Comedian Tommy Johnagin has landed a television deal with NBC to develop a sitcom centered around his life as a not-yet-married, co-habitating new father. Johnagin would star in the show and will co-write the script with Mike Pennie, who’s known mostly for his work on My Name Is Earl. “The timing of this is perfect for me because my girlfriend and I just had a baby,” Johnagin tells Laughspin. “I’ll be touring a lot less to work on the show,” noting, “I’ve read The Secret so I’m going to talk as though the show’s already been picked up.”
Which brings us to the specifics of the script deal, which Johnagin breaks down for us: “I met with several TV studios and pitched them the idea of doing a show based on my life and stand-up in the hopes that they would pair me with an experienced writer. Since I’ve never written on any shows I knew that was the best idea,” he admits. “So NBC paired me with Michael, a great writer from My Name is Earl and Raising Hope, who has a lot of similarities with me as far as his relationship goes. So, Michael and I got together and figured out exactly what we wanted the show to be and then worked out a pitch, which NBC bought.”
“We’re writing the script now and we’ll have it to them by December,” Johnagin says. “By January or February they’ll say they want to make a pilot. Then from the pilot, they’ll tell us they want to pick up the show. Then it’ll be a hit and in five to seven years I can start being a real asshole.”
Obviously, he’s only joking. But to get a better sense of Johnagin’s sense of humor, check out “Jokes About Babies” from his most recent album Stand Up Comedy 2.
