Speaker 1: It's nine O Genegen with Jenny Garth and Tory Spelling. Today,
Speaker 1: we are very excited we are being joined by one
Speaker 1: of our amazing co stars from season five, actor James Victor.
Speaker 1: He played Peter Tucker on seven episodes. Here's our chat
Speaker 1: with James. Hi, Hey, how are you great?
Speaker 2: Oh my gosh, you haven't aged at all.
Speaker 1: I have it. Oh that's good to know you have
Speaker 1: the exact same hair do that we're looking at a
Speaker 1: picture of you on our computers here when you were
Speaker 1: playing the character on nine O two and I Peter Tucker.
Speaker 1: You have the same exact hairdo.
Speaker 3: I'm thankful that I still have it. You can be
Speaker 3: good hair, good jeans, I guess right.
Speaker 1: Let me ask you a question. Does your mom have
Speaker 1: good hair? And your mom's dad?
Speaker 3: Actually, you know, I never met my mom's dad, but
Speaker 3: that was the Ironically, I never found out that I
Speaker 3: was Irish until I was in college. I always wondered
Speaker 3: because of the hair color. I said, you sure, I'm
Speaker 3: not Irish? And my grandparents used to tell me that
Speaker 3: I was Northern Italian because my whole family's Italian. So
Speaker 3: but yeah, I think Irish.
Speaker 1: Part, how'd you find out you're Irish.
Speaker 3: Well, years later I saw a picture. I found a
Speaker 3: picture of my mom's real dad, and I just I wondered, like,
Speaker 3: I said, who is this person? And I found out
Speaker 3: that they kind of, you know, because my grandparents, my
Speaker 3: grandmother got divorced really early on, when my mother was
Speaker 3: like two or three years old. They kind of it
Speaker 3: was kind of shameful to admit that. I guess, so
Speaker 3: I guess she was very proud, and so you know,
Speaker 3: when she married, that was the only grandfather that I knew,
Speaker 3: and I thought, you know, I thought he was my
Speaker 3: biological grandfather.
Speaker 1: Of Okay, but yeah, that's so fascinating.
Speaker 3: The hair because my brother and I have are the
Speaker 3: only ones who have like strawberry blonde hair, and we
Speaker 3: both have it and no one else has it in
Speaker 3: the entire family. So it always been a weird thing
Speaker 3: of a joke in high school of like, you know,
Speaker 3: the milkman did.
Speaker 1: The milk Man?
Speaker 3: You guys look amazing as well.
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's really good to see you. We've just gotten
Speaker 1: into the episodes where Peter, that's your character. Uh, you
Speaker 1: are flirting at the laundromat with Andrea and then you
Speaker 1: show up as the doctor in the ery she brings her.
Speaker 3: Baby the doctor med Med is the med student or
Speaker 3: he was.
Speaker 1: What is young to be the doctor?
Speaker 3: But yeah, yeah, but yeah, that was that was so
Speaker 3: much fun.
Speaker 4: By the way, we just found out what happens we
Speaker 4: we didn't remember and.
Speaker 1: Well into that. We haven't gotten to that episode on
Speaker 1: the podcast rewatch, so we try not to spoil things
Speaker 1: for our viewers or for me.
Speaker 3: Hopefully viewers have seen it or the new you know,
Speaker 3: going out to a whole new audience hopefully. Right. Yeah,
Speaker 3: So when when you guys invited me to do this,
Speaker 3: thank you so much. I hadn't seen the episodes in
Speaker 3: so long. I actually tried to, you know, figure out
Speaker 3: where I can watch them, and they're on Amazon right now.
Speaker 1: And good to know.
Speaker 3: Yeah, so I know that, and seasons are on Amazon,
Speaker 3: and so I was like, oh, you know what, I'm
Speaker 3: going to watch some of these. But I thought it
Speaker 3: was interesting that which one was it? You have You
Speaker 3: Got to Have Heart was not? It skipped over it,
Speaker 3: and I was kind of like on this mission of like,
Speaker 3: what happened? Why is that one not there? Why are they.
Speaker 2: Skipping that one on streaming?
