Новости 1. 19 февраля в эфир канала NBC вышла 1.16 "4AM Miracle" сериала "Студия 60", где режиссером была Лора Иннес. В главной роли Мэттью Перри ("Друзья")
2. В марте Лора приступит к режиссированию 21 серии 13 сезона "Скорой помощи".
3. 19 февраля Лора дала очень большое и очень познавательное интервью сайту
http://www.afterellen.com/people/TV/2007/2/laurainnes -------------
Interview with ER's Laura Innes
by Malinda Lo, Managing Editor
February 19, 2007
After 12 years on television's enduring hit medical drama, ER, last month Emmy-winning actor and director Laura Innes finally hung up her stethoscope as Dr. Kerry Weaver, the hospital's resident tough-as-nails administrator and lesbian.
After Dr. Weaver fell for hospital psychiatrist Kim Legaspi (Elizabeth Mitchell) in the show's seventh season back in 2000, she then became prime time television's longest-running recurring lesbian character.
During the course of her seven years as an out lesbian, Dr. Weaver experienced the gamut of lesbian story lines: from coming out to herself to coming out to her colleagues and family; falling for a lesbian firefighter (Lisa Vidal); having a child with said firefighter, who subsequently died heroically; undergoing a bitter custody battle with her deceased spouse's family; and ultimately finding another love interest just in time to facilitate her departure from the hospital and the series. Though being saddled with the lesbian motherhood story line was more stereotypical than not, ER never shied away from allowing Dr. Weaver to have girlfriends and openly express her affection for them — something that doesn't always occur on TV's biggest hit shows.
AfterEllen.com spoke with Innes shortly after she finished directing an episode of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (her episode aired on Feb. 19th) about her groundbreaking role on ER, the ways that viewers have reacted to her portrayal of the character, and which girlfriend she'd choose for Dr. Weaver in the long run.
AfterEllen.com: Your character on ER, Dr. Kerry Weaver, was the longest-running recurring lesbian character on prime time television.
Laura Innes: Don't I get some award for that? [Laughs.] That's right. Isn't there some Emmy category for the longest-running lesbian character? I'm sure that's true. That's a good thing.
AE: How much input did you have into the development of her and the lesbian story line?
LI: When they first came to me with the idea and said, "We're thinking of having the character be gay," I said, "Oh, OK, that would be interesting and good in a lot of ways," and dramatically pretty interesting. And initially when the scripts started coming out around her attraction to … Kim [Legaspi] … [who was played by] … the fabulous Elizabeth Mitchell, I was a little taken aback because I wasn't crazy about how it was coming out.
It didn't feel like — the initial scripts to me didn't have enough … what's the word, kind of [an] arc of coming-out, like degrees of comfortableness and stuff. I just felt like it really needed to be more of a long process for her to admit to this, that she couldn't just on a dime decide, "Hey, I'm gay," because … some of the reading that I'd done about it, people that I talked to … [impressed upon me that] gee, if you're that age and you're coming out, it kind of takes you awhile to admit it to yourself, you know?
And for somebody like Kerry who's so tightly wound and so private and — I really felt like it was interesting if it was something that was a surprise to her, and that she was really trying to understand and was spending a lot of time in denial. And I thought, well, if she goes through all that, it will be so much more interesting when she finally comes out. And so I think I had a fair amount of influence in those scripts about the actual coming-out and her ambivalence and her fear and all that stuff.
But then later on, I mean as the show went on, she became a person who was gay and once in a while it came up, but it wasn't that prominent in the story arcs. And then, you know, they kind of reignited it when I had my fireman girlfriend [Sandy Lopez, played by] Lisa Vidal, and that was all good and fun. And then the custody battle for the kid, and then it kind of died down again, as everything does in series television — there are things that come up and then go away again. And then most recently, it was kind of a little blip relationship with my other sexy new girlfriend [Courtney Brown, played by Michelle Hurd].
So … as the years have gone on, I've had less input about it just because, frankly, there was less story about it, so … there wasn't that much to say about it. On one hand, I liked that she was somebody who works with you who happens to be gay, and it wasn't a big deal. On the other hand, I do feel like there were times when they could have integrated that story, that content into the show a little more.
But you know, I think she's great. … I honestly think that NBC and John Wells Productions — I don't think they ever got enough credit for what they did, for putting one of the main characters on a show that was absolutely the biggest hit on TV, having that character become gay. I don't think they really got quite enough credit for it, because it wasn't like a super-sexy, sizzling — you know, it was just like a normal person. So I feel a little bit like they could have gotten a little more credit for that, 'cause … I hope this isn't just kidding myself, but I do feel like it affects the way people think and behave in the world.
