Pushing Daisies

This interview of Swoosie Kurtz and Ellen Greene is so candid. The two speak of their roles as sisters Lily and Vivian and how much they treat each other as real-life sisters.

Excerpts from the interview at Deseret News:

They almost finish each other’s sentences. They interject and take over stories in midstream, passing the narrative back and forth.

“I do set her up for a lot of jokes. She’s very funny,” Greene said.

“I treat her, in real life — I’m sorry to say — exactly the way Lily treats Vivian,” Kurtz said. “‘Ellen, we’re going now! Come on!”‘

Among the many, many quirks on “Pushing Daisies” is that Lily wears on eyepatch. (She lost her eye in a cat-litter accident in the first episode. Really.) And the eyepatches that Kurtz wears really do make her unable to see out of her right eye.

“The minute I put it on it’s very dicey walking around the cables (on the set) and everything. I have to be really careful, especially in heels,” Kurtz said. “She has no depth perception. She’s blind,” said Green, who helps her navigate. They quickly fell into a pattern of Green being on Kurtz’s left — her “sighted” side. “It was a very natural thing,” Greene said.

As a matter of fact, without even thinking about it, Greene was sitting on Kurtz’s left when they took questions from TV critics wandering about the “Pushing Daisies” set. And Kurtz was not in costume. “That’s funny,” Kurtz said with a laugh. “We do do stuff like that that’s odd,” Greene said. “Like when we were walking, I said, ‘She has to be on the other side because I’m comfortable with her on that side. And sometimes we do things at the same time, from our synchronized swimming days. Even though we never really had them,” Kurtz said. “We’ll raise our hands at the same time or move at the same time.”

“Ellen’s very method. She takes it with her. And she was concerned that if we maybe had a fight coming up, how would that be with us on the set,” Kurtz said. “I’ve worked with some actresses who start behaving like their characters,” Greene said. “I pretty much don’t. Although, if it’s a sad scene, it is sad on the set around me. I just stay in the same place.”

The full three page story is here.

Media Blvd recently sat down with the two leads of Pushing Daisies and had a very long interview with them. I picked this to highlight taking note of the fact that David Arquette appears in next Wednesday’s episode and this little story was funny —

• MediaBlvd> What’s your favorite Pie Hole pie?
• Anna> I always ask for apple because I’m a traditional type of girl.
• Lee> I like apple. In the script, there is a lot of talk about rhubarb custard, and that sounds good.
• Anna> Lee put a testicle in my trailer.
• Lee> It was not a human testicle. David Arquette was our guest star, and he comes to make meat pies, so he brings all these awful innards to make these pies. So, before Anna got to work, I took one of the bull testicles and put it in her trailer.
• Anna> And, I have a really weak stomach, so I was on the set, retching.

The complete interview is here.

CNN Living puts a list of TV Characters together and sums up how much they make if they were actual, living persons. Ned and Olive are in this list:

• Ned, “Pushing Daisies” — Head pie maker, general manager

Real-life median salary: $21,241, according CBSalary.com.

Ned (Lee Pace) probably makes a little more than this as the owner of his restaurant, which is near broke. To pad his pockets in the meantime, Ned helps a private investigator bring murder victims back from the dead to gather details to solve their murders, collecting reward money in the end. That should be enough to buy pie ingredients for a lifetime.

• Olive Snook, “Pushing Daisies” — Waitress

Real-life median salary: $15,850, according to the BLS.

Presumably Olive (Kristin Chenowith) doesn’t rake in much additional money from tips from her services at The Pie Hole, the financially-failing restaurant where she works. Something tells us she’s not in it for the money — she just wants to be near Ned, head pie maker and apple of her eye.

Aunt Vivian of Pushing Daisies (played by Ellen Greene) promises this season will be darker than last time in this interview with Can Mag.

“The thing is, when you last left us, [Aunt Lily] was high as a kite and I was very happy thinking we were going to go on the road again,” Greene reminded viewers. “There’s so much to go back down to because I had risen. What’s so nice is on the truth level, it’s nice to see how people deal with how to choose, I think it’s brave to choose to be happy. It’s a great line and it’s a great idea for everybody because everyone is trying to begin again, to start living. Everyone learns. It’s pretty dreary out there, so in this wonderful world, it does have also real, wonderful lessons. Yeah, I cry a lot but it will get better. I know that because he’s told me.”

With school starting in a couple of days, I thought it would be great to look at our favorite TV star’s educational background and see how they are as students. Are they geniuses in school? Slackers? Nerds? Popular guys? School bullies? Where did their interest lie and was it originally related to their jobs as actors now?

Kids look up to celebrities for many reasons, but seldom do fans like us take inspiration from these stars when it comes to school work. And why should we not? Maybe after reading this, we’d see these actors in a refreshingly  different light.

