Back in 2008, NBC’s 30 Rock had an episode entitled “Believe in the Stars” that dealt with Kenneth learning that Olympic hero Tyler Brody was just a fake, because there was no such thing as Olympic tetherball, octuples tennis, or synchronized running. I and the other 2 million people who watch the show religiously laughed because it playfully mocked the fad of Olympic athlete hero worship and how NBC – and every network, for that matter – tries to strike while the iron (or gold, *rimshot*) is hot.
Now, though, the joke has come full circle, because 30 Rock will have a guest appearance by Olympic gold medal swimmer Ryan Lochte this season, and I’m sure that we have someone awesome that we can all thank for this.
Oh, and you can totally thank us, your E! friends, for making this cameo happen. (You are welcome, America!) Because the ultra-busy Lochte is in New York this week covering Fashion Week for E! News (weeknights at 7 p.m.), so he was able to squeeze in the 30 Rock gig.
“It was a long morning. We did a lot of takes, but, you know what, it was fun,” Lochte tells our own Cat Sadler. “Being with Alec Baldwin on set…he’s a great guy. Great actor. I enjoyed it. I had so much fun. And I can’t really tell you what it was about, but it was outrageous.”
Really, a lot of takes? It couldn’t be Lochte’s fault, because he’s a natural, gifted actor. He’s just exploding with personality and charisma. It must have been because one of those talentless hack “actors” couldn’t get his damn lines down. I’m looking at Scott Adsit, that amateur.
30 Rock doesn’t really get any credit for how many hilarious sports jokes it delivers each season – perhaps credit is coming sooner than we think – so maybe we can hope that the premise of Lochte’s cameo is self-aware. But I’ve got $5 on what Frank’s hat will read…
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