Speaker 3: Yeah, they want to save it. They want you to
Speaker 3: be like, ok I don't.
Speaker 2: Think it's that.
Speaker 1: Got more to do with this.
Speaker 3: Who knows, I don't know, I didn't know.
Speaker 1: But uh, but is that one? Does that one come
Speaker 1: after the laundromat and after the hospital? Yeah, when you're referencing, Okay,
Speaker 1: maybe hopefully we get to see it.
Speaker 3: Sort of start. Yeah, there's the obviously, the flirting that's happening,
Speaker 3: and the kind of random running into each other and
Speaker 3: uh and then.
Speaker 1: The little fact of your character being married.
Speaker 3: Yes, yes, that is uh, well she's married.
Speaker 2: Yeah, she's married.
Speaker 3: Too, and you address that in our little telltale wedding
Speaker 3: rings that we both avoided to notice.
Speaker 1: So right, I don't think you guys she doesn't wear
Speaker 1: her rings when she goes to the laundermeat Oh okay,
Speaker 1: I just want to lose them. Yeah, that's true, that
Speaker 1: type though her Andrea, Yeah, she didn't want to lose
Speaker 1: her I believe she's very practical. She didn't want to
Speaker 1: lose her rings at the laundromat. Okay, but I buy
Speaker 1: that Peter purposely took his ring off when he saw
Speaker 1: this hot girl at the laundromat.
Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, it was a little deceptive. Yeah, yeah, but
Speaker 3: any kind of yeah. So but that was a fun
Speaker 3: scene to film, and I was so excited to just
Speaker 3: get this role because it was it was such an easy.
Speaker 1: M H fit.
Speaker 3: I don't know, I don't know how to explain it,
Speaker 3: but I don't know if you guys know that I
Speaker 3: auditioned for the show once before what no tell us?
Speaker 3: Years before I auditioned about two years earlier, I had
Speaker 3: auditioned for I don't know, it was a it was
Speaker 3: a drama teacher during summer school. I don't know if
Speaker 3: you remember that. The actor, the young Elvis Presley who
Speaker 3: ended up getting it, I think I don't know his name,
Speaker 3: but yeah, And so I auditioned for that, and I
Speaker 3: have to say it was I don't know. I came
Speaker 3: up with this crazy, fun, out of the box audition
Speaker 3: and it went so well, and then I got a callback.
Speaker 3: And when I realized, like my agent didn't tell me
Speaker 3: that it was, I just assumed like it was a
Speaker 3: callback for a guest star, and I was going to
Speaker 3: producers and when I got there there was all of
Speaker 3: these former series regulars and I had I'd never been
Speaker 3: to network before, and so when I actually got in
Speaker 3: the room, there was about about like fifty people sitting
Speaker 3: there scary, right, and I totally bombed. I did. I froze,
Speaker 3: and yeah, it was just it was the first time
Speaker 3: that that had happened, and it was kind of just
Speaker 3: such a I should have.
Speaker 1: Yeah, but then you made the bed and not the part.
Speaker 2: Yeah, wow.
Speaker 3: It worked out better, which I don't know if that happens,
Speaker 3: It feels like it happens rarely. But to have it
Speaker 3: come back around like that a couple of years later
Speaker 3: and to get this role was was just like a blessing.
Speaker 3: I was just like, oh my god. It was just
Speaker 3: you know, you have to tell yourself like that that
Speaker 3: maybe things happened for a reason. But I just remember, yeah,
Speaker 3: just feeling like, oh my god, I got another opportunity
Speaker 3: to Did.
Speaker 1: You know that it would be a seven episode sort
Speaker 1: of big, huge character arc for one of the main characters.
Speaker 3: I didn't. I didn't at the time. Now yeah I didn't.
Speaker 3: It was just like I think it was the only
Speaker 3: time I went into an audition where the producers actually
Speaker 3: said they had me read for also the student activist,
Speaker 3: and they were like, oh, wow, you're so perfect for
Speaker 3: this one too. We don't know which one to cast you,
Speaker 3: because usually nobody tells you a thing when you're in
Speaker 3: the room, right, But they were so open about it,
Speaker 3: and it just put me really at ease. I felt like, wow,
Speaker 3: this is this is so so great.
