COMING TO TERMS RAY ROMANO SWEATS THE DETAILS OF HIS FEATURE-FILM DEBUT - AND HIS SITCOM'S FUTURE.Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Writer Given all his success - the No. 1-rated show, the Emmys, the $50 million annual payday for making ``Everybody Loves Raymond'' - you'd think Ray Romano Raymond Romano (born December 21, 1957 in Queens, New York) is an Emmy Award-winning and Golden Globe-nominated, American actor and comedian best known for his starring role on the sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond. would be bursting with confidence these days, particularly with all the people begging him to bring back his CBS (Cell Broadcast Service) See cell broadcast. comedy for one more season. But he's not. Romano, just like his TV persona, is a bundle of insecurities, a man who finds the cloud in every silver lining silver lining n. A hopeful or comforting prospect in the midst of difficulty. [From the proverb "Every cloud has a silver lining". . Self-doubt defines him, makes him happy and, because he's good at expressing his worries in a relatable way, all this anxiety has made him a very wealthy man. These days, Romano is terrified ter·ri·fy tr.v. ter·ri·fied, ter·ri·fy·ing, ter·ri·fies 1. To fill with terror; make deeply afraid. See Synonyms at frighten. 2. To menace or threaten; intimidate. that his first big-screen venture, the comedy ``Welcome to Mooseport,'' is going to be received with all the enthusiasm of an impending im·pend intr.v. im·pend·ed, im·pend·ing, im·pends 1. To be about to occur: Her retirement is impending. 2. root canal root canal n. 1. The chamber of the dental pulp lying within the root portion of a tooth. Also called pulp canal. 2. . Romano plays a handyman running for mayor against the former president of the United States The head of the Executive Branch, one of the three branches of the federal government. The U.S. Constitution sets relatively strict requirements about who may serve as president and for how long. . Gene Hackman plays Romano's political opponent, and that casting gave the 46-year-old comedian plenty more to worry about since Hackman is no slouch slouch v. slouched, slouch·ing, slouch·es v.intr. 1. To sit, stand, or walk with an awkward, drooping, excessively relaxed posture. 2. To droop or hang carelessly, as a hat. v. in the acting department. ``Gene's presence made Ray even more insecure, if that's possible,'' says ``Mooseport'' director Donald Petrie. The first night of filming, the ``Mooseport'' cast and crew met for dinner and Petrie asked Romano to give a toast. Romano didn't want to do it. He didn't know these people, he hadn't prepared anything (Romano is obsessive about preparation; every word in every joke is parsed to within an inch of its life) and he was wearing the wrong color of shirt. (He's funniest wearing blue.) Finally after much coaxing, Romano stood up, raised a glass and, fumbling, said, ``Um ... I just want to say this is my first major film ...'' And Hackman, sitting at the other end of the table, cried, ``Holy s---!'' From that point on, Romano was OK. (Well, as OK as Romano will allow himself to be.) Here, he worries about ending ``Raymond,'' wonders if anyone is going to see ``Mooseport,'' recalls an anxious encounter with Dustin Hoffman Noun 1. Dustin Hoffman - versatile United States film actor (born in 1937) Hoffman and ponders what kind of parties Redd Foxx Redd Foxx (December 9, 1922 – October 11, 1991), born John Elroy Sanford,<ref name="walkoffame" /> was an American comedian best known for his starring role on the television sitcom Sanford and Son. gave. Q: So ... are you going to be having a lot more time on your hands pretty soon? A: You mean when the movie bombs? (Laughs) Q: No, no. When you pull the plug on ``Raymond.'' Or are you coming back for one last go-round? A: I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. . It's eight years, man. It's a crazy-hard decision. The last six months, I've been a wreck. Not on the surface, but I'm getting palpitations and I'm breaking out and my shrink tells me it all comes down to this. It's true. Q: What's the sticking point sticking point n. A point, issue, or situation that causes or is likely to cause an impasse. Noun 1. sticking point - a point at which an impasse arises in progress toward an agreement or a goal ? A: There's so much involved. There's the show, first of all, this thing I've been doing eight years and I mean every ounce of creative energy has been put into this for EIGHT YEARS, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. I don't care
