TV Guide
by Shawna Malcolm
Creative Forces
As the enigmatic Dr. Theodore Morris,
Dennis Haysbert makes Now and Again sing
literally. "He's got one heck of a voice," Glenn Gordon
Caron, who's had the actor warble on camera everything from the
Carpenter's "Close to You" to "Fly Me to the
Moon," made famous by Frank Sinatra: "I'd be a fool not
to take advantage of it." Haysbert felt the same way after
hearing about Now. "My character is intelligent,
accomplished and charming:" says the 44-year-old. "I've
waited my entire career for this." In the meantime, the
California native starred opposite Michelle Pfeiffer in 1992's
critically acclaimed "Love Field," knocked one
out of the park as a spiritually awakened power hitter in the
"Major League" films and romanced Whitney
Houston in "Waiting to Exhale." Still, he
couldn't breathe easy until Now. "Most of the rolls
I've been offered have been ethnically charged and
stereotypical," says Haysbert. "But I've always known I
could do more." He's relishing his part as "creator,
professor and friend" to Close's bionic hero. "People
say I'm cruel," says Haysbert, whose character has
threatened to kill the $3 billion man should he reveal his
identity to anyone and has forced him to jump out of a plane to
test the effectiveness of a gravity-defying jumpsuit. "But
it's about tough love. I have to be stern in telling him what he
can and can't do, so he'll realize his full potential."
December 25, 1999