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- on Nov, 3 2009
- in General
It’s been awhile since I’ve updated my blog, but I figure if I schedule some time every day to update it, I’ll have something regular in no time. This post is about a very fun subject, and it’s my completely impersonal look at the rise of one of my favorite comedy writers – Dan Harmon. Dan’s currently the creator and executive producer of the show Community on NBC, a show that I am an absolutely huge fan and to be it feels like the best comedy to come on TV since The Office. Strangely enough, I had never even heard of the show until I heard an interview with Dan Harmon on NPR as I was surfing through radio channels and I heard Dan’s voice. I had a little bit of joy in my heard when I first saw his executive producer credit, mostly because I’ve seen some of his past work and it was about time Dan got the recognition he deserved.
I was first exposed to Harmon through Channel101.com an internet tv network where anyone could submit a 5 minute “pilot” episode for a show that would then be voted by current show runners (of which there is a maximum of 5 currently running shows). Every month I was treated to some really great videos that circulated around our college apartment. Some of my favorite shows from Channel 101 include Groove Fighters, Yacht Rock, Your Magic Touched Me, Your Magic Touched Me: NIGHTS, and the ever popular House of Cosbys. With Cosbys, Channel101 got some moderate celebrity when the official Cosby camp filed litigation. Dan himself frequently used some of his celebrity connections (mainly Jack Black) to create some high profile content on Channel 101, but something tells me the site has yet to really “make it big”.
While working on 101 and probably other projects, Harmon wrote the movie Monster House with Channel 101 co-creator Rob Schrab. While I’m not sure how many re-writes the script went through before it got on screen, Harmon probably got a nice paycheck out of it and I can only assume he parlayed that success (and a relationship with another well-known comedy celebrity), to produce The Sarah Silverman Program on Comedy Central. Harmon stayed on the Viacom bandwagon and he tried to create a version of Channel101 on VH1, Acceptable.TV. The show was good, but the concept wasn’t ready for prime time as the show was unceremoniously dumped after 7 episodes (in favor of some reality show knockoff of another reality show I’m sure). Still, Acceptable.TV had some good gems, like this one starring Dan Harmon himself:
I like to pretend that throughout all of this Dan Harmon lived in a cardboard box with a netbook until one day he discovered a Community college, where he, despite his alcoholic breath and disheveled looks, was able to blend in with the student body and come up with inspiration for this crazy new comedy series on NBC. In reality, he probably just rolled up with a script, made it funny, and cast Chevy Chase (also, I’ve never been part of the “HAHA CHEVY CHASE ISN’T FUNNY” craze, but I am so glad to see him back).
So, do Dan and I a favor – watch Community on NBC, keep a good show on TV because you know they’ll just replace it with a clone of The Office if it doesn’t work out. I really love the show, and you might as well.
