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Watch Vamped Out: Episode One

Kevin Pollak — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 18:31:00 +0000

Vamped Out Is Here!

Kevin Pollak — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 18:13:23 +0000

My new web series, Vamped Out, has debuted!

Watch it on Babelgum HERE.

Check out my interview about the series with Kevin Pereira on G4 HERE.

See the red carpet footage and interviews from the Vamped premiere HERE.

Read my LA Times interview about the series HERE.

Follow Vamped Out on Twitter HERE.

And stay tuned for more updates!

Worst Year Ever

Kevin Pollak — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 23:59:33 +0000

Hey, 2009, don’t let the door hit you in the ass!!

Let’s be clear, 2009 was the worst year for most everyone you talked to. Financially, one truly disastrous year for just about everyone. The year started with the terrific news that the banks had lost all of our money… What? How could…the…banks…lose… But, I thought that's what…………vaults were for… Well, what should we do? Give the banks more money, of course. What? But…they might…….put it in the vaults…

Worst year ever.

You run into an old friend and asked, “Hey, how’s it going?” and they would answer, “There’s no money.”

People lost their cars, homes, jobs and in some cases, teeth.

Worst year ever.

For me, I’ve never worked so much for so little. It’s all relative, people. I realize there were hundreds of thousands of people who would have literally killed for the shit opportunities I took. But, seriously, if I’m not allowed to complain just a wee bit in my own blog, just what the hell kind of topsy-turvy, BIZARRO world is this?!

Not all was horrific during this awful year. There were, in fact, a couple of high notes in the Pollak world:

In late March of ’09, I started doing an online talk show called Kevin Pollak’s Chat Show. Other than a couple of weeks off, we've streamed live every Sunday at 5pm, PDT, from a little studio in Santa Monica. If you’d like to watch live, starting up again January 10th, just go to http://Kevinpollakschatshow.com. Should you choose to watch live, you can ask questions via the site’s chat room or Twitter, @Kevinpollak. There’s a link on the home page, where you’ll find all the past episodes archived, or you can download any episode from iTunes for free. At present, we’re redesigning the chat show’s website, and it’s going to be pretty cool with some interactive tricks created for a more enjoyable visit. Having said that, if you get there before the “new look” is up, you’ll find a most boring site, indeed.

The show is a Charlie Rose kind of deal, in that it’s just me and the guest(s) having an in depth, genuine conversation about how he or she "got from there to here". In some cases, “in depth” barely covers it. 2 hours with Seth MacFarlane, over 2 hours with Kevin Smith, and the longest, 2 hours and 31 minutes to be precise, was with the amazing Eddie Izzard. I assure you, there’s nothing like this show online, or in traditional media either. We’ve done about 36 shows thus far, featuring many great comedians, actors, actresses, a few internet stars, several film writer/directors, a couple cool musicians, an amazing Composer, 5 Academy Award winners and the CEO/Founder of Tesla Motors. Oh, and Weird Al, too!!

For you fans of my motion picture acting, in 2010 I can be seen co-starring in not one, not two, but three films. The first one, due out February 26^th, is “Cop Out.” This buddy cop comedy is directed by Kevin Smith and stars Bruce Willis, Tracy Morgan, Seann William Scott, Adam Brody and myself. Next out is the Paramount Pictures release of “Middle Men,” written and directed by George Gallo and starring Luke Wilson, Giovanni Ribisi, Gabriel Macht, James Caan, Laura Ramsey, Kelsey Grammer and myself. Lastly, and without a release date, cause it’s still being edited, is “Columbus Circle,” which I co-wrote with the director, George Gallo. It stars Jason Lee, Selma Blair, Amy Smart, Giovanni Ribisi, Jason Antoon, Beau Bridges and again, myself.

Lastly, I've written a web series with pal and gifted writer/actor Jason Antoon, which will mark my directorial debut. We will shoot in early February. It's called "Vamped Out" and I'll be reporting more about it's launch date and how the shoot goes/went soon...

