Shit My Dad Says at The Working Actor

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Jonathan is originally from the South side of Chicago, IL. He grew up in the same building his grandmother grew up in. Jonathan has lived in LA for 8 years.

YOU KNOW HIM FROM: The Goods, Friday the 13th, Live Free or Die Hard, “American Dreams.”

HE MIGHT HAVE SERVED YOU AS: a host at Campanile, a sales associate at Armani Exchange at The Beverly Center, an extra, a driver for underage models for the Ford Modeling Agency, a waiter at The Griddle Café, and a bartender at Three Of Clubs.

FAVORITE CELEBRITY SIGHTING WHILE WORKING A DAY JOB: “It was right when I first moved here. I was working at Campanile my dream woman walked in. I was on the phone taking a reservation and I hear (in a British accent) ‘hello, do you have a table?’ I look up and it’s Claire Forlani standing right in front of me. My jaw dropped, at the time she was the wallpaper on my computer. In college we had her poster on the wall. It was pretty surreal. My first celebrity sighting was my dream girl.”

BEST MOMENT IN LA: “I brought my mom, my dad and my best friend from college to the premier of Live free or Die Hard. We went to the after party and were standing around talking to Ashton Kutcher, Kate Beckensale, Bruce Willis and Demi Moore. My mom and dad were shocked that these people knew who their son was. You kinda get desensitized when you’re hanging with people on set. Once you’re in the acting scene you meet more and more actors. It was a wild moment. It was great to step back and take it all in.”

WORST MOMENT IN LA: “TV is a bitch man. Even when you’re set in stone, you’re not set in stone. I was a series regular on an ABC show called ‘Misguided.’ I went to the ABC upfronts and we’re hobnobbing with all the big dogs. The next day I get a call from my agent ‘So, ABC is reworking the show. They are kind of reimagining different aspects…’ My head starts spinning, Cut to…I’m out. They cut my character completely from the show. No thank you. No goodbye. No severance. Gone. At first I thought I was being punk’d or something. One day you’re on top and the next day you’re lower than where you started. Nothing is a sure thing out here.”

DREAM ROLE: “I don’t know. Would it be cool to play a spy? Sure. Would it be cool to play Superman? Sure. My dream role changes every time I read a script that I fall in love with. I love being surprised when you read a script and fall in love with the character from page one. Something you never thought of. Something you couldn’t put together but some writer did and it’s exactly what you want to play. So I think it changes.”

WHEN DID YOU KNOW YOU DIDN’T NEED A JOB ANYMORE: “I remember the exact instant. I was bartending at the Three of Clubs, in the front bar. It was a Monday in the middle of pilot season. My [acting] manager came in and said ‘you have 30 more days as a bartender. No matter what you’re quitting.’ I replied ‘done.’ I went out auditioning and testing for a lot of pilots that season and literally on the 30^th day I booked a pilot. The next week I booked a lead in a movie and sold a screenplay. I was afraid to leave the house, I thought I was gonna get hit by a bus. I was finally able to not need a day job.”

JONATHAN GET’S EVEN WITH SMART ASS CUSTOMERS…….