I love reading your column every week, I have read and own all your books, and I am always amazed at your unique ability to get to the heart of the matter so succinctly and so positively. You are such a gem and such a wealth of information for all of us actors. Thank you!
The question I have found myself wondering about lately is what the actual day-to-day life of an actor who is a star or series regular on a television show is like.
We hear so much all the time about what life is like while chasing work but what about once you have gotten a really great job? I know it is hard to generalize because no two jobs are the same and each show is different, each role is different, each actor is different, but is there any way to get a good sense of what a daily, weekly, monthly, yearly schedule is like?
I love your Acting Qs book for how much information is shared but I suppose I am looking for a more nuts and bolts look at life on the set — the hours, the lifestyle, the experience. If you would have any suggestions about where to find more information on this please let me know, I would really appreciate it.
And thank you again for the wondrous amount of energy, insight, and inspiration that you share with us. I think I am probably like many of your readers: You have no idea how much of a positive effect your writing has had on me.
What a wonderful email! Wow! I just love knowing that my column is helpful to its readers. Heck, we all love hearing that we’re making some measure of impact on others when we’re doing what we enjoy. So, thank you for the feedback, first and foremost. It really means a lot to me. Really!
Now, on to the request for information. I did some exploring and couldn’t find anything beyond the occasional actor memoirs or autobiographies in which “a day in the life of a series regular” might be a component. So, rather than suggest a handful of books that each may have a chapter that could be helpful, I decided to reach out to some of my all-time favorite series regular friends and ask them to answer your question directly!
How’s that? Sound good?
Right now, it looks like I have about ten fantastic replies from the requests I put out there. I have another few people who have told me they’ll come through with something this week, which would set us up for a column about Life as a Series Regular for October 15th. But I’d love to hear from any of my readers who also happen to be series regulars (or who were series regulars at some point in time). Email address is below, if you’d like to shoot me some day, week, month, or year in the life type info about this holy grail of TV gigs.
Ooh, I’m already so excited for how next week’s column will turn out! Meanwhile, you can get geared up for that column by re-reading some great info compiled from working actors in a previous piece I put together called On the Set.
Bonnie Gillespie is living her dreams by helping others figure out how to live theirs. Wanna work with Bon? Start here. Thanks!
Originally published by Actors Access at http://more.showfax.com/columns/avoice/archives/000775.html. Please support the many wonderful resources provided by the Breakdown Services family. This posting is the author’s personal archive.