The Working Actor

Our next actress never gets tired of her regulars…..

How could she???

Have you seen her commercials?

full profile coming soon……

Check out Miranda and Gabriel’s full profiles.

Listen to the excuse an agent used to explain why he wasn’t interested in Gabriel…..

CAN YOU BELIEVE THE AGENT SAID THAT???????????

Age: 30

Gabriel is originally from Austin, TX, but he has lived in LA for 2 ½ years. He has worked at The Pleasure Chest for 2 ½ years.

FAVORITE CELEBRITY SIGHTING AT WORK: “It was a big action star. He scared the shit out of everyone in the store. I went up to him and said ‘what up, you need help?’ He said no at first, but a few minutes later he came over and asked me about double-penetration. I said you can’t really hit both angles that way, but let me show you what you can do. After a while he kept buying more and more stuff. He would just say ‘Is this good?’ and toss it in his basket if I said yes, or I would tell him it was a piece of shit and recommend something else. It was just funny to see, everyone is just a person who has no idea what they are doing when they come in here.”

MOVED TO LA BECAUSE: “I wanted to continue acting without a glass ceiling.”

BEST MOMENT IN LA: “I had this audition for a pretty major, indie production. A friend had recommended me from a previous film. It felt like it was real high steaks, everyone was nervous. I got to meet the director who was really nice, and I got to meet the writer who was someone I admire. I felt very good and confident about the audition. It was very much like, this is why I moved here. This is why I deal with LA, this is why I do this. I knew I wasn’t going to get the part. I didn’t, and that’s ok.”

WORST MOMENT IN LA: “My first day here. I was staying in a motel downtown with my mom. I had no idea how I could live or get a job. I couldn’t even do that back home. It was just so bright, ugly and dirty here.”

YOU MIGHT HAVE SEEN HIM IN: RSO and some short films on youtube like Softshoe.

THIS JOB HELPS ME AS AN ACTOR: “It lets me be myself. I also have to listen to hardcore stuff and maintain my control while figuring things out. I think that’s what acting is about. It’s about being in the moment, it’s about having that control.”

DREAM ROLE: “To play weird messed up characters, to have some range. The type of roles Gary Oldman gets. He plays these people who are perceived to be quirky or crazy, but there is always something more to them.”

ADVICE FOR ACTORS MOVING TO LA: “Be ok with not acting. Setup your life, and have your foundations. You need to eat, you need to have a job, you need to have stability, you need to have relationships. People who try to pursue it like a gambling career, they just leave.”

Watch John recall his worst moment in LA:

Age: “30’s”

John has lived in LA “off and on for about 10 years,” but is originally from Austin, TX. He has worked at Hands on 3rd for 1 year.

MOVED TO LA BECAUSE: “I wanted to do acting and fashion. I knew I had to be here to do both.”

BEST MOMENT IN LA: “A few months ago I had the opportunity to be in a play at the Odyssey Theater, The Last Days of Judas Iscariot. The play was received so well and we got such great reviews. It was a really positive experience for me. It added fuel to my fire wanting to be a successful actor.”

BEST AUDITION STORY: “ I got to the audition, which was for a musical, and didn’t have time to warm up. I sang my 16 bars in the regular key of the song and the woman who was conducting the audition looked at the piano player and said ‘take it up another level.’ So the piano player took it up a half step and I did my 16 bars again. To make a long story short she had the piano player go up 7 notes and then told the piano player to stop. She said, ‘I can tell you can continue to go.” It went from me being scared to a fun audition. I didn’t get cast for the part, which is part of the story in LA, you can think you did well but still don’t get it.

YOU MIGHT HAVE SEEN HIM IN: The Last Days of Judas Iscariot at the Odyssey Theater, Permanent Collection at Company of Angels. Background work on “The West Wing.”

UPCOMING: “Going out and auditioning.”

THIS JOB HELPS ME AS AN ACTOR: “The technical side of designing helps with my focus and my attention to detail. Those are the two things that make an actor really good. It helps me to work and then go and act. It helps me speed up my attention.”

DREAM ROLE: “I would like to play a detective on a crime drama, or a solider in a war film.”

ADVICE FOR ACTORS MOVING TO LA: “Don’t….No, I’m just kidding. Get as much training as you can before you go out and audition. You’re gonna go on an audition and there are gonna be 25 people who look exactly like you. What you’re able to do in that audition is what will separate you. Will you be able to use an accent? What are your improv skills like? If they throw a curveball at you, how well will you adjust? Those types of things you can only acquire skill in them through training.”

