The Office is one of the most iconic and beloved shows of the more recent era of television, so obviously it's been dissected and evaluated about every way it can. Office trivia nights where fans flex their show facts knowledge are a common thing; major fans know that Froggy bumper sticker is an actual reference to a Scranton radio station, and most everyone has a theory on who the true Scranton strangler is.
That's all well and good, but do diehard fans of The Office who have seen the best episodes nearly a dozen times know some of these lesser known facts? Prepare for some extra Office knowledge via these interesting tidbits, and maybe be the one who secures that Dundee for the team during the next trivia night.
There Is No Chili's In Scranton, Pennsylvania
Chili's is the new golf course. It's where business happens. That's what Michael Scott believes, and The Office showed it's one of his go-to spots when an event has to go down for Dunder Mifflin. It was also the spot for various other events in the series, which must be kind of funny to actual residents of Scranton, Pennsylvania, who don't have a Chili's in town to visit.
With that said, Chili's website does show there's a location in the Wilkes-Barre area. That's not an incredibly far drive from Scranton, but much further than the alleged few blocks that Michael Scott said it was located in The Office. Given the amount of publicity the franchise got from the NBC comedy, one would think a location would be in the real Scranton by now. It could even become Chili's biggest location, provided Jenna Fischer is allowed to stop by and eat there.
Michael Scott's Diploma Isn't Actually A Diploma
During the interviews Steve Carell's Michael Scott gives in his office, The Office faithful may spot a diploma over his shoulder. It turns out though, that's not a diploma at all, but rather a certificate of authenticity. Apparently, Michael is very proud of the fact that he is the owner of a "Quality Seyko timepiece." So exactly how much did Michael spend on that watch that he wants people to know?
By Oscar's estimation in The Office webisode The Accountants, not much. There, Oscar claimed that Michael's diploma is only proof he bought a knockoff Seiko, which is an actual watch company. Did the optimistic-but-clueless Michael get fooled into thinking what he thought was valuable, or is he trying to fool everyone else? Whatever happened, let's just hope he didn't spend too much on that watch!
Kevin's Actor Struggled To Get The Smell Of Chili Off Of Himself
Kevin's chili cold open is one of The Office's most iconic cold opens, despite Mindy Kaling absolutely hating the initial pitch. That aside, Brian Baumgartner knocked the scene out of the park in his first take, and saved the carpet replacement team on the show a lot of heartache in having to potentially switch it out for two more takes.
The only downside of the scene, Baumgartner later mentioned to Buzzfeed, was that the clean-up after the scene was horrendous. The Kevin Malone actor ended up going to a nice steakhouse with Angela Kinsey (Angela) and Oscar Nunez (Oscar), and could still smell chili from the shoot on his body. By the way, that Chili wasn't actually homemade, and was actually a bunch of Hormel canned chili. Turns out those wanting Kevin's chili need only visit their local supermarket!
A Ton Of Work Went Into Creating "Threat Level Midnight"
Michael Scott's screenplay "Threat Level Midnight" finally got a feature debut in The Office Season 7, and making that episode was no easy task. B.J. Novak revealed there were several shooting restrictions given to the crew for the filming so that Michael's film would feel amateur but not overtly so, and special care had to be taken for each scene to ensure the numerous cameo appearances didn't jeopardize the show's continuity.
Additionally, special measures were taken to make sure each character's looks matched to how they would've looked at the time Michael shot the scene. It's a crazy amount of detail some folks probably would never even notice, but should give The Office fans a whole new level of appreciation for how hard people worked behind the scenes to make this series as good as it can possibly be. It's not wonder it still has so many fans to this day.
Quite A Few Office Characters Share Names With Famous Baseball Players
Major League Baseball buffs likely know this, but quite a few characters on The Office are named after famous baseball stars. There's Kevin Malone, Michael Scott, Devon White and Ryan Howard, who became a major player on the Philadelphia Phillies during the show. The first baseman actually was a part of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barr minor league team before the majors, and later appeared on the show after reaching superstar status.
These names could be a coincidence, but it's a well-known fact co-creator of The Office and creator of other great shows Michael Schur also worked as a sports blogger under the pseudonym "Ken Tremendous." Given that knowledge, it's hard to believe that Schur wasn't at least partly inspired by the names of a couple famous sports figures when coming up with these names. At least he picked normal-sounding names, folks would've caught on sooner had he gone with a name like Blake Bortles.
John Krasinski Shot Parts Of The Opening Of The Office
When John Krasinski learned he had gotten the role of Jim Halpert on The Office, he was psyched. Keep in mind, this was back before anyone knew what a behemoth comedy it would become, and it could've easily been a one-and-done series had NBC not believed the show's popularity would escalate with Steve Carell's career. Still, who wouldn't be thrilled to be a young actor with a lead on a network series?
John Krasinski was so thrilled that he traveled to Scranton, Pennsylvania, to talk to people who sold paper for a living. He also shot footage of the town, some of which was spliced into the iconic intro that viewers see every time they tune in for an episode or two. Had The Office gone with someone else, the show would've lost one of the key elements that made it so special in more ways than one, and that's pretty cool.
Related: Office Memes That Are As Funny As The Show Itself
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