California, here we come, episode 9. In which we go for Broke.

Since the summer of 1990 I have fantasized about living in Cicely, Alaska, a community which only exists in my mind and in the creative genius of one of my all-time favorite series, Northern Exposure. Unlike Dr. Joel Fleischman, this New Yorker would not have constantly balked at living in the (very) remote town and amongst its affectionately quirky townspeople.  It was with intense excitement that I planned a short (150 extra miles) detour during our first trip to Seattle back in 2009 to visit the town of Roslyn, Washington, home of the series' fictitious Alaska locale.

If I ever had an out of body (mind?) experience it was when we arrived in Cicely, I mean Roslyn (no, I really mean Cicely!) and we parked across the street from Joel's office and walked down to the end of the street for this photograph.  It still amazes me that 15 years after the series ended, the fictitious main drag afforded fanatical fans the chance to have their moment.
(We had another moment while enjoying burgers at The Brick although Ed Chigliak's favorite mooseburgers were absent from the menu that day.)


Before I return from my reverie entirely, here's a favorite travel photo of mine.  The bag contains a souvenir T-shirt from a local shop still busily supplying television tourists with NoEx merchandise.

Chris-in-the-Morning

was not spinning records

nor philosophy that day.

Getting back to LA and an entirely different realm of fandom, I must admit that I also have an affection (affliction?) for the wickedly comedic and sometimes dark (naughty?) side.  Let's just call it a guilty pleasure, but I've been a fan of 2 Broke Girls since Whitney Cummings' series first debuted in 2011, only a few days before her own self-titled and short-lived sitcom. The reason for Broke Girls' success is chemistry and comedy.  I'll be the first to admit that the comedy is for adults only and for certain adults only.  You've got to be flirting with Santa's naughty list to fully appreciate (and understand) the risque quality of the chemistry and comedy at Han Lee's Williamsburg (Brooklyn) diner. You've also got to be pretty hungry (and desperate) to order off that menu.

As I was filling in the remainder of my five-day-birthday-weekend itinerary, I checked the ticketing site through which I had secured tickets to The Price is Right taping to see if any other favorite shows were taping during our visit.  The Big Bang Theory and 2 Broke Girls were both taping on Tuesday, September 20th.  Score!  Two of my regular favorites!  Needless to say, tickets to one of the most popular network television programs were difficult to acquire.  Remember when Sheldon and the boys tried (fruitlessly) to secure ComiCon tickets?  It's the episode with James Earl Jones and (I miss you dearly!) Carrie Fisher.

Season 7, Episode 14

I've already admitted I watch too much TV, okay?

My similarly long and busy browser battle of "refresh, refresh, refresh" finally ended with a message that "tickets to my requested show were no longer available."  If you want tickets to a taping when you are visiting Los Angeles, check the site in advance and plan your strategy.  It also helps to have a back-up plan. You should know me well enough by now to know that there is always a back-up plan (or two).  In this case, 2BG was my back-up plan and, fortunately for fans looking for a Tuesday taping, the series is not quite as popular as the top-rated show on CBS.

tvtickets.com

For television viewers (fans and fanatics alike), attending a live taping is a great item for that (bucket) list of life experiences.

It is a behind-the-scenes experience that you really cannot otherwise imagine.

I know, no photos while driving,
but my trusty co-pilot
snapped this as we approached
the Warner Brothers Studio.

Mari and I arrived at Lot Number 8 at the Warner Brothers Studios at 4:00 PM, two hours prior to the start of taping as had been suggested on the website. (Remember, we had just come from The Griffith Observatory and before that the beach and before that our only meal so far that day!)  At that point, however, we were already #150 and #151, so I recommend arriving even earlier (and not driving in circles for 20 minutes looking for the right studio lot).

After registering and submitting our ticket vouchers (procured online after my fruitless attempt at Big Bang tickets), we waited on the lower level of the no-frills (no gift shop, no souvenir photo, no snack bar) parking garage until escorted past several sound stage warehouses and eventually arrived at the Williamsburg Diner.

Mari and I ended up with great seats near the middle of the back row where the diner set was front and center.  What you will see when you are (finally!) seated are a row of sets in front of you from left to right.
The "stadium seating" allows everyone to see as much as possible of all the sets (four in this case) being used for the current episode.  Large monitors hang along the bulkhead wall above the sets so you can still view what you can't see in person.  

I think we were there on a great night because not only did we have all of the 2BG "regulars" in attendance, but two guests as well:  Max's on-again off-again boyfriend, Randy, and special guest Telma Hopkins (fans of Family Matters and Bosom Buddies rejoice!).  Longtime fans of Jennifer Coolidge, Mari and I were thrilled to see Sofie Kachinsky featured in several scenes including a scene that was restarted over and over again because the cool Miss Coolidge kept stumbling over a frustratingly alliterative line and laughing (and swearing) harder each time.  Live freakin' bloopers are always the best!

You need to remember two things when attending a show that is "taped before a live studio audience." First, it is taped, which means that it's not going to be perfect the first (or second or third) time.  Which is why a 22-minute sitcom takes more than three and a half hours to record.  That includes plenty of time for dangerously loud stomach rumbles that were thankfully appeased by cartons of sandwiches that were passed around during a long break in which a mob of writers descended on the set for a not-so-quick dialogue rewrite.  Second, Mari and I were the "live" part of the studio audience!  We were encouraged to react and laugh out loud all over the place, so LOL we did.


I wish I could share my photo threesome with Sofie and Max (the vivaciously and voluptuously funny Kat Dennings), but that only exists in my creative imagination since photos were not allowed and there were no celebrity photo ops.

Their loss.

I do have this closeup of our souvenir T-shirt as well as the empty container that once cradled one of Max's velvety homemade cupcakes.  Yum.  

Between scenes, the live studio audience (hey, that's us!) was kept entertained by an erstwhile standup comedian who was indeed very entertaining and selected us to chat up when Mari told him it was my birthday.  I was gifted the T-shirt and a specially packaged cupcake from Caroline & Max's new dessert bar. Like TPIR on the previous day, there was also invigorating club music and lots of dancing during breaks.

Attending a live taping of a favorite show is an other-worldly experience.  It takes you off the couch and away from your television and plants you right in the middle (well, almost) of the action.  In this case, it was like having a seat at Han's diner and ordering one of Oleg's soup "specials."  Unfortunately for the "rumbly in my tumbly" (thanks for a great euphemism, Pooh!), Mari and I were nowhere near Williamsburg, but we were relatively close to a final LA landmark, the iconic Pink's Hot Dogs.

We'll spice things up in our final LA episode next time.