WATCH JOHN PAUL KARLIAK TALK ABOUT HIS BEST MOMENT IN LA:

Age: “Between 20 and death.”

John has lived in LA for 8 years, but is originally from Scranton, PA. He has worked at USC for 4 years.

FAVORITE CELEBRITY SIGHTING AT WORK: “Well you see George Lucas every once in a while, but I haven’t actually bumped into him and said hello. Ok, so it wasn’t this job. I used to work grocery delivery before I did this. My favorite person to deliver to was Kevin Smith. He would just reach into his wallet, take however many bills he had and just give them to you. My last delivery he gave me a $90 tip, I bought a bottle of champagne.”

WORST MOMENT IN LA: “When my car exploded. I was driving to a temp job downtown. I had this 1st edition PT Cruiser that used to be my dad’s company car, which became a graduation present. My dad knows nothing about cars, but felt that he could take the engine apart and add a supercharger to it. I’m not saying that’s what caused it to explode, but draw your own conclusions. Anyway, it started to smoke while I was driving to work. I pulled over to the side of the road and called for help. While dialing, the car exploded. Fireball out of the engine, the hood popped off, the tires melted. I wasn’t pulled all the way off the road, so people were swerving out of the way. Luckily, my CD’s didn’t melt. They stank, but they still played.”

WORST AUDITION STORY: “It was for McDonalds and was the first audition my agent sent me on in a year and a half. I walked into the room and everybody was a Latin type. So I picked up the copy and it was entirely in Spanish. I asked the casting director if I was in the right place and she said ‘can you speak Spanish?’ When I told her I couldn’t she said, ‘just futz your way through it.’ The girl next to me instructed me to shout out ‘Big Mac por favor, Quarter Pounder Por Favor.’ Once the audition ended I called my agent and asked what happened. He just laughed and said ‘my bad.’ So I fired him.”

YOU MAY HAVE HEARD HIM IN: Dante’s Inferno: An Animated Epic, A Red Bull Commercial, Tom Clancy’s Endwar (VG), H&R Block radio commercial.

UPCOMING: An AFI short called Little Black Dress

ADVICE FOR PEOPLE MOVING TO LA: “Keep in touch with everyone and thank them. So many people you do random things with move on and do bigger things. It’s about building professional friendships. Also, focus. It’s not enough to just say ‘I want to be an actor.’ What do you want to be on? Do you do Comedy? Drama? Voiceover? Get specific, I spent the first 3 years out here unsure.”

Watch Lisa recall  when she saw Richard Pryor before his return to the stage:

Age: “Ageless and Evergreen” 

Lisa is originally from Minnesota, but has lived in Los Angeles “long enough to know that nothing happens overnight.” Lisa has worked at Milena’s Boutique for 1 year. 

FAVORITE CELEBRITY SIGHTING AT WORK: Maria Shriver 

MOVED TO LA BECAUSE: “I was a theater junkie. I came out here to do theater.” 

BEST MOMENT IN LA: “Surviving colon cancer.” 

WORST MOMENT IN LA: “The earthquake.” 

BEST AUDITION STORY: “Lee Strasberg accepting me on my first audition when I was 22 years old.” 

WORST AUDITION STORY: “Meeting Robert Dinero and Cis Corman for Raging Bull and being told I looked too young to play a girl carding people in Jake LaMotta’s bar…that was a bummer.” 

YOU MIGHT HAVE SEEN HER IN: Deep Cover, “E! Mysteries & Scandals” playing Lana Turner, a Peugeot commercial, Tanzi 

UPCOMING: Baby O 

THIS JOB HELPS ME AS AN ACTOR: “It helps me be centered and focused. It doesn’t take as much from me as other jobs have.” 

DREAM ROLE: “Martha in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” 

ADVICE FOR ANYONE MOVING TO LA TO BE AN ACTOR: “Make sure it’s something you desperately want to do, not because of fame.  Make sure you have a passion for it. Acting is a craft, take it seriously and train for it. Expect to pay your dues, and have a lot of rejection. Actors are a dime a dozen out here…there is a lot of disappointment and heartache.” 

WATCH TYLER DISCUSS WHY HE WORKS AT KINGS ROAD CAFE:

Age: 29

Tyler is originally from Syracuse, NY, but has lived in LA for 6 years. He has worked at Kings Road Cafe for 3 months.

FAVORITE CELEBRITY SIGHTING AT WORK: “Terri Hatcher. I used to love ‘Lois and Clark.’ I haven’t seen Dean Cain yet, so I’m a little bummed out about that.”

