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WEIRD & WILD: The lowdown on 'Party Down'!
February 13, 2011  | By Diane Werts
 
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This is one of those completely you-had-to-be-there posts.

But if you ever liked Starz' unsung comedy Party Down even the itty-bittiest little bit, you must read the oral history of this inspired short-lived classic. Jane Lynch, Adam Scott, Lizzy Caplan, Megan Mullally, Martin Starr, co-creators Paul Rudd and Rob Thomas -- all testify to the warmth and the wildness behind the scenes and, often, on-screen.

Take the orgy episode. (No, please . . . )

Find out what a "vanity sock" is. (Yes, that's it.)

Learn how the whole cater-waiter/actor-comedian-scriptwriter ethos relates to Ricky Gervais' paper-pushing drones of The Office.

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Gawk at the no-budget show's all-star guest stars -- Steve Guttenberg, Enrico Colantoni, Steven Weber.

And hear all about finding the exactly right, uh, appendage to be uncovered at a porn awards party.

(No, it's not a dirty show. Just wanted your attention. It is, however, an adult show. Premium cable, you know.)

All this and much, much more fun awaits in the amazing oral history put together for Details magazine by Whitney Pastorek.

Party Down is hands down the best TV show that ever came out of a pilot shot in somebody's living room five years after being written.

And HBO passed on it. For shame.

(If you have no idea what I'm talking about, you have no idea what hilarity you missed. Please, please, please buy Party Down on DVD. Stream it from Netflix or Amazon Video on Demand. Or watch the TV encores Mondays at 9 p.m. ET on Starz Comedy. Then thank me. You're welcome.)

 

1 Comments

 

Angela said:

Party Down was my go to show when I needed something to lift my spirits. The characters would help me to see that my life was no worse off and maybe even a little bit better than the people on Party Down.

The stories are about staying optimistic about one's dreams even when things make the prospect of them ever being a reality look pretty damn bleak. The characters were always written about in a humane take on flaws, & weaknesses. Even a character who had hit rock bottom in his life and career was treated with compassion by the rest of the cast and the writers, but in no way does it feel pollyannaish.

Agreed that anyone who watches this will thank you for it.

[Diane here: And thanks to you, Angela, for such a warm-hearted take on this special show.]

 
 
 
 
 
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