Posted by chicagomedia.org on February 15, 2009 at 20:39:01:
Peter Jacobson: Loving 'House'
Newsman's son knows how to play pushy
February 15, 2009
BY BILL ZWECKER | Sun-Times Columnist
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Growing up in Chicago in the late 1960s and '70s, Peter Jacobson couldn't escape being known as the son of his famous father. Back then, Walter Jacobson, along with his WBBM-Channel 2 broadcast partner Bill Kurtis, made up the most popular television anchor team in town.
Now, even after a couple of decades working consistently as a successful character actor in his own right, the younger Jacobson jokes that his dad's fame gave his acting career a bit of a boost -- very early on.
Phoning from Los Angeles the other day, the "House" co-star recalled one of his first gigs. ''I was like about 10. There was this Argyle Street Film Festival, I think about 1975. It was for short films. I played my father. It was a spoof on his news broadcast.
''In fact, they snuck me in to Channel 2, so we could get a tight shot on Bill Kurtis. ... They had me all decked out just like Walter, complete with suspenders and glasses, pretending not knowing what I was doing on the set.
''I ended up winning best supporting actor in that little festival. And you know what? That's the only acting award I've ever won!''
Jacobson, 43, loves the fact he's been able to parlay a lengthy resume of meaty supporting roles into a ''very nice career as a character actor. It has allowed me to find more work,'' something he knows wouldn't be as easy if he was a woman.
''Things are getting a bit better, but I do know that there's a big difference -- compared to my female friends my age who are actresses. It is easier for guys in our 40s and 50s to hit our stride and find even more work. I'm finding it to be very nice and I feel very lucky for that.''
Given his father's well-known reputation for being a gadfly and ''often a pain in the butt'' for the political establishment over the years, Jacobson joked he often has used ''being pushy and obnoxious'' in film and TV characters he's created. ''It's obviously in my blood.''
Yet with the exception of his Argyle Street pre-teen honor -- and the hard-driving sports reporter he portrayed in Billy Crystal's ''61'' baseball film -- ''intriguingly, I've never really played another reporter or news anchor.''
Instead, the actor has been able to continually tap into ''my own psychosis'' to deliver a wide range of roles, including Debra Messing's jerky ex-husband in the cable film ''The Starter Wife,'' the nervous network executive in Howard Stern's ''Private Parts'' and a memorable turn as one of Edward R. Murrow's team in George Clooney's ''Good Night and Good Luck.''
Currently, Jacobson is thrilled to be playing Dr. Chris Taub -- ''Of course, they needed a Jewish doctor!'' -- who is one of Hugh Laurie's favorite targets on ''House.''
''We've just marked our 100th episode and I've been in about 35 of them,'' said Jacobson, ''So, I feel happy to have been part of the show for that long.''
More importantly, the actor says, ''Call me sick, but I really enjoy'' the way Laurie's Dr. Gregory House ''really piles on the abuse. It's not just insults -- it's done with such finesse and cleverness. For example in one episode he calls me Cyrano de Berkowitz. It's just so over-the-top, but I love it.''
Jacobson also loved again being part of the "House" ensemble nominated at the recent Screen Actor Guild Awards. ''We didn't win, though I was thrilled Hugh won again, but it is so amazing just to be part of an evening like that ... and then the Golden Globes too. I got to go to that, too. I mean, where else can I bump into Bruce Springsteen on my right -- while P. Diddy steps on my left foot!''
As for Laurie, Jacobson reports he's intrigued by how the British actor ''always keeps his American accent the entire time he's on the ['House'] set -- even between scenes, no matter where he is on the lot. But then the second he leaves he goes back to being Hugh. It's so funny to run into him at parties or events or anywhere else -- and hear him talk in that clipped English accent.''
The strangest thing about being part of ''House''? It has an audience far from its expected demographic, as Jacobson says he unexpectedly discovered while dropping by his son Emanual's school in New York.
''He's only 6, but while I was there a bunch of third-graders came running up to me, pointed and said, 'Hey! You're on 'House.' We love that show.'
''Nice to see that range of our audience. I knew teenagers and college kids loved it because of Hugh's rebellious thing. And women, well, they just find him sexy.
''Third-graders I did not expect!''