The thing about Jeffrey Nordling that’s so interesting is that few really seem to know who Jeffrey Nordling is, which is sort of amazing when you consider that his television credits take up three full pages of tiny type on IMDB.com. He earned some long overdue props earlier this year while making a sizeable splash as FBI Agent Larry Moss on the seventh season of Fox’s “24.” And now Nordling gets a chance to follow that up with a supporting turn as a hunky college professor who becomes the object of Cybill Shepherd’s desire in the Hallmark Channel Original Movie “Mrs. Washington Goes to Smith,” premiering Saturday, August 1 (9/8c). The following item is available for all press uses, with photos, from Crown Features Syndicate™.
JEFFREY NORDLING: BRINGING QUALITY TO YOUR TV SCREEN SINCE 1988
Crown Features Syndicate™
When he showed up this season as an FBI Agent named Larry Moss on Fox’s “24,” Jeffrey Nordling caused quite a stir with his confident, charismatic performance. Viewers wanted to know: Who is that guy? They remembered the handsome face, possibly even the dashing style. But the name didn’t much ring a bell. It is, to be sure, the fate of the talented character actor: Plenty of work, no shortage of face time – but a dearth of real notoriety. Nordling is a hired gun who makes projects better with his presence…and then he moves on. Mr. Itinerant.
Nordling has, thus, carved out a sizeable chunk of Hollywood real estate by being that guy in recurring roles on several TV dramas. He was that guy on Fox’s “Melrose Place.” He was that guy on the ABC drama “Once and Again.” He was that guy on NBC’s “Providence.” He was that guy on FX’s “Dirt.” And now most recently, he was that guy on “24.”
There would appear to be only one problem with being that guy. It’s that you’re never THE guy. Not the leading man but the other one. And after more than 20 years on TV, you might think this would be a sore point with Nordling. So as an interviewer, you tiptoe in carefully before moving in for the kill: “Do you have regrets with how you’re viewed in Hollywood?”
You brace for a little hostility, for a bit of “Now why would you ask a stupid and insensitive question like that,” for at least some hemming and hawing. But it never comes.
“I’ll tell you what, I love being who I am and doing what I do because it gives me the best of both worlds,” the affable, square-jawed Nordling, 47, attests. “I enjoy the process more than the fame, whatever that is. In fact, it’s nice to have my anonymity. Too much recognition can take away from having a real life with your family. So I get it both ways, and that’s nice.”
And so it is that Nordling will again be seen wearing his that guy shoes as August dawns, when he shows up in the sweet, lighthearted Hallmark Channel Original Movie “Mrs. Washington Goes to Smith,” which premieres Saturday, August 1 (9/8c). It finds the actor playing opposite none other than Cybill Shepherd. She’s a middle-aged divorcee returning to Smith College as the nation’s oldest coed. He’s the sensitive poetry professor with whom she’s smitten (and he with her).
“Cybill and I just have a great time together,” Nordling confirms. “It’s our second time working together. We did this other TV-movie back in ’94 called ‘Baby Brokers,’ and the one thing you can always depend on with Cybill is it will be light and fun. She’s a pro who knows what she’s doing, so you know you can relax. That always makes it a pleasure.”
There isn’t much doubt that Nordling is every ounce the pro as well. He’s certainly got the experience to back it up. His TV resumé is jam-packed with not only the aforementioned recurring roles but guest stints on everything from “Bones” to “CSI” to “Judging Amy,” “Nip/Tuck,” “Crossing Jordan,” “Chicago Hope,” “Murder, She Wrote,” “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine,” “Touched by an Angel,” “Roseanne,” “Sex and the City,” “The Closer” and “The Mentalist,” to name only a few.
In other words, if you’ve got a TV series and need an actor to come in, nail his lines and make your regulars look good, Nordling’s your man.
“I’m glad to be a go-to guy,” he says.
Yet at the same time, television isn’t Nordling’s true passion. Live theater is what he really loves. TV is what he does to pay the bills for himself, his wife and their three daughters. Plays are what he does to exercise his creative muscles. One of his most memorable jobs was in the award-winning Richard Greenberg play Take Me Out, at the Geffen Theatre in L.A.
“The stage helps me come alive,” Nordling acknowledges. “I’ve gotten to work with some amazing people in theater, everybody from Denzel Washington to John Cusack, Alec Baldwin, Angela Bassett. It’s just been swell to be able to go back and forth between stage and TV. I’ve done a lot of Shakespeare. It makes the juices really flow.”
This is not to say that Nordling isn’t also giving his acting chops a workout in his TV work. “It’s all about the process with me,” he emphasizes. “Wherever I can hone my craft in the best way, that’s where I want to be. I’m known for enjoying the rehearsal more than the performances in whatever I do. I love putting everything into a part and figuring it out as I go.”
What was it like to ply his trade on “24”? “It’s really as thrilling to be on it as it looks on TV,” he confirms. “The crew is just incredible to work with. And I mean, come on, how bad can it be? You get to fly helicopters and shoot guns.”
Nordling admits he would love the big paycheck that comes with a true long-term starring role in a TV series. But if the leading man thing never comes his way, he figures he can live with it.
“I’ve got a family I love to spend as much time as I can with,” he says, “so I have to believe that everything works out as it should.”
Contact: Pam Slay, 818-755-2480
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