Friday, April 23, 2010

Lumen
2201 Locust Street
St. Louis, MO 63103

Doors open at 7:30 p.m.
Co-chairs Justin Kraudel and Adam Bryant

Meet actor, musician and St. Louis
native Bryan Greenberg, who will be
our special guest for the evening. Bryan
currently stars in HBO’s hit new show
“How to Make it in America”.

Tickets are $45 in advance and $50 at the door.

Mark your calendars for another spectacular event hosted by Young Variety at Lumen, downtown St. Louis, on Friday, April 23! This year, we’ll be celebrating the 12th anniversary of this event at a new venue. Lumen’s modern style, premium service and contemporary flair position the venue to be St. Louis’ most sought-after space for St. Louis charity galas. For less than the cost of a typical night out, take this opportunity to leave a lasting impact on St. Louis children in need! A DJ will rock the stage and Curt Copeland from Z107.7 will be the emcee for the evening. Beverages will be provided by Anheuser-Busch, and gourmet food will be provided by the talented chefs at Lumen.

All of the proceeds from Night of the Rising Stars benefit Variety the Children’s Charity of St. Louis. Variety directly assists 1,350 St. Louis-area families of children with physical and mental disabilities every time they need help, from infancy to the age of 21, by providing them with vital medical equipment, developmental programs and a valuable resource center. Variety also allocates funds to 86 partner agency programs that serve children with disabilities. Young Variety is a group of young St. Louis professionals — age 21 to 40 — that raises funds and interest for Variety and its programs.

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Good news How to Make It In America is getting a season 2! Bryan has just confirmed it on his twitter!

First off I know I am behind on finishing up this season of How to Make It In America. I will do my best to catch up with that this next week. But I do have a little bit of an update for you guys.

Appearances: 2010: April 6 – Boston Celtics Vs New York Knicks Basketball Game
Photoshoots: Session 017
Thanks to Ian Fan we know have the photoshoot untagged.

According to Amazon The Good Guy will be released on DVD on June 22nd 2010. You pre order the DVD  here

Bryan Greenberg has been a steady TV presence since 2003, with three seasons on One Tree Hill followed by lead roles in Unscripted and October Road. He’s also appeared on the big screen in Prime, Noble Son, Bride Wars, and The Good Guy. Currently he stars in HBO’s How to Make It in American, which airs its season finale Sunday at 10 pm.

Al Norton: Are you aware that you have the coolest theme song on TV right now?

Bryan Greenberg: I know. “I need a dollar, a dollar, a dollar is what I need (singing).” I heard it a couple of weeks before we premiered. They were playing around with a bunch of different songs and I went into the studio to check it out and I was like, “oh my God.” I remember thinking that whoever this guy was – and it turned out to be Aloe Blacc – he just had his career made.

It’s so good, and the way they do the credits, with the pictures and the slow mo, it sucks you in right away.

Al Norton: How did the show come to you?

Bryan Greenberg: I knew the creator socially, I play basketball with Ian Edelman. I didn’t even know he was a writer, we just connected on the court; we were undefeated when we played together and he told me he liked my work in Prime. I thought he was a nice guy plus we had a friend in common. A couple of months later I was reading the trades and saw “Ian Edelman has a pilot with HBO” and I thought, “I need to read this article.”

I called my agents and read the script and really responded to the New York world he had written in the show because it was very much like the New York that I knew and lived in. I saw down with Julian Farino, Steve Levinson, and Rob Weiss and we talked about where the show was going and what they wanted to do. They were trying to create a movement for this generation, to really show what it’s like for some people right now, with the economy being what it is, and I just got it.

I did a chemistry read with Victor Rasuk, who plays Cam, and we hit it off right away, and now we’re good.

Al Norton: Do you know guys like Ben and Cam?

Bryan Greenberg: Oh, totally. I know a bunch of guys like this. New York is a very expensive city and people end up doing a lot of different things to pursue their dreams. I know a lot of artists, DJ’s who are also designing bags and also working in sound studio, doing anything they can to get by.

I wasn’t as familiar with the clothing world as much. I’m aware of it peripherally, through the film industry, but I talked to a lot of people. I talked with people from Mark Ecko’s company when I was researching the role. It’s really interesting. He told me, “my jeans are no different than anyone else’s. It’s the hustle that convinces you to buy them.”

Al Norton: How much do you think filming

everything on location in New York adds to the show?

Bryan Greenberg: Oh man. I feel like New York is a character in the show. You couldn’t make this show anywhere else. We do three moves a day, on location, and we’ve shot in every borough in New York. It’s great. We’ve hit the hot spots. When we filmed at the club all my friends wanted me to visit with them because they were there already, because that’s where all the girls were.

