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CNN Live Today

Interview With Michael Imperioli; Interview With Anthony Zuiker

Aired July 17, 2003 - 11:44   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: The suspense is over, but in some ways, it's just begun. The Emmy nominations were announced early this morning. You saw it live here on CNN. The HBO series "Six Feet Under" was the most nominated show. It faces some tough competition in the best drama category. It's up against "CSI Crime Scene Investigation." We'll get to that in a moment, but also we want to talk about another one. "The Sopranos" have been nominated, and from "The Sopranos," Michael Imperioli. Don't recognize the name? How about this name? Christopher. He plays the nephew of Tony Soprano, and he has been nominated for best supporting actor in a drama, and he's on the phone with us right now from New York.
Congratulations and good morning.

MICHAEL IMPERIOLI, ACTOR: Good morning, thank you very much.

KAGAN: What a thrill for you.

IMPERIOLI: It is a thrill, very happy.

KAGAN: Nothing like a little heroin addiction for your character to help snag an Emmy nomination.

IMPERIOLI: That always helps. Put a gangster and a junkie together and you get a junkie gangster, and you get nominated, there you go.

KAGAN: Well, a good plot line helps, but if you did not carry it out very well, then the Emmy voters would not be honoring you, I'm sure.

IMPERIOLI: Well, thank you.

KAGAN: And this is a big year for "The Sopranos." You -- well not just you, but the entire cast and the show didn't participate last year in the Emmys just because of how the way the schedule of the show worked out, so it's kind of like the return of "The Sopranos."

IMPERIOLI: It is. We were out of contention last year, but we'll be in full force in September.

KAGAN: And 13 nominations for the show overall.

IMPERIOLI: Great.

KAGAN: And besides your own nomination and the show being best nominated for best drama, any other you're particularly excited to hear about this morning?

IMPERIOLI: Well, all of them. It's excited to be up against Joey Pantoliono (ph), you know. I mean, I love him. I just saw him here in New York about five minutes ago, and it's kind of funny that the two of us are up for the same thing. But James Gandolfini and Edie Falco, they did such great work, especially in the last show. It was unforgettable. And we have three writing nominations, two directing, casting, and it's very exciting.

KAGAN: What's it like to be up against your fellow cast member, though?

IMPERIOLI: I think it's kind of fun. I would be happy to see him win it. We're really good friends, so it's not tense at all.

KAGAN: And you've been nominated once before.

IMPERIOLI: I have once before, yes.

KAGAN: So does this make it more exciting or take a little of the edge off?

IMPERIOLI: It's still an edge. It's still exciting. It's a surprise. It's always really surprising, but it's not any easier. It's a little never wracking.

IMPERIOLI: We wish you well. We'll see you on the red carpet September 21st.

IMPERIOLI: I'll be there.

KAGAN: I bet you will.

IMPERIOLI: OK.

KAGAN: You enjoy the nomination in the meantime.

IMPERIOLI: Thank you very much.

KAGAN: Michael Imperioli, who plays Christopher -- that's how they say it on the show, on "The Sopranos" -- nominated, second Emmy nomination.

LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: I'm impressed. I like it. I'm also impressed with Anthony Zuiker. He was with us last year. He is the creator and producer of "CSI." He was with us last year, almost exactly this time last year, and when it was announced that his show was nominated for an Emmy, guess what, it happened once again, and he is with us from Los Angeles. And, Man, you were geeked last year. What does it feel like this time around?

ANTHONY ZUIKER, CREATOR & PRODUCER: It feels just as great. I'm so glad to be back with my man Leon. How are you guys? And woke up this to the first nomination was "CSI," a little square (ph). I got very excited, and we're hoping for a big challenge on the 21st of September. HARRIS: You know, you were the first person I was thinking about this morning, at least I was thinking about, as we were watching the announcements come out. I said, OK, here we go, let's see, because last time around, the big discussion was about, well, there was no "Sopranos," so let's see whoever gets it, they get it with something of an asterisk. Now, no kind of asterisk.

Did you think there might be a chance you'd be left out this time around since "Sopranos" were in?

ZUIKER: Absolutely. I mea, "The Wire," "Boomtown," "CSI Miami." There's a lot of great shows. You know, we are in the golden era of television, we hope for the best, and we got in, and with "The Sopranos" being in there, and also us being in that company, is a tremendous honor in itself. We just got to keep our fingers crossed, and hope that the Gods are aligned that night.

HARRIS: All right, well, how about "CSI Miami." This is the first season for this particular show, and it seems like it's starting to really build its own audience and its own identity. Do you think this perhaps could be some coattails for that show?

