You Don’t Have to Make it Big to Make it Worthwhile

How TV Extra Autumn Nicks Finds Magic in the Blurs

“You ever see the blonde blur in the background walking back and forth on TV? Yeah that’s me!” Autumn Nicks tells me enthusiastically. “Yeah, the back of my head is in a lot of things” she jokes. I laugh and we converse in awe together, about the ups, downs, magic, setbacks, and everything in between that comes behind the scenes of television. To be a TV extra, Autumn Nicks has taught me, is a tough, but extremely fun and rewarding gig. When it comes down to it, she can’t think of anything more fun to do on her days off from her other job, the one that we both share: providing security for million dollar art at the Getty Museum. Our one color uniforms are a far cry from the set and makeup she’s used to, the glamour of getting ready, the franticness of the crew. “Yesterday, I kept turning around to see Edie Falco,” she says, “You mean Nurse Jackie Edie Falco?!” I yell, barely holding back my excitement of the infamous Nurse Jackie having graced my friend Autumn’s presence. “Yeah, that Edie Falco.” It dawned on me, then, that I had much to learn about the hierarchy, culture, and dynamics of the production of television. Luckily, Autumn was there to tell me all about it.