LoveLine Taping -- October 7

This evening after work, Rena, David, Steve, and I went over to the MTV Studios in Hollywood to shoot an episode of their call-in talk show, LoveLine. The show has an odd format. There are two main hosts. One is Dr. Drew, the medical expert who is responsible for providing solutions and insights to the callers for their relationship and sex problems. He is there to provide cool, level-headed, objective opinions and spot diagnoses for the distraught and confused callers. The other host is Adam. He's there to make fun of them.

Meanwhile, over on the couch, there sits a third co-host, a sexy blonde who's job is unclear. She makes a few comments here and there and does the announcing for the show when they come back from commercials, but I think that's all secondary to the sexiness and the blondness. During the course of the show, she doesn't give much input. But really, you can't blame her because, given the format of the show, Dr. Drew and Adam have a monopoly on the conversations with the callers.

Well, where, one might ask, would four sitcom actors fit into this mix? There are really only two places. One is that we talk about our own sexual and relationship problems with the hosts and they make fun of us. Thank God that wasn't the case. The other opening, which is the one we filled, is to sit next to the blonde on the couch and do just about what she does, without the announcing duties, and with only a fraction of the sexiness.

So there the four of us sat, trying to look interested and attractive. Calls came in and we all tried to provide a witty comment or two during the course of the show, but much like our blonde companion, we found it hard to find an opening. When someone has a problem with the flow of his semen, it's a little unnatural to get seven opinions on the subject. The way calls are handled, Adam gets to spend a few minutes asking questions and ridiculing the caller and then Dr. Drew steps in and gives an honest, helpful, medical answer. We could only get a joke in while Adam was doing his bit, because once Dr. Drew started giving advice, joking became inappropriate. So our window of opportunity was very small.

That said, we didn't do that badly as a group. David and Rena were the most aggressive with comments, which I think we all expected. They did a good job jumping in and trying to participate, and David had a funny comment here and there. Steven and I each threw in maybe two or three sound bites but for the most part just kept the couch from looking too empty. It was frustrating, because I wanted to be able to generate more banter. I know the four of us do well working off of each other. Adam never really opened it up enough for that and/or we never created a window for that ourselves. Either way, we were good for ambiance and distraction, but we didn't dazzle. I really wanted to dazzle.

It's a good learning experience and I know it can only help for future TV appearances (if there ever are any). And again, this was a very difficult format. We were extraneous to the flow of the show. Almost any other show would be a more guest-friendly environment than this one. So, I can't get too bummed for a lackluster outing. It's still frustrating, though.

Let it go.

WARNING: The show takes calls from people with explicit sexual problems and warped relationship issues. It is not a show for the tender-hearted. Please do not tune in if you will be offended by the content.

Events and Appearances | Oh Grow Up | Home Page