TV/Conf Call: Syfy’s Warehouse 13 Eddie McClintock and Saul Rubinek Talk About Season 4

 

 

 

 

Although we were unable to participate, we wanted to share the transcript with our readers.

NBC UNIVERSAL

Moderator: Gary Morgenstein

July 17, 2012

12:00 pm CT

Gary Morgenstein:    Welcome everyone. Warehouse 13, SyFy’s highest rated series in history, returns for its fourth season Monday, July 23rd, at 9:00 pm, and we’re delighted to have the boys of the Warehouse to talk about it. Eddie McClintock and Saul Rubinek. Hi guys.

Saul Rubinek:          Hi.

Eddie McClintock:    Hey. What’s up?

Gary Morgenstein:    All right. (Chelsea), put forward the first question please.

Operator:                  Thank you. Our first question comes from the line of Jamie. Please go ahead.

Jamie:                      Hey guys. Thanks so much for doing the call. It’s great to talk to you again.

Saul Rubinek:          Hey Jamie. How are you?

Eddie McClintock:    Thanks Jamie.

Jamie:                      Good.  So can you kind of talk about the artifacts we’re going to see this season?

Saul Rubinek:           It’s really hilarious how you guys ask us the one question that we can’t answer.  You know that we’re going to have to spoil everything if we start talking about this. I can tell you this though,

Saul Rubinek:           Our show is not called Giant Chasm in the Ground 13, it’s called Warehouse 13, so obviously they’re going to figure out a way to bring the Warehouse back. But we’ve had artifacts. We’ve know that there’s a downside to using them. There are always consequences. And what the writers decided was that there had to be some consequences that were irrevocable. There were consequences that would be so dark that – so it that it wouldn’t just be easy.

So, “Oh, they’re dead. All right. We have an artifact for that.” “The Warehouse is gone. We have an artifact for that,” so everything becomes easy. It’s not going to be that easy. And whatever we use will have consequences for the life of this – of the characters and for the life of the series.

So that’s what I can tell you is that the use of artifacts becomes a darker and more dangerous and less takebackable thing than ever before. Would you say Eddie that’s true?

Eddie McClintock:    Yes. And not necessarily that it changes the show totally, but certainly there will be fallout from the use of artifacts that we cannot take back. You know, that stay with everybody. The change, it changes everyone permanently. But from week to week you still have fun ones

Saul Rubinek:          Yes.

Eddie McClintock:    …and it stays light.

But definitely like Saul said, we don’t want the show to become predictable, so you have to be able to know that we can’t just fix everything every time.

Jamie:                      Right.

Saul Rubinek:          That’s right. Yes.

Jamie:                      Right. Right. And I really loved the premier by the way. It was awesome.

Eddie McClintock:    Oh, thanks.

Jamie:                      Can you talk about maybe some of the guest stars that are coming up?

Saul Rubinek:           Yes. Well Lindsay Wagner comes back. Rene Auberjonois comes back. Kate Mulgrew is back. Where else do we have…

Eddie McClintock:    I already spilled the beans.

Saul Rubinek:          About?

Eddie McClintock:    I spilled the beans about everybody.

Eddie McClintock:    Are we – so are we allowed to say Gary?

Saul Rubinek:          Well, the Brent Spinner…

Eddie McClintock:    What about (Jane)?

Saul Rubinek:          Hello?

Gary Morgenstein:    (I know he can say).

Eddie McClintock:    What’s that Saul? What did he say?

Gary Morgenstein:    It’s Gary. That’s it.

Eddie McClintock:    Sorry. Sorry. Look up some of the interviews I did at Comic-Con and you      can find out.

Gary Morgenstein:    Thank you Agent Latimer. Thank you very much. Yes.

Eddie McClintock:    I’m like Joanne and I are like, “Oh, well we’re having this person, and this person.”

Gary Morgenstein:    Yes. Yes. Yes.

Eddie McClintock:    Then we walked outside and Gary goes, “Oh, by the way. Don’t tell who we’re having as guest stars.” So the ship has sailed as it were.

Jamie:                      Okay, well thanks. Sorry.

Eddie McClintock:    All right. Thank you Jamie. Nice to talk to you.

Jamie:                 Nice to talk to you.

Operator:             And our next question comes from Erin. Please go ahead.

Saul Rubinek:     I don’t know yet.

Eddie McClintock:    I’m doing all right.

Eddie McClintock:    I really had a blast.

Erin:                   It was fun. You had a good time this year?

Saul Rubinek:     Of course. Yes.

Eddie McClintock:    For some reason I’ve sat at the Light Speed table – this is my fourth year, and I sit and sign and meet people that come by. And this year was, Saul, Sunday you weren’t there, but Sunday was just unbelievable.