Lee Pace actually dropped out of high school for awhile in order to pursue acting at a local theater. But when he did finish his studies, he went on to study at Jilliard with a degree in Fine Arts.

Anna Friel had wanted a career as a barrister (lawyer) when she was younger and went to a local college where she eventually discovered a love for acting. She eventually landed a role on television in the UK and became a household name.

Kristin Chenoweth graduated magna cum laude in Musical Theater and also has an MBA degree in Opera from Oklahoma University. She was a member of the Gamma Phi Beta sorority. Her voice is also said to be near perfect pitch.

Chi McBride graduated high school at the age of 16 years old and then pursued music. He didn’t become an actor until he was about 30 years old.

As reported on EW, Stephen Root, is joining Pushing Daisies Season 2 as guest star, playing the role of someone who, as Bryan Fuller stated, “has a shared history with both Ned’s dad and Chuck’s dad” and will most likely “stir up a lot of hullabaloo for everyone, particularly Aunts Lily and Vivian.”

Stephen Root is more familiar to TV fans of NewsRadio, a series that aired for four seasons in the mid-90’s. He is also a voice talent on the cartoon series, King of The Hill and American Dad.

A talented actor like him is a perfect fit for a show like Pushing Daisies as I do remember how much of a presence he is on Seinfeld and Frasier. He is perhaps one of those underrated character actors in the biz.

He will appear in a four episode story arc and it sounds like his character is bad news. Is he Chuck’s real father?

Fans and followers of theater actor Raul Esperza, who plays Alfredo Aldirisio on Pushing Daisies, would be thrilled to know that the DVD of his musical comedy, Company is already out.

Product Description: “Winner of the 2007 Tony Award! Sweeping all the major theater awards for Best Revival of a Musical, a beloved era-defining classic is stunningly reinvented in this powerful Broadway production, featuring an explosive starring performance by Raul Esparza. Set in modern upper-crust Manhattan, Company is a funny, sophisticated exploration of love and commitment as seen through the eyes of a charming perpetual bachelor questioning his single state and his enthusiastically married, slightly envious friends. With a wise and witty Stephen Sondheim score including Another Hundred People, Side by Side by Side, The Ladies Who Lunch and Being Alive. Company offers musical comedy at its finest.”

The DVD is available at Amazon. A Blu Ray release is also coming in mid-May.

Raul Esperza, Company, Alfredo Aldirisio

In an interview with After Elton, Bryan Fuller has disclosed the coroner is gay…and has his eye on Emerson.

“We were going to slowly expand his character and kind of reveal that he has a little crush on Emerson”

No wonder he’s into moisturizers and stuff!

A scene from The Fun In The Funeral:

Coroner: I can write a book on hand moisturizer. Nobody wants the last thing they been touched with to be ashy and dry. Take a gander. (Extends his hand for Emerson to touch)
Emerson: Smooth.
Coroner: You got some serious cracks going on there. Put those down here. (puts moisturizer on Emerson’s palm)

I did not pick up on this one! I’ve always thought everyone should moisturize — man or woman! Hah.

The coroner has no name in the series as of yet, but the actor playing him is none other than Sy Richardson, who is credited for thousands of movie and production work. Some even winning recognition. He also coaches actors and directors and has a good singing voice, too…one pretty accomplished person, I should say. Read his credentials on IMDb.

Sy Richardson, Pushing Daisies, Pushing Daisies gay character

This totally slipped my mind the other day. I remember seeing that Lee Pace’s birthday is coming in one fan forum early this year but when the day came, I clearly forgot about it. So, here’s a belated birthday greeting, Lee Pace! Did you have your birthday pie?

Now, Lee celebrating his birthday got me curious. I haven’t really paid any attention to these actors’ birthdates but if you’re interested to know, I’ve listed it all and it comes after this cut…
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Admittedly, we barely have features on Chi McBride, who plays Emerson Cod on Pushing Daisies. The actor is a lot less visible in the media, compared to his co-stars but that doesn’t mean his character, a wise-cracking private detective on the show, isn’t essential to the series. He definitely provides the balance in it. While the characters of Ned, Chuck, the aunts and Olive bring on the whimsy, Emerson is the more pragmatic one. And I know no one will oppose when I say Chi McBride does a great job letting Emerson to shine, without overshadowing the rest of the characters. His timing and knack for comedy is impressive.

Towards the middle of the season, we see Emerson becoming more than just a comic relief. Some facets to his character are slowly taking place, allowing us to see a deeper side of it. We know that Emerson is a compulsive knitter and an artist who has a passion for comic books. From the series, we also learned a bit about his past —1) the childhood trauma of being locked inside a washing machine and 2) his relationship with his estranged daughter. Obviously, there is so much more to look forward to for Emerson’s stories in the next season. And with that kind of material, I’m sure the writers of the show will have plenty of interesting stuff about who Emerson really is.

