Mark, I wrote a new book and you're in the book. What? I mean, that would blew my mind. Really? I was shocked.

And I bought the book and there was a whole paragraph that's on my Instagram, Mark Sweet Media, if anyone wants to see it. If you go down, there's a picture of me and John. I went to his book signing and he wrote a whole paragraph about the value of the audience, the value of warm up, a night that I had completely forgotten about where something, about where something, a piece of equipment went down and an hour went by and holding the audience and not only holding them, but by the time they got, it was very nice. It couldn't have been, I mean, my mother couldn't have written it that beautifully. You know what I mean? That's great. Yeah. And how kind and generous of him. I mean, and who would even think that he'd pick up on what I was doing in that kind of detail. Stay with us. We'll be right back.

Hi, this is Tim Millard, host of The Extras Podcast. And I wanted to let you know that we have a new private Facebook group for fans of the Warner Archive and Warner Brothers catalog physical media releases. So if that interests you, you can find the link on our Facebook page or look for the link in the podcast show notes. Well, that brings up an interesting note. You would get from the line producer or from the show or somebody kind of just the layout of how the evening is going to go, right? We're going to film. Yeah. So you kind of could figure out where you're going to need to fill in. Well, what happens is they bring me, they send me the script. I read the script up front. I take notes on each scene. So I have a sense

of what the story is, what the show is about. So prior to going to the next scene, I can set it up. Hey, because it could be 20 minutes later or whatever. Right. Or 10 or minutes or longer. You know, you don't know. Hey, I should remember, I should recall. And two days ago, you know, and I set up what happened to bring them back to the story. Right.

Because I don't want to, I don't want to, I want to do well and I like to get laughs and I like to feel I did a good job. But the most important job I could do for them, more so than being funny is keep them in this show. I think it, my, my way of working, keep them in the story. So yes, uh, I would say, so I do that work. Then I get there and they do a, on Chuck shows, not all shows, but mainly on Chuck shows, they do a run through

for the producers around one o'clock, let's say. And I get there early for that, even though the show's not until six o'clock at night or five or seven or whatever it is. I watch that. So I get a real sense of, oh, okay, they're moving down to a swing set, which is a set that's designed, decorated, created just for that particular episode. There might be a long break here. How do you pronounce a certain name? Maybe a guest cast. I get up on that a little bit. I just get a better start dialing it in, you know. it a better start dialing it in, you know? So I do all that. Then they finish that run through, which goes about an hour and a half or roughly. Then I meet with the line producer and then he goes over it again. Okay. Long break here. Costume change here. we'll do pizza here. Got it. Ten minutes.

Sure. Just A, B, C, D. So I have a... Pretty much by then I've already... I have that. But... Oh, okay, good. I thought... Or I'll say, you didn't do... Did you... Did you cancel that scene? Because you didn't...

I didn't see you rehearse it. Oh, no, we're going to pre-shoot that, play it back. So there are little, little subtleties or the scene might have, it'll start live. Then it'll go to a hot cut where they go live and do a playback, you know, little variations. Right. So I can make my work a little smoother. Showrunners you've mentioned, and we've talked a little bit about the line producer.

We haven't really touched on the actual director. And I would, I think the fans would find this interesting. I know you worked on Mike and Molly, which I also worked on, and I was there for a number of the tapings. Yes. TV legend, James Burroughs directed 49 episodes. I know. I always enjoyed going and just seeing him work.

I know. I was just curious, what was it like working with him on that show? He's a remarkable guy. First off, I think his heart's in it. He really loves, he just loves, I think think he I think it's who he is. I think he not only is a great director, but I think he you know, some people are in the wrong business or they're not really they do a job. But it's not a fit somehow or it seems like it might not. But he was born to do this.

Literally, I think he was born to do it. I think his dad did it and he learned back in New York on Broadway or something. I don't know all his backstory exactly, but he has a huge respect for not only the actors, but he treats people like myself or the camera crew. I think he's very loyal to his camera guys and gals and his people, sound people. He tries to take them with him wherever he goes. He knows everyone's name. He really, really, really has a sense of timing like none other.

