From Fantasy President?
For once, the President of the United States is speechless. Can't say a word, can't utter a peep. No, we didn't ask an outrageous question, or spill coffee on the Oval Office rug. It's just that Geena Davis, who plays the first American woman to run the White House on the ABC breakout hit Commander in Chief, has a node, or growth, on a vocal cord. Her doctor has advised her not even to whisper for two weeks or risk permanent damage to her voice. But the show -- and the interview -- must go on. So we ask questions, and she pecks out answers on a laptop.Davis slides into a booth at the Polo Lounge of the Beverly Hills Hotel. When the waiter asks what she'd like, she pulls out a white marking board with a blue erasable pen and writes, "Hot water with honey and lemon." For the next two and a half hours, we carry on a strange conversation -- the questioner speaking and laughing aloud as Davis types her responses and silently giggles. The Hollywood regulars in the surrounding booths gawk and wonder.
Surprising onlookers is nothing new for Davis. Growing up in a small town in Massachusetts, she was the first in her family to enter show business. At 26, she made a splashy big-screen debut in Tootsie, with Dustin Hoffman. She went on to play some quirky characters, including a ghost in Beetle Juice and a reporter in The Fly. Her ability to render strong women won her roles like Thelma in Thelma & Louise, and the dog trainer in The Accidental Tourist, for which she received an Oscar.
Last year, Davis, 50, leapt at the chance to play President Mackenzie Allen, in part because she knew the role would provoke conversation and debate. And she senses that the show, which attracted nearly 17 million viewers when it debuted, is triggering a powerful response. "Today, a couple of women I met in the store said, 'Thank you for what you're doing,'" says Davis. "That's just different than, 'I liked you in Beetle Juice.'"
RD: I've heard that your character was modeled on Hillary Clinton or Condoleezza Rice or former ABC Entertainment president Susan Lyne, who now runs Martha Stewart's company. Any of that true?
Davis: The creator of the show, Rod Lurie, did have Susan Lyne in mind when he thought of the character. There is really nothing drawn from anyone else, including Senator Clinton or Ms. Rice. This is a pretty unique individual. First and foremost, she is an Independent, which neither of them are.
RD: She's a fantasy, then.
Davis: She is, yes, a sort of fantasy President. I mean, we wish our Presidents would make decisions based on what they think is right for the American people rather than to please the party or for political gain.
RD: How much is Mackenzie Allen like you?
Davis: I have learned to trust my instincts, which is something I have in common with Mac. However, she always knows what to say at the time, which I am not blessed with.
RD: The politics on this show are ugly. You have to smile and keep working with somebody who's knifing you in the back. Are you able to do that in your own life?
Davis: No, I'm not that tough. I have learned to be quite strong and to stand up for myself, but to remain that cool is very hard. One of the great things about playing Mac is being able to look people in the eye and let them know that I know what we're really talking about. I get the hidden code.
Arrows and Acting
RD: Mackenzie is a force for good. She's against torture, she's for better education, but she's not afraid to bomb other countries.Davis: In the first five episodes she whipped out the military three times. I think this is part of what we would want a President to be like, and perhaps why male viewers are enjoying the character as much as women. We feel we can trust someone who is not afraid to back up what she says.
RD: I haven't seen her blow up at her kids, either. You've got three little ones. Are you this way?
Davis: I can be rattled, but I never have lost my temper or raised my voice. Ever. Maybe this comes from having spilt my milk too many times as a kid and hearing about it. I'm just not into yelling or shaming.
RD: You had your children in your late 40s. Why did you wait so long?
Davis: I knew I would have kids, but waiting is not exactly the wisest course. Still, I believe it worked this way because that's how it was supposed to work. I am a much better mother now than I would have been. I think the way I am able to be an integrated person is a better role model.
RD: Your two most beloved roles -- Thelma in Thelma & Louise and now Mackenzie -- have been women who break tradition.
Davis: I look for roles that break the mold, both because I want to do the fun stuff and because I want to play roles women can enjoy and feel good about.
RD: Watching your movies, I never realized you were six feet tall. Did you ever have a complex about that?
Davis: Oh, God, yes. I was always not just the tallest girl, but the tallest kid, in the class. Even in the kindergarten graduation picture, there's me in the back -- huge. And when other kids were having boyfriends, I was a lot of people's funny friend, but nobody's dream date. I was so happy when I stopped growing.
RD: Surely you didn't really suffer from a lack of dates?
Davis: I had one date in high school, and he didn't ask again. Then I went off to Sweden for my senior year, and suddenly I had a fresh start. They didn't think of me as the really tall girl there!
