NOVEMBER 1 2008
AMERICANWAY 73
BLOODAND
BONES
Fromaneck-nibblingvampire toawisecrackingFBIagent,
David Boreanaz’s memorable characters have helped the
actormakequite aname for himself. (The trick is saying it
correctly.) ByAllisonWinnScotch
DAVID BOREANAZ IS APOLOGIZING TOME.
Profusely. Hehasapologizedat least seven times, de-
spite my reassurances that everything is okay. Why
is Boreanaz so remorseful? Because— gasp! — he
calledme early. He didn’t flake on the interview; he
didn’t keepmewaiting for twohourswhile he threw
a tantrum in his trailer. He merely called me early
because he is trying tomake a flight to his home in
Park City, Utah. If this is Boreanaz’s biggest flaw, I
like him already.
Then, hemakes small talkwithme, asking about
the run I just got back from and inquiring about the
blisteringEast Coastweatherwhile I fumble ineptly
withmy recording device. By the time the interview
gets officially underway (agood30minutes early), I
have decided that he might just be the coolest guy
inHollywood.
Boreanaz (pronounced Bo-ree-ah-nuz), formerly
best known as a blood-lusting vampire on
Buffy
the Vampire Slayer
and its popular spin-off,
Angel
,
nowplays FBI agent SeeleyBoothonFox’s hit series
Bones
, currently in its fourth season.
True or false: You were discovered while walking
your dog in Los Angeles.
Yep. Mymanager, who is
still my manager today, discovered me while I was
walking my dog. At the time, I was doing theater
and a lot of commercials and some bit parts on sit-
coms. But Ihadameetingwithhim thenextday, and
from there, itwas prettymuch history. It could have
been a horror story, but it didn’t turn out to be.
Working on a one-hour series can be grueling
work.Whenyouwrapped
Angel
,wereyou looking
todiveback intoTV rightaway?
No, it kindof fell in
my lap. I took a year off, and I did two independent
films that Iwas reallypleasedwith. Onewent to the
TorontoFilmFestival. Ihadanotherdeal overatABC
that fell through. Gail Berman, whowas the head of
Fox at the time, called and askedme if I wanted to
be the lead in [
Bones
], and I fell in lovewith thechar-
acters. I fell in lovewith thisHepburn-and-Tracy, kind
of
Moonlighting
[dynamic].
Oh, I grew up on
Moonlighting
.
I’m a huge Bruce
Willis fan. I ran into him on the lot about two years
ago and talked to him, and he was really cool. If I
could follow a career, that’s the type of career I
would love to have.
Akin to
Moonlighting
’sMaddie andDavid, you and
costar Emily Deschanel have chemistry that you
can’tmanufacture.Was that instant, or is it some-
thingyouworkon?
It’s both. I readwitha coupleof
DavidBoreanazmay lay his headdown in LosAngeles, but his
heart belongs to his hometown of Philadelphia. Hefills us in
on his favorite things in and about theCity of Brotherly Love.
Feeling Philly
BESTCHEESESTEAK:
Pat’s King of Steaks.
“For its originality. And it’s always good to go there late at
nightandchowdownona steakand reallyexperience thatarea inPhiladelphia. If
you’re on the upper-crust level ofwanting a cheesesteak, go to the Four Seasons
Hotel. Theymake a really fancy, good cheesesteak.”
BESTCHILD-FRIENDLYAFTERNOON:
“I takemy son down to the
Schuylkill River
towatch all the rowers and see the
boathouses. Orwegoout toWayne, Pennsylvania, to
MainLineCapriWater Ice
,
[which serves a snow-cone-like dessert]. It’s the best!”
BESTWORKOUT:
PhiladelphiaMuseumofArt steps.
“Just your classicRockymoment.”
BESTHOMETOWNTEAM:
Philadelphia Flyers.
“[When Iwas growing up,] if youwent to go see a game, it
would have been at theSpectrum. Itwas such an electrifying experience.”
BESTBAR:
Dirty Frank's Bar.
“It’s a hole-in-the-wall downtown. On the outside, it looks like
an abandoned apartment, and on the inside, it’s just a great Philly bar. At Christ-
mastime, go there to drink an ice-coldGeneseeCreamAle.”
girls when theywere testing for the role. Obviously,
something clicked in the room between the two of
us. When you have lightning in the bottle, youwant
to capture it, nurture it.
But we actually get together every weekend
and break down the script, work on the scenes for
the week with our acting coach, Ivana Chubbuck.
She taught Halle Berry; she won her an Academy
Award.
That seems like an amazing commitment, given
the amount of time the show already requires.
It
is a big sacrifice formy friends and family. For [Em-
ily andme], the challenge is to keep it fresh and not
rely on thinking,
Oh, the show has been on for three
seasons.We can just relax now.
You’re preparing to direct an episode right now.
Howdifferent is it tobebothdirectingandacting?
It’sprettydifficult. You’re in themidstof ascene, and
you’re constantly thinking as the director,
What’s
the motivation, what’s the subtext, what’s the drive
here?
Then, you get caught up and have to refocus
on acting. It’s a challenge. But I thinkwhen you put
yourself in the pool of chaos— for me, at least—
things come out better than if it is all planned out
perfectly.
