Post by Remi on Jul 15, 2004 7:16:11 GMT -5
Look for Luke in this series!
Hangers-on as comedy hook
By Gary Levin, USA TODAY
From the Rat Pack to the legendary posses of J. Lo and Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, most celebrities have a loyal cadre of followers, gofers, pals and just plain hangers-on. Mark Wahlberg — the actor (Boogie Nights), former underwear model (Calvin Klein) and rap singer (Marky Mark) — decided to make a show about them.
Entourage, an eight-week HBO comedy series premiering Sunday (10 p.m. ET/PT), chronicles the life of rising young Hollywood star Vince Chase (Adrian Grenier) and his in-crowd: Manager Eric (Kevin Connolly), whose last job was running a pizza joint in Queens, N.Y.; C-list actor brother Johnny Drama (Kevin Dillon, the less famous brother of Matt); and driver Turtle (Jerry Ferrara). (Related story:Celebrity assistants: A high-profile gig for gofers)
All are based on Wahlberg and his real-life cronies, as is agent Ari (Jeremy Piven), who bears more than a passing resemblance to Wahlberg's real agent, Ari Emanuel.
"Everyone who's been in the business and had a career as an actor has experienced a lot of this stuff," says Wahlberg, 33, in a joint interview with his actors, who were armed with cigarettes and mimosas.
"A lot of the character was based on Mark, but I knew that I couldn't and shouldn't try and emulate Mark and fill his shoes," Grenier says. "I learned a lot from hanging out with him just watching how he interacts with people and manages to orchestrate things very nonchalantly. He's in control."
Wahlberg's own crew? "It depends on where I'm at and what day it is. I've got my Boston crew, New York and L.A.," he says. "There used to be six guys living in my apartment. Every one of my friends, after they got out of jail, would come. I'd try to give them a hand, give them a job. You might as well have people around that you like, as long as they're qualified to do the job."
Wahlberg says the idea for Entourage started when his own pal and personal manager, also named Eric, "wanted to make a reality show with me and my friends. There was no way that was going to happen. There was too much fighting — like, physical fighting. Every guy got beaten up." (Wahlberg himself was jailed on assault charges as a teen.) "We thought that was a little extreme, but it had a lot of potential." And the public's "fascination with celebrity" made it an easy choice, he says.
Wahlberg appears only briefly (as himself) in the first episode. Future guests include Jimmy Kimmel, Larry David, Scarlett Johansson, Luke Wilson and Gary Busey. Other actors — Colin Farrell, "puffy" Vince Vaughn — are mentioned, not always in flattering terms.
"Our goal is not an ounce of satire," deadpans Doug Ellin, executive producer and chief writer of the show. "Everything we're trying to do is as realistic as possible," from capturing the dizzying allure of movie premieres, to the groupies and fancy cars.
The main difference between Chase and most actors? "This guy's getting more girls than all of the guys in Hollywood combined," Wahlberg says.
HBO is clearly hot on the series; the network already plans a second, longer season.
"The show is really much bigger than Hollywood," Ellin says. "It's about four guys trying to make it in whatever they do, trying to find their way at 28."
Another article lists Luke as part of Mark's "real life posse"....? theedge.bostonherald.com/tvNews/view.bg?articleid=35640
Hangers-on as comedy hook
By Gary Levin, USA TODAY
From the Rat Pack to the legendary posses of J. Lo and Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, most celebrities have a loyal cadre of followers, gofers, pals and just plain hangers-on. Mark Wahlberg — the actor (Boogie Nights), former underwear model (Calvin Klein) and rap singer (Marky Mark) — decided to make a show about them.
Entourage, an eight-week HBO comedy series premiering Sunday (10 p.m. ET/PT), chronicles the life of rising young Hollywood star Vince Chase (Adrian Grenier) and his in-crowd: Manager Eric (Kevin Connolly), whose last job was running a pizza joint in Queens, N.Y.; C-list actor brother Johnny Drama (Kevin Dillon, the less famous brother of Matt); and driver Turtle (Jerry Ferrara). (Related story:Celebrity assistants: A high-profile gig for gofers)
All are based on Wahlberg and his real-life cronies, as is agent Ari (Jeremy Piven), who bears more than a passing resemblance to Wahlberg's real agent, Ari Emanuel.
"Everyone who's been in the business and had a career as an actor has experienced a lot of this stuff," says Wahlberg, 33, in a joint interview with his actors, who were armed with cigarettes and mimosas.
"A lot of the character was based on Mark, but I knew that I couldn't and shouldn't try and emulate Mark and fill his shoes," Grenier says. "I learned a lot from hanging out with him just watching how he interacts with people and manages to orchestrate things very nonchalantly. He's in control."
Wahlberg's own crew? "It depends on where I'm at and what day it is. I've got my Boston crew, New York and L.A.," he says. "There used to be six guys living in my apartment. Every one of my friends, after they got out of jail, would come. I'd try to give them a hand, give them a job. You might as well have people around that you like, as long as they're qualified to do the job."
Wahlberg says the idea for Entourage started when his own pal and personal manager, also named Eric, "wanted to make a reality show with me and my friends. There was no way that was going to happen. There was too much fighting — like, physical fighting. Every guy got beaten up." (Wahlberg himself was jailed on assault charges as a teen.) "We thought that was a little extreme, but it had a lot of potential." And the public's "fascination with celebrity" made it an easy choice, he says.
Wahlberg appears only briefly (as himself) in the first episode. Future guests include Jimmy Kimmel, Larry David, Scarlett Johansson, Luke Wilson and Gary Busey. Other actors — Colin Farrell, "puffy" Vince Vaughn — are mentioned, not always in flattering terms.
"Our goal is not an ounce of satire," deadpans Doug Ellin, executive producer and chief writer of the show. "Everything we're trying to do is as realistic as possible," from capturing the dizzying allure of movie premieres, to the groupies and fancy cars.
The main difference between Chase and most actors? "This guy's getting more girls than all of the guys in Hollywood combined," Wahlberg says.
HBO is clearly hot on the series; the network already plans a second, longer season.
"The show is really much bigger than Hollywood," Ellin says. "It's about four guys trying to make it in whatever they do, trying to find their way at 28."
Another article lists Luke as part of Mark's "real life posse"....? theedge.bostonherald.com/tvNews/view.bg?articleid=35640