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Airs Temporarily on hiatus so that our staff can help out our colleagues in the KPCC newsroom and on our other shows.A daily chronicle of creativity in film, TV, music, arts and entertainment produced by Southern California Public Radio. Host John Horn leads the conversation, accompanied by the nation's most plugged-in cultural journalists.
Before Andrea Savage's "I'm Sorry" series got picked up by TruTV, she was being offered to audition for a lot of mom roles, but often getting the same note from the networks.
I was considered too edgy by studio heads of some of the broadcast networks, which was always a fight because some of the creators would want me and then the heads would be likeshe's too edgy for a mom!And I'm like, how edgy am I? I'm notthatedgy! And I was finally like listen, I'm a mom. I have tons of friends that are moms. And also just being a mom doesn't change your entire identity. I'm the same person I was. I'm still dirtier and edgy and funny and normal. And also not a terrible mom.
And so, Savage created her show "I'm Sorry." It fills a gap in television comedies with a mom character who has a raw and, at times, inappropriate sense of humor but who's also a good mother in a loving relationship. The series' premiere season aired last summer and is about to start shooting season two. The writing of the show doesn't stray too far from Savage's own life. She stars as a character named Andrea who happens to be a comedic writer and mom of a young girl.
The Frame's John Horn recently caught up with Savage to find out more about "I'm Sorry." To hear the full conversation getThe Frame podcaston Apple Podcasts or wherever you like to listen.
Interview Highlights:
On creating a show with a comedic mom character:
My thing was that you never see comedians being moms. 'Better Things' and my show came out around the same time. But Pam Adlon's not actually a comedian. I mean she's a really funny comedic actress but most of the comedians that we know that are the big comedians don't have kids. From Ellen Degeneres, to Sarah Silverman, to Amy Schumer. Some of them are starting to have kids right now but there was no example, to be honest, of anyone for me to say you're a comedian and a mom. Even Amy Poehler, who is a mom, didn't play moms on TV. Tina Fey didn't play moms on TV. So it was really this uncharted territory when I was pitching it.
On where Andrea Savage and her character overlap:
I would say they overlap quite a bit. Where they're different is heightened. There are definitely places where I wouldn't do that. I know better I'm not a crazy person. I think I know how to read the room a little bit more than the character does. I don't get into crazy situations a lot. I think I don't have as much of an issue of navigating the comedy world and the parent world. I've done it longer, my daughter's older than the daughter on this show. So I've had more practice at it. But it was very hard at first. All I've spent my life around was hilarious, dirty, pushing the envelope. Nothing's too far, nothing's too far, and then suddenly you're at preschool ice scream social and you throw a comment out, and there's just sort of this silence. You learn pretty quickly maybe their line is in a different spot.
On how the San Fernando Valley plays a role in "I'm Sorry":
We shoot the entire show in the San Fernando Valley. I'm from the San Fernando Valley, I grew up in the San Fernando Valley. I also now sort of live halfway, halfway out. When I was shooting the pilot and most of the show, I was in the Valley, and they're the restaurants I go to. They're the parks I go to, they're the schools I go to, and I think the Valley's a really specific but great place that's not jokey but has a certain flavor to it. It's a lot of families, but a lot of time it's families that don't want to be lame. Like they're still cool and want to go to a wine bar that's not horrible, and want to go do still kind of cool stuff. Like they're still cool and want to go to a wine bar that's not horrible and want to go do still kind of cool stuff. It's a certain group of people.