Otherwise, life is swell and we’re quite happy at home.

Hope you and yours have a happy holiday and a MUCH better 2010!!

-Kevin

Greetings from the city that never sleeps

Kevin Pollak — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 21:37:00 +0000

This week we’re wrapping up “Choose” -- my first time shooting in New York. I’ve been visiting this great city for 30 years, and have performed stand-up comedy here countless times, but of the near 60 films I’ve worked on, I never had the pleasure of working and “living” in the City That Never Sleeps.

Three Nights in August

Kevin Pollak — Wed, 22 Nov 2006 22:16:00 +0000

For quite awhile now, I’ve been involved as a producer on a film project of a great book called “3 Nights in August,” which was written by Pulitzer Prize winner, Buzz Bissinger, who wrote the critically acclaimed and hugely successful book, “Friday Night Lights”.

Buzz wrote 3 Nights with, and about, Tony LaRussa, the manager of this year’s World Series champs, the St. Louis Cardinals. If you’re a baseball fan at all, I could not recommend this book more. Riveting, insightful, serious page-turner and a behind-the-scenes view, never before revealed.

As I said, I’ve been working on this project for a while. You would not believe how long it took the lawyers to draft a document that simply stated what all the parties had agreed to. Oh, no, trust me. It’s much longer than ANY type of logic or reality could possibly explain. Are ya sensing the lingering feelings of frustration and utter disbelief? And that’s coming from a guy who’s been to the dance a time, or seventy-eight.

OK, so, I’m finally at the stage of adapting the book into a screenplay, and that’s the exciting part that made the waiting game so very painful to live through. See, it was agreed to from the start (a year and a half ago), that along with my producing duties, I would be the one to write the screenplay of “3 Nights in August”. The book is so brilliant that my job, really, is to not screw it up. Sure, I have to basically edit a 268 page book into a 110 page screenplay, and create a visual depiction, filled with as many insightful, gut-wrenching, revealing, uplifting, humorous, shocking, heart-warming, tortuous, illuminating, satisfying, excruciating and inspirational moments as the book had, but hey, how hard could that possibly be?

Meeting a baseball legend like Tony LaRussa was incredible enough, even for a casual baseball fan, which I am. Which, by the way, is what made the book-into-movie such an instant goal for me. I felt, if someone like me, who can’t name the starting line-up of his favorite (hometown) team, the San Francisco Giants, found this insiders view of the game one of the single most spellbinding books he’s ever read, then not only was it a slam-dunk for true fans of the sport, but that there was a genuine universal appeal in its story.

As one could imagine, aside from getting a stubbornly reluctant LaRussa to agree to a film version of the book, one of the wildly, if not personally historical, moments for me was attending games 3, 4, and 5 of this years World Series. Now, remember, NO ONE, other than the fans and everyone professionally associated with the St. Louis Cardinals, thought they would get past the New York Mets, in order to get into the World Series. Hell, after the near-historical collapse of the Cards at the end of the regular season, everyone outside of St. Louis agreed that it was pretty much over for the Cards before the playoffs began.

I’ve always been a team player. I learned the love and true inspiration of playing for a team in high school, and became a crazed fan of the San Francisco 49ers during the hey-days of Joe Montana and then Steve Young. I’d been a fan of the team since the age of 6 or 7, when my dad would take my brother and I to the games. I also went to Giants games as a youngster, and got to see the great Willy Mays play, but the subtleties and strategic nuances of the game were lost on me, at the time, and I had no one in my life that loved the game enough to point them out. Hence, my love of the Niners took over at a tender age, and lasts to this day. As painful to watch as these days are.

I think my real, if not adult, appreciation for being a team player came from becoming an actor. Working on a movie with hundreds of cast, crew and the like, taught me to care about the greatness in others, who’s efforts, like mine, were put forth, at the top of their capability, for the nothing else but the fruit of their labor. To this day, whenever I see anyone I’ve worked with, be they an actor, actress, director, producer, or crew member, it’s as if we shared a foxhole in “the war,” and we are connected for life because of it.

