Michael Offutt's Blog, page 134

Facing Fear Head On

Today is the monthly blog fest run by Alex J. Cavanaugh called "The Insecure Writer's Support Group." You can sign up for it HERE.

My insecurity as of late deals with environmental depression plagued by feelings of fear. I think as humans, fear can become unmanageable. And it's also contagious, spreading from one person to another rather quickly. As a writer, there's lots to fear. We can fear reviews, we can fear crowds, we can fear rejection, we can fear  the industry itself.

There's lots to fear in life too. Who isn't afraid of what North Korea is doing or if the housing market may crash again or if the economy will tank? Who isn't afraid that the bump you never noticed might be cancer? Who isn't afraid that we could die at any time? I think I understand fear better than I've ever understood it before. And in a way, it is a choice you can make. Are you going to be afraid? Or are you going to choose to not be afraid.

For me, I need to choose option two much more often. It's the only way I can grow both professionally and privately. So yeah...I'm kind of making a resolution to shore up my insecurities and do some things I've never done in the hopes that they won't turn out all that bad. How about you? How do you deal with fear?

Is there real world science that could make Marvel's Banshee fly?

Caleb Landry Jones was the actor who played Banshee
in the Marvel comic movie X-Men: First Class.As some of you may know, Banshee is a Marvel Universe character that possesses a sonic scream capable of harming enemies, causing physical vibrations, and flying (as shown in the movie X-Men: First Class). I'm ambivalent in my feelings toward this character, however, I was wondering if sound really could make someone fly. It's one of those things that kind of hung in the back of my mind. I know the writers of comic books sometimes go to great efforts to explain superpowers as best as they can using scientific principles to lure the audience into a suspension of disbelief. The same thoughts also go into magic systems, which are all the rage these days in fantasy fiction. So here's the question of the day: is there real world science that could make Marvel's Banshee fly? It turns out that the answer is yes.
Sound by itself may not allow someone to fly around at incredible speed, but it can be used to defy gravity. I guess once you accomplish this perhaps all that's needed is a propulsion system, right? Allow me to introduce you to a phenomenon called acoustic levitation. Below is a video that demonstrates how sound waves can be used to levitate individual droplets of solutions containing different pharmaceuticals. The machine featured is called (simply enough) an acoustic levitator and was originally developed for NASA to simulate microgravity conditions. It uses two small speakers to generate sound waves at frequencies slightly above the audible range--roughly 22 kilohertz. When the top and bottom speakers are precisely aligned, they create two sets of sound waves that perfectly interfere with each other, setting up a phenomenon known as a standing wave. At certain points along a standing wave, known as nodes, there is no net transfer of energy. Because the acoustic pressure from the sound waves is sufficient to cancel the effect of gravity, light objects are able to levitate when placed at the nodes. Simple enough concept to grasp, right? I think this video is incredibly cool and you should watch it :) It's not magic, it's science. Have a great Tuesday and don't forget the IWSG tomorrow!

If you hate King Joffrey in HBO's A Game of Thrones you really should blame the Batman

And just because last night's episode of A Game of Thrones featured the "red wedding" event that most fans dreaded was coming, I give you a picture of the Iron Throne that's so epic, it just might all be worth it. Image courtesy of Random House Mexico. On second thought, I guess if you're a Stark, maybe not....
Click to Embiggen. That's definitely a throne room big enough to hold
huge dragon skulls!

The reason why comic book movies will always be better than actual serialized comics

I like comic books just like most other people (well maybe not as much as George R.R. Martin). However, I have to remind myself from time-to-time that comic book movie adaptations should have an open license to do anything with the characters, and I shouldn't complain.
Why would I say this? Well for starters, over time comic book writing is some of the worst that there is. Take Wolverine for example. I'm looking forward to the new movie, so I brushed up on some of the history on this character. After I did so, I came to the decision that I honestly don't care where the movie goes as long as it has a self-contained story that makes sense and has good action scenes. Here's Wolverine's history as it's evolved over time (I'll let you be the judge):

1) Wolverine was originally meant to be an actual wolverine turned into a human by the high evolutionary. His claws were part of his gloves.