Speaker 1: And had you watched the show before because it had
Speaker 1: been on for four seasons before you joined?
Speaker 3: Four seasons and I had. I had watched the first season,
Speaker 3: but I hadn't seen it since the first season.
Speaker 4: Wait, you, guys, I got to go back to something.
Speaker 4: I'm so sorry. What when you went to network? I know,
Speaker 4: sorry you didn't get that role, but so much better
Speaker 4: this role? Right, the drama school teacher Summer School? Was
Speaker 4: he meant to be a series regular? Like if he
Speaker 4: went to network?
Speaker 3: Well, that's what was so confusing. Confusing he wasn't. I
Speaker 3: wasn't supposed to be a series regular. I went in
Speaker 3: under the impression that it was just a guest star.
Speaker 3: I felt like it was similar to this role of Peter,
Speaker 3: where it was a guest star possible recurring, but maybe
Speaker 3: it was already a guaranteed recurring for the whole summer.
Speaker 3: And so that's why when I first got there and
Speaker 3: I was surprised, I was like, wait a second, there
Speaker 3: was all these series regulars, like I recognized that guy
Speaker 3: from Coach and I recognized this guy, and I was
Speaker 3: just kind of like, I didn't know what was happening.
Speaker 2: One number did they put you in when you went
Speaker 2: in the room.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I don't know what number. But my kid called
Speaker 3: me afterwards. My agent called me afterwards, and he was
Speaker 3: just like, what happened? You were their first choice and
Speaker 3: they just don't know what happened. And I was like,
Speaker 3: I was their first choice. I said, it would have
Speaker 3: been nice to have some information. By the way I'm
Speaker 3: being prepared. I was so thrown and was not expecting
Speaker 3: because I guess it wasn't. I mean, that's network, right,
Speaker 3: I mean there were fifty people on a couch and
Speaker 3: and your father sitting in the middle. So I was anyway,
Speaker 3: But I get it.
Speaker 2: We've all been there. Yeah.
Speaker 1: Do you get recognized by people as Peter?
Speaker 3: Do You?
Speaker 2: Not?
Speaker 3: Not anymore?
Speaker 1: Because if I were to see you, like at the
Speaker 1: grocery store, I would look at you and be like,
Speaker 1: I know that guy from somewhere.
Speaker 3: Yeah, because that fa I still look similar. But I
Speaker 3: had gotten recognized up until about honestly, up until about
Speaker 3: probably in my forties, I was still getting recognized, and
Speaker 3: I have to be honest, I had no idea doing
Speaker 3: the show the power that it actually had, Like after
Speaker 3: I did the show, I mean obviously just you think
Speaker 3: having a recurring role. I had no idea that people
Speaker 3: would recognize me as much as they did or where
Speaker 3: honestly I could. I mean, my biggest memory is being
Speaker 3: at an Elton John and Billy Joel concert. Someone before
Speaker 3: it started came down from the stands and tapped me
Speaker 3: on the shoulder, so it's like, oh, you're that guy
Speaker 3: from I and I was. I was really taken aback
Speaker 3: because that was the first time something like that had
Speaker 3: happened to me.
Speaker 2: So did SAMs get mad at you? Like it's Andrea?
Speaker 4: Like, I guess I'm thinking so many characters like that,
Speaker 4: they didn't like what they were doing on the show,
Speaker 4: and they like hated them in real life. It's like,
Speaker 4: it's just a character.
Speaker 2: Did that happen?
Speaker 3: No, I had, no, I never happened, you know, that
Speaker 3: had never come up. I had never I had gotten
Speaker 3: fan mail, and it seemed like it was all positive.
Speaker 3: It was like no one ever said, like, how can
Speaker 3: you do that to Andrea? What's wrong with you. It
Speaker 3: was more like I had still gotten fan mail saying, oh,
Speaker 3: we're so sorry to see you go. And even that
Speaker 3: last episode where I'm kind of like, you know, not
Speaker 3: very nice, and she's she's.
Speaker 2: Really haven't seen it yet.
