Who Doesn't Love GCB's ? Mark Deklin

 

 

 

 

 

 

Deklin grew up in Pittsburgh and has spent most of his adult life as a New Yorker. But the actor who portrays a closeted gay cowboy on GCB, ABC's outrageous Texas-bred comedy, has come to think of himself as Texan in spirit. "That's allowed, isn't it?" It is if you believe Lyle Lovett, who sang the immortal words, "That's right you're not from Texas, but Texas wants you anyway."

Before Deklin was cast as GCB's Blake Reilly, a rancher-turned-clothing designer, he co-starred last year in the acclaimed but short-lived Lone Star, which was filmed in Dallas. "When I first came to Texas," Deklin says, "I thought, 'Oh, man, how am I, a Yankee through and through, going to fit in this place?' ... I didn't expect to be able to say this, but I really love Dallas." As a result, Deklin believes his performance is more genuine. Judge for yourself when GCB airs at 9 p.m. Sunday.

1 As a TV character, Blake is one of a kind: He's a gay man who doesn't consider his marriage to be a sham and who isn't tortured by the secret he's keeping. Is that fun to play?

It's great. No one wants to play a two-dimensional character. I've played a lot of guys on TV who were like, "Hi, I'm wearing a suit and I have a square jaw and I'm here to spout a lot of technical information." That's fine. I'm always grateful for the work. But to have a character with layers and levels and secrets and complexity is very appealing.

2 How did you get a handle on what makes this character tick?

I have many gay friends, but they're all out. I don't know anybody who's closeted. So I didn't have a template to work from. At first, I was thinking of the Dennis Quaid character in Far From Heaven: a tortured, hiding kind of guy. But Bobby Harling (series creator and executive producer) said, "No, Blake is not tortured. He knows who he is. He is comfortable in his skin. He has made the arrangement that works best for him. He is a warm, life-filled person. That is the quality we want you to bring to this."

3 His is an unusual marriage, isn't it?

I think, as the series unfolds, people are going to be fascinated by his marriage to Cricket (Miriam Shor). Despite the oddness of the arrangement, these two people adore each other. And their marriage works.

4 What do you hope the viewers from North Texas think of the show?

I hope they enjoy it. I hope they recognize that we're not attacking anybody. We're not attacking Highland Park. We're just taking a very specific community and taking a comedic, lighthearted jab at some of the hypocrisies one might find within that community.

5 Will GCB keep you from doing more of Hawaii Five-O (as the husband of Scott Caan's ex)?
Well, Scott did shoot me in a recent episode! I lived to tell the tale, so they left it open. But my hope, as much as I've enjoyed Hawaii Five-O, is that GCB takes off and that I won't be available for many years to come. As an actor, that would be a great problem to have.