By David Fantle and Tom Johnson
"People think that in real life I'm like my character on the show … it's called acting, people!"
Nicollette Sheridan was doing a good job convincing us that she and Edie Britt, the sex-starved serial divorcee she plays on the ABC hit "Desperate Housewives" have zilch in common. The show, which airs Sundays, is the "must see" surprise hit of the season and the hot topic at office water coolers on Monday mornings.
After making a name for herself in Hollywood playing the manipulative Paige Matheson, who used her guile and supermodel looks to get what she wanted, from 1986-93 on the series "Knots Landing," we were still not convinced that the "real" life Nicollette was not really a voracious, man-eating vixen."No, far from it," she implored. "I'm a homebody. I think what Edie and I share is that we're both extremely straightforward. You always know where you stand with both of us."Sheridan attributes her no-nonsense style to her early, formative years growing up in England. "I don't feel knives in my back as often in England as I do here," she said. "I think people are more direct over there, whereas someone can smile to your face here and you turn around and you can feel the hot, wet drip of blood down your back."At the time of our interview, Sheridan had just returned to her Malibu home from a busy day on the set. She was undoubtedly more excited to take her new white Golden Retriever puppy, Oliver, for a walk along the ocean than sit down and do another interview. But at age 41, Sheridan, a show business veteran, has learned a lot in the span between her "Knot's Landing" days, some professionally lean times that followed, and her meteoric rise back to stardom on the most talked-about show on television."I'm able to enjoy the ride much better this time around," she said. "When I was doing 'Knots Landing' I just wanted to do the work and come home and disappear, ride my horses, play with my dogs and go on hikes. That's pretty much what I did. This time around it's a different beast. The publicity has to be attended to and I'm learning to do it and enjoy it."Sheridan recently received the dubious honor of toplining style critic Mr. Blackwell's list of worst dressed celebrities (he dubbed her the "Tacky Temptress of Wisteria Lane"). After 45 years, Blackwell may be in need of a new gag writer, or more importantly, Lasik surgery. When we spoke to her, Sheridan was decked out in a Juicy Couture gray suit with blue pinstripes and black Gucci zip up boots -- hardly tacky attire.Sheridan tells us that she originally read for the part of Bree Van De Kamp (which actress Marcia Cross portrays in the show), described as a "Martha Stewart on steroids." The prim and proper Bree didn't feel right for Sheridan from that first reading."I thought the character was a very interestingly disturbed human being and there was a part of me that felt that I wasn't sure I wanted to play -- for maybe seven years -- this neurotic woman who could implode at any moment," she said. "When I went in to read I just couldn't commit 100 percent so I went in looking a little more like Edie than Bree and after reading I felt I did a good job. The director looked at me and said, 'No, no, no, I see you as Edie. Would you mind reading for Edie?' So with that I took a deep breath, shed my jacket, which revealed quite a low-cut dress designed by Chloe, and I said this is perfect. I come in the mother of two, a good wife, and I leave a slut!"As the series unfolds, Sheridan promises that viewers will see a more complex and sympathetic Edie. "She's quite a complicated, interesting human-being," she said. "She's just very real and I think that a lot of people identify with feeling like the odd man out and you'll learn how Edie feels about that. You'll see a side of her where she would like to be accepted by these women.""I'd guess the show will run for seven years," she continues. "I'm so proud to be part of this ensemble and work with Marc Cherry (writer and executive producer) who is a genius. I'm along for the ride as long as they want me.""Desperate Housewives" is also a welcome relief from the airwaves dominated by reality shows that pulverize the senses with gross-out stunts and all manner of personal dysfunction (can you say "The Surreal World?"), a fact not lost on Sheridan. "The show is wickedly funny, smart and mysterious," she said. "And it's all coupled with the absurd because it's a heightened reality."Sheridan came a long way before she put down television roots on Wisteria Lane and the manicured lawns on the cul de sac of "Knot's Landing." Born in Rustington, Sussex, England, Sheridan's mother is the English actress Sally Sheridan.Her mother had a longstanding relationship with Telly Savalas, the bald-headed actor best remembered for playing the lollipop sucking, "who loves you baby" cop, "Kojak" on the popular CBS series. When the show began its six-year run in 1973, Sheridan moved to Los Angeles. She affectionately refers to Savalas as her "stepfather," as he was the closest father figure she had in her life.Her formative years and education were split between England and the United States. Sheridan described the transatlantic experience as the "best of both worlds." A self-admitted jock, she preferred to mix it up with the boys on the football fields in pick-up games where she proudly attests she "could hold her own." "When I was a kid I was very scholastically inclined and I was a jock," she said. "I lettered in practically every sport in high school and wasn't the one sitting around reading magazines. I was out competing with the guys. I participated in track, swimming, basketball, softball and tennis."Despite being raised by actors, Sheridan said her entree into acting came almost by accident while attending Millfield, the largest co-educational boarding school in rural Southwest England. She was asked to direct a play, and almost against her will, was given a role. She was so petrified by the experience that when asked can't even recall the name of that first stage experience.Her big break came when she was cast in the "Dallas" spin-off "Knots Landing.""Women really found Paige Matheson a role model because not only was she strong and smart, she was sexy and breakable and she ran a company and wore great clothes. Women really liked that. In today's world, more women do run companies and more should."On Nov. 15, 2004, Sheridan made headlines when she was called for "illegal procedure" after her appearance in a steamy, humorous sequence just prior to kickoff on a "Monday Night Football" telecast. In the short, playful spot, Sheridan, supposedly in the locker room, sheds her towel (exposing her bare backside) when encountering Philadelphia Eagles player Terrell Owens. The spot resulted in an ABC apology and bewilderment from Sheridan. "I thought it (the reaction) was ridiculous," she said. "It was a spot that was designed to entertain and amuse and it accomplished that. They took a pop-culture incident and blew it out of proportion. To get upset about seeing three-quarters of a female back is pretty ludicrous." The Federal Communications Committee sided with Sheridan, ruling that the spot was not indecent.While her puppy Oliver may be, as she described him, the ultimate guy magnet, Sheridan has not had a problem attracting hunky, high-profile men into her romantic sphere. From her earliest days in Hollywood, Sheridan, chosen by People Magazine in 1990 as one of the "50 Most Beautiful People" in the world, has always been a favorite target of the paparazzi."Wherever you go there are photos snapped," she said. The crazy, boorish paparazzi will chase you down and not get out of your face so you just have to know when to venture out. The press is outrageously intrusive today. They seem to stop at nothing."Sheridan's beaus have included Leif Garrett, Scott Baio, Harry Hamlin (who she was married to from 1991-93) and Michael Bolton. In January, she announced her engagement to Swedish-born boyfriend Niklas Soderblom.As far as what the less immediate future may foretell career-wise for Sheridan, she remains blissfully unfazed."I think that Hollywood is learning how to treat 40-year-old actresses," she said. "Look at the success of this show. It's paving the way for more women in their 40s. It's a fabulous time. You're wiser and you can still be sexy. It's great."Now it's off for a walk down the beach with Oliver … and time to turn a few heads!
