SIDE DISH - Scotty's Food Blog
Beginning this Monday (November 16) Scotty Wandell fans have a new weekly treat to look forward to – SIDE DISH, Scotty’s very own food blog. But wait, Scotty’s a fictional character...so who is actually going to be writing this new blog? Well, who knows Scotty better than Luke Macfarlane himself
“All my life, I’ve loved
writing. In high school I used to
write short stories all the time. So when I first had the idea of writing a
food blog as Scotty, I knew that I also wanted to do most of the writing. I asked
John Kazlauskas to be involved as well, but it's just the two of us who will be writing
everything you see posted.”
But that’s the last time you’ll hear that Luke and John are doing the writing:
“We wanted this to come
completely from Scotty’s world -- to feel totally real and intimate. Like the
show is alive outside of Sunday night. So you won’t see John’s or my name
anywhere on the blog. This is from Scotty. Even down to the pictures we’re taking. We’re not going to
use ABC publicity stills from the show. We’re doing what Scotty would do: take
pictures with his phone.”
How did the idea for the blog
come about?
“I love going out to eat and the
idea came while I was out eating with some friends. It just seemed like a fun opportunity to explore more about
who Scotty is. And, unlike Scotty, I’m not much of a cook so this is a chance
for me to learn something, too.”
What can we expect to see on
the blog?
“It’s basically everything
food-related that’s going on for Scotty when he’s not on screen. It might be
his musings on a particular food or food trend, his kitchen tips, a copy of his
favorite recipes or just stories about his random culinary adventures. But it’s all real.
John and I are actually doing everything we write about whether it’s pickling
beets or doing a tasting of frozen TV dinners. It’s going to be a lot of fun”
SIDE DISH launches on Monday,
November 16. A new SIDE DISH will be posted the Monday following every new
episode of BROTHERS & SISTERS.
This Sunday- Episode 408 "The Wine Festival"
Written by Sherri Cooper-Landsman & Michael Foley
Directed by Michael Morris
Team Ojai decides to enter Holly's cheap blend into a wine competition. Rebecca struggles to find the right time to tell Justin she is pregnant. Kevin and Scotty face the daunting task of choosing an egg donor. Sarah and Luc discover they might not be as compatible as they thought. Meanwhile, Nora has mixed feelings about dating a younger man.
If you haven't already, check out Executive Producer David Marshall Grant's interview with the NY Daily News:
David Marshall Grant NY Daily News
Interview with Gilles Marini (Part Two)
Today at Stage 6,
twenty postcards came in the mail, all from the same address and all with a
very similar message. On each
handwritten postcard, the sender had written a different message of love for
Gilles Marini and his character Luc.
Talk about a man with a following!
Seriously, schlepping all this Gilles fan mail is going to put the
Brothers & Sisters postman in a back brace. Maryanne from Connecticut, I dedicate the second part of
this interview to you. I would
copy and paste the interview nineteen more times, but I have a feeling that
might annoy the other readers.
Cole: What led you to being on Dancing with the Stars?
Gilles: I would say, truly, my daughter. She was there the day I got the phone call from my manager. At first I thought, no, I don’t do reality television. But my manager said it’s more like a talent show. And as we’re talking, my daughter is in the room twirling around with a pink tutu. And I really felt that it was a sign. I realized I don’t think I want my daughter to ever, ever see Sex and the City. Ever. But if I do Dancing with the Stars, she would be able to go there and watch it live. So I took a meeting, and a month later they told me they wanted me on the show. I said, whoa that’s really cool, but I cannot dance. What’s going to happen?
Cole: So you had no background in dancing?
Gilles: No, I’m
not like some of the other contestants.
I’m the one that really has never danced before. So it’s like, wow, I’m going to have to
work 18 hours a day. And when it
came down to it, I was working 7-9 hours a day. Because I was dancing against Melissa Rycroft, and her
background is in dancing. And then
I was also dancing against Shawn Johnson, and she was the one that won. I was so happy for her.
Cole: Well, it was close right? Wasn’t it a 1 percent difference in the vote?