AE: You've said you didn't realize, until you were on the producing end of the show, how much was at stake in putting together this kind of a story. Do you think that's still the case today?
LI: Oh, I certainly do. I don't think you're going to see the characters on Grey's Anatomy come out as gay. I wouldn't be surprised if they brought on a new character who was gay. It's about time for that, I would think. That's a show that does a lot of interesting things, but I don't think they're going to have any of those characters come out.
AE: So you think there's a difference between having a new character who's already gay versus an established character come out?
LI: I do think [that]. In a way, with Weaver it was less risky because Weaver was — people had such mixed feelings about Weaver. She wasn't America 's sweetheart by any stretch, so in a way there was room for that. But I don't think that you would see … a mainstream show … where they establish these characters that are romantic leads and have them realize they're gay or come out. I just don't think that would happen. I think it should happen, because it happens in life and it's dramatically interesting, but that's a big risk to take, you know?
AE: And that risk, you think, is financial and related to ratings?
LI: Oh, I would imagine. I would imagine. I think ER was such a strong show, and I don't think it had any effect on the ratings. In fact, it may have improved our ratings because all the sudden there were a group of people who were more interested in the show than were before. I think there was some positive effect to the ratings, and that's something that I think the industry can pay more attention to.
And certainly that's now all over the place, the positive effect of having gay and lesbian characters on television. But I think for a mainstream show that's a hit show where there's established characters — to have one of the characters come out as gay or realize they're gay — it feels to me almost like if you have someone you know in your life, like your child or your cousin, and all the sudden they say, "Hey, you know what? I'm gay." There's a feeling of "Oh my gosh, I sort of thought I knew you, and now I don't." And I think for people there's a bit of a transition in trying to understand that person now and accept them.
AE: I felt like the producers of ER gave Kerry Weaver equal time with the straight characters in terms of the amount of physical affection she was allowed to show. Were there ever any hesitations about going down that road?
LI: I don't think there were hesitations. I was happy with the fact that there was no hesitancy in showing us kiss or, you know, there was a couple of times when I was in bed with my girlfriends and stuff. I think if there was any hesitancy, it probably had more to do with my age [laughs] than my being a lesbian. I don't know that there are a lot of shows where you see women in their 40s really getting down too much. So I think they did a pretty good job in that area. ER's not a show that's particularly into sex scenes anyway.
It's funny because in one of the more recent episodes with the character of the news producer who becomes my girlfriend, there was a pretty big kiss between us. And it'd been so long since I kissed one of my girlfriends on the show, it's like, "Oh wow, I've got to make sure I bring my breath mints to work today."
And I didn't think anything about it, you know, we did the scene and we kissed and great, it all worked out. But the next day I had people commenting on it, like at my daughter's school [someone said], "Wow, we saw you kissing that woman on TV!" You kind of forget that for some people — and I think probably more than we'd like to imagine — it's still a biggish deal. Like it's something that sort of … gives them pause. Even nice, liberal people. And I kind of forget about that, you know.
AE: Well, you must have gotten a lot of varied reactions over the years from both lesbian and straight viewers. How have they changed over time?
LI: I think like anything, people just get used to something. Like at first … I guess that the overall reaction that I got from people that were straight — I mean, strangers, people I didn't know — was "Oh, she's not really gay." You know … like it was going to be some little exploit of hers that she'd wake up and find the right guy.
And that, to me, was pretty telling, 'cause I would imagine that's probably what people go through in their real life when they come out: that someone says, "Well, maybe this is just a sort of phase you're going through." I wouldn't say that — to my face, anyway, or in letters that I got — people were very hateful or anything. But there was that … ambivalence and kind of wishing that I wouldn't do that sort of feeling, which was almost worse, you know? It's sort of like, oh God, do you really care? Is that really affecting your opinion of me? That felt very personal, just 'cause it's a more subtle kind of distinction.
But I certainly received a ton of letters myself and … people coming up and talking to me — in L.A. and when I'm in other parts of the country — of a lot of support and enthusiasm. I got a ton of letters from people who would say, "You gave me the courage to come out," and I was like, "Oh God, I hope that works out for you." [Laughs.] It sort of feels like a lot of responsibility, but on the other hand, I felt good about that.
AE: That's great. You know, Kerry Weaver had a lot of challenges to deal with. She had a physical handicap; she came out; she dated a Latina firefighter who died; she had a custody battle —
LI: I know, I feel like Mr. Bill. What's gonna happen next week? I'm gonna get like run over by a truck or something?
AE: Did you ever feel like she was kind of the poster child for minorities? [Laughs.]
