Danny McBride is Building an Empire

 

Danny McBride is the writer, creator, actor and producer of the following three MAX shows.

Eastbound and Down, 2009-2013, where he played a major league/minor league baseball player and also worked as a commentator on a sports TV show. Will Ferrell appeared in this show as a car dealership owner patterned after wrestler Ric Flair.

Vice Principals, 2016-2017, where he played a high school vice principal. He directed 2 episodes of this show. He said that this show was an homage to the high school teen comedies of the 1980s, like the Molly Ringwald films. Instead of it looking at the challenges and anxiety of being a high school student, it looked at how the high school teachers have many of the same issues. There was an episode where people were climbing through heating vents to get to the other side of the school in order to evade the principal. That was a shout out to a similar scene in The Breakfast Club. 

The Righteous Gemstones, 2019-2023, (on March 9, 2025, the final season kicked off on MAX). He plays a minister in a family of wealthy ministers that runs a mega church. These "religious" people need to practice what they preach. John Goodman plays his father in this show, and the head minister. Adam Devine plays his brother, and Edi Patterson is his sister. McBride directed 4 episodes of this show.

In each show he plays a vulgar, drug abusing buffoon with a distinctive haircut. His characters lack a moral compass.

Vice Principals and The Righteous Gemstones both co-starred Walton Goggins and Edi Patterson.

McBride’s shows stand out since they have talented, funny actors, character development and creative writers that come up with excellent storylines that hold your attention.

Here are some movies that McBride has appeared in…

Hot Rod, Superbad, Pineapple Express, Tropic Thunder, Sausage Party, Up in the Air, The Angry Birds Movie. He’s appeared in movies since 2003.

He did a voice in the video game Grand Theft Auto V.

Here are some quotes from McBride…

          

In my school, people liked the gym teachers because they were the football or soccer coaches. But look, if they're cool, they get respect.

I've always had the hair of Lionel Ritchie since I was a boy, but the mullet sadly is a hairpiece. My wife won't let me rock that hairstyle.

I'll still try to nail acting jobs, but with 'Eastbound,' creating it is what gives me the ultimate pleasure at the end of the day.

I usually choose movies that I would want to see. I appreciate drama and if the right script came across my desk, drama you will see.

I made movies all the time when I was a kid.

I had a classic gym teacher in junior high who wore a weightlifter's belt all the time.

        

Information from imdb.com.

  

Worldwide Pants

 

For David Letterman’s morning show (1980), that was produced by a company called Space Age Meats. (Letterman always seemed to have a meat obsession). On his CBS Late Show he did a segment called “Know Your Cuts of Meat.” Space Age Meats is also credited with producing Letterman’s NBC show Late Night with David Letterman from 1982-1990. This was produced in partnership with NBC and Carson Productions. Founded in 1991, Worldwide Pants was responsible for co-producing the final two years of Letterman’s Late-Night show (1991-1993) along with NBC and Carson Productions.
Letterman’s 1993 contract had some things in common with Johnny Carson’s 1980 contract. Carson Productions gave Johnny ownership of his show and projects made by the company (Amen and The Big Chill being two examples). With ownership of his Late Show and other programs, Letterman had many projects to contribute to building his wealth. Other than Late Show with David Letterman, the most successful Worldwide Pants show was Everybody Loves Raymond, starring Ray Romano (1996-2005). Letterman had Romano on his Late Show and wanted to base a sitcom around his life. This was co-produced with HBO Independent Productions and creator/executive producer Phil Rosenthal’s company, Where’s Lunch. The company tried to produce two programs with Bonnie Hunt, The Building (1993) and Bonnie (2015). Both were short lived. Worldwide Pants produced The Late Late Show which had different hosts, including Tom Snyder (1995-1999), Craig Kilborn (1999-2004) and Craig Ferguson (2005-2014). The program Ed was produced from 2000-2004 and aired on NBC. HBO shows produced by Letterman’s company include The High Life (1996) and Foo Fighters Sonic Highways (2014). Netflix shows include The Fundamentals of Caring (2016), My Next Guest Needs No Introduction (2018-present) and That’s My Time with David Letterman (2022). That’s my Time was a great showcase for young up-and-coming comics. Three shows were produced for PBS in conjunction with Sesame Workshop. The Knights of Prosperity was produced for ABC in 2007. In 2024, TBS aired a Worldwide Pants show called Stupid Pet Tricks, a program that was based on a Letterman staple from his Late Night and Late Show. It was hosted by Sarah Silverman.
Other crazy names for Letterman production companies over the years included: Cardboard Shoe Productions, United States Chemical Cheese Productions and Recreational Poultry Productions.

