TONIGHT
E-mail a friendJimmy Smits
airdate October 8, 2007
Over the course of his three-decade career, Jimmy Smits has moved seamlessly between TV, film and the stage. His credits include The West Wing, HBO's award-winning Lackawanna Blues and the films, My Family, Mi Familia and The Jane Austen Book Club. Born in Brooklyn, he quit the high school football team to act in school plays. The Emmy-winning actor stars in and exec-produces the new CBS series, Cane. Smits is a strong advocate for education and co-founded the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts.
Actor explains why it's important for actors of color to be seen in dramatic roles. (1:43)
Jimmy Smits
Tavis: I'm pleased to welcome Jimmy Smits back to this program. The Emmy-winning actor has been a popular fixture on prime time TV dating back to his days on "L.A. Law." He's back with a new series this fall for CBS that is called "Cane." You can also catch him in the new film "The Jane Austen Book Club." But back to "Cane" right quick. The show airs Tuesday nights at 10:00 p.m. Here now, a scene from "Cane."
[Clip]
Tavis: Ooh.
Jimmy Smits: A little intrigue there.
Tavis: You're not going to like the words that come out of my mouth. Don't start with the name-calling. (Laughter) Good to see you, Jimmy.
Smits: Good to see you, Tavis, thanks for having me.
Tavis: I know what that's about, because I've seen it. You should explain that scene, when they guy says, "You're not my blood." The storyline really wraps around -
Smits: Right. I play the adopted son of this very well-to-do family in south Florida that are involved in the sugar cane industry, hence "Cane." And they also have a distillery part of their company. And the patriarch of the family, who's played by Hector Elizondo, in the pilot episode turns over the reins of the company business to -
Tavis: The adopted son.
Smits: To the adopted son.
Tavis: Yeah.
Smits: Which causes havoc, needless to say. And there's a rival family, so we got all that happening.
Tavis: To your point now, there are a lot of comparisons - I'm curious to find out whether you like this or don't like this - a lot of comparisons already of "Cane" to "Dallas," of "Cane" to "Dynasty." That's a good comparison, if it's going to run for as long as those shows ran.
Smits: Yeah, exactly. If people feel, like, the need to put it in a box, to label it, those are very kind of iconic shows in that genre for that time. I like to think that the television appetite has changed since the early eighties, so we need to give it a little something-something more. So - and I think the show delivers that on a lot of different levels, in terms of the grittiness and the edge that we have.
Tavis: To your point now, let's take it a step further. If the show were not accurately compared to a "Dynasty" or a "Dallas" beyond the family turmoil, which we clearly see is comparable, what makes this uniquely different from those shows?
Smits: Well, again, it's a family kind of serialized saga, and what makes it unique, I think, is that we posit this particular family - this family I don't think American audiences has seen before. So they're very well-to-do, upscale, came to this country with nothing and built a business. And that's something we're trying to put out there with all the other things that we're doing with the show.
Tavis: As co-executive producer of the program, how important was it for you to be able to tell that, whether you starred in it or not, and I'm glad you are. But whether you starred in it or not, how important for you to tell that story of this Latino, this Hispanic family coming up from nothing? How important to tell that story right about now?
Smits: I think it's very important, simply because of the population numbers that are without a doubt undeniable in the major metropolitan areas around this country. But first and foremost, we have to realized - and being on the producing team, as you said - that we're doing a network television show in the 10:00 hour for all of America.
So when we're talking about the show in the writers' room, we've got to set the bar high in terms of what we're doing story-wise first. The fact that you're looking - the audience gets to view it through a specific cultural lens doesn't change what we're given to do on a week-to-week basis, which is to deliver a good drama.
Tavis: Let me ask you, then, a tough question - maybe not so tough for you; you've been doing this prime time stuff for years. So if a show like this were not to work now, would it not work - put on your executive producer hat here - would it not work because the storyline was not compelling to the viewer for whatever reason, or would it not work because America's not ready for that Latino story?
Smits: We'll see what happens with regards to that. Of course you've had - there have been successes to date in the comedy genre and with regards to music, so one could say if we're telling jokes and singing and dancing, it's okay. But this is a harder nut to crack in terms of the one-hour dramatic genre, so that's why it's very important to me in terms of what we're doing is to try to deliver - to be as inclusive as possible in our storytelling.
And again, for the audiences to realize that the differences they're looking at, the perspective is a little bit different in terms of who the family - the lens that they're looking through.
Tavis: I don't mean to be naïve, Jimmy, in asking this question, but to your point now, this works for Black and Brown, as we both know.
Smits: Absolutely.
Tavis: If you are singing or dancing or otherwise entertaining, it works. The drama thing for Black and Brown is so much more difficult, and I could run the list of the Black folk who have tried that, and you know the Latino folk, the Hispanic folk, who have tried that. Why try? If you know singing and dancing works, why not just come out and sing and dance?
