jason schwartzman

A couple of months ago, Mike showed you a preview of the new faux-noir series Bored To Death, which chronicles the adventures of a real writer (Jonathan Ames, played by Jason Schwartzman) who becomes a private eye for some reason. It looks quite entertaining, as this new clip below shows. Ted Danson, Patton Oswalt, and Zach Galifinakis? I'm there. It premieres on HBO September 20.

I wanted to write about this panel last night. However, the cumulative effects of my afternoon sojourn to In-n-Out Burger to have a double-double and fries, both "animal style," and the evening Food Network party that included a roasted pig, gourmet grilled cheese and other chef-created delicacies, caused me to collapse into a food coma at around 11 PM.

But l couldn't let two of HBO's panels go without comment. One was for the new comedy Bored to Death, based on the writings of Jonathan Ames. Joining Ames on the panel were Jason Schwartzman (via satellite), Ted Danson, and the hot comedian of the moment, Zach Galifianakis. The other was Robin Williams, who was promoting his new HBO special, Robin Williams: Weapons of Self-Destruction, which is set to air in December.

It wasn't surprising that Galifianakis' weird sense of humor dominated his panel; anyone who's seen him on the Comedians of Comedy tour or in The Hangover would have expected that. The surprise was that, in his panel, Williams was more reflective and pensive than manic.

If you enjoyed the Yo Teach ... ! clips Jason Schwartzman did to promote Judd Apatow's Funny People, then you'll dig the following teaser for HBO's Bored to Death. The upcoming comedy stars Schwartzman as a struggling writer who moonlights as a detective.



Writer Jonathan Ames is the man behind the series, which features an amazing cast including Zach Galifianakis (still riding a buzz from The Hangover), Ted Danson, Parker Posey and Saturday Night Live's Kristen Wiig.

One of the most eagerly awaited new NBC fall shows is Yo Teach ... ! Well, no. Actually, the show doesn't really exist. This is a promo for the new Judd Apatow movie Funny People. But you can imagine this show existing on television, maybe on Friday nights on ABC sometime in the mid-90s, right before Boy Meets World.

Here's the web site for the show, which has more video and looks a lot like the site for a real show. That's Bo Burnham as the student.

[via Pop Candy]

Ted Danson is one of those actors who just keeps chugging along through the years. He could have easily disappeared after Cheers, but he's been working steadily in both movies and TV.

Becker sort of flew under the radar, but aired from 1998 to 2004. There was the short-lived Help Me Help You in 2006. Danson even voiced a part on King of the Hill (Tom Hammond in "The Accidental Tourist" episode).

But it's his stint as the sinister Arthur Frobisher in Damages that's brought him into the forefront again. It also helped to catapult him into his next gig -- a lead role in HBO's comedy pilot Bored to Death.

Jason Schwartzman is officially coming to HBO. The actor will play the lead in Bored to Death, a new comedy from the cable network. Schwartzman has been cast as Jonathan, a struggling writer in this thirties who has a drinking problem. The series, which is set in Brooklyn, follows Jonathan's post-breakup decision to pretend to be a private eye.

Although he's not qualified for detective work, Jonathan loves the novels of Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett. He'll luck out and solve a few cases, but his lack of experience will often make matters worse for his clients. Novelist Jonathan Ames wrote the pilot and will serve as the show's executive producer.