In the meantime and while shooting of Season 2 is yet to begin in June, Chi McBride is keeping busy with movie commitments. He has two films for release this year. One is a comedy about petty criminals who rob the neighborhood church called First Sunday. It was in theaters last January and Chi McBride played the pastor. And the other is a family drama called American Son which is a Sundance Film Festival entry. We have the trailer for First Sunday, but I found none for American Son. Anyway…

Chi McBride, Pushing Daisies, Emerson Cod, First Sunday, American Son

In an interview with SFX, creator of Pushing Daisies, Bryan Fuller, has expressed that future episodes may feature not just the voice of the narrator, but also as someone with an identity and a real character. Although this isn’t a story angle we shall see in the second season, it will be a story line writers would be interested to pursue and develop in the coming years (Granted, the show should last plenty more seasons).

The creator/showrunner of one of the biggest new hits on Stateside TV this season, Bryan Fuller, exclusively reveals to SFX that he hopes one day to reveal the fictional identity of the show’s mysterious narrator.

“I would like him to turn out to be a character on the show,” says Fuller of the unseen orator, whose voice is provided by former Carry On actor Jim Dale, “so that we get to see the point of view from which the stories are coming.”

Pushing Daisies is a clever and colourful piece of hyperreal whimsy about a piemaker called Ned who can bring people back to life. Fuller continues: “Fairytales, I think, are fascinating because usually there is an omniscient narrator. But as this is a modern day fairy tale we can have a spin on that and see who is telling this story, and what their perspective is. And I know who, in my mind, is telling the story, and so I would like to reveal who he is. Maybe not in the second season, but eventually. Hopefully we will know when the show is going end so that we can sort that out clearly. | SFX

The show has Jim Dale currently narrating it.

What do you think of this idea, Pushing Daisies fans?

Pushing Daisies, Jim Dale, Voice of Pushing Daisies, Pushing Daisies narrator

I was going over some episodes of Wonderfalls last weekend and particularly focused on the fifth episode, Crime Dog, where Lee Pace had a major participation in the story. For those who may be wondering, Wonderfalls is a short-lived series which was also created by Bryan Fuller, the man behind Pushing Daisies. And Lee played one of the supporting characters, Aaron, the older brother of Jaye, the story’s lead character. Lee didn’t have too many scenes on the whole of the show except for this particular episodes.

In Crime Dog, the characters, Jaye and Aaron, have to cross the Canadian border so they can bring back the family housekeeper, Yvette. She was someone they grew up with and is considered a part of the family. But due to problems with immigration, Yvette had to be deported. The brother and sister easily found her in Canada but they also discover that she is not what she claimed to be. Yvette, was in fact, Cindy, who comes from a well-to-do family, but she ran away twenty years ago, because her parents didn’t love her enough. When she arrived in America and worked as the housekeeper, she assumed the personality of Yvette, who was her family’s very own help in Canada.

It didn’t dawn on me until I saw that episode again…. that Yvette was played by the same actress who was the killer, Madeline McLean, in Pushing Daisies’ Corpsicle. Among her other works include guest appearances on Big Love and voicing for one of the characters in the cartoons, My Life as A Teenage Robot. Audrey Wasilewski is one talented character actress. If anyone has seen her on Wonderfalls, I’m sure you would agree. Well, here is a clip from that series. Check out Lee’s sideburns, too!

By the way, Wonderfalls DVD is selling for $29.99 at Amazon.

Pushing Daisies, Wonderfalls, Audrey Wasilewski, Lee Pace

So much has been said about Jim Dale’s narration on Pushing Daisies. Some find it awfully annoying and over done. But I am on board the love train for this one. I think that he makes the show a lot more magical than it already is.

I grew up hearing fairy tales from a grandfather who may not sound like a Jim Dale, but the idea or image is there. As a six or seven year old, my grandfather would tell me stories about beasts and creatures supposedly lurking by this big mango tree outside my bedroom window and when that thought would have scared me (and scarred me for that matter — I scare easily!), my grandpa’s soothing voice and animated delivery would manage to capture my interest. Suddenly, those beasts don’t seem so harmless, by my grandfather’s account.

And it’s the same thing for Jim Dale, who manages to make a dark story, such as the bizarre murders on Pushing Daisies, even mildly…charming.

But say if you were to pick someone else to narrate the show, would you have someone else in mind? Kelsey Grammer? Emma Thompson? Kristin Bell (alright, that may be pushing it too far…)? I found a list of TV Narrators we’ve listened to in the recent years, so can you imagine anyone of them replacing Jim Dale’s voice? Mary Alice Young from Desperate Housewives would sound to me like a conniving step mother. I wouldn’t take Ron Howard so seriously (although he does amazing narration on Arrested Development!). Ditto JD on Scrubs, whose dweeby and nervy delivery is so much more suited for it.

