I'll admit that I did not watch this show on it's initial run. Hell, it wasn't until a couple years ago that picked up the dvd and watched the entire run in three nights. But because of the impact this television show had (and still has) on our current Hollywood I must talk about this show and it's initial run during the 1999-2000 television season.
If you've never watched the show here is a brief synopsis: Lindsay Weir (Linda Cardellini) is a straight A high school student who one day starts hanging out with the "freaks" under the bleachers. Her friends and family immediately take notice of this and try to stop her from hanging with her new friends. At the same time her little brother Sam (John Francis Daley) is entering his freshmen year of high school and quickly realizes that he and his friends are the "geeks" of the school. The series explores the social implications that accompanies both of these groups and how other people react to interacting with everyone involved.
Unlike most teen television shows the producers cast actual teenagers for many of the roles instead of twenty-seven year olds who "look young." This made the impact of storylines that dealt with teen issues ring truer than some other, more popular teen shows (Beverly Hills, 90210). But the real impact this show had on culture and today's Hollywood is the actors and the producer that this series launched.
First off the show was produced, written and directed by Judd Apatow. Just try and go the movies without seeing a trailer or poster for one of his movies theses days. His two failed attempts at television (he also produced the critically acclaimed but Fox Television marketing failure Undeclared) paved the way for a more successful movie career, and provided a springboard for many talented actors to build their own success. Here is a list of stars that started on Freaks and Geeks:
Seth Rogan (Knocked Up, Super Bad)
James Franco (Spiderman, Pineapple Express)
Linda Cardellini (ER, Scooby-Doo)
Busy Phillips (Dawson's Creek, White Girls)
Jason Segel (How I Met Your Mother, Forgetting Sarah Marshall)
John Francis Daley (Bones, Waiting)
On top of the stars of the show Freaks and Geeks had many guest stars who would go on to garner fame as well:
Lizzy Caplan (Cloverfield, True Blood)
Sarah Hagan (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
Dave "Gruber" Allen (The Naked Trucker and T-Bone's Show)
Leslie Mann (Knocked Up, The 40 Year Old Virgin)
David Krumholtz (Numb3rs, Serenity)
Samaire Armstrong (Dirty Sexy Money, The O.C.)
Joanna Garcia (Reba, Priviliged)
Bianca Kajlich (Dawson's Creek, Rules of Engagement)
Shia LeBeouf (Transformers, Disturbia)
David Koechner (Anchorman, The Naked Trucker and T-Bones Show)
Oh, and then there was some guy named Ben Stiller that made a guest appearance. Wonder what ever happened to that guy?
Whether it's to see a future star before they were famous or to remember high school the way it actually was rather than the way it is usually portrayed, you really cannot go wrong with this show.
One last "star" in the show is the music. Freaks and Geeks is set in 1980. This was before every trend and fashion from the 1980's came back into style and reminded us that some things should just stay in the past (I'm looking at you day glow, jelly bracelets and hair metal). The music is a perfect time capsule for the era and it, along with the styles and cultural references, really set the mood for a great show that could have easily been set in any era. It just goes to show that no matter the era, high school was the same for everyone. It's a shame this show was not allowed to last more than one season but I am glad that we have this dvd set to remind us that great television does exsist and will find its audience eventually. Even if it finds it too late for the network.
Posts
