 By Christina Radish
Many people come to Los Angeles, with hopes and dreams of becoming actors, but most never achieve that goal. Often struggling for years, only to eventually admit defeat, maintaining a successful career as a working actor is something only a small fraction of those hopefuls will ever achieve. Minnesota native Josh Braaten has not only accomplished that, but he has done so in record time.
“I grew up in a little farming community,” reveals the 28-year-old, in an exclusive interview with MediaBlvd. Magazine. “I went to college for theater, and moved to Chicago after college, and tried to do a little theater there. I was living with my mom, who is a musician in Chicago. I came out to L.A. about five years ago. I was in Chicago for about a year. I met this guy -- my acting coach -- who was really connected in L.A., and we started sending tapes from Chicago, to see if there would be interest. I moved out here, in January or February of 2001, and, luckily, started working right away.”
Fortunate enough to have been afforded the opportunity to explore his interest in acting while still in high school, Braaten went on to do five or six full length plays in college, and even got to try his hand at Shakespeare. Two weeks after he moved to L.A., his first job was on the television show Spin City.
"My first scene was with Heather Locklear, and I was wearing only a towel. I was playing a minor league baseball player. The episode was centered around Charlie Sheen wanting to relive his baseball glory, and so he was trying out for a minor league team. She came into the locker room to get me to serve him up some easy pitches, just so he could feel good about himself, and quit and come back to work. It was fun and exhilarating and embarrassing, at the same time.”
My first scene was with Heather Locklear, and I was wearing only a towel
Braaten has since gone on to land a regular role on The WB series Modern Men, which just finished up its first season at the end of April. In it, he plays Tim, a modern day everyman, who just can’t seem to have a lasting, fulfilling relationship. Along with his two friends, played by Eric Lively (The L Word) and Max Greenfield (Veronica Mars), they attempt to change their lives by going to see a life coach, played by Jane Seymour.
Although Braaten understands the reality that his show may not come back, as a result of the recent unprecedented merger, forming The WB and UPN into the new CW network, he will always consider it one of the best experiences of his career.
“It was five or six weeks into pilot season, and I was pretty much a wreck, at that point. I remember, when I went back in for the second time, I thought, ‘Oh, this is something I could actually do.’ It was a story that I could relate to and it felt pretty real, as far as sitcoms go. I felt like there was a realness that I could try to bring to the story. But, it was a pretty grueling process, actually getting the job. I went in there three or four times and, every time I went in there, there were 10 different guys, half of which I knew, and they were all very qualified and could have easily done the job. It was one of those things where, when I actually got it, I was like, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me!’ I felt pretty lucky, that’s for sure.”
Braaten admits to being partial to characters that are down-to-earth, and yet have problems and issues that they need to resolve within themselves. That being considered, Tim was a role he felt he could really identify with, and he was ready to do anything to get on the show.
When I get to work with somebody famous, I feel like I’m going to get to set and I’m going to see this helicopter land on the roof of the building
“He makes a lot of little mistakes and isn’t quite seeing everything that’s happening around him. In that sense, I can be like that. Maybe I wouldn’t beat myself up as much, after the fact, but I can always, in hindsight, see things that I should have totally done the opposite way that, for whatever reason, when I was in the moment, I didn’t do.”
Even though Just Shoot Me star Wendie Malick played the life coach in the pilot, the part later needed to be recast, and Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman actress Seymour stepped in. Working opposite such a Hollywood veteran would be daunting for any newcomer, especially when Braaten tends to expect the worst.
“When I get to work with somebody famous, I feel like I’m going to get to set and I’m going to see this helicopter land on the roof of the building. I expected her to come out with her flowing hair, and seven assistants. But, it totally wasn’t like that, at all. She’s so down-to-earth that it was a lot of fun. Anytime we wanted to work on lines with her, she was totally willing. Something would go wrong on set, and she’d go, ‘Oh, you guys don’t have to worry about this. I remember something like this happened on Dr. Quinn and it wasn’t our fault, and it got resolved.’ She really helped take a load off all of our minds, when things would go slightly wrong, because she’s been there with all of her past experience with varied projects.”
Braaten says that he quickly bonded with his Modern Men co-stars, Lively and Greenfield, forging friendships with them, much like on the show. And, as friends, putting three 20-something guys onto a set together will assuredly cause some hilarity and pranks to ensue.
“There was always an issue with my wardrobe, for whatever reason. My wardrobe fittings would be pretty normal, and then, I would come back the next day, and they would say, ‘They thought your shirt was too this, or too that.’ Then, I would have JC Penny 1998 fall catalog clothes there. Eventually, we all got close enough that the wardrobe ladies and I decided to play a prank on the powers that be. I came in wearing one of the shirts that they had brought in for [one of the female guest stars] to wear. It was this little red belly shirt. I wore that to the set with my denim shirt over it, and then, right when we were going to start the scene, I took my shirt off. It was amazing just how many people didn’t notice, but Max and Eric were like, ‘Holy shit! What the hell is that?’”
In his career, Braaten has worked in film, television, theater and voice-overs, and enjoys them all. But, he reveals that he particularly likes the process of 4-camera sitcoms. “I enjoy the audience, and the participation and immediate feedback you get from them. It’s really electric. And, I hope to do more film. I hope to help tell stories that I think could matter, and make some kind of difference. I also hope to return to the stage, at some point in the future.”
Keeping himself busy with work, Braaten still manages to find time to return home to Minnesota, as often as possible. “I’m a huge Minnesota sports fan, so anytime I go back there, my friends and I go to games. I’ve got all of my family back there - my dad, cousins, relatives and high school friends - who I don’t get to see too much anymore, so anytime I can get back there, I love to. I, eventually, hope to be able to live there, some day.”
It’s a treacherous, difficult business, and I’m proud that I am staying afloat
"With most of his professional experience in comedy, up until now, Braaten is looking forward to trying his hand at something romantic, a thriller, or even horror, in the future. “I’m looking forward to getting the opportunity to, hopefully, do it all. I did an episode of Boston Legal, earlier this year, and I liked the process of hour-long TV. It was a lot of fun to do that. So, maybe I’ll do a TV drama next, or perhaps a few films. I’d love to get out of the city and see the world, using my acting to travel. I think that would be a lot of fun.”
Having only packed a couple of duffle bags, to live on a friend’s couch in North Hollywood, when he made the big move to L.A., Braaten says that he is grateful for the fact that he can call himself a working actor.
“It’s the majority of what I do. I make my living acting, and I know there are a lot of people, who are great actors, who aren’t doing that. It’s a treacherous, difficult business, and I’m proud that I am staying afloat.”
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