PS PD

Excellent oral history in Details of Party Down, the poorly-rated Starz sitcom that lasted only 20 episodes.  The actors and producers recognize it was something special, and to this day I don't understand why it didn't get the numbers it deserved.

The article describes the show thus:

Combining shades of Christopher Guest's mockumentaries, Judd Apatow's slacker heroes, and the painful reality-based humor of The Office, Party Down was textbook cutting-edge comedy.

I think this is missing something.  First, it's misleading to compare it to Christopher Guest's work (even if both share Jane Lynch) since Party Down was very much a written show. In fact, one of the great things about it was the plotting.  From the simple premise of a new party for the caterers to work at each week came cleverly designed and well-played farcical situations--a good show to compare it to, in fact, would be Fawlty Towers.

The producer and actors drop a lot of names, too, but it's odd they don't mention Party Down's most obvious antecedent.  This is a workplace sitcom about people with unfilfilled dreams taking an easy job to pay the rent, and at the center is a guy who's given up.  The exact same situation as Taxi.  And Party Down also shares Taxi's unusual plots at changing locales. (The dumb pretty-boy actor, played by Ryan Hansen, is sort of a cross between Taxi's Tony and Bobby; of course, he's also similar to Joey on Friends.)

The show took an episode or two to find its footing, but there are no bad ones, and no weak characters.  I was pleased to see general agreement that the Steve Guttenberg half-hour in season 2 is the best the show did.  We've seen other TV shows where something someone writes is acted out, but in this one the script within the script--and how it's rewritten--is both funny and fascinating in how it helps the plot unfold and reveal the characters.

By season 2, Party Down had the critics, and a cult following, but with a new administration coming in, the show simply didn't have the ratings for a pick-up.  It's sad to read how the cast knew the show was on life support, and started drifting away.  As a ten-hour art project, though--actually longer than Britain's The Office or Fawlty Towers--it has an arc that gives us a sense of closure.

On the other hand, some of the people involved talk about a movie.  I'm not sure where they'll find the investors, but I'd pay to see it.