RD: How do you manage a high-pressure job, a marriage -- to a plastic surgeon no less -- and kids?
Davis: The job is just a killer. Hour-long TV dramas are the hardest job in the business. But frankly I am able to make it work because actors have it easier than your average bear. We get indulged, no question. My kids come to the set every day, trash the Oval Office, whatever ... Someone who has a demanding job as head of a corporation can't have the kids underfoot in the boardroom. My husband is in surgical training. We never thought it could happen that I would work more, but he finishes work and comes to the set too.
RD: Your husband, Reza, is from Iran, right?
Davis: No, he's from Queens, New York. His folks came over from Iran a few years before he was born.
RD: How did you meet?
Davis: My dog bit him.
RD: You're kidding. Where?
Davis: Do you mean "in a parking lot" or "on the ass"? [Silently laughs.] Actually, it was in a friend's house. I had stashed my dog in my friend's house, a neighbor of Reza's, and Reza dropped over to say hi. No one was there but this unfamiliar dog, who decided she should protect the house. She bit him on the butt -- broke the skin but nothing lethal -- as he jumped the fence to get away. When we met, I thought, Who is this cute guy who's going to sue me? I knew we were both attracted. He was very sweet.
RD: He's 34. Was he bothered by your age difference?
Davis: No, not really. And now it doesn't even cross our minds. We are very much in sync.
RD: How does he handle being Mr. Geena Davis?
Davis: I've always been more well known than him; that was always part of the deal. And I think younger men are just more comfortable with a disparity like that -- age or income or status. They are more likely to have been raised by a woman who thinks differently about women's roles and such. Or maybe their fathers are cooler. And Reza has tremendous self-confidence. He's not judging his worth compared to me.
RD: Is part of the strength of the marriage that he's a "civilian," meaning not in show business?
Davis: It makes it interesting that we have jobs the other knows nothing about, and can amuse each other that way. But it's his character and personality that make the difference -- his ability to not only accept but embrace the things I do. He jokes about it. "How am I going to compete with an actress who almost made it to the Olympics?" I don't have to pretend to be "less" to get approval.
RD: Tell us about archery. How did you choose that sport?
Davis: I had learned so many sports for my roles in the '90s -- baseball, pistol shooting, fencing, tae kwon do, horseback riding -- and I finally realized I had untapped athletic ability. My shooting coach said I had such a natural ability that I could compete, and I thought, How fun! But, guns? You can't exactly practice in your yard. Then I saw archery on TV at the Atlanta Olympics and was taken by how beautiful and dramatic it is. I found a coach. It turned out I was good at it, worked really hard, and was at the Olympic trials two and a half years later.
RD: How did it compare to acting?
Davis: There are no opinions involved, nothing but your actual skill. It was such a difference from my day job. And that is why I would never do skating or gymnastics. There are JUDGES!!
The Oval Office -- and All that Cool Stuff
RD: What's the most fun about playing Mackenzie Allen?Davis: I am ashamed to admit I love all the trappings -- saluting the generals, stepping off Air Force One, all that cool stuff. People announcing you whenever you enter the room.
RD: How is it to walk into the Oval Office, or are you used to it now?
Davis: Of course we're talking about a model of the Oval Office, with no ceiling, but I do get a sense of history when I'm there. When we shot the scene in the first episode where she enters the Oval as the President for the first time, I actually had goose bumps -- as myself and the character. I couldn't help thinking that one day, this exact thing will happen to a woman, and she will feel the sense of history that I am feeling now.
RD: Do you think the show is paving the way for a woman President?
Davis: We all know how much media images affect us. Now, to be clear, that's not the intention of the show and not why ABC bought the pilot! So many people ask me that, and you've got to figure that the folks at ABC have other things on their minds than sending covert political messages. How about ratings? Making money?
RD: At the beginning of the women's movement, we thought that if women had power they would lead differently. They would be more compassionate, inclusive and sensitive. And yet Mackenzie is tough.
Davis: First, about the idea from the women's movement that we need women because they will be different, I've come to feel differently about that over the years. If the argument is that we should put women in these important positions because of some special "woman-ness" they will bring, we are putting aside the more relevant notion that women should be in half of these positions because they make up half the human race! Equal rights shouldn't be based on deservedness or specialness.
RD: Are you a feminist?
Davis: Yes. And I am always happy to be asked that question because I like to show I won't suddenly immolate if I use the word. Women have been taught to be afraid of the term, that it means all kinds of things it really doesn't, like "against men" or "unattractive, strident." Feminism simply means a belief in women having social and political rights equal to men. I know. I looked it up. [Laughs silently.]