When it comes to comedy, it's not just the lines in the script, it's how they're delivered.
And there may not be a more talented comedic actress delivering sitcom lines than Joan Cusack, whose new show "What About Joan" premieres Tuesday at 8:30 p.m. on ABC/Ch. 4.
"I've never worked with somebody as physically gifted as Joan in comedy," said executive producer James L. Brooks, whose TV credits include everything from "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" to "The Simpsons." "You'll just write things in the script like, 'She puts a light on her face' or we'll talk about the way she walks in a room. And that's improvisation. That's where she just rips sometimes, and it's just great."
This is a woman who can take the line, "Oooh, rigatoni" and make it hilarious. The character is accurately described by her boyfriend when he tells someone, "Wait 'til you meet her. You'll be on her side in 30 seconds."
And Cusack is great in a show that's pretty darn good — a show that demonstrates considerable promise in its first couple of episodes.
Cusack stars as Joan Gallagher, an offbeat high-school teacher who suddenly finds herself in the most unexpected of circumstances. Her good looking, successful boyfriend, Jake (Kyle Chandler of "Early Edition"), suddenly proposes on their ninth date, catching the charmingly awkward Joan completely offguard. Her non-verbal response is laugh-out-loud funny.
"I'm not the girl who sweeps guys off their feet," she tells her friends later. "I'm the low-maintenance, dependable one guys call when they've been dumped by the girl who swept them off their feet."
Part of Joan's appeal is that she's so completely unaware of how appealing she is. And, despite the fact that she's the star, she sort of shies away from that, preferring to refer to it as "an ensemble show."
"I mean, I pinch myself. It is truly a dream come true, being able to do this show," Cusack said. "It's something I've wanted to do for so long. . . . It's great work. I mean, how many people get to do a television show?"
The show wasn't specifically created for Cusack — creator/writer/producer Gwen Macsai based it on her book "Lipschtick" — but "once we got lucky enough to get Joan, we tailored the show for Joan," said executive producer David Richardson.
The biggest piece of tailoring may be the location — "What About Joan" is produced in Chicago, where Cusack lives with her husband and two young sons. (She was actually pregnant during the filming of the sitcom's pilot last year.)
"We're in Chicago, and everyone is so loving doing the show," she said. "It's like an incredibly positive atmosphere there because everybody is so excited to be doing the show."
It's an attitude that comes through on the screen. And Cusack and Chandler have definite sparks flying between them, something that Chandler said happened immediately when they began rehearsing.
"Immediately there was some chemistry between us and we started goofing around," he said. "Joan is really enjoyable to work with, too. . . . You have to figure, two Academy Award nominations here."
(Cusack was nominated for best supporting actress Oscars for "Working Girl" and "In & Out.")
Not that the show is perfect. Joan's support group of three friends, teachers Betsy (Jessica Hecht) and Alice (Kellie Shanygne Williams) and therapist Ruby (Donna Murphy), needs some time to find the right balance; Betsy's teacher boyfriend, Mark (Wallace Langham) — who doesn't want anyone to know they're involved — is nothing but annoying.
But "What About Joan" would be worth watching just to see Cusack at work. She's a sheer delight.
WHAT'S IN A NAME? You'd think that the hardest parts of putting a TV sitcom together would be things like writing, producing and acting. Apparently, that's not always the case — it took the network and the producers months to figure out what to call Cusack's new show.
For those many, many months, it operated under the title "The Untitled Joan Cusack Project," which wasn't exactly the catchiest name.
While calling it "The Joan Cusack Show" or "Joan" would have seemed like a natural, Cusack herself was resistent.
"Joan is reluctant to have it called that in some ways," Brooks said.
"It's such an ensemble show," she said, referring to the other members of the cast, including Chandler.
"I pitched 'Kyle' but they didn't go for it," Chandler joked.
E-MAIL: pierce@desnews.com