There’s a lot of walking and talking. Those aren’t extras a lot of the time; those are real New Yorkers out on the street. We shoot with long lenses so people can’t tell we’re doing a TV show. The authenticity is a huge part of the show. A lot of times we’ll be doing a scene and a real person will come up and ask us how much the leather jackets are and we’ll say, “listen, we’re doing a TV show right now. You have to keep moving. (laughing)”

Al Norton: One of the first episodes you two were sitting in the window of a pizza place and I thought there is no way filming that on a sound stage would work.

Bryan Greenberg: Totally real. I eat at that pizza place. I know these places. We’re shooting a lot in my old neighborhood in Alphabet City. This is not one of those New York shows shot on a back lot in LA. It’s also not a cleaned up version of New York. This is New York down and dirty, where people are honking and yelling and bumping into you. You can smell it, taste it, feel it.

Al Norton: Is Luis Guzman as cool as one would think?

Bryan Greenberg: Cooler. He’s an amazing guy. We talk once a week; we have about a one hour conversation on the phone every week. He calls and we just bullshit (laughing). He lives on a farm in Vermont, which you’d never think. He’s just living his life.

He’s a great actor, one of those guys that you can’t not like. If you do, there’s something wrong with you. Everyone loves him and he has the ability to make anything he says funny.

Al Norton: You’re first big TV role was on One Tree Hill and since there are some rumors this will be the last season, I was wondering what you’d say if Mark Schwahn called to ask you to come back for a series finale.

Bryan Greenberg: I haven’t heard anything about it. I am very thankful for the time I had on the show but for me it was a long time ago. I am totally thankful for the experience and the fans it brought me but my whole thing is to keep moving forward and keep challenging myself, keep changing it up.

Al Norton: Do you think Unscripted (Greenberg’s one season pseudo-reality show on HBO) was ahead of its time?

Bryan Greenberg: Definitely. The show was one of the coolest things I’ve ever worked on. Even now people who watch the show don’t know how to take it. It was before shows like The Hills or these hybrid reality-scripted shows ever happened. Nobody knew what to make of it; was it real, was it not real? The truth of it is that it was all plotted out and then completely improved. Everything was storylined, we used some real sets and some fake sets. We used our real names, which made it confusing, but we were all playing characters; I was a dumber, more naïve version of myself, constantly falling upwards.

We created storylines around our work; I had a guest spot on One Tree Hill so we made that a part of it. Or they would book me on Life With Bonnie, or put me on ER as an extra.

Al Norton: I think there was an episode where you did an episode of either Smallville or Supernatural and then got upset when you got edited out.

Bryan Greenberg: Right, and I never did an episode of Supernatural. That’s all (George) Clooney and (Steven) Soderberg (creators and executive producers of Unscripted). They were ahead of their time with the show, for sure.

Al Norton: Do you think having to do that level of improve made you a better actor?

Bryan Greenberg: 100%. I learned so much working with George, who is a great director and actor. To be around him and get advice from one of the greatest, to work with Frank Langella…It was also just being in the fire. I was shooting Prime and Unscripted at the same time, literally at the same time. I would be shooting a scene for Prime, they’d yell cut, and then there would be another mike and I’d be shooting a scene for Unscripted where I was pretending I was still drunk from the night before. I was shooting two high profile projects with incredible people at the same time; it was an intense high point of my career.

Al Norton: That must be pretty heady, to go from working with on a movie Meryl Streep and Uma Thurman to your starring role in a TV series with Clooney and Soderberg.

Bryan Greenberg: And Clooney was on the set of Prime, too. I was juggling five balls at once. It was a lot to deal with. It didn’t really hit me until about a year later and I was just like, “holy shit, I can’t believe I did that (laughing).” It was great.

Al Norton: You’ve been at this for some time now, so how do you learn how to not be too effected by reviews, good or bad?

Bryan Greenberg: That’s a good question. You just really embrace the good ones and the bad ones you just say, “they’re idiots, they don’t know what they’re talking about (laughing?” Not really. I know everyone says they don’t read reviews but I think it’s fascinating to see what people think about it. Ultimately critics are paid to critique, so they’re going to be a lot of haters out there who pull everything apart. Look at a show like Seinfeld, which was trashed and had awful ratings at first and then becomes one of the greatest shows in history.

There’s too much emphasis put on reviews; people write shows off off of 26 minutes of filming, and that’s not what TV is. TV grows over seasons. It’s not a movie; you set things up and see where they go. That’s the beauty of working in television, it changes.

The greatest thing to do right now is go on Twitter; people will tell you what they think of your show. They’re not paid critics, they’re not jaded, they’re real people.

Al Norton: Is it hard for you to balance your acting with your music? (Greenberg has an album of original material and has toured with Gavin Degraw).

