Matt Dusk, who provides the sexy, swinging soundtrack for Call Me Fitz, chats about Jason’s skivvies, the Indy 500, and his role on Fitz.
Q: What attracted you to Call Me Fitz?
A: At first I wasn’t 100% sold, but as soon as I saw the pilot, I knew I was in. I connected with the characters, especially Fitz; because the music - my music – just fit him so perfectly. I immediately envisioned where I could add my own special touch.
Q: So then how did you make these songs your own?
A: I wanted the arrangement to be unique and original to Fitz. I didn’t want the songs to simply be karaoke tracks. But at the same time…you have to stay true to the original song. It has to have the same vibe, so people recognize it. It’s a fine line to walk, or in this case, sing.
Q: Favorite Call Me Fitz song?
A: Any Time At All. This song is about someone willing to do anything to get the girl - a unique kind of desperation. It ended up being used in a scene in which Fitz stumbles around drunk, which is just totally perfect for the whole rat pack theme of the show.
Q: What’s it like hearing your songs on Call Me Fitz?
A: As an artist, when you record and arrange a song, it takes days to produce a three and half minute track. Then you see a tiny snippet of it on TV. You’re lucky if you get 45 seconds of playtime. It’s like being at the Indy 500. Just as you scream, “there it is,” it’s gone, and you have to wait for the car to lap around again to hear more.
Q: What was it like performing in front of the entire cast and crew at the Series Premiere?
A: I recorded the soundtrack separately from the actual filming of the show, so to be a part of the celebration was great fun. It finally hit me at the premiere, surrounded by all the cast and crew, that I was part of a team - a team building something pretty spectacular. To open the first episode, I sang “That’s Life”, and of course, it was used during the scenes when Jason [Priestley] runs around in his undies. So the whole time I’m singing live, all I can think of is Jason in his skivvies, which cracked me up in the middle of the performance. Jason’s response? That’s Life.
Q: Tell us about the world of Matt Dusk…
A: Back in 2009, I released “Good News” in North America, which I recorded in 2008. Now it’s being released [Winter 2011] in Europe. So I am going through all the stages of promoting the album again. But my head is totally wrapped up in the next album. It’s a weird predicament – looking backwards and forwards at the same time. I also have a TV special for PBS coming out in late fall/early winter [February/March in Canada]. I spent a whole week in Vegas with a big band, live audience, and PBS film crew. It was an amazing time – a week-long party. The American market is the hardest of all to crack, so to get a big PBS special in the U.S., the home of Jazz, is very special for me.
Q: Did Vegas remind you of Fitz at all?
A: Fitz has that certain Vegas swagger and attitude. Fitz has that same star quality – that charisma - but he never actually became a star, so his diva attitude is a little unwarranted…well, unless you count being the star of the used car salesman club.
Fitz and Larry get tangled up in a black market organ exchange. Which one will lose a kidney? Tune in to CALL ME FITZ.
Q & A – Kathleen Munroe
The Call Me Fitz interactive team had a chance to sit down with the fabulous Kathleen Munroe, aka Ali Devon, to chat about mother-daughter bonds, learning to control your dangerous impulses, and bad boys.
Q: Can you describe your character and her first season story arc?
A: We first meet Ali Devon as a principled lawyer determined to nail Fitz for putting her mother, Babs, into a coma during a test drive gone awry. Hell bent on punishing Fitz, but intensely attracted to him in spite of herself, Ali begins to display her inner contradictions as the season plays out. She’s a well-intentioned woman who’s dedicated to living a “good” life and to being a “good” person…at the same time she struggles to keep her contradictory desires and impulses at bay. These desires grow stronger as the season progresses, often winning out over Ali’s intellect and good sense. She’s complicated, flawed, driven, strong-willed; someone who like all of us, is trying her best to be a better person.
Q: Viewers have decamped into two distinct fan bases, are you on Team Larry or Team Fitz?
A: As far as I’m concerned Larry and Fitz are like Crockett and Tubbs, or Bob and Doug Mackenzie, or Kate and Allie - you can’t have one without the other.
Q: Do you know an Ali? What is your inspiration for her?
A: Ali herself is separate from any one person in my life; there is no individual I know that encompasses all the complexities that make Ali unique. However, in terms of Ali’s profession as a lawyer, I do draw a bit from my own experiences growing up in the “lawyer” culture as my dad is in the profession. Luckily, all the characters in this series are fleshed out and made three-dimensional by good writing, so my part in the collaborative job of character invention is made easier.
Q: Can you talk a little about the relationship between Ali and her mom?
A: The relationship between Ali and Babs was one of the most fun aspects of the role for me as an actor. What at first looks like a fairly normal, loving mother-daughter bond is exposed as a competitive, combative, dysfunctional relationship as Babs recovers from her coma. The history between them is hilariously tumultuous, characterized by one-upmanship, theft (most notably of boyfriends), and mutual disappointment. Phyllis Ellis (who plays Babs) is such a wonderful actress to go toe-to-toe with, and it was so much fun to bring history and life to the Babs-Ali dynamic.
Q: What is your favorite episode from the first season?
