Chris Pratt (left) and Jim O’Heir in ‘Parks and Recreation’ in 2014.Photo:Colleen Hayes/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty
Colleen Hayes/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty
Jim O’Heiris opening up about hisParks and Recreationcastmate,Chris Pratt.
In his new book,Welcome to Pawnee: Stories of Friendship, Waffles, and Parks and Recreation, O’Heir, 62, talked about appearing on the series as Jerry. The character was one of the workers in the parks and recreation office, and he was often the butt of jokes from the others. But in a conversation published in the book, O’Heir spoke to Pratt, 45, about how the younger actor would check in on him.
“I remember you, particularly more than some others, being worried about some of the Jerry bits being … mean,” O’Heir wrote. “I remember you saying, ‘Jimmy, you okay with these?’ My theory was, ‘It’s funny and these are just jobs. I’m happy to be around.’ Do you remember that feeling at all?”
“I was concerned in some of those moments because I care about you and I love you, and I knew that there were some jokes that were, like, mean,” Pratt explained. “But meaner than they were funny. If it’s a joke, it’s funny. But if it’s mean for the sake of being mean, well, I’m not a huge fan of mean-spirited humor, and I just wanted to check in on you.”
Jim O’Heir on ‘Parks and Recreation’ in 2014.Colleen Hayes/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty
Colleen Hayes/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty
“There was one time where I put my foot down on something,” theJurassic Worldstar, who played Andy on the sitcom, remembered. “There was that time you use the printer and it says something like ‘Jerry sucks’ on a piece of paper, and I just said, ‘I don’t think that’s funny. I don’t know about it.’ For the most part, I rolled with it, but there were a couple times where I think it went too far and I was concerned for you.”
O’Heir said it meant “the world” to him that Pratt and their costarAmy Poehlerwould check in on him amid the anti-Jerry jokes. “It’s not like I expected everyone to check in on me, but the fact that you did was so special,” he said.
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“Well, I also know that we’re from the Midwest, and people from the Midwest — their love language is, like, teasing,” Pratt, who was born in Minnesota, said. “You learn to take your lumps and roll with it — I did at least — and I was never overly concerned you couldn’t take care of yourself, but if it ever went too far, I wanted you to know I was there for you.” O’Heir praised Pratt for having “the biggest heart.”
The cast of ‘Parks and Recreation.’ From left: Aziz Ansari, Chris Pratt, Aubrey Plaza, Jim O’Heir, Retta and Nick Offerman in 2014.Jordin Althaus/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty
Jordin Althaus/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty
Parks and Recreationended in 2015. Two years later, O’Heir won a Daytime Emmy for a guest role on the soap operaThe Bold and the Beautiful.
Welcome to Pawnee: Stories of Friendship, Waffles, and Parks and Recreationis available now.
source: people.com