YOU MAY HAVE SEEN HIM IN: “I did extra work on ‘The O.C.,’ ‘Las Vegas’ and ‘CSI.’ I hope I don’t have to do that again. It didn’t make me feel good about this industry. It’s a weird vibe when you are an extra.” A commercial for a Glendale gym.  A web series “On Empty.”

UPCOMING: A Warm Wind

DREAM ROLE: “A role that will catapult me into a field of actors that are constantly working. I want to be a working actor. If I’m famous…I don’t really care for that. I understand fame is a byproduct of what I’m doing, but basically I want to work.”

MY ADVICE FOR ANYONE MOVING TO LA TO BE AN ACTOR: “Good Luck! If you want to do it, just do it.  Don’t talk about doing it, don’t wait to get headshots. Just do it. Jump in and get your feet wet. I could tell you everything I know about this town, but until you are here experiencing it you don’t have a clue. You really have to go through the wringer to lose the green in your soul.”

KATE TALKS ABOUT HER EXPERIENCE WITH THE HURT LOCKER:

Age: “25”

Kate is from Maryland, but has lived in LA for 4 ½ years. She has worked at Heimberg Law Group for 4 years.

WORST AUDITION STORY: “I came in to audition for a manager and she asked me to do a monologue. I did this really emotional monologue, I was crying at the end. It was powerful. After I finished we just stared each other down, neither of us said anything, for 6 or 7 minutes. Finally, she said, “is it over?” I replied “yeah.” She told me, “You should have said scene. I’ve just been staring at you unsure if you had finished.”

YOU MAY HAVE SEEN HER IN: “Grey’s Anatomy,” Tween.

UPCOMING: The Hurt Locker – Directors Cut, W.M.D.

THIS JOB HELPS AS AN ACTOR: “It would help me with any role on a CSI type, or medical show. We’re a medical malpractice law firm so I already know all the jargon. I hear about things that happen to people all day. I have a broad spectrum of characters to draw from.”

DREAM ROLE: “Ellen’s Page’s character from Juno.”

DOES YOUR DAY JOB MAKE YOU HAPPY: “This is a good gig. I don’t want to wait tables. I like the people here. I’m proud of what we do. We help poor people who were wronged. But, I do think on a daily basis that I didn’t move to LA  to work in a law firm.”

FIND OUT IF DEACON CAN DANCE:

Age: 30

Deacon has lived in LA for 3 years, but is originally from Chicago. He has worked at The Village Idiot for 2 ½ Years.

FAVORITE CELEBRITY SIGHTING AT WORK: Thomas Lennon

BEST MOMENT IN LA: “When I got my first apartment, it was the first night I was there, I had no furniture. Everything I shipped broke except for one glass. I sat there and used a suitcase as a table, and got a $5 bottle of wine at 7-Eleven…..I knew I couldn’t be happier.”

BEST AUDITION STORY: “It was few months ago, for Budweiser. It was a videoconference audition; the director and producers were in Chicago. I saw them laugh at something I did through the 20-inch screen and thought ‘alright I’m gonna book this,’ and I did.”

YOU MIGHT HAVE SEEN HIM IN: “Grey’s Anatomy,’ I played a patient with a broken leg” and a current Mazda 3 commercial.

UPCOMING: Taco Bell Commercial, Budweiser commercial, Twix Commercial, Coors Light Commercial, A Marine Story.

DREAM ROLE: “For them to re-cast ‘Lost’ and run the series again, all 6 seasons of it. I’ll play Jack, I’ll play Sawyer, either one I don’t care. That would be fine with me.”

ADVICE FOR ACTORS MOVING TO LA: “Save up as much money as you can, and don’t take it personally.”

WATCH AMY EXPLAIN WHY SHE MOVED TO LA:

Age: “Whatever you want it to be…preferably not 60”

Amy has lived in LA for 5 years but is originally from Minnesota. She has run Amy’s Blankies for a little over 2 years.

SIGNIFIGANT MOMENT IN LA: “It was the first time I went up in an acting class. I did my scene and the teacher said nothing about my work. She said, ‘Amy, what’s going on with your hair?’ I had no idea what she was talking about. I said, ‘I guess it needs a cut.’ The teacher called up other girls from the class and had them put their hair over mine so we could see what colors made my skin and eyes pop. It was insane, but that was the first moment I realized I wasn’t in Kansas anymore. This is a business and you’re not necessarily valued on your work. It was a reality check.”

BEST AUDITION STORY: “I was going out for a small role in a big show. I was coached on it and I had done my work. So I went in and did my [audition] and the woman said ‘that’s great, now just do nothing. Just say the lines.’ So I did, and I booked it. I’m not saying that you don’t need to do the work, you just need to be yourself.”