A: It’s tough to pick a favourite episode from the first season, and I haven’t yet had the chance to see all of the episodes in their final form, but I had some especially fantastic writing to work with in the episodes surrounding Babs’ death and burial. Some of the scenes in the final two episodes are also memorable because I got the chance to work more with the core ensemble cast. It’s been great to see how some of the Ali scenes translate on the screen, but I’ve equally enjoyed watching my awesome cast-mates bring their storylines to life for the first time in the scenes we didn’t share.
The Call Me Fitz interactive team had a chance to sit down with the fabulous Kathleen Munroe, aka Ali Devon, to chat about mother-daughter bonds, learning to control your dangerous impulses, and bad boys.
Q: Can you describe your character and her first season story arc?
A: We first meet Ali Devon as a principled lawyer determined to nail Fitz for putting her mother, Babs, into a coma during a test drive gone awry. Hell bent on punishing Fitz, but intensely attracted to him in spite of herself, Ali begins to display her inner contradictions as the season plays out. She’s a well-intentioned woman who’s dedicated to living a “good” life and to being a “good” person…at the same time she struggles to keep her contradictory desires and impulses at bay. These desires grow stronger as the season progresses, often winning out over Ali’s intellect and good sense. She’s complicated, flawed, driven, strong-willed; someone who like all of us, is trying her best to be a better person.
Q: Viewers have decamped into two distinct fan bases, are you on Team Larry or Team Fitz?
A: As far as I’m concerned Larry and Fitz are like Crockett and Tubbs, or Bob and Doug Mackenzie, or Kate and Allie - you can’t have one without the other.
Q: Do you know an Ali? What is your inspiration for her?
A: Ali herself is separate from any one person in my life; there is no individual I know that encompasses all the complexities that make Ali unique. However, in terms of Ali’s profession as a lawyer, I do draw a bit from my own experiences growing up in the “lawyer” culture as my dad is in the profession. Luckily, all the characters in this series are fleshed out and made three-dimensional by good writing, so my part in the collaborative job of character invention is made easier.
Q: Can you talk a little about the relationship between Ali and her mom?
A: The relationship between Ali and Babs was one of the most fun aspects of the role for me as an actor. What at first looks like a fairly normal, loving mother-daughter bond is exposed as a competitive, combative, dysfunctional relationship as Babs recovers from her coma. The history between them is hilariously tumultuous, characterized by one-upmanship, theft (most notably of boyfriends), and mutual disappointment. Phyllis Ellis (who plays Babs) is such a wonderful actress to go toe-to-toe with, and it was so much fun to bring history and life to the Babs-Ali dynamic.
Q: What is your favorite episode from the first season?
A: It’s tough to pick a favourite episode from the first season, and I haven’t yet had the chance to see all of the episodes in their final form, but I had some especially fantastic writing to work with in the episodes surrounding Babs’ death and burial. Some of the scenes in the final two episodes are also memorable because I got the chance to work more with the core ensemble cast. It’s been great to see how some of the Ali scenes translate on the screen, but I’ve equally enjoyed watching my awesome cast-mates bring their storylines to life for the first time in the scenes we didn’t share.
Ali learns Babs’ dying wish was an organic burial – simple, tasteful, and completely illegal. If anyone can help her skirt the law, it’s Fitz.
Fitz is pleasantly surprised to discover his marriage to Babs fulfills his latent maternal longings. Appalled, Larry tries to get Ali to help break them up.
Ernie Grunwald aka the affable Larry sits down with the Call Me Fitz interactive team to give us the low-down on his alter ego, a sneak peak of the second season, and tell us what it was like wrestling with co-star Jason Priestley.
Q: We are now in the middle of the first season and viewers have now gotten a chance to get to know Larry a little bit better. What is the driving force behind Larry? What makes him who he is?
A: Larry is a good man, but he is also a very confused man. He is just a guy trying to figure out who he is - like all of us. As he says in episode 2, “I’m just a man”. Larry’s relationship with Richard is not just about helping him and guiding him to do the right thing; it’s also about helping both Richard and himself find out who they really are.
Q: Do you think Larry is really Richard’s conscience?
A: I think he thinks he is.
Q: In Episode 5, Larry helped Fitz create the perfect birthday gift for Ken - a custom tailored porno…
A: Jason [Priestley] has been begging me for years to wrestle with him in our underwear, so this was as good a time as any. It was actually a really neat dynamic on set. It was a very chaotic scene, but everything just seemed to fall into place.
Q: Do you and Larry share any similar traits? Are you polar opposites?
A: We are both compassionate and very good listeners. We are both very particular about things. We are both patient, although I am not quite as a patient as Larry. Where we differ is that I have a more edge than he does. I love exploring the moments when Larry gets to show his spunk – it’s fun for me as an actor. I also love it when Larry has to man up and show some balls. Not literally of course, well maybe in a few episodes…
Q: Is there anything that gets you in the right frame of mind to play Larry?
A: Mostly just the words and the situation – they’re my map.
Q: What was your favourite episode from Season 1?