You know, it just feels like there’s been a shift in regards to the visibility of the show and the popularity of the show. It’s a good feeling. We worked really hard. Jack Kenny works really hard. We all do. And to see that the people are really responding is what it’s all about. So I had probably the best Con that I’ve had.

Saul Rubinek:     Well…

Erin:                   That’s so great. That’s so great. Well, and it’s earned obviously. How do you feel about the longer season this year?

Saul Rubinek:     Well, they’re really two seasons. It’s really a real vote of confidence from the network and the studio to do that with us. That’s how we felt.

I mean, it’s a little harder I would say on those of us that have kids, and Eddie is farthest away. I don’t live that far away because I’m in New York and my kids are older, so it’s a mix. A little different. My daughter is in college and I can get back. That’s the hardest thing for Eddie, right Eddie? That longer season?

Eddie McClintock:    Yes. If my boys and my wife could be in Toronto with me all the time, it would be much, much easier. It’s a quality problem. I’m on a show that’s been on the air for four years now. I’m making a living as an actor in Hollywood in arguably one of the darkest times in the American economy, so I really have no complaints except Saul is the only one.

Saul Rubinek:     Other than me.

Eddie McClintock:    Saul’s my only complaint.

Erin:                   That sounds fair enough. Thanks guys.

Operator:             And our next question comes from the line of Kyle. Please go ahead with your question.

Kyle:                   Hi guys. Thanks for taking the call.

Eddie McClintock:    Sure.

Saul Rubinek:     Our pleasure.

Kyle:                   So usually the scenes between you guys are pretty  light and fun, but near the end of this season premier there’s a very dramatic scene between Pete and Arnie. What was it like doing a really heavy scene versus like what you’re normally doing?

Eddie McClintock:    Well for me, it’s always great to be able to work with Saul – and unfortunately, we don’t get to do it as much as we would like. Not to blow too much smoke here for Saul, but I have such a great deal of respect for his work and the way he approaches his work, that anytime that I can be a part of that, I think it makes me a better actor and I think my work is better.

The opportunity to really do something serious with Saul – it’s those moments for me that make all the moments of tedium worthwhile. I do all the other stuff and I love the other stuff as well, but it seems like the one you’re talking about – ones that actually move me, I don’t have to work up emotions for those scenes. Saul is present; I’m there, the writing’s good, and things just happen. Not to be too trite, but that’s the magic of what we do I guess.

Saul Rubinek:     Thanks Eddie for that. I think that we’re a team. Over the last four years we’ve really become a team. We’re like a family. It’s not like we don’t have bumps with each other like any family does, but we have certainly one of the best crews in Toronto, and I know that because I’m a Toronto actor from way back and I know Toronto crews.

We’re a show that other crews envy because there’s no prima donna. There’s just hard work and a lot of fun, a lot of which is because Eddie really keeps things light and entertaining. I call it his buffoonery. But it’s true and we do have a wonderful time together.

Eddie McClintock:    Why are you laughing when you say that?

Saul Rubinek:     I think that you’ll find that might be a common denominator for shows that work is that when there is that team and that mutual respect and fun that’s going on and everybody’s working together, the work is fairly easy.

We’re especially blessed because Jack Kenny – our show runner is available to be on the set with us. He used to be an actor. He’s incredibly collaborative. If things don’t fit in our mouths the way that they were written on the page, things are changed. We get to improvise a little bit, and we’re extremely lucky.

Well, I did. Yes. That’s an example of how things are on the set with Eddie all the time.

When we do serious stuff together, it’s fun, it’s quick and it’s easy, and we don’t do it enough. The way the show’s tracked out this particular year, we had less to do with each other than even before, so we’re hoping that’ll change. But we have a great time together. I’m sure that’s obvious from watching the show.

Kyle:                   Yes, and speaking of the humor, like the things like such as the tivoing and the one-liners in the premier, is all of that scripted, or do you guys do a lot of improvisation when you’re…

Saul Rubinek:     Well, I would say it’s about 50%, right?

Eddie McClintock:    Just to be exact on what I consider improv to be, I would never just say a line arbitrarily during the scene without first running it by Jack. Because a lot of times, Jack will go, “No. You will not say that, but you can say this.”

I go to Jack and like Saul said – a lot of the stuff Jack will see or he’ll hear something and he’ll go, “Try this.” And it’s like a sitcom in that, Jack actually comes in and punches up between takes. And what I mean by that is when you do a sitcom and you do the take for the audience, and then the writers come rushing in and they say, “Okay, this worked. This worked. This didn’t work, so now I want you to say this instead.”

As we move along, we get to see what works and what doesn’t. And again, that’s just a testament to how hands-on Jack Kenny is in regards to his baby, Warehouse 13.

Kyle:                   Thanks guys. I’m really looking forward to the rest of the season.

Eddie McClintock:    No, thanks man.

Saul Rubinek:     Thank you.