YOU MAY HAVE SEEN HER IN: “The Office”, “Private Practice”, “Grey’s Anatomy”, Southbounders, A Vick’s commercial

UPCOMING: “The Wish List” and a web series “Vicariously”

THIS JOB HELPS AS AN ACTOR: “It’s a creative outlet. It’s hard as an actress to gauge productivity. As an actress you go on auditions and hopefully book things. But with sewing you complete something at the end of the day. It gives a sense of accomplishment as well as being creative by making new designs and putting new fabric combinations together.”

DREAM ROLE: “Working in a Christopher Guest ensemble type film or an Altman-esque film. Something where there are a lot of quirky interesting characters with interesting relationships.”

ADVICE FOR ANYONE MOVING TO LA TO BE AN ACTOR: “A lot of people will perhaps disagree with me, but acting can’t be the only thing in your life. You need other stuff going on. You need a life outside of that dream to make you live and be happy. I love acting and can’t imagine doing anything else, but it won’t always make me happy. I need other things. People always told me that when I was younger, but I get it now.”

Watch Diann’s advice for actors moving to LA:

Age: 28

Diann has lived in LA for 6 years but is originally from Virginia. She has worked at Moe’s Flowers for 6 years.

FAVORITE CELEBRITY SIGHTING AT WORK: Sidney Poitier

BEST MOMENT IN LA: “Delivering flowers to Diane Keaton, Celebrities never answer the door…it’s always housekeeper. She answered the door.”

WORST MOMENT IN LA: “My first week out here I decided to just drive around. Somehow, I ended up on the 101. I freaked out and tried to get off but ended up on the 134. I had no Idea where I was, it took me 4 hours to get home.”

BEST AUDITION STORY: “The first job I booked. The day of the audition I woke and I don’t know if was nerves or Chicken Pox but my body had red spots all over. When I got there they turned on this music and I was told to start dancing and had to do some cold reading as well. It was crazy I was dancing with these spots all over me…but I got the job, I was in the show it was a good feeling.”

WORST AUDITION STORY: “It was my first audition out in LA. I had just graduated school and it was about nine months since I did an audition. I was super nervous. There were three monologues I had to memorize. I said the first line and just blanked. I forgot everything. I tried to start again but could not remember the lines.”

YOU MAY HAVE SEEN HER IN: “I did a lot of shows for the Outlaw Style Thrance Company.” A short film called Naked Sushi. An eHarmony commercial.

UPCOMING: Heat Train

DREAM ROLE: “Meg Ryan’s Role in When Harry Met Sally.”

Watch Drew tell his worst audition story:

Age: 32

Drew has lived in LA for over 10 years, but is originally from North Carolina. He has worked at The Groundlings for 3 ½ years.

FAVORITE CELEBRITY SIGHTING AT WORK: “LL Cool J, they were filming his show here the other day and it was really cool to see him in person.”

WORST MOMENT IN LA: “I was hit by a car in traffic about 7 years ago. I was in a crosswalk on Santa Monica Blvd. and a car hit my foot. There were no witnesses so I was found ‘partly responsible for my own accident.’ The cop said, I ‘failed to use due caution when crossing the street’ even though one car stopped for me. The car that did stop just drove away after I was hit so there was nothing I could do.”

BEST AUDITION STORY: “It was for ‘Reno 911!’ it was a fun vibe in the room. The audition was with the cast, and they were ready to laugh. They made me feel so comfortable. So many times you walk into an audition and the people have mean faces, are in a bad mood, or they are eating. With good improv I never remember what was said, it just feels good. But I remember every single line of a bad improv. This just felt good. I could tell when I walked in these guys wanted it to be good, and they wanted us to do well. I got to do the show a few months later. From day one I felt like part of the group.

YOU MIGHT HAVE SEEN HIM IN: A lot of theater with The Groundlings and Upright Citizens Brigade.“Reno 911!” “Halfway Home” a commercial for American Airlines – “Team Building.”

UPCOMING: “The Sarah Silverman Program” and a feature called Freak Dance “it’s a break dancing musical.”

THIS JOB HELPS AS AN ACTOR BECAUSE: “It’s the most creative job I can think of asn an actor. For 3 ½ hours I have to be focused, I have to listen. I watch actors work, I’m constantly seeing new choices, new ways of saying or delivering things. It also forces me to verbalize what I do as an actor. I have to communicate it to other people so I’m learning on a whole other level.”