He really knows his work. really knows his work. Even though he's the director, I think he's, you know, I'm sure his name says a co-creator, producer, executive producer as well. And it's well-deserved, not just because he's legendary James Burroughs. He's really one of a kind. On a personal level, two little things that I have to thank him for, if I may. Yeah. One, while I was doing coach at Universal on Friday night, on a Tuesday, there was another show we were doing. I can't think of the name of it right now. Maybe Blue Sky or I was supposed to the next day be at a function on the East Coast. So I was going to, if I, if we got done in time, I was going to fly out that night. The last plane was at 1130 and, or leave on the first plane the

next in the morning on Saturday morning. So I just halfway mentioned, I was talking to him before the show. I said, Hey, Jimmy, by chance, if we get done in time, I might try and catch that 1130 plane. Just kind of a half joke. I mean, you know, so I mean, if we didn't get that show done by enough time for me to get in the car, get to the airport, make the 1130 plane. But right before I left the stage, he looked at me and said, see, I got you out or something. He didn't forget. He did. He he took it. It was very sweet of him the way he handled that. And another night at Mike and Molly, he doesn't know about this.

And I didn't know about it till the next day. They came to watch him work to be written about in a book by Warren Littlefield. I have the book here in my office and I didn't know about it. But the next day I get a phone call and said, hi, this is so-and-so. I was at Mike and Molly last night to write about James Burroughs, but I didn't really see Jake because he was kind of around the corner that night. They didn't see him much. Normally he's in the mix on stage. I work with him on Cheers and some different shows. And he kicked the cake. You know, he's just right out there. He's a showman. He's great. But that night, the guy said, you know, I guess he appreciated my

work. And he asked to interview me. When he called the next, I said, well, you know, I have to work. And he asked to interview me when he called the next. I said, well, you know, I have to work. And I got him to come over to two and a half men on that Friday. This was on a Wednesday. He saw me calls on Thursday, Friday. He comes over to two and a half men after our run through. So now around two thirty, three o'clock, I'm meeting with him before the show. And he gave me a beautiful couple blurbs all because of James Burroughs, really. Now he didn't come to see me. Right, right, right. But I ended up being a Warren Littlefield spot, which was a great treat.

I do recall just the respect that the actors. Oh, yeah. When we interviewed them. I mean, he could just yell out a line or just say one little comment and the actors would be able to respond, but they just really enjoyed just, he just could cut right to what needed to be done. Not only that, and I don't know how he does it really, but he seems to know the script.

Like he'd walk in and say, take it from, but without getting the line from the script supervisor or it's the way he works. I mean, I don't know if he has notes or he knows the script or what, but he seems to just know it. He's been the choice for so many pilots over the years. And I know that Chuck brought him in or, you know, that he was on the pilot for the big bang theory, which interestingly enough, there was the first pilot, which is an unaired pilot. And then there was another one a year later in 2007. Right. The second pilot.

Right. And I believe you were at both. Yes. Have you ever had an experience where you've filmed two pilots of the same show? I don't recall. film two pilots of the same show? I don't recall. I don't, I've been on shows that I know were shot maybe years prior, like they'll redo a show, but I don't think I had been in that situation before. I don't think so. Well, that's just, it just kind of is an unusual one. Obviously the recasting of Kaley Cuoco as Penny made a huge difference in the show in the second pilot.

Correct. But it made me, it led me to think about with an audience that's coming to a pilot. Yes. They don't know the show. How is that a little bit different when you're doing a pilot or is it versus a show that an audience comes, they know they've been watching a season or two? Well, particularly that show, The Big Bang Theory. is it versus a show that an audience comes, they know they've been watching a season or two? Well, particularly that show, The Big Bang Theory. I mean, Kaylee had been on earlier show and so she was known, but pretty much that was an unknown cast when we did that show, as well as Everybody Loves Raymond was an unknown cast. And those shows kind of start small in a way, meaning when it's a big show, you could feel, oh, you know, different studio people come and their kids come and their families come and people like to see stars.

