Buffalo’s Pat Whalen Passes Chicago Test as Photographer on ‘The Bear’

Much attention is paid to celebrity appearances in the Emmy Award-winning series “The Bear.”

He’s not as famous as John Cena, John Mullaney, Oscar winner Olivia Colman, Emmy and Tony winner Sarah Paulson or chefs Daniel Boulud and Rene Redzepi, but Buffalo native Pat Whalen also makes a nice cameo.

A 2005 Williamsville South graduate, he plays the Chicago newspaper photographer assigned to take photos to accompany a review of the fine dining restaurant opened by Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) in the fifth episode.

Whalen’s explanation of how he got the role opens a window into how the show is cast, researched, improvised and becomes all-consuming for the actors.

His college friendship with producer Ricky Staffieri, who plays the youngest Fak brother, Theodore, led to his audition for the role.

“He put me in the good books for casting, so I was able to sign up and I passed the Chicago test,” Whalen said. “They’re hoping to hire people who are authentic Chicagoans.”

Whalen, who unsuccessfully auditioned in the second season for the role of a guy arrested for having too much fun at a party, easily passes the “authentic Chicago test.”

He studied theater at Columbia College in Chicago, became a stage actor there and hosts a monthly talk show, “Good Evening with Pat Whalen,” which has been on the air for nearly 10 years and is available on Apple Podcasts.

“It’s like The Tonight Show, except it’s funny, no offense to Jimmy Fallon,” Whalen said, speaking by phone from Maine where he and his father were on a camping trip.

Whalen, who is part of Chicago’s Jackalope Theater Troupe, works for a state senator and has press credentials for the upcoming Democratic National Convention in Chicago, said his talk show is more like the Jack Paar version of the late-night talk show in its discussions of politics and current events. Guests include Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, several city council members and Sarah Sherman of “Saturday Night Live.” He also has invited musicians and games so audience members can win sponsored prizes.

“I do a monologue at the beginning,” Whalen added. “It’s like The Tonight Show, except I’m trying to trick my peers into becoming more civically engaged.”

His acting resume includes a scene on “Chicago PD” as a guy whose brother is suspected of a crime and on “Shameless,” the Showtime series in which White played Lip Gallagher.

“All these shows that are set in Chicago, it’s kind of like ‘Law and Order’ when you live in New York,” he explained of the casting process.

The cameo in “The Bear” is “a dream come true.”

“I told them I was going to play a rag, that I didn’t need any lines, that I just wanted to put The Bear on my resume,” he said. “It’s a real bucket list item for me to be in The Bear and to have a speaking role with Matty Matheson (handyman Neil Fak), John Cena (Sammy Fak) and Eben Moss-Bachrach (Richie Jerimovich) is truly a dream come true.”

“The script didn’t really call for talking about the (restaurant) review itself. There was a lot of improvisation on set, and as we started working through the scene a few times, it became clear that these characters would be very interested in what I knew about the review, and of course I would be very reluctant to talk to them about it.”

He did some research with photographers for his role.

“I asked, ‘Will he know what’s in the review?’ And they said, yes, of course, they talk to the writers. If they have a good relationship with them, they’ll discuss what the restaurant looks like. And that, of course, informs the pictures they want to take. They say, ‘Sometimes you know, sometimes you don’t,’ but ultimately, you can’t convey anything to the restaurant. You can’t let them know what’s coming. I think at one point I said something (in the episode) directly that a photographer told me about, which was, ‘If you want to read it, you can buy a newspaper like everybody else.’ So the idea is, don’t be intimidated. You’re there to take the pictures.”

Whalen said that during his two days of filming, he hung out and ate with the cast of “The Bear.” He heard White and Cena compare notes on their workout routines and Ayo Edebiri (Chef Sydney) lament about not being able to do open mics at comedy clubs because they filmed all day and rested and studied their lines all night.

“We were talking about the comedy scene in Chicago and I offered her a spot on my show, but she said unfortunately I wouldn’t have enough time off, but maybe next time.”

He had a longer discussion with Matheson, the real chef who owns several restaurants in Ontario, including Rizzo’s House of Parm in Fort Erie.

“We talked about Niagara Falls, the Friendship Festival, Toronto, Buffalo food. He came to our side of the bridge a lot because he was into the music scene. He went to a lot of punk shows and stuff. There were local guys who met on the set of The Bear. It was a lot of fun and great to talk to him.”

Matheson could be said to have passed the “authentic Buffalo test.”