Well, nothing prepared me for the love of one’s team like that which exists at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. From the first game there that I attended over a year ago, the “ocean of red” in the stands was something I’d never seen in any spectators sport. The St. Louis fans live for their Cards and very little else, with the possible exception of the only other game in town, Budweiser. Having said that, attending games 3, 4 and 5 of the World Series in St. Louis, as a new fan, who had a TREMENDOUS personal, if not selfish, interest in the Cards somehow pulling off a miracle by winning, was simply not an experience anyone could have been prepared for.

I will go into greater detail soon, regarding the blow-by-blow events that I was truly fortunate enough to witness, as well as share some photos that speak volumes. The main purpose for this particular entry was to share my latest project with you, and the excitement I deeply feel for it. Thanks for indulging me, as I digressed, and I will certainly share all that I can about this new project as it unfolds.

In the meantime, please do yourself a favor and read Buzz’s wildly entertaining and insightful book, "3 Nights in August", whether you’re a fan of baseball or not, and let me know what you think of it.

Thanks for taking the time to read this, and oh, sorry it wasn’t funny in any way shape or form. I’m afraid this was the first entry for me in a RIDICULOUSLY long while, and my desire to share was COMPLETELY dominated by sincerity, and there’s no excuse for that, especially from such a mostly cynically funny bastard such as me.

Seven Times Lucky and other news from the road

Kevin Pollak — Tue, 20 Apr 2004 21:19:00 +0000

Well, it’s been a while but I’m happy to report I’m still alive and well. Thriving, in fact. Although “The Whole Ten Yards” opened to dismal business and even worst reviews, I’m standing by my team spirit and pride by insisting that the movie is funny, Matthew Perry is hilarious, Bruce gives a wild performance and Amanda Peet once again somehow pulls off being sexy and dorky. As for my character, it’s the funniest lead role I’ve ever done. So, who’s word are you going to take?

I’m also happy to report that I just completed filming another movie with Bruce Willis. It’s a suspense drama called “Hostage” and was adapted from a best selling novel of the same name by Robert Crais. It’s a page-turner folks and I highly recommend it. Bruce had given it to me to read while we were shooting “The Whole Ten Yards” and I loved it. Miramax is putting the film out in the fall or Thanksgiving. So look for that.

In the meantime, a little movie I starred in called “Seven Times Lucky” is making the festival rounds. We debuted at Sundance and just won best screenplay and film at the Method Film Festival in Los Angeles ( I was nominated for best actor, if you really must know). We’ve also been invited to show at the Toronto Film Festival in September. Hopefully, someone will pick up this little gem (a ridiculously sweet review is available here at the site) and you all will get a chance to see it.

News from the road: I’m also touring this year with my stand-up act. The new dates are listing here as well. This July, I’ll be recording a live CD and DVD at Cobbs Comedy Club in San Francisco! Yep, the wait is over for those who’ve signed up for a copy.

Until next time, remember, when life gives you lemons…. open up a lemonade stand and make a killing!

From the set of The Whole Ten Yards

Kevin Pollak — Wed, 19 Feb 2003 22:20:00 +0000

Well it's been far too long, but I finally got a spare moment to offer an NEW diary entry. I'm writing from my trailer on the set of "The Whole Ten Yards." This is a sequel of "The Whole Nine Yards", which was the movie I did a few years ago with Bruce Willis, Matthew Perry, Amanda Peet and Natasha Henstridge.

In the first movie, I played "Yanni Gogolak," who was trying to kill Bruce Willis' character because he ratted out my father and sent him to prison. Well, in the end, Bruce's character kills Yanni, but I'm thrilled to report that the sequel begins with Yanni's father, Lazlo Gogolak, getting out of prison, and his first order of business is to avenge his son's death.

