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Liz Rizzo lives in Los Angeles, works in entertainment, and aims to direct film & television. Dreamer since 1971, Angelino since 2002, blogger si...
 
 
 
 

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Mommy Bloggers Visit the Set of The New Adventures of Old Christine...

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And me and L.A. Daddy got to go with!

It was February 12th, and I'd worked just two days at my new job when I had a day off for a "prior commitment."  The best prior commitment EVER!  I had a date to visit the set of "The New Adventures of Old Christine" on the Warner Bros. lot.

[img_assist|fid=3275|thumb=1|alt=WB Pass]

Which, by the way, is back on the air March 12 on CBS.  But more about that later - Now for the total awesomeness of being invited to an expertly planned blogger day... with mommy bloggers.

Yes, the concept revolved around blog outreach to popular parent bloggers - all mommies and one daddy.  Oh, and me.  SINKing and sneaking in as a BlogHer representative and SO GLAD to be there.

This was a great opportunity for me on so many levels.  Personally, and as an aspiring director, I'd never been on a sitcom set, so it was interesting (read: so weird) to see a stage with audience seating.  My favorite part of the day was watching how they rehearsed, worked on the comedic timing, and used all the cameras (female camera op in the house, btw).  That part was painfully short for me, but probably just right for just about everyone else.

Before that, we had an intimate Q&A with the cast and the executive producer where we each got to ask a question.  When the cast walked in, you could just feel the star power.  I mean, I live in L.A. and work in the entertainment industry, but to have a whole cast come out to answer questions just for us felt absolutely amazing.

I was *really* glad I was towards the end, because the questions I brought with me were all the types of things I might ask at an industry panel.  (For example, I was curious if Julia Louis-Dreyfus was ever offered or ever had considered a one-hour drama.)  Good questions, but not really in the theme of the day.  The mommies were all asking about parenthood stuff.  I didn't want to do that, either - I wasn't that undercover! - so I quickly thought about my blogging, and my experience watching the show, and what's interesting to me... 

And I asked about sex.

People, they made each of us a personalized video of our visit, which features, among other things, my Q&A moment.  There's also a couple shots towards the end of me studying the shooting.  Behold:

My visit to the set of The New Adventures of Old Christine!

The bloggers in attendence included (and this is from the press release):  Amy Keroes and Dawn Dobras, founders of the popular working mother website Mommy Track’d, Erin Kane and Kristin Brandt, who created the website and podcast Manic Mommies – which features a weekly podcast available for download on Itunes and Yahoo; Melinda Roberts, better known as The Mommy Blog and author of Mommy Confidential;  Liz Gumbinner, who is an advertising agency executive by day and pens the wildly successful blogs Cool Mom Picks and Mom101; Sara Fisher, a part-time public relations executive and author of the blog, The Self Made Mom; Tim Clark, who is better known as L.A. Daddy; as well as four contributors from BlogHer.org including the authors of the blogs: Wannabehippie, The Soccer Mom Vote, Joy Unexpected; and yours truly.

[img_assist|fid=3267|thumb=1|alt=New Adventures]

One anecdote more than one of us shared was about watching the DVD they sent us in advance of the event.  I was watching the show in my living room, and my roommate came out of her room to ask what I was watching, because I was laughing so loud.  You know, I am totally into the hour drama, I really am, but when a sitcom works, it really is comedic magic.  I remember when sitcoms were the must-see-TV, and there was a lot more laughter.  I finished the DVD they sent and immediately added The New Adventures of Old Christine to my Tivo.  Laughter isn't just for mommies!

[img_assist|fid=3271|thumb=1|alt=Liz Asks A Question]

After the Q&A, I mentioned to Wanda Sykes that I'd seen her speech at The Crystal + Lucy Awards a few years prior and really enjoyed it.  I also gushed to Julia Louis-Dreyfus.  I've put all of my pictures in a photo album on my blog, and no, I didn't leave out the one where I'm looking at Julia Louis-Dreyfus like she just descended from heaven.  In fact, I think

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Liz Rizzo 5 pts

Just jumping on with a late comment reply to say, SO COOL to get to rep BlogHer for this!!! :)

Liz Rizzo ( http://www.blogher.com/blog/liz-rizzo )

I blog at Everyday Goddess ( http://everydaygoddess.typepad.com/ ) and On The Lot ( http://community.thelot.com/blogs/lizriz ).

Liz Rizzo 5 pts

It easy for me to wait to post, because I was slamming busy with a new job right after, but it was really, really fun, and I was super excited when the pictures and the video came!!!

Liz Rizzo ( http://www.blogher.com/blog/liz-rizzo )

I blog at Everyday Goddess ( http://everydaygoddess.typepad.com/ ) and On The Lot ( http://community.thelot.com/blogs/lizriz ).