*Some information from Wikipedia and latenighter.com. 

Ordinary People (1980)

 

This year marks the 45^th anniversary of an outstanding film, Ordinary People.

Directed by Robert Redford (A River Runs Through It, Quiz Show, The Horse Whisperer and The Legend of Bagger Vance). Ordinary People was his feature filmmaking directing debut.

It’s based on a 1976 novel by Judith Guest.

This film starred: Donald Sutherland, Mary Tyler Moore, Judd Hirsch and Timothy Hutton (his film debut at age 20).

At the 1981 Oscars, this film won four awards. They won for best picture, best supporting actor (Timothy Hutton), best director (Robert Redford) and best writing, screenplay based on material from another medium (Alvin Sargent). Ordinary People had an uphill battle that year, going head-to-head against Martin Scorsese’s brilliant boxing film, starring Robert DeNiro, Raging Bull.

Overall, this film had 21 wins and 14 nominations.

It won five Golden Globes, including one for best picture (drama) and one for Mary Tyler Moore for best actress (drama).

The budget was $6 million, and the worldwide gross was $90 million.

The Jarrett family lives in an affluent Chicago suburban neighborhood. From the outside, they probably appear to be a family who has it all, but there is turmoil behind closed doors.

Donald Sutherland and Mary Tyler Moore played Calvin and Beth Jarrett, who are parents to Conrad Jarrett, played brilliantly by Timothy Hutton. The other son, Buck Jarrett, was killed in a tragic boating accident. Conrad feels responsible for his death and is haunted by images of the event. His grief and guilt are overwhelming. His feelings led to a suicide attempt. Conrad felt that his mother preferred Buck over himself. Conrad is closer to his father than his mother. The interactions between mother and son are awkward.

Mary Tyler Moore did not play her normal bubbly, positive character like she did when she played Mary Richards and Laura Petrie. Beth was cold and distant. This role showed the impressive range of Moore. She was shocked when Robert Redford said that he wanted her for the role. He had her in mind from the first time he read the novel. Her character was not always likeable. During the filming, Moore was aloof toward Timothy Hutton to get into character. Mary Tyler Moore called this film "The Holy Grail of my Career".

 The parents decide that Conrad needs to see a therapist to deal with his guilt and depression tied to what happened with his brother. Judd Hirsch played Dr. Tyrone Berger, the therapist who tries to help Conrad. Redford chose Hirsch for the role after seeing his character in the TV show Taxi. Some of the scenes between Conrad and Dr. Berger are intense and gripping. This film delves deep into the dynamics of human relations and the challenging feelings that accompany them. The film is largely about forgiveness…forgiving others and ourselves. The main theme for the soundtrack was Pachelbel’s Canon in D Major, which set the perfect mood for this emotional film.

Gene Hackman was considered for the role of Calvin. Michael J. Fox auditioned for the role of Conrad, but Redford wanted to go with Hutton. Natalie Wood was considered for the role of Beth, which went to Mary Tyler Moore.

The film received high praise from critics Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert. Siskel called it the 2^nd best film of 1980 and Ebert said it was the 5^th best film of the year.

The intense writing, acting and insights into stressful family dynamics make this an outstanding film.

 

*Some information from imdb.com and Wikipedia.  

 

 

Saturday Night Live Season 11, A Turbulent Period

This was a challenging season for the franchise to say the least. It marked the return of executive producer Lorne Michaels after a five-year absence. The season ran from November 1985 to May 1986.

The show had just come off a successful season with cast members Billy Crystal, Martin Short, Harry Shearer and Christopher Guest, with Dick Ebersol as producer. That season wanted to attract people with previous comedy experience. For example, Martin Short appeared on SCTV before doing SNL.