"Don't Care" is a 1994 (see 1994 in music) single by American death metal band Obituary. if I'm on vacation, I'm always thinking about the show and this story and that story. And now I'm - whoosh whoosh also woosh n. 1. A sibilant sound: the whoosh of the high-speed elevator. 2. A swift movement or flow; a rush or spurt. intr.v. - going to abruptly shut the door on that? It's a big life change. Q: You probably wouldn't know what to do with all the free time. A: I wouldn't have a clue. It all comes down to whether we think we have any stories left to tell. That's what we're talking about. We're repeating ourselves, you know. It's just getting harder. Q: You've spent a lot of time in that kitchen. A: One hundred and ninety-six episodes in that kitchen. ``Seinfeld'' did 175 shows, and they had characters coming in and out like crazy. How many characters come in our show? It's all us. Q: But if you let me indulge in a bit of amateur psychiatry, I'd say if you're agonizing over this like you are with the palpitations and everything, I'm guessing you'd really like to do another year. A: Yeah. But the problem is ... Q: And there's the $50 million you'd pocket, too, not to mention more syndication profits. A: It's not for the money. It's never for the money. But that's one of the things on the list, you know what I mean? It's way down there on the list. Q: You have money ... A: I have money, but just because you have money doesn't mean you don't want to keep making money. No ... when you don't know you're at the end yet, you want to get out before the moment comes. There was an article in TV Guide saying, ``Well, this show is leaving and they stayed too long. And that show is leaving and they stayed too long. And 'Raymond' is thinking about leaving, but they haven't stayed too long. They should stay more.'' And that's when you want to leave. (Laughs) Q: Everybody figures you're playing yourself on the show. Now in ``Mooseport,'' you're playing another insecure guy, but with different shadings. Do you feel more like an actor? A: I don't know if I feel like an actor. I feel like I did embody a different character in the movie and more so in ``Eulogy,'' this movie I did that's coming out later this year. It's not a super stretch, of course, but I'm playing the character in the movie. I liked it. And I can tell. I was on ``NewsRadio'' for two days before I got fired. And I knew I deserved to be fired. I didn't feel it. Here I felt I had a little process in getting who this guy was. If that's acting, then I guess I'm doing it. Q: And you were doing it opposite Gene Hackman, which had to be a little intimidating, at least at first. A: Yeah, no pressure there. Q: I guess it could have been worse. Dustin Hoffman was originally set for the role. A: I met him. He's very intense. He brought books to the meeting. He kept asking me why I thought my character would do this or that, and I thought, ``(Shoot), I didn't do a back story.'' Then he said, ``So it says on the Internet you went to three different high schools.'' I swear to God. ``Was that by choice or did you have to?'' I go, ``Man, I had to.'' He goes, ``GOOD, good.'' I got kicked out of two high schools. He liked that. Q: Hackman isn't quite as chatty chat·ty adj. chat·ti·er, chat·ti·est 1. Inclined to chat; friendly and talkative. 2. Full of or in the style of light informal talk: a chatty letter. . A: No. He's not loquacious lo·qua·cious adj. Very talkative; garrulous. [From Latin loqu  x, loqu . (Laughs) Does that work? Q: Not bad for a guy that got kicked out of two high schools. A: You better believe it. And I'm kind of shy in that area, so I didn't feel confident enough just to strike it up with him. But we had conversations. He told me a story - I don't know how we got on this topic - about renting a house from Redd Foxx, him and his wife, and they got in the house and settled in and the second day, in one room, he looked in the closet and there was a dead monkey. Q: It took him two days to find this? He didn't smell it right away? A: I guess not. He just kept saying, ``What kind of party did they have here?'' Glenn Whipp, (818) 713-3672 glenn.whipp(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 4 photos Photo: (1 -- cover -- color) EVERYBODY LOVES... ...Raymond on TV, but the big screen has Romano on edge (2) no caption (Ray Romano in a truck holding a dog) (3) Ray Romano (with co-star Doris Roberts Doris May Roberts (b. November 4 1930, St. Louis, Missouri) is a five-time Emmy Award-winning American actress, best known for playing Marie Barone on Everybody Loves Raymond. Biography Early life Doris Roberts was born in St. ) (4) Romano (with director Donald Petrie) |
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