Unscripted Success
Wendi McLendon-Covey brings comic genius to small and big screens
Lindsay Turner
Issue date: 2/21/07 Section: Life & Style
"All our dialogue is improvised, but we have outlines that we follow so we know what is supposed to happen in a scene. We know from point "a" to point "b," which can be good and bad because sometimes we start improvising and we go completely off target," McLendon-Covey explained. "The good thing about this is that all the dialogue sounds fresh and real and doesn't sound like, 'one, two, three, punch line,' which is what most sitcoms are," she said.
Currently in its fourth season, "Reno" has become one of the network's top TV shows and now a full-length film.
On Friday, McLendon-Covey hits big screens nationwide as Clemey in Fox's movie, "Reno 911! Miami." This movie follows the Reno Sheriff's Department to South Beach for the National Police Convention. The movie stars the full TV series cast including new-comer Mary Birdsong (Deputy Cherisha Kimball) who joined the regulars in its third season and the man behind the famous Chihuahua voice that popularized the slogan "Yo quiero Taco Bell," Carlos Alazraqui (Deputy James Garcia) who has been on the show since season one.
The new locale sets the movie apart from the series, as does the movie's scale, production values and un-pixilated nudity. Get ready for a lot of naked boobs, a 30-foot, beached whale, Danny DeVito, granny panties, a scoliosis bra and Lt. Dangle's infamous short shorts in blue, according to the film's press release.
Being in Miami brings out the wild side in all the Reno cops, but no one more so than Clemey. "She's trying to patrol the streets of Miami while figuring out a night of regret," McLendon-Covey said. "Clemey did something regrettable in Miami and tries to figure out who she did it with, but it doesn't get solved until the very end of the movie when the credits are rolling."
Something that was important to Lennon, one of the creators of the series, was to express that being familiar with the series isn't necessary to enjoy the movie. Anything that needs to be established about these characters can be figured out within the first few minutes of the film, according to the press release.
Currently in its fourth season, "Reno" has become one of the network's top TV shows and now a full-length film.
On Friday, McLendon-Covey hits big screens nationwide as Clemey in Fox's movie, "Reno 911! Miami." This movie follows the Reno Sheriff's Department to South Beach for the National Police Convention. The movie stars the full TV series cast including new-comer Mary Birdsong (Deputy Cherisha Kimball) who joined the regulars in its third season and the man behind the famous Chihuahua voice that popularized the slogan "Yo quiero Taco Bell," Carlos Alazraqui (Deputy James Garcia) who has been on the show since season one.
The new locale sets the movie apart from the series, as does the movie's scale, production values and un-pixilated nudity. Get ready for a lot of naked boobs, a 30-foot, beached whale, Danny DeVito, granny panties, a scoliosis bra and Lt. Dangle's infamous short shorts in blue, according to the film's press release.
Being in Miami brings out the wild side in all the Reno cops, but no one more so than Clemey. "She's trying to patrol the streets of Miami while figuring out a night of regret," McLendon-Covey said. "Clemey did something regrettable in Miami and tries to figure out who she did it with, but it doesn't get solved until the very end of the movie when the credits are rolling."
Something that was important to Lennon, one of the creators of the series, was to express that being familiar with the series isn't necessary to enjoy the movie. Anything that needs to be established about these characters can be figured out within the first few minutes of the film, according to the press release.
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