The Office’s Greg Daniels: Grilled

Greg Daniels is one of the most powerful figures in the TV comedy business. The former “Saturday Night Live” and “The Simpsons” writer is behind one of NBC’s most important comedy hopes (Amy Poehler’s “Parks and Recreation”) and its biggest scripted hit (“The Office,” which just launched in five-days-a-week syndication to local stations covering 98 percent of the country).

Daniels talked with TheWrap’s Josef Adalian about how “The Office” went from struggling to smash hit, why he doesn’t like product placement and whether he thinks his show could live on with a totally new cast.

Link: ‘The Office’s’ Greg Daniels: Grilled

Jen Celotta at Vancouver IFF Sept. 30

The Office’s writer/producer/director Jen Celotta will be speaking during the Vancouver International Film Festival’s Film and Television Forum on September 30th.

Jen will be speaking along with My Name Is Earl’s Greg Garcia in a session called
“LOL – Comedy Rules”:

Writing for comedy is a very specific skill … and not an easy one. What seems like a straightforward task, i.e. making people laugh, is actually an intricate and idiosyncratic mix of tension, conflict, recall, reference, timing, exaggeration, believability, sympathy, empathy, juxtaposition, satire and parody mixed with context, personality and persuasion. Easy, eh? A comedic writer needs practice and patience to go from the printed page to laugh-out-loud funny. Hear from Emmy Award-winning TV writers about some rules for scripting comedy and developing funny characters.

Link: Film and Television Forum Schedule

P.S. Jen wrote and directed this week’s episode, ‘The Promotion’!

Office goodies in the Target $1 bins

Every year, Target stores pack their $1 bins with all sorts of wonderful Office items. Here’s a comprehensive list of what’s been available!

Photos of 2009 items

Tipsters: RIP Sprinkles, James, Meggan, Katelin, Colleen

Oh, and don’t forget these items that were reported in July.

2008 and 2007 items listed on this page.