I can honestly say this is the best role I've had in the last twenty-five movies, or so. Believe me when I tell you that it's been many years since I've had this great of a part, and it could be one of the top three parts I've EVER had.

Now, because "Yanni" was my own age, "Lazlo" is in his seventies. That means each morning I start my day at work on this movie by sitting in the make-up chair for almost four hours. Yep, FOUR HOURS. The good news is that the guys doing my make-up are some of the best in the prosthetic make-up biz. In fact, Wes Wofford, who is the key artist doing the daily application, helped to invent this new incredible silicone-based product that's applied to my face in pieces to ultimately build the awesome look that is Lazlo. I'm trying to get clearance from the producers so I can post some photos of myself as L azlo. I'm telling you guys, you will not believe what I look like.

I've also had an amazing time creating the voice for this old Hungarian mobster, as well as, his walk and style of dress, etc. The script for this sequel has gone through some extensive re-writes with George Gallo ("Midnight Run") doing the work, with Bruce, Matthew, Amanda and yours truly lending a big hand shaping and creating some really cool and hilarious scenes.

The director on hand is doing a great job. His name is Howie Deutch and he has been a God-send. I worked with Howie several years ago on the sequel to "Grumpy Old Men." He did a great job on that one and he's doing it again on this one. Personally, I've never been so called upon or looked to for my input, and it's really been the greatest experience I've had working on a movie in very long time. Truly one of the top three, I'd say, creative experiences of my career.

There's been a tremedous amount of laughs during the making of the movie. Sometimes we get very little work done because of all the cuttin' up. I guess because when you work on a sequel it's like a reunion for the cast. We already had quite a bit of a shorthand in terms of how we kid around and cut to the chase with each other. Because of that, we've had a hell of a lot more fun on this one than we did on the first one. I'm talkin' BIG LAUGHS folks! Naturally, you never know if such antics will translate onto the movie screen in the course of making the film, but I feel as confident as ever that we've got a real shot at something special here. By all means, wish us luck.

Well, I've got to get back to work now, so until our next round-up, be well, love life and find a reason to be happy, damn it.

Peace, my bruthas and sistas-
Kevin

Best through the holidays and into the New Year

Kevin Pollak — Mon, 16 Dec 2002 22:28:00 +0000

Hello Friends and Fans, it’s time for another installment of Kevin’s Diary. First of all, let me wish everyone a tremendous holiday season! I hope everyone stays healthy through out the rough weather that usually slams most of the country around this time. I also hope all of you get the perfect gift that seems to elude each and every damn one of us, year after year after year after year….. Well, you get the idea.

So, the weather outside is frightful, but here in Hollywood, where I’ve begun work on the sequel to “The Whole Nine Yards,” brilliantly entitled, “The Whole Ten Yards,” it certainly is delightful. Yes, I’m taking the next few months off from my Stand-up comedy touring to do another movie. I’m thrilled to report that my role in this film is possibly the best one I’ve had in many years. I guess it seems that way to me because I rarely get to do anything as funny as I do in this one.

Those of you who enjoyed the first film in this series may remember that my character, Yanni Gogolak was trying to kill Bruce Willis’ character, Jimmy Tudeski, for ratting out my father, and sending him to prison. Ultimately, in the first movie, Jimmy kills Yanni. Well, the story in the sequel opens with Yanni’s father, Lazlo, getting out of prison. His first order of business is to avenge his son’s death. If you thought Yanni’s voice sounded funny, wait until you hear what I’ve cooked up for Lazlo.

I’ve never played a seventy-five year old, angry, Hungarian mob boss before, and I will tell you this………….. it ain’t easy. It literally takes almost four hours to apply the prosthetic make-up and hair. The end result, however, is amazing.

Those of you who saw the second Hannibal Lector movie, “Hannibal,” may remember the insanely great prosthetic work that was done on Gary Oldman to achieve his horrifying make-up. I’m thrilled to have the same incredible team of experts doing mine in this movie.

