Tony’s Take: Catching Up With Calista (September 19, 2006)

Calista Flockhart looked at me?and asked, ?Are you on drugs?!?

Not the response I usually hope for after asking a question.

It was actually a funny moment. Ever have one of those times when you ask a friend something, they completely missed what you?ve said, misinterpreted it and then looked at you like you have three heads?

Well that?s what happened to Calista and me yesterday, Monday. I was on the set of her new ABC show, ?Brothers and Sisters?, which debuts this Sunday.

I said to her, ?A week from today, Monday, we?ll know how your show debuted on Sunday.? But it didn?t quite come out that way?anyway, suffice to say it confused her and me?to where we ended up laughing and she asked me if I was on drugs!

It was great to see a relaxed and laughing Calista. I have interviewed her numerous times over the years, mainly on the set of the show, which made her a household name, ?Ally McBeal?.

While always nice and polite, she was always a bit insecure in front of the camera. By that I mean, not while acting, but while being interviewed.

She is one of the few stars who would take me aside after the interview was done and ask if what she said was ok, did she articulate what she meant. I found it very endearing.

She was single and loved the grind of ?Ally McBeal? and then doing theater productions in her hiatus time. It meant the world to her and she wanted to make sure everything was done right.What means the world to her now is her son Liam. He?s five. Now she doesn?t worry about herself, she doesn?t have time for it. She told me she worries about HIM. Her face lights up when talking about Liam.

He recently just started his first day of kindergarten and she said it was tough seeing him go?but also really special?that necessary step.

So, what did she worry about that day? Whether or not her little boy would find the bathroom at school, if the kids would be nice, and if he would like school.

And no, when he arrived home that first day, she didn?t ask him, ?Are you on drugs?!?She saved that for me.

And, I?m not.

Just so you know.

(Although as I write this, I AM jacked-up on a combination of Theraflu, some antibiotic I can?t remember the name of, and mass quantities of Echinacea?Calista was right!)