Wait for It… HIMYM Set Visit

How I Met Your Mother. April 2, 2009.

OK so I’ve been keeping this a secret for over a month now, but after last night’s “How I Met Your Mother” episode and the revelation that Stella (Sarah Chalke’s character) is back… I can FINALLY share my “Khanversation Piece” about my early April visit to the “New York” set.

I’ve been to set of HIMYM like…3 times… covering Sarah Chalke’s guest role for the wedding episode, Jamie Lynn Sigler’s role as a “woo” girl, and now… the episode BEFORE the season finale. Don’t worry… I won’t reveal what happens in the episode. You can watch Monday May 11th to find out.

This time around, I interviewed (and observed) Josh Radnor (Ted,) Sarah Chalke (yes…Elliot from Scrubs,) Jason Jones (of Daily Show fame,) and Neil Patrick Harris (does he even need an explanation?)

Josh Radnor:
Hilarious. Really. But not in an overly-annoying way. In a subtle, hint-of-sarcasm, witty, if you’re-not-smart-you’ll-miss-it sort of way.
He’ll be spending some time in NYC this summer. I asked him if that counts as research. We joke about how everything he does in life can be written off as “research.” Drinking included. (He doesn’t drink.)
He actually went to NYU, but as he puts it, he “wasn’t flush in New York.” Instead did the super small apartment, mac-n-cheese-and-ramen thing.

Sarah Chalke:
Sarah Chalke = main reason I keep going back to the HIMYM set. I’ve been compared by friends, both on the East and West coast, to Elliot from Scrubs. I don’t know if that has to do with the neurotic personality, or the haircut, and I’m not sure whether it’s a compliment or an insult, but whatever. I’m a fan. And she’s really funny.
She’s Canadian. Both times I’ve interviewed her, she’s mentioned Canada. Conclusion? She loves her home…ay? (OK sorry, lame joke.)
But seriously, she joked about Canadianisms, began speaking in French, and just knows how to have fun during an interview. Seriously…some other female celebs need to take notes from her.
She and Jason Jones have a unique, Canadian relationship. They suggested there be a Stella and Tony show…called Stony…and even created a theme song and dance if the “higher ups” are open to it.

Speaking of Jason…
Jason Jones:
I actually had a chance to talk to him after the interview… over in the Craft Services (coffee-bar) area. Being that he has the ultimate day-job as Daily Show correspondent, I HAD to pick his brain. We chatted a bit about his Daily Show gig and being from Canada while in between shoots and other interviews, and for some reason, I kept running into him throughout my stay there. I told him my life story, what I was doing/etc, and was actually impressed with the fact that he cared and kept asking questions. Most “celebrities” don’t care. So… yeah.
He indirectly kept making fun of me, mostly because every time he saw me, it was in the Craft Services area. And just my luck…after we had said our goodbyes and parted ways…he sees me leaving the main set, with a diet coke. Caught red-handed. Again, he calls me out, and then we really part ways. Needless to say, I think I made enough of a comedic impact that he’ll remember me if we ever cross paths again.

NPH:
Neil Patrick Harris…Barney…to some, the star of the show. He’s just funny. In this episode (spoiler?,) he’s trying to get out of a speeding ticket. I asked if he’d ever gotten outta one in real life. He laughed and told me about how recently, he turned left betwen 7 and 9am, on a street that you couldn’t turn. Got pulled over. Got recognized. Cop got excited. NPH? Off the hook.
Previous observations? He’s very focused. On the main, non-New York set, he sits in this little den area when he’s not shooting. Focusing. At a computer. He’s an amazing actor. To be that much of a womanizer, to do it so convincingly… and then not be one in real-life? Skills, my friend. Skills.

P.S. Craft Services…amazing. I don’t know how one can NOT get fat when working on the set of a TV show…

P.P.S. Watching fake rain? Coolest thing ever. Sort of. I’m new to this. It amuses me.