One of Gregory Itzin's first jobs in front of the camera was playing a tour guide in the 1979 television miniseries Backstairs at the White House. "I remember it for various reasons," Itzin says. "First of all, it was my first job. But also, actors remember embarrassing moments. I finished a scene where I'm leading a group of extras on a tour, and at the end of my spiel, one of the extras very loudly says, 'I could have done that better!'" Nearly 30 years later, Itzin recalls how he was shamed into silence. "You always remember the bad reviews," he says.
By coming full circle and returning to the White House, in Fox's 24, the actor now finds himself earning some of the best notices of his career. Though he has enjoyed a long and fruitful career on stage and screen, it was his riveting performance as the cowardly, craven President Charles Logan on the hit series that thrust Itzin into the national spotlight, recently earning him his first Emmy nomination, for supporting actor in a drama series. Itzin's intense characterization of a leader driven to corruption was made all the more complex because Logan ostensibly believed he was doing what was best for his country—a far more terrifying prospect than acting out of greed or hubris. The actor's nuanced portrayal should come as no surprise to those who have witnessed his acclaimed work, from his Drama Desk– and Tony-nominated performance in Broadway's The Kentucky Cycle to his frequent appearances on Los Angeles stages such as the Actor's Playpen and The Matrix (where he won LADCC Awards for his roles in Waiting for Godot, The Birthday Party, and The Homecoming) to any one of his hundreds of TV guest appearances. Usually playing authoritarian characters, Itzin was a revelation. And at age 58, the veteran actor is still uncovering new experiences—such as walking the red carpet and finally seeing his name spelled correctly in print.
Of all the amazing little pieces of coincidence and luck that combine to result in an actor's breakthrough, perhaps the most astonishing part of Itzin's rise on 24 was that he was originally brought in to the show at the end of Season Four to do an arc of three episodes as the vice president. He didn't even audition for the part; he had worked previously with producer Stephen Kronish on six episodes of the NBC drama Profiler and had auditioned for a recurring role in 24's second season, which he "fortunately didn't get," Itzin says. The character of Logan found himself reluctantly thrust into the presidency when Air Force One was shot down with the president on board. Not knowing what to do, Logan was forced to rely on former President (and fan favorite) David Palmer, played by Dennis Haysbert. "I knew the function I served," Itzin admits. "I was an information passer; I was a bridge to bring back Palmer to save the day." Itzin says he was given two valuable pieces of information: "They said, 'You're scared, and you have trouble making a decision.' Well, I can base a whole character on that. I just started doing the things I know how to do, and they seemed to like it."
The actor credits his extensive theatre experience with helping him find the essence of Logan. "The kind of work I'm allowed to do onstage, I was finally allowed to do in front of the camera," he observes. "My favorite plays are by Pinter and Beckett, and they're all about interior landscapes and dark places, so it was a perfect fit. All I had to do was think, and the camera catches it."
Jon Cassar, who recently won two Emmys as an executive producer and director on 24, remembers the first day he met Itzin—when they shot the pivotal scene in which Logan is told he's the president. "We were both still trying to find the character," Cassar says. "We didn't know who he was yet, but we started to discover it. Greg did such a great job of making this guy so different from any other president we'd had on the show that when they went to write the next year, they went, 'You know what? Let's forefront this guy.' It's really a case of an actor writing his own part, in a way."
When Season Five of the series began in January, Itzin found himself a series regular with a juicy story line that included an erratic, paranoid first lady, played by Jean Smart (who also earned an Emmy nod for her work). Still, Itzin had no idea that the character would progress from the mealy and indecisive patsy to the diabolical villain Logan turned out to be. "They told me about Episode 14, I think," Itzin recalls. "I had a clue earlier; there were little statements that were made that caused me to wonder. But I didn't pursue it. As an actor, I find it interesting to not know. I learn the lines, I make decisions, but I go in there and stay open to possibilities. I like to work on my feet." According to Cassar, Itzin was initially concerned about the change of direction. "I don't think he liked the idea very much," Cassar says with a laugh. "I think, personally, he was worried because he thought he wouldn't be around as a character after this. But the show is a slave to story before anything else."
Itzin admits he went back to watch earlier episodes to see if the character's change would fly. But ultimately he found staying true to the written word guided his performance. "I had to just keep playing him as honestly as I could," he says. "I didn't play him as duplicitous; I played him as human and flawed. One of the first things I said was that I didn't want him to be a mustache-twirling villain. That's not interesting." Cassar agrees: "He injected a reality into the character that is great and fun to watch. If you don't treat that script and dialogue the way he did, it gets very cartoony. You felt for this guy as much as you hated him—that's Greg injecting that reality to it." Perhaps the biggest testament to Itzin's effectiveness was the feedback he received from his crew. He recalls, "People said, 'My wife doesn't want to come to the party because she doesn't want to meet you. I kept telling her you're a nice guy, but she won't believe it.'"
Any reservations Itzin had about being the bad guy were tempered with the idea that the role was soon bringing him worldwide attention; he notes that one episode of 24 is likely seen by more people than have ever seen him in all his years of stage work. "It's changed my life a lot, though I don't think that I've necessarily changed," he notes. "When I started acting, it took me a long time to separate the 'look at me' feeling from 'what is my function here?' I learned I'm a storyteller, and if I can help tell a story to the best of its ability, that will give me the greatest satisfaction." It's ironic that by doing just that, Itzin has found himself the center of so much attention—something he's not entirely comfortable with.
