Princeton on TV: Charlie Baker '17

A teenage boy is building a snowman when a high-priced electronic item abruptly collapses on top of it. The boy looks around, visibly confused by the unfortunate end of his snowman, only to find his little sister continuously pressing Staples’ trademark “Easy” button and causing mayhem all around the house.

Most people would pass over this Staples commercial without giving it a second thought. For Charlie Baker ’17, however, seeing himself as the aforementioned teenage boy was “definitely a surreal experience, to see my face pop up on the screen,” Baker said. This Staples commercial, part of Staples’ holiday campaign during 2009 and 2010, is the first of four commercials aired on national television in which Baker has had a role.

Baker’s acting career officially began in the seventh grade, when he told his parents that he wanted to act professionally. A native New Yorker, the resources around him were abundant, allowing Baker to immediately start auditioning. Baker learned early on, however, that the actor’s life is one of patience. “The day-to-day reality of being an actor is not what one might expect — you have to go on a lot of auditions and callbacks before you actually book a job,” Baker said. “I was auditioning all the time, which basically made professional acting an afterschool job for me.”

Baker continued to audition as he entered Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School, a prestigious performing arts school in New York City. Shortly after, Baker booked the Staples commercial, which aired constantly for three months. His acting resume has expanded since to include commercials for Verizon, Nickelodeon and Comcast, booking one commercial per year throughout high school.

“Although they barely involve any serious acting, commercials were ideal for me in high school, because they never shot for more than a day, so I never had to miss very much school,” Baker said. “I didn’t want to have to be pulled out to go shoot something more time-consuming than a commercial.”

Baker’s experiences have only inspired him to go further. While he feels “a little strange about having been in commercials rather than more real acting work,” Baker is content with his decision to focus on academics and come to Princeton, while still gaining professional experience.

“I got to join SAG-AFTRA [Screen Actors Guild?American Federation of Television and Radio Artists], which is the union for screen actors. That’s definitely been a perk, because I get access to workshops with casting directors, and I get DVD screeners for a lot of the big movies during awards season. The main perk is that I have professional experience and a real handle on auditioning, so when I get out of school I’ll be at somewhat of an advantage.”

Upon graduating, Baker hopes to work in the film or television industry. In the meantime, he’ll have to deal with friends occasionally finding his commercials online. “A few of my best friends found one last year and posted the link on the Princeton Class of 2017 Facebook page, which was funny,” Baker recalled.