McFly121
03-03-2005, 02:54 AM
It's easy to see why people might find Church a little off-kilter. After all, he's calling from one of his ranches, located three hours west of Austin, Texas, where he personally works 10,000 acres of land and handles 400 head of cattle. He sold his house in L.A. in 2001 to live full-time on his ranch, more or less willing to kiss his acting career goodbye. This was after six years as mechanic Lowell on the sitcom Wings, two seasons on the underrated Ned and Stacey, and several film credits, including George of the Jungle and Tombstone. Also notable are the movies he didn't get: he had close calls on Ace Ventura, Saving Private Ryan, and Quiz Show. "At some point, you just kind of have to embrace where you are," he explains. "In 2001, I did a couple of small parts in movies that were wholly unfulfilling and went straight to cable. In 2002, all I did was a straight-to-video sequel that I was contractually obligated to do. It was diminishing returns for me. I had financial security; I was happy living in Texas. Not to wax too sentimental about it, but there is a part of me that had kind of waved goodbye to acting. Then I read Sideways."
Church is quick to point out he's been a writer longer than an actor, and improv is something he feels comfortable with. When he first met with Fox TV about doing Ned and Stacey, one of his conditions was that he be allowed some freedom with the dialogue. "I said that I'd been frustrated on Wings because, while they'll occasionally embrace improvisation and ad-libbing, you have to so completely make your case that it would damn near stand up [in the] Supreme Court. Just to get something in that you come up with," says Church. "It was frustrating, and I wanted to have the freedom to work off-page if I thought it was appropriate and organic to the scene. So my deal on Ned and Stacey for two years was: I would always give them what was on the page for one or two takes, and then I would have one or two takes to give them what I wanted. It's something I think I'm good at."
When his contract with Wings expired, Church told the
producers he no longer wanted to play Lowell, the man NBC
referred to as the "eccentric, laconic general maintenance
man," and he quit the show.
It was a bold move on Church's part, because many sidekicks
have left hits only to end up in oblivion. (Remember McLean
Stevenson of M*A*S*H and Demond Wilson of Sanford and Son?)
But Fox, which liked Church's work as a recurring character
on its Flying Blind series a few years earlier, signed him to
front his own show: Ned and Stacey. Church, happy to finally be freed of Lowell, looks back at
the Wings years as a wasted opportunity.
"He came in, told a joke and left," says Church. "They
never took advantage of him. It was very frustrating."
The actor asked the Wings producers to give Lowell a good-
bye episode the prior season, but he says they were focused on
the season-ending wedding of Joe (Tim Daly) and Helen
(Crystal Bernard) and refused.
But the producers did ask Church to return that fall; Lowell
would make his final appearance on the show in late October.
He had gotten a small role on a memorable episode of Cheers:
Carla's husband (played by Jay Thomas) dies, and Church, one
of his ice hockey teammates, comes to the bar to announce
the news. He got one of Cheers' biggest laughs and was
snapped up by Cheers writers Peter Casey, David Lee and
David Angell, who were leaving to form their own show,
Wings.
"I went in for a three-day part on Cheers and it lasted six
years," says Church.
He initially read for the part of Brian, but Steven Weber
nabbed it. So the producers created Lowell for him.
"Originally, he was a sardonic observer, but then, after we
did the pilot, the producers decided there were too many
smart-asses on the show, and they changed Lowell
dramatically."
Most would refer to Lowell as "dumb," but not Church. He
calls him "literal-minded and distracted."
He figures that out of 130 episodes of Wings, about 12 were
Lowell stories, which is why he decided to leave. He tried
to quit once, but the producers threatened him with a
lawsuit. He finally was free when his contract expired.
"I never played him dumb. I always played him innocent. The only way to play somebody is honest. Nobody goes through life believing 'I'm the stupidest [guy] in the room,' even an inbred guy."
(So there could possibly be an "original" Wings pilot collecting dust in a Paramount vault somewhere?? C'mon, Perrymount and get off your arses and release Wings!!!)
Church is quick to point out he's been a writer longer than an actor, and improv is something he feels comfortable with. When he first met with Fox TV about doing Ned and Stacey, one of his conditions was that he be allowed some freedom with the dialogue. "I said that I'd been frustrated on Wings because, while they'll occasionally embrace improvisation and ad-libbing, you have to so completely make your case that it would damn near stand up [in the] Supreme Court. Just to get something in that you come up with," says Church. "It was frustrating, and I wanted to have the freedom to work off-page if I thought it was appropriate and organic to the scene. So my deal on Ned and Stacey for two years was: I would always give them what was on the page for one or two takes, and then I would have one or two takes to give them what I wanted. It's something I think I'm good at."
When his contract with Wings expired, Church told the
producers he no longer wanted to play Lowell, the man NBC
referred to as the "eccentric, laconic general maintenance
man," and he quit the show.
It was a bold move on Church's part, because many sidekicks
have left hits only to end up in oblivion. (Remember McLean
Stevenson of M*A*S*H and Demond Wilson of Sanford and Son?)
But Fox, which liked Church's work as a recurring character
on its Flying Blind series a few years earlier, signed him to
front his own show: Ned and Stacey. Church, happy to finally be freed of Lowell, looks back at
the Wings years as a wasted opportunity.
"He came in, told a joke and left," says Church. "They
never took advantage of him. It was very frustrating."
The actor asked the Wings producers to give Lowell a good-
bye episode the prior season, but he says they were focused on
the season-ending wedding of Joe (Tim Daly) and Helen
(Crystal Bernard) and refused.
But the producers did ask Church to return that fall; Lowell
would make his final appearance on the show in late October.
He had gotten a small role on a memorable episode of Cheers:
Carla's husband (played by Jay Thomas) dies, and Church, one
of his ice hockey teammates, comes to the bar to announce
the news. He got one of Cheers' biggest laughs and was
snapped up by Cheers writers Peter Casey, David Lee and
David Angell, who were leaving to form their own show,
Wings.
"I went in for a three-day part on Cheers and it lasted six
years," says Church.
He initially read for the part of Brian, but Steven Weber
nabbed it. So the producers created Lowell for him.
"Originally, he was a sardonic observer, but then, after we
did the pilot, the producers decided there were too many
smart-asses on the show, and they changed Lowell
dramatically."
Most would refer to Lowell as "dumb," but not Church. He
calls him "literal-minded and distracted."
He figures that out of 130 episodes of Wings, about 12 were
Lowell stories, which is why he decided to leave. He tried
to quit once, but the producers threatened him with a
lawsuit. He finally was free when his contract expired.
"I never played him dumb. I always played him innocent. The only way to play somebody is honest. Nobody goes through life believing 'I'm the stupidest [guy] in the room,' even an inbred guy."
(So there could possibly be an "original" Wings pilot collecting dust in a Paramount vault somewhere?? C'mon, Perrymount and get off your arses and release Wings!!!)