Jonathan Adams – Last Man Standing

By: Jamie Steinberg

Q) How was Chuck originally described to you?

A) Chuck was originally described as an ex-Marine neighbor to the Baxters. The rest of it I just got from the script. He seemed like such a smart aleck, which was fun to me because that’s what I am naturally. So, I got to play what I knew.

Q) Is that what you also found challenging for you since he was so well-fitted to you?

A) [laughs] No. Not really. It wasn’t really all that challenging. It was just fun from the beginning. What was interesting to me was I actually…In the 90’s I watched Tim Allen on “Home Improvement” and I watched all of The Santa Clause movies. My favorite movie of his is Galaxy Quest. I was a fan of Tim Allen and no one could have told me in the last twenty or thirty years that at some point I’d be on a show and have a rapport with Tim Allen and be able to really work well with him. That was what was challenging and fun.

Q) You’ve taken on a lot of dramatic roles. What made you want to be a part of “Last Man Standing?”

A) The funny thing is that before I came to LA I was a theater actor for years and I did a lot of Shakespearian comedies. What is funny about that is that you really have to delve into the script to find out what would be funny to be in the then 20^th Century – now 21^st Century from this 16^th or 17^th Century script. I had comedy in my DNA. It was something I had done a great deal of and when I came to Hollywood all they wanted me to do was dramatic roles because one of the very first things I did was a dramatic role. It was really nice to get a chance to actually stretch all those comedy muscles that I developed over the years with Chuck.

Q) You touched on it a bit already, but talk about working with costar Tim Allen.

A) [laughs] Tim is a hoot. I really love Tim. He’s a really great guy. Like I said, I was surprised I had this really good chemistry with him and we really played off each other well. It is an honor. Him and Hector [Elizondo] who – again- I actually grew up watching. Literally. The dude has been around for ions working. I feel honored and blessed.

Q) How long does it take you to get all of your lines memorized before heading to a taping?

A) It depends on the script and honestly it depends on whether or not I get it. Usually, I can memorize it in a day if you give it to me and tell me, “You need to memorize this and we need to shoot it today.” Generally, it takes me all weekend. We shoot on Monday and Tuesday and we rehearse Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. So, we get Wednesday, Thursday and Friday rehearsal, we have the whole weekend off and then we shoot on Monday and Tuesday. Usually, I take the whole weekend to really get it memorized. I spend Friday night working on it and Saturday night working on it until I’m ready by mid-morning. But usually it depends a great deal on how it is written and whether or not I get a really deep understanding of it. I would find what I did in theater a lot (again, I’m going to go back to theater [laughs]). Because the lines are so hard, so difficult, if I didn’t really understand it or have an understanding that I could understand then I wouldn’t be able to remember it. Like, all throughout rehearsals I’d not be able to remember the line until I figured out what really exactly what I was saying and why I was saying it. I think that’s also true with movies and television. You have to really get it. You have to really understand what exactly is going on, why you are saying it and where you are saying it from and all of that. So, if I get all of that then I could have it memorized in half a day. But if it’s really not clear to me, it’ll take me all week.

Q) What have been some of your favorite episodes to film of “Last Man Standing?”

A) I like the Halloween one with Jay Leno. I liked working with Jay Leno. Jay Leno was a lot of fun. That was another one! [laughs] I was like, “Oh my gosh! I’m working with Jay Leno!” Therese legendary people! And it’s also fun listening to comedians who have been comedians for years just talking about being comedians. I’m not a standup comedian, but it’s just really fun listening to the things they have to say. My favorite episode was probably that one – the Halloween one where we scared Joe and we ended up double crossing Mike. That was fun. Actually, the very first episode I shot was just a hoot! I had done single-camera before just like one time and multi-camera maybe twice before. It really to me always feels like theater and my origin story is all theater. IT was just such a wonderful mixture of what I used to do and what I ended up doing now. So, that was really magical – that very first episode.

Q) Do you catch yourself saying “not cool” in every day conversations?

A) [laughs] Actually, you know what is funny about that is that I…as a joke…I had this line “not cool…” No, I don’t find myself saying it. But I had this line “not cool” in one of the scripts about Eve pretending that there was a dead cat in somebody’s yard. I was just playing around. It was like, “Dead cat? Not cool.” That was the line and I was like, “What can I do with it?” That became my catchphrase. So, there you go! Not cool.

Q) What is your favorite thing about playing Chuck?

A) Honestly, he’s a good guy. He’s always trying to do good. He tries to have fun in life. He reminds me a lot of me. And I always say that he’s a lot like me except with better writers. If I had some of that whit all the time, I’d kill! People would laugh at me every day. But I don’t! [laughs] So, the writers really make that work. I just really like the guy.

Q) You’ve been a part of a number of incredible projects. What have been some of your personal favorites you’ve worked on?

A) “American Dreams.” That was really, really special. Jonathan Prince and David Semel came up with this really, really sweet family show that was really quite wonderful. NBC has been toying around with the family drama for some time. We have “I’ll Fly Away” followed by “American Dreams” followed by “Parenthood” followed by “This Is Us.” I find them all touching, including my own – the one that I did. I loved working with Gail O’Grady and Tom Verica. They are such great actors. Milo was actually on “American Dreams.” I remember talking to him and literally said to him, “Man, you’re going to do great. I don’t know if you’re in the middle of your career or the beginning of your career – where ever you are – something really special is going to happen for you.” He was really touched and I really remember that conversation. I don’t know if he does, but I really remember that conversation. That was just a really special show.

Q) You are a part of social media. Do you enjoy the instant fan feedback you receive to your work?

A) [chuckles] I’m a reluctant member of social media. I do like Twitter sometimes. It’s kind of interesting. But I just don’t quite get Instagram. I just don’t get the screen and I can’t figure out where I am at. I just post stuff occasionally and hope it gets to the right place. I don’t know what my feed looks like. It’s really, really kind of murky to me. People have explained it to me and maybe I’m just too old or not in the right frame of mind to get it. I do enjoy speaking directly to fans on Twitter and that is a lot of fun, to hear exactly what they have to say in the moment. It’s kind of special.

Q) What would you like to say to everyone who are fans and supporters of you?

A) Thank you. I just want to say thank you. This has been a thirty-year career and I feel incredibly blessed to be able to come into your homes every week and that you watch me and enjoy the work that I do.