Indiana Gazette from Indiana, Pennsylvania • 32

Entertainment Pe so Wednesday, November 8, 2000 By Abigail Van Buren Braugher drawn to role of Gideon Dear Abby for over the course of a ABC has a lot at stake in the series, Its only new drama on the fall schedule. The network may also be inclined to stick with it despite a slow start in the ratings. "Gideon's Crossing" competes at 10 p.m. on Wednesday against "Law and Order," NBC's long-running and popular drama. Braugher prepared for the role by having a long talk with Groopman and following a doctor as tie worked in Los Angeles.

He was Interested in a character with a strong family, after years of playing Pembleton. Gideon Is "a scientist, he's a fighter, he's aggressive and committed to excellence in his own way," Braugher said. "1 just thought he was a man who is fascinating and complex. He's a leader, and yet he's very interested in the substance of life, which is how we react to the world, how we find die energy to go on." The death of Gideon's wife reminds him of the fragility of life and the limits of his powers, lie said. Braugher, who's also worked in films and on stage, didn't take the role because of any great allegiance to television.

He recognizes, though, that it's something of a golden era for TV drama. "Some of the best writing in entertainment, period, is on episodic dramas today," he said. "Movies are very risky enterprises in which producers are very loathe to go out on a limb because they may not be able to recoup their profits." Serious adult dramas are rare in movies, possibly because adults go to see a movie once while a teen-ager will go five or six times, he said. At a time when there's been a lot of noise about the lack of minority actors in series television, "Gideon's Crossing" very quiedy makes points about inclusiveness. Braugher is black, Blades Is Latino and one of the students prominendy featured is Asian.

In conversation, Braugher tersely steers clear of the issue. "It's in essence a political question," he said, "and the last thing I want to do is make my work political." (On the Net: www.abc.go.com primetimegideonscrossingfgideons homchtml) give the impression that I am None of the men I know perceives me this way, eidicr. So I return to my original question; What's die deal with women today? STAMP OUT PARANOIA, PALM, DALE, CALIF. DEAR STAMP OUT: Jealousy and insecurity are one-size-fits-all clothes and they are worn by both men and women. They are flattering on neither, buj they've been around since we were cave dwellers.

And I agree, their place Is on the rag pile. DEAR ABBY: I am expecting my first child in a few months. A friend is throwing a baby showeri which I am not supposed to know about 1 moved to die East Coast about 1Q years ago, but I am originally from the Midwest Many family members and friend still live there. Would it be tacky to send them a baby shower invitation, or should just send out a birth announcement? Or can I do both? I am not sure of the proper etif queried I still keep in touch with everyone and dont expect them to travel ea4 for the shower. On the other hand, 1 know some of them would like to be informed bf events surrounding the baby's arrival, My mother told me many of mr relatives want to send gifts.

Please help. FIRST-TIME MOM' DEAR FIRST-TIME MOM: Forgo sending shower invitations to any one who is not expected to attend, it would appear to be a blatant bid for gifts. Since you're still in touch with everyone, the news is out about your pregnancy. Send a birth announcement aftejr your baby arrives. And by the way congratula- dons! Universal Prvss Syndicate Internet Service Provider By DAVID BAUDER AP Television Writer NEW YORK By the time he retired police detective Frank Pemble-ton on "Homicide: Life on the Street," Andre Braugher felt the stories his character coutd tell were pretty much exhausted.

"After six seasons, I'd been married, separated, been through two emergency pregnancies, shot at, had a stroke, he said. "By the last sea-son, we were TV going around the block to get to the house next door." Chances are, he won't have the same worries as Dr. Ben Gideon, chief of experimental medicine at a prestigious Boston teaching hospital, in the ABC series "Gideon's Crossing" There are plenty of story avenues for producers to follow, for a few years at least Braugher's character is a doctor who takes on the seemingly hopeless cases. He's a teacher. He's best friends with the hospital's chief administrator, played by Ruben Blades.

And he's a widower with two young children, bitter that his wife was reluctant to fight her cancer with the ferocity he offers his patients. The series is inspired by the book "The Measure of Our Days" by lerome Groopman, a professor at Harvard Medical School Braugher read a script of the pilot and immediately accepted an offer to play Gideon from executive producer Paul.Attanasio, the "Homicide" creator. "It was head and shoulders above anything I'd been reading lately," Braugher said, unwinding in a cramped office after an appearance on Rosie O'Donnells talk show. "It was old-fashioned storytelling. I had a very strong and immediate reaction to it" Also, he said, "to have a sane executive producer who can produce this kind of work told me this was a path I wanted to travel." Sane? Braugher's knowing grin tells you he's been in the business long enough to experience the opposite.

He was also eager for the responsibility of carrying a TV series on his shoulders. "It's the reason I've devoted myself to my craft," he said. "It's why 1 work hard and prepare to have the opportunity one day to lead a cast and to enjoy the pleasure of doing a character of great depth and complexity. This is exactly what I've been looking DEAR ABBY: I need to vent mv frustration over two ludicrous and painful incidents that have occurred since my 21-year-old son, "John," passed away from cancer in 1994. The oncology doctor who treated John and signed his death certificate moved to a new office in 1996.

His staff then sent a "new address" notice addressed to our son. I can top that This week, wc received a "relocation" notice from the mortuary that handled Iohn's funeral. This, too, was addressed to John! I can handle the music and video club mailings addressed to my son, even though I've written them numerous times informing them of John's death, but I never felt I needed to ask an oncology doctor or mortuary to remove my son's name from their list Don't mailing lists ever get updated or destroyed? JOHN'S MOTHER IN ALBUQUERQUE DEAR MOM; You have my sympathy for your painful predicament Although we know that no one lives forever immortality may indeed exist on hard-drives and computer discs. Although mailing lists should be updated yearly, it's a task that often gets put on the back burner because of work overload. If you receive any more of these mailings, just toss them.

DEAR ABBY: What's the deal with women today? Why are wc so neurotic and insecure when it comes to men? I am a woman who happens to have many male friends. When one of them gets a girlfriend, she will watch me like a hawk and become angry if I say or do the "wrong" thing around him. When one of my female friends gets a boyfriend, she'll drop "subtle" hints to me to stay away from her man and focus on my own relationships. Abby, I am In no way a slut or a man-stcaler, nor do I act, dress or Indiana County's Largest Providing you with Additional Full PPP Access Two2 E-Mail Accounts MAC Ex PC Technical Support Local Access Within the Indiana Exchange ino iei-up nee Andre Braugher stars as Dr. Ben Gideon on ABC's new medical series, "Gideon's Crossing." The show airs at 10 p.m.

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