Sometimes,
it's also difficult to believe how topical JAG is. A real-life story
will occur in the military and it seems like a similar story is explored by
JAG the next week. Beverly Hills [213] - Page 2
Sometimes,
it's also difficult to believe how topical JAG is. A real-life story
will occur in the military and it seems like a similar story is explored by
JAG the next week.
"We're trying to be as pertinent as possible," Elliott says. "We do what we can, as much from headlines as we can. For a time, it was uncanny. We seemed to be on top of everything, although it wasn't planned."
But JAG is also as much about the personal relationships of the characters as it is headline stories. One of those relationships building over recent seasons is that of Commander Rabb and Lieutenant Colonel Sarah "Mac" MacKenzie, played by Catherine Bell. The spark is definitely there, so much so that CBS is asking fans whether or not they should get together on its website.
"It will happen, I do believe," Elliott says. "The interest is there and the stories are endless."
When he is not working, Elliott likes to swim and run, and it is not uncommon for him to bicycle 80 miles on a weekend day. After all, he is training for the triathlon and plans to compete in the Iron Man competition a year from October.
Elliott also notes wryly, "My son likes to get up at 3 a.m. and stay up. I try to get some sleep in between." In addition to their new son, Wyatt, 6 months, Elliott and his wife, Nanci Chambers, have a daughter Stephanie, 10. Chambers appeared in a recurring on JAG as Lieutenant Lorren Singer for several seasons and co-starred with her husband in Code 11-14, a CBS telefilm that aired last month.
"Normally, I do a picture during hiatus," Elliott says, "but Nanci had a difficult pregnancy. We have a home in the Bahamas so we spent two and a half months there this past summer."
Elliott has his own company, Firefly Productions, which has a couple of projects in the works. He has also written a couple of JAG episodes with his writing partner and will direct an episode this season.
With his acting roots on the stage, Elliott says, "I'd love to do some theater when this is over, but I'll probably take a long vacation after JAG."
JAG fans hope that vacation is a long time coming.
- Gary Amo
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