Smits: Because we are more than just that. (Laughter) We are more than just that.
Tavis: Indeed we are, yeah.
Smits: And a couple of years ago, I had the opportunity to work on "The West Wing" in their last couple of years, and it was very important for me to kind of jump on board that show because the arc that they were dealing with with regards to this particular character seemed very appropriate and timely because I firmly believe that we do have women, Black, Brown people that are ready to move into that next level in terms of our political system.
So I felt very honored to kind of, like, put that out there with regards to this character. Similarly, I believe that with regards to this show that again, because of our population numbers, but because I think that we've made significant contributions to the mainstream of this society that we have something to offer on all levels.
And there are people like this particular family that have come to this country, that have been successful in business, and I would just say that in terms of, like, art, that you show the full spectrum of what we are and what we can be.
Tavis: I'll move off of this because I don't want to beat this issue to death, but it's important to me because I am Black and you're Brown, so it's important to take this chance on PBS to talk about this. In the past, I can think of a couple of shows that come to mind immediately when Black dramas have tried to get off the ground.
One of the criticisms after the fact is that even Black folk didn't support it in the way they supported the singing and the dancing, back to our earlier point. What kind of traction is this getting inside the Hispanic community?
Smits: Mixed right now. We're going to have to find our way with regards to that.
Tavis: Why is it mixed, you think?
Smits: Mixed because a variety of reasons. The marketing - people tend to think that the Latino market is just one bloc, and you have first, second generation Latinos that are watching Spanish-language television, and you have a large percentage of the young population that is totally bilingual and has been (unintelligible) into society. It's a tough nut to crack, but again, the bottom line is the show has to be as inclusive as possible, and the stories have to be strong.
Tavis: The color notwithstanding, tell me more about the storyline and what we can expect from it as it - this is one of those shows you can't give too much in advance, because - you can't do that. You just can't.
Smits: Well, it's a serialized show, so you have to kind of get engaged with the characters. But we have - there's a whole ethanol storyline that we have with regards to the environment and this company produces sugarcane, and if you look at Brazil, they have been self-sufficient with regards to energy consumption and fuel since the early eighties. So it's one thing that my particular is dealing with and we'll see where that particular storyline goes.
Tavis: We will see. That's his way of saying you've got to watch, I can't tell you.
Smits: You've got to watch.
Tavis: You and I were talking briefly before we came on air here, and it comes back to something we were discussing on air a moment ago about politics. You played on "The West Wing," so even in your real life you're politically inclined and politically astute. So it's old news at this point, and I only raise it because you're here.
What do you make of the fact Republicans, at least, in the debate that you were asking me about - the four frontrunners, Giuliani, McCain, Romney, Thompson - did not come to our debate? They told Univision, though, to their debate. So let's leave that TV stuff alone for a second. In the real world, what do you make of this election season where you got some people trying to avoid talking to us.
On the other hand, you got, to your point, an Hispanic, a woman, and an African American running. So size it up for me.
Smits: I was very disappointed when that happened, because it was just very telling to me, with regards to the party process and how our communities are taken for granted, until - when they're in the clutch. So that, first of all, should tell us, I think, as communities, that they are very dependent on our votes, but the fact that it was taken for granted in such a blatant way just left me - it left me disappointed, but on the other hand I think it exposed an open sore that can't be denied.
And with regards to the possibilities on the Democratic front, I'm just loving the fact that they're out there duking it out, and I'm getting to hear all their different opinions. And I commented to you about how well I thought the debates went, and it's going to be a fascinating time. This country is at a major crossroads. I don't think people realize that.
And it's not only - it not only has to do with the war, but the war has a significant part to do with it. But we're ready for a different path, some way.
Tavis: Yeah, I think you're right about that. Before I let you go right quick, I didn't know you were such a lover of music. I saw you - I couldn't get to you, but I saw you a few weeks ago at Stevie Wonder's concert.
Smits: At Stevie Wonder's concert.
Tavis: Was that amazing or what?
Smits: In Los Angeles. It just - I can't even - I was humming for weeks (laughter) afterwards. It's wonderful that he's back out there and doing this major tour. And he just rocked it. Like, it was two and a half hours of, like, one after another after another after another songs.
Tavis: And then if you're like me, you get in the car, you start thinking of all the songs he didn't sing.
Smits: Yeah. It was just wonderful, God bless him.
Tavis: Stevie Wonder is the soundtrack of our lives, and Jimmy Smits ain't bad, either. He's back in prime time, thank God, Tuesdays on CBS. "Cane," check it out. Jimmy, good to see you.
Smits: Thank you, Tavis, it's always good.
Tavis: It's always good to see you, man.
Smits: God bless you.
Tavis: That's our show for tonight.
Back to October 8, 2007