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TV Media Weekly | August 6 - 12, 2016 By Jacqueline Spendlove TV Media T hey say you should write what you know, which is just what writer/director Cameron Crowe did when he penned the Oscar-win- ning screenplay for the 2000 film "Almost Famous." The semi- autobiographical drama draws from Crowe's time working as a journalist for Rolling Stone in his teens and has gained consider- able acclaim. Now, Crowe is returning to his music industry roots with his first scripted TV series, "Road- ies." As the title concisely sug- gests, the dramedy shines a light on a group of roadies as they ac- company a big-name band around the country, setting up lights, making soundboard mag- ic happen and generally ensur- ing that the show goes on. A new episode of "Roadies" airs Sunday, Aug. 7, on Showtime. Even as a young writer, Crowe landed a lot of major interviews in his green Rolling Stone days, from his first cover story on the Allman Brothers Band to Led Zeppelin to Lynyrd Skynyrd. He credits the roadies — the crew of technicians and support per- sonnel that travels with a band on tour — with orchestrating a lot of these behind-the-scenes meetings, and, as such, wound up spending a lot of time with them. "Roadies" is an extension of Crowe's glimpse into that world. It's easy to see a band perform, looking and sounding amazing, without considering the long hours, hard work and fierce dedi- cation that goes on before and after the show to make it all hap- pen. As Showtime touts, the show puts a spotlight on the "reckless, romantic, funny and often poi- gnant lives" of these unsung he- roes, giving a look at the music world through their eyes. "I always fall in love with that backstage crowd," Crowe said in an interview with Entertain- ment Weekly. "The band is usu- ally the least interesting group of people because they're there to work, but the other people are creating this magical spell around them." To keep the focus on the titu- lar roadies and their various go- ings-on, the fictional Staton- House Band is seldom seen and never heard. Luke Wilson ("Old School," 2003) steps away from the big screen and puts his affa- ble persona to good use as Bill, the road-weary tour manager for the arena-level band. Playing Bill's work-wife is Carla Gugino ("Night at the Mu- seum," 2006) as Shelli, the pro- duction manager, brains of the operation and constant fire put- ter-outter. The two of them have a bit of a will-they-won't-they thing going on, but Shelli is mar- ried to a guy who himself is a far-flung roadie for Taylor Swift. Nonetheless, Bill and Shelli take on the "mom and dad" role in the makeshift family made up of the rest of the ragtag crew. This includes Kelly Ann (Imo- gen Poots, "Need for Speed," 2014), an electrical guru who rigs a mean light and skates a mean board, and her twin brother, Wesley (Colson Baker, "Beyond the Lights," 2014), the band's coffee guy and "manny" for the lead singer's horrific son. Tough and no-nonsense Don- na (Keisha Castle-Hughes, "The Almighty Johnsons") is the sound engineer, Milo (Peter Cambor, "NCIS: Los Angeles") is the bass guitar tech, and loud and grizzled Phil (Ron White, "Horrible Bosses," 2011) is the band's seasoned road manager. In "Roadies," the gang must contend with Reg Whitehead (Rafe Spall, "Shaun of the Dead," 2004), a slick corporate suit sent in to overhaul tour ex- penses by making the crew do more with less. Unsurprisingly, he's met with hostility by the tight-knit group, who want nothing to do with him or the cuts he's out to make for the sake of the almighty dollar. The series debuted in June, and though there's no doubt that it has a lot of potential, rat- ings have been unimpressive and reviews mixed. The common critique is that the writing sim- ply falls flat, and so far the show hasn't done enough with the available material and talent. In fairness, though, it can be a challenge to do justice to such a sizable main cast, and though the first three episodes were particularly heavily criticized, the series really hadn't had enough time to properly flesh out the individual characters and get us invested with them. Still, with so much big-name talent both onscreen and off — Hollywood juggernaut J.J. Abrams is a longtime friend of Crowe's, and one of the show's executive producers — there's definitely time to turn things around. After all, this is an angle that's seldom been given proper attention onscreen, and if "Roadies" can just find its foot- ing and tighten up its writing, there's no doubt that it can be- come great. "Roadies" may not have hit its stride yet, but it's definitely a show to root for. Catch a new episode of Crowe's small-screen debut when it airs Sunday, Aug. 7, on Showtime. Ron White and Imogen Poots as seen in "Roadies" Hit the road Cameron Crowe brings his love of music to the small screen in 'Roadies' 2 | Cover story Harvey Hinklemeyers Martino's 3 x 5" A/Grindstone Charlie's B/Norris Insurance 1 x 4" 455-2700 3833 S. LaFountain • Kokomo, IN 46902 www.norrisinsurance.com • Home • Auto • Business • Life Call for a FREE Quote! Serving You For Over 50 Years Bill Neher the BOOK of KOKOMO in 100 OBJECTS a picture of Kokomo, piece by piece only $ 5.00 KOKOMO TRIBUNE 300 N Union | Downtown Kokomo

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