Operator:             And our next question comes from the line of Joshua. Please go ahead.

Joshua:               Hey guys. Thanks for your time today.

Eddie McClintock:    Joshua.

Saul Rubinek:     Nice to be here.

Joshua:               A lot of times when shows are successful, as your show is successful, I find that – the sort of the creative team, they  kick it into cruise control, and there’s nothing really exciting or challenging for awhile. But your show has really ramped it up considerably in the past few episodes and looks like it’s continuing in that direction.

How exciting – how rewarding is that for you guys as actors?

Saul Rubinek:     It’s an extraordinary thing. At a certain point it becomes  the biggest character I’ve ever played and it’s quickly become probably the best character with the most range because of all the episodes and all the different things the writers are asking of us.

There is something that I think is called series-itis that you have to be careful of. It’s incredibly exciting. First of all the positive and I’ll tell you what the dangers are, given the fact that I’m a very old man who’s been doing this for 40 years or so.

Eddie McClintock:    Very old.

Saul Rubinek:     Very, very old.

What’s exciting is that the audience is connected with us. We have tremendous support from the studio and the network. It’s very rare in any actor’s career that you’re doing a show that is the Number 1 show in the history of that network. That’s rare, and we’ve held on to that since the very beginning. It’s a testament to the writing and the family that we’ve created.

And the fact that audiences I believe are watching – this is what I’m really proud of, because both Eddie and I are dads. We’re the only dad’s – or parents of the actors right now, right? Families watch this show together.

Eddie McClintock:    Right.

Saul Rubinek:     And I’m really proud of that. People that watch American Idol or shows like that. There are very few shows that are in this hour long category that audiences can watch with their family. There’s something for everybody over the age of 11 or so. And dads and moms and grandparents don’t get bored, and the kids are still delighted, and there’s great stuff. So that’s what makes me really proud.

The danger is when you’re doing a show you know a lot, for actors doing any series, is that the test is not how quickly the crew can get home and how quickly you can do things, although we do want to do that. Is you really have to keep challenging yourself in a series. You have to keep things alive.

Operator:             Okay. Our next question comes from the line of Crystal. Please proceed.

Crystal:               Hi these are going to be for Eddie because I was at the table that you sat down and got yanked away.

Eddie McClintock:    Oh, cool. Oh.

Saul Rubinek:     I won’t be able to talk to that. All right.

Crystal:               Yes. So I’m not ignoring you Saul.

Saul Rubinek:     All right.

Crystal:               You can jump in if you want, but we did get to talk to you.

All right, our question is we’re always – we always hear actors say how they create back stories for their characters before they start and everything. So I was wondering if you did that, how has the character changed from what you thought he might be? Or if you haven’t done that, how has the – you know, has the character surprised you at all?

Eddie McClintock:    Well, I can tell you the biggest parallel that I think – between myself and my character – when we started this years ago, the character of Pete, if you remember in the pilot, he has a one-night stand with some girl he just met. He kind of gives her the boot, you know, he gently suggests that she go because he’s got to get to work. And, it turns out his work is to guard the President.

So I think we see that, he doesn’t take his job all that seriously, and I think he’s a little overly egocentric. He’s pretty wrapped up in Pete. He’s  a recovering alcoholic, so even though we don’t know that, it’s kind of a classic condition of the recovering alcoholic which I’m well aware of because it’s me.

As we’ve gone along and as he’s made these relationships and cultivated these relationship with the people that he now calls family, I think he has realized that the world doesn’t revolve around him and he’s better served to feel that the world revolves around the protection and care of his family.

You know his father died when he was young. His mom and him weren’t that close. She kept the secret that she was a Regent from him.

The parallel being when I started the show, my wife and I just had started having children. Before that, Lynn and I did things for ourselves. And we realized, and especially now that my boys are five and six, just everything that I do is for my boys really, except for when I buy Prada shoes.

Eddie McClintock:    It’s really for the boys. But I think Jack always smacks me for doing that. I would say that I have grown – I have become less selfish. It’s become more about my boys and my family, and I think that that’s kind of the journey that Pete has made and continues to make.

I always look to Pete as a way to be a better man. The way Jack Kenny has written him, he’s so honest and so unjaded, and such a pure guy. He comes from such a place of pure joy that I just hope that it rubs off on me.

Crystal:               Yes, good.

With things being so collaborative between you, the actors or the writers, is there anywhere you would like to take your character that hasn’t been done yet?

Eddie McClintock:    The only thing that comes to mind is I’d like for us to meet Pete’s sister to get to know what their relationship is. I’m always just along for the ride and I have such a great deal of trust in the writers and in SyFy to take the show and in whatever direction they see fit. I wouldn’t say that I have a particular direction that I want Pete to go in. I like the direction he’s going in, and I think it’s in many directions at once.

