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Star of “Married… with Children” Ted McGinley spoke about one of his “biggest mistakes in life.”
The 65-year-old actor, who will next appear in “The Baxters,” rose to fame on the hit television comedy from 1989 to 1997. He starred alongside Ed O’Neill, Katey Sagal, Christina Applegate, David Faustino and Amanda Bearse.
During an interview with Fox News Digital, McGinley shared whether she had kept in touch with her former “Married… With Children” co-stars.
“One of my biggest mistakes in life (and I have many) is that I move on,” McGinley admitted.
ACTOR TED MCGINLEY STARS IN A FILM BASED ON FAITH
“Yes, if we meet, we are very friendly, but I think mostly because I had young children and a wife. I went to work in New York.
“So I kept going,” McGinley added. “And I don’t use social media per se, so I don’t have that. I can’t connect like people do. It’s not my thing. I move on.”
“But, for example, if Ed O’Neill and I met having coffee early in the morning, we would have an incredible time. Or a beer late at night. It would be funny. Same with Amanda. I ran into Amanda. You know, it’s a unique moment.
“My friends will tell you that I have a hard time connecting all the time. It’s hard for me.”
WATCH: Ted McGinley details the ‘beautiful’ working relationship he has with his ‘The Baxters’ co-star Rome Downey
“Married with children” is FOX’s longest-running live-action show to date, airing 259 episodes over 11 seasons on FOX from 1987 to 1997. The raunchy and sometimes controversial comedy followed the lives of the dysfunctional working-class Bundy family, including the misanthropic shoe salesman Al (O’ Neill), his lazy wife Peggy (Sagal), his ditzy, promiscuous daughter Kelly (Applegate), and his nerdy son Bud (Faustino).
The show also focused on the relationship between the Bundys and their materialistic yuppie neighbors Marcy Rhoades (Bearse) and Steve Rhoades (David Garrison). After Garrison left the show following its fourth season in 1990, McGinley joined the cast to replace him. He played Jefferson D’Arcy, a former CIA agent turned white-collar criminal who becomes Marcy’s “trophy” husband after she divorces Steve.
Although “Married… With Children” was a ratings success and was widely considered a groundbreaking series for the time, the show’s suggestive content sometimes sparked negative reactions.
While reflecting on moving from a series like “Married… With Children” to his new religious show “The Baxters,” McGinley explained that he likes to choose projects from a wide variety of genres.
“It’s funny. I’ve been doing this for a long time and I’ve been doing more based on faith movie, and then I’ll walk away, as if the show I’m doing now is ‘Shrinking.’ They are diametrically opposed in many ways,” he said. “It’s part of the life of being an actor.
“It’s fun when I work on something like ‘The Baxters’ because I think it’s important. That audience is really hungry for good content. And so it’s an honor to be able to do that. I’m still interested in doing all kinds of stuff.
“My wife and I produced a western… last year… and it’s a very difficult film to watch in some ways. The spectrum is quite broad and it makes it interesting. I don’t want to do just one genre of work.”
Based on the best-selling book series of the same name by novelist Karen Kingsbury, “The Baxters” follows the saga of the Baxter family, which includes patriarch John (McGinley) and matriarch Elizabeth (Roma Downey Jr.), and their adult children “as they navigate the paths of life.” ups and downs, with and without God,” according to a synopsis of the program.
The first season of “The Baxters” will focus on Kari (Ali Cobrin), Elizabeth and John’s daughter, “who discovers the shocking truth that her husband, Professor Tim, has been having a secret affair with one of his college students.
“As their relationship is tested, Kari must seek solace in her faith and her family to discover if love is truly a choice and if her marriage can be redeemed. In this deeply moving, faith-based journey, the Baxters They must come together as a family to overcome life’s challenges.”
During his interview with Fox News Digital, McGinley shared that he felt like he had been preparing for the role of John “for years,” noting the similarities between him and his character.
“No. 1: Family first. He’s a very faithful man,” McGinley said. “It’s important that his family is also part of that world.
WATCH: ‘Married… with Children’ star Ted McGinley talks about one of his ‘biggest mistakes in life’
“I relate to that as a father, as a man. I read at least probably eight of the books, maybe 10 of the books.”
