Princewill Pius
Ellie Kemper may have found lasting fame due to her role as Erin Hannon on The Office, but it turns out that she only got that gig after she tried (and failed) to get a part on another popular series. “[Kemper] first auditioned when executive producer Greg Daniels was casting a new, then untitled comedy that turned out to be Parks and Recreation,” according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. While the opportunity on the Amy Poehler-led series didn’t work out, Daniels was apparently still impressed enough with Kemper’s skills that those responsible for Steve Carell’s hit show contacted her for a different job. Kemper explained, “I felt more comfortable going in because I’d met them before.”
From there, Kemper turned what was meant to be a temporary role into something much more. Initially hired “to fill in for a few episodes as the receptionist on The Office,” the media outlet reports, the show’s “producers were charmed and … asked Kemper to become a regular on the NBC comedy.”
Sticking with The Office from 2009 until its end in 2013, it’s hard to imagine the show without Kemper’s character, which means that it’s probably a good thing that she failed her Parks and Rec audition. Although, she would have made a great resident of Pawnee, Ind. Or, now that we think of it, her character likely would have been from Eagleton.
Written by: Nicki
