Nice from Jensen Ackles' Co-workers/not formatted
Jensen Quotes:
From July 30, 1997 Chat:
While attending an Actor's Workshop in Dallas, Texas during the spring of 1995, Jensen was noticed by two talent managers -- Craig Wargo and Gordon McCormack of Talent Management Associates, Inc. -- and an agent -- Michael Einfeld of the Robert Cosden Agency-- and as they say the rest is history. The trio encouraged Jensen to consider a move to Los Angeles after graduating high school to pursue a career in film and television. After much thought, Jensen decided to give LA a try and has not looked back since.
First partial article, Sizzling Soap Stars(1997/1998? from desiring-jensen.org):
".....Jensen's Texas life took a turn toward the West Coast in the spring of 1995. That's when he attended an acting seminar in Dallas. It was a Friday night, and Jensen wasn't even one of the actors who was invited to the workshop. He just came as the guest of a friend. What happened next was a tale right out of the soaps.
"I spotted a young actor I had invited to attend," Craig Wargo recalls. "He introduced me to a friend whom he had brought along with him -- Jensen Ackles. Soon after our introduction, the rest of our staff noticed Jensen as a standout at the seminar."
After the workshop, Craig met Jensen's family, and asked them to let their son move out to Los Angeles after he graduated from high school. It took some convincing, but the Ackleses finally agreed. Jensen hopped a flight to L.A. right after graduation.
But even with a manager who believed in him, Jensen still wasn't sure he wanted to be an actor full time. "I really just came out [to Los Angeles] to please them [the managers at Talent Management Associates]. They were very insistent on me coming out and trying. I figured, 'Oh, I'll just go out and please these guys for a couple of months and move back home.'
Success from the Start
Jensen's very first Los Angeles audition was for a guest-starring part on a syndicated TV show called Sweet Valley High. Jensen walked into the audition room an unemployed actor and walked out with the part! If Jensen had headed to L.A. just to test the waters, it was obvious that it was smooth sailing.
Jensen's next audition was for the role of Malcolm on the NBC series Mr. Rhodes. Now what are the chances Jensen would land both of his first two Hollywood auditions? Pretty slim. But that's just what happened. Jensen played Malcolm for all of the series' thirteen episodes.
"It [Mr. Rhodes] didn't get picked up for a second season, but it was a great gig. Prime time, I mean, whoa!" Jensen exclaims.
Still, after NBC canceled Mr. Rhodes, it seemed as though Jensen had emptied his good-luck pot of gold. He went on literally hundreds of auditions between February and May of 1997. All he got was one small role as Cybill Shepherd's godson on an episode of the CBS comedy Cybill.
Finally, he found himself in the office of Fran Bascom, who does the casting for Days of Our Lives. Jensen remembers that his life-altering audition didn't feel threatening at all.
"I went in and read and it was really nice because Fran didn't get right to the script," he recently recalled in Soap Opera News. "We had a conversation, so it made it comfortable for me to read in front of her. Then, when I came back to read for her again, it was like reading with a friend."
Jensen had never gone through anything as lengthy as the audition process for Days before. He had to read with several of the actors before he was finally chosen for the coveted role of Eric Brady, Marlena's long-lost son, and twin brother to Days's most conniving female, Sami.
"I loved him instantly," recalls Deidre Hall, who plays Marlena. "He's clever, funny, slightly outrageous, yet respectful. He's sweet, confident, and boyish. The crew loved him before we rolled tape on his first scene. We knew this guy was solid."
http://www.desiring-jensen.org/press/news.php?newsid=8
Quotes from Xvales:
Well, speaking of Jensen, being that good looking shouldn't be allowed. It's just wrong. I mean, movie stars can look good and be good actors, but on TV, it's usually one or the other.-MacKenzie(Normal in DA)
-There's a tender scene toward the end where Priestly (Jensen Ackles) breaks the mood with a joke. It's one of those "laugh through the tears" moments.
By the time we were ready to film, David felt the joke sounded a little stale. So he, Mark, and I batted it around until we found a line we all liked better.
