I have some unbelievable news for all of you that may even cause some to be envious of me.
Well, early this morning (and I mean early as in 12:30 am) I had to fly from CA to VA to meet my parents for some "official family business" I was unbelieveably irrated that I had to leave that early to make it to an appointment in VA at 3:00 pm. Considering the seven hour flight and three hour time difference, I had no choice. The fact that my parents took the liberty to book my flight for me also gave me no choice over the timing. I was flying first class, which I never usually do, but my rich and emily/richard like parents always do
Well anyway, to get to the point...I ended up sitting next to no other than Lauren Graham obviously on her way to VA for Evan Almighty. Now she was already seated when I got on and when I saw her and realized my seat was next to hers I was shocked. We exchanged smiles briefly and I sat down trying to formulate a sentence making sure that it doesn't come out in moron. After a minute or so I say stupidly "You're Lauren Graham" She says something along the lines of "yes I am" I tell her I love the show and that she's a great actress who seriously deserves an Emmy. She was really happy to hear that and let out one of those "Lorelai" laughs. She said thank you and said "maybe next time" in regards to the Emmy. When you talk to her the first thing that strikes you is the fact that she really is so much like Lorelai in speech and mannerism. Anyway we started talking and she talked about her crazy work schedule but at the same time how excited she was to do Evan Almighty. She said that the frequent shuffle b/w CA and VA drive her crazy mainly because of the time difference. She has to fly during late nights since the flight is long and when she's going to VA, she loses three hours. She said "It puts everything out of whack"
I was really touched when she actually asked me questions about me, my life etc. It just shows what a down to earth and normal person she is and not a stuck up self-centered actress. Well I told her a little about my life, family. In the end she says "You have somewhat of a Lorelai life don't you think?" And she was absolute right. I am a single driven 22 year who sort of left home at 18 to get away from my rich parents. Now I didn't have a kid at 16 and I don't have a bad relationship with my parents but I certainly do not want their life. I am a Dental Hygienist living a MIDDLE CLASS life, something my parents do not like very much. And might I add that they rarely approve of the type of men I choose to date, you know the middle class ones)
Lets get to the juicy part shall we. I got some GG info! I fact I was asking her so many questions that she actually asked me if I was an undercover magazine reporter trying to get an interview. lol I said no but I am one of those "crazy internet people" at which she burst out laughing. She said boy my words really do stick don't they? I told her I belong in the Fanforum crazy internet people group. I told her briefly about what is said in the GG spoiler thread (its really the only one I read). People's concerns and reactions and of course the mind boggling analysis that goes on. She took a quick look at the thread on my laptop since it was already on. YES PPL THIS THREAD and was surprised. She said jokingly that she didn't even think ASP and DP looked this much into the SL as we did. She said don't be mad at ASP. She had the best of intentions b/c she really did think they would be able to go on with the show next season and she had every intention to fix things b/w luke and lorelai. She also added that it is very hard to please all fans. Fans weren't happy about the rory/lorelai fight that lasted for 9 episodes and Lauren admitted neither was she b/c it was so un-lorelai for her character to act that way toward her daughter. She said Amy fixed that and fans were happy. But now they're unhappy again.
Lauren also said that to her, the most important aspect of the show is Lorelai's relationship with Rory and her parents. She thinks the girls' romantic relationships are secondary. According to her, if the show ends with Lorelai and Rory at a good place and Lorelai's relationship with her parents somewhat mended if not completely mended then the show has lived up to its potential. Who Lorelai ends up with is not as important. Although she did say that ASP would have made it Luke no matter what. She was just taking a longer route. I asked what about Dave Rosenthal, does he think the same way ASP does? She said she is sure he does b/c he is not new to GG. She was also pretty confident in saying that DR knows where ASP was intending to take the storyline. She was also pretty confident that in the end LL would be together. I also asked about her take on L sleeping with Chris.
She did not play dumb or deny the fact, so I'm positive that its definitely going to happen guys. She said Lorelai still has some things to figure out about love and relationships, a department in which she was never strong in. She was busy raising a kid for years and didn't have time to concentrate on relationships until Rory was grown. It's still new and she's still learning. In the process of learning, Lorelai needs to fall on her face. It's the only way she will learn. She said as far as Chris is concerned, she thinks its probably a good thing that something happens b/w LC because it could help them find out where they stand. Chris still has feelings for Lorelai and they never really had a chance to explore their relationship b/c the timing was never right. Some kind of closure is necessary for the characters. She also says don't you think it would be better to see Chris move on and Lorelai to know exactly where she stands in regard to Chris? She also hopes that C and L don't sever ties. She said because that would be ridiculous. They have known each other for years and they had a kid together. It would be sad and unrealistic to end the show with L and C not on speaking terms.
