{alltv} 'Bored' creator finds TV home

NEW YORK -- It seems right to meet New York hipster Jonathan Ames in a downtown French bistro, not some swank midtown hotel where movie stars stay. Ames may now be dabbling in Hollywood but he is not of Hollywood. Instead, he is a novelist, a quirky storyteller and a long-time New York performance artist who has suddenly emerged in the TV world.

The reason to meet is Bored to Death, a sitcom from HBO. Ames created it. The eccentric hero of the story carries his name. The series may look mainstream, with a core cast of TV veteran Ted Danson, The Hangover funnyman Zach Galifianakis and a Coppola clan member, Jason Schwartzman, featured as the fictional Jonathan Ames. But the series is underground. It has its own edgy, acerbic, intelligent twists. As for timing, Bored to Death: The Complete First Season just debuted on DVD and Blu-ray, with extras (including an introduction to Ames' Brooklyn). Plus the second season is currently being broadcast on HBO and HBO Canada.

You chat with the 46-year-old Ames about his circle of Big Apple friends: Writers, musicians, actors, other performance artists he has met from 21 years of publishing and almost as long performing live in clubs. "What has been great with Bored to Death," Ames says, "has been to bring some of that spirit of downtown New York, bringing some of that sensibility, over to a television show." Ames is referring to "taking risks and being naughty, being accepting of all sorts of people, and finding beauty and comedy in unexpected places."

The fictional Ames of Bored to Death -- a slacker who has run into writer's block on his second novel -- loses his girlfriend in the first episode because he consumes too much white wine and pot. He becomes obsessed, despondent and paradoxically ready for adventure. He posts an advertisement offering his services as an unlicensed private investigator and the film noirish game is afoot. The hero's best friends are a madman magazine publisher (Danson) and a repressed artist (Galifianakis).

"Jason is the innocent quester," he says of the often-bewildered Jonathan on screen. "Ted is the mad, sensual wizard. And Zach is kind of the artisan. He is the curmudgeonly guy in his garret making his drawings, but he has deep feelings beneath it all."

Ames is generous about his cast. Schwartzman, he says, "is a brilliant actor. He's like a young Dustin Hoffman. I find him very compelling to watch. He struck me as a perfect muse. He is a thoughtful young man. He is an artist -- he makes music. He is very curious. And he has both an old soul and an innocent soul. He is a knight in training and this is an extended manhood quest."

Danson, as always, impresses his collaborators. "He is wonderful," Ames says. "Ted is amazing in the role. He is a joy to work with and I hope he gets acknowledged for what he has done." As for Galifianakis, he is the improvisation king, spinning off unique zingers.

At HBO, where overseers are "permissive" with their series creators, Ames has found what he calls an artistic home that he likens to an old-fashioned movie studio. Executives support his artistic decisions, so far. "So it's a home for as long as I'm a welcome guest." In Bored to Death, Ames gets to do what few creative people get to do in Hollywood movies: Take risks and create quirky characters.

"So it is pretty wonderful, although it makes me sad about the film industry. But, for me, I'm very lucky to be at a place like HBO."