A: I loved the second episode. You get to know Fitz and Larry, and understand them a bit better. I also loved the 12th episode when Larry undergoes an identity crisis. Larry is a lot of fun, but I also love exploring his confusion and his darker side. There are some great moments from the first season where Fitz shows just a touch of his softer side. It doesn’t happen often, but when it does, it’s poignant and memorable.
Q: Do you have any fond memories from filming Sunday’s upcoming episode?
A: There was a lot of vomiting. It was just fun and crazy.
Q: During the second season, viewers will see a slight change in Larry…
A: He unintentionally soaks up some Fitziness. Larry is driven by the belief that what he’s doing is the right thing, and therefore, ultimately good. Larry’s version of being a bad ass is telling a white lie, maybe a bit of petty theft and the occasional break and enter, but in the end, even if he has to bend the rules a little, he does so because he thinks it’s the right thing to do.
Q: What is your favourite episode of Season 2 so far? What was the most fun to film?
A: There have been several, but one of my favorites is when Larry and Richard break into an apartment. Larry goes all ninja, wearing gloves and a balaclava [ski mask] on his face, but a suit on his body. And of course, we were in broad daylight, so it was just great fun to shoot.
Q: Why should viewers watch Call Me Fitz?
A: I think this is one of the most fun shows on television. Every episode is just such an amazing ride – so easy to watch. The writing is bold and fantastic. You have the aesthetic of a beautiful, cinematically-shot show that is also laugh-out-loud funny, which is really a rare combination in this business. We’re lucky and I’m truly grateful; we have the right mix, and it works really well.
Q: We are now in the middle of the first season and viewers have now gotten a chance to get to know Larry a little bit better. What is the driving force behind Larry? What makes him who he is?
A: Larry is a good man, but he is also a very confused man. He is just a guy trying to figure out who he is - like all of us. As he says in episode 2, “I’m just a man”. Larry’s relationship with Richard is not just about helping him and guiding him to do the right thing; it’s also about helping both Richard and himself find out who they really are.
Q: Do you think Larry is really Richard’s conscience?
A: I think he thinks he is.
Q: In Episode 5, Larry helped Fitz create the perfect birthday gift for Ken - a custom tailored porno…
A: Jason [Priestley] has been begging me for years to wrestle with him in our underwear, so this was as good a time as any. It was actually a really neat dynamic on set. It was a very chaotic scene, but everything just seemed to fall into place.
Q: Do you and Larry share any similar traits? Are you polar opposites?
A: We are both compassionate and very good listeners. We are both very particular about things. We are both patient, although I am not quite as a patient as Larry. Where we differ is that I have a more edge than he does. I love exploring the moments when Larry gets to show his spunk – it’s fun for me as an actor. I also love it when Larry has to man up and show some balls. Not literally of course, well maybe in a few episodes…
Q: Is there anything that gets you in the right frame of mind to play Larry?
A: Mostly just the words and the situation – they’re my map.
Q: What was your favourite episode from Season 1?
A: I loved the second episode. You get to know Fitz and Larry, and understand them a bit better. I also loved the 12th episode when Larry undergoes an identity crisis. Larry is a lot of fun, but I also love exploring his confusion and his darker side. There are some great moments from the first season where Fitz shows just a touch of his softer side. It doesn’t happen often, but when it does, it’s poignant and memorable.
Q: Do you have any fond memories from filming Sunday’s upcoming episode?
A: There was a lot of vomiting. It was just fun and crazy.
Q: During the second season, viewers will see a slight change in Larry…
A: He unintentionally soaks up some Fitziness. Larry is driven by the belief that what he’s doing is the right thing, and therefore, ultimately good. Larry’s version of being a bad ass is telling a white lie, maybe a bit of petty theft and the occasional break and enter, but in the end, even if he has to bend the rules a little, he does so because he thinks it’s the right thing to do.
Q: What is your favourite episode of Season 2 so far? What was the most fun to film?
A: There have been several, but one of my favorites is when Larry and Richard break into an apartment. Larry goes all ninja, wearing gloves and a balaclava [ski mask] on his face, but a suit on his body. And of course, we were in broad daylight, so it was just great fun to shoot.
Q: Why should viewers watch Call Me Fitz?
A: I think this is one of the most fun shows on television. Every episode is just such an amazing ride – so easy to watch. The writing is bold and fantastic. You have the aesthetic of a beautiful, cinematically-shot show that is also laugh-out-loud funny, which is really a rare combination in this business. We’re lucky and I’m truly grateful; we have the right mix, and it works really well.
Hoping to take advantage of spousal privilege, Fitz proposes to a comatose Babs,
believing it will prevent her morse-code testimony. In an attempt to placate Larry, Fitz
makes him his Best Man. He throws a lame, kid-themed bachelor party – the kind of
party Fitz never had as a child.
believing it will prevent her morse-code testimony. In an attempt to placate Larry, Fitz
makes him his Best Man. He throws a lame, kid-themed bachelor party – the kind of
party Fitz never had as a child.
Keep up with Fitz and the rest of the gang here on their official blog. Stay tuned for content streamed directly from the creative masterminds that brought Call Me Fitz to the small screen including writers, producers, cast, and production staff.
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