Hale Shares Comedic Highlights

Three-time Emmy-award winning actor Tony Hale spent an afternoon with Westmont theater arts students before sharing humorous stories and insights with a large crowd in Porter Theatre. Colorado actor Heather Ostberg Johnson (‘11) facilitated the event, Comedy and Faith with Tony Hale, on March 19th that students said helped them visualize a career in the industry. The event was co-sponsored by the Martin Institute and Westmont Theater Department.

Hale, who grew up in a military family that moved often, said he struggled to find his way until his parents introduced him to theater in Tallahassee, Florida, as a seventh grader. “It was a place where I felt seen, where I could be silly and accepted,” he said. “I’m a huge advocate for arts education, not only for those pursuing a career, but because it’s an environment that certain personalities need to thrive.”

He earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism at Samford University and completed graduate studies before moving to New York to become an actor. He first appeared with the not-so-glamourous Shakespeare in the Parking Lot of New York’s East Village. He worked in catering, waited tables, and held other odd jobs to make ends meet before he started getting hired for commercials. 

“In acting, you’re sometimes referred to as a particular type, and my type was the guy who’s not all there, checked out and wide-eyed,” he said to laughter. 

After eight years in New York, he auditioned for and landed the part of Buster Bluth in Arrested Development. “Another not-all-there character,” he said. 

He advised student-actors to invest in community before investing in career. “In my business, you’re pretty much signing up for a career in rejection,” he said. “If I didn’t have my community of really strong friends, who saw me beyond what the business saw me as, I wouldn’t have lasted. So, I’m very thankful for that foundation.”

When he started in New York, his ultimate goal was acting in a sitcom. “That’s all I wanted, and even though I was making commercials, I was getting frustrated,” he says. “And when I got the sitcom, one that really hit – Arrested Development was a zeitgeist with great actors and the cream of the crop – I wasn’t satisfied. It really freaked me out. I got my dream, and it didn’t satisfy me.”

That experience, and “a lot of therapy,” led to his writing Archibald’s Next Big Thing, a children’s book about a chicken who gets a card in the mail that says, “Your big thing is here.” “That’s a huge lesson of contentment,” he said. “If you’re not practicing contentment where you are, you’re not going to be content when you get what you want.

“To this day, that was one of the most joyful experiences I’ve had. I’m very grateful for all the jobs I’ve had, but to do something that meant that much to me was great.” 

Hale won two of his three Emmys on HBO’s Veep as the personal assistant to Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ character.

“Veep was so life-giving,” he said. “I love the people I worked with. We laughed so hard. My favorite thing to watch is the blooper reel, because it shows us making mistakes and laughing. Julia and I would constantly make each other laugh.”