Right. In Hollywood. They just do. Sure. So, which is great. And it's fun. But I knew right away when we did that show, the Big Bang Theory, because the minute that show got picked up the very first year, very early on, you could just feel the energy and the love in the room and people were very excited about the show. The laughs were huge and the serious parts had tremendous heart. And it just had that, as they talk about catching, you know, magic in a bottle or lightning in a bottle. It had it, obviously, went on for 12 years

to the point that I turned it into a piece of material about two or three years in and said, but got a number of shows. But if you'll just come up and tell me why you love the show, what it means to you, how you identify with this show, you know, and I give them a gift or candy or whatever I had to give away. And I'd get anywhere from six to a dozen people that would. And I said, it's not a device to make fun of you in any way. It's just to share the celebrate the show. And people would come up and it was really one of my favorite. Moments, it would not only fill that window of time, it was similar yet different every time. I would say half of the things I had heard before and half

were original. And it was just fascinating, the impact it had on people around the world. And everyone from just fans from around the world, to scientists, to nerds, to comic book people, to people that felt left out included. It was just ahead of its time in so many ways. I recall that in the first season I was going to go over there and it didn't, didn't work out. And it was kind of like, Oh yeah, just let us know which night and we'll get you in. Yeah. Because I was, um, starting with the second season, I started working on that show. Yeah. And, uh, so I wanted to go to a taping and in the second season, kind of the same thing. Oh, come on over. Bye. I believe November of that second season. Yeah. I was checking back in and they said, you know what? We're now booked up through the

rest of the year. Yeah. Literally there was a, in that second season, as more people sampled the show and came to the show, it just took off from audience ticket availability, put it that way, which did a lot and was a precursor in my mind to the ratings, which just took off at that point. And that was just kind of an interesting insight. And you felt that energy. at that point. And that was just kind of an interesting insight. And you felt that energy. Not only did I feel it, just, we would get an email from the production company and say, we know you want to come to the show, but we want to get as many fans in as possible. This wasn't directed to me. This was just a generic mass email that went out to everybody. And, um, yeah, that's really that's basically the email

because as an employee yeah like you know and and working with the show and sure everything they're like we'd love to get you in but we can't the allotment is full for any employees 100% because we have so many fans that want to 100% A hundred percent. Yeah, it was like that. And it was great. And it was fun. And it was everyone. Every episode was absolutely amazing. When I went to, you know, many of the tapings and the show was growing in popularity, there just seemed to be a really good international fan base as well for that show. Was that typical for the shows or did

that one seem to have a broader international? I think it had a broader fan base. I'll tell you a little side note that I noticed doing this work, that whatever show you do, the crowd, a lot of the people in the audience are very similar to the stars in the show. Meaning when I would do Roseanne, you'd have 10 girls in the audience that kind of, they didn't look exactly like her, but you went, wait a minute, It kind of looks like. Yeah. Yeah. I think people attract their. Their own. And I think what happened with that show is that that just attracted that kind of a whatever those characters were, those kind of people that were deeply intelligent and lived in their own environment.

I know. And they had a home there. They felt home there, that that was home. They did. Yeah. It seemed to really catch the zeitgeist of that era. There were also where it felt like, you know, kind of to that same point, there were a lot of scientists that would come.

Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness. One night I was there, there was somebody from Switzerland. And then I know that people from JPL, the jet propulsion lab laboratory there in Pasadena, employees would come from, from there on a frequent basis. Constantly. And they were, it was the sweetest audience. There was a sweetness about them and a great heart and just really came to just be part of it. It's like a big overgrown family. There was a woman that made these rub on tattoos of the big, of the emblem from the Big Bang Theory, that kind of infinity emblem. I'm not sure what it's called. That was fascinating. There was another woman that would come all the time. And she when I walk through the audience at the beginning, she would

say I left. She would grow vegetables in her garden and bring them and leave me a bag of fruit or something that the sweetest people would come to the show. That is interesting. I want to go back just a second. Okay. In season four, we actually did, I finally got the opportunity to do an extra for the home entertainment release on season four. And it's called The Big Bang Theory Live. And the idea when I pitched it was, how can I get the fans that experience of coming to a live taping? Because it was impossible in season four or nearly impossible to get a ticket. And it was just that popular. The show was, and people would line up outside of the main gate of Warner brothers. They would hope that they could get a ticket and you just felt bad for people.

Could you be like showing up the day of your odds are almost nothing because, um, you know, they're just booked for here through the end of the season or whatever. But so the idea there was, let's film it. Let's get it on the home entertainment release and give people a way to experience it. If they are in Germany or in the UK or Japan or wherever they might be, South America. Cause the show is hugely popular in all those areas, or even just here in LA, you couldn't get a ticket. Uh, how can they experience and see, and kind of have a view into that. And we started, you know, with, with the outside of the lot, people in line, then coming through the gate, coming, walking over to stage 25 and checking in, leaving their cell phones, you know, and getting seated and all that. And it probably is, you know, in retrospect, now that the show is over, might be the best way to kind of experience that again for any fans who haven't seen that and might be interested in it.

Well, boy, the piece, you can really feel the excitement of the fans and the popularity of the show. So it was a lot of fun to do. I'm glad we did that. So what was your experience? Because we then obviously we focused on you in that piece because we wanted to set a camera up kind of at the top of where the where the seating was. Tell us a little bit about your experience working with us on that. Well, you guys are the best. I mean, you are the best. I couldn't believe the quality of that piece. And I can't tell you

how many people over the years, when I would walk through the audience, tell me, oh, wait, we've seen you. Oh, where'd you see me? Oh, we saw you on the, so they were oriented to the show. They were ready. They were in it already. You did a great service. I hadn't heard that before. Yes, this is true. And on a personal level, I love the editing and the way you put it together and the pieces of material you did use in that 15 minute piece were. I mean, I have, you know, written material. I have prepared bits I do all the time, but then I like to let I like to improvise in a way and just see how far I can not do any of my prepared material. And I noticed a couple of pieces you used in that 15 minute piece were things that were improvised that only happened that night when the kid was from Canada. And what are you doing

Canada? I forgot what he said. I live in, I make igloos or something. I don't know. There was some joke about ice, but that, I mean, that was a one-off joke that happened only that night that was captured by you guys. And then it was also in that piece that was, that's amazing, really. The amount of people that witnessed that piece and, and it was just so beautifully done. And I've, I've never watched a piece tell the story that well with the timeline, the intros, you got a real sense of what warmup is, what it's about, what time, what happens when. It's fun to see now. I mean, the show is done. And to see it, it is a little bit like a time capsule. It is.

You know, especially from that season four, when the show was just taking off in popularity. Right. Just the excitement was just. And you also get a sense of on that second take or third take where the joke can vary some, what the audience sees, what they don't see. It was, it was really, I've never seen it captured more brilliantly. Everyone really should get that DVD and check it out. It's fantastic. Yeah. For the fans, uh, feel, feel, um, that's season four.

Can they get it? Can they, they can find that, right? Yeah. They have to get that because that, that, that's season four. Can they get it? Can they, they can find that, right? Yeah. They have to get that because that, that, that was absolutely stunning. It really showcases you and your, what you do throughout the evening as well and how you work with the show. It was a real compliment to, uh, it was really great to see how you compliment working with audience with the show. Wow. Thank you for having me on that.