When they were filming that scene, I was listening on earphones with several people. The mood was all heartfelt and sweet...then Jensen delivered the line. And his delivery was so funny, it made the joke much better than it was on the page. This was a line we had read over and over...and nevertheless we all busted up when we heard it through the earphones.
So writer came up with the line, the director made it better, and the actor improved it even more. And that's what makes a movie. -TIH staff
-All of my scenes were opposite of Jensen Ackles and he was such a pleasure to work with. Not only is he a great actor, but a really nice guy!- Jeannette Sousa (CR Demon).
-What is it like working with Jensen Ackles?Deidre: Jensen is the dreamiest! I adore him as a co-star, as a son, and as a friend.-Deidre Hall
-Then he did the death scene, made my eyes tear up, walked calmly out, and we looked at each other. This was exactly the character I'd envisioned. It was clear to me that if anybody else got this role, I would have to commit ritual suicide.-Doris Egan (she worked for DA, she talks about Jensen portraying Ben
http://tightropegirl.livejournal.com/8725.html
And speaking of dreamy…Jensen Ackles. Good lord. No fella should be that good looking. And that deep voice of his? Swoon. Mel adored him on Smallville, which led to our watching Supernatural where I was introduced to his talent. I like Supernatural. I like him in the show. But I just didn't expect the performances I've been seeing. I guess I was prejudging the good looks. Sue me. We're all bastards in our own way. His role is one of those challenging rolls that can be played vanilla or stunning. It's a risk for an actor to take on a roll like this. I once saw an actor not only lose his job but I personally rewrote his character out of the script because the actor had gone with vanilla. Jensen went with stunning. I watched him shoot a scene on night two that gave me goosebumps. Patrick refers to him as a young Steve McQueen.- Todd Farmer, the screenwriter of My Bloody Valentine 3-http://www.wendago.com/journal/
Looks, talent and just a wonderfully nice guy. Keep him safe, Fandom, he's one of the good ones-Todd Farmer, the screenwriter of My Bloody Valentine 3-http://www.wendago.com/journal/
Slavkin adds, "Jensen Ackles rocks!">- Comic Con 2008, Slavkin, SV panel.
http://blog.zap2it.com/scifi/2008/07/smallville-rock.html
Critics quotes:
http://x5vale.livejournal.com/127103.html#cutid1
Supernatural Magazine June/July 2012 Interviews
Alexia Fast(Emma, Dean's daughter)
Did you enjoy working with Jensen?
He's a very kind man, and very welcoming. I hadn't seen him in six years and I felt like it was fun to work together because we would just bounce ideas off each other. He's light-hearted between scenes because you need something to break the tension sometimes, so it was fun to joke around a little bit.
Nick Lea(Elliot Ness)
....I have a lot of respect for all those people, the cast and the crew who've been doing it so long. Jensen really comes to set prepared, and he works hard. They're a really professional, fun group of people. We had a lot of laughs and that's always a bonus.
Kevin R. McNally (Frank):
How was it working with Jared and Jensen?
They're really nice guys. They're both lovely guys and I think the best thing, particularly with Jensen who I've done a lot of my scenes with, is that he has a great flair for comedy. A lot of the stuff we've done together has been funny, and I find him really good at it......
Jewel Staite(Amy):
What kind of atmosphere did Jensen create as a director and how did he do?
Right from day one, Jensen was so organized and so calm. He's like that by nature. He's very in control and so relaxed. He's soft-spoken, lovely and professional. A lot of times we were ahead of schedule. We shot that fight sequence in an hour-and-a-half. Unbelievable, but he knew what he wanted. That was refreshing, and he's quite talented as a director. Jensen could have a really long career doing that. And he trusts his crew, too. Jensen isn't ashamed to ask for advice. He has confidence, but at the same time, he has no ego.
Mark Sheppard
He's fantastic. I mean, everybody's gonna say that, but the truth of the matter is, he's a natural. He was extraordinarily well prepared, and it was a lot of fun to be directed by him."