2) The claws became implants created by Weapon X, and he was a mutant.

3) Someone decided he was meant to be Sabertooth's son.

4) Someone decided he had bone claws all along and they just got covered over with adamantium. Magneto exposed this by ripping all the adamantium form his body which made his regeneration insane (see number 6).

5) In the present incarnation, he isn't a mutant. He's a Lupine, which is a human-looking species that evolved parallel to humans but from wolves and not apes. There are two tribes of lupines: blond and dark-haired. They hate each other, hence Sabertooth vs. Wolverine being in conflict all the time. Other Lupines include Wolfsbane, Feral, Wild Child, and Thornn. All of them are manipulated by an elder Lupine called Romulus.

6) Originally he could heal faster than most. It evolved into an uber superpower so that at one point, he was left as a skeleton from an explosion and healed completely within seconds. To set limits, every time he dies, Wolverine had to fight the Spirit of Death to return to the living. And then they got rid of that, so he doesn't have to do it anymore. But now if he dies, this time, it's the real deal! *shocked face

And you can do the above analysis with any serialized comic book character. Spiderman, Hulk, Superman, Wonder Woman... Every single one of them from Jean Grey to Dr. Fate is a complete hot mess. And let's not even get into how every single female character now has rape in their background because "rape" makes female characters "edgy." At least that's what writers think. "Let's put a rape in the background and that explains why she's all doom and gloom now."
Comic book writing is just...SO BAD... I really understand why I no longer
buy them. Maybe that explains why I think so much of the YA genre
featuring comic book-ish heroes is bad too. Writers are emulating this crap.
But hey, it sells. So as long as the money train is rolling hop on for a ride.To anyone that reads and appreciates good writing, comic book movies will always be better than the actual serialized comics. Yes, I said it. I don't care how bad the movie is either. Just look at the complete and utter mess Wolverine is and try to argue with me. You can't. You'll just lose.

Seriously, anyone who pokes fun at George Lucas for tampering with Star Wars over time and yet loves serialized comic books has nowhere to stand. If you're one of these people, you're a complete hypocrite. The plot holes, the continuity problems, the stuff that plain just doesn't make sense at all is the reason why comics for the most part are just examples of the most awful commercial writing available. However, because all superheroes come with six pack abs, sexy bodies and big tits, and action scenes rife with special effects, they will always make billions of dollars. That being said, I'm looking forward to the new Wolverine movie. Here's the latest trailer (it hits theaters July 26th):

The one thing J.K. Rowling might say to you if she knew you

Courtesy of crumpled up paper I found in the trash bin.
Have a great Thursday.

Material that's metallic and glass-like but made from cement is NOT science fiction at Argonne National Laboratory

I read about this HERE in an article by Tona Kunz.
Science, you so crazy. Transparent aluminum sounded cool when I was a kid. Who
knew the stuff was actually real? After reading the article posted as a news release
on Argonne's site, I think I just crapped my pants. And for those of you too young to
know, this is a screen capture from Star Trek IV. That's Scotty on the left and Bones on
the right. Scotty is talking into a computer mouse, because he's not used to such
primitive technology. After all, he's the chief engineer of the Enterprise.To paraphrase Tony's article, scientists have only this month unraveled a formula for turning liquid cement into liquid metal. I know, this sounds ridiculous, and I'm trying to wrap my head around this even as I jot this down for my blog. But I can't help but think of that scene in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home when Scotty gives the secret to making transparent aluminum to a man in a Plexiglas plant. Best line from that movie (for the record) is: "THERE BE WHALES HERE!"

