Today's Entertainment

March 27 - April 2, 2017 Page 3 ACROSS 1. Dan __ of "Life in Pieces" 8. "The __ Bear Show" (1961-62) 9. Start of the "Old MacDonald" refrain 10. Role on "Quantico" (2) 14. "Ace Ventura: __ Nature Calls"; 1995 Jim Carrey film 15. Actor Somerhalder 16. Paulo or Tom"'e 17. Divide into categories 18. Recipe amt. 19. Cow comments 20. October birthstone 24. Brylcreem amount 27. FBI agents, for short 28. Rhoda's ma 29. "Chicago __" 32. "Family __" 33. Actor on "Conviction" (2) 36. Robert of "The Sopranos" 37. Actor on "Law & Order: SVU" (hyph.) 38. __ Dodd; role on "Scorpion" DOWN 1. 1984 Bo Derek/George Kennedy movie 2. "__ of S.H.I.E.L.D." 3. Breakfast cereal 4. Bruce or Laura 5. "Up in the __"; 2009 George Clooney film 6. "Tower __"; 2011 Eddie Murphy/Ben Stiller movie 7. Kudrow and Whelchel 8. E-mail provider for millions 11. "Life of __"; 2012 adventure fantasy movie 12. Initials for Hawkeye Pierce's portrayer 13. Hip-__; LL Cool J's music 14. Monogram for playwright Maugham 20. "The __"; 2005-13 series for Jenna Fischer 21. Potato parer's need 22. Grown-up 23. Psychedelic drug, for short 24. "__ Another Day"; James Bond film 25. Ethiopia's __ Ababa 26. "Men Behaving __" 29. Mr. Griffin 30. Clapton's initials 31. 1988 movie for Martin Sheen & Barnard Hughes 34. Ending for Nathan or Dan 35. "The __ List"; 2011 Cuba Gooding Jr. film Solution on page 2 CoverStory By George Dickie © Zap2it W.C. Fields once warned performers to "never work with animals or children," lest they be upstaged by their cute castmates. Were he alive today, the famously irasci- ble vaudeville comic and actor would likely take a dim view of CGI-animated characters, too. And that's not to say that Jenna Elfman is upstaged by the animated character she plays opposite in her new ABC comedy series "Imaginary Mary." Quite the contrary. It merely under- scores the skill it takes to act and react to an entity that viewers can see but the actor can't. In the half-hour se- ries, which premieres Wednesday, March 29, Elfman ("Dharma & Greg," "Friends With Benefits") stars as Alice, a PR guru enjoying the fruits of suc- cess and the freedom that singlehood affords. But when Ben (Stephen Schneider, "You're the Worst," "Broad City"), a divorced father of three, crosses her path seeking help with his social media page, she falls hard. And that sets off alarm bells in the commitment-phobic Alice and summons forth her imaginary friend from childhood, Mary. Mary, who resembles something of a cross be- tween the Pillsbury Dough Boy and a mogwai from the movie "Gremlins," would surface in times of crisis to talk Alice through whatever predicament she happened to be in. And now that the possibility of a long-term relationship has entered the picture, Alice needs Mary more than ever. "She's my inner voice and my mentor," explains Elfman in a quiet corner of a Pasadena, Calif., ho- tel. "Mary kind of mirrors what's going on with my character. So when Alice is a little tipsy, Mary is tipsy. And when Alice is enjoying her melted mint chocolate chip ice cream, Mary is enjoying the mint chocolate chip ice cream. So she's mirroring her and challeng- ing her at the same time, much like our own thought process." Playing opposite the CGI Mary turned out to be quite the exercise in acting for Elfman. In addi- tion to having to be funny and believable as Alice, the actress also had to focus her eyes on a point in space where Mary was supposed to be while re- acting to Mary's lines being thrown at her by a comedic actress off camera. And then of course, when the character moved, Elfman's gaze had to adjust as well. Jenna Elfman stars in "Imaginary Mary," premiering Wednesday on ABC. 'Imaginary Mary' posed a real acting challenge for Jenna Elfman WE CARRY LAWN MOWERS 711 E. WATERFORD • WAKARUSA • 574.862.1163 SALES • SERVICE • RENTALS ® MOWERS ® 574-533-2079 www.billsheatinginc.com Serving Goshen and Surrounding Areas for 65 Years f 803 Linway Drive Goshen, In 46526

• Cover