So not to brag, but I’m really good with middles.
Beginnings? Too much exposition. Endings? Hate saying goodbye. But middles? I got you covered. I'm your Act Two dude, ride or die.
Probably why I chose TV over film and stage. Most of your time is spent in the middle of the story. Which is right where I’ve been for almost 25 years. Everything I’ve written… from As the World Turns to Monday Night Raw, and all the shows in between...they all have two things in common: 1) They existed long before I got there, and 2) They existed long after I left.
I was blissfully, wonderfully, always in the middle...
...until 2017.
When Dave Kreizman called me in early '17 and pitched the story of the girl in the water with no memories as a podcast, I admit: I didn’t get it. But I love a good challenge, and even though I didn’t know yet how to tell a kids’ action-adventure mystery-thriller where you can’t SEE the action, the adventure, or the mysterious thrills... I said yes anyway. Because "I don't know how to do this" is the best reason in the world to do something, right?
And so the story of Holiday Anders became reality. And what started out as a side project quickly became the most important part of my day for over two years. Writing Six Minutes has been one of the most challenging jobs of my life, and simultaneously, one of the easiest. These characters made it easy. I love this family desperately holding on to the mundane, the "normal", as their world grows more and more insane around them. I couldn't get enough of them. I wanted to write this podcast forever.
I would have spent an eternity in the middle.
But about six months ago, I got on the phone... somewhere around Episode #150… and said something I never thought I’d ever say: “Hey Dave? I think we’re getting close to the end of the story.” Turns out, he had been feeling the same way. And then, we talked. A LOT. We talked about our options, about the cast (two of whom had booked gigs on prime time, and one of whom was already a movie star... we knew we were running on borrowed time with her, and while we couldn't be prouder of her success, it did leave a big question mark hovering over everything). After almost two hundred episodes, we had put these kids through SO many death-defying situations, it was starting to get comical, and if cast members were leaving, and the story was heading into its third act anyway.... we knew there was only one right decision here, even if it was the most difficult one to make. All good stories must end, and better to end when the characters tell you they’re ready, then drag them through a purgatory of mediocrity, all because you can't say goodbye.
We made the call. It was official.
In Episode #205, Six Minutes will reach its conclusion.
And I will have written my very first ending.
And for a guy who sucks at starting (and finishing) things, I can honestly say that experiencing what it’s like to give birth to an entire universe and have the privilege of seeing it through to the end of its existence is powerful, inspiring, devastating… in short, it’s been AWESOME.
And you agreed, based on the numbers. Over TWENTY MILLION downloads later (yes, TWENTY MILLION!), in homes and classrooms all over the world, you joined us on this weird little journey... and that number will continue to grow as more and more stumble upon the show, long after its last episode. (It will continue to remain online, for anyone to listen, and re-listen, as much as they want.) There are days I sit and stare at that number, because it's so humbling and mind-blowing, I don't even know what to do with it. I can't say "thank you" enough. THANK YOU.
Got a whole lot of other people to thank for the amazing gift that was this podcast:
- Ben at Gen-Z Media for his boundless enthusiasm to tell a story about ten year old spies, and for putting up with my frantic e-mails as I declared war on the US Post Office… (don't ask...)
- Chris at Gen-Z, who is behind every sound and note you hear on the show, and is the only reason this thing has a heartbeat you can not only hear, but feel…
- My two mind-numbingly brilliant scriptwriters, Nidhi Mehta and Marla Kanelos, who gave these characters souls, and always reminded me that this was never a story about robots and mutants and spies. This was a story about family...
- Our wonderful director, Michelle, whose last minute notes were always 100% dead-on right and I'm so grateful we had her voice, even as I grumbled my way through rewrites. THANK YOU for always keeping us honest, Michelle, and for the beautiful job you did with these rugrats episode after episode, week after week, month after month, year after year.
- A cast I never in my wildest dreams could have imagined when we wrote those first twenty shows. Amy and Mike (who braved being the only two adults in the room most days) and Ryan and Isabella and Sam and Graham and of course, Ava and our other Isabella (both of whom rose to the occasion and delivered heartwarming and heartbreaking performances in a totally G-rated love triangle centered around three thirteen olds that I still can't believe we pulled off), and especially...
- ...Lily Brooks, Zeph and (last and most importantly) Shahadi. None of this works without the dynamic between the Anders siblings. Through the fighting, the crying, the one-liners...if you don't buy Holiday, Cyrus and Birdie and their interactions, you don't buy any of it. You three were the glue that held this together, and your talent and professionalism and joy came through in every performance. I can’t wait to see where you go next.
- And of course, my partner-in-crime, Dave. Thanks for choosing me to create this universe with you. I’d follow you into the unknown anytime without a second thought, brother.
Maybe we’ll go back to Juneau one day. Not a day goes by that I don't stop and think about where the Anders family is now. They're part of me now. They're forever. Also, they're LOUD. If they want to come back out and play, I won't be able to deny them. In the meantime, enjoy these last episodes. We’re not quite done with the twists, turns and cliffhangers. Especially #205. It’s a finale we wrote with great care, and with all our hearts. (And did I mention the finale is ALMOST AN HOUR LONG?! That's right. 53 minutes of finale, to be exact. Oh, yeah. We went all out. Only the best for the Anders family.)
For everyone who listened, everyone involved, both real and fictional… these last ten episodes are a love letter to you, from us. The message is simple: sometimes they're blood, and sometimes they're not... sometimes you adopt them, and sometimes they adopt you... (and sometimes, they're the last people you expect, amirite, Brynleigh?) ...but no matter how you ended up with them, it's not biology or genetics that makes a family. It's love.
Thank for letting this family into your home every week, and thank you for becoming part of mine in the process.
Until we meet again,
Tom
PS. Little advice. You might want to have a box of tissues handy when you listen to these final shows. Especially Episode #200, when we-- oh, and then again in Ep #205, when-- well... wouldn't want to spoil anything.... guess you'll have to listen for yourselves. But trust me. Tissues. For serious. I mean it. Yowza... 😢😳😁😈