The process the scientists at Argonne discovered makes cement into a semi-conductor. If you're like me, you might ask "What does this mean?" and "How soon will I be able to take a transporter to and from work?" Well (unfortunately for us) there's no transporter applications yet. However, you're going to see it show up in your consumer electronics as thin films, protective coatings, and in the manufacture of computer chips. Here's a diagram of how thin films work in solar cells so you can better understand how your "cement" is going to look in the very near future:
Or if you aren't into solar panels, then how about a thin film laptop computer? Here's one in development from Cymbet Corporation using thin-film battery technology that's far superior to the clunky batteries in today's laptops. This laptop can be recharged thousands of times without ever seeing a depreciation in the time it stays charged (nice eh?), will retain its charge way better than the batteries you are using right now, will charge super fast, and doesn't have toxic chemicals to damage the environment. Imagine writing your next masterpiece on this baby.
This thing is a battery. Yeah, you read that right.Computer chips made from cement? Yeah, it's happening. But why is it happening? Well, there's a need for materials that have resistance to corrosion (traditional metal is rather poor at resisting corrosion), that is less brittle than traditional glass (you'll be able to see through this cement), yet has conductivity, low energy loss in magnetic fields, and fluidity for ease of processing and molding. Cement can do all of this by a process called electron trapping. DISCLAIMER: I'm not going to go into what electron trapping is because, quite frankly, I can only barely grasp the concept myself.

Also, to make this stuff, they had to blast levitated cement with lasers until it melted and turned into liquid metal. You should read that last line again. THEY LEVITATED CEMENT AND BLASTED IT WITH LASERS UNTIL IT MELTED AND TURNED INTO LIQUID METAL. My reaction:
We don't just live in interesting times. We live in AMAZING times. Talk about all the fuel us science-fiction writers now have in our toolbox for genuine HARD science fiction stories...I'm truly blown away. Here's hoping that science somehow inspires you in your endeavors. Have a great Wednesday.

Apple's new campus headquarters proves that Steve Jobs was from outer space

When Steve Jobs left us almost two years ago, comedians joked that he was from outer space because he gave us something so amazing, it's been described as magical. And "magical" isn't just a word I pulled out of thin air. It's from a quote I'm borrowing that originated with the NPR Podcast called This American Life, and about Mr. Daisy's visit to the Apple factory in Shenzhen, China. One of the workers who assembles the iPad gets to play with it for a while, and he uses the word "magical" to describe it.

What Mr. Jobs invented was so revolutionary that those who took the time to truly comprehend it were left speechless by his ability to envision it. Therefore, he must not be from our planet.

The joke goes even further in my own day-to-day life as I refer to the iPhone as "my miracle box." You might wonder why, and the answer is pretty simple. It's because my iPhone can do so much stuff that (a decade ago) I never could have imagined outside of Star Trek or in the least, J.J. Abrams' home. Hence, "miracle box" seems like a good nickname for such a device.