Crystal:               Okay. Thank you very much.

Eddie McClintock:    Thank you. Sorry I missed your table.

Crystal:               Oh, I know. I know. It was a madhouse. But you know…

Crystal:               …you volunteered to do individuals with people and that impressed me.

Eddie McClintock:    Yes, sure.

Crystal:               Absolutely impressed me.

Eddie McClintock:    Anything I can do to help the show, you know.

Crystal:               Yes. Thank you.

Eddie McClintock:    Of course.

Crystal:               We feel the same way.

Eddie McClintock:    Thank you.

Saul Rubinek:     Thanks.

Operator:             And our next question comes from the line of Stacy. Please proceed.

Stacy:                 Hello guys. Just like everyone else, thank you so much for doing this call.

Saul Rubinek:     This is our pleasure.

Eddie McClintock:    Stacy, we’re doing the call.

Stacy:                 You’ve got – the season premier is amazing and there are a lot of shocking moments. What was it like for you guys to read that script?

Saul Rubinek:     It was really exciting. Really, really exciting. But what we got to do a lot of  working in front of a green screen where we have to imagine. We had a big screening with the cast and crew a couple of Sundays ago and we got to see it.

And on a big screen it was kind of awesome because the special effects looked so great. And a lot of it we were just in front of a green screen with no idea of what it was going to look like, so that was pretty exciting for us to see.

Eddie McClintock:    When you take a television screen formatted show and you blow it up onto a movie theater sized screen, it can be scary because you think, “Oh, okay. Maybe we need to go back down.” Because you know, a lot of times you see the flaws.

But like Saul said, the show looks huge. The special effects department does such an amazing job with the time and the budget that they get. They’re just crunched every week because we have a lot of effects. Certain shows are more effect-laden than others, but I’m really proud of the premier episode. I can’t wait to see the rest.

I’m as anxious as the fans because I have no idea once we do the show and move on to the next show, I forget the previous show. I’m just not smart enough to retain – like Allison. She remembers every line of every show she’s ever done. I forget my lines after I move to the next scene. So I’m almost seeing them for the first time just as the fans are.

Stacy:                 And we’ve seen Pete and Myka change bodies. What would happen if Pete and Artie changed bodies? How would you guys like do each other?

Saul Rubinek:     He’s put me on a plan – a weight loss plan immediately and I’d be in shape.

Eddie McClintock:    I’d go out cruising chicks.

Saul Rubinek:     That’s a good idea. We’ll suggest it. See what happens.

Eddie McClintock:    Yes. Yes.

Saul Rubinek:     It’d be pretty weird as he starts giving people orders and nobody realizes it’s Pete.

Eddie McClintock:    Exactly.

Saul Rubinek:     And nobody takes me seriously. I’ve got great ideas. I look like Pete and Myka doesn’t take me seriously at all. It would be a disaster.

Eddie McClintock:    “Myka, I want you to go to the store and buy four whoopee cushions.” “I won’t do it Artie. I won’t do it.”

Saul Rubinek:     That’s what would happen. Yes, it’d be hilarious.

Stacy:                 Thank you very much.

Saul Rubinek:     Sure.

Eddie McClintock:    Thanks guy – or one gal.

Operator:             And our next question comes from the line of Ian. Please proceed

Ian:                     I want to ask Saul first of all, you’re going to work with Brent Spinner again this year.

Saul Rubinek:     Yes. Yes, it was great.

Ian:                     It’s an adversarial thing again isn’t it Saul? You’re kind of like the good guy this time and Brent’s kind of like the not-so-good guy.

Saul Rubinek:     Yes. I’m not going to tell you exactly what happens, but it does – the whole nemesis thing was great. We’ve even put some clues in for our fans that relate to us having done The Most Toys. Some lines of dialog that suggest that we’ve worked together before, so that’s fun. It’ll be fun for fans to figure out.

It was a great season for me because I got to work a lot with Brent. We got to renew our friendship because we live in different cities now. And we started off actually in the theater together. We did a play in New York together in 1979, and the reunion was when we did the Star Trek TNG was in ’89. It was ten years after that and here we are, wow, 22 years after that. It was awesome. We had a great time.

Eddie McClintock:    When you did the play in ’79, was that by candlelight?

Saul Rubinek:     Thanks Eddie. Yes, gaslight.

Saul Rubinek:     Okay.

Ian:                     And a quick follow-up for both of you. Is there going to be a Christmas episode this year?

Saul Rubinek:     No, there won’t be because we’re doing 10 and 10. That’s what’s going on with the show. So yes, that’s how that works.

Ian:                     Oh, that’s a shame. I’ve enjoyed the heck out of both the Christmas episodes that you guys have done.

Saul Rubinek:     Yes, he had fun with that. Yes. Yes, they were fun.

