Being asked to join the cast of one of the hottest shows on television isn’t a new thing for Linda Purl. In fact, some could say that she’s had quite an evolution during the past thirty years of television. She started out playing ‘Richie Cunningham’s’ girlfriend turned ‘Fonzie’s’ fiancée on “Happy Days,” then moved to playing Andy Griffith’s daughter on “Matlock,” became Joe Mantegna’s wife on “First Monday,” and now Linda takes her place as mother-of-the-bride ‘Helene Beesly’ on NBC’s “The Office,” making the first of several appearances on the October 8th episode titled “Niagara.”

Being billed as “the most anticipated wedding in recent television history,” the Niagara Falls nuptials of ‘Jim Halpert’ and ‘Helene’s’ daughter ‘Pam Beesly’ is a virtually guaranteed ratings winner for the network, and a reason for Linda’s fans to celebrate her return to the small screen. Rumor has it that there’s a possible storyline in the works for a little romantic interlude with Steve Carell’s character ‘Michael Scott’ that could open the door for Linda to make several more guest appearances.

Download “Niagara” Episode

As I’ve stated many times, The Office is probably my favorite show on television, not just because it makes me laugh, but also because the writers do such a phenomenal job making the audience feel like they are really getting a peek into these characters’ lives. They don’t feel like blown up caricatures, they feel like real people. John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer keep Jim and Pam true to life, and have the incredible ability to make you invested in their characters and their relationship. Krasinski not only directs his first feature, he also wrote and stars in it. Titled “Brief Interviews with Hideous Men,” it is based on a book of short stories by David Foster Wallace. He spent his first Office paycheck to buy the rights to this film, and a staged reading in college was what made him decide to become an actor. I recently attended a screening of the film, and got the chance to interview Krasinski after to ask him about his passion project, and of course, a few questions about The Office. Read on to find out an EXCLUSIVE Office scoop that he gave just to The TV Chick!

I asked him why this book of short stories resonated with him so much:

“I did a reading of it in college–a staged reading. I think that there are few authors that write the way that David wrote. I think that his perspective and view of the world is so specific and unique that he forces you to take in what he’s saying. Whether you like it or not, it forces you–it’s like a weird, incredible talent that he had to allow you to bring the material in and decide how you felt about it. And he always challenged you to look at these characters or anything that he was writing in a few degrees differently, before you made any decisions. So for me, being a junior in college, this was sort of an epic, existentialist [thing] to be like oh my God, look at the world in a different way, this is amazing. Sort of brass tacks later on, but it was a good start.

For those who haven’t seen the movie yet (you really should!), Sarah is the narrator. I asked him if it was his goal to create such an objective narrator.

“Absolutely. I think that was the way it was presented in the book. I think the power of the book is what you get from it, so I didn’t want to tell my audience what to feel. I wanted to give them the experience as if it were documentary-esque. It’s absolutely not a documentary but I wanted it to be deliberate as if people were just seeing it.”

David Foster Wallace is an incredibly complex writer. I wanted to know how hard it was to adapt his work into film.

“This book, in particular, because it was written as dialogue was a lot easier. The first big challenge was editing down the material without losing any of the impact. Hopefully, we did that but the cerebral side of everything is kind of what makes him special. So I tried not to take it all out. This book in particular was presented as immediately it’s some of the best acting material I had ever read. Hopefully the actors felt the same way. It’s so incredibly complex and it has the perspective of the world that only this author has been able to achieve, in my opinion. I pray for the people who are trying to do Infinite Jest and by the way, that’s still going on…that toil. But to me that was one of the things that was very intimidating about doing a movie was I knew how big of a film fan he was. And trust me, I was incredibly tempted to go do some crazy David Lynch shots. At the end of the day, you realize that you are such a fan of his…like I was…that the words are going to do the work for you. “

Shifting from actor to director is a big change, but Krasinski said that he had amazing actors to work with.

“It became incredibly obvious right away that I should just sit back and shut up. So anytime that there were slight adjustments, it was really fun to be able to talk to them without saying think about your parents and what you’re going through. They were like do I need to turn this way, or this way. I would say the left would be great. And that was all we needed to do.”

Krasinski’s passion shines through in the entire movie and he was even able to speak to David Foster Wallace before his death to get his blessing to make the movie.


“It was really scary, because I think [there] are liberties that you are taking. I wanted to be as close to the book as I could, and when you start taking any liberties, it’s terrifying. But we had a phone conversation, when he gave me his blessing to do this, which was thrilling. And one of the things he said that was so great was that it’s completely surreal that someone’s making a movie out of my book because books are supposed to be written, and then they go on a shelf. That’s what they do. The fact that it’s going beyond that is very weird, and I’m not really sure I’m going to see your movie. I just wanted to say that right up front. And I was like “got it.”