"I'm from the Midwest, and self-promotion sort of goes against the grain," he says. "That took me a while to get over." For the first time in his career, Itzin hired a publicist. He began giving more interviews and making TV appearances, his training as the television president preparing him well. He embarked on an Emmy campaign and was heavily favored to win the award that ultimately went to Alan Alda for The West Wing. Publications such as Entertainment Weekly not only repeatedly stated Itzin should win the Emmy but EW also singled him out on its annual "it" list. That was a watershed event for the actor, who has repeatedly endured misspellings of his name. "The world conspires to keep me humble," he observes. "There was a big cover article in a Vancouver paper with my name spelled 'Itzken' on the front. Then you open it up and it's spelled two other ways in the actual piece. People have introduced me wrong, too. I was at a celebrity tournament, and somebody introduced me as 'Eyet-kin.' So when I saw my name spelled correctly in Entertainment Weekly, it was a big moment for me."
Of course the actor gets recognized in public, but he's heartened to note that it's not always for 24. Says Itzin, "People will walk up to me and say, 'You're an actor, aren't you?' And I'll think they're going to say they saw me in a movie, but they'll say, 'I saw you at The Matrix in a play.' And that gives me a tingle. I think that's so exciting. Yeah, I'll be seen on television. But, that people come to the theatre to see something I'm in, I can't tell you how good that makes me feel. It means that what you're giving away, somebody's taking. And that's all I'm doing, telling a story: giving information away."
Itzin's career aspirations first took root while he was an undergraduate at the University of Wisconsin, where he was majoring in English and intending to become a teacher. In his junior year, the instructor of a Shakespeare course said the class would stage Richard II, and anyone who did the play would not have to write a final paper. "I'd acted in grade school and high school, but in a town of 8,000, you think, 'This is not a career,'" Itzin notes. "But I did the play—I was Bolingbrook—and I had a great time and a sense of how to do it. For some reason, I just got it. That started my acting career."
Itzin moved to San Francisco and studied at the American Conservatory Theater, where he renewed his love of teaching. "There's a handful of teachers in your life who open doors for you, and Diana Maddox was a wonderful British lady who directs and does dramaturg work and teaches Shakespeare," he says. "She came up for a semester, and it was like blinders fell off my eyes about Shakespeare." Soon, Itzin was teaching Shakespeare at ACT's evening extension program and its Young Conservatory. When he moved to L.A., he taught acting at South Coast Repertory and an audition course at CalArts, as well as classes at the Actor's Playpen. "Originally I sort of had cold feet because there's this perception that those who can't [act], teach," Itzin admits. "But it engaged my brain. I used to think I didn't have anything to share, but now try to shut me up."
He also found that teaching helped ease some of the anxiety actors experience between roles. "A friend told me actors are like racehorses," he says. "We're not really happy unless we're running in the race. Waiting around for the next job is a pain in the ass, and it brings out your insecurities. You just want to get in front of a camera."
Of course Itzin has always been busy in front of the camera, beginning with his film debut as Religious Zealot #1 in Airplane!, co-directed by his former Wisconsin classmates David and Jerry Zucker. He frequently specialized in law enforcement figures, playing attorneys on Judging Amy, The Practice, and Boston Legal. "I've done a lot, but I'm usually a one- or two-scene guy," he says. "I've had some great series roles but nothing as fulsome as 24. My hope is that all this will open doors to more-complex things."
Ideally, Itzin would like to enjoy more roles like those he's been allowed to play onstage. "The work I got to do at The Matrix in a 99-Seat house is the reason I'm as good as I am in front of the camera," he says. In the Emmy speech he didn't get to deliver, he made sure to single out The Matrix's founder-producer Joseph Stern and director Andy Robinson. "I really wanted to thank them—Joe for having the place and doing the plays he does, and Andy for being my favorite stage director there for years. The work we did together allowed me to be the actor I am."
Though President Logan was taken away in disgrace at the end of the season, don't rule out a return performance by Itzin on 24. "Put it this way: We all want him to return," Cassar teases. "All the writers, producers, and other actors want him back. It really is about coming up with a story line, and we've got some ideas. We'll do everything we can to get him back." Story line aside, Cassar says he loves working with Itzin. "You know, people who watch the show are sad when we kill off a character. But, for us, that person leaves, and it's hard. And I miss him and his personality."
Itzin frequently works with the same people time and again in his film and stage work. Is there a secret to being asked back? He gives an unassuming shrug. "I'm not high-maintenance," he replies. "I come in, I'm prepared, I know my stuff. I used to want to charm people a lot more, but I'm not like that anymore. It's a fine line you walk; you don't want to be needy. People know you're there because you need the job." He offers the following audition advice: "Do what's not on the page. Eighty people will walk into a room. Seventy-five will do what's on the page, and they'll be really good. But it's when you make a choice that catches them off-guard, that's what they're looking for."
When he began his career, Itzin says, he didn't have an agenda regarding what medium he wanted to specialize in. "I just wanted to stay working," he says frankly. "I wanted to do good roles. Of course, there were times when I would take a job just because I had to make money. One metaphor I use a lot with my students is that actors are like carpenters: Sometimes you get to make a really nice cabinet, something beautiful you can take more pride in. But sometimes you have to build a fence. Some jobs are just fences; some are nice, finished cabinets. President Logan was a house, a really well-made one, with tons of intricate little rooms."
