Rodney Rothman previously served as executive producer on Forgetting Sarah Marshall. His next film, the Sarah Marshall spinoff Get Him to the Greek, is due to be released in June of 2010. Rothman is the author of the best-selling nonfiction humor book “Early Bird,”
As a television writer, Rothman was hired as a staff writer at The Late Show With David Letterman when he was 21 years old. At 24, he was promoted to head writer, making him the youngest head writer in the program’s history. While serving as head writer, he was nominated for five Emmy Awards for Outstanding Writing and helped the show win three Emmy Awards for Outstanding Variety, Comedy or Musical Program.
In addition, Rothman has written and directed comedic material for The Daily Show With Jon Stewart, served as writer and supervising producer on Undeclared and created the HBO comedy pilot $5.15/Hr., along with director Richard Linklater.
His writing has also appeared in The New Yorker, GQ, The New York Times, The New York Times Magazine and McSweeney’s Quarterly. His piece “My Fake Job” was included in The Best American Nonrequired Reading, edited by Dave Eggers.
The Interview
The Daily Norm: My readers and I would like to make sure you are, in fact, human – it levels the ‘normalcy’ playing field. So do you eat, go to the bathroom, bleed and cry?
Rodney Rothman: If being human means that I procrastinate far too much, sleep too little, sleep too much, and do four things a day I need to apologize for – then yes, I am human. Also I eat too much ice cream.
TDN: What’s your daily schedule on a normal day?
RR: I wake up and check my email, take a shower, sit down at my computer, drink some coffee, do some deep breathing, say a prayer to the muses, and then randomly jump around on the internet for 2 hours until guilt overtakes me.
TDN: Name one thing that you have to do on a regular basis that you despise. What lengths would you actually go to, in order to delete it from your schedule?
RR: Keeping a to do list. Because so many things I don’t want to do stem from that damn thing.
TDN: What would you change about your work, industry, profession or self if you could change anything?
RR: There are so many gatekeepers in Hollywood it makes it hard to actually make stuff. You’re always working hard to please the girl who works for the guy who works for the girl who works for the guy who works for the multi-national corporation that makes the decisions.
TDN: Is there any life stage or event you would have skipped (like geometry) on the way to where you are now? Would it have been missed?
RR: Nah, not really. In some ways I wish I still knew calculus.
TDN: What was your main stepping stone to getting to where you are today?
RR: My mom introduced me to a friend of a friend’s son who was writing for SNL. Just as a “meet a writer” informational thing. That guy told me I could submit jokes to SNL’s Weekend Update as a freelancer and if I got any on I’d be paid 50 bucks a joke. I wrote some, got some on, and suddenly a goal that seemed impossible shifted into view. Thanks Mom!
TDN: What word or phrase do you say most often?
RR: According to the people who make fun of me it’s “Hey man what’s up,” regardless of whether I’m talking to a man or a woman.
TDN: What is your single biggest accomplishment?
RR: People I admire creatively caring about what I have to say. It happens every now and again.
TDN: Is there anything that you can’t live without?
RR: Pens and Paper. I still do a lot of my best thinking with it.
TDN: What’s the best part of your life?
RR: My girlfriend and getting to make movies.
TDN: And have you figured out how to get more of it?
RR: Making movies: Trying to have as many irons in the fire as I can because you never know.
My girlfriend: I’m pretty sure I already mentioned the apologizing four times a day part.
TDN: What is your ultimate motivation tool?
RR: To tell a story that moves others as much as the best stories have moved me — especially friends and family.
TDN: If someone wanted to be you or do what you do, what would you say to them?
RR: Write as much as possible. Find the places where the most talent aspirants to your art form gather, and join that community. Conferences, clubs, schools, “scenes,” festivals — wherever community is fostered. Relationships matter as in any industry. You never know who will end up being able to help you out. Be nice to your mom, she might know someone.
{ 1 comment }

My fascination with Traeger is rooted deeply in his contagious love of art and life. In a world where so many people apologize for their choices, make excuses or derail their dreams for fear of failure, here is a man who doesn’t even consider those paths as possibilities. 


dmire and why? 