Eddie McClintock:    Yes. Well this last year’s was I thought it was one of the best episodes of the whole series.

Saul Rubinek:     Yes, it was beautiful. It was really beautiful. It was a great episode. It was a way for all of us to get back together, the whole idea of It’s a Wonderful Life. It was really, really cool. We really enjoyed it.

On the other hand you don’t usually have us after we’re done at the end of August. You don’t see us again until July. You’ll have us again in April, so that’s a cool thing.

Ian:                     Yes. Okay, well thanks a lot guys for doing the show. I’ll continue to watch.

Saul Rubinek:     Thank you so much.

Eddie McClintock:    Thanks for that.

Operator:             And our next question comes from the line of Tim. Please proceed.

Tim:                   Hi guys. It’s really nice to get to speak with you today.

Eddie McClintock:    Thanks (Tim).

Saul Rubinek:     Oh, our pleasure.

Tim:                   I’ve been a fan from the beginning and I would say that there’s been a progression of the show getting more serious, and I know that Eddie’s pushed for that. Specifically you know, calling his own character slightly fluffy in the beginning. And I haven’t seen the premier yet, only previews, but it seems very intense, and it seems to ratchet up the darkness dial a little bit especially for Claudia.

So can either of you speak to that – will that be a new tone that sort of prevails this season, or is that just in the beginning of the seasons and it kind of just balances out in the wash?

Eddie McClintock:    I know that as Joanne was saying at Comic-Con, and I thought it was well put, she said that we’re still painting with all the colors that we were painting with before, but we’ve added a darker color.

So it’s not necessarily that the show has taken a shift tonally, but there are these great consequences. The fact that H.G. Wells is dead. The fact that Jinks is gone. The Warehouse is gone. Mrs. Frederick is gone. We have to deal with that.

And to come back from that and be jokey and ridiculous, it just wouldn’t make sense. It all seems disrespectful to the show. And again don’t get me wrong; Pete is still using his comedy to protect himself from the fact that he is devastated by the loss of his friends.

Saul, what do you think?

Saul Rubinek:     Yes. The show is definitely darker.. As I told you, there are tremendous consequences to bringing the Warehouse back, which is what will happen. That’s not going to be a spoiler. People aren’t going to be shocked by that.

We always have tried to maintain a balance between the humor of the show and you really don’t know from one second to the next where the jokes are going to come. That’s still true.

No matter how dark we get, there’s going to be lighter moments. We don’t take ourselves that seriously. But on the other hand, we’re not so light so that we’re just fluff. And I think people care enough about these characters and see all these different sides to them that we can stretch.

On a fourth season of a very successful show, it wouldn’t be outrageous for the writers, the studio, and the network to say, “Play it safe. We’ve got our core audience. We don’t want to mix things up too much.” But what happened is that they stepped it up.

I think you’ll see this season that they have taken some chances. I don’t know yet whether all those things have paid off. They seemed to when we were doing it. You don’t know until the show gets air. I can tell you that certainly in the premier it paid off big time.

They’ve taken tremendous chances. The writers, the producers, executives have all decided that we’ve earned the right – that Jack has earned the right and the staff has earned the right to raise the bar and to stretch things a little bit, and that our audience will go with us. We think that’s true.

And so, that’s what’s happened to us. We worked really hard – extremely hard this season because we were given stuff to do that had not been required of us for three years.

So that’s what I can say without spoiling things for people. I hope the fans are the recipient of that kind of risk taking.

Tim:                   Saul, I’m an especially giant fan of yours. I grew up loving your work, so it is a great honor to talk to you. And I know that – thank you for taking the time. I know that it’s been an emphasis – a focus of yours to carry that family friendliness, and I think it’s especially remarkable that as the show – it’s almost like the Harry Potter series where your fans have sort of grown into the seriousness of the show. As you said, it’s earned the right.

Because you would think the family-friendliness of it might drop away as it gets a little darker and serious. But actually, I think that’s what’s helped it – as Eddie said at the – it’s gotten a renewed growing audience that just loves it all the more.

I haven’t seen the premier, as I mentioned, so I don’t know. Is this a one-time guest appearance for Brent, or is it a multi-episode arch?

Saul Rubinek:     It’ll be a multi-episode arch. That’s been announced. And much more than that I can’t tell you.

Eddie McClintock:    Six.

Saul Rubinek:     Is it six? Yes, so there you go.

Eddie McClintock:    Yes.

Tim:                   Okay. Thank you very much.

Saul Rubinek:     Sure.

Eddie McClintock:    Thanks man.

Operator:             And our next question comes from the line of Brian. Please proceed with your question.

Brian:                 Hi Eddie and Saul. Great to talk to you again.

Saul Rubinek:     You too.

Eddie McClintock:    Hi.