Gilles: It was even less than 1 percent. It was a really ridiculous amount of votes. But it was all for the best, because let me put it this way…Shawn’s 17 years old, that is a huge thing for her. She’s an American hero. You know, I’m so proud. You’re telling me that America pulled for this Frenchman that was pretty much unknown against an American hero? It shows how willing America is to pull for people that are from somewhere else and accept them. And this is what has humbled me the most with my American experience because America pulled for me, no matter what people say. I was no one and against people like Shawn Johnson and Melissa Rycroft, both are really known. Especially Shawn, who’s super skilled. I would vote for Shawn if I were watching the show!
Gilles and partner Cheryl Burke dance the Rumba
Cole: So when it was all said and done, what was the biggest thing you think you took away from Dancing with the Stars?
Gilles: Well,
without any strings attached, I was able to tell my story and tell who I was to
America. Whether they like it or
not, I was completely myself. And
I was working really, really hard for the show. I never took another job. I took one meeting that took two hours and it was with you
guys [the Brothers & Sisters producers]. I did not want to take any hours away from my dancing. If you go out and party every night and
are like, look I’m a super celebrity now, then you shouldn’t be there. A lot of people do the show because
they want to be more famous afterward.
Or they want to revive their career and what not. But I say my job and my duty is just to
make people smile every day. It
was my responsibility to be respectful to the people out there.
Cole: You’ve done several network shows: Ugly Betty, Dirty Sexy Money, Criminal Minds, now Brothers & Sisters. You have also done a cable show: Nip/Tuck. You’ve even been on two soap operas: The Bold and the Beautiful and Passions. As an actor, are there any differences in doing a prime time show versus a soap opera?
Cole: Which of these shows challenged you the most?
Gilles: I never had a big role on a soap, so those weren’t challenging per se. I would say the most challenging role I’ve ever had is by far Brothers & Sisters because I am surrounded by such high level talent. I came from Dancing with the Stars, where you have to be kind of a professional dancer every Monday, to a TV show where every actor is like acting royalty, so skilled and amazing. You have to be on you’re A-game 24/7.
Cole: Was there anyone in the cast in particular that you were nervous or excited to meet?
Gilles: Well, pretty much all of them. But I was really focusing on Rachel Griffiths because I knew I would be playing her love interest. I realized she’s one of the best actresses in the world. You know how skilled she is. And I realized I’m going to have to get so much better, you know?
Cole: And what
was Rachel like on set?
Gilles: She is there to help. She makes the show so interesting. She’s very impressive and I worried about what she would think of me. Am I going to be good enough? But you what, she was so welcoming and so amazing. I was very overwhelmed, but the way Rachel and the rest of the cast accepted and embraced me made all the difference. I feel like it’s a family on and off camera. And this is why the show works. Everybody’s close. Everyone’s supporting each other.
Gilles and Rachel in this Sunday's episode
Cole: Do you
see similarities between yourself and the character Luc?
Gilles: You
always have to find something you love about the character to be able to
portray them, something you can relate to at least. Luc is an artist.
Obviously, that’s something I can relate to. I tried to push in the direction of what does he feel in his heart versus
who is he as an artist. And eventually, who he is takes a huge toll on Sarah and his relationship. It’s just a beautiful, well-written
character. He’s actually a brilliant
painter, he’s in love with what he does.
His integrity is very important, but he doesn’t really have any ego. So for the love of Sarah, he will do
things that he would not normally do. Yes, I have a lot of
similarity to him just because where he is from. But I’m a bit far away from this guy in
the sense that I’m not a painter or someone like that.
Cole: And do you see similarities between the Walker family and your own?
Gilles: There’s
a dysfunctional side that I definitely can relate to. Honestly, my family wasn’t the best, but you have
what you have and you have to deal with it. And the way I dealt with all that was to leave the
country. I really went away far
and tried to find my home and my own things. I had a very hard time. When my father passed away, I came to the realization that he was
really the reason why I was still around in France. My father was really my hero and I felt so much for my
father that when I lost him, I just decided to go very far very quickly.
Cole: What was the biggest culture shock coming from France to America?
