The Machinist
I’m assuming that’s a whoosh?
As well as Rudy and his family before he went to Notre Dame. Actually, pretty much any film set in the Rust Belt.
Frasier?
Actuary: About Schmidt.
Not a prison movie, but Andy Garcia’s character in City Island is a prison guard (corrections officer).
The Aviator (Howard Hughes was an engineer).
Something New, starred Simon Baker and Sanaa Latham and is a HOT HOT sexxxay movie.
nvm
Woodwind doubler. These are the folks in your friendly neighborhood orchestra pit who must play saxes of every size plus either flutes/clarinets or double reeds.
One of the more thankless tasks in music - all competency, no individuality. Those I’ve known are usually Type A+ personalities or drinkers.
Might make a good Britcom, although musicians in general are a bit more relaxed over there.
I meant that I assumed that Joey P was aware of that film.
Yes, I was waiting for someone to mention that profession hoping to stump us, but so far no one said it, so I decided to lob it to myself…kinda like playing t-ball.
Are you okay with a fictional file clerk as a lead character, like in American Splendor?
This might be a bit of stretch, since he wasn’t actually a gynecologist in the film, but didn’t we find out at the end of Animal House that Eric Stratten became a Beverly Hills gynecologist?
Oooh, wait… what about that movie with Richard Gere a few years back - Dr T and the Women? (Checks IMDB) Yup!
No need; we’re already doing this.
This is great – my first reaction was “Well, I bet there are hundreds of unsung minor professions!”
I hadn’t figured on the encyclopedic brains here.
Carry on, brainiacs!
digs
…who’s wondering when someone here’ll mention a film with a (tortured-yet-heroic, deep-yet-fun) Pre-Press/Graphic Design professor…
Not sure if this is enough to make you faint, but I’ll point out that many professional indexers are former technical writers–and a technical writer was the lead character in Andy Richter Controls the Universe.
The two male leads in the tv show “Raising Hope” have a landscaping business. They happen to do pools too but they are shown mowing lawns and leaf blowing etc.
The main lead does quit the business but the other (his dad) continues as a landscaper.
Hank Kimball of Green Acres was an Extension Agent. They’re agronomists, right?
The Uma Thurman character was a professional model. The Janeane Garofalo character had a radio show about pets. I can’t remember for sure if she was actually a vet, but she was apparently some kind of pet expert so probably so.
The first pop culture veterinarian who spring to mind for me is James Herriot, whose semi-autobiographic books have been adapted for both film and television. The old All Creatures Great and Small BBC series still runs on PBS in the US.
I was about to say that Dr. Dolittle (originally a literary character, but adapted for film and television many times) is probably the most famous wholly fictional veterinarian, but IIRC that character was actually trained as a medical doctor for humans. So while his patients were primarily animals, he may not technically be a veterinarian.
Brubaker Robert Redford is a new warden who comes in undercover as an inmate.
how about a paving contractor?
Also there’s “The New Warden” the play/movie within the show Arrested Development.
Not a contractor, but a lot of the guys (including one of the main characters) work for the Parish (county) on True Blood. I believe we’ve seen them paving roads in the earlier seasons.