Speaker 1: I haven't seen it yet.
Speaker 3: Yes, okay, you'll be you'll be surprised. You'll be surprised.
Speaker 4: So in the end, it's not nice, and you still
Speaker 4: didn't get fans mad at you.
Speaker 1: Hey he got no hate. Well there was no internet then,
Speaker 1: so maybe that was the stuff I know.
Speaker 4: But I'm thinking, like it's it's on the same season
Speaker 4: that Jamie Walters is in who plays Ray with Donna,
Speaker 4: and because later on he goes on to not be
Speaker 4: nice to Donna, fans got really mad.
Speaker 2: So I'm curious.
Speaker 4: Why fans didn't get mad at not you, but you Peter.
Speaker 3: Ray seemed like I just watched them. Yeah, I just
Speaker 3: watched like most of the episodes just over, you know,
Speaker 3: the last couple of days, and Ray seemed like he
Speaker 3: was a lot meaner than me. He seemed like, I
Speaker 3: don't know, demons, yeah, yeah, I mean, or he seemed
Speaker 3: like he was. Yeah, he seemed like he just I
Speaker 3: don't know. The moody, brooding, kind of bad boy guy.
Speaker 3: But I think I was just maybe my character just
Speaker 3: seemed to be having more fun, you know. I think
Speaker 3: I was excited to be.
Speaker 2: You know, I don't know character is super likable, that's true.
Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, you know, the most that I'd ever gotten
Speaker 3: was people actually would say to me like, are you
Speaker 3: that guy from And then I'd be like no, no, no,
Speaker 3: and then they would say come on, come on mine.
Speaker 3: I'd finally go yeah, and they go, no, you're not
Speaker 3: shut up. Let me see your driver's license, prove it
Speaker 3: to me.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 3: Yeah, it was funny that that happened.
Speaker 1: You work so much in your early career. You were
Speaker 1: on an episode of Cheers, one of the best sitcoms
Speaker 1: ever made television history. What was that like?
Speaker 3: Yeah, that was amazing. That was my first job in
Speaker 3: Los Angeles. Oh yeah, that was so much fun, just
Speaker 3: to be on that kind of iconic show, you know. Yeah,
Speaker 3: that was that was great story too, because I was
Speaker 3: in a play in Los Angeles and I you know
Speaker 3: at the time when you used to send out postcards,
Speaker 3: and I sent out postcards to casting people to come
Speaker 3: see me. And Jeff Greenberg he actually he actually responded
Speaker 3: and said that he wished he could have come because
Speaker 3: he was going out of town and he couldn't make it.
Speaker 3: But he did respond n Yeah, that was really nice.
Speaker 3: And then something happened and he showed up. He actually
Speaker 3: showed up and a week later, a week later, he
Speaker 3: called me in to audition, and it was at that
Speaker 3: time I was so excited. I remember the audition I
Speaker 3: actually brought, you know, I brought in like I jumped
Speaker 3: on the couch that he had in his office and
Speaker 3: I sat on the back of the couch and it
Speaker 3: was probably h too much. I wouldn't do that now,
Speaker 3: but it was. I ended up getting it, and so
Speaker 3: that was like a nice way to get a job
Speaker 3: like that, you know, for being proactive and sending it.
Speaker 1: Yeah, taking matters in your own hands.
Speaker 3: Yeah at that time when yeah, so that was yeah,
Speaker 3: that was That was like my first job in LA
Speaker 3: It's not on IMDb, but I had done when I
Speaker 3: was you know, I'm from New Jersey, so uh, I
Speaker 3: studied in New York and so I was in the
Speaker 3: really young kind of when I was like thirteen years old,
Speaker 3: and I ended up booking a job on World. According
Speaker 3: to Garth in the movie.
Speaker 1: Oh my gosh.
Speaker 3: So that was like my first job and that was
Speaker 3: just an interesting to be on the set with, you know,
Speaker 3: with Robin Williams.
Speaker 2: And do you say thirteen.
Speaker 3: Yeah, wow, yeah I was. I was twelve or thirteen thirteen,
Speaker 3: I think, yeah, yeah, I just played a young wrestler.