Gilles: Coming from France to America, I think the biggest culture shock was the way people raise their kids. It’s way softer than in Europe, actually than in the rest of the world. Sometimes it works, but sometimes you see some amazing brats here. It doesn’t work with every kid. Also education is very different. It’s more “chop, chop” in Europe than here. And what I really like here is that when people need something, they will straightforwardly ask you. In Europe, they really don’t. They go a lot by attitude of meaning.
Cole: What does that mean?
Gilles: That means, for example, I want a hundred dollars
from you. They would not go, "I
need a hundred dollars, please. I
need it now." They would go, "Oh my
God, this happened and this happened."
And three days later you understand they need something. At first it was really hard for me to ask for anything here because I didn’t know
how. That was a big
culture shock for me.
Gilles: I live,
I work, I breathe, and I do everything in America. This is where I feel I belong. But I do vacation in France sometimes.
Cole: I imagine now you can barely leave your house without someone recognizing you. When did people really start approaching you?
Gilles: After Sex and the City, sometimes people would come up to me and be like “Whooaaa.” It was more like they were objectifying me because the character was like that. But during Dancing with the Stars, it became completely insane. Los Angeles is kind of cool because people here are used to people in the industry. But last weekend I was in Canada and every two seconds someone approached me. They aren’t used to seeing someone from the industry. I love to meet people though. It’s beautiful, it’s great, and it’s part of the job.
Cole: Any funny stories of fans recognizing you?
Gilles: I was in Times Square, and this lady comes up. She dropped her box, came to me, hugged me. I thought it was very cute. And then she started touching every part of me. And I was like, oh God, what am I doing here? Do I say, "Oh I’m sorry, what’s going on?" Or do I just look stupid here and let it go? I went for just standing there in shock. And finally this producer came up and pushed her away. And she said, "Oh I want to stay here like that forever." It was so funny. Other than that, the most beautiful experience I had was when I was on Dancing with the Stars. People would send me videos of their two year-old kid watching my Fox Trot. That kid was in love with that dance and watching the Fox Trot like a cartoon 24/7. It was beautiful to see that you can actually do that to people. I also received a lot of emails from people who are handicapped and not able to do what we were doing on the show. And they were told me that I made them feel again. That was an amazing, overwhelming experience and I felt like this is why I need to do more and why I need to go all the way. Whether I win or not, I don’t care. At least I made some people smile. That's what it was all about.
Gilles, taking photos with fans
Cole: On the show, Luc and Sarah meet when Sarah gets lost in the French countryside. How did you and your wife Carole meet?
Gilles: Not in
the barn. That would have been sexy
though. Twelve years ago, I saw an
amazing woman strolling around this bar/lounge. And I thought, whoa, she’s really hot this one. And then we ended up on the beach talking that night and she was so
charming. She was much more than
her beautiful shell. And I had no
other choice but to fall for her. We're actually going to renew our
wedding vows next summer. We’re going to
make it very memorable.
Gilles: Yes, we’ve lived in the same place for five years now. And we hike around all the time. And Carole’s always loved this very big white house that is up in the hills. She loved it, and we could never really afford it. A couple weeks ago, my real estate agent told Carole that this house had sold. And she stopped thinking about it and was trying to move on. But the truth was I bought the house for her, but didn’t tell her. And the offer was accepted. And then on her birthday, I put a poem inside an envelope. I also put a picture of the house and wrote “It’s yours.” She realized right away what it was about and had this huge emotional reaction. I’ve never seen my wife that way. It was beautiful. It was so worth it. You know, it took time for me to be successful, and I took a leap of faith. I was in the middle of shooting Brothers & Sisters and feeling really good. She’s been putting up with all my crazy stuff for 11 years and she deserves more than that. That’s just a small token.
Cole: Luc has many hidden talents: he is a swimmer, painter, dancer, and chef. What are some of your hidden talents?
Gilles: I’m not
a swimmer or a painter, that’s for sure.
I love to play soccer. I
like sports in general. I do
cook. I was raised in a
bakery. If my father heard me
saying I didn’t know how to cook, he would be freaking out! I love to cook and make pastries. I love martial arts and love the
combat aspect of things.
Cole: So if you weren’t acting, what do you think you’d be doing right now?
