In the 1990s, O'Malley was host of Nickelodeon shows ranging from Nickelodeon Guts to Get the Picture. "What really took off was when I was cast to be the host of Guts," he says. "We made four seasons and 120 episodes, and that was great. It was a great time in my life. I was in my early-to-mid 20s—I think I worked for Nickelodeon from about the time I was 23 to about the time I was 27 or 28." As for Parks and Rec, O'Malley says: "I had met Mike Schur many years ago and always wanted to work with him because I think he’s so funny. I tested for the part of Ron Swanson. I didn’t get it, and that was a bummer. They cast the right guy, but I would have liked to have done that part. And so, I’d see Mike and I’d sort of joke like, 'Hey, man, was there nobody else I could have played on Parks?' But then Parks and Rec was on when I was doing Glee, so I wasn’t really available."
TOPICS: Mike O'Malley, Nickelodeon, Parks and Recreation, Retro TV