In today’s politically correct climate, it would seem that a half-hour network television comedy that tackles real-life issues might have a difficult time.
Too funny and the show could be perceived as insensitive and inaccurate; too serious and it’s no longer a comedy.
Mom is a half-hour comedy that revolves around substance abuse, a rather fragile subject matter and perhaps not one that initially brings comedy to mind.
A show like this walks a fine line, and to do so, it depends heavily on a gifted writing team and a cast that can sell laughs wrapped in tears.
Beth Hall was initially cast for a small, one-line part in the CBS comedy. “I auditioned and got the part! We rehearsed all week long, but 30 minutes before the live show, they decided it wasn’t really working…and they cut it.”
“They said, ‘It’s not you, we’ll have you back.’” She laughs, “And I was like, ‘Oh yeah, sure.’”
Eleven episodes after Hall’s original character was cut, executive producer Chuck Lorre kept his word and did have Hall back. He even did one better than that.
Hall remembers, “He called me and said, ‘We have a role that we’d like you to do.’ It was Weeping Wendy and it went really well; they were happy and it was all working. They kept bringing me back and after Season 2, they offered me series regular.”
Hall explains, “The show really focuses on Christy (Anna Faris) and her mother, Bonnie (Allison Janney), who are both recovering users, alcoholics and drug addicts, and right now it’s focusing a lot on them and their friends from the AA meetings, of which I am one…and just how they get through life with being in recovery, the people they meet, and the challenges they face.”
Hall’s Weeping Wendy character is just one of a stellar female driven cast with great chemistry. While Allison Janney (Bonnie) and Anna Faris (Christy) lead the way, it is often a show’s supporting characters that have the ability to elevate a story line's depth, making every character more relatable and more credible. Mimi Kennedy (Marjorie), Jaime Pressly (Jill), and Weeping Wendy all contribute to making this possible.
“The chemistry is really amazing off screen as well; we’re chatting, we’re laughing, we’re talking, and sharing our lives with each other and I think it does come across on screen because we like each other so much and get along. There are no divas; it’s just a lot of fun.”
And it’s all Beth Hall has ever wanted to do.
As the daughter of a comedian and an actress, performing is engrained in Hall’s history and runs through her blood. Although her father’s and mother’s performing days were over by the time she came around, they both had a profound influence on her career.
“I was always performing and putting on shows for my family. I always knew that’s what I wanted to do.“ She recalls, “Anything I did performing-wise, I ran by my mom and she really encouraged it.”
Outside the family, comedic influences abounded as well. Hall grew up loving Lily Tomlin and all the various characters she portrayed on Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In. “I used to write my own Edith Ann monologues to perform at school and things like that so she was really a huge influence on what I wanted to do.”
“I’ve done one-woman shows where I’ve played different characters and doing stuff like that, you know, she (Tomlin) really paved the way. “ Hall muses, “And Gilda Radner! And you know, I love Meg Ryan. I’m not really the same type as her, but I just thought she was really adorable and funny in a lot of her films.”
Before moving from the east coast to Los Angeles and landing parts on Curb Your Enthusiasm, Parks and Recreation, and Mad Men (as Caroline, Roger Sterlings secretary), Hall was an English major and continues to be a lover of Broadway.
She began her acting career performing in small theater productions and commercials in New York. “I really wanted to do off-Broadway and the (Hollywood) sitcom stars were all doing it, so I thought I had to go out to Los Angeles and become a sitcom star, and then I could come back (to New York) and finally do off-Broadway.”
She jokes, “So it’s only taken me 20 years to make it in sitcoms; hopefully I can parlay it into some kind of off-Broadway job at some point.”
But until Broadway comes calling, Hall will be returning for season 4 of Mom.
She attributes the show’s continued success to its writers, “I think it’s real and accurate and I’m in awe of how well they can pull it off in the sitcom format. You know, there’s been some heavy moments in the show, but it’s done so well that you just feel and that’s what you want from entertainment or watching anything, you want to feel, whether you feel happy and you laugh or whether you feel empathy and love.”
Mom’s writers do an expert job of balancing delicate matters using silly humor, smart humor, and sometimes just knowing when to let deafening silence speak where words would otherwise falter.
Even before the show airs each week, Hall comments, “Every table read is extremely funny and, you know, when it is a serious show, you’re crying at the table read, but the writers do an amazing job of taking a serious subject and seeing the humor in life, but also dealing with it in a very serious way. I’m in awe of the writing on this show.”
It might be easy for some people to initially assume that to fully enjoy Mom, a personal connection to Alcoholics Anonymous or a close relationship with someone who struggles with addiction is necessary. To the credit of the show in general and the actors who bring it to life, Hall explains why this is simply not accurate.
“It’s just about people, whether you know someone in recovery or someone who has a problem or not. It’s a sitcom, it’s a funny show about people you can relate to in many different ways; it’s well written and you can just enjoy it on any level.”
Hall continues, “People who do have personal experiences with addiction or have people in their lives struggling with these issues are saying how great the show is in that respect, but many people who don’t are enjoying the show just based on liking the characters and liking the writing and the situations.”
And if laughter is the best medicine, Mom has proven itself to be an extremely effective program.
Perhaps most important, it boasts a cast of characters that has the talent the pull it off. Beth Hall’s Weeping Wendy is an integral part of the show, showing the emotion that most people suppress.
As for now, during the show’s hiatus, Hall will be taking some time to focus on being a mother herself, and perhaps playing a little poker, as she looks forward to begin shooting the fourth season of Mom this coming July.
“I’m enjoying doing all different types of things. Whatever the future brings, I will embrace it.“
