30 Rock 

Liz Lemon (Tina Fey), head writer of the sketch comedy show "TGS with Tracy Jordan", must deal with an arrogant new boss and a crazy new star, all while trying to run a successful television show without losing her mind.

Creator:

Tina Fey

Stars:

Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin, Tracy Morgan

Won 6 Golden Globes. Another 83 wins & 336 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Tina Fey	...	Liz Lemon / ... 138 episodes, 2006-2013
Tracy Morgan	...	Tracy Jordan / ... 138 episodes, 2006-2013
Jack McBrayer	...	Kenneth Parcell / ... 138 episodes, 2006-2013
Scott Adsit	...	Pete Hornberger / ... 138 episodes, 2006-2013
Judah Friedlander	...	Frank Rossitano / ... 138 episodes, 2006-2013
Alec Baldwin	...	Jack Donaghy / ... 138 episodes, 2006-2013
Jane Krakowski	...	Jenna Maroney / ... 137 episodes, 2006-2013
Keith Powell	...	Toofer / ... 130 episodes, 2006-2013
Katrina Bowden	...	Cerie 99 episodes, 2006-2013
Kevin Dotcom Brown	...	Dot Com 82 episodes, 2006-2013
Grizz Chapman	...	Grizz 77 episodes, 2006-2013
John Lutz	...	J.D. Lutz / ... 73 episodes, 2006-2013
Maulik Pancholy	...	Jonathan 62 episodes, 2006-2013

Storyline

Elizabeth "Liz" Lemon (Tina Fey) is the executive show runner for a late night sketch comedy show called "The Girlie Show", that stars her close friend and major drama queen Jenna Maroney (Jane Krakowski). When GE hires a new Executive Vice President for NBC named Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin), he decides to take Liz Lemon under his wing and turn around TGS, which for years has been unable to find the proper audience it deserves. So to do so, he brings on unhinged, wildly unpredictable star Tracy Jordan (Tracy Morgan) to turn the series into a ratings hit. But Liz soon finds out that controlling her oddball writing staff, the NBC page program, keeping Tracy on a short leash, and getting him to get along with Jenna proves to be one disaster after another. Will TGS ever see true success? And will Liz find the right partner to get married and start a family?

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Plot Keywords:

writing | workplace | employer employee relationship | television writer | television network | 

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Taglines:

Enjoy the ride. (Season 2)

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

TV-14

Did You Know?

Trivia

In addition to Tina Fey, Tracy Morgan, Jason Sudeikis, and Rachel Dratch, many Saturday Night Live (1975) alumni were on this show over the years, including Chris Parnell as Dr. Spaceman, the late Jan Hooks as Jenna's mother, Verna Maloney, Will Ferrell as Shane Hunter, Fred Armisen as Frank 2.0, Bill Hader as Kevin, Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Liz in a live episode, Rob Riggle as Reggie, Bobby Moynihan as Stewart Derr, Siobhan Fallon Hogan as Patricia, Andy Samberg as himself, Kristen Wiig as Candice Van Der Shark , Amy Poehler as young Liz, Don Pardo as Sid the announcer, Horatio Sanz as Maynard, Molly Shannon as Katherine Catherine, and Lorne Michaels as Reverend Gimp. Conan O'Brien, a former Saturday Night Live (1975) writer from 1987-1991, also appeared as himself in two episodes, and was the inspiration for season four, episode eighteen, "Khonani".

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Quotes

Tracy Jordan: Here's some advice I wish I woulda got when I was your age.Live every week like it's Shark Week.

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Connections

Referenced in Late Night with Seth Meyers: Jane Fonda/Leslie Jones/Kay Cannon (2015)

User Reviews

Still 10/10, even with 20/20 hindsight

I'm rewatching the series in 2020 after having discovered it in a library almost a decade ago and WOW! Has it aged well! Or maybe it's just that the world has aged badly in intervening years.

Step into 30 Rock and inhabit a world where female wit is a force to be reckoned with; where every actor gets their 2.5 minutes of fame per episode, and every character brilliantly subverts their own stereotypes in a way that's deep but not at all serious. From the mid life crisis man in Adsit, to the self sabotaging female boss in Fey, to the rags to riches star in Morgan, the aging fame addicted starlet in Krakowski... you never get tired of seeing the layers fall away from these people. It's light, but still riveting. And it is all tied together by plot arcs that are as insane as the best SNL skits (and funnier, in many cases).

By far, though, the best thing about watching this after several years is that it is so packed with one liners and sharp, snide social commentary that you can watch it again and again and still see new angles and perspectives. There's almost too much to take in in one single viewing in any of these episodes - and that's a great thing if you're a fan of the series, which I am.

I have a feeling you will be, too.

Details

Official Sites:

Hulu

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 October 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

Untitled Tina Fey Project

Filming Locations:

Silvercup Studios - 4222 22nd Street, Long Island City, Queens, New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Broadway Video, Little Stranger, NBC Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

22 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1