Well, it appears that if you share my thinking, the joke's on all of us now. The plans that Steve Jobs left behind for Apple's new campus headquarters to be built in Cupertino, California looks a lot like the mother ship from Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Seriously, if this thing doesn't lift off into space at the touch of the red button, I will be surprised.
Expected to open in 2016 (that's election year for you Republicans who are keeping track of such things), Apple's new 2.8-million square feet facility was brought to the Cupertino city council by none other than late CEO Steve Jobs himself. Catch this little factoid: its diameter is larger than that of the Pentagon. I've been to the Pentagon in Washington D.C. and it's frickin' huge. This thing is going to dwarf that building. Impressed? *Nods head. The building is meant to incorporate and develop much of the surrounding green space. There's going to be a system of bike lanes put in for all the health conscious tech geniuses. There's going to be bio-fueled "green" buses to take people around and to go to and from work. The facility will also house its own natural gas-burning power plant. I have a friend that says natural gas is the "fuel of America's future." Well if Steve Jobs believed in it, I think it probably means it's the number one choice of space aliens too. Here's one of the afore-mentioned healthy tech geniuses jogging along the path that probably goes around the huge mega-structure. I guess that's what $140 billion dollars and screwing the taxpayers of America out of billions of dollars in taxes can build for you. Did any of you watch Tim Cook, Apple's CEO, address Congress on CSPAN? Cook completely "owned" them, practically having our senators lapping the dirt off of his shoes. I think Yahoo Finance (which I read to stay on top of stocks) had an article that said, "Tim Cook should tell Congress to kiss his ass." Since Congress is comprised of elected officials, that means "Tim Cook should tell the American people to kiss his ass." Nice, right? Apple's terms and conditions page 1 of 99 as seen on the iPhone. Remember
Tim Cook says that the United States tax code could take a cue from Apple.
"We like things simple."When asked to defend his company's practice of holing billions of dollars in tax shelters in Ireland, Mr. Cook responded (more or less), "The tax code has not kept up with the digital age. Apple thrives on keeping things SIMPLE, and Congress should do the same with the tax code. Eliminate loopholes, reduce overall rates, and make it attractive to bring overseas cash back to the United States."
So it's all your fault people. Apple likes things simple. PLEASE REMEMBER THAT THE NEXT TIME YOU READ THROUGH APPLE'S ITUNES TERMS & CONDITIONS, WHICH IS 56-PAGES LONG! Yeah, Apple wants things "Simple."
I gotcha Mr. Cook. Thanks for the advice.

Five incredible robotic suits that prove Tony Stark technology will be here in your lifetime

I work with disabled people five days a week. Seeing technologies like the ones that I'm about to show you not only blow my mind, but tell me that HALO isn't all that far into our future. Cue Master Chief...
Aside from just looking really f'ing cool, the HALO armor is just the evolution
of technologies we are seeing today. Technologies that could quite possibly
make any of us "superhuman." As an aside note, HALO is being brought to
the silver screen by Steven Spielberg. Does that excite you? It should.Without further ado, here are five incredible robotic suits that prove Tony Stark technology will be here in your lifetime:
The Lockheed Martin HULC1) Lockheed Martin is a defense technology developer (basically they are the real Stark Industries), and they've developed an exoskeleton fit for the battlefield called a Human Universal Load Carrier (HULC). As an aside note, I think it's awesome that the letters almost spell "HULK" as in "your favorite green muscle dude with anger management problems." The HULC can divert up to 200 pounds in weight through powered titanium legs while allowing the user to move freely. Lockheed claims that a fully laden soldier will retain the ability to march at 3 mph and even break into 10 mph sprints while wearing the battery powered HULC. The system is designed to reduce stress on the leg and back muscles and comes with a lift assist device attachment that allows a soldier to safely lift heavy loads with the strength of two or more men.
Cyberdyne HAL-52) Japanese firm Cyberdyne used its robot suits as the disaster-fighting protection of the future during the Fukushima nuclear plant disaster in 2011. It is the first personal exoskeleton robot to receive a global safety certificate. Thus far, 330 of these things have been leased to hospitals across Japan where they are used to assist patients with muscle weakness or disabilities due to stroke and spinal cord injuries. The suit interprets faint electrical signals in the skin around damaged muscles and moves the motorized joints in response. Cool eh? Muscle Suit by Kobalab3) Kobayashi Labs' Muscle Suit replaces electronic actuator motors with a system of inflatable pneumatic "artificial muscles" to help nurses or care workers carry elderly or ill patients. It currently allows users to support 110 pounds with ease, carrying it with fixed arms like a walking forklift. Think of James Cameron's Aliens and the machine that Ripley uses at the end to fight the xenomorph.
The Ekso by Ekso Bionics4) Ekso Bionics created the "Ekso" to give paraplegics upright mobility. The man in this photo is paralyzed from the waist down, and he can walk with the assistance of the "Ekso." I think that is just mind-blowing as I work with a quadriplegic who has been confined to his chair for 24 years, and things like this are giving him hope that he may be able to walk again in his lifetime. The commercial version of the Ekso has recently been made available to hospitals and rehab centers and the company hopes to have a personal version available as soon as 2014. The company claims that the Ekso weighs 50 pounds, but the one wearing it doesn't feel the weight at all. It has 4 electric motors and 15 sensors that recreate your nervous system and tie it into a computer that serves as the brain. Chiropractor Claire Lomas used the Argo ReWalk to become the first
person to complete a marathon in a bionic exoskeleton at the London
Marathon in May 2012. Please note that this happened five years after
a horseriding accident left her paralyzed from the chest down.5) The Argo ReWalk (pictured above on Claire Lomas) is already commercially available for $65,000, and it enables people with spinal cord injuries to walk again and can now claim 220 trained users around the world.

