http://www.bauchau.com

Patrick Bauchau: Lycos Chat

From Lycos Chat -- October 21, 1999

Note: The original text has been edited for clarity and to correct typos, etc.

MODERATOR: Welcome! Tonight we are pleased to have chatting with us actor Patrick Bauchau (pronounced "Beau-show"). He plays Sydney in the NBC series The Pretender. He plays a scientist in charge of experimenting with extremely gifted children at "The Centre" - a think tank with nefarious intentions and practices. Please welcome Patrick to Lycos chat!

whtshadow: heeeeeellllllllllllllllllooooooooooooo.

catherine h: hello.

timikhan: hello.

FP181: hi.

Melizza265: hi.

FLIRTgrl_03: HI.

TheEaterofWorlds: Welcome!

BecciB: hello.

asha_ca: welcome Patrick.

MIDNITE TOKER: Howdy yall.

Pax_2735: hello Patrick! Greetings from Lisbon.

sweetcheeks27: hello!

TheTriumvirate: hello!!!

PBphile: Hi, Patrick.

northernlea: hi all.

Xtratrstrial Corndog: omigosh!

pretenderangel17: hello.

FLIRTgrl_03: HI.

Xtratrstrial Corndog: this is like my favorite show! F.

DelilahTina: Hi Patrick and everyone : -).

SPEAKER_PatrickBauchau: Hello Everyone!

Wow, Lisbon, that takes me back! I did a movie called The Lisbon story not so long ago, in 1994, directed by a german director: Wim Wenders. Lisbon is my favorite city in the world.

PAX_2735: I saw you in it! You were great!

SPEAKER_PatrickBauchau: Thank you, Pax!

Zheet: How many shows ahead are you?

SPEAKER_PatrickBauchau: We are now in the process of starting show number 8, and only 2 have aired so far. So we are about five shows ahead, which is actually very little. I think all of the shows to come are quite exciting. Everyone thinks that this is going to be our best season, that is everyone on the set!

NASH_Canuck: Very little? How many shows are you usually ahead?

asha_ca: If the first two eps are an indication, the Internet fans heartily agree, Patrick!

SPEAKER_PatrickBauchau: Great!

That's about right (5 shows). We are completely on schedule, but what I meant is that I don't know much more than the audience does about the storyline of the show. I know enough to be able to say that it's been an unusually creative season. The writers and the directors feel that the show is sufficiently enough established that they can take risks and take the show in many different directions, and that has the cast and crew (and the audience we hope) very excited! LOL!

TheTriumvirate: Oooo...risks! I like the sound of that!

pretenderangel17: Me too, I like risks!!

SPEAKER_PatrickBauchau: The new season has been fantasy. I wound up last night taping an episode that has strong echoes of The Wizard of Oz, and episodes where Jarod plays a sexologist, a new episode coming up between Miss Parker and Brigitte, in which everyone involved thinks is pure dynamite.

catherine h: Is MTW in Hawaii? Do you know? My friend says he saw him at the Hilton Hawaiian Village back home. Are you filming something there?

SPEAKER_PatrickBauchau: In Hawaii? Not currently, no. Although I would love to go to Hawaii, all the pressure that we have applied to the production to shoot an episode in Hawaii...the Reaganomics have prevented it, so this year no Hawaii as far as I know!

The trio at the Centre thinks that Hawaii is the decisive place where we might find Jarod, but Fox is not convinced!

asha_ca: Oh no! Not the return of Brigitte! She is perhaps the most disliked character ever created by tP.

SPEAKER_PatrickBauchau: Brigitte will only return for one show, but what a show that will be! We could not leave her in the outbacks pregnant!

This season the show is becoming more of an in-house show, in the sense that both the writers will be directing the show. Michael T. is directing a show! Jarod himself is preparing to direct a show, and we are all very excited about that. And my henchman, Broots, will be directing an episode as well...an episode which he co-wrote with the writers of the episode.

The atmosphere is very family-like. I asked Miss Parker if she was going to direct an episode. She said no, she's not ready yet, but a lot of others are fighting to direct the show because the script is much more exciting this year.

Langerfritz: What do you think is the "mystique" of The Pretender? So little publicity by NBC and yet, it's still going and going and going....

SPEAKER_PatrickBauchau: The problem with the network is that NBC does not own the show, and the studio that produces the show sees it as competition for its own network. We are in a bit of a bind because neither network wants to create publicity for the show, yet we are very happy because all the publicity has basically come from word of mouth. It has turned out lucky for us, because hopefully if the luck continues, we will have another season after this one!

TheEaterofWorlds: Are the writers planning to enhance the father/son type relationship between Jarod and Sydney?

SPEAKER_PatrickBauchau: We hope, we hope. I am not in on the secret of the writers enough to be sure. Both Jarod and Sydney have applied discreet pressure on that subject. One of the things that may have slowed down that approach has been that Michael T. has always felt that he should lean on his own reticence towards Sydney because Sydney gave him such a hard upbringing. He feels conned, especially with the whole kidnapping, which turned out to be false. Jarod leans on Sydney a lot despite all this.

Melizza265: Does writing to the networks help at all with publicity?

SPEAKER_PatrickBauchau: Definitely writing to the network would help! Fan mail should be directed more to the star than the network though, if that's what you meant.

Fox conceives the show as competition for their shows that air on Saturday night.

TheTriumvirate: In the second season, Syd and MP seemed to be getting closer, but now they seem like they don't trust each other anymore? Can we hope to see the return of their "bond"?

SPEAKER_PatrickBauchau: Well there has been a moment of doubt in Jarod's head, during last season's finale, where for one brief moment Jarod felt a sense of vertigo, a sense of being unsure of Syd when he apparently joined forces with the Centre and told him I can not help you.

Jarod realized that "refuge" was a signal from Syd, so he went on the computer to refuge, and indeed he found a message from Sydney that he was actually on his side, but that he couldn't give him an answer because there were other people around.

The relationship I think is maintained, but only history will tell.

TheEaterofWorlds: My sister, JackalAndromeda, would like to know where to direct fan mail for you and the rest of the cast.

SPEAKER_PatrickBauchau: Fan mail for me can be directed to our website www.bauchau.com. It was a website that was started by a fan of The Pretender, and she did a great job!

Deb Stewart is the name of the web page designer, and she's great! She is a very knowledgeable fan, and she works steadily with us, making the website.

watching_eyes_99: Is there any chance your character, Sydney, would be reading the book your father wrote, Oedipus on the Road?

SPEAKER_PatrickBauchau: LOL! I am sure that Sydney...it is one of his bedside books! I don't know because we never see Sydney in bed. He is always working, and when he is in the Centre, he never has a second in which he could concentrate on reading a book like that!

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