In this week's celeb Q&A: Scott Bakula, who has been around the TV circuit for years thanks to roles in shows like Quantum Leap and this season’s new hit NCIS: New Orleans. But he’s also spent his share of time on the ice. Don’t call him a Kings fan though -- he bleeds St. Louis Blues through and through.
Celebrity overtime: Six questions with Quantum Leap/NCIS star Scott BakulaStars like hockey too, and everyone once in a while they’re more interested in chatting up last night’s game than they are in pontificating about their latest TV or film projects. In our weekly "Celebrity Overtime" feature, we take five minutes with various celebrities to discuss their love of the good old-fashioned game.
Scott Bakula has been around the TV circuit for years thanks to roles in shows like Quantum Leap and this season’s new hit NCIS: New Orleans, but he’s also spent his share of time on the ice. Don’t call him a Kings fan though -- he bleeds St. Louis Blues through and through, even when it’s tough going.
Q: You’ve spent so much time in L.A., has a small part of your inner fandom converted?
A: Nope. I’m from St. Louis so I’m a Blues fan, a big, huge, frustrated Blues fan. But I’m still loyal. You’re from Toronto? A couple of years ago I was shooting there…you guys weren’t in the playoffs, and I was like, ‘This is completely wrong.’ It made no sense at all, because Toronto wasn’t in the playoffs but the cars were still in the stadium for hours after the game. I thought, ‘This is insane. And, amazing.’
Q: Do you remember when you first became a fan?
A: I’ve always just been a hockey fan, I played hockey when I was a kid.
Q: What position?
A: Oh, well I didn’t play well, but I played defense. I couldn’t skate very well. We didn’t have indoor rinks in St. Louis back then and so we only played when the ponds froze. In St. Louis that didn’t happen every year. So you could go a year and not play at all. We played until we fell through the ice and went home. So those were our winters in St. Louis.
Q: Do you remember your first goal?
A: Couldn’t remember…I couldn’t even remember. I didn’t score very often.
Q: Do you still play?
A: Sometimes. I played in L.A. a lot with a lot of the guys from the Kings. I used to go to the ice and play all the time. I played celebrity games with Steve Duchesne and I played celebrity games with him and Luc Robitaille and guys like Chris Chelios and Marty McSorley. I know all those guys and I’m a big, big fan of hockey players who are great, great guys.
Q: So it’s probably hard to narrow down a favorite?
A: Yeah, I can’t…Well in the old days, Red Berenson, when (the Blues) opened up shop in 1967, he was the star of the team. Jacques Plante, the guy who invented the hockey mask, he was one of the goalies. The Plager brothers played in St. Louis…We had good teams, we just never won the Cup. Now I’m going to go home and cry.
Amber Dowling is a freelance lifestyle/entertainment writer, yoga and wine enthusiast and all-around player of sports. She currently serves as the vice-president of the Television Critics Association and has appeared on numerous TV and radio shows across North America. An advocate for Canadian Television and a lover of the medium in general, Amber founded TheTVJunkies.com as a spot for fellow enthusiasts to connect and collaborate. She previously spent almost eight years as the EIC for TV Guide Canada.