Jim O’Heir On His New Film “86 Melrose Avenue,” How “Parks & Recreation” Changed His Life, His Chicago Roots & More

From writer/director Lili Matta and starring Dada Elza (Mystery Incorporated) and Jim O’Heir (Parks & Recreation), action has a new address: 86 Melrose Avenue. Within the Gravitas Ventures film — which also features Emmy Award winner Gregory Zarian, Anastasia Antonia, Terri Ivens, Langstone Fishburne, Michael Polak, Andy Evans, Richard Sabine, Helen Kennedy and Gary Sturm — a diverse group of people at a gallery opening is taken hostage by an ex-Marine suffering with PTSD and forced to confront their cultural differences, their pasts, and their looming mortality as time ticks away.

The aforementioned Jim O’Heir has been working steadily in film and television projects for over 20 years. He first found undeniable success in 2009 when he landed the role of Jerry Gergich on Parks & Recreation, which he was part of for over 120 episodes. But even while appearing on the series widely-nicknamed “Parks & Rec,” O’Heir worked on many other projects. Thus, it is incredibly-difficult to pigeonhole O’Heir to a genre, a role you would expect him to play, or anything really.

On April 21, 2021, I had the pleasure of speaking with Jim O’Heir via Zoom, as embedded below. Beyond 86 Melrose Avenue — now out through all key digital and on-demand outlets — we talked about his journey from Chicago’s theater scene to mainstream roles in Los Angeles. More on O’Heir and 86 Melrose Avenue can be found by clicking over to here, here, here, here and here.

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Tags: 86 Melrose Avenue, Chicago, Gravitas Ventures, Jim O'Heir, Los Angeles, Parks & Recreation, Second City

About the Author

Darren Paltrowitz Darren Paltrowitz is a New York resident with over 20 years of entertainment industry experience. He began working around the music business as a teenager, interning for the manager of his then-favorite band Superdrag. Since then, he has worked with a wide array of artists including OK Go, They Might Be Giants, Mike Viola, Tracy Bonham, Loudness, Rachael Yamagata, and Amanda Palmer. Darren's writing has appeared in dozens of outlets including the New York Daily News, Inquisitr, The Daily Meal, The Hype Magazine, All Music Guide, Guitar World, TheStreet.com, Businessweek, Chicago Tribune, L.A. Times, and the Jewish Journal. Beyond being "Editor At Large" for The Hype Magazine, Darren is also the host of weekly "Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz" series, which airs on dozens on television and digital networks. He has also co-authored 2 published books, 2018's "Pocket Change: Your Happy Money" (Book Web Publishing) and 2019's "Good Advice From Professional Wrestling" (6623 Press), and co-hosts the world's only known podcast about David Lee Roth, "The DLR Cast."