In true Jim Halpert form, he even made fun of himself: “Dealing with the actor was the hardest part. Total diva. Once we got all red M&M’s in his trailer, he came out.”

And interestingly enough, he wasn’t even supposed to play a part in the film.

“I was going to do the really cool thing and not be in the movie at all. And if it went poorly, be like “It’s all the actors’ fault.” We actually had a scheduling conflict, we were about 2 weeks away from shooting that scene, and I think the only thing on my resume that made me above the other actors, is that I had read the book 100 times. So people were like “okay, well we’re not going to explain this whole thing to someone, maybe you should just go do it.” And it was the scariest thing I have ever done, truly, acting wise. I was really scared, and I hope I did people justice.”

After this experience of writing and directing a feature film, I had to ask if he could see himself writing or directing an episode of The Office.

“I think I am directing one this year. Fingers crossed. You just got the scoop! I haven’t told anyone yet.”

And being The Office fan that I am, I had to ask about what to expect for Jim in the new season.

“The wedding coming up I think is one of the most terrifying episodes to hear about, and then you see the writers and what they did with it, and I think honestly it will be one of our greatest episodes. It’s one of those things where I think we all start getting–we all got really choked up shooting the scenes that we were doing for the wedding — we had sort of –a little bit of a walk down memory lane in different ways seeing all the characters and what they’ve meant to these characters. And then you realize that you’ve actually been on the air for almost six years. It’s mind-numbing. So it’s a real celebration for Office fans who have been watching for a while. And even if you haven’t, it’s just a really great episode.”

“Brief Interviews with Hideous Men” is out at the IFC theaters in New York and Los Angeles. But it is also available to everyone who subscribes to IFC on Demand. This is truly a wonderful, intense, thought-provoking movie that you shouldn’t miss.

The Office continues its 6th season on Thursdays at 9pm on NBC. Look out for Krasinksi’s directorial debut!

Download “The Promotion” Episode Free

After five seasons of adorably awkward courtship, TV’s cutest couple are finally making it official—and this week’s Entertainment Weekly has an exclusive preview of Jim (John Krasinski) and Pam’s (Jenna Fischer) long-awaited wedding on October 8. The special hour-long episode of NBC’s The Office is a happy occasion, but one that in TV terms is also fraught with risky finality, since marrying off The Office’s resident Ross and Rachel could damage the couple’s plot-generating will-they-won’t-they energy. “It’s about keeping this relationship as real as we can instead of making it a television romance,” explains Krasinski. “When you have two characters who are so perfect for each other, it’s a little weird for them to not get married. So you have to put that step in, whether it’s been done on television successfully before or not.” Adds exec producer Greg Daniels: “We didn’t want to do the soap opera-y thing and cheapen it. Besides, our ratings keep going up, so I don’t think anyone minds them being together.”

The duo’s first smooch in the season 2 finale set the budding lovebirds on a complicated and unconventional course of courtship, featuring love triangles, long-distance agony, and job stress. “I don’t think it’s the typical romance you see on TV,” says Steve Carell, who plays Jim and Pam’s extremely unself-aware boss Michael Scott. “It’s complicated and it comes out of a difficult place. That’s the way relationships are in real life.” Last season brought Jim’s surprise rest-stop proposal and the shocking revelation that Pam was pregnant in May’s finale. “That was thrilling,” Krasinski says. “To have these characters who are squeaky-clean facing this very real thing is exciting.”

Of course, the whole Dunder Mifflin gang tags along to the wedding, and that’s when the fun starts—including a rehearsal-dinner gaffe from Jim that will wreak some pre-ceremony havoc. “When I got married, people told us, You have no idea where it’s going to come from, the thing that will go horribly wrong,” says exec producer Paul Lieberstein (a.k.a. HR sad-sack Toby). “That’s exactly what happens: Jim ruins his own wedding.” Still, Jim and Pam’s big day left Carell all choked up. “I feel very emotional,” he says. “I’ve been with these people longer than anyone I went to high school with. These are the people who have shared the biggest ups and downs. There’s a lot of nostalgia and sentiment wrapped up in this.”