I guess what I’m pointing out is, there’s an element to Jim Dale’s voice and delivery that makes him the perfect voice of this show, in as much as these other narrators are on theirs.

Pushing Daisies, Jim Dale, Voice of Pushing Daisies, Pushing Daisies narrator

…or things that one can find only on Pushing Daisies. In random order:

Dandy Lion SX. It looks more like a toy than a real transportation, with it’s lime green color and odd design structure. What’s more odd about it? The car of the future is powered by Dandy Lion extracts, prompting Chuck to exclaim, “That’s so neat!” I think so, too.

Dandy Lion promo girls. While I find their get-up bizarrely cute, I was more impressed with their routine, you know, that dancing and shaking bit they have to do. It was entertaining to watch.

Alfredo Aldarisio, the traveling salesman. “You’re not wrong about the oxygen leaving the room, the planet is losing atmosphere it’s affecting gravity. Volumes aren’t what they use to be.” Someone that paranoid is an oddity.

The Unorthodox Urban Honey Pioneers. Beekeeping within city limits is highly illegal, as Chuck tells Ned but the rooftop is Chuck’s special place which Ned has offered to her. It’s an odd present to give someone, but it’s a thoughtful gesture that Chuck embraces.

Pidge, the pigeon with fake embellished wings. In the real world I would wonder how they are able to make the injured bird fly again. But Pushing Daisies is a different world on its own. I shouldn’t be surprised if I see a fish talking.

Bubblegum. The perfect dog breed, a super-powered cloned dog, a mixture of different kinds of breeds: Border Collie, Labrador Retriever, Jack Russel Terrier and Poodle — smart loyal, athletic and hypoallergenic.

Scratch & Sniff Book. The self-help guide book that encourages people to become more attuned to the power of smell. It’s got a special brand of smell if you scratch a surface.

The burnt corpse of Anita. She wasn’t reduce to ashes even if her corpse was burnt ! It’s the weirdest dead body I’ve seen on TV.

Olive’s 4th of July costume. It’s a cute costume, but oh so tempestuously sexy! An odd mix. But I know some guys really loved it. Haha.

Sheila, Burly Bruce’s wooden girlfriend. Life-size and plastic, Bruce is delusional, believing his girlfriend is human. It’s odd how someone is able to carry through life with that idea.

An oddity bonus, something I just read on IMDb. Those wondering why Digby remains the same after Ned is all grown up can now stop wondering. Digby is allegedly immortal and so is Chuck:

The people Ned has brought back from the dead are immortal. We see this in Digby, who, 20 years following being hit by a truck, is still as youthful as he was when he was 3, the age he was when he got hit. Bryan Fuller has further confirmed this to be the case in interviews. Therefore, Chuck won’t age or die of natural causes. Whether or not she (and Digby) can be killed by violent means (i.e., hit again by a truck) has yet to be clarified, but we do know they can be injured - Chuck twisted her ankle running from Mamma Jacobs in “Girth”, which may imply that they can be killed, they just won’t die on their own.

Pushing Daisies, Oddities in Pushing Daisies, Dandy Lion SX, Bubblegum of Pushing Daisies, Pidge of Pushing Daisies

Pushing Daisies is in itself, a strange television series; there is clearly nothing like it. And as the episodes unfold, we learn that there are even more delightful and not so delightful surprises along the way. What would those be? Listed below are our choices:

CHARACTERIZATION

• A knit-loving Emerson Cod. Who knew that behind this man’s burly built and bearish attitude is a man who loves to knit as much as someone’s grandmother ? He has also expressed fondness for pop-up books and lights up like a child upon seeing one. The contradiction is so unexpected. And perhaps that is why despite Emerson’s grumpy behavior, one can’t help but still love his character.
• Digby the Amazing Dog. It’s no wonder why this site has chosen Digby as one of the most underrated TV Characters of 2007. What’s not to love about Ned’s best friend? He’s loyal, sympathetic, and a better actor than other humans in other television shows.
• Olive, formerly a race horse jockey. When I first learned of it, I couldn’t help but be amused, in the same manner that Emerson was laughing when Olive told him her past. Whoever thought of that is a genius! Like Emerson’s love for knitting, it’s an unlikely characterization. I mean, who would expect someone like Olive to be into this sport?
• Guest Stars providing more color. Jayma Mays, Raul Esperza, Paul Reubens, Molly Shannon, Patrick Fabian, Jessica Lundy, among others, give life to the characters they portrayed in boob tube fairy tale.

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