How many times have you heard the expression that (he or she) looks straight out of central casting?
It means, of course, that someone you are observing looks exactly like a physical stereotype — owlish glasses, mussed hair and forgetful expression for the slightly kooky professor; dark, well-combed hair topping a burly sort who could easily pass for a local mobster; splashy blond hair and an ample figure for a none-too-bright ‘starlet’, etc., etc.
In short, the expression refers to someone who looks the part.
Has it ever occured to consider if ‘Central Casting” is merely a figure of speech or an actual, casting agency? Was ‘Central Casting’ a classic Hollywood reality?
The answer is no and yes. Thanks to an informative article in The Wall Street Journal, we discovered that there really was a Central Casting, and, in fact, still is. The photo above shows the original Hollywood operation circa 1929. The one below shows its Burbank office, circa 2017.
As the Journal notes, In 1925, the major film studios agreed to form Central Casting to organize the process of drawing on a pool of actors for extras and other minor roles. The move was hailed at the time as One of the most constructive steps ever taken by the motion picture industry.
Central Casting has a rich history spanning decades of winnowing out extras, stand-ins and other tyro movie hopefuls. The original idea was to impose some sort of centralized regulation on the burdensome process of acquiring teams of extras and other personnel while avoiding the exploitation (think high fees charged by private employment agencies) of the hopefuls involved.
Central Casting was very much in operation through thee classic Hollywood period. And, in 1976, the studios sold off the operation to a private firm, and has been in run under private auspices ever since. (The Central Casting website will fill you in on all details.)
Meanwhile, the generalized reference to Central Casting has become a staple of American colloquial speech. In 1942, reports the Journal, actress Ilka Chase commented on a English butler that he looked like something from Central Casting, with snowy hair and a striped waistcoat.
Ilka, we get the picture.
I think I have known since childhood that there was a central casting operation, but knew nothing about it. Thank you. Very informative.
Ilka Chase and Bonita Granville were blessed comedy relief, in a way, in “Now, Voyager.”
Perhaps two subjects for another day on CMC…
TRY LATER… CALLBACK LATER…
Once upon a time being an EXTRA or ‘background’ or ‘atmosphere’ as they now like to call them… Once upon a time, a very long time ago the job of walking up and down say a western town movie set, crossing a busy backlot city street or just sitting behind the actors and remaining quiet whatever… Once upon a time that kind of job was interesting and fun. Fact is, you could even make a decent living at it, as most of the EXTRAS were union.
In those old, old days when Paramount films were made at Paramount, Warner Brothers films were made there and so on, all the studios relied on CENTRAL CASTING.
I haven’t seen the Rupert Murdoch owned WSJ journal article, the same man who just sold 20th Century-Fox to Disney, but I do know there’s a lot more to the story than the PR piece they put out and the one Joe & Frank have used…
But in 1976 when I came to HOLLYWOOD, the old studio system of production was now only used for television shows to keep it busy, and Universal was the busiest of all of them. Universal City Studios then owned by MCA had it’s own EXTRAS casting department right across the street from the studio, and I worked on many of the 25-plus TV shows and movies that were produced each day, right there on the 400 acre lot.
I wasn’t an EXTRA, but I came to know many of them personally and I could recognize some of them from having watched them whilst growing up in England. They may not be stars, but they really caught the camera’s eye, or rather the assistant director’s eye when he could be heard saying “I want that face” in the shot… And if so, the EXTRA would get a chance to be recognized,and if they were given just one line of dialogue, or the camera opened on them, or they were given a piece of business to do… then that would be a bump in pay and a chance to join the Screen Actors Guild.
So starting in 1976, the studios were changing their ways and their accounting and payroll systems. Some of the heads of those departments got together and convinced their respective studios to sub-contract the work to a company that would take care of their needs, and at the same time would be a big tax break each studio… And so, ENTERTAINMENT PARTNERS was formed, and they took care of all the ‘production’ needs of their clients. The studios then were left with just the ‘non-production’ payroll and accounting side to run.
ENTERTAINMENT PARTNERS or EP as it is commonly known, is located literally down the street from where I live, and they own CENTRAL CASTING.
What started out as a business partnership of ex-studio department heads, in 2004 became a 100% employee owned company that totally dominates not only the accounting needs of the entertainment industry, but other un-related businesses as well.
If anyone reading this, that is if anyone is reading this… don’t be fooled by thinking that being an EXTRA today is all stardust and glamour, because the cold reality is far from it… It’s a minimum wage job, one that requires you to pay to register and get photographed, and programmed into their super computer database. After that, you’ll be competing with some 200,000 other people for a day’s work.
Like any job it’s all about knowing the right people and being able to promote yourself… You’ll have to put your name about, be well groomed and have a good wardrobe, as many times you’ll have to provide it. You’ll also need a reliable car that will run up a lot of mileage very quickly in the job.
You can call in for work, and get the standard “Try later” reply, or you can increase your chances by having one of several companies who will do it for you for a fee, and you’ll have to accept what they give you or risk being branded a trouble maker. Many times I’d see EXTRAS show up on location after having driven a long way, only to find that their call had been cancelled and they were not notified… Often, EXTRAS would be given the wrong call-time and even the wrong directions to the location, and that would be their out-of-pocket problem.
Of course you do get fed on a set, that is basic potato chips, peanut butter sandwiches, and left-over pizza… And you get lunch if you’re kept around long enough that day, but only after the actors and crew have eaten. The young set PA’s are in charge of the EXTRAS, and depending on the show and the budget, an EXTRA can either be treated with respect, or just like cattle.
I’ve been on many shows where I’ve seen 100-200 EXTRAS being used to satisfied the needs of the so-called producers and directors, who don’t exactly understand that in television, the camera can’t see more than thirty in a shot.
This fact, is why you can’t recognize EXTRAS from show to show like you used to… And apart from the well-seasoned union EXTRAS who know their place and what to do, to choreograph the placement of the all the others has become very time consuming and costly, specially when that job has been mostly delegated to low paid non-union PA’s and not the well-trained assistant directors as it once was.
But there is one thing that EXTRAS have in common with the actors, they both share the hours upon hours of just waiting around for a scene to be lit.
So even though there are great moments of fun and excitement, basically it’s a job of hurry up and wait.
In the 1970’s & 80’s, EXTRAS used to sit around and read the paper, a book or even try to call-in for the next day’s work on one of the studio payphones… And they’d have to have plenty of dimes on them, as those were the same days
as now, when you would be told to call-back and TRY LATER!
Once upon a time an EXTRA could make enough for a reasonable living, getting to work on several shows in a day, usually on the same studio lot. I met many such people who had been ding EXTRA work for 30 years or more, who even saved enough to put their kids through college…
And in the 70’s & 80’s the non-union EXTRAS were usually retired people, widows, and part-timers who just did the work just to get out of the house. But as the years past and the economy declined, all that changed as it became filled with laid-off people, divorced people, parolees, young people who couldn’t find any other work… The whole picture changed!
Sure an EXTRA can get to work in interesting and exciting places… They get to see their favorite stars and such from a distance, but the uncertainty, boredom and sheer just waiting to be called can really get to someone who’s not tough enough to take it…
Just as aspiring actors audition, that is going on cattle calls… The EXTRA will always be someone who stays in the background, unless that is -they have the RIGHT FACE!
Again, if anyone’s interested…
There is this YouTube video titled –
Central Casting Segment on CBS News Sunday Morning – (2/26/2012)
But don’t expect to hear too much of the DOWN side… And if it doesn’t download straight away, just TRY LATER!