Gilles: I would not do anything else, other than acting. Acting is my pure passion. This is why I am here today. I swear to God. I get this question a lot, and I have no other plans. Because of my perserverance, and really in the end cougar, I never gave up. If anything though, if my father didn’t die in 1995, I might be a baker today. I would own my own bakery and pastry shop. It’s second nature to me. It’s what I used to do. Down the line though, I would love to do something with politics. I love politics. I think that in America, we are so much more able to say, feel, and devote to change. More so than any other place in the world. Last election proved that is possible.
Cole: I'll end with a random question: If you could play one superhero, who
would it be?
Gilles: If I was in a superhero movie, I would definitely want to be the bad guy. I would want them to shave my head and put scars on my face. I’d be the baddest guy ever. There’s a role of a villain in Green Latern called Sinestro. First he’s good and then he turns bad. That’s a bad guy I would love to play. It’s a long shot, but I would love to play him. If I did play a superhero though, I’d love to play someone who has not so much a super power, but because of his strong will he’s a superhero. Batman is a great example of that.
Thanks again to Gilles for taking the time to sit down with me. Maybe someday we'll see him as a scary villain on the big screen.
This Sunday- Episode 407 "The Wig Party"
Written by Marjorie David & David Marshall Grant
Directed by Ken Olin
The family attends a benefit at Nora’s cancer center. Kitty worries Nora and Sarah when she considers other alternative treatments to chemo. Robert and Kevin strategize on how to handle a new candidate who has entered the race. Sarah lets Luc look after the kids for the day. Meanwhile, Scotty’s dad makes a surprise visit.
Spooky Times at Stage 6
Hope everyone had a marvelous Halloween, filled with lots of candy and mayhem. Here at Stage 6, the ghouls and goblins came out and so did the pumpkin carving knives. Check out the fine pumpkin craftmanship of the B&S cast, crew, and writers...
Stand-In Department, yes, this is some Ojai peach on pumpkin action...
Craft Services, bagels for ears and spoons for eyes...
Props Department, the Pumpkin-Pine...
Transpo Department, the wheels on the truck go round and round...
Accounting Department, ONE Jack-O-Latern, TWO Jack-O-Laterns...
AD Department, with smoke coming out the ears...
Actors, without the smoke and mirrors...
Construction, they tied for 1st place...
Hair Department, but where is the hair...
Art Department, tied for 1st place...
Work of Sparky Hawes, meet William's other lovechild Pumpkin Walker...
Wardrobe Department, pumpkins and feathers and sparkles, oh my...
Editors, this pumpkin is a mess, we'll fix it in post...
Writers' Floor, but where's the dialogue...
Greens Department, hey, are those Nora's bushes...
Production, their lips are sealed...
PA's, also tied for 1st place...
Great pumpkins everyone! Also, here's a pic of the assistants on the 4th floor. This is our attempt to make the B&S writing office more like the Sterling Cooper offices of Mad Men...
Cole, Elysse, Matt, Marc, John
This Sunday- Episode 406 "Zen and the Art of Mole Making
Written by Brian Studler & Geoffrey Nauffts
Directed by Michael Schultz
He’s baaaack! Tommy pays a surprise visit to the family. Sarah tries to keep her romance with Luc hidden from Paige and Cooper. Kevin and Scotty take steps in making Michelle their surrogate. Meanwhile. as Holly faces the reality of her financial situation, someone makes her a very tempting offer.
This episode was reviewed by Entertainment Weekly and received a B+. Not too shabby if you ask me! This is also the first episode co-written by new B&S writer Geoffrey Nauffts.
Well, that’s all until next week. Hope everyone has a fun Halloween this weekend.
Best,
Cole
Interview with Gilles Marini (Part One)
My roommate was super jealous when I left for work this morning. She, like most of the country, has a huge crush on Gilles Marini. And who would I be interviewing today? None other than the famous Frenchman himself. Gilles was, as always, extremely gracious and very generous with his responses. Enjoy!
Cole: What was your life like before you moved to America?
Gilles: Well, I
grew up in south of France. When I
was 7 years old, I started working with my father at his bakery, helping make
bread, pastries. And it was a
pretty hard job, let me tell you.
That was my job until I turned 18.