ADVICE FOR ACTORS MOVING TO LA: “Study. Make sure you’re always in a class. Take every opportunity you can to perform and work with as many people as you can. Take your time, your’re not in a race to get famous.”

Age: “A lady never tells.”

Jessica has lived in LA for 5 ½ years, but is originally from New York. She has worked at Amoeba for 5 ½ years.

YOU MIGHT HAVE SEEN HER IN: “Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job – Season 3,” and “Austin Stories.” Jumping out of a car in Secondhand Lions. And, “If you ever watch really bad movies, you have seen me in Levelland, it’s about skateboarders….the real tricks is growing up.”

UPCOMING: An Old Navy Commercial

THIS JOB HELPS AS AN ACTOR BECAUSE: “They are super flexible and really understanding when I have an audition. I also enjoy meeting people at the registers. Just the other day, I rang up a casting director and he asked for my information.”

Age: 24

Liam is originally from Washington D.C., but he has lived in LA for 2 years. He has worked at The Pleasure Chest for just under 2 years.

FAVORITE CELEBRITY SIGHTING AT WORK: “I would love to tell you, but we are all about discretion. I would probably lose my job if I told you. But I’ve helped “A-list” movie stars, musicians, and directors. We get them all.”

MOVED TO LA BECAUSE: “After college, all of my friends moved to New York and I felt like I should move there as well. It seemed like the natural progression. I wanted to do something scary and go to a place I’d never been. So I bailed on my friends and moved here.”

BEST MOMENT IN LA: “Participating in the table read for 2012. I got to read for some of the uncast parts. In addition to working here, I’m also a casting intern. It was a really cool Hollywood insider moment to see the director and most of the cast working together.”

WORST MOMENT IN LA: “Getting a speeding ticket while racing from one rehearsal to another. I barely made it to the second rehearsal, but I made it there with a $300 ticket.”

BEST AUDITION STORY: “It was for the roll of a scientist doing some cleaning in the background. They had me mime some cleaning things. The director said ‘you got the role. We’ll see you next week.’ It was the easiest audition, but more importantly it was the first paying job I got in LA.”

YOU MAY HAVE SEEN ME IN: Activeion Commerical, Kate Voegel Video (99 Times). “I was in an episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians,’ and in the background of an episode of “Entourage” that were both filmed at The Pleasure Chest.”

UPCOMING: The Death of a Muse

THIS JOB HELPS AS AN ACTOR:“I get to meet characters every day and its stress free. If I was waiting tables, I’d be carrying trays and stressed out all day.  Here I get to listen to music and talk about sex. I was part of the ‘Entourage’ shoot here…I got paid for that. I was also on ‘Keeping Up With The Kardashians’ that was shot here…I’m not AS PROUD of that one.”

Watch Kristen recall her worst moment in LA:

Age: “In my 20’s”

Kristen has lived in Los Angeles for 2 ½ years, but is originally from Michigan. She has worked at Sur for 2 ½ years.

FAVORITE CELEBRITY SIGHTING AT WORK: “John Fogerty and Clive Owen.”

WORST AUDITION STORY: “Oh, it happened when I first started. I was driving to an audition and was really excited, really amped. I was in my car and running late. I started to feel frustrated, rushed, and overwhelmed. Because I was running late, I started to feel unprofessional. It got so bad that I turned the car around and went home. My nerves got the best of me.”

YOU MIGHT HAVE SEEN HER IN: “I did background work in He’s Just Not That Into You, and Yes Man.”

UPCOMING: The Loneliness of the Long Distance Dreamer and Behind Your Eyes

BEST MOMENT IN LA: “I was waiting on John Fogerty and his wife Julie. It made my night. Nobody had any clue who he was. I had to call my mom in the middle of my shift and scream in excitement with her. It was really awesome.”

THIS JOB HELPS AS AN ACTOR BECAUSE: “All my friends who work with me are actors. I have people to run lines with me at any given moment. The owner is an actor as well, I got one of my agents through him.”

DREAM ROLE: “Rachel McAdams’s character in The Notebook. Her performance is amazing. Her presence, how truthful, emotional, and real. It’s very challenging to be able to tell the truth like that. That’s what acting is…bringing out your crazy side, your emotional, your dark side and letting people see it.

ADVICE FOR ANYONE MOVING TO LA TO BE AN ACTOR: “Don’t get caught up in Hollywood. Hollywood is not Los Angeles. Don’t give in to the people you meet after 10pm at bar, at a club, or at a party. They are not going to make your career for you. Watch your back and study hard. You have to be 110% committed. If you are, you will do really well out here.”