As for my co-stars, Bruce Willis is back and funnier than ever. His character is, of course, menacing as hell, as he was in the first film, but this time there’s a little twist that allows Bruce his muscle as a comedic actor. He’s also a great guy to work with, and believe me, if you’ve seen my stand-up act, you know I don’t say someone is a pleasure to work with if they’re not. He’s as cool as a fella can be, and very generous with his time and energy.

Matthew Perry was completely hysterical in the first film, and somehow in the sequel he tops himself. He too is a joy to be around. It’s not that he’s “on” all the time, he’s just naturally funny and it never ends when we’re hanging out on the set. I’ve been very fortunate to work with the best, and Matthew is easily in the top five of the funniest comedy minds I’ve worked with.

Amanda Peet, who played the wanna-be hit woman Jill, is back in the sequel, and hilarious once again. She’s also incredibly sexy, as always, on and off camera. She too is a very funny person, and a great laugher. The truth is, she’s so sexy that you somehow don’t expect her to be so funny, but she has an easy, natural gift and a top-notch sense of humor.

Speaking of sexy, Natasha Henstridge fans will be happy to know that she’s back for the sequel as well. Unfortunately for me, I haven’t worked with her yet in our first two weeks of production, but will in the coming week. Definitely looking forward to that!

The director of the first movie, Jonathan Lynn was busy working on another movie, so we had to look elsewhere for our Captain. We got lucky when a very talented guy, Howie Deutch, joined the party. I worked with him on “Grumpier Old Men” and was very excited to learn he would be at the helm on this one.

Well, it’s going great and there’s every reason to believe that it’s only gonna get better. So, here’s wishing all of you, and your families, the very best through the holidays and into the New Year. Be kind to each other, and if you think of it, say a prayer for those less fortunate.

You can never go home again? Horse@%#$.

Kevin Pollak — Mon, 18 Nov 2002 22:26:00 +0000

Fine friends of this site,

I have just returned from the most amazing homecoming anyone could hope for. I've often thought of the famous line, "You can never go home again," but I've never felt so strongly that it was horse@%#$. I went, I saw, I had a GREAT time.

Although I take pride in the fact that I was born in the truly great city of San Francisco, I was raised an hour south of there in San Jose. From age two through twenty-two, I grew up dreaming of being a successful comedian and possibly an actor in movies. There were no comedy clubs in San Jose, and I paid my dues performing during the breaks of local rock bands, at loud, funky bars. In fact, the reason I moved back to San Francisco was to pursue a stand-up comedy career full time, because that's where the nearest comedy clubs were. It was incredible to have that world open up to me, but I would have killed to have had a local club on my home turf.

Some time after the new year, when I got word that The Improv comedy club organization was going to open a new club in San Jose, and that they wanted me to perform at the grand opening, I was pretty damn thrilled. Here's the best part: The Improv folks were working with the city to refurbish an old theater down town. A THEATER!! And not just any theater...

"The Jose" opened in 1904 and became such a successful vaudeville stop that Al Jolsen and Houdini performed there. Friggin' HOUDINI! When I was growing up, the entire downtown area was totally run down and NOBODY I knew ever went down there for entertainment. EVER. To have a historical landmark theater returned to its original luster, and be occupied by the biggest, and best comedy club company made this a rather monumental weekend for me and my hometown. Hell, the Mayor, Ron Gonzales, even presented me with a plague, which was an official commendation of sorts. Hey, not bad, huh? For me, it was pretty damn cool.

Of course friends and relatives came out to see me. Even a few that I had never met before. Go figure. I loved seeing my dearest, bestest buddies at an impromtu poker game on Sunday. Big laughs all around. In fact, all in all, it was one of the best damn weekends, in every way possible.

Next weekend I'm off to Denver to perform at The Comedy Works, then I'll be starting work on the sequel to "The Whole Nine Yards" with most of the original cast, including Bruce Willis, Matthew Perry, Amanda Peete and Natasha Henstridge. So, more to come in this diary. Stay tuned.