Speaker 3: I told one joke, and the joke was, what's the
Speaker 3: deafer of a brazier? It's an over the shoulder boulder holder.
Speaker 1: Still, that's a good one.
Speaker 3: That that was one line.
Speaker 1: Awesome line, over the shoulder boulder holder. I love that.
Speaker 1: I've said that a million times.
Speaker 3: Yeah, that was that was the joke.
Speaker 1: So you've stayed really busy through the years. What are
Speaker 1: you working on now? Where are you living, what are
Speaker 1: you working on? Tell us give us an update.
Speaker 3: What's going on? Yeah, I mean this is still like
Speaker 3: my first passion, I will, you know, honestly, I hope
Speaker 3: that I get another opportunity on a show like, you know,
Speaker 3: like to One now because that show was just so
Speaker 3: amazing and it was such a fun job. But right now,
Speaker 3: I've been honestly, since the Pandemic, you know, I'd worked
Speaker 3: with Justine Bateman on a movie that she directed called
Speaker 3: Violet with Olivia Mon and that was really fun to do.
Speaker 3: Awesome and yeah, and then but during the pandemic, my
Speaker 3: parents needed help, so I kind of been going back
Speaker 3: and forth. They live in Las Vegas now, so that's
Speaker 3: where I am right now. I'm kind of helping out
Speaker 3: my dad as my dad has gotten sick and he
Speaker 3: has some health issues, and so I'm kind of juggling now.
Speaker 3: I'm thankful though that, you know, I've had to be
Speaker 3: able to spend time, you know, with them more than
Speaker 3: I would have. Yeah, because of the pandemic. It's just
Speaker 3: kind of and it wasn't COVID that they got sick with,
Speaker 3: so it was kind of just weird timing. But I'm able.
Speaker 3: I'm happy that I'm able to help out and just
Speaker 3: kind of step in be able to Since they're in Vegas,
Speaker 3: I can go back and forth between Los Angeles and Vegas.
Speaker 3: And also with the remote auditioning where you can do
Speaker 3: self tapes.
Speaker 1: Online now and do things like this like talk to me. Yeah,
Speaker 1: this is so awesome.
Speaker 3: Really helpful is well, and and yeah, so you know,
Speaker 3: I've been doing a lot of writing. I've written a
Speaker 3: couple of scripts that I'm kind of in the process
Speaker 3: of trying to to get made and you know, which
Speaker 3: is not an easy task.
Speaker 1: Yeah, it sounds like your priorities have just sort of
Speaker 1: shifted as they as they do sometimes and and you'll
Speaker 1: never know when another shift will come and you'll be
Speaker 1: doing something completely different. But really, kudos to you for
Speaker 1: stepping up for your parents. And I mean, you know
Speaker 1: what it's like to be a caregiver. It's a lot,
Speaker 1: and so.
Speaker 3: It's been challenging. But yeah, but I'm I'm I'm happy
Speaker 3: that I've been able to to stay connected to this.
Speaker 3: And yes, it sort of kind of took a back
Speaker 3: seat during the pandemic as I guess we had a
Speaker 3: big break as well.
Speaker 2: Everyone.
Speaker 3: Yeah, and then going into the writer strike and then
Speaker 3: the actors strike, say, it seems like it's been like, wow, you.
Speaker 1: Know, yours a lot.
Speaker 3: That's what it feels like. Yeah, that's been a big break,
Speaker 3: and so it actually has got given me a little
Speaker 3: more time to focus on this, this kind of caregiving
Speaker 3: and also writing.
Speaker 1: So, like I said, that's good, like keep your creative
Speaker 1: juices working and you never know, like something will happen
Speaker 1: and things will.
Speaker 2: Change that juices.
Speaker 1: I'm sorry, but it's just really nice to talk to
Speaker 1: you and see your face, and.
Speaker 3: You know, I know this is the first time we're
Speaker 3: actually meeting because on the set, I really, yeah.
Speaker 2: We never met you.
Speaker 1: I know, come on, we have to have met. I
Speaker 1: met you, Gabrielle and Mark with Mark actually awesome.