We ask if there were any particular notes or directions from Ackles that stuck out for Sheppard, but he doesn't recall any particulars. "He's very good at getting what it is that he wants, but he's very open to getting what's there."
http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2010/10/supernaturals-mark-sheppard-on-jensen-ackles-crowley-and-a-darker-funnier-season-6.html
SPN Magazine No. 12: Zachariah and Dean certainly have that tongue-in-cheek banter going on.
Kurt Fuller: Jensen Ackles is a really good actor. It makes me better, because no matter how subtle I am, he'll pick it up and respond to it. Jensen has a great sense of humor as well. I know I'm going up to Vancouver in July for the season premiere, and I'm really excited, because it's an amazing working environment. I've worked with a lot of Oscar winners in my time, and I have to say, Jensen's really good.
Sara Canning
"Jensen is really such a gentleman. I couldn't help but read the script and think 'Oh, boy. This is going to be crazy.' He's wonderful, though. I couldn't have asked for a better actor or a more generous actor. He was so gracious and considerate of how I was feeling the whole time -- not to mention, he's a lot of fun. He made everything nice and comfortable."
http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2012/01/supernatural-exclusive-clip-vampire-diaries-star-sara-canning-gives-dean-the-brush-off.html
Review: Supernatural Magazine, Issue #14
Heyerdahl also speaks glowingly of working with Ackles (he found the “Eye of the Tiger” clip encouragingly funny before getting the job of Alastair), referring to him as “a very vulnerable, open actor” who welcomed him on board: “I’d just like to say what a great honor it was to be tortured by Jensen. I wonder how many people would have liked to trade places with me?”
http://www.innsmouthfreepress.com/?p=4713
katherine Ellis (DOOL)
DIGEST ONLINE: What is Jensen Ackles (Eric) like to work with? ELLIS: Just awesome. His acting is very realistic. He's also a very open person, and gives out very good vibes. He's the kind of actor who'll give reaction expressions even when the camera is off him to help the other actor in their work
http://www.oocities.org/televisioncity/9121/taylor.html
Kim Rhodes
Except for one beautiful kid, who was really fuckin’ good. ‘Cause we’d have (Days of Our Lives) on in the make-up room all the time and he was gorgeous and intense but so sweet at functions, kinda quiet, kept to himself. And I still mean to tell Jensen that I remember him from “Days of Our Lives” and that kid has been solid and brilliant and good as a human being from the time he was a baby puppy! We would all stop what we were doing… he was a baby but so beautiful and too good for the show. Stood out a little like, a violin in a rock band.
http://affairsmagazine.com/wordpress2/2011/08/10/the-supernatural-sheriff-is-back-in-town/
What they said about Jensen:
Annette O'Toole, who played Martha Kent, from Smallville (from the smallville Dvd season 4 comments)
"Jensen is a really great actor. It would have been interesting to see him in the role of Clark Kent. He really knows how to take care of the other actor. Typically you only see that in much older actors."
http://devotedfansnetwork.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-3892.html (lot of stuff here9
Ona Grauer
In All Hell Breaks Loose part 2, Ona Grauer tells Eclipse Magazine that all of her scenes were done opposite only one of the series two leads, Jensen Ackles. While Ona Grauer says she regrets not having a chance to work with Jared Padalecki, that she was pleased to be working with her long time friend Jensen Ackles. “I’ve known Jensen for about five years, having met him through mutual friends. There is a joke amongst us friends about Jensen,” Grauer speaks with affection about Ackles, “It seemed as though the shows he was on like Dark Angel and Dawson’s Creek that would get cancelled shortly after he joined the cast. We always said it was because he was so good it made everyone else look bad.” It’s because of this friendship and admiration for his work that she says she watches Supernatural. “I think Jensen is very talented.”
http://eclipsemagazine.com/hollywood-insider/4431/
Roark Critchlow,
Jensen is one of the better people I’ve known. And I watch him on Supernatural. He’s so funny. We used to hook up for a beer every now and then. But I will hunt him down when production on V starts up again in January.