ZUIKER: I believe so. I believe that that's an amazing show. It won the People's Choice Award for best new drama. It's doing very well for CBS. And David Caruso is an amazing actor, and he's on his comeback trail, and I think the way that show is constructed in terms of the ground and storylines and the amazing drama, that over the course of time, that will give us a run for our money and be a great, great show.

HARRIS: So what do you think is the secret here, and I'm not going to ask you to give away "the secret" to anybody who might try to knock you out next time around. But what is it? I mean, last time around, you might have sneaked up on people, but it's been around for a while now, and you are here fighting with the heavyweights right now and you still pulled this one off. What do you think is the secret about this show?

ZUIKER: You know, the secret is -- it's a couple of things. It's the genius of Les Moonves at CBS, Nancy Tellem, (ph), it's my partner in crime Carol Mendelson (ph), Ann Donahue (ph), great director, Danny Cannon (ph), William Peterson, an amazing cast and a crew. All of those elements combined to work in a great collaborative effort. Really, it's the magic of "CSI." And I believe that forensic science has taken the nation by storm, and because we do it right in the forefront, America gets to enjoy a great show.

HARRIS: You know what, you may have dodged a big bullet, too, because if you guys had not gotten a nomination this time around, a lot of folks on the sidelines who are big fans of the show who think that maybe you're diluting some of the quality by going off with these other show ideas, like "CSI Miami." We talked last time about "CSI Paris" or whatever you guys may be cooking up right now. This sort of gets to -- you dodged that bullet of criticism this time around with this nomination. ZUIKER: Well, look, viewership will dictate the appetite of America's viewership. And the thing "CSI Miami" was something that was brought down by Mr. Moonves, and We went to it. We knew the risks if it didn't go well. We knew the risks if it did go well. I believe "CSI Miami" has brought more eyeballs to the "CSI" franchise as a whole, and the numbers have not suffered on both shows. So there might be a third one in the future. That would be a lot of fun, and we'll just have to cross our fingers and see.

HEMMER: Well, listen, that third time's a charm. We gave you good karma last time around. Here's hoping we do the same thing for you this time.

ZUIKER: Thanks a lot. Good seeing you again. See you next year.

HARRIS: I hope so. Knock on wood.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com





Zuiker>


Aired July 17, 2003 - 11:44   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: The suspense is over, but in some ways, it's just begun. The Emmy nominations were announced early this morning. You saw it live here on CNN. The HBO series "Six Feet Under" was the most nominated show. It faces some tough competition in the best drama category. It's up against "CSI Crime Scene Investigation." We'll get to that in a moment, but also we want to talk about another one. "The Sopranos" have been nominated, and from "The Sopranos," Michael Imperioli. Don't recognize the name? How about this name? Christopher. He plays the nephew of Tony Soprano, and he has been nominated for best supporting actor in a drama, and he's on the phone with us right now from New York.
Congratulations and good morning.

MICHAEL IMPERIOLI, ACTOR: Good morning, thank you very much.

KAGAN: What a thrill for you.

IMPERIOLI: It is a thrill, very happy.

KAGAN: Nothing like a little heroin addiction for your character to help snag an Emmy nomination.

IMPERIOLI: That always helps. Put a gangster and a junkie together and you get a junkie gangster, and you get nominated, there you go.

KAGAN: Well, a good plot line helps, but if you did not carry it out very well, then the Emmy voters would not be honoring you, I'm sure.

IMPERIOLI: Well, thank you.

KAGAN: And this is a big year for "The Sopranos." You -- well not just you, but the entire cast and the show didn't participate last year in the Emmys just because of how the way the schedule of the show worked out, so it's kind of like the return of "The Sopranos."

IMPERIOLI: It is. We were out of contention last year, but we'll be in full force in September.

KAGAN: And 13 nominations for the show overall.

IMPERIOLI: Great.

KAGAN: And besides your own nomination and the show being best nominated for best drama, any other you're particularly excited to hear about this morning?

IMPERIOLI: Well, all of them. It's excited to be up against Joey Pantoliono (ph), you know. I mean, I love him. I just saw him here in New York about five minutes ago, and it's kind of funny that the two of us are up for the same thing. But James Gandolfini and Edie Falco, they did such great work, especially in the last show. It was unforgettable. And we have three writing nominations, two directing, casting, and it's very exciting.

KAGAN: What's it like to be up against your fellow cast member, though?

IMPERIOLI: I think it's kind of fun. I would be happy to see him win it. We're really good friends, so it's not tense at all.