This is when I became a fire fighter in Paris. The army owns the fire fighters in Paris. It’s very different than here. During my service, my father got sick,
and this is why I decided to go back down and work with him until he
passed. After that, I was a little
bit sick of my situation in France, so I decided to seek a different horizon
and move to America.
Cole: And how
did you first get into modeling?
Gilles: A
friend of mine named Sandy would come to the bakery all the time. We really liked each other, she was the
sweetest girl ever. And her uncle
was a photographer. And she told
me, when you get to Paris, you’ve got to meet him. I got to Paris, I met him, and actually he’s one of the best
photographers in the world. And I
just didn’t know it at the time.
His name is Fred Goudon. I became very, very close to Fred. We took a lot of pictures together
along the way when I was a firefighter.
Next thing you know, after that, I had these beautiful pictures.
Gilles in his days as a firefighter, photograph by Fred Goudon
Cole: And did you move to America to pursue modeling?
Gilles: That was in my mind. But when I moved to America, I had already met my wife and
she was pregnant. So for me, in my
mind, it was like, oh God, I have to do whatever it takes to provide for her
and the baby. It went smooth in a
way because in America I was really welcomed. With the photos from France, I was able to quickly get a
Visa for work. I got one campaign
and next thing you know, an agency wanted me to work with them. I was doing modeling and able to spend
so much time with my family. It
was awesome.
Cole: And was it an easy transition going from modeling to
acting?
Gilles: Everything
went slowly but surely. Acting was
always in the back of my mind. It
is what I’ve always wanted to do.
Now, there’s a big difference between what you want to do and what’s
going to happen. But, I never gave
up. I said, this is what I want to
do. I will take it step by step
and take my time.
Cole: So it took a ton of perseverance?
Gilles: Oh yes.
And by the way, I didn’t speak a word of English. I came here with 400 dollars. It wasn’t easy. I couldn’t say, oh I want to be an
actor, so let me spend money to take acting classes. No. It really
was way more complicated than that.
Cole: Your
French accent is one of your trademarks.
But I’m wondering, when you were first starting out, did agents or
casting directors pressure you to change your accent?
Gilles: I didn’t speak a word of English. Obviously acting wasn’t something I
could ever do because of the language barrier. With modeling, I had a chance to go to some commercial
auditions. And right away, I was
booking commercials. And that’s
when you understand, okay, there’s something going on here. So I decided to explore it a little bit
more. I didn’t jump in the mix and
say, “I want to be an actor.” I
took my time. While I was in Miami, I was going back and forth to France a
lot. I was also working as a model
with Giorgio Armani in Italy.
Cole: Sounds like you were quite the globetrotter. So when you were trying to make this
transition, were there any actors in particular who inspired you?
Cole: So what did you do next?
Gilles: I decided to move to Los Angeles and also to kick it
up a notch with my English, I mixed more with the crowd to learn faster. I kept
telling myself Los Angeles is the place for me to become an actor. I know it’s a long shot. I know I’m not from here. I know I don’t speak the language. I know it’s a long shot. But why not me? I feel in my bones that this is
possible. This is something I
feel. I also started taking
acting classes at Vincent Chase on Sunset. I met with an agency here called L.A. Model and they threw
me in the mix. I worked more than
ever as a model. That helped me a
lot because I could actually have a regular, normal living, not thinking too
much of what was happening tomorrow.
I kept doing a lot of commercial acting. One year, I did six commercials. It was pretty involved, but one thing leads to another. I started doing acting starting with
the soap Passions and then I did Criminal Minds and did an independent feature,
Ugly Betty, The Bold and the Beautiful, Dirty Sexy Money. All those things. It wasn’t major. It was always a little part here and
there, where you would just see me quickly.
Cole: Taking the classes and getting these roles, what did
you discover to be your favorite part of acting?
Gilles: Being
able to expose things. I was very
moved by the fact that you can get into a different character. You can just dream of being this person
and be them. You can also explore
your dark side and what not.
There’s no limit when it comes to acting. And it’s great to tell a story and entertain people.
Cole: A lot of people recognize you as Dante, Samantha’s
sexy neighbor from the Sex and the City movie. Were you at all intimidated when you found out how sexually
provocative the role would be?