It's a great world we are living in. Technology, science, and human engineering are turning the imaginations of those of us who write science fiction into reality with each passing day. Superhuman is now becoming a question of "when" and not "if." Have a great weekend and remember to be inspired. :)

The Ruby's Fire cover has flying red birds and a skull house that screams all kinds of YA awesome

The Ruby's Fire cover has flying red birds, blue-painted nails, and a skull house that screams all kinds of YA Awesome! What do you guys think of the cover for Catherine's new book? It's designed by Jay Montgomery, and yes I'm typing in all bold because I'm that excited! Here's more on this project brought to you by Catherine's publicist, Giselle Cormier:
BOOK AND AUTHOR INFO:
Ruby's FireCatherine Stine
Series: Fireseed, #2 (however, can be read as a stand-alone)Publication date:  June 26, 2013 <== Mark this on your calendar if you are a fan of the first book. If you've never heard of it, then you still have time to read it by clicking purchase HERE.
Genre: YA Sci-Fi
Synopsis:If everything about you changes, what remains?Seventeen year-old Ruby, long-pledged to the much older Stiles from the Fireseed desert cult, escapes with only a change of clothes, a pouch of Oblivion Powder and her mute little brother, Thorn. Arriving at The Greening, a boarding school for orphaned teens, she can finally stop running. Or can she? The Greening is not what it seems. Students are rampaging out of control and as she cares for the secret Fireseed crop, she experiences frightening physical changes. She’s ashamed of her attraction to burly, hard-talking Blane, the resident bodyguard, and wonders why she can’t be happy with the gentler Armonk. She’s long considered her great beauty a liability, a thing she’s misused in order to survive. And how is she to stop her dependence on Oblivion to find a real beauty within, using her talent as a maker of salves, when she has nightmares of Stiles without it?

When George Axiom, wealthy mogul of Vegas-by-the-Sea offers a huge cash prize for the winner of a student contest, Ruby is hopeful she might collect the prize to rescue her family and friends from what she now knows is a dangerous cult. But when Stiles comes to reclaim her, and Thorn sickens after creating the most astonishing contest project of all, the world Ruby knows is changed forever. This romantic fantasy set in 2099 on earth has a crafty heroine in Ruby, and a swoonworthy cast, which will surely appeal to the YA and new adult audience. This cover is seriously gorgeous! Click to EMBIGGENGoodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17970591-ruby-s-fire Catherine Stine in an undated photo.AUTHOR BIOCatherine Stine writes YA, New Adult and middle grade fiction. Her YA futuristic thriller, Fireseed One, illustrated by the author was granted a Bronze Wishing Shelf Book Award and an Indie Reader Approved notable stamp. Her YA Refugees, earned a New York Public Library Best Book. Middle grade novels include A Girl’s Best Friend. More and more, she’s enjoying writing speculative tales. She teaches literature at the School of Visual Arts and creative writing at the Philadelphia Writing Conference and in her own ongoing NYC writing workshop. Catherine earned a double focus MFA in Creative Writing at the New School. 
Visit her at www.catherinestine.blogspot.com and at www.catherinestine.com.
Author Links: Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter
If you run a blog and would like to help Catherine in her book tour, please go HERE to sign up.
Have a great Thursday.