http://www.tvguidemagazine.com/kecks-exclusives/is-days-of-our-lives-mike-horton-a-v-alien-3161.html
Bruce Timm (Artist, Animator, Writer, Producer) about Jensen:
[Jensen Ackles is] somebody that I've been following for a long time and I think he's a really good actor," added Timm. "His voice had the right placement in that he sounded like a grown-up, but not too old, and he had the right kind of attitude. We knew he could be tough but with a sense of vulnerability, as well. So yeah, he's a terrific actor."
http://splashpage.mtv.com/2010/02/23/bruce-timm-talks-batman-under-the-red-hood-potential-green-arrow-animated-feature/
Kurt Fuller
On being mean to Jensen Ackles' character, Dean: "Look. Jensen Ackles has everything I want. He's in great shape. He's got a full head of hair. He's got a square jawline. He's a big star! And then his character calls me a douche. So yes. Yes, I really enjoy being mean to Dean. I'd be a lot meaner if they'd let me
http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2010/03/supernatural-kurt-fuller-on-jensen-ackles-jared-padalecki-and-more.html
Christopher Heyerdahl quote
Just before my audition I was [surfing] Youtube and I came across the video with Jensen doing his 'Eye of The Tiger'. Seeing that, I thought, "Ah, man, I'd really love to work on that show, that guy looks like a lot of fun!" Literally two days later I got the call and went to the audition!
I worked with Jensen most of the time, while Jared rarely bookended my episodes. Jensen is an incredibly generous actor. As a regular on a TV show, you have people coming in every week, and some you must click with and some you don't - that's just human interaction, right? But I felt very welcomed by Jensen - he was very open to working together on scenes. Both of us were throwing suggestions out there and it was a lot of fun. He's very vulnerable, open actor.
[talking about Dean torturing Alistar) Those particular scenes took about three or four days to film, and I was trussed up almost the entire time. There's not a lot of prepartion you can do for that kind of thing - you just dive in headfirst. That's the way both of us approached it. We talked a little bit about the architecture of the scene and where we wanted to go with it; how soon we'd like to get there, and then we just started playing. As gruelling as it was, it was also a hell of a lot of fun, and I'd just like to say what a great honour it was to be tortured by Jensen. I wonder how many people would have liked to trade places with me? [Laughs]
http://www.gaiaonline.com/guilds/viewtopic.php?t=18144923
Jim Beaver about Jensen directing (I don't know if you want to use this one because 1) it's in the comments and I know it's him but I can't prove it - he signed it, and he did the about same stuff during a con just I forgot which one and I doubt I will find it and 2) he is reapling to "fans" who saying bad stuff about Jensen (always in the comments) so you can't link the good stuff without the bad stuff .... Anyway
Jensen Ackles is one of the best prepared, thoughtful, well-organized, and technically adept directors I've ever had the honor to work with. I've watched him over five years, studying the directors of our show, learning every detail, preparing meticulously for the day when he could expand his artistic horizons. I told him at the end of his directorial debut that I had never felt so secure or protected with a director. I've been doing this job for nearly 40 years and I have never had the courage to attempt directing anything like this. I applaud him, both for his willingness to do it right and for the skill and artistry and generosity with which he did it. I look forward to having him direct me again.
Jim Beaver
http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2010/09/supernatural-sneak-peek-jensen-ackles-directorial-debut-shines-a-light-on-bobby.html
and during a vancon 8i think during 2011...maybe)
Christopher Heyerdahl (Alastair): “If you saw Jensen walk into a room, wouldn’t you sing I’m in Heaven?” #VanCon
Brady Boys Interview with Jensen and Josh Taylor early in Days of Our Lives(sample quote more at website) (June 1998?)
Taylor:He came in very prepared and very confident. He didn't come blowing in; he was very willing to listen. So it wasn't like a rookie, to use a football term, that you bring along. It was like all of a sudden you could throw him a starting line-up and he was going to play that position well. You could trust that position. I think everybody took an immediate liking to him, and like I said, I took the credit for every single thing....and will continue to do so {laughs}!