KAGAN: And you've been nominated once before.

IMPERIOLI: I have once before, yes.

KAGAN: So does this make it more exciting or take a little of the edge off?

IMPERIOLI: It's still an edge. It's still exciting. It's a surprise. It's always really surprising, but it's not any easier. It's a little never wracking.

IMPERIOLI: We wish you well. We'll see you on the red carpet September 21st.

IMPERIOLI: I'll be there.

KAGAN: I bet you will.

IMPERIOLI: OK.

KAGAN: You enjoy the nomination in the meantime.

IMPERIOLI: Thank you very much.

KAGAN: Michael Imperioli, who plays Christopher -- that's how they say it on the show, on "The Sopranos" -- nominated, second Emmy nomination.

LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: I'm impressed. I like it. I'm also impressed with Anthony Zuiker. He was with us last year. He is the creator and producer of "CSI." He was with us last year, almost exactly this time last year, and when it was announced that his show was nominated for an Emmy, guess what, it happened once again, and he is with us from Los Angeles. And, Man, you were geeked last year. What does it feel like this time around?

ANTHONY ZUIKER, CREATOR & PRODUCER: It feels just as great. I'm so glad to be back with my man Leon. How are you guys? And woke up this to the first nomination was "CSI," a little square (ph). I got very excited, and we're hoping for a big challenge on the 21st of September. HARRIS: You know, you were the first person I was thinking about this morning, at least I was thinking about, as we were watching the announcements come out. I said, OK, here we go, let's see, because last time around, the big discussion was about, well, there was no "Sopranos," so let's see whoever gets it, they get it with something of an asterisk. Now, no kind of asterisk.

Did you think there might be a chance you'd be left out this time around since "Sopranos" were in?

ZUIKER: Absolutely. I mea, "The Wire," "Boomtown," "CSI Miami." There's a lot of great shows. You know, we are in the golden era of television, we hope for the best, and we got in, and with "The Sopranos" being in there, and also us being in that company, is a tremendous honor in itself. We just got to keep our fingers crossed, and hope that the Gods are aligned that night.

HARRIS: All right, well, how about "CSI Miami." This is the first season for this particular show, and it seems like it's starting to really build its own audience and its own identity. Do you think this perhaps could be some coattails for that show?

ZUIKER: I believe so. I believe that that's an amazing show. It won the People's Choice Award for best new drama. It's doing very well for CBS. And David Caruso is an amazing actor, and he's on his comeback trail, and I think the way that show is constructed in terms of the ground and storylines and the amazing drama, that over the course of time, that will give us a run for our money and be a great, great show.

HARRIS: So what do you think is the secret here, and I'm not going to ask you to give away "the secret" to anybody who might try to knock you out next time around. But what is it? I mean, last time around, you might have sneaked up on people, but it's been around for a while now, and you are here fighting with the heavyweights right now and you still pulled this one off. What do you think is the secret about this show?

ZUIKER: You know, the secret is -- it's a couple of things. It's the genius of Les Moonves at CBS, Nancy Tellem, (ph), it's my partner in crime Carol Mendelson (ph), Ann Donahue (ph), great director, Danny Cannon (ph), William Peterson, an amazing cast and a crew. All of those elements combined to work in a great collaborative effort. Really, it's the magic of "CSI." And I believe that forensic science has taken the nation by storm, and because we do it right in the forefront, America gets to enjoy a great show.

HARRIS: You know what, you may have dodged a big bullet, too, because if you guys had not gotten a nomination this time around, a lot of folks on the sidelines who are big fans of the show who think that maybe you're diluting some of the quality by going off with these other show ideas, like "CSI Miami." We talked last time about "CSI Paris" or whatever you guys may be cooking up right now. This sort of gets to -- you dodged that bullet of criticism this time around with this nomination. ZUIKER: Well, look, viewership will dictate the appetite of America's viewership. And the thing "CSI Miami" was something that was brought down by Mr. Moonves, and We went to it. We knew the risks if it didn't go well. We knew the risks if it did go well. I believe "CSI Miami" has brought more eyeballs to the "CSI" franchise as a whole, and the numbers have not suffered on both shows. So there might be a third one in the future. That would be a lot of fun, and we'll just have to cross our fingers and see.

HEMMER: Well, listen, that third time's a charm. We gave you good karma last time around. Here's hoping we do the same thing for you this time.

ZUIKER: Thanks a lot. Good seeing you again. See you next year.

HARRIS: I hope so. Knock on wood.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com





Zuiker>