Kevin Sussman from The Big Bang Theory talks candidly on writing, evil empires, and George Clooney

Stuart (played by Kevin Sussman) is on the rightI know most of you who follow me on twitter (or who read my blog) know that I love The Big Bang Theory. It's currently on hiatus for the summer. The season finale last week was pretty good (not the best) but Sheldon and Aimee broke some new ground. For the record, the best season finale was Penny's "walk of shame" out of Leonard's bedroom with Raj coming out afterward and Penny saying to Sheldon, "It's not what it looks like" thereby creating a riddle for Sheldon that lasted until the next season.
This awkward scene of Raj and Penny made for the best
season finale thus far in the CBS comedy.Anyway, despite the fact that I thought it would be crazy wonderful if Stuart (the comic book store owner played by Kevin Sussman) and Rajesh Koothrappali managed to become a couple, it was not meant to be. That being said, I also never thought I'd get the opportunity to post an interview with Kevin Sussman. But I guess my audience is bigger than I thought because Michael Bivona, the Media Director for www.web2Carz.com sent me this guest post on an interview they did with Kevin. And it actually made me squee!

And how could I say "no" to that? I love Kevin Sussman more than I like Wil Wheaton. So if you too are a fan of the comic book geek guy on BBT, read on:
Kevin Sussman Speaks"Big Bang Theory" star on writing, evil empires, and George Clooney.By:  Steve Karras / Web2Carz.com
Kevin Sussman has become a ubiquitous presence in TV and movies since he was first cast in the Barry Levinson feature film Liberty Heights in 1999. He is perhaps most recognizable as Walter on the one-time ABC dramedy,Ugly Betty. Kevin’s character "Stuart Bloom" on CBS’ The Big Bang Theory, is now a series regular, and he recently guest starred on Showtime’s mini-series Weeds with Mary Louise Parker. And, along with writing partner and collaborator (Big Bang Theory co-star) John Ross Bowie,wrote a sci-fi comedy about two slackers working onboard an evil space station, Dark Minions, now an animated stop-motion TV pilot produced by Amazon Studios.
We recently talked to Kevin about his acting career and his successful foray into screenwriting.
Before we talk about your acting career tell me about your most recent success co-writing with your Big Bang Theory cast mate, John Ross Bowie.
We originally wrote Dark Minions as a live action thing and the major networks all turned it down because they all thought it was too “high-concept." That was the first time John and I had sold a script; actually, SONY optioned it and we were taking it around.  Everybody loved it but they were afraid of it. We learned really quickly what a broadcast network is willing to buy, which is basically two things: shows about friends in their 20s or a quirky family.  If you go outside those areas, you have a much more challenging road ahead.
How did the show evolve into a stop-motion project?  We pitched the show to Amazon as an animated thing, and they suggested stop-motion. We love stop-motion. [British stop-motion film] Coraline is one of my favorite movies and I love the hell out of it…and I see everything that comes out in stop-motion. I was delighted. I didn’t realize it would be possible to do something as time consuming as “stop-mo” for TV. Ross Shuman (the director) had worked on Robot Chicken and the studio that did Dark Minions, Shadow Machine that created Robot Chicken.  But Robot chicken was only 11 minutes, unlike Dark Minions which is a full-length show.
But you and John had already sold a couple scripts
The following two seasons we pitched and sold shows, The Ever After Part and The Second Coming of Rob—one to Fox and one to ABC. They were family oriented and both were never made once we got through the development process, and the networks had nerfed the edgy stuff.  But, when we were doing The Second Coming of Rob they were starting to animate Dark Minions and building the sets and puppets…it was so great. To see all of these artisans constructing the mini set and sewing tiny clothes was amazing. Shadow machine was so into the script and everybody was so excited.  So, while we were getting frustrated with the network, John and I would constantly say to each other, “can we just get back to playing with our space puppets now” which is what we wanted to be doing.
What was the evolution for Dark Minions?