Speaker 3: Yeah, you know, I see each other periodically and we
Speaker 3: go have lunch.
Speaker 1: He's great.
Speaker 3: And and so Actually, and it was Luke. You know
Speaker 3: that I met him because you know, he was in
Speaker 3: one of the episodes that I was in.
Speaker 2: Right, Yeah, so I know I met you.
Speaker 3: Maybe we met in the hall passing. I think, you know,
Speaker 3: I remember I passed by Tiffany's room once. She's just
Speaker 3: me a wave, welcome to the show. Wow.
Speaker 2: Must have seen each other in the trailer and wardrobe.
Speaker 2: I'm still focused on that.
Speaker 1: Yeah, she'll DM you later when you actually met, and.
Speaker 2: I'll literally remember it at some point.
Speaker 3: I remember, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So this is
Speaker 3: like the thirty year anniversary of that season.
Speaker 1: I guess is it thirty there's numbers.
Speaker 3: Grow out, numbers don't numbers that is not that is.
Speaker 1: That It seems like more than that, honestly, But maybe
Speaker 1: for this episode because this was in nineteen ninety.
Speaker 3: Four, Right, so that's what I'm saying, we're.
Speaker 1: In twenty twenty four, makes sense?
Speaker 3: Yeah, in season five because I was in season five,
Speaker 3: so yep, midway now. It was kind of like I
Speaker 3: got so comfortable on the show that I didn't feel
Speaker 3: like a series regular. I was just like, well, I'm
Speaker 3: not what's going?
Speaker 1: Well, We're glad you feel comfortable.
Speaker 3: I did. I felt comfortable.
Speaker 4: Yeah, Oh my gosh, what would have happened if they
Speaker 4: had kept you guys together? What would have happened?
Speaker 3: Like Jesse would be out?
Speaker 2: Yeah?
Speaker 3: Who knows? They could have gone a million different ways
Speaker 3: that I kept its secret for a very.
Speaker 2: Long about that sometimes like what if?
Speaker 3: What if? Yeah? I know that's true. What if? But
Speaker 3: how long have you guys been doing this podcast? Is it?
Speaker 1: Five seasons?
Speaker 2: Five?
Speaker 1: Five seasons, five and a half seasons? Now? It's really fun.
Speaker 1: We're having a lot of fun and loving going back
Speaker 1: and talking to some of the pivotal guests star is
Speaker 1: like yourself, Yes, thank you, and just reconnecting and touch
Speaker 1: base about where they are and what the experience was
Speaker 1: like for them. So thank you for sharing your story
Speaker 1: with us and spending some time with us.
Speaker 3: Yeah, no, it was. It was really wonderful. So thank
Speaker 3: you for inviting me and having me and getting to
Speaker 3: go down memory lane a little bit. And uh it
Speaker 3: was a pleasure to actually for me to go back
Speaker 3: and watch myself and I was like, is that me? Holy?
Speaker 1: Yeah right, yeah, give yourself a little pat on the back.
Speaker 1: You're awesome.
Speaker 2: Definitely met you.
Speaker 3: Thank you, thank you. She's still on it, she's.
Speaker 1: Just talking about it.
Speaker 3: Yeah. Yeah, you know, it's been a while and uh,
Speaker 3: we didn't have any scenes together, so.
Speaker 4: No, I know, I have a photographic memory, so I
Speaker 4: definitely am remembering you right now.
Speaker 2: I'll figure it out. And that's right.
Speaker 4: I'll slide into your dam to let you know we
Speaker 4: are you on Instagram.
Speaker 3: Yeah, uh huh, I am that's right.
Speaker 1: Tell everybody it's your handle. What's your handle there?
Speaker 3: It sounds weird at James C. Victor one, At James C.
Speaker 1: Victor one. We will look for you, yes, okay, Thank
Speaker 1: you all the best. To your parents, thank you, We'll
Speaker 1: see you out there.
Speaker 2: To your scripts coming to Fruition.
Speaker 3: The Mind, thank you so much. It was really great
Speaker 3: to see you guys, and thanks
Speaker 1: You, James, thank you all right, thank you