Longview News-Journal from Longview, Texas • Page 99

SUNDAY Mgiine June 11, 1989 liooioson tiimj nicne as 'Night Court' clerk A t-' I v. 7 LOS ANGELES (AP) Charles Robinson bad one of your better supporting roles on TV as Newdell, Dabney Coleman's Intimidating makeup man on "Buffalo Bill." When the critically acclaimed comedy failed to reach a wide audience and was canceled by NBC, Robinson landed on his feet in yet another great supporting role, on NBC's "Night Court." Bill' was a wonderful show," Robinson said. "But unfortunately it didn't make it. I thought maybe my career was over. Then I heard I might go to 'Night Three days later I got the call." Robinson joined the "Night Court" cast in September 1984 when the show began its first full season.

He has been with the hit comedy ever since as laid-back court clerk Mac Robinson. The series features a parade of defendants through the unconventional night-time New York court session. It's sometimes difficult to separate the itinerant loonies from the officers of the court. Harry Anderson stars as the hip judge, John Larroquette has won four Emmys as the licentious prosecutor, Markie Post is the perky defense attorney and Richard Moll and Marsha Warfield are the bailiffs. "Mac's a more difficult character to play than Newdell was on 'Buffalo Robinson said.

"He's a wonderful guy, but it's hard to play a guy like that. Newdell had all those colors, he was unpredictable. Newdell could show up in a dashiki. What do you dress Mac in? Khakis and a sweater. "Mac's the normal person on the show.

He stands back and observes the others. But he also participates in the craziness. He can say something that shocks me. He has better control than the others. I love playing Mac.

It takes a lot of discipline. He's always on the verge. He senses what's going on and can be touched by it. Newdell would step away, but Mac sees them as part of his family." "Night Court" is a variation on the concept of "Barney Miller" and was created by Reinhold Weege, a former producer of "Barney Miller." The show had a tough shakedown and was not an immediate hit. It has also undergone a lot of cast changes.

Larroquette and Moll are the only members of the original cast. Selma Diamond began as the caustic, wisecracking bailiff, and after death from lung cancer in 1985 she was replaced by Florence Halop. Halop also suffered from lung cancer. She died in 1986 and was replaced by Warfield. Karen Austin was the first court clerk and Paula Kelly was the first defense attorney.

"They're taking Mac in a new direction," said Robinson. "Mac has always wanted to be an attorney, and they're sending him back to school." 'Mac also got married on the show, to an Asian woman named Quon Lee, played by Denice Kuma-gai. "I think a lot of it's based on my own life," he said. "My wife is from the Philippines." A special brand of justice can be seen on 'Night Series regulars Include front row left to right, Mac Robinson, played by Charles Robinson, Roz Russell, played by Marsha Warfield, and Dan Felldlng, played by John Larroquette, Bull Shannon, played by Richard Moll, Harry Stone, played by Harry Anderson, and Christine Sullivan, played by Markie Post. live-In Lisa PatricEc 'Crocodile Dundette' 1- IK, V- On the show, Lisa Wells has eight brothers and sisters; Lisa Patrick has four brothers.

Lisa Wells is athletic; Lisa Patrick is an accomplished tri-athlete. Triathlons, in fact, are a major love of Patrick, who debuted on American TV in an commercial where she played an Australian girl staying in touch with her boyfriend by phone. "I either run or swim every day," she said. "My apartment complex here has a 25-meter pool and I like to do three-quarters of an hour in it. On days I don't swim, I run six miles." Her proudest moment, aside from when she won the Lisa Wells part? Theaend of a 10-kilometer race in Newport Beach, Calif.

"I was the 12th woman finisher out of 2,000 competitors overall," Patrick says. "I was third in the 19-24 age group and won a trophy. If the show is renewed and I stay here, I'm going to keep on competing." Ah, yes. If the show is renewed for next season. A decision on that should be forthcoming in the next week, with Patrick's future plans hanging in the balance.

So far. "Live-In" has done fairly well, pulling a 14 percent share of the audience irtlts time-slot opposite "Alf," consistently one of TV's top-rated shows. Judging from her fan mail, many young Americans would rather watch Patrick. One letter said "You're a goddess." Another gushed that "I love your smile." The mail is part of what has been an almost magical experience for Patrick, who got her part because the creators of "Live-In" saw her commercial and said, "That girl is exactly what we want. Let's see if she's available." She was.

"It really is magical," the still-unspoiled actress said. "Six months ago, I knew who Tony Danza was, and now I work next to him and other famous people." By Thomas D. Ellas Scrlpps Howard News Service HOLLYWOOD They're calling her "Crocodile Dundette" on the set of "Live-In," and the nickname fits Lisa Patrick almost as well as the role she's ploying. Patrick, 23, one of Australia's top models before she took the starring role in the CBS-TV sitcom (Mondays, 7 p.m.), is not just an actress, but an athlete and she's actually been an au pair in a job much like the one she does on screen. "The character is very close to me, except that Lisa Patrick doesn't fold as much laundry as Lisa Wells," Patrick giggled over lunch the other day.

"It's actually quite wonderful I get to play a character to close to myself, because acting is so new to me and I have no formal training." Many actresses never get a chance to play themselves, but Patrick is simply being asked to be natural. "I'm so lucky because they Just want me to be me," she said. "That really makes it comfortable." Comfort on the set is something this willowy blond from Sydney needs badly. For Hollywood is a far cry from where she ever was before. "When I was an au pair, it was in north Queensland, a four-hour trip by air north from Sydney into the tropics," she "I started off in the Job as a gardener, picking up coconuts in a tractor that I'd drive while wearing my bikini.

It was paradise. I lived in a shack behind the owner's big, beautiful house. "Her little daughter used to come down to my shack and liked my company, and, after a little while, the owner asked me if I wanted to move in. Did I was amazed such a luxurious house existed. So I moved after the child.

It's a good Dundette. tto my character now it 'f 1TTT7 1 f- I Lisa Patrick was one of the top models In Australia before she joined 'Crocodile.