Brian:                 A question I asked last year, and I’ll – a similar question to what I asked last year. I know Gary’s watching you guys like a hawk. Without getting too specific, what episodes in the upcoming season that you’ve already filmed and so forth do you see as being important either to yourselves or your characters that we should be on the lookout for?

Saul Rubinek:     Go ahead Eddie.

Eddie McClintock:    You know as I said earlier in the interview here, I mean I hardly remember what we did – I’m serious. I was very proud of some of the stuff that I did in the premier, and I remember feeling some pride along the way. So specifically, I’m sorry. I’m not really sure. Maybe Saul, you can enlighten me.

Saul Rubinek:     Well, we can’t be too specific. You know, this is what’s happened for everyone. Every single character has to call on resources that they didn’t know they had because things are less certain than they ever were. And things that you’ve thought were for sure and people that you could count on for sure, you can’t anymore.

And as a result, all the characters have to grow in order to survive. And that’s true for all of us. Specific moments we can’t tell you about without spoiling it for you, but as we talked about earlier, we’ve earned the right. Maybe our fans will tell us that we haven’t, but I hope that the reviewers and that you guys will say, “Yes. You know, we’re glad you took chances. We’re glad you didn’t rest on your laurels. We’re glad that things have stepped up.”

I’m trying to think of any of the characters that – even our recurring characters that have not grown this season by dent of the terrible circumstances that they find themselves in and their consequences.

Allison was talking about this. If there was going to be a theme for this ten episode arch it would be consequences I think. It’s great for us and great for the fans that in the fourth year what could’ve been a procedural that had a great premise and could’ve been the artifact of the week and that could’ve been fun. It was never that. Never that. They always took chances and the chances are even deeper now. I think that’s the best I can say without giving stuff away.

Brian:                 Right. Yes, I know it’s hard, but thank you anyway.

Saul Rubinek:     Sure.

Eddie McClintock:    Thanks (brother).

Operator:             And our next question comes from Robin. Please go ahead.

Robin:                 Hi guys.

Eddie McClintock:    Robin?

Robin:                 Thanks for talking to me.

Eddie McClintock:    Hi.

Robin:                 Yes?

Saul Rubinek:     Sure.

Robin:                 I actually have a question about some of the crazy gadgets and the artifacts, and it’s a different question. Do you have a favorite gadget or artifact? And if you could invent one, what would it be?

Eddie McClintock:    My favorite artifact has to be Abe Lincoln’s hat. When Pete put it on he had an uncontrollable urge to free Mrs. Fredrick. I just thought that was…

Saul Rubinek:     It was hilarious.

Eddie McClintock:    …brilliant and I loved the fact that we can say things like that without people freaking out about it. Because we’re able to show that we come from a good place. That gives me hope – in humanity.

If I had to create an artifact, I’ve always said that it would be Janice Joplin’s back stage pass from Woodstock. The holder of the artifact could travel through time to go to any concert that has ever been. I could go to see the Doors and Black Sabbath, and Led Zeppelin, and all the bands that my dad turned me on to when I was a little kid but I was never old enough to go to the shows.

Robin:                 That would be awesome.

Saul Rubinek:     That’d be a cool one. That would be really good.

I’ve said the same thing for a couple of seasons, which is that I want to have an artifact that actually tells the true numbers of the audience Nielsen ratings that we’re actually getting, because I can tell you that it’s probably three times what they’re saying it is because otherwise, the advertisers would have to pay a lot more.

Robin:                 Sure.

Saul Rubinek:     I know from the people that stop me whether I was in France or I was in England, or all over the United States where I’ve traveled, and always in the past it’s been different movies I’ve done. Whether it’s True Romance or Frazier, or Unforgiven, but now it’s always Warehouse 13 95% of the time. And the ages of the people are from 10 to 80, and, my daughter is in college. Nobody watches television in college anymore. They watch their computers and…

Robin:                 Right.

Saul Rubinek:     …they’re still watching commercials. And they have to do that.

So I think that, you know, they’re saying we’re being watched by three million. I think it’s over twice that, so I’d like that artifact. That’d be good.

Robin:                 That would be nice.

Saul Rubinek:     Yes.

Robin:                 All right, thank you guys.

Saul Rubinek:     Thank you.

Eddie McClintock:    Thank you.

Operator:             And we do have a follow-up question from Joshua. Please go ahead.

Joshua:               Yes, guys, just a quick follow-up. You know, we do a lot of conference calls with guest stars, and you know we have our good experiences and bad experiences, but you know I would say to a man, everyone says that they enjoy coming and working with you guys. That it’s a great cast. You know, very hospitable.

But you know Eddie, you in particular are always mentioned as really making the trip worthwhile, and I’m wondering why do you suppose that is? What are you doing with these guest stars that it makes it so much – you know, a fun time for them?