Ackles:That's always a good answer. They keep me going on the right track.
Taylor:He's very popular here. Everbody thinks a good deal of him. This young man, who could ask for a lot more?
https://www.msu.edu/~fergus80/DOOLbradyboys.htm
Arianne Zucker
So, do you think there could be any other man on the horizon for Nicole?
ARIANNE: God, I hope so. I have no clue. I would like to be a fresh face or Eric Brady come back … Sami’s twin!
And, who would you love to see play that role, if you could cast it?
ARIANNE: That is great question! Well, I still like Jensen Ackles (Ex-Eric) and I watch Supernatural...
http://michaelfairmansoaps.com/news/days-arianne-zuker-interview-will-nicole-find-love-with-ej-someone-else-or-self-destruct/2011/09/30/
“That was great [getting to slap Dean after reuniting with him in Heaven]. The thunk in the smack had me laughing like a hyena, it was so funny. Jensen Ackles said, ‘Bring it on - hit me hard!’ and I did - I really smacked him. After that take, I was so apologetic, but he was like, ‘No, that was good,’ as he rubs his head, wincing. He’s such a good sport. He’s like the brother I wish I’d always had. Oh, I shouldn’t say that because I kiss him, but he is.
I don’t think anybody was expecting Pamela to lay one on Dean, but I think all the fans enjoyed it. The funny thing is, I know women who would probably pay their year’s paycheck to have a go at Jensen’s luscious lips, but during the kiss all I thought was, ‘Wow, he tastes like Jolly Ranchers.’ I don’t eat sugar, so for me it was more about the sugary treat than it was about Jensen.”
Traci Dinwiddie about Pamela smacking Dean in “Dark Side of the Moon” (SPN Companion Guide, Season 5)
Georgia Craig (Sherri on Nightshifter interview with Sequential Tart :
" I was really nervous about the fight scene with Jensen in Supernatural. When I auditioned I had no idea about it! So when I read the script and saw what was in store I started to get more than a little nervous. Then Kim Manners called me one night before we started filming and asked if I had any fight experience (which, thank god, I have a little). They wanted me to do as much as possible. As it turned out I did the whole thing, except for some moments when I was off camera and they needed me in make-up to have my arm pulled off or put back on. By the way, wasn’t that cool?! And Jensen was so great about it all. I just kept asking him to rehearse it with me over and over and he was so obliging. He was such a nice man to work with.
http://www.sequentialtart.com/article.php?id=438
“Jensen is a star, make no mistake. He is talented and passionate about his work. He is also quiet, private, and when you look in his eyes, you see the gears spinning. That, my friends, is a good thing. But above all and despite an occupation that forbids it, Jensen Ackles is normal. While that seems a bland thing to say, in my world, I simply cannot give a greater compliment.”
- Tod Farmer
Sablegreen’s Exclusive Interview With Kim Rhodes
Were you familiar with the series before you auditioned for the role?
Oh yeah, yeah, totally. One of them, I think it may have been the second episode I did, Jensen was actually directing. And he’d speak to me and I’d nod and nod and “yes absolutely” and then he would walk away and I’d be like “what did he just say to me?” You’re going to have to list everything he just said. [Laughs] It became a little… it was very exciting and I still get a little twittery, and squeaky and weird around them. And they know it. They teased me about it. I think it’s amusing to them. But I do enjoy it [the series].
...We were doing it outside and I hadn’t really officially met Jensen and Jared but they were riding around on their little motorcycles and playing football. They were being boys! And I’m thinking,”Oh shoot. I have to ramp up this massive level of emotion and they’re being boys.” It’s their show, it’s their party, it’s their house and I don’t call the shots at all. So I’m just going to kind of breathe and know that I’m going to have to be biting the pill on this one.
And we set up for just rehearsal because they don’t technically even need to be standing there cause they have stand-ins, and they both walked over and Jensen goes, “Okay what do you need?” …and just landed such an emotional, “We’re here for you. What do you need?” And they were both present and clear and not kidding around in the least. I know that they play tricks and they joke and they have fun and they make a really amazing set, but at the same time when I needed to hit a really extreme level of emotion, they were completely willing to be of service to me.
