''Clark and Michael'' is a

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

Internet television Streaming television is the digital distribution of television content, such as TV shows, as streaming media delivered over the Internet. Streaming television stands in contrast to dedicated terrestrial television delivered by over-the-air a ...

series created by and starring

Clark Duke Clark Duke (born May 5, 1985) is an American actor, comedian, and director known for his roles in the films '' Kick-Ass'', ''Sex Drive'', and ''Hot Tub Time Machine'', as well as playing Clark Green in the TV series ''The Office'', Dale Kettlew ...

and

Michael Cera Michael Austin Cera (; ; born June 7, 1988) is a Canadian actor and musician. He started his career as a child actor, voicing the character of Brother Bear on the children's television show ''The Berenstain Bears (2003 TV series), The Berenstain ...

. The series takes the form of a

mockumentary A mockumentary (a blend of ''mock'' and ''documentary''), fake documentary or docu-comedy is a type of film or television show depicting fictional events but presented as a documentary. These productions are often used to analyze or comment on c ...

following Duke and Cera's ambitions to write and sell a

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...

for a television series.

Style

Duke and Cera play fictionalized versions of themselves, Cera describing the characters as "more idiotic and more deluded". The series is a low-budget affair, filmed on handheld cameras by friends of the duo. The cameras are acknowledged by Clark, Michael and others, who will sometimes address them or those operating them; in one scene, an upset Michael shouts a cameraman out of the bathroom, after which Clark angrily points out to the crew that their contract states "no bathroom stuff". Boom mics are often visible, and the crew have also intervened in fights between Clark and Michael.

Plot

Clark and Michael's ambition of producing their own television series is stated in the opening of the first episode, and forms the drive of the series. After being turned down initially, the pair come to terms with the fact that success will not be instantaneous, and continue to pursue new opportunities. Though their agent succeeds in scheduling a meeting to discuss their show with another network, Clark's drunken behavior changes their mind about picking up the show. Following this, the pair has a meeting with agent Ramsay, who recommends that Michael be made the "hero" of the series. Bothered by this, Clark reveals an idea for his own series, ''D.A. Dad'', to the crew, and begins pursuing the concept. Some time later, the pair are watching television together when they see an ad for ''D.A. Dad''. Clark reacts angrily, explaining that the show was his and the concept had been taken and produced by someone else. Michael is hurt that Clark would work separately from him, but the pair eventually reconcile their differences and their arrangement returns to normal. Michael takes up driving lessons, and takes an interest in one of his fellow students. The pair try to get

Kenny Loggins Kenneth Clark Loggins (born January 7, 1948) is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. His early songs were recorded with the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in 1970, which led to seven albums recorded as Loggins and Messina from 1972 to 1977. His ...

to perform the theme song for their show, but can't get in touch with him. Michael only barely passes his driving test, and Clark informs him that he won't be driving his car. Regretting this overreaction, he makes it up to Michael with a game of

minigolf Miniature golf, also known as minigolf, mini-putt, crazy golf, or putt-putt, is an offshoot of the sport of golf focusing solely on the putting aspect of its parent game. The aim of the game is to score the lowest number of points. It is played ...

. A meeting with another potential network ends poorly, unbeknownst to the two, when their arrogant behavior in general makes a bad impression on the executives. Clark soon makes it into Columbia University, and plans to move to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

to attend. Yet Clark ultimately decides against university when they achieve their TV show dream, with CBS signing them up (as well as in real life).

Guest stars

Several

guest star In show business, a guest appearance is the participation of an outsider performer (such as a musician or actor) in an event such as a music record or concert, show, etc., when the performer does not belong to the regular band, cast, or other ...

s have made appearances in the series: * Some of Michael Cera's former co-workers from

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

's ''

Arrested Development The term "arrested development" has had multiple meanings for over 200 years. In the field of medicine, the term "arrested development" was first used, ''circa'' 1835–1836, to mean a stoppage of physical development; the term continues to be use ...

'' **

Tony Hale Anthony Russell Hale (born September 30, 1970) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his role in the Fox comedy series ''Arrested Development'' as Buster Bluth. Hale played Gary Walsh on the HBO comedy ''Veep'' from 2012 until its ...

was featured in the first episode as an executive for the fictional ATC Family network, who turned down the pair's concept. **

Mitch Hurwitz Mitchell Donald "Mitch" Hurwitz (born May 29, 1963) is an American television writer, producer, and actor. He is best known as the creator of the television sitcom ''Arrested Development'' as well as the co-creator of ''The Ellen Show''. He is a ...