Bryan Greenberg: Sometimes. I’ve had to cancel tours because of scheduling. The hardest part is that music is planned out months in advance and film and TV happen very quickly. Things happen spur of the moment more acting and it’s hard to plan your year.

Music is great as a balance. You are going from someone else’s project where you are saying their words and then going off and writing and performing music that is your own personal form of expression. I need both to make each one feel like a creative outlet and not like a job.

Don’t miss the season finale of How To Make It In America, Sunday at 10 pm on HBO

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I am happy to announce that I have been given the chance to give away a few autographed How to Make It In America Posters (like this one) So please be sure to follow us  on twitter for the first chance to win!

Bryan Greenberg, the star of the hot new HBO original series How to Make It in America, might have the sport of basketball to thank for his latest success. He met the show’s creator/producer/writer Ian Edelman on the court. Although a wrist injury is currently keeping Greenberg on the sidelines, he is anxious to get back in the action. In the meantime, please give him some courtside tickets to the Los Angles Clippers. He loves to root for the underdog.

You met the creator of How to Make It in America playing basketball.
We have a mutual friend. We were invited to play ball in Hollywood. We were playing and he said, “I’m a big fan of yours from Prime (a movie in which Greenberg co-starred with Uma Thurman and Meryl Streep).” I said, “Oh cool.” I had no idea he was a writer. We ended up being on the same team. It’s funny, because we kind of look alike. We had the exact same ball game. We both play in the paint. We have that kind of scrappy game. We would both run to the exact same place on the court. It was a little weird. We were undefeated that day, so we had instant chemistry.
Then a couple of months later I read in the trades that he sold a script to HBO, so I asked my agent to read it. Did some reads and here we are.

Your show seems to be a big hit with NBA players.
I’d love to know who’s watching it because I’m a huge NBA fan.

What do you think draws them to it?
We speak to that sneaker culture. Basketball is heavy into that. It’s definitely a street-minded show. A lot of basketball comes from the playground and that world. My character, we get into the clubs because I play ball with this bouncer. This show stays on that street, that hustle. It can speak to a lot of people who came from that world. These characters are definitely on the grind trying to pay the rent.

Did you grow up playing basketball?
I never played in high school. I got into it late. I didn’t start playing until I was about 14 years old. In high school I tried out for the freshman basketball team, but I had no idea how to play, so I couldn’t even figure out the five-man weave. I didn’t make the cut.
I’m one of those people who play outside. I play pick-up games constantly. I’ve played in leagues, but I always do it for fun. I never really played it competitively, but it’s one of the sports I constantly do. I play in LA a lot. I’ve got a regular game.

Have you played in the Entertainment League when you are living in Los Angeles?
I get invited, but a lot of my jobs I shoot on location so I’m never around.

You were born in Nebraska. There’s some great college basketball there. Did you follow that as a little kid?
I saw Creighton games. Then I moved to St. Louis. St. Louis isn’t really a basketball town. They had the Hawks (the franchise now in Atlanta called St. Louis home from 1957-68). Growing up the closest town to us that had an NBA team was Chicago and Jordan was playing. Basically, everyone in St. Louis was a Jordan fan and a Bulls fan.
I know it’s March Madness, but I’m not one of those people who get into college basketball more than NBA. I like the NBA better. I’ve always been an NBA guy.

In addition to the Bulls and Jordan, who were the teams and players you liked growing up?
Growing up, I really liked Charlotte when they had Muggsy Bogues, Larry Johnson and Alonzo Mourning. I loved them for some reason. I always love the Knicks even in these tough times. I live in LA, but I like Clippers. I like the underdogs.

It’s great to hear from a Clippers fan.
They always have really good young talent. Every year it’s a new year. You’re like, “OK, they’ve got Blake Griffin. It’s going to be the year.” Then he gets injured in the preseason. They have a tough go at it. We have Baron Davis, Chris Kaman. There’s some talent there. I’d like to see what happens with the Knicks next year, really.

So it’s the Knicks and the Clippers?
And LeBron. I love him.

What’s the difference between New York basketball fans and Los Angeles basketball fans?
I feel the basketball fans in LA are kind of spoiled because the Lakers are a dynasty and they have been for so long. I think the Clippers fans are like Knicks fans because they stick with them no matter what. The Lakers are like the Yankees. Of course, you like the Yankees, it’s the best team. They’ve got all the best players. It’s easy.

What is the energy like doing a TV show in New York?
It’s great. We’re shooting completely on location. We’re capturing the city and the characters in it. Like no other movie or show I’ve ever been a part of or ever seen. New York is very much a character in the show. We’re working on like three locations a day. We use real people who are walking on the streets. We get them in the shots. It’s not a cleaned up version of New York. This is a real down and dirty version of New York.