I'm honored, really. The other time we got to showcase you was in season 12. And we did a nice piece on you called The Sweet Spot. Yeah. Which came from what you said in the piece. It also really captures the emotion that you were there for all 279, 280 episodes of that series. And, uh, you know, so you had a unique perspective, maybe take us back a bit to that emotion of the taping of the last episode, the Stockholm syndrome. Well, none of us wanted that to end, I don't think. I mean,

that was, there's never been a show quite like that. And to be there for 12 years, to be there for every single episode, to work with that caliber of writing and that caliber of talent. That caliber of writing and that caliber of talent. Honestly, I can't remember a single negative vibe or incident or problem other than, you know, a technical thing or something. I mean, you know, I don't even recall that. Not to mention there were two or three engagements in front of the audience. I don't know if you knew about that. There were, they came to me once and said, I don't know how they set it up. They must've contacted the office somehow and they did it.

But they said, do you have a way without the audience knowing to get this guy to, as a surprise, propose to his wife. Yeah. Okay, I'll come up with something. So I love this kind of stuff. So I thought, all right, let's see. So we did it, I think, three different times over the 12 years. So the first time I just said, we're going to give somebody a chance to get an up-close look at the stage.

You just have to think of a number between one and a hundred. And somebody said, so-and-so, no, that's not correct. No. The third one, and it was the right guy. That's exactly right. You get to see the stage up close and personal. So I walked them down. They had them walk down. Nobody ever walks on the stage except the actors, the writers of the crew. Right. And he dropped to his knees and he proposed to his wife, to his the girl he was engaged to. And the place went crazy. And we did that different versions three times. But back to that last episode, I never recall. And I've done thousands of these shows, but I never recall a show that had that kind of impact on the audience. I knew what the actors were going through. Kaylee before the show said, Mark Sweet, did you get your they had special script covers and the cast signed them with gold, a gold pen.

And I didn't have that signed. And she went around before the show as busy as was, and got everyone to sign that. I have that. How sweet was it of her to do that, to think of me, even to think like that, to get that done. Another little thing at that show, The Big Bang Theory,

Kaylee's dad, Gary, was there for every episode. He would stand in the back, up the top of the bleachers, because we kind of walked down. And that's where I would wait before I went on. And we always would have a beautiful visit a few minutes before the show. And, boy, I miss that show. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. We, in that piece we did on you.

Yes. We weren't able to do it from the final episode, but in the episode we filmed. Yes. Kaylee and Johnny both jumped up on the railing, grabbed the mic, and they spoke to the fans. And that was, that's one of my favorite moments. Yes, they would do that. Yeah, they would do that often. And they would, that sort of became a regular little segment of the evening.

There would be a time the line producer, excuse me, the floor manager there would tell me when we were going to do that. And that actually became a piece where I would introduce them. They'd come up and it was really this heartfelt moment where they just expressed their gratitude for being there and thanked the fans and maybe would take a question or two and everybody was thrilled. I was just so impressed when I saw that. I didn't realize that that was something that they did, but just their connection in that moment of acknowledging the fans coming so close, even though you can see them working down stage and on the stage and it's not literally very far away. There still is that barrier and they would literally

come and they would cross that barrier, so to speak, and speak one-on-one to the fans. Yeah. There's nothing more powerful than that. When, when the actors do cross that, when I would do coach, uh, Jerry Van Dyke would come up in the bleachers on stage with me and do stuff with the audience. When I did the Larry Sanders show, Gary Shanling, and I'm used to when another performer comes up, you kind of hand the mic off and you're done. You know, like it's their turn. Right. But they'd want you. Jerry would kind of hold my hand.

He'd keep me right by him. And I would know his act. So we would kind of take questions and I try to feed him material that he might want to play around with. And Gary would take any material and we riff with the audience for five or 10 minutes. And I love that. I love that. And you see how they work. And you you hope some of that rubs off on you because they're so brilliant at what they do. And Jerry would be outrageous. He was funny. He was super funny. But Kaylee and Johnny had heart like you've never seen before. You could

almost feel the tears. I was right there with them. They're right here. I'm right there. You know, I'm in the front row and they're hanging over the railing. They're right there and very generous with the audience, with me, with everyone. Yeah. And they were generous with us when we would come to the set twice a season to with the cast. Yeah. They love it. I think they love what they do. They appreciate what they do. They haven't forgotten. They're exceptionally talented, but you know, you can be talented and I don't know, somehow forget the position you're in or how lucky you are to have this cool job. Well, the, the multi-camera sitcom is really unique, you know, from a single

