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Archer
The seventh season of Archer is about to begin. The first four seasons revolved around the witty, overconfident, and often inappropriate spy Sterling Archer, alongside his team at the International Secret Intelligence Service. Season five transitioned into Archer Vice, a drug and country music-infused Miami Vice homage. By the sixth season, the team found themselves working with the CIA. Soon, Archer would evolve into a detective series full of Magnum P.I. and Tom Selleck references. But before you dive into the new season, here are some key facts about the beloved animated series.
1. ADAM REED CAME UP WITH THE IDEA FOR THE SHOW WHILE TRAVELING THROUGH SPAIN.
Before Adam Reed, the creator of Archer, took a year-long trip across Europe, two significant events took place in his life: the cancellation of his show Frisky Dingo (2006-2008), which he co-created with Matt Thompson, and the gift of a complete set of James Bond paperbacks. While traveling through Spain, Reed often found himself contemplating Bond, and one day, sitting in a café in Salamanca, Spain, a stunning woman ignored him. He couldn't figure out how to approach her, but he imagined the kind of character who would: a spy.
2. THE SHOW WAS ORIGINALLY TITLED DUCHESS.
The original title of the show was Duchess, named after both Sterling's code name and Malory's Afghan hound. This title remained in place until nearly the very last day of animating the opening sequence.
3. MALORY'S CHARACTER WAS INSPIRED BY DAME JUDI DENCH.
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"I was watching the reboot of James Bond with Judi Dench as M," Reed said in 2011. "And for some reason, I thought, 'What if she was his mother?' That’s when the character of Malory clicked. Then I thought it would be funny if his ex-girlfriend worked there and was actually better at her job than he was."
4. FOR HIS AUDITION, H. JON BENJAMIN HAD TO LOCATE A STUDIO IN TUCSON, ARIZONA.
H. Jon Benjamin was visiting his parents in Arizona when Adam Reed called him, asking for a quick voice recording of the pilot. "Basically, I had to do all the legwork and find a recording studio in Tucson," Benjamin shared with The A.V. Club. "There are a couple there."
5. FX PREFERRED A HANDSOME DRAMATIC ACTOR TO VOICE STERLING ARCHER.
"FX had a list of actors who were really dramatic and resembled Archer," Reed told Adweek. "But we kept saying, 'Jon Benjamin! Trust us, it’s going to work!'" To prove his point, Reed had the character of Archer animated in a suit and sent FX a video of Archer talking to children about showing them a dead body, using audio from H. Jon Benjamin’s role as Coach John McGuirk in Home Movies (1999-2004). The network loved it.
6. RAY LOOKS SIMILAR TO ONE OF THE SHOW'S VOICE ACTORS, BUT HE'S NOT THE ONE WHO VOICES HIM
THE ACTOR BEHIND
RAY.
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The character model for field agent Ray Gillette was inspired by Lucky Yates. Yates, however, is actually the voice actor behind Dr. Krieger.
As for the rest of the characters: Sterling's appearance is based on a professional photographer, former model, and electrician. Lana's look is inspired by a Hooters waitress who once served Reed and Thompson after they attended a Monster Truck Rally for Reed’s birthday. Brett's character is modeled after and voiced by Neal Holman, the show's art director and producer.
7. NEITHER RAY NOR CHERYL WERE INTENDED TO BE RECURRING CHARACTERS.
Reed agreed to voice Dr. Krieger himself under the assumption that he would be a one-off character, believing hiring a professional voice actor would be unnecessary. Cheryl Tunt, too, was meant to be a brief character, until Judy Greer took on the role. "The idea was that Archer kept impregnating Malory’s secretaries," Reed shared about Cheryl's original storyline. "Whenever it happened, they would be knocked out with sleeping gas and dumped at Bellevue Hospital with no memory or ID. But once Judy agreed to voice her, Cheryl became a much bigger character."
8. FX STANDARDS AND PRACTICES RAISED A FEW ISSUES WITH THE SERIES.
The network had concerns when Archer was depicted throwing a baby to disarm an assassin. FX also took issue with Anka Schlotz being 14 years old in the season two premiere, "Swiss Miss." "I made her 14 after doing some research on Wikipedia and learning that’s the age of consent in Germany," Reed explained to The A.V. Club. "They told me they didn’t care what the age of consent was in Germany, it wasn’t acceptable for FX."
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Reed struggled with how to make his lead character someone the audience could sympathize with, given that he was a smart, handsome, wealthy playboy who could also beat you up. His solution was to strip away the 'smart' aspect. However, FX thought the 'bumbling spy' trope had been overdone. "So I kept having him do dumb things," Reed explained to the Writers Guild of America, West. "We clashed throughout the first season until I came up with a convincing argument for FX: He's not stupid. He's just incredibly confident and believes that nothing bad will ever happen to him, so in these dangerous situations where he acts foolishly, he's deliberately being oblivious to see what will happen. That helped open up some possibilities. Plus, his mother is a mess, and his sad childhood is relatable. That makes him more likable."
10. JESSICA WALTER DOESN'T GET SOME OF MALORY'S REFERENCES.
Jessica Walter (who plays Lucille Bluth on Arrested Development) voices Malory Archer. "I don’t understand half of the references. I always have to ask, 'What does this mean?' because I’m not very trendy," Walter shared with The A.V. Club. One particular instance where she didn’t understand a script line was when Malory was meant to sing the "boom-chicka-boom" music often heard in adult films. Walter insisted on a line reading because she didn’t know what it was.
11. RON CADILLAC AND MALORY ARCHER ARE MARRIED IN REAL LIFE.
Ron Leibman and Jessica Walter have been married since 1983. Leibman joined the cast due to his notable work on Kaz (1978-1979), a series that Leibman not only created but also co-wrote and starred in, earning him an Emmy Award for Lead Actor in a Drama. On the short-lived CBS series, Leibman portrayed Martin 'Kaz' Kazinsky, a car thief turned criminal lawyer.
12. BURT REYNOLDS FELT HE COULD HAVE DONE MORE WITH HIS GUEST APPEARANCE.
"I personally thought I was a little too dull," Reynolds told GQ after voicing himself in the episode "The Man From Jupiter," where he played Archer's idol and Malory's boyfriend. "Maybe they should've gotten me after I'd had a few drinks... I think I could have brought more energy. I just didn’t give the character enough depth. I tried to be genuine, but in hindsight, that wasn’t enough." Reynolds expressed his willingness to return for another guest spot on the show.
13. THE AMERICAN TINNITUS ASSOCIATION HAS PRAISED THE SHOW.
Matt Thompson, the executive producer of Archer, and the show's staff were contacted by the American Tinnitus Association. They expressed being "pleased" with the depiction of Sterling Archer's struggles with tinnitus. The show has also contributed merchandise for ATA charity auctions.
14. TUMBLR PLAYED A ROLE IN PERSUADING JON HAMM TO GUEST STAR.
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Thompson introduced Jon Hamm’s management to the Sterling Draper Archer Pryce Tumblr account, which paired screenshots from Mad Men with quotes from Archer. This helped Thompson convince Hamm that the online community wanted to see him voice Captain Murphy in the two-part episode 'Sea Tunt.'
15. THE EXACT TIME PERIOD IS NEVER DEFINED.
While Cold War politics often influence the storylines in Archer, there are also contemporary references. Despite the outdated feel of some of the technology, characters still use cell phones. Reed explained that the show's time period is "intentionally left vague."