Gilles: Well, I
did not think too much of that just because the script…I didn’t know how far
we’d push it. Michael Patrick King
had an idea about the character. I
felt like, well, maybe we’re going to see a little bit of a butt.
[Cole laughs]
Gilles: And when I got on set, I let it go. You know why? Thinking about being this character. As this character, why should I be
ashamed of anything? Who cares? It’s my house, my shower. Samantha comes onto my property. Maybe she wants to see that, you
know. I really felt I became one
with Dante and found a way to be this kind of person. I’m always dressed up and I never walk around the house
naked. I’m very shy when it comes
down to that. So I just pushed the
envelope a bit, and next thing you know, it went from a bit part to a scene-stealer
and it changed my life. It changed
my life. So I have no regrets for
pushing the envelope a little bit.
I went full frontal. Who
cares? And what you guys saw on
camera, it was really nothing compared to what was happening on set. It was much more provocative and they
toned it down quite a bit.
Cole: So there was a lot more that happened in that shower
that we didn’t see?!
Gilles: Absolutely.
Cole: Yikes. Well,
a lot of people talk about a difference in French and American attitudes on
nudity. Have you noticed a
difference?
Gilles: Here,
people don’t really talk about what’s happening behind closed doors. I think in Europe, we’re much more open
and it’s more of a natural thing, especially when it comes down to sex. It is what it is. And here, it’s a little more
taboo. But in the end, people are
all the same. Culture can alter
you a little, but what it comes down to is our nature. And it’s weird to me that people are so
taboo about something that’s natural and actually the reason why we’re all
here. My character, if it comes
down to Dante, is really nuts, crazy.
It’s pushing the envelope.
But really, what is normal anyway?
Who are we to judge anything?
It was a pretty interesting movie.
Cole: What was it like to find yourself cast in such a big-name
movie?
Gilles: I realized it was a big movie when Michael Patrick
King told me on set that day, this is going to make you a superstar. I was like, what? He said, “You’re going to hate me. Your phone is going to keep
ringing. It’s going to be insane.” I was shocked.
Cole: And was he right? I think he was right…
The interview continues next week, as I ask Gilles about Dancing with the Stars and his experience so far working on Brothers & Sisters.
This Sunday- Episode 405 "Last Tango in Pasadena"
Written by Molly Newman & Jason Wilborn
DIrected by Bethany Rooney
Time to put on your dancing shoes. This week, Luc (Gilles Marini) meets the the Walker clan and gives Justin and Rebecca dance lessons in preparation for their wedding. Kitty is feeling better, and Robert surprises her with a night out. Scotty tries to convince Kevin that his friend Michelle would be the perfect surrogate. Holly receives devastating news regarding her finances.
Here's what's next on the slate:
Episode 406- "Zen and the Art of Mole Making" Written by Brian Studler & Geoffrey Nauffts, The family has a special visitor. One hint, he's visiting from Mexico...
Episode 407- "The Wig Party" Written by Marjorie David & David Marshall Grant, Not to be confused with the Whig Party. No, Robert does not switch political parties...
Episode 408- "The Wine Festival" Written by Sherri Cooper-Landsman & Michael Foley, Walkers plus wine... what could be better?
This Sunday- Episode 404 "From France With Love"
Written by Sarah Goldfinger and Michael Foley
Directed by Michael Morris
Kitty faces her first round of chemo and picks Sarah to be her “chemo buddy.” Sarah distracts Kitty with stories of a man she met in France. Nora, Holly, and Rebecca look at possible venues for Justin and Rebecca’s wedding. Justin and his new lab partner struggle to work together. Meanwhile, Robert faces criticism when he announces he is staying in the gubernatorial race, despite Kitty’s cancer.
It's a quiet day here at Stage 6 today. It's raining outside and all the writers are locked in their offices writing Episode 410 and 411. A couple of the writers have suggested we title Episode 411 "Information." But then, that begs the question of what we will title Episode 420. Any suggestions? I'm actually really excited for Sunday's episode. Not only does it feature the handsome, charming Gilles Marini, but also director Michael Morris did a great job infusing Sarah's flashbacks with French New Wave flavor. All in all, should be a pretty memorable episode of B&S. To everyone in Los Angeles, stay dry!
Best,
Cole
