Michael Showalter
Michael Showalter
Michael Showalteris an American comedian, actor, producer, writer, and director. He is a member of the sketch comedy trio Stella. Showalter first came to recognition as a cast member on MTV's The State, which aired from 1993 to 1995. He co-wroteand starred in Wet Hot American Summerand he wrote, directed, and starred in The Baxter, with Michelle Williams, Justin Theroux and Elizabeth Banks. Both of these movies featured many of his co-stars from The State, and so do several of...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionTV Actor
Date of Birth17 June 1970
CityPrinceton, NJ
CountryUnited States of America
There are comedians that I like. I think a lot of it, you just figure out on your own. It's definitely one of those things that you get good at by doing it a lot. But I like Jim Gaffigan. Patton Oswalt. Janeane Garofalo.
You really have no idea whether or not what you're writing is funny. In stand-up and sketch comedy, you know right away and you can make your changes accordingly.
There's a Baxter in every single romantic comedy,
Jeff Van Gundy is a Baxter. Derek Jeter? So not a Baxter. Howard Stern is not a Baxter. And Bernie Kerik is not a Baxter.
I went to college thinking of maybe pursuing a career in film criticism.
He'll cook too complicated a dinner, and it backfires. Or, he'll plan the whole night out minute by minute.
Many fans don't have the leisure time to track my every word. They're too busy brainstorming solutions to the economic crisis and winning Pulitzers.
Clark Kent is a Baxter. Superman is a leading man, but Clark Kent is a Baxter.
Their unifying characteristic is they're not romantic. They have this inability to recognize the simple romantic needs of their counterpart. They just never know the right thing!
I never really loved the acting, and I was never really that good at it, ... I never felt like I was better at this than other people. I started finding that my true passion is writing.
In each case, the minute you see them, you know they're wrong, ... The instant they walk on the screen, they give you some information that immediately makes the audience turn to the person sitting next to them and say, 'He's wrong for her. It'll never work out.'
He's like the best possible guy to work with. He's improvisational, adaptable, nice - and people love him. It's just been truly amazing watching Peter finally getting his due.
George Pataki is a Baxter, no question. But Mario Cuomo is not a Baxter.
I am a big proponent of writing a great outline. That way you can avoid hitting a roadblock. There is no worse feeling than writing yourself into a corner but if you've figured it all out in the outline then you won't have that problem.