Meanwhile, Pam is only four months along, which means Fischer is facing a series of progressively larger prosthetic bellies. “When I sit down, it presses in on my bladder, so I actually feel like I have to pee all the time,” she says. “And it makes my lower back hurt because I sway form wearing it. All that’s missing from a real pregnancy is my ankles swelling.” Still, once Pam has the baby (the birth will fall conveniently sometime around February sweeps), “I don’t think the show will become The Office Baby,” says Carell. Lieberstein promises that “we’re certainly not going to ignore the kid. But one of the things that’s great about being an office comedy is kids don’t really come to work with you.”

Pam and Jim are getting their own wedding website at HalpertBeesly.com. The characters on “The Office” who will get married this season, put up their photos, welcome guest to drop in some comments and would soon reveal details about their wedding through the website.

“I would hope that if you’re looking at our wedding blog, you already know us,” the couple wrote in ‘About Us’ section. “So an explanation of who we are and what we do seems kind of pointless, but in case you accidentally stumbled on this site: He’s a paper salesman. She’s a paper salesman. Together, we’re easily the seventh most interesting couple in Northeastern Pennsylvania paper sales.”

Few characters from the show have also chipped in the ‘Guest Book‘. Michael Scott, who is their boss at Dunder Mifflin, said “Pam, you are like a daughter to me, and Jim is like a son. I’m so proud that my son and daughter are to be wed! Tis a thing of beauty! Glory be!!!” Not only people from the office, but members of their family have also written. “Wow, my big sis is getting married and I totally promise to cry at your wedding!” said Penny Beesly.

“The Office” has premiered its sixth season last week but the wedding scene will not occur until the fourth episode which is airing on October 8. Pam and Jim will get married in Niagara Falls on the account that none of the people from the office will be able to attend.

“The Office”
“The Promotion“

10/01/2009 (09:00PM - 09:30PM) (Thursday) : THE RECESSION HITS DUNDER MIFFLIN — David Wallace (Andy Buckley) breaks the bad news that not everyone will get a raise this year. Dwight (Rainn Wilson) reaches his breaking point with Jim (John Krasinski) and looks to the rest of the office for allies. Pam (Jenna Fischer) would like cash instead of wedding gifts. Steve Carell, Ed Helms, Paul Lieberstein, Leslie David Baker, Brian Baumgartner, Kate Flannery, Mindy Kaling, Angela Kinsey, Phyllis Smith, Oscar Nunez, Creed Bratton, Ellie Kemper also star.

Below are few more promotional pictures of “The Office” Season 6 Episode 2 “The Meeting”

Noticed anything different with Michael Scott (Steve Carell) on The Office? For one, he lost 25 lbs.

En route to the NBC comedy’s September 17 return for its sixth season, Carell revealed that he indeed lost a lot of weight back in 2005, right after he debuted on the Office’s six-episode first season.

“That sort of partially formed the look right there. I think that first year, the look was really scary. I don’t know if there was a memo from the hierarchy at NBC that he needed to be at least reasonably watchable. There wasn’t any big, conscious decision, though. The hair changed a little bit, and it got a little fluffy.”

And that is how we got to today’s Michael Scott: lean and just the right weight. But will he ever ran out of tricks now that The Office is on its sixth season?

“I just model it after my own shallow self,” Carell jokes, adding that he owes it to the writers to make his character “evolve” and give him a little more self-perspective.

“It’s been fun, over the course of doing five seasons, to figure out what makes this guy tick, and how he might change and grow.”

He also revealed that there was some pretty massive change in his character from the pilot season, from an antagonist to a “sympathetic” character.

Which, on all accounts, is easy to see. Over the five seasons, despite his wacky and sometimes off-putting antics, it has somehow become easier to relate to Michael Scott’s character, from his being temporarily sacked to his hapless love life.

Anna Camp will travel from Bon Temps to Scranton for a wedding. The actress who plays anti-vampire Sarah Newlin on “True Blood” has been billed to fill in a guest spot at “The Office” as Pam’s sister named Penny.

A rep from the show has told E! Online that Camp’s Penny will be at the wedding of Pam and Jim which is held at Niagara Falls. No word yet whether Penny will discover Pam’s secret of carrying Jim’s baby. The episode is scheduled to be held in the fourth episode airing October 8.

To go along with the family affair storyline, an actress has been hired to be Pam’s mom earlier this month. Linda Purl, who was relatively unknown, nabbed the role because an average actress would suit the show’s chemistry.

Premiering September 17, the new season will pick up a few months after the fifth season finale when Pam and Jim discovered that they are going to be parents. In the episode called “Gossip”, words are flying that at least one employee is pregnant, one is cheating on his or her partner, and one is questioning his or her sexuality.