While I’m driving around in my truck, I’m usually listening to ESPNRadio on XM. It’s always entertaining because it’s mostly sports, and a little pop culture. Well, for the last three days, I’ve heard Dan Patrick mention The Office on his show. The first time he was proclaiming that Dwight K Schrute could be one of the best sitcom characters of all time.
The second time, he was talking to Chris Fowler, who would be broadcasting a college football game later that day on ESPN. Dan Patrick said, ” Well, I have to be honest with you. I won’t be watching the game tonight. Not with The Office on.”
Dan Patrick straight sold out his own network to watch The Office.
As you can imagine, I thought it was pretty cool to hear about The Office on The Dan Patrick Show. (I wrote Dan an email to drop by LITO.)
My question is, do you ever hear people talking about The Office in your day to day life? All of my extended family are fans so they always want to ask me questions about the show when I talk with them. None of the guys people in my company watch the show so I don’t get to make Office jokes with them. (My Michael Scott impersonations never go over well in our video conferences.)
How prevalent is The Office in your day to day doings?
Update:
I thought it would be interesting to show you guys the GeoMap Overlay of the visitors to the site in the last month. The bigger the circle, the more the visitors. The Office is obviously quite popular in the Pennsylvania area and in LA. I think that circle toward the bottom is Houston, TX. But, that is just a guess.
Update2:
There have been a few readers to request for the international map. So let it be written, so let it be done.
I was just at my university’s soccer game the other day and the couple sitting in front of me started talking about the show to a friend, and then I joined in, and it was a ripple effect! I remember back when the show as unheard of, and now everyone who isn’t obsessed with it at least knows it by name. I love it!
Being in an IT department we do have a core of us who trade Office inside jokes. The best being the “that’s what she said” reference to various lines from our boss who doesn’t understand….
My wife and I started watching “The Office” because we grew up in the Scranton area. And what do ya know, the show turned out to be great! So, we’ve gotten many co-workers at our jobs to tune in, and we get to play “Scranton Insider” with them every week. We’ve found that some people take a while to “warm up” to the show’s style… folks are SO conditioned to listen for a laughtrack! But most “get it” eventually, so we can share the offbeat dialogue.
My husband asked me a question yesterday and started by saying “Question” a la Dwight. I am always quoting stuff from the Office and was surprised and amused when he joined in.
When I told him that last night’s episode was a rerun he asked if I would be OK and be able to make it until next week. I told him I would… there’s always deleted scenes on NBC.com, my season 2 DVD and LITO!
yes! i actually had a co worker I turned onto the show put one of my personal effects from my desk in jello!
Jennifer, Dave, Bob, is it mostly people that you have introduced teh show to that know it now or do you meet others that caught on.
I’m just trying to gauge how popular the show is in other parts of the country.
Brian, I live in Seattle. I have a T-shirt that I wear that says “Dunder Mifflin, Inc, Scranton, Pa.” It is a lot of fun when a stranger comes up to me and comments on either the show or my hometown… and it is happening more and more lately!
Bob, that’s interesting. I think I’ll have to order a shirt to see how often it is recognized.
Brian, I will have to admit that the majority of that giant circle around houston has to be me
All kidding aside, i really love all of your sites and started off by getting the rss feed of freemacware, then freemacmusic and saw a mention of the office on a freemacware post and added this to my rss feeds. I also use your widgets, so for all of this, sir, I thank you. Keep up the good work.
Question: is anyone as grateful as i am with all of the extra goodies in the severance package box set of the first two seasons that was sold at best buy? People love the Dwight business card-fridge magnet.
Houston TX, way to represent!
Some of my friends occasionally watch the show. They don’t quite get me.
But my brothers and some old high school buddies really like the show.
Jabber, thanks for the kind words about the sites.
Brian, don’t forget Dallas! We contributed to that big circle down there too. My wife and I are both fanatics, and now our 8 year old daughter does her own Steve Carrell/Michael Scott impressions, most people just stare at us, but occasionally, like when we are walking thru Wal-Mart, somone else will “get it” and just start rolling.
We all need a “name” like the Trekkies… maybe “Office Freaks”… “Dundies”… “Shrute Clones” ?
I thought I was the only one of my friends that watched The Office but as I got my season 2 DVD and people started seeing it in my living room, I found that some of them do watch it. They just started getting into it and they watch the dvd everytime they come to my house so they’re starting to get hooked. I have been known to use “That’s what she said” quite often.
I just wanted to say that if you have a map that shows the world, this post means that a circle will be located in the Philippines!
Another shout out from Houston! We love The Office down here in TX!
I have a co-worker who shares my passion for the show, but we both are often working late, etc. So on Friday, we never know if the other person saw the episode the night before, or if they had to DVR it and will watch it on the weekend. Our way of testing is to fit a line from the new episode into conversation and see if the other person reacts or not. Makes for some funny conversations.
I only have one friend who likes the show, but we talk about it all the time.
ethel, I did see that little dot in the Philippines and also some in Australia. There are also a few in the UK. I wonder if they’re making sure we’re treating “The Office” right here in the states.
Go Idaho! I’ve got all of my roommates into it, and a professor of mine started talking about the show the other day. I jerked my head up and raised my hand and said (probably a little too loudly) “I LOVE The Office!” We got into this great discussion about what kind of humor The Office was. It was wonderful.
Any other people from San Antonio besides me? i have gotten ALOT of co-workers and friends hooked too. Everytime friends come over and see my dvd’s we always end up watching about 6 hours of it non stop. i’m ordering a few shirts off of cafepress, they have about 600+ designs of all the best quotes on there, so i’m interested in seeing who will comment on them when i’m out and about. I have an Initech shirt (for those of you who have never seen Office Space) and EVERY time i wear it to work, or just to run errands, i never leave a store without having someone comment on it.
i’d love to see a world map for that. i’d be really interested to know where people are logging in from; if there’s worldwide activity or if i’m the sole representer of scandinavia!
In class today I was talking about a law school fair I went to and all the free stuff I got…profesor goes, “oh so you got a bunch of SWAG”
There is a small following all the way in Aberdeen, Scotland. My husband and I watch it every week through iTunes and then pass the episodes along to another couple here that also loves the Office. We are originally from Philly and just moved here.
there’s a small but maniacally devoted group of office fans here in the philippines.
Although there’s no bubble next to the island Okinawa, Japan, there’s a huge following there!! In order to watch The Office, though, we have to download it from the iTunes store on Saturday mornings (local time). No live TV for us!
Wow, I didn’t know there were so many international fans. Any other countries out there to represent?
I saw a Dwight Bobblehead on one of the worst shows ever-Passions.
But it was pretty funny anyway…