“I had a good understanding of who the Baxters were and who John Baxter was,” he said. “It’s also a real honor to be able to play. It’s also scary. It’s scary because you realize that Karen Kingsbury has written maybe 25 or 26 books about the Baxters.
“And it sold 25 million copies,” McGinley continued. “People who read his stuff know these characters. You’re entering a world where you better appear as John Baxter.
“I think there will come a point where people will say, when they see it for the first time, because they’ve been reading it for so long, they might think, ‘Oh, I don’t know. I didn’t see it, yeah.’ I don’t see it. “But they will as time goes on. But anyway, the preparation was something special, it’s not that far from my spectrum of life.”
Downey is the executive producer of “The Baxters” through LightWorkers Media, the Christian film and media production company founded by the actress and her husband, Mark Burnett. LightWorkers Media is now owned by Amazon MGM Studios after Amazon acquired its parent company.
While speaking with Fox News Digital, McGinley praised their “beautiful” working relationship. with Downey.
“Rome is like a warm blanket,” he said. “She’s spectacular. We got along well the first day and things continued to escalate.”
The California native added that he and his wife Gigi Rice have developed a friendship with Downey and Burnett off set. McGinley and Rice have been married for more than 32 years and share children Beau, 29, and Quinn, 27.
“My wife and I went to Mark and Roma’s house. We’re friends. We’re friends off the ice,” he said. “They are just wonderful people. But, Roma, when you work with her, it feels like a beautiful, comforting warmth that caresses your neck. She is wonderful. She is always there for you. She is very generous.”
Despite the popularity of “The Baxter” book series, McGinley explained that the television series “won’t be for everyone.”
“Roma Downey has described it as an ‘opera of hope,'” he said. “So, it’s a soap opera. But I would say let’s give it a chance.”
McGinley, a former model, made his acting debut in 1982 during the eighth season of the hit show. “Happy Days,” which followed the lives of the Cunningham family and their friends. He played Roger Phillips, the nephew of Howard and Marion Cunningam, who were played by Tom Bosley and Marion Ross.
McGinley was cast as a foil to Henry Winkler’s immensely popular character, Arthur “Fonzie” Fonzarelli, and was introduced to help fill the void left by Ron Howard, who left the series in 1980.
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In 1982, McGinley told Pennsylvania newspaper The Morning Call that he felt uncomfortable watching his first episodes of “Happy Days.”
“It’s a miracle they didn’t fire me,” he said. “I realized I had to work on my lines at home and concentrate on set before my tracks. Everything was so new. I’m fumbling and hearing stories about Ronny Howard, who forgot his lines only twice in seven years and a half. “.
WATCH: Ted McGinley reflected on his experiences starring in Happy Days and The Love Boat
McGinley told Fox News Digital that he dedicated himself to studying other actors’ performances so he could learn from them.
“When I walked in, I was scared,” McGinley said. “I learned on the job. So, that was on-the-job training.
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“I was as sponge as possible. I never left the set. I never went to my room to hang out. I would watch. I would go to (tapings of the comedy) ‘Mork and Mindy’ and sit in the stands and watch. I would always try to see what was happening and try to feel more comfortable.
After “Happy Days” concluded in 1984, McGinley joined the cast of the hit comedy-drama series. “The Love Boat,” which was set on a cruise ship. He recalled that he felt at ease on set after being immediately greeted by his co-stars.
“When I got to ‘Love Boat,’ that group just opened their arms and said, ‘Come in,'” he recalled.
“They were so kind and generous and wonderful to me, and I felt part of that team. We literally traveled around the world. And you went first class, like I’ve never traveled like that since.
“Thank you (creators of “Love Boat”) Aaron spelling, Doug Cramer,” he added, laughing. “But those were great days.”
McGinley recalled how he traveled to many destinations he had never been to before, including Leningrad, Russia (present-day St. Petersburg); Copenhagen, Denmark; and the Rock of Gibraltar.
“We went everywhere and it was great. And a unique experience for a young man,” he said. “I got the travel bug like no other.
“And then we had kids and never went anywhere again,” McKinley said, laughing.
“The Baxters” will premiere March 28 on Amazon Prime Video.
Original article source: ‘Married… with Children’ star Ted McGinley admits one of his ‘biggest flaws in life’