Swoosie Kurtz Loves The Challenge Of Call Me Kat's Speedy Pace

Television is a very fast medium, and it's been getting faster over time. According to a 2002 Wall Street Journal article, television producers seem to think that people sound smarter when they talk faster, a strategy employed liberally on shows like "The West Wing" and "Gilmore Girls," both of which resorted to hiring dialogue coaches to help the actors keep up with the rapid-fire pace of the dialogue.

In an interview on the "Gilmore Girls" podcast, "I Am All In," dialogue coach George Bell revealed that the pace of the dialogue was more of a challenge for some actors than others. According to Bell, Jackson Douglas, who played Jackson Belleville, and Liz Torres, who played Miss Patty, both had difficulties associated with remembering and delivering their lines in the fast-paced scripts. Notably, Bell also shared that Kathleen Wilhoite, who played Liz Danes, struggled because of her background in improv. Although the actress was accustomed to occasionally winging it in other productions, the "Gilmore Girls" producers actually wanted the scripts read word-for-word.

But the fast pace of television isn't as hard on every actor. Bell noted some of the show's actors, like Lauren Graham and Sean Gunn, got the lines down fairly easily. And for some actors, among them "Call Me Kat" actor Swoosie Kurtz, the breakneck tempo of television is part of its appeal.

In a 2022 interview with SciFi Vision, three of the central stars of "Call Me Kat" were asked what they like about the sitcom format. In response, Swoosie Kurtz, the actress who plays Sheila, replied that her favorite part is the pacing. 

"I love that I feel so challenged by that," she said. "Everything moves fast; every minute counts because it costs so much, and everything else. They throw new lines at you in the middle of shooting ... It could be a tongue twister, and you go, 'Okay, I can do this.' It's fun and scary as hell ... I just find the speed so challenging, but I love it. Like, 'Can I come up to this?' And then I feel very heroic when I actually do, the few times that I do." Mayim Bialik, who plays the titular character, echoed Kurtz's comments, while Kyla Pratt, who plays Randi, noted her own love for the energy of live taping.

Kurtz apparently loves her job, as evidenced by a 2014 interview she did with Reel Life With Jane – about her previous series, "Mike and Molly" – in which she explained that she goes through a "mourning period" after she finishes a show that can only be relieved by taking another job. Between her love of the fast-paced work environment and her aversion to taking time off between gigs, it's easy to see why Kurtz is such a busy and in-demand actor.