Jonathan Silverman’s enthusiasm is contagious. Just talking with him over the phone about his two upcoming films, Jam and Laura Smiles, put me in a good mood. But why shouldn't Silverman be happy? Both movies were selected to screen at this year’s Vail Film Festival; he’s shooting a pilot for a Jon Favreau’s TV series called In Case of Emergency; and he’s engaged to Jennifer Finnigan, the lovely star of ABC’s Close to Home.  

Commenting on what it was like working on Jam and Laura Smiles, Silverman said, “Because Jam is an ensemble film featuring 17 or 18 lead actors, it was nice to share the responsibility and schedule with such a large cast. It wasn’t a bit hectic or stressful. And Laura Smiles is my most favorite film work to date. The role I play is such a departure from what I’ve usually done. It’s very serious, very sad -- definitely nothing like Weekend at Bernie’s. I’ve seen the movie a handful of times with audiences and the reaction to the film is quite intense. It leaves some viewers speechless.”

When asked to describe what these two films are about, Silverman explained that Jam uses a plot device similar to Crash in that it deals with intersecting lives, but no race relations are involved. Several people become involved in a traffic jam on Father’s Day and are stuck together for a long period of time. “I play a man who’s married to a rather difficult woman,” Silverman said. “Because my character is so busy, there’s been little time to talk, so this situation gives the couple a chance to do that.”

According to Silverman, Laura Smiles is about a woman’s search for happiness or to find her long-lost smile. He reports that Variety calls it “the independent world’s American Beauty.” This film already has a distributor and will be coming out in September. “The movie focuses on the men in Laura’s life,” Silverman said. “She’s trapped in a loveless marriage. Petra Wright portrays Laura, and I play her lover.”

Although Silverman’s resume includes success in live theater, television and film, he never thought about being an actor while growing up in Los Angeles. “I have no show-biz blood or heritage, but I certainly knew children of stars and something about the challenges of that career,” he said. “And I always loved performing in school plays. At one of these high school plays, an agent who was in the audience saw me and said, ‘Hey, you’re a terrific actor.’”

That started the ball rolling. Silverman obtained a couple of commercial gigs, then later auditioned for Neil Simon and wound up in his Brighton Beach Memoirs on Broadway for two years. “I went on to appear in his Biloxi Blues and Broadway Bound. So what started out as an adventure for a teenager ended up being my career,” Silverman declared. In addition to numerous television appearances and the Weekend at Bernie’s films, the talented actor's movie credits include Brighton Beach Memoirs, The Odd Couple II, Made, Death Becomes Her, The Cookout and Class Action.

Do Silverman and Finnigan have plans to work together in the future? “We’ve talked about appearances on each other’s TV show,” he replied. “And that would be great. We’re shooting on adjacent lots and could meet for lunch in our trailers!”

It couldn’t happen to a happier guy.

(Photo: Jonathan Silverman in Jam. Copyright © 2006 Thanksgiving Films. All Rights Reserved.)