Eugene Blythe was a Broadway actor prior to taking on a career in casting. “I hit New York and two weeks later, I was on Broadway,” he explained. After working non-stop for two years, Blythe experienced a summer of Don’t Call Us, We’ll Call You. His take on that? “Well, I’m not going to do this for the rest of my life. This is silly. It doesn’t mean that much to me.” And that was the beginning of Blythe’s long road to ABC.
First Casting Job
“I started casting in New York, actually out on Long Island, at a theatre called PAF Playhouse,” Blythe recalled about his 1977 production job. “At the time, PAF. was the only theatre in America that did only original plays.”
Road to This Position
“Out at PAF, I was a production manager. They started welcoming my input in the casting process, so I took it over,” Blythe explained. “From there, I got offers to come out here and work, and the Mark Taper [Forum] is the offer I accepted in 1980. We did a lot of really interesting stuff.” Blythe went on to do short stints with Lynn Stalmaster and Universal before settling in at MTM. “I was hired to do Newhart, and then took on St. Elsewhere for six years,” he said. Blythe then freelanced until Disney tapped him to be one of four executives to head their television department at Touchstone in 1990. “When they bought ABC, they combined my job tasks, until two years ago, when I was brought over to ABC to head it,” Blythe concluded.
Coolest Casting Gig
While Blythe indicated that he has been “really proud” of his work at ABC, St. Elsewhere was his favorite project. “St. Elsewhere meant a lot to me. We did a lot of wonderful work and started a lot of wonderful actors. A lot of people really connected with that show,” Blythe fondly recalled.
Key Things He Looks for in an Actor
Truth. “There are a million ways to say something, so I always respond to some sort of belief that that person has in his reality, even in an exaggerated reality,” Blythe explained. “My instincts toward acting help me to know that truth, but I’m not sure that I was ever that good an actor to be in touch with that. I was probably destined for [casting] because of my instincts toward the process and understanding what it takes to get places, even if I wasn’t able to get there [as an actor],” he joked.
Pet Peeves
Back when Blythe saw greater volumes of actors, his pet peeve was, “Actors who would want your opinion, your feedback, but then weren’t willing to take it. I used to say, ‘I have time to give feedback, but I don’t have 20 minutes to defend how I feel, so if you’re willing to hear what I have to say and then go away, I’ll be happy to tell you what I think.’ I don’t have to deal with that as much in this position, so now, [a pet peeve] would be that the business sort of distances you from the art. That’s not really a peeve, but it’s sort of the, ‘You knew it was a snake when you took it in,’ kind of thing: getting the deal done, schmoozing people before you even get the actor [to] consider good material. But that’s part of the landscape,” Blythe conceded.
An Average Day
“We’re constantly trying to get the upper hand on finding new, exciting talent – not necessarily established talent or stars, but new talent – into these projects. That involves everything from meetings, looking at tape, going to showcases, and sometimes going to theatre. I look at every picture that’s sent to me. Nobody screens my mail. I look at all of it always. I may not do anything with it, but I look at all of it. I think postcards are the best way to put your face in front of a casting director’s face with the least amount of effect on a casting director’s busy schedule. A lot of times, we develop relationships with photographs, and I’ve met actors for the first time, thinking I have a relationship with that actor and all I’ve ever seen is their postcard or photograph that they’ve sent me over the years. I think those are much more powerful for busy people than trying to be confronted on the phone,” Blythe indicated.
Advice for Actors
“I’m a person that believes that if you really want something, there’s no way that it won’t happen. What that means is doing everything that that responsibility entails. The only thing that you have control over, in this business, is becoming the best actor you can be. The rest of it is the lottery. I feel that, if that’s what you want to do, and you don’t care about the rest of it, you’ll be putting yourself in the place to be ready for when opportunity actually does come. There’s no reason to be in this business unless you have to. It all comes out to 50 cents an hour. If you have another choice, take it,” Blythe advised.
“I think the actor’s life is a very courageous life. You put yourself out in the trenches every day to be rejected. It’s a very courageous way to live and it’s all directed towards an art. I have a lot of respect for that. But as much as you can, be objective about your career and what you choose, what you want to be, and not just seeking the next job. A lot of actors who people respect are people who are in touch with themselves. It’s a hard thing, but that’s what gives you direction.”
Best Way to Get Seen by Him
“That’s hard. I don’t see as many people as I used to. There’s not enough time in the day. I’m not in the trenches. I supervise many people and I am involved in the development of projects, so I don’t have time to see a lot of actors. I do a lot more generals in the off-season,” Blythe insisted. “We have four casting directors here and four in New York. We have a lot of freelance casting directors that we use, a different one on every project, not to mention freelance casting directors in different cities here and in Australia, New Zealand, London.”
How Much Is Going On Overseas?
“What goes on overseas is this: if we can’t find people here, simultaneously, we will look at tapes from other countries to see if we can meet those goals. It’s not so much that we’re casting foreign projects, but that we go to every acting pool.”
To that end, Blythe also participates in ABC’s new Diversity Program. “We have this wonderful diversity program going on right now where the outreach is even greater. The thrust of it, right now, is toward different ethnic groups, but we hope to open the showcases up to everybody, as regularly scheduled showcases of all groups, all ages, and that’s been very exciting,” Blythe indicated.
His Opinion on Alternative Submission Methods
“I don’t know how to deal with the computer. I send emails, I receive emails. I like my life to be simple. If I had my choice, I would just read every actor I could and be done with it. My staff uses the Internet, though. We subscribe to those services and my staff is constantly doing things so that I can look at an actor online. I’d rather pull down the Academy Players Directory and thumb through it,” he said.
Trends He Has Observed in the Casting Process
Openings for older actors. “A few years ago, I had really good friends who were older actors and I’d say, ‘I’ve got nothing for you. It’s all kids.’ That’s no longer true. It’s really a well-rounded, diverse – and not just in ethnicity, but also in ages – pilot season. I think the family show is more in than it ever has been before,” Blythe shared.
His Biggest Casting Challenge
“To cast writers who have written in themselves. I’ve been up against that a few times,” Blythe joked. Then, he thoughtfully added, “It’s a challenge to always keep in touch with your instincts about people, to never waiver about how you really feel about a performance. Sometimes in this business, it’s easy to give in to what’s commercial or the way the room is going. It’s always a challenge to be true to yourself as a casting person. The only thing that drives any of us is our own instincts towards material, towards talent. That may not be good enough, but without it, you don’t have anything,” Blythe concluded.
What He Would Change About the Casting Process
“If I had information to impart to actors to make the casting process easier, it would be: prepare your best for an audition, go in and give it your all, ask a question if you need to at the end, and then go to the movies. Seventy percent of the reason why you’re not chosen in an audition has nothing to do with what you just did in the audition. Auditions really should be seen as an opportunity to show you belong in the business, not necessarily to get the job. We’re always feeding the machine. Directors and producers are always on to the next project. Have a long view toward your path, and it will help your psyche. Actors give up too soon because they don’t realize how long it takes to get there and they’re not willing to make the journey.”
Most Gratifying Part of His Job
“The perfect fit. When it works, and I thought of it, that’s the best part. That’s the only part. The purest part, the most favorite part, is dealing with the actors. That has nothing to do with politics, nothing to do with money, it has to do with talent and instinct and people showing that they belong. That’s the part I like.”
This interview was conducted on February 25, 2002, and it originally appeared in Casting Qs: A Collection of Casting Director Interviews by Bonnie Gillespie, available at Amazon.