You know the scene in Star Wars when they’re invading the Rebel ship…and there’s this stark white, modular hallway. And I always thought, “What’s in all of those cabinets in the hallway? Do people use those?” and I wrote a scene about troopers marching by and a moment later a guy who's half-dressed comes out of a door, and goes to one of those cabinets and takes out some Cheerios and then goes back into the room. I sent that to John and he added another scene to it with the same exact tone. 
So he got the joke?
He got it immediately and we agreed to outline it and come up with a story: two guys who get jobs onboard an evil space station that don't agree with the politics, but one's got student loans to pay, and the other doesn't have a college degree.
Do you do the voice work first on something like that ?
We did all the voices first and videotaped us (for scenes that had some physicality in them) so the animators have stuff to reference.  But it’s such a slow process. Normally, when you’re working on a show you get to see the dailies….on this if they’re lucky, with several different animators working at the same time you get five seconds a day…so, rather than dailies we had weeklies and at the end of the week, the cast and executives come and watch on the big screen, a minute or two of animation and it's really cool to see this stuff come to life.
What’s your history with John?
Sometimes we get mentioned online in the context of Big Bang Theory, that we met on Big Bang Theory. That’s not true. But, we’ve known each other for years when we were two geeky guys winding up on the same commercial auditions. We were those guys, working in tech settings in the corporate world. Nerds.
What kind of job did you have?
I worked at Chase Bank and Fuji Bank in the World Trade Center actually doing everything from admin assistance to basic programming. Excel and Word to I.T. stuff—just real hardcore nerd shit.  John was doing similar stuff down the block. When you’re an actor in New York, you are either a waiter or you learn Excel. 
Did you guys get together on lunch breaks? Did you hang out?
We sort of were acquaintances in NY but we’d run into each other at auditions. We really didn’t connect until I moved out to L.A. and started working on Ugly Betty.  I became good friends with Anna Ortiz (who plays Ugly Betty’s sister) and she’s good friends with John’s wife Jamie Denbo. Then we became actual friends, as opposed to acquaintances. We had already written a couple of scripts together before we coincidentally got jobs on Big Bang Theory. I'd auditioned for Chuck Lorre who had created Big Bang Theory. He originally offered me the role of Barry Kripke which John ended up getting because I was working on a movie at the time. The next thing Chuck had for me was the comic book guy. Coincidentally, He had no idea that I had worked at a comic book store for years. I worked at Jim Hanley’s Universe (comic book store) in Manhattan. It’s weird how things turn out, because had I been available for John’s role, John would have gotten the comic book guy part (I tease him about it).
It sounds like it’s a pretty effortless collaboration.
It would be impossible to do if either of us had a big ego in terms of criticism; neither of us do…we try not to be harsh…John and I work in an almost,old-school, very respectful, deliberately diplomatic way in terms of criticism of each other’s work. Not that there’s no ego, sometimes the writing is better because there’s a healthy competitiveness. When we hand something back and forth, one of us will tweak a joke to make it funnier. There’s a little bit of one-upping each other that is fun, and productive, but we also try not to hurt each other’s feelings.  
Everyone over at Big Bang Theory must be very proud of you guys?
The writers on Big Bang are really supportive of us—they tease us and say they’re going to show up and start acting in episodes of Big Bang. But they also offer comforting advice because they know how hard it is to work in the system.
Were you an improv guy like so many actors who book parts these days on sitcoms?
I know it doesn’t show but I am a traditionally trained actor. I went to the American Academy of Dramatic Art. And then I studied under Uta Hagen, a renowned actor who had been blacklisted during the McCarthy era.  John’s at Upright Citizens Brigade in an improv group with Rob Courdrey and he’s amazing at it.  I think that as collaborators we work so well, because we approach writing totally different, in that regard. He’s quick and you can see his improv background. He will take anything I give him and go with it—so I try not to give him crap.
But the formal theater training must help with scene structure…
