In the latest episode of our podcast, “Settle In,” Geoff Bennett speaks with actor Nick Offerman. Since playing the curmudgeonly libertarian Ron Swanson on NBC’s Parks & Rec, he’s avoided being typecast, most recently portraying President Chester Arthur in Netflix’s “Death by Lightning.” They discussed that role, his latest book, “Little Woodchucks,” a guide to woodworking for kids, and much more.
Geoff Bennett:
We turn now to our video podcast “Settle In.”
In our latest episode, I speak with actor Nick Offerman, who joined me on a video call during a break on set. Since playing the curmudgeonly Libertarian Ron Swanson on NBC’s “Parks and Rec,” he’s avoided being typecast, most recently portraying President Chester Arthur in Netflix’s “Death By Lightning.”
We spoke about that role in his latest book, “Little Woodchucks.” It’s a guide to woodworking for kids and much more. Here’s some of that conversation.
So this book, it is such a joyful, mischievous guide to working with your hands. What made you come up with this idea to write a woodworking book specifically for kids, but also their parents who might be learning alongside them?
Nick Offerman, Author, “Little Woodchucks: Offerman Woodshop’s Guide to Tools and Tomfoolery”: Well, I have had my woodshop for 20-plus years, and I ran the shop with my co-author, whose name is Lee Buchanan.
And before — I mean, we both came from families where we were taught to use tools and make things, whether it was sew buttons on our clothing or make things in the kitchen or make things with tools in the shop. And it just made our lives better.
And so over the years, we talked about different ideas for passing along this knowledge to families, because it’s funny. The book is designed for families to learn to make things together, but it’s kind of a gentle way of saying, hey, parents, you can teach your kids to use tools, but also I know a lot of you also don’t know how to use tools.
So this is a really fun way to put people’s phones and iPads down and spend time together improving their lives without using any algorithms, just with a hammer and a pair of pliers and a good time.
Geoff Bennett:
Well, that’s one of the things I love about the book, is that these projects, when you show the finished result, they look as if the kids actually made them, as opposed to — no disrespect to set designers, but a set designer making them and saying, here kid, hold this.
But before you found success as an actor, you spent years building sets, sanding floors, taking odd jobs. What did those lean years teach you about perseverance?
Nick Offerman:
Well, my mom and dad are incredible citizens. They raised four really — four kids with good values and a great work ethic.
And so going into the arts is a risky proposition. And I said, I want to go to theater school. I want to try and be an actor. And they said, well, we support you because you have a good work ethic, but try and have something to fall back on so that you can make a living in case you don’t get cast on “Parks and Rec” until you’re 38 years old. Have some — have another way to feed yourself.
And I already had these tool skills that I grew up with. And so I became a carpenter, started framing houses, and then I ended up building a lot of scenery, as you pointed out. I mean, there were years in my 20s when I thought that that might be my life. I was like, well, I’m not really getting cast in plays the way I want to, but I really love building scenery.
And so if I ended up just being a scenic carpenter in Chicago for my career, that would have been a pretty wonderful theater community to work in. And I would have been very happy. So I have always been so grateful that I have had — that I have those skills while I’m waiting for the next script to come in.
Geoff Bennett:
I want to ask you about this new Netflix series, “Death By Lightning.” You play President Chester Arthur, a figure that I would think it’s fair to say most Americans know little about. What drew you to that role?
Nick Offerman:
Well, first of all, I think that’s a spoiler alert to say President Chester Arthur.
(Laughter)
Geoff Bennett:
It’s true.
Nick Offerman:
And, hilariously, most of the audience doesn’t — won’t actually know. They have probably heard the name Chester Arthur.
But the incredible thing about how that series came to be, our wonderful writer, Mike Makowsky, read the book “Destiny of the Republic” by Candice Millard, who’s a historian whose books I happened to love already. She has a wonderful book about Teddy Roosevelt, a great Winston Churchill book.
And so Makowsky read the book and just said, holy cow, this story is incredible, and nobody knows it. I mean, reading the script and especially learning about the journey, the sort of — the crazy roller-coaster arc that Chester A. Arthur goes through in his journey, becoming vice president and then, spoiler alert, ultimately president, just blew me away.
I was so excited to hopefully inspire the audience. I mean, it’s such a lush production. Matt Ross beautifully directed it. Benioff and Weiss and Bernie Caulfield produced it. They also made a little show called “Game of Thrones.”
And this felt as lush. Like, they lavished so much attention on the beautiful — the sets and the costumes. And the cast is so astonishing. I just love the idea of inspiring our American audience to the idea that we can actually get past the corruption in politics and we — it’s — that we have the power to choose somebody with integrity.
It’s crazy that that would be a novel idea, but it’s certainly one we seem to have gotten away from.
Geoff Bennett:
And you can hear and watch full episodes of “Settle In” on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.
