Tim Daly: Hot Water and Leaving Creative Arts to Humans

Acclaimed Actor Tim Daly Shares How Getting Into Hot Water Got Him to Amy Schumer’s “Life & Beth,” Takes Cancel Culture Head On, And Why Creative Arts Should be Left to Humans

Los Angeles, CA (March 28, 2023): Renowned “UnPrisoned,” “Madam Secretary,” and “Wings” actor, Tim Daly, spoke with Robin Bronk, CEO of The Creative Coalition on this week’s episode of Hollywood at Home – a podcast diving into uncut and uncensored realities with the entertainment industry who’s who. Tim, who also serves as the President of The Creative Coalition, discusses how Amy Schumer convinced him to join “Life & Beth” while borrowing his friend’s shower, his take on cancel culture, and why funding for the arts is more important than ever. 

Highlights from Hollywood at Home featuring Tim Daly:

Hot Water Led Tim to Amy Schumer’s “Life & Beth:” “There’s a knock on the door, and Amy Schumer, her husband Chris, and her son… said, ‘Listen, we don’t have any hot water. Can we use your shower?’ [They] come in their bathrobes and use the shower. And one day, Amy [said] ‘I’m doing this new show. You have to come and be on it.’ She sent me the script… I invented this crazy character… Amy loved it and asked me to come back this year and reprise my role, and it’s much bigger and really fun.”

Cancel Culture Doesn’t Stop Tim From Storytelling: “From where I sit, humor is mostly born out of pain… If we take away the ability to make fun of pain and people’s pain, then we’re taking away a lot of humor… I got into [acting] to poke around in every corner of the human experience. Good, bad, ugly, horrific, joyous. It’s my job to illuminate all the things that human beings do… Some [are] really horrific… and some [are] amazing and transformative…”

Emotional Truths are Key: “Just make sure that it has emotional truth because that’s what keeps an audience engaged and moved and laughing and crying… What is real about a painting? It’s a 2-dimensional thing on the wall. And yet if it’s done the right way, it can be tremendously moving and tell an emotional story that absolutely hits the truth inside you…”

Fighting for Creativity in the Face of AI: “Everybody is starting to get very excited about artificial intelligence. There are so many jobs that computers can do now that human beings no longer have to do. Being creative and being in a creative field and being able to think creatively is more important than ever… Every child is born so creative and with such an amazing imagination, but [those] muscles have to be exercised, otherwise they weaken… You exercise them by having arts in your life, participating in them, and experiencing them. So, that’s [The Creative Coalition’s] mission – to make people understand the importance of arts, the importance to our children, to our economy, to our culture, and humanity.” 

Screw Labels! Tim Daly Identifies with One Thing: “I grew up at the tail end of the 60s. I am opposed to the incessant labeling of people and the thinner and thinner slices by which we identify ourselves because we are part of one race, the human race… We have to remember that we are all human beings. That is the characteristic we share the most… And mostly what we want to do is provide for our families, have a good meal, have a laugh, and love the people that we love. I started saying humans a while ago, ’cause it’s the only label that I really want to accept.”

More about Hollywood at Home:
Hosted by The Creative Coalition CEO Robin Bronk, “Hollywood at Home” brings listeners intimate portraits, key moments of discovery, and “art and soul” conversations with iconic entertainment industry personalities from the big screen to the boardroom, from L.A. to D.C. Listen now at http://thecreativecoalition.org/podcast.

Previous guests include Sheryl Lee Ralph (“Abbott Elementary”), Marlee Matlin (“CODA”), Jason Alexander (“Curb Your Enthusiasm”), Alan Cumming (“Schmigadoon!, “The Good Wife”), Patricia Heaton (“Everybody Loves Raymond,” “The Middle”), Eric McCormack (“Will and Grace”), Willie Garson (“And Just Like That…”), Colman Domingo (“Euphoria”), Kerry Ehrin (“The Morning Show”), Wendi McLendon-Covey (“The Goldbergs”), Ken Olin (“This is Us,” “Thirtysomething”), Anthony Rapp (“Star Trek: Discovery”), Julie Taymor (“The Lion King”), and Alfre Woodard (Clemency,” “Luke Cage”), among others.  

More about The Creative Coalition:

Founded in 1989 by prominent members of the creative community, The Creative Coalition is the premier nonprofit, nonpartisan 501(c)(3) social and public advocacy organization of the arts and entertainment community. The Creative Coalition is dedicated to educating its members on issues of public importance. Actor Tim Daly serves as the organization’s President. For more information, visit https://thecreativecoalition.org.

Media Contact:
Marvin Roca Jr. 
marvin@therosegrp.com
707-540-1850

###