Cast members for season 11 included: Robert Downey Jr. (his uncle Jim Downey was a writer for the show), Joan Cusack, Anthony Michael Hall, Randy Quaid, Nora Dunn, Jon Lovitz, Dennis Miller, Terry Sweeney, Danitra Vance, Damon Wayans, Dan Vitale and A. Whitney Brown. This season had an emphasis on youth and the cast did not seem to gel.

Most did not make it to the next season except for Jon Lovitz, Dennis Miller, Nora Dunn and A. Whitney Brown. The season ended with a fake fire in the studio, questioning who would survive for season 12 and who would not. In the closing credits everyone had a question mark after their name. NBC President Brandon Tartikoff threatened to cancel the show after this disappointing season. Michaels talked him out of doing that.

Lovitz had success with his “liar” character and “Master Thespian.” Nora Dunn had her fashion-obsessed Pat Stephens character. Dennis Miller was a strong Weekend Update anchor, with his sarcastic, smarmy attitude.

Damon Wayans sabotaged his career and got fired. He played a flamboyantly gay character in a sketch where he was not supposed to do that. Many do not realize that the leeway for improvisation on SNL is virtually non-existent. Cast members must do the skits exactly as written.

Dan Vitale was fired during the season due to substance abuse issues.

Chris Elliott from Late Night with David Letterman auditioned for the show. He was offered the job but decided not to take it. In 1994 he would join the cast of SNL. His daughter Abby was in the cast from 2008-2012.

Terry Sweeney was the first openly gay cast member. He portrayed Nancy Reagan.

Danitra Vance was the first black female member of the primary SNL cast. In 1994, she died of cancer at age 40.

Writers for season 11 included: Jim Downey (Head Writer), Al Franken, Tom Davis, George Meyer, Herb Sargent, Carol Leifer, Jack Handey, Robert Smigel, Don Novello, Jon Vitti, John Swartzwelder and more. Meyer, Swartzwelder and Vitti would later write for The Simpsons.

Hosts during this season included: Madonna, Chevy Chase, Pee-Wee Herman, John Lithgow, Tom Hanks, Teri Garr, Oprah Winfrey, Tony Danza and more.

Musical guests included: Simple Minds, Sheila E, Mr. Mister, Sade, The Dream Academy, Laurie Anderson, Al Green, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Level 42, George Clinton and more.

Sam Kinison and Penn and Teller appeared as special guests a few times during the season.

SNL has had a show with so many ups and downs regarding writers and cast, but they have managed to hang on for 50 years.

*Some information from Wikipedia and snl.fandom.com/wiki/Season_11.

 

 

Carson Productions

 

As part of Johnny Carson’s landmark 1980 contract, Carson Productions was established. Its primary productions were “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson” from 1980-1992 and “Late Night with David Letterman” from 1982-1993. Johnny’s contract gave him ownership of his show and the show that followed his, which was David Letterman’s program. With this contract, Johnny also received more money, more time off and the show was trimmed from 90 minutes to 60 minutes. Johnny had considered retiring or going to another network. NBC knew they had to pull out all the stops to keep him since his program was a cash cow for the peacock network.

Not every Carson Productions project was a hit. One successful show was “Amen” (1986-1991), starring Sherman Hemsley, best known for playing George Jefferson. A successful film they produced was “The Big Chill” (1983). From 1984-1993, Carson Productions co-produced along with Dick Clark Productions “TV’s Bloopers and Practical Jokes.” This show starred Ed McMahon and Dick Clark and Johnny appeared on the show as the victim of a practical joke.

Other productions included a miniseries starring Rock Hudson and Suzanne Pleshette called “The Star Maker” (1981). “Lewis & Clark” only lasted one season and premiered in 1981. “Cassie & Co.” starred Angie Dickinson but only lasted one season. “Teachers Only” went on the air in 1982 and lasted two seasons.

In the years since Johnny’s retirement and death, the company has been changed to Carson Entertainment. Its main goal is to preserve Johnny’s legacy and license clips from "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson."

*Some information from Wikipedia.