Eddie McClintock:    Oh, wow. Well, that’s a great compliment, that’s really nice to hear. I really wasn’t aware of that.

Eddie McClintock:    I’ve done probably 60 guest spots on 27 different television shows, so I know how uncomfortable it can be and how difficult it can be to show up on a show that is already established. It’s basically like showing up at somebody’s door with your sleeping bag and going, “I’m going to be lying in your living room eating potato chips in my underwear for the next seven days, so I hope that’s cool with you.”

Like we’ve said before, we work 15, 17 hours a day. There are dynamics on the set that as a guest star you don’t know about. You don’t know who’s feuding with whom, and who’s sleeping with whom, and what…

So for me, it’s just I love to try and make people feel comfortable. I think it makes for a better work environment. I think it makes for a better show. And, it’s just the person I am. I’m always so thrilled to see people come on the show. And I’m just so proud. “Really? You want to do our show? Our little show? You want to be on our show?” So, I’m always flattered that they want to come and work with us.

Joshua:               Great. Thank you.

Eddie McClintock:    Thanks.

Operator:             And our next question comes from the line of Nicole. Please go ahead.

Nicole:                Hi guys. How are you?

Saul Rubinek:     Hi. We’re good.

Eddie McClintock:    Hi.

Nicole:                This question is for Eddie. We know that you’re an artist and I thoroughly enjoyed your work on Puscifer album. This past year there was a Warehouse 13 (unintelligible)…

Eddie McClintock:    On the Puscifer album?

Nicole:                Yes.

Eddie McClintock:    Oh, cool. Are you a fan?

Nicole:                I am a fan. I love them. (Unintelligible) is amazing. He is a God.

Eddie McClintock:    Look in the – if you have the hard copy of the “V” is For Vagina, if you look in the – where the CD goes into the sleeve there’s a little hidden message in there.

Nicole:                Oh, I’ll have to pull that out and check it out.

Eddie McClintock:    That no one knows about. All right.

Nicole:                Thank you.

Eddie McClintock:    Sure.

Nicole:                All right. Well this past year there was a Warehouse 13 comic book that came out. Would you ever have any interest in working on a comic based on the show?

Eddie McClintock:    Yes. That would be the day that I actually saw myself as a comic book character, that’s a dream come true. That’s just another tick off the bucket list for me.

I was a huge Marvel Comics fan as a kid. I loved The Hulk and I was a big Spiderman fan and Fantastic Four. So to see myself as a comic book character, how cool is that? And now they just turned Pete into a statuette. QMX created a statuette.

So – and Saul’s next. Artie’s next.

Saul Rubinek:     Yes.

Eddie McClintock:    So yes, absolutely. I would love to collaborate on something like that.

Nicole:                Awesome. Well hopefully you can one day. Thank you.

Eddie McClintock:    Thanks.

Operator:             And our next question is with Janice. Please go ahead.

Janice:                Hi gentlemen.

Eddie McClintock:    Hi.

Janice:                I was wondering – hi. I was wondering what is the most challenging thing you’ve done so far this season?

Saul Rubinek:     Go ahead Eddie.

Eddie McClintock:    It’s just to not gain 30 pounds from the chocolate chip cookies that Craft Services bring in. I mean, every day they’re bringing hot chocolate chip cookies after lunch, so you know in regards to being…

Saul Rubinek:     Really funny.

Eddie McClintock:    That’s a big…

Saul Rubinek:     Yes. I’m on Weight Watchers. I want to lose 50 pounds over the next year or so. It’s incredibly difficult. I’ve been struggling with that as a person for all my career. The shows can be really challenging to do, so I want to be healthy. So, that’s the biggest challenge.

And the biggest challenge for Eddie and I, and we talk about this, is being good dads. My kids are 21 and 17, but still being a good husband and being a good dad, and trying to balance your career, that’s the hardest thing for us.

Eddie McClintock:    Yes.

Saul Rubinek:     All the rest of its fine. I can talk to you about stretching the character and all the chances that we take. But look, we have one of the best jobs in the world. By the time I got this job I was concentrating much more on writing and directing. I was not expecting this at this point in my career, to get such a great job on a television series, let alone one that was going to be a hit.

But the consistent factor is trying to be a good partner to my wife and a reasonably wise and not idiotic dad, which I am occasionally. And to make sure that my kids get into the school that they want to get into and be able to afford it. That’s the struggle for most of America, isn’t it? And that’s what it’s about.

I’m the old guy on the set and I want to set a good example, knowing my lines. For being there on time. For being a good support for everybody.

It’s one of the things Eddie and I just talked about. Being a star on a television show or being a leader of any kind, one of the things I’ve learned all my life is that it’s not about how other people support you; leadership is about how you support everyone around you. That’s the quality of leadership, and it’s the hardest job.

Janice:                Cool.