Nordette Adams 6 pts

That was so pretty smart PR on the part of the producers. Enjoyed this post and meant to comment when I first saw it. The first thing I thought then was she went to that taping in early February and is just breaking the news now? What willpower! :-) I would've blabbed the next day. I've only seen Christine once or twice, but thought it was amusing enough when I did. After reading this, I'll pay more attention to it.

I'm waiting to see Starter Wife ( http://www.usanetwork.com/series/starterwife/ ) in May. Oh, not the exciting way you did, LOL, just on TV. Perhaps I'm influenced by the advertisement which makes good use of Jill Scott's "Golden." It fits the afterlife of divorce in a cool way, which is why I posted the video at the beginning of 2006 at my own site ( http://nexus.writingjunkie.net/ ). Jill Scott's not divorced, however. I associated post-divorce healing and renewal with the song. And I guess, so did the Starter Wife people. I wonder if I'll like the actual show though since it revolves around a ditched Hollywood wife, which gives it the potential to seem unrealistic.

Thanks for going and representing BlogHer so well.

"Love is liquid. Brew and be drunkards!" ~~Nordette ( http://nexus.writingjunkie.net ) And here's a link to the blog ( http://jerseygoddess.blogspot.com/2007/03/john-edw... ).

Lisa Stone 6 pts

"And I asked about sex."

You know, Liz, that's exactly the kind of question I was hoping you'd ask when Beth Feldman of CBS (who also blogs RoleMommy ( http://rolemommy.com ) btw) called and asked me if there were any LA-based bloggers who might want a press pass to the taping of "Christine ( http://www.cbs.com/primetime/old_christine/index.s... )". Nice work!

Looks like a rollicking good conversation, especially given Y of Joy Unexpected's sneak peek at a photo from the taping (click the photo to read more):

( http://www.joyunexpected.com/archives/002153.php#c... )

So, what would you ask Julie Louis-Dreyfus if you could ask anything? What questions can take I take as scribe from this community to CBS on Monday, March 19? I'm looking forward to talking with Louis-Dreyfus and the show's creator, Kara Lizer ( http://imdb.com/name/nm0515472/ ). They have gone where few women have gone before in comedy and sitcom, from Seinfeld to, now, "Christine." As Liz Gumbinner of Mom-101 writes ( http://mom-101.blogspot.com/2007/02/i-see-famous-p... ):

"I love that the show was created by Kari Lizer, an phenomenally smart and accomplished working mother, even more impressive considering the Tailhook-like gauntlet she must have walked to get there. And I like that the main character of Old Christine is a career mom herself, and an imperfect one at that. (Know any of those?) In fact, when one of the bloggers mentioned the increase of working mothers portrayed on TV, Kari challenged us to name one...." read more ( http://mom-101.blogspot.com/2007/02/i-see-famous-p... )

Good point -- working outside the home, that is. It's been a loooong time since Murphy Brown ( http://imdb.com/title/tt0094514/ ), ya'll And unlike the divine Ms. Brown, the character Louis-Dreyfus plays also is dealing with a son who is old enough to talk back, her ex-husband and her new doppelganger (that'd be new Christine).

In this show, Old Christine ogles her son's teacher ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiAFtnIkCKY ) (the delectable Blair Underwood), pratfalls off couches on dates ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWSA2lLdVtI ), and chats up her ex-man while constantly interfacing with his new woman ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdZ_XRKRpy0 - New Chr5st5ne ).

Dates? Sex even? Hottie mchot teachers? A killer bod and designer clothes for Mom?

This isn't exactly how I spent eight years a single mom.

So I've been asking myself, given the positive and negative realities of modern divorce (economically, spiritually, emotionally):
- Is it okay to laugh at divorce rather than cry? And when does that magic moment occur (for me it was five years A.D...)
- Is this next sitcom by and for women enough of a boot-heel on the neck of June Cleaver ( http://imdb.com/title/tt0050032/ ) and her creators?
- Is this show going where we as viewers want it to go? What episode would YOU write?

Dying to know what you all think...

Best,
Lisa

Lisa Stone
BlogHer Co-founder ( http://www.blogher.com/member/lisa-stone )
Surfette ( http://surfette.typepad.com )

Liz Rizzo 5 pts

OK, the link to my video goes straight to YouTube now, and the video has been made "public."

Enjoy!

Liz Rizzo ( http://www.blogher.com/blog/liz-rizzo )

I blog at Everyday Goddess ( http://everydaygoddess.typepad.com/ ) and On The Lot ( http://community.thelot.com/blogs/lizriz ).