I also asked about the April/Anna storyline. She said that was done just to add a little freshness to the show. Bring more characters in. Help LL move forward in their relationship. She also added that Luke never liked that Chris was in her life. She said that sort of insecurity in never healthy for a relationship. By bringing Anna in, it sort of turns the table. now Luke can see that it is not possible to shut out the parent of your child out of your life. Lauren feels that both LL need to resolve all insecurities and problems before saying "i do" because love is not enough in her opinion. There has to be more to make a relationship last. She also added that prolonging the LL marriage is good for the actors. She said this season she got the opportunity to really show her acting skills. The emotional factor this season really helped her improve her acting skills. She said even though some scenes literally left her emotionally drained, it was a good expereince. She got to play another part of lorelai that didn't always involve the happy perky lorelai.
Lauren also said that writers need to worry about other things as well as what fans want. Ratings is definitely one. She said fans will hate you for a while then love you when they get what they want. Writers can't change that. Writers want to express their creative abilities and ASP was definitely one of them. She liked to explore new ideas and concepts and everyone should respect that. Its what made writing fun for ASP. She said she loved working with her and hopes she will have the opportunity to work with her in the future. One of the last things she said was to just sit back and ride it out. She said she is sure DR will not disappoint fans but you have to be patient and keep an open mind. Oh and I asked her if she could pass on our spoilers thread to DR so he could take a look at it. She laughed and said I just might do that. You guys really have a lot to say and I'm sure he will be interested to know what you have to say.
Lauren also said that she hopes she can find some time and go to NY this summer before the 7th seasons begins and get on some talk shows to promote GG. I definitely think it needs promoting this season more than any other since its on a new network and has a new writer. Not to mention so many freaked out fans.
After an hour and a half or so, Lauren went to sleep. She said its so sad that nowadays the airplane seat has become my bed. She has no time to sleep anywhere else. Poor Lauren. Before getting off the plane I wished her good luck with everything and thanked her for being a wonderful airplane buddy. She said no thank you, I think your the only person I enjoyed sitting next to during my entire shuffling between CA and VA. So sweet of her. Evidently she got stuck with many grouchy old men who snored loudly and hogged the arm rest. lol
Oh yeah I also managed to get an autograph
*not to be published w/o permission* I only give permission for posting on other boards and GG forums. Not to critics and magazine publishers .
EDIT: Some Clarifications
I have been getting a lot of PMs questioning the authenticity of my talk with Lauren Graham. I just thought it would be easier for me to just edit this post in case future readers have the same questions.
Why would LG give away specific info about the show?
I don’t know if I articulated this well enough in my post, but LG’s answers to me were pretty broad. For example, when I asked her about Lorelai sleeping with Chris she did not deny that, however, she did not confirm it either. She very tactfully avoided answering that question directly. All she said was that Lorelai still has to learn about relationships. I’d say that’s a broad yet satisfying answer to the question. I don’t think she
gave anything away for next season. As far as the next season in concerned, keep in mind that DR probably has not even written it yet. So LG’s opinions and specs don’t really mean anything. She mostly gave her opinions on season 6 which is almost over. When I asked about ASP’s intentions all she said was that she most probably would have brought LL back together. That, I think, is not giving away anything. ASP said in season 4 to “invest in these two.” This is nothing new. As far as Dave Rosenthal is concerned all she said about him was that he is not new to GG and he probably knows what ASP’s intentions were and has faith in him. Again, she gave nothing away about the show except her own opinion.
Why would LG give her opinions to a complete stranger instead of a real reporter?
When I got this question I have to admit I was wondering too. Aside from the fact that she is a very nice and sweet person, I had nothing. So, I asked my cousin in VA when I met her because she interned for Seventeen Magazine in college. My cousin said that from what she knows, interviewers and reporters want to publish concrete information. She said a magazine would probably not print an entire in-depth interview about a show based only on an actor’s opinions. They want reliable facts. They would most likely include a small portion of her opinions in the interview. This made a lot of sense to me because although it was nice to hear what LG had to say about the show, her opinions don’t affect the storyline at all. The only time she talked to ASP about the writing was during the Lorelai/Rory split. Only once in 6 years. And even then, I don’t think ASP ended that SL just because Lauren talked to her about it. I think she already intended to end that SL because of unhappy fans and low rating and that Lauren probably just gave her that little push. Writers do the writing and actors do the acting. Plain and simple. When actors try interfering with the writing it never goes well for the show. One example I remember is the show Growing Pains. Kirk Cameron began interfering with the storyline toward the end of the show and the writers and the entire production team quit because Kirk refused to most of the scenes that were written.
I hope this clarifies some questions. I just think it’s important for everyone to keep in mind that LG’s opinions and specs do not guarantee anything. Ultimately, it’s up to DR. But it is still nice to hear what the show’s leading actress has to say about it.