Janice:                Do you – Saul, do you find yourself as the father figure on the set?

Saul Rubinek:     Yes, sometimes I am. Sometimes I’m an idiot dad. But sure. I am certainly recapitulated for Allison and that’s how it was set up is in a sorcerer’s apprentice, and the mentor, and the sorcerer, and she’s had to grow and change. And, Artie’s had to let go of his father role with her. That’s been an important part of the show.

Eddie McClintock:    And often times find it comforting to nestle in Saul’s ample bosom.

Saul Rubinek:     Yes, he does that on a regular basis. It’s very sweet. I try to keep him away from me as often as possible, but you know – he’s a very needy guy.

Eddie McClintock:    I’m very hands-on. Very hands-on.

Saul Rubinek:     Very hands-on. Yes.

Eddie McClintock:    Let’s just say that.

Saul Rubinek:     Male or female, it doesn’t matter to him.

Eddie McClintock:    That’s right.

Janice:                Well, thank you.

Saul Rubinek:     All right.

Eddie McClintock:    Sure.

Operator:             And I do have a follow-up question from Jamie. Please go ahead.

Jamie:                 Hello again.

Saul Rubinek:     Hello.

Jamie:                 So I would like you each to describe each other’s character in three words.

Eddie McClintock:    Each other’s character?

Saul Rubinek:     Any three words.

Jamie:                 Yes.

Saul Rubinek:     Oh, I can just tell you that Pete is a man-child. There. There. if you want it in three words.

Eddie McClintock:    Pete is a man-child. That’s five.

Jamie:                 Yes, that’s more.

Saul Rubinek:     Okay. Well, there you go. A man-child.

Eddie McClintock:    Watch me. Watch me do three.

Saul Rubinek:     Artie is a…

Eddie McClintock:    Grumpy. Sleepy. Dopey.

Saul Rubinek:     Okay, excellent.

Jamie:                 Okay.

Do – both of you, do you prefer like the dramatic scenes over the comedic scenes? Or, do you just like the blend?

Saul Rubinek:     Yes. The blend is what makes the show.

Eddie McClintock:    I like the blend.

Saul Rubinek:     The blend is amazing. Everybody will tell you that. I think that’ll be true of any series that you see. I mean, actors want to change things up.

Listen, if Breaking Bad and Dexter weren’t also funny they wouldn’t be hits, would they? And the actors love it. All actors love it. They want to change things up. They want fast turns. They want to be able to stretch. They don’t want to get bored.

Jamie:                 Sure.

Eddie McClintock:    Although, I have to say that I found that a lot of actors, they’re afraid of comedy. They’ve come out and said it, and then I can see the fear in their eyes. I think that, actors maybe they fear it, and I do too. No one wants to fall on their face. I don’t have a whole lot of fear, and a lot of times it does well for me and sometimes it backfires.  So I don’t know why I got off on this tangent, but there you go.

Jamie:                 That’s okay.

Is there anything – I don’t know – I know you can’t tell us specifics, but is there something that you’re looking forward for fans to see this season that you can, you know, talk about without giving away too much?

Saul Rubinek:     Well, it’s hard isn’t it, to not give away stuff when you say look forward to. I think they look forward to the unexpected – it’s been every season we’ve said that. I remember the very first Comic-Con that we were at I said, “You know, every series is like the writers, the producers, the executives are sitting there saying, Is this our show? Is this concept our show? Is this a Warehouse 13 idea?’” And I said, “The minute that they figure that out would – we’re screwed, because then we will be a procedural.”

I challenge anybody to figure out what this show is going to be from one episode to the next. You really don’t know. They’re going to look for an artifact that’s got some downside, but that’s about all you know. You don’t know which way it’s going to go or how it’s going to – and neither do we. And I think that I want our fans to continue to say take chances.

I’m absolutely positive about  this. They are going to be shocked this year. Our fans will be shocked.

Gary Morgenstein:    We have time…

Jamie:                 I was shocked already by the premier, so…

Gary Morgenstein:    We have time for one more question.

Eddie McClintock:    I can say this. Cowboy hat, clothes pins, Harley Davidson motorcycle, bunless leather chaps.

Saul Rubinek:     There you go. Good luck with that.

Jamie:                 Okay.

Gary Morgenstein:    Thank you. And on that note our time has run out.

Saul Rubinek:     All right, guys.

Gary Morgenstein:    Thank you Saul. Thank you Eddie.

Eddie McClintock:    Love you Saul. I love you Gary. Bye guys. Thanks to you guys out there.

Gary Morgenstein:    Bye-bye.

Eddie McClintock:    All right, bye-bye.

Gary Morgenstein:    Bye.

Saul Rubinek:     Bye everyone.

Gary Morgenstein:    (Unintelligible) July 23rd at 9:00 pm, Warehouse 13 returns. Thank you everyone.

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