camera in the sense that you actually have the opportunity to do that, to see your audience, to talk to your audience because they're right there. Not that you're always going to take advantage of it necessarily, but I've really come to enjoy that format, covering it for some of the extras and just talking with you and seeing you really put so much effort into engaging that audience. You even had to kind of prompt them on how to laugh or be a fan at a live taping, didn't you? Well, I, you know, I'll do a joke, but it's just to, when I walked through the crowd at the beginning, I find people say, are we allowed to laugh? Right. Well, yes, this is why you're here.

So I'll get them to laugh out loud just so it just kind of breaks the barrier in a way. I mean, in their mind, maybe they think they're at a movie set and they have to be quiet. Like, that's the show. Better be quiet. But I let them know that they're part of this evening and it's, we count on them and they're part of television history. And I try and make them like they're the other actor as an audience in this play. So I have a few techniques to try to open up that door. It's great to go to a live taping. I encourage any fans when you're in LA or wherever New York or wherever there's a live

taping opportunity to try to get tickets for your favorite show. We did on the season 12 DVD and Blu-ray release we did also another documentary extra. You're in that one as well. It's called Last Days of the Big Bang Theory. And that one's just specifically about that last episode. It's really an emotional behind the scenes journey from table read to the final cut of the live taping. And that's a must see for the fans.

So if you get the season 12 DVD or Blu-ray, you can see the sweet spot. You can also see the last days of the big bang theory. It's a great, those in combination are a great way to kind of experience from the audience perspective, uh, that last season. So I recommend that. Absolutely. Before we wrap up our discussion, Mark, I wanted to ask you a little bit about the impact of the COVID-19 shutdown on sitcom production this last year. Right. For the fans, we're recording this currently in the summer of 2021. Right. Mark, does it look like things will be returning to normal in the fall?

Yeah, I think so. What happened was March 11th, 2020 was my last show. I did a pilot called Be Positive that got picked up and then things just closed down the next day. Literally, I was hearing and I had all these other pilots booked and oh, sorry, everything stopped. And right now it looks like things are starting to come back. They're talking about audiences for Be Positive, Call Me Cat, another show that it looks like I may do. And it feels like things are going to return to whatever our new normal is. But I always knew I loved the business, but I never knew how much I would really miss

how much I love the business. And you don't, I've never not worked since I've been a kid, never. I've never had a dry year, quiet year, and we're all forced to stop, but it's really given me a time to reflect and kind of meditate on all of this and have new appreciation for what we get to do. Yeah. I think it's true for all of us that it's given us time to reflect on what is important in our lives. Well, thank you

so much for coming on here. How can fans find out a little bit more about you? Well, I mean, I I'm on the, to a point on the social media this last year, I haven't, I just wasn't in the mood to have anything put out for whatever reason, but on the Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, you know, the, I think it's Mark sweet media. They can find me and, and I'll put a link on the, on the blog page on the website. Well, Mark, it's been a real pleasure talking with you today. I've so enjoyed working with you over the years. Thanks for coming on the show and sharing your stories with the fans.

Thank you so much. This was my honor. Anytime. And I wish you the best with your new podcast. For those of you interested in learning more about Mark or The Extras discussed in the show today, there will be detailed information on the website at www.TheExtras.tv. And if you are enjoying the guests we have on the show, please subscribe and leave us a review at iTunes, Spotify, or your favorite podcast provider. Until next time, you've been listening to The Extras with Tim Millard. Stay slightly obsessed.

The Extras is a production of Otaku Media, producers of podcasts, behind-the-scenes extras, and media that connects creatives with their fans and businesses with their consumers. Contact us today to see how we can work together to achieve your goals at www.otakumedia.tv or look for the link in the show notes.