Michael and Chris introduce the series and the meaning of the phrase "King of the Middle." They also discuss how they made inroads into their vocations in the arts with tales of mistakes and missteps along the way.

00:10 Michael intro

00:28 Chris intro / What does “King of the Middle” mean? / Are we wrong to pursue art over stable careers?

05:03 Michael’s background and struggles with faith as a young man and the path that led him to settle in Los Angeles

10:31 Michael joins a band in Seattle

13:59 Chris comments about putting one’s faith in action and why we feel we must do it through art

14:56 Michael responds to Chris

15:44 Michael continues the discussion about his band / How he improved at the craft

16:23 A setback in the band and his career / Pushing forward with humility

20:29 Chris talks about fear of criticism / Failing to ask the Father to direct his vocation and the consequences

23:48 Learning to submit to the Father / Why are we doing this podcast now?

25:31 Why Michael decided to settle in Los Angeles and shift his focus from acting and writing

29:20 Michael’s last acting gig

30:35 Introduction to Chris’s background from college to Los Angeles

31:31 Quick mention of Michael Apted’s “Up” series and how predictions can be made about a person’s life patterns from a young age

32:44 Chris heads off to Christian film school then to Hollywood / Meeting Quentin Tarantino’s future editor / Getting hired on his first job by the granddaughter of a Hollywood studio mogul / Chris’s failed tv series and website projects / His path to the studio system

40:01 How Chris got onto Curb Your Enthusiasm and the faith dilemma he faced once he got there

46:05 Why Chris is thankful for some of his failure / His final studio job working for Ryan Murphy’s production company

49:23 Michael talks about the genesis of his book idea for “King of the Middle” / Pride is a killer

51:47 How it feels when a Christian passion project falls apart

53:05 Guarding against anger when faith-based projects don’t pan out / What can we learn from this kind of failure?

53:55 The positive consequences of a failed project

57:35 Setup for next episode: Our struggles against selfish pursuits / High school origins

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Michael’s song “For the Love of a Beautiful Heart” (and remix as mentioned in this episode) will be posted soon…

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Our Youtube channel is here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYhB_T8K03t8WO1XyvjaKWA

Our Facebook page is: Facebook.com/kingofthemiddle

For information about Chris's current and upcoming projects, visit Cmobmo.com

For information about Michael's current and upcoming projects, visit his Amazon page and Michaeljoelgreen.wordpress.com