HBO has created such amazing original series. How is this experience different than previous TV and movie experiences?
This is my second time working on HBO. I did a show called Unscripted five years ago. That show was a totally different experience. It was all improv. What I love about working at HBO is that they do what they want to do. That’s why the shows are so quality because they’re not answering to advertisers and what not. They’re making decisions not based on ratings, but based on quality and what they think works for them. That’s why they’ve been able to pump out such original and great programming.

You got to share the movie screen with Uma Thurman. Could Uma hold her own on a basketball court?
She’s definitely got the arms and the height. If you saw Kill Bill you know she’s got some athleticism.

Last question, please forgive me, but what’s it like to play Meryl Streep’s son?
It was amazing. During shooting she really took me under her wing. I got a chance to be around one of the greats. She was very generous with her time and knowledge. Just being in her presence you learn so much.

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He’s played every role from “the good guy”, “the boy-toy” to most recently, “the hustler”. Meet Bryan Greenberg, one of Swide’s favourite stars currently sizzling the small screen.
Many of you may recognize our much-buzzed about TV star, Bryan Greenberg from his reoccurring role in teen drama, “One Tree Hill” as hard-working father, Jake Jagielski. Since leaving the show in 2006, Greenberg’s really started to take off.

Greenberg really started to catch the attention of movie lovers when he starred in his first leading role in 2005 film, “Prime”. Greenberg played the young boy-toy of an older woman played by Uma Thurman, who also happened to be the patient of his therapist mother (Meryl Streep). As a new actor, starring alongside such talented A-list actresses would’ve seem daunting, but suprisingly Greenberg didn’t let that affect his performance.

“Prime”

“Nobody knows who I am, so I had nothing to lose really. When you got Uma and Meryl, the pressures off me. It’s my first leading role in a major film, so I have nowhere to go really but up.”

“The Good Guy”

In “The Good Guy”, moviegoers got to experience the stark reality of living in the Big Apple. Greenberg stars as Daniel, a socially awkward guy stuck in the middle of the hustle and bustle of New York’s Wall Street. Daniel discovers how tough the world of Wall Street can be and unlike others, doesn’t try to drastically alter himself to accommodate his surroundings.

To Greenberg’s surprise, he’s found himself playing yet again another struggling New Yorker, this time changing the backdrop from Wall Street to Downtown’s Lower East Side in HBO series,”How to make it America”. Being called the “eastcoast Entourage”, “How to make it in America” follows two enterprising Brooklyn twenty-somethings as they hustle their way through New York City with one goal in mind: achieve the American Dream. Ben Epstein, played by Greenberg, attempts to make a name for himself in New York’s competitive fashion scene. Greenberg’s character uses both his street knowledge and connections to realize his ambitions and dreams.

HBO-”How to make it in America”

“The show is definitely all about New York City, so we shot it all on location. The last four or five jobs I’ve done have been in the city. I live in LA, but it’s great to keep working in New York. The Good Guy is a totally differently looking New York than How To Make It portrays. The Good Guy is all about Wall Street and that culture, which How To Make It touches on but How To Make It also is downtown, lower east side loft parties, cool clubs, Brooklyn and that world.”

“It’s the American dream to go out there and make your own way. You make your own rules, you make own money, and you make your own worth. And sometimes people get stepped on, those who are too nice.”

No stranger to the “hustle”, Greenberg has also been trying to make a name for himself as a singer/songwriter playing gigs and even having his music featured on respected tv shows. Greenberg also recently performed with HBO co-star and Kanye West protégé, Kid Cudi, and expects to release an album this year. Clearly, Greenberg’s talents see no boundaries, but if he had to pick between acting and music, which would he choose?

I like them both (acting and music). That way neither one feels like a job. When I’m working on a movie, I’m in my trailer playing guitar. And then on the road, I read scripts and think of…it just keeps both fires burning. I kind of need both. They help. I become a better actor. After I step on a stage in front of like 500 people when it’s just me, a microphone and my guitar, you don’t get as nervous walking into a room in front of 3 or 4 people and to do a scene or to walk on a set.”

With all his recent success, could Greenberg soon become one of those “Hollywood types” self-consumed and obsessed with fame? We were overcome with glee to find out the scruffy, laid-back guy we fell for in “Prime” has no desire to become uber-famous.

“I’m not really concerned about fame, or all the things that come along with being an actor. It’s all just a side product of the work and that is the important thing. What it’s all about. I think that has gotten me thus far and hopefully will sustain me throughout my life is just concentrating on the work, because that is what is important to me.” Humbel and cute, reason enough to fall in love with him.

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