[Photo: ©2009 NBC Universal Inc. All Rights Reserved]

I hope you are watching the new USA drama, White Collar. It’s fresh and fun and has a fantastic cast. One of the great actors for the show is Tiffani Thiessen. She’s a very warm and interesting person and yesterday I got the chance to take part in a conference call interview with her. Here’s what we all talked about:

Q: What made you want to be a part of this show?

T. Thiessen: Ever since I read the script, which has been a little over a year ago now, I fell in love with it. I fell in love with the characters. I fell in love with the show, and more and more, when the cast was brought together, the more excitement I had for the show and wanting to be a part of it. This is really the first time I feel like in my whole entire career which has been over 25, 26 years of doing this that I finally feel like I’m kind of playing a role a little closer to home for me, which is kind of exciting.

Q: Was there instant chemistry when everyone began working together? I know you’re very close working together with Tim and Matt as well.

T. Thiessen: We are, from day one. I of course had met Tim through the testing process of us being put on screen and doing our scenes together, and we had chemistry from day one. I absolutely adore that man and then met Matt, actually, after we had already started shooting the pilot. We actually were on the same flight going to New York to shoot the pilot last year.

Then Willie Garson I actually had known just being in the business for so long. We had met prior, and I’ve always really enjoyed him and loved him, so I was really excited to know that it was actually really kind of a special cast that we were putting together. I couldn’t be more thrilled with everybody I’m working with. It’s really a nice group of people. Being away from home, it makes it so much nicer when you actually like the people you’re working with.

Q: It feels like there’s more to your character than what we’ve seen. I almost feel like maybe she’s hiding something.

T. Thiessen: Oh gosh, I’m so curious to know what you think I’m hiding.

Q: What sort of background can we expect as we move along?

T. Thiessen: I think you’ll start to see background on all of our characters, especially the guys. Surely, this show is definitely the guys’ show. It’s Matt and Tim’s show, and Willie and I definitely play more of a supporting role, but you will definitely see much more of me in the further episodes as you’re coming along. Last week or two weeks ago you saw a little bit more of what I really do for a living and kind of my career, which is really nice to kind of see because we really never saw that in the pilot, and it was something that we kind of came up with actually after we shot the pilot.

They’re definitely putting more of what I do outside of my relationship with Tim into the show a little bit, and that’ll continue on even, hopefully, in seasons from here on out, which hopefully there’ll be five to ten years of White Collar. In general, I can’t give you exact specifics, ideas of what’s going to be happening, but I can promise you you’ll see a lot more of her.

Q: What about any sort of action scenes. Do you get involved in any of the sort of cops and robbers element of it?

T. Thiessen: I don’t think so. It’s really not part of my character and my storyline in this show. Again, I’m definitely a supporting role, especially being that I’m the wife of Tim’s character, but you will see a lot of a triangle in a sense of what I can do and help with Matt’s character as well, especially, I think, when it involves the storyline of Kate. You’ll see that a lot as well.

Q: I’m sure I’m the millionth person to tell you this, but it never gets old. I want to say congratulations on your pregnancy.

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Question: This week’s episode of Lie to Me was awesome! Any word as to whether FOX is going to order a full season? —Rachel

Ausiello: Still no word on a back-nine pick-up, but I have a hunch we’ll be hearing some news on that front soon. Meanwhile, next week’s episode finds Lightman and Foster trying to track down the biological parents of a teenager who realizes he was abducted as a baby. But it’s Lightman’s parenting that comes into question when he has to bend the truth to his own daughter. [Source: EW]

I’m keeping my fingers crossed!

Episode 6.08 Once in a Lifetime
Airdate: November 13, 2009

[Photo: © 2009 CBS Broadcasting Co., all rights reserved]

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[Photo: ©2009 NBC Universal Inc. All Rights Reserved]

I was very happy to get to take part in a conference call interview with Willie Garson, one of the stars of the new drama White Collar. You may also remember him as Stanford from Sex in the City.

He is a very warm, friendly man with a fun and lively conversational style. I’m sure it comes through in the conversation:

Q: What was it about this particular show or about the script that drew you back to TV?

W. Garson: Well, I found the script to be very interesting and very timely. Certainly, we all have been reading about a lot of people figuring out ways to scam and get money for doing nothing, other than figuring out a way to get over on hard working people. So I thought that was a really interesting time for a show like this.

Q: What’s the most challenging aspect of your role?

W. Garson: That’s an interesting question. The most challenging aspect was for me, my characters have always been very showy. This character kind of operates under the radar and that was an interesting difference in many of the characters I’ve played, certainly from Stanford and certainly from NYPD Blue, certainly a little more behind the scenes kind of guy.

Q: I love the show and I like your character. He’s very interesting and even though you call him under the radar, he kind of has a real dynamic, interesting attitude. How much of that character was your invention?

W. Garson: Well, certainly, the reality is when you buy me, you get what you get, so that’s kind of what they’re trapped with is that I’m a little bit of a hambone. But I find that he’s really only quirky and interesting more so when he’s alone with Neal Caffrey played by Matt Bomer. They have a very strong and deep partnership. So I like to say that he’s more the people person and I’m more the quiet, I should be able to fade into the background if there’s anyone else around. That was interesting for me to try to play.

Q: How would you like to see Mozzie develop as a character on the series?

W. Garson: Well, I think what’s happening now is as the scripts are developing, what’s great is that I’m getting the opportunity to fade into any situation. So whether that means hiding behind the caper or pretending to be someone else kind of a lawyer, a cop, a driver or something that someone would just walk by and then the camera knows that I’m actually deeply involved. But the person that we’re dealing with has no idea that I would be an operative in the caper.

Q: Will we be finding out more of the character’s back story and how you originally came to be friends with Neal?

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