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2 • August 7 - 13, 2016 • Brainerd Dispatch 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-winning screenplay for the 2000 film "Al- most Famous." The semi-autobio- graphical drama draws from Crowe's time working as a journal- ist for Rolling Stone in his teens and has gained considerable acclaim. Now, Crowe is returning to his music industry roots with his first scripted TV series, "Roadies." As the title concisely suggests, the dramedy shines a light on a group of roadies as they accompany a big-name band around the country, setting up lights, making sound- board magic happen and generally ensuring that the show goes on. A new episode of "Roadies" airs Sun- day, 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 road- ies — the crew of technicians and support personnel that travels with a band on tour — with orchestrat- ing 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 dedication that goes on before and after the show to make it all happen. As Showtime touts, the show puts a spotlight on the "reckless, roman- tic, funny and often poignant lives" of these unsung heroes, 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 Entertainment Weekly. "The band is usually 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 titular roadies and their various goings- 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 affable 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 Museum," 2006) as Shelli, the production manager, brains of the operation and constant fire putter-outter. The two of them have a bit of a will- they-won't-they thing going on, but Shelli is married to a guy who himself is a far-flung roadie for Tay- lor 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 (Imogen 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 Donna (Keisha Castle-Hughes, "The Al- mighty Johnsons") is the sound en- gineer, 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 expenses by making the crew do more with less. Unsur- prisingly, 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 dol- lar. The series de- buted in June, and though there's no doubt that it has a lot of potential, rat- ings have been un- impressive and re- views mixed. The com- mon critique is that the writing simply falls flat, and so far the show hasn't done enough with the available material and talent. In fairness, though, it can be a chal- lenge 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 prop- erly flesh out the individual characters and get us invested with them. Still, with so much big-name talent both onscreen and off — Hollywood jug- gernaut J.J. Abrams is a longtime friend of Crowe's, and one of the show's executive pro- ducers — 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 footing and tighten up its writing, there's no doubt that it can become 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" Cameron Crowe brings his love of music to the small screen in 'Roadies' Cover Story this week 001454750r1 Kinship Partners Inc. Match of the Month For more information about Kinship Partners, call (218) 829-4606 or visit www.kinshippartners.org Be a Friend. Be a Mentor. Photo donated by Connie's Studio WHY NOT START YOUR OWN FRIENDSHIP JOURNEY? Over the past two and a half years Tom and Malik have enjoyed fi shing, outings at the shooting range and many of Kinship's special events. Also, these two are always ready for a competitive game of cards. Tom's persistence and commitment enabled this partnership to fl ourish even though he had some health issues. As soon as Tom was back on his feet, Malik's phone was ringing, and they were off again on another adventure. 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