And they had me there. I can’t think of a more generous amazing offer. And they didn’t have to be at the same level of emotion. They could have just kidded around and continued to play football the entire time if they wanted too. But they came over to me.
In the episode “Weekend at Bobby’s” you were directed by Jensen. How was that experience for you?
That’s what I was saying earlier; I kind of had to get over my star-struckedness pretty quickly. I’ll tell you this is another interesting thing. Being directed by an actor can go one of two ways. A lot of times actors think they can direct because they have been directed a lot. And what ends up happening is the technical director or director photography do their jobs for them and they just tell you which door to come in.
Jensen, on the other hand, was really very good. He knew exactly what he wanted. He knew exactly where shots were going. AND, because he was an actor, we had one moment that he came up to me with the script and said, “You know this line right there? What are you doing with that?” And I looked straight at him and said, “Saying it really fast so we can get to the next line because I don’t know what I’m doing there.”
And he goes, “And that’s exactly what it looks like.” [Laughs]
He goes, “Let me remind you…” And he didn’t tell me how to do it differently; he just brought up a couple of things, “remember this, this, and this,… and you do this, this and this.” And I was like “Ohhhhh…that makes total sense! Okay!” So then we went back and shot it again and then I did know what I was doing with the line, so I had control and did my thing. And then all he did was he just nodded ‘good job’ and that was it. It wasn’t like, “That’s what I was looking for! You’re a genius!” It was just ‘good job’ and it was done. I felt like “Babe.” That’ll do pig. In a good way.
Another thing that happens a lot of times when actors direct other actors, they tell them how to act the role. It’s “No, no, no, you got to do it this way. You’ve got to do it that way.” Only because that’s how they would do it themselves. And Jensen was just like “Hey looks like you’re having a little bit of a problem with this moment right here. Let me remind you of this, this, and this and that might help.” And it did.
To me, that is an ideal director. I don’t want someone blasting for 15 minutes about my character’s childhood or my motivations, and I don’t want someone who will just let me flounder and not notice when I kind of think “what is this spot?”
http://supernatural-fandom.com/articles/?p=137
August 13
8m Greg Vaughan @greg_vaughan
For all #daysofourlives @nbcdays Eric Brady & Jensen Ackles Fans is truly a class act, whom I've known & can call a friend as a fellow Texan
"Greg, it just gives me a little more gratification knowing that somebody I respect in the business is playing the part."
- Jensen Ackles(On Greg Vaughan taking over his role of Eric Brady on Days)
http://daytimeconfidential.zap2it.com/2012/08/30/supernaturals-jensen-ackles-called-to-wish-days-recast-greg-vaughan-well
Greg Vaughan @greg_vaughan
Reached out & gave me his blessings, as this role & show were very dear to him...as he's excited to know this role has me taking the reins!
Aug 27
Russ Location Tour VanCon 2012
Both days Russ literally gushed about what a great director Jensen is. He's well-prepared, organized, thoughtful of the crew, doesn't use up time just because he has it, and regularly finished ahead of schedule. Russ couldn't say enough about how well he did.
Aug 30 2012
Jeffrey Dean Morgan
They say, “We would love him to come back for the last season.” So that’s been the kind of relationship that we’ve had for the last couple years. I’m very good friends with Jensen in particular. I talk to him quite a bit.
http://www.craveonline.com/film/interviews/195041-thats-how-i-roll-jeffrey-dean-morgan-on-the-possession-and-magic-city
Aug 31st Guy Norman Bee Twitter
Great day 7 on #bloodbrother #SPN #805 - #Jackles and @TyOlsson are 2 of the baddest Muthaf%#ckers working today! Mesmerizing performances!
“I had to grab Jensen’s shoulder and pretend to push him down to his knees and when I grabbed his shoulder I thought I’d break my hand!”- Jason Dohring from the Supernatural Magazine
18 hours ago with 30 notes