LI: Absolutely. I was like, oh my God are you just crossing everything off the list with this one character? 'Cause she was a middle-aged, disabled lesbian. I sort of got three categories off your inclusion survey with this character. Yeah, I definitely felt that way, though all that being said, I just love the character, and I love that she was disabled and nobody knew what was wrong with her, and all of that sturm and drang was fun.
And she always was somebody who was not — well, sometimes she was self-pitying, but usually not self-pitying. We had our indulgent episodes, certainly, but mostly I'd say she was just kind of like a ball buster and fun to play and smart and always really, really, really good at her job, and so all that stuff made it palatable, you know. She wasn't like the weepy disabled lady. She was kinda like "Get out of my way and let me do my job."
And it certainly — for me dramatically and as a human being — was wonderful to have the character go into this period of trying to figure out who she was and admit to herself who she was and embrace who she was, because I think that's a metaphor for anybody. To just go, "Wait a minute; who am I and how do I want to live my life?" And that takes a certain amount of courage and introspection, and so I loved that part of it. And as an actor, it's just fun to play and try to figure out.
AE: How do you feel about the way she left the show?
LI: Well, they came to me and when we were talking about the end, I said, "I really don't want to die." I didn't want to have to … shave my head or wear a bald pate or — I said I just don't want to be like a big sad thing. I just don't want to do that. Plus it just seemed too pathetic. It's like, oh my God you killed off the old lady, you know. [Laughs.] I said I really don't want that, and I said … to them I would really like it to be pretty short and sweet. I don't want it to drag on, and I want her to kind of ride off into the sunset. And I said to them too, it would be nice if she was in a relationship and so it seemed like she was having a good life.
That being said, it did feel a little truncated. [Laughs.] And I think that had to do with a lot of the dynamic of a show like this, where so many people have left, and how are we gonna do it this time? I really encouraged them to keep it very simple, but I have had some people say to me, "Gee, it was so quick." It was kind of like, what happened? And I didn't do a lot of publicity around it. I guess I just felt like, let's just have this end without it being a big to-do.
AE: So is she still with her new girlfriend, Courtney?
LI: In my imagination I am. [Laughs.]
AE: Are you going to come back for any guest appearances?
LI: There's been some talk of that. Nothing is written down about that. And we'll see; I don't know. One thing they said to me was we kind of did it this way so she would have some potential reason to actually come back, you know, that there was some news thing or … documentary or something about the hospital changing. …So that was kind of laid out purposely that there was a door that could be reopened, but I don't know. I think there's a lot up in the air about what's going to go on with the show. The show's definitely on for one more year, and I would imagine it will go on beyond one more year just because it's still doing so well.
AE: It's really amazing that it's still so popular right now, after so many years.
LI: I know, it's incredible. It's amazing. And it's an incredible group of people — just such a wonderful group of people.
AE: You just finished directing an episode of Studio 60, is that right?
LI: I did. In fact where I'm going from here is to the cutting room to finish editing that episode. … And it was really fun. Really fun.
AE: Do you have any insider tips on whether Studio 60 is surviving another year?
LI: You know, I have no insider tips. I hope it does because I had such a great time, and also I think the show is really getting better and better, and they're finding their niche. I just feel like they're really finding their rhythm and what the show's about. So I hope they give it a chance to keep going.
AE: If you could pair Kerry up again with one of her past lovers, any of them, which one would you choose and why?
LI: Oh gosh, which one would I choose and why? I guess probably for me I'd choose Lisa Vidal, but I think it seemed like the audience was really into Kim Legaspi. She was like all the rage.
We got a lot of response about Kim and Kerry. We in fact got this series of postcards that I have somewhere that somebody made that were very funny postcards that were sort of like Kim and Kerry —they were like little Barbies, but they were dressed up like Kim and Kerry and in little poses. They weren't dirty or anything, unfortunately. But they were shopping or at the beach or — so I got the idea that for the audience, they would rather have me with Elizabeth Mitchell. But now she's pretty crazy on Lost, so I don't know. She's kind of scary. [Laughs.] She's like some crazy surgeon.
I think I'd choose Lisa Vidal myself, you know, the fireman thing. [Laughs.]
AE: Did you like the fireman thing?
LI: Yeah. [Laughs.] I like the fireman thing. I always said she [Kerry Weaver] must be so good in bed, because all of her girlfriends are so hot.
ну а получилось только сейчас... в общем как всегда. 
По крайней мере, логики в уходе Керри было ненамногим больше)) 
Присоединяюсь к просьбе о переводе 
Отличная фраза)) Нахожусь в примерно том же положении)) И тоже слезно прошу просвещенных людей откликнуться и помочь нам (хотела было написать "олухам", но уж больно уничижительно прозвучало 
)))))) 
)))))) Сегоджня дождалась))) 
Ой... уже вчера 
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