'There's... Johnny!' Character Breakdown

CHARACTER BREAKDOWN

THERE'S...JOHNNY!
Series // 7 Episodes

Seeso, Nuance Productions  & Comedy Dynamics
 

Exec. Producers: Paul Reiser, David Steven Simon, Brian Volk-Weiss, Michael Pelmont
Director:  David Gordon Green
Writers: Paul Reiser & David Steven Simon
Location: Los Angeles, CA

This takes place in 1972.

[ANDY KLAVIN] [IAN NELSON]

19 – 24; bright, sweet-faced, innocent and wholesome, Andy has yet to find his calling.  He’s an average kid from Valentine, Nebraska who, along with his mother and ailing father, is a huge Johnny Carson fan.   To make his beloved dad proud, Andy gets himself to Burbank, CA, and on the set of The Tonight Show mistakenly believing he has a job there.  He’s thrust into an exciting new world he's barely even dared to dream about--and to his surprise, he quickly finds he may have a place there...SERIES REGULAR

[JOY GREENFIELD] [JANE LEVY]

Mid – late 20’s; smart, driven, complex and deep, Joy is the Assistant Talent Coordinator for The Tonight Show and everything a boy dreams of in 1972: a short skirt, long hair and a boatload of emotional complications. Raised in Beverly Hills, she’s grown up a bit too quickly.  She feels like she has a lot to prove.  While Andy is initially smitten with Joy, she feels more like a big-sister towards him, guiding and mentoring him through this strange new world...SERIES REGULAR

[FREDDIE DE CORDOVA] [TONY DANZA]

50s; dapper and charming, Fred is the executive producer of the Tonight Show.  He’s old-school Hollywood (think martinis and cigarettes) and the reigning authority - the bearer of good news and certainly bad news.  His main job is to keep the show running and Johnny happy…SERIES REGULAR

[RASHEED MILLER] [CHRISTOPHER MEYER]

Early – mid 20s; African American.  Andy’s neighbor and unlikely best friend, Rasheed is a whip-smart, fledgling stand-up comic with outsized Hollywood dreams.  He uses his trash-talking comedy and macho posturing to hide his genuine sweet nature - and a secret he’s harboring about his past…RECURRING GUEST STAR

[ROZ] [T’KEYAH KEYNAH]

Mid 40s – 50’s; African American.  Johnny's right-hand for longer than anyone actually knows.  A no-nonsense type who’s the under-celebrated backbone of the operation – the gate-keeper to All Things Johnny and good luck getting past her.  She’s married (“it ain’t perfect”) and she’s a mother.  Her natural maternal instinct belies her sometimes necessary tough exterior…SERIES REGULAR

[MIKE] [NATE SMITH]

Mid 30’s; Mike is the head writer for The Tonight Show and the grown-up of the group. Good looking and happily married with two perfect little kids.  Maybe from a moneyed Southern family. A bit preppy in college, he was the head of debate team and editor of the school paper.  A calm, reassuring leader, everyone calls him “Captain.”  Oh… and to be revealed shortly - he’s had moderate Cerebral Palsy since birth, and walks with the aid of “Canadian crutches”.  It’s rarely (if ever) mentioned, and if it is, it comes only from the guys who admire and look up to him...SERIES REGULAR

[JIM] [DAVID HOFFMAN]

Late 20’s – early 30’s; a Midwest bred, ex-jock writer for The Tonight Show.  Energetic and a bit of a ham, he enjoys doing impressions of Johnny - and others.  He loves his new life in California.  In fact, he and his wife just bought a big house near the studio – even though he and the other writers are on short-term contracts.  But a gambler and a risk-taker, he chooses to bet on the upside…SERIES REGULAR

[ALAN] [DANIEL STRAUSS]

Late 20’s – early 30’s; a neurotic New Yorker.  Lost his hair at 24 and his nerve years before that.  He worries about everything, not least of which is job security. He closely monitors how many of his jokes get into Johnny’s monologue, convinced his career is ending at any moment. Perennially single, he believes (not unreasonably) that his most appealing asset is that he writes for The Tonight Show. His dating horror stories are the delight of the writers’ room…SERIES REGULAR

[MITCH] [ANDREW SCHULZ]

Late 20’s – early 30’s; die-hard New Yorker and writer for The Tonight Show.   Mitch has not adjusted well to his new move to California.  Abrasive and pessimistic, he manages to find the glass half-empty everywhere he looks.  He’s the one guy who doesn't extend himself to Andy and remains suspicious and resentful of Andy’s every success…SERIES REGULAR

[ANGELO] [ROGER BART]

42; The Tonight Show’s affable wardrobe guy.  As a gay man in the 70’s, his sexuality may have been an open secret, but it wasn’t talked about much in the workplace.  Comfortable in his own skin, Angelo always leads with his warm and nurturing side – much to Joy and Andy’s benefit…RECURRING GUEST STAR