Oh yeah, I’ve had to read endless plays and I suppose that informs my writing (fundamental stuff like characters and conflict or that every scene needs forward momentum. I also have read a lot of books on writing, probably too many. Drew's Script-O-Rama is a gold mine for somebody that wants to go into screenwriting. It’s basically a database of shooting scripts. It’s an invaluable and essential resource.
When were you able to act full time and say goodbye to those nefarious day jobs?
I was working at Fuji Bank at the Word Trade Center doing Excel spreadsheets. I got along really well with the Japanese guy who actually offered to take me on as a permanent employee and give me health benefits, which I didn’t have. He knew I was trying to be an actor (every once in a while I’d put some costume on at lunch and go uptown for an audition). And then a week later I booked my first TV show,Ghost Story—kind of like a "B" version of Tails from the Crypt. So, I had this dilemma about whether to take the job or take the step and keep acting. I felt so horrible about Toro Tanaka. (laughs). 
Do you know if he was in the World Trade Center on 9-11?
I don’t think so because I once looked at a fatality list and didn’t see anyone that I knew from Fuji. He was probably back in Japan by then because he would have been rotated out of there. What a horrible thing. Fuji was located on the 80th floor...
I was watching David Krumholtz being interviewed on Kevin Pollak’s chat show and he mentioned working with you on your first big film Liberty Heights.
Yeah, David, Adrian Brody and I hung out a lot and Barry Levinson made it so we could spend a lot of time together. We had a great time, a lot of laughs Brody, Krumholtz and I… I remember at the end of the film when we were saying goodbye David Krumholtz said, “I’ve worked on a lot of movies and when they’re done everybody says, ‘we’ll keep in touch’ and we never do, so let’s not even do that.’”  (laughs)
So, you’ve never seen him since?
We have, and that’s the irony. 
So, when did you finally move to LA?
I moved out there when I booked Ugly Betty.
You’re recognized a lot for Wet Hot American Summer .
I was a last minute replacement for Wet Hot and I came in towards the end. But that movie is so beloved for people who have a sense of humor.
Were you able to bond with George Clooney on Burn After Reading?
Yes, the guy is so grounded that you almost get the feeling that he’s doing himself a disservice (laughs)… “Don’t forget now, you’re George Clooney you don’t have to waste your time hanging out with me…you must have better things to do. When people ask me who the coolest celebrity I’ve worked with it’s an easy answer. Clooney for the win.”
That was a very physical scene and he tackles you.
And, also technically difficult because he had just been in a motorcycle accident and his back was fucked up. He was doing something most stars don’t do…which is do something physically painful, over and over, just to help the collaborative effort.  That was the striking thing about him… weirdly selfless for a guy who could have a black SUV whisk him away at a moment’s notice.
Do you often reflect on having worked with Joel and Ethan Coen, two of the most beloved filmmakers out there?
When I talk about my experience on that, it’s usually in terms of experienced directors’ versus inexperienced low budget directors. The Coens are the experienced directors. They show up, having already worked everything out shot by shot and they’re pretty hands off with the acting part of it.  The better directors have spoken to me less.
Did you experience the same direction from Steven Spielberg?
Yes, same thing with him and Roger Michell (Changing Lanes), the ones who get the best performances are the ones who say the least. If I feel they trust me, it relaxes me and I’m able to take risks, in the moment, As opposed to stuffing my concentration with added tasks the director wants me to do even though it’s not coming from me organically.

What does your summer look like?
So much depends on if Dark Minions gets picked up and if it does my summer is going to be about writing episodes. If not, it’ll be about trying to develop something new, probably for TV, and then the acting thing as well. Since Big Bang doesn’t pick up until August, I’ll do what I usually do, kick around and see if I could show up in somebody’s movie. 
*****  I gotta see this. I'd never heard of it 'til today.So did you guys like the interview? As an existing fan of Kevin I learned so much, am going to look up Dark Minions, and just really appreciated this view into his life and the writing process. I'm glad no one he knew died in the World Trade Center. Oh and according to the YouTube trailer, Dark Minions can be watched for free on Amazon Instant video.
Have a great Wednesday.