Two Cents & Five Questions With...

... Christopher T. Wood, Actor

The staff is off today in TheTwoCents offices, so we are bringing you a special gift! Continuing our goal to expand the world of "The Office" we bring you a special Wednesday Two Cents & Five Questions With...!

Today we focus on Christopher T. Wood. Christopher has appeared on shows such as "Arrested Development", "That's So Raven", and "Joey". However, fans of "The Office" know Christopher as the manager of Chili's who banned Pam from the entire restaurant chain during "The Dundies" episode!

Recently we were able to catch up with Christopher and he was kind enough to offer us his Two Cents & Five Answers!

TwoCents: Tell TheTwoCents readers about yourself and how you started in "show biz".
Christopher T. Wood: How did I get started? Very late. I chose the corporate road, going to Columbia Law School and then onto Wall Street as a corporate lawyer for five years. I then took a job in LA as Columbia TriStar International’s in-house counsel. Sony Music then hired me to be their West Coast Counsel (coolest title I ever had). When I got to LA, I started training as an actor which convinced me that acting was the last thing I wanted to do for a living! My Mom and my sister got me on the phone and told me to quit law and be an actor. I used all my oratory skills to point out how absolutely foolish they were, hung up the phone and instantly realized I was going to quit my job immediately and pursue acting for the rest of my life. Don’t try this at home, folks.

I booked my first commercial 365 days after my last day at work and I’ve worked steadily since then.

TC: What path led you to playing the role of "The Chili's Manager" on the "The Dundies" episode of "The Office"?
CTW: I was hired by the fantastic Allison Jones to work on The Forty Year Old Virgin with Steve Carell as a cop. The scene I did was cut, but made the deleted scenes on the DVD. I guess I did well enough, because they brought me in to audition for the Office.

TC: What was the experience like working on a hit show like "The Office" and getting to be in that big ensemble scene at Chili's?
CTW: About as good as it gets!!! I only had a few lines, but my primary scene was with Rainn Wilson. We did a ton of improv! They said they wanted to do the final monologue, but at the end of the day, they started to pack up without shooting it. I GENTLY reminded the director that I was still available to shoot the monologue. He wrote some lines down a piece of paper and gave me a few minutes to look it over. We did it in one shot (I think) and I thought “OK, there’s no way that will make it on the show.”

TC: Do you have any websites that you like to visit for your own entertainment?
CTW: IMDB.com, just to see how far I have sunk in the Star Meter.

TC: Can we look forward to seeing you in anything soon?
CTW: On Thursdays, I play racquetball at the LA Fitness on Hollywood, so…check me out. Actually, I played the evil Dr. Higgins on ER in March, which I mention now because by September mentioning what you did in March will officially be pathetic. I’m also shopping a new television show called The Director’s Gym, where established directors come and work scenes right on the show and are then interviewed about their process.

Of course, what I am really hoping for is that some studio will green light a big budget, action/drama called “Kindly Black Father, Part Three. The Kids Need Ice Cream” so the industry can start to see me as a leading man. Until then…

**TwoCents Bonus Question**
TC: If someone were to climb off a desert island and only have time to watch five movies to learn what American cinema is all about, what five movies would you show them?
CTW: 1. Porgy and Bess
2. King Kong (any version)
3. Kramer vs. Kramer
4. Raiders of the Lost Ark
5. 2001 Space Odyssey

Many thanks to Christopher for his additions to the world of "The Office"!