|
|||||||||||
Freaking Out With Paul Rugg by Brett Rogers After starting his career in entertainment as a writer for KBC radio in Following
his stint at KBC in the early 1980s, Rugg joined the “L.A. Connection”
acting group, which produced a Mystery Science Theater 3000-style television
program called “Mad Movies”.
In 1989, Rugg moved on to the ACME Comedy Group, where he wrote and performed
comedy sketches throughout While
with ACME, Rugg was asked to join the writing staff for the Warner Bros.
animated series, “Steven
Spielberg Presents: Animaniacs.” His lack of experience in
animation proved not to be a liability, however, as Rugg's work was so well
received that he not only became a Supervising Story Editor on the show, but
also a resident voice actor, portraying the roles of minor characters such as
Mr. Director, Mrs. Mumphries, Albert Einstein, and others. As
a writer, Rugg has consistently pushed the limits of what one can expect to see
on Saturday morning, or in Prime Time television for that matter. With
“Animaniacs”, Rugg has given audiences fast-paced episodes driven
by silliness and zany brand of humor, epitomized by one particular segment in
which the word “potty” is used 32 times in under six minutes of
animation. It is this outlandishness that won Rugg the positions of story
editor and writer for the equally fast-paced “Steven
Spielberg Presents: Freakazoid!” in 1995. Early
in the production process for “Freakazoid!” a satisfactory voice
actor to play the part of Freakazoid had not been found after extensive
auditions for the role. This led to a very unusual circumstance in which Rugg
was called upon to serve in both writing and voice acting roles for the show.
As Rugg recalls, “We were under a big deadline and we were just finding
ourselves really confused. Whenever we tried to explain the show to somebody we
were faced with a really blank stare. People had no idea what we were talking
about and we had no idea what to tell them.” Eventually
“Freakazoid!” Producer Tom Ruegger asked Rugg to go into the
recording booth to demonstrate what he thought the character's voice should
sound like. Rugg describes, “I went in there and did it. Then they played
it for Steven [Spielberg] and he said 'Yep! Fine, sure, great,' and then I
panicked ... and I had to do it.” The
result was a hyperactive teen super hero whose personality is a bit of Jerry
Lewis, Chris Farley and Batman, rolled into what is one of the most bizarre
central characters on television.
Rugg explains, “We were able to experiment and try something
really different with 'Freakazoid!' There is no format. Each show you
never know what direction we're going to take. I think that a lot of people
when they first watch ['Freakazoid!'] are puzzled and say 'What is this about?
I don't understand it,' and once they understand it, it's basically about being
silly ... and not so much about the story, but how we tell the story.” Much
of that humorous presentation is achieved through Rugg's frenzied episodes of
ad-libbing in recording Freakazoid's dialogue. One episode in particular,
“Dance of Doom,” was marked by a particularly high-powered and
unplanned outburst in the recording booth. As Rugg says, “I kind of went
off, and much to my surprise, they animated it.” It is that level of
creative freedom that has allowed Rugg to accomplish the extraordinary energy
that carries his segments. Working
as both a writer and voice actor has presented an interesting dilemma for Rugg.
“You really have to put your ego aside because you write [an episode] as
a writer and say to yourself, 'okay, good, I like this, and I hope that actor
doesn't ruin this copy,' and I'm talking about myself. Then I get in the
recording booth and I go 'Who wrote this?!' And it was me.” Rugg's
debut as the voice of a major animated character has shown what can happen when
the energy of a comedy writer is allowed to escape into the recording booth.
This dynamism undoubtedly had a hand in winning “Freakazoid!”
enough success to warrant a second season on the WB Network, where along with
“Animaniacs” we can see more of his voice and written talents at
work this fall.
Originally published in ANiMATO! Fall 1996, Issue 36 Links to articles and reviews - Rugg improv and comedy Article © Brett D. Rogers,
Esq. Please do not reproduce or distribute without permission. Contact me
No right to images implied by their inclusion herein. |