(''Arrested Development'' creator) appeared as agent Ramsay, while Clark Duke's attorney, Jerry Lillard, was played by

Andy Richter Paul Andrew Richter (born October 28, 1966) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and talk show announcer. He is best known as the sidekick for Conan O'Brien on each of O'Brien's talk shows: '' Late Night'' and ''The Tonight Show'' on NBC an ...

. ** When Michael attended driving lessons, he was taught by

David Cross David Cross (born April 4, 1964) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, director, and writer known for his stand-up performances, the HBO sketch comedy series ''Mr. Show'' (1995–1998), and his role as Tobias Fünke in the Fox/Netflix sitcom ...

. *

Eric Wareheim Eric Alexander Wareheim (; born April 7, 1976) is an American comedian, actor, writer, director, musician, and winemaker. He is best known as one half of the comedy duo Tim & Eric, alongside Tim Heidecker. He also had a recurring role on the Netf ...

and

Tim Heidecker Timothy Richard Heidecker (; born February 3, 1976) is an American comedian, writer, director, actor, and musician. Along with Eric Wareheim, he is a member of the comedy duo Tim & Eric. He has also appeared in films, including ''Bridesmaids' ...

(''

Tom Goes to the Mayor ''Tom Goes to the Mayor'' is an American adult animated series created by Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim for Cartoon Network's late night programming block, Adult Swim. It premiered on November 14, 2004 and ended on September 25, 2006 with a t ...

'', ''

Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! ''Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!'' is an American sketch comedy series created by and starring Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim, which premiered February 11, 2007 on Adult Swim and ran until May 2010. The show features surreal and often sat ...

'') both have made appearances, with Heidecker as a martial arts instructor, and Wareheim's recurring role as their neighbor, Randy. * Comedian

Patton Oswalt Patton Peter Oswalt (born January 27, 1969) is an American stand-up comedian, actor and writer. He is known as Spence Olchin in the sitcom ''The King of Queens'' (1998–2007) and for narrating the sitcom '' The Goldbergs'' (2013–present) as ...

(''

Ratatouille Ratatouille ( , ), oc, ratatolha , is a French Provençal dish of stewed vegetables which originated in Nice, and is sometimes referred to as ''ratatouille niçoise'' (). Recipes and cooking times differ widely, but common ingredients include ...

'') appears as a realtor who sells them an office building. *

Jonah Hill Jonah Hill Feldstein (born December 20, 1983) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is known for his comedic roles in films including ''Superbad (film), Superbad'' (2007), ''Knocked Up'' (2007), ''21 Jump Street (film), 21 Jump Stre ...

(Cera's ''

Superbad ''Superbad'' is a 2007 American coming-of-age teen buddy comedy film directed by Greg Mottola and produced by Judd Apatow. The film stars Jonah Hill and Michael Cera as Seth and Evan, two teenagers about to graduate from high school. Before grad ...

'' co-star) and

John Francis Daley John Francis Daley (born July 20, 1985) is an American actor, film director, producer, screenwriter, and musician. He is known for playing high school freshman Sam Weir on the NBC comedy-drama ''Freaks and Geeks'' and FBI criminal profiler Dr. ...

(''

Freaks and Geeks ''Freaks and Geeks'' is an American teen comedy-drama television series created by Paul Feig and executive-produced by Judd Apatow that aired on NBC during the 1999–2000 television season. The show is set in a suburban high school near Detr ...

'') appear as a rival television writing team. *

Joe Lo Truglio Joseph Vincent Lo Truglio (; born December 2, 1970) is an American actor, comedian, writer and producer. Best known for his role as Charles Boyle on the Fox/NBC sitcom ''Brooklyn Nine-Nine'', he also was a cast member on the television series ''T ...

appears as a deli store employee in episode 8. *

Martin Starr Martin James Pflieger Schienle (born July 30, 1982), professionally known as Martin Starr, is an American actor and comedian. He is known for the television roles of Bill Haverchuck on the short-lived comedy drama ''Freaks and Geeks'' (1999–20 ...

(''Freaks and Geeks'') appears as an employee at a fast food restaurant, only in one episode.

References

Clark and Michael was distributed by YouTube.

External links

www.clarkandmichael.com/
(official website) * {{IMDb title, 0914803, Clark and Michael 2007 web series endings 2007 web series debuts CBS original programming American comedy web series