By admin 
When it comes to the most rewatchable TV shows ever, Parks and recreation has certainly earned a place in that distinction, even though the NBC comedy turned 15 years old earlier this year. And as fans head back to Pawnee, Indiana to laugh out loud at all the funny bits from the series, they can understand the series from the perspective of the office‘s biggest target of ridicule, Jerry Gergicher… er, Gerry… or Larry, I mean, and how the rest of the cast really treated the actor behind the character, Jim O’Heir, in real life.
O’Heir has written his own memoir about his participation in the Parks and recreation family called Welcome to Pawnee: Stories of Friendship, Waffles, and Parks and Recreationand CinemaBlend had the chance to talk to him about the making of it. During our interview, O’Heir told me that his book is his “love letter to the show,” but certainly not a “tell-all” for giving Jerry a chance at redemption from all those office jokes. As O’Heir shared:
You hear me tell my stories, you hear me say how much the characters were mean to Jerry here and there, the love when the cameras weren’t rolling, it was all wonderful. I always say Chris Pratt especially, but Amy (Poehler), I think I’m eight or nine years older than Amy, but Amy was definitely the mom on that set. She was our fearless leader. And she contacted all of us: ‘How are we doing? Are there any problems?’ So with all this Jerry stuff, she was like, “Are you okay with this?” I’d be like, ‘Oh my God, I’m so okay with this. This is my kind of humor.’
If you ever stopped watching Parks and recreation Thinking the cast might be too harsh on Jim O’Heir and his character’s misadventures, that couldn’t be further from the actor’s experience. During our conversation, O’Heir said he wasn’t wearing “good dirt.” the cast of the beloved series because ‘it didn’t happen’. O’Heir really can’t say enough about his experience with the show and how special it is. (No wonder there is one Parks and recreation reunion at the Agatha all the time premiere!) He even remembered his castmates joining him when Jerry Gergich made some particularly dark jokes. In his words:
And there was one day I remember Pratt saying to me, “Jimmy, this one seems really rough.” Are you okay with this?’ And it might have been the one, I think, when they mocked me after the burrito incident when I fell into the creek. I said I had robberies and stuff like that. And I said, ‘Dude, a few things. First of all, it’s just funny. Funny is funny. Second, thank you my friend for being concerned. And thirdly, we all deserve a good salary. I think it’s all good.’ And so I guess I really just want the world to know that Jerry is doing well. Jerry did very well.
As you may recall, in the Season 2 episode “Park Safety,” Jerry Gergich dislocates his shoulder one time when he is at a park filling the establishment’s hummingbird feeders. It happened when he dropped his burrito in a creek, but he claims it was the result of a robbery out of shame. (The episode had one of these too Parks and recreation‘s best guest stars of Andy Samberg on top). Here’s an excerpt from the episode via YouTube of the show:
Jerry gets robbed | Parks and Recreation – YouTube
Look
In memory of O’Heir, during the filming of that episode, Chris Pratt approached O’Heir to make sure the actor was okay with the latest dig at the Parks and Rec employee. As the actor assured Pratt, who went on to star in numerous films and TV shows after the comedy, and also wants fans to know, he loves doing all the messy physical stuff that comes with being Jerry through and through. He even shared that there have been instances where he has begged the show (and others) to let him do the physical comedy bits themselves instead of having a stunt person do it.
You can check out Jim O’Heir’s memoir, Welcome to Pawnee: Stories of Friendship, Waffles, and Parks and Recreationnow, and watch the series again with a Peacock subscription.