There was a time when sitcoms were a staple of the TV schedules, but they are a little scarcer these days. However, Netflix are looking to change that with Tires, a Shane Gillis vehicle filmed in a real auto shop in West Chester, Philadelphia.
Allow me to break down the real setting of Valley Forge Automotive Centre and some other production details, as well as provide a quick primer on why you should be paying attention to Shane Gillis.
Filming Locations Breakdown
Filming a sitcom generally takes one of two forms. Either the main sets are built on a studio lot, as many sitcoms take place in recurring locations, or you can find an appropriate real-life locale and utilize it for your show. Tires opted for the latter.
The show’s production team found the perfect business to use for the show. The real-life auto shop is in West Chester, Philadelphia. The crew would find Tires Etc on 640 East Gay Street and managed to find a way to close the business to the general public — rude! — while they filmed the six episodes of the Netflix series.
The repair shop has been in operation since 2014, and Reddit posts confirmed sightings of Shane Gillis in the area, and pinpointed the area used for filming as Tires Etc:
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byu/Polo5510 from discussion
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Who is behind the production?
Tires is produced by Dad Sick Productions, and behind the company are John McKeever and Shane Gillis.
McKeever is also a director on the show, with Gillis starring in, and writing, the series. The show was created by Gillis, McKeever, and Steve Gerben, and executive producers include Brandon James from Rough House and Brian Stern and Kenneth Slotnick for AGI Entertainment Media.
Becky Astphan is also on the producer’s credit list.
Has Tires had a pilot already?
Tires has been on the back burner for a while now, and Gillis filmed a pilot for the show that dropped on YouTube back in 2019. A quick look reveals there are still clips from the original pilot available, but be warned, it is full of adult content.
Interestingly in the clip, the characters are wearing Tires Etc t-shirts. Gillis was committed to the concept, and I assume that after the success of his live show Beautiful Dogs on Netflix, they decided to green-light the six-episode show for their platform.
Shane Gillis and Saturday Night Live
Gillis found himself in some controversy when he was hired, then subsequently fired, by iconic US late-night entertainment show Saturday Night Live.
Gillis would be fired before even starting a run on the show in 2019, but obviously, that decision has been looked at carefully, as he would be asked to host the show in February of 2024. He would mention the incident in his monologue, saying,
“Most of you probably have no idea who I am. I was actually — I was fired from this show a while ago. But, you know, don’t look that up, please. If you don’t know who I am, please don’t Google that. It’s fine. Don’t even worry about it.”
Well, we did look it up. Turns out Shane was fired for racist and homophobic jokes. The fact he was canceled in the first place is ridiculous, but the fact he was re-hired only shows that the posturing sites who pretend to care about such things are only interested in making the most popular decision.
