[Blindtlk] Meet Christopher Gorham, Star of Covert Affairs on the USA Network
Chris Nusbaum
dotkid.nusbaum at gmail.com
Fri Nov 11 01:43:41 UTC 2011
That's always a huge plus! What's next, he joins the Federation?
:) That would be kind of funny actually; shooting a Covert
Affairs episode at national convention while Auggie (played by
Chris) was giving a presentation about his work in the CIA? Hmm,
maybe an idea for the creaters.
----- Original Message -----
From: Penny Duffy <pennyduffy at gmail.com
To: Blind Talk Mailing List <blindtlk at nfbnet.org
Date sent: Wed, 2 Nov 2011 04:42:46 -0400
Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Meet Christopher Gorham,Star of Covert
Affairs on the USA Network
I have only seen him use that tool in the CIA building. When he
is out and
about he uses a white cane. That and he uses sight guide with
Anne because
I think they like it. All that snuggling. He is a pretty
postive
charactor. As a huge bonus he is a braille reader
On Nov 2, 2011 3:10 AM, "T. Joseph Carter"
<tjcarter at spiritsubstance.com
wrote:
Is he still using that cheeseball laser cane prop?
I was relatively impressed by the character—it was the main
protagonist of
the series who required just a little too much suspension of
disbelief for
me. This from a guy who faithfully watches Burn Notice and
superhero
cartoons.
Usually, I don't have much trouble suspending my disbelief to
watch a
generally mindless action/drama with clever agents doing
seemingly
preposterous things as if it were commonplace.
Then again, I didn't make it past the Covert Affairs pilot.
Perhaps I
ought to have given the show more of a chance to find its
footing.
Joseph
On Tue, Nov 01, 2011 at 03:54:44PM -0400, Sherri wrote:
Covert Affairs is a great show and the blind character in the
show is
portrayed very well. Part of his character is that he is a
blinded veteran
as well. Please see intervview below. Please share.
Meet Christopher Gorham, Star of Covert Affairs on the USA
Network
In honor of US Veterans' Day, VisionAware's [1] Editorial
Director Maureen
Duffy is pleased to interview Christopher Gorham, who stars as
blind
military intelligence agent August "Auggie" Anderson in the hit
dramatic
series Covert Affairs [2] on the USA Network.
Covert Affairs tells the story of a young CIA trainee, Annie
Walker (Piper
Perabo), who is summoned to duty, with minimal explanation, as a
field
operative with the Domestic Protection Division (DPD), housed
within CIA
headquarters.
Auggie Anderson is currently head of the Technical Operations
Department
within the DPD. Auggie is a former Captain in the 82nd Airborne
Division
and
Special Forces operative who was blinded while on a mission in
Tikrit,
Iraq.
Auggie understands the intricacies of the CIA in a way that few
others do
and serves as Annie's guide through the tangled CIA bureaucracy.
Maureen Duffy: Hi Chris. I appreciate your taking time to visit
with our
readers! I've read several interviews in which you discuss your
audition
as
Auggie, including the fact that you didn't know very much about
blindness
back then. I am curious, however, about this: What drew you to
audition
for
Auggie, the blind character? What did you believe you could
bring to the
role?
Christopher Gorham: Initially, like most of the guys who read
for this
part,
the challenge of playing a physically convincing blind character
is what
caught my attention. What I needed to know before I accepted
the role,
however, was that Auggie would also be an emotionally convincing
character
with depth and complexity.
I liked the fact that he excels at what he does, but also wanted
to make
sure he didn't become the typical quirky computer geek that so
many
procedural shows have now. I wanted him to be a leading man,
who happens
to
be blind, and I think we've succeeded.
Piper Perabo and Christopher Gorham M.D. And of course I have
to ask this
question: How do you respond to people who believe that the role
of Auggie
should be played by a blind actor?
C.G. Honestly, I'm almost never asked that question.
Certainly, a blind
actor can be capable of playing a role like this. I think that
goes
without
saying. I really can't speak for the producers, nor the
network, as to why
they chose as they did.
The only thing we've done, that a blind actor might not be able
to do, is
the flashback episode [3] showing Auggie in Iraq before he lost
his sight.
M.D. Have your ideas about blindness - and disability in
general, perhaps
-
changed since you first auditioned? If so, in what ways?
C.G. Oh, sure - of course! My admiration for people living with
disabilities
has absolutely soared since I started working on this show.
I met a man who lost his sight at twenty years old who gave up
his
mobility
training [4] for an entire year because he was too embarrassed
to practice
walking with his cane on his street. He then worked up the
courage to do
the
work, moved on with his life, and now works as a professional
and is
married
with children.
I met a young man who is congenitally blind and plays drums in a
heavy
metal
band.
And David Lepofsky, who's well known in Canada as a lawyer and
disability
advocate, has introduced me to all the newest, coolest
technological
gadgets
for the blind [5] (some of which have made it onto Auggie's
desk!).
The people I've met and the reading that I've done have all
served to
educate me about the technical, and emotional, aspects of living
without
sight; but, as importantly, they've reminded me how different
each
individual is.
It's the uniqueness of each individual with a disability that, I
feel, has
driven us to make Auggie a "real" person, not just a "blind
guy."
M.D. In a recent interview, you mentioned that most sighted
people don't
know any blind people, and, as a sighted person who happens to
have many
blind friends, I do agree with you. Now, of course, you've
spent quite a
bit
of time around blind people, both as colleagues and friends.
What is the
most interesting thing you've learned - as Auggie or as Chris -
about
living
with blindness?
C.G. The most interesting thing I've learned is how differently
each
person
lives; at the same time, the training blind people receive seems
to be
pretty standardized. For instance, mobility training [4], as I
understand
it
and have (in a limited way) experienced, is based on a standard
body of
knowledge. Safe cooking technique [6] is another example of
something
that's
fairly standard, such as using trays, not leaving knives in the
sink [7],
etc.
What's great, and should be expected but often is not, is how
each
individual takes that training and then modifies it for their
individual
needs. For instance, I've seen one, maybe two, blind people on
the street
who are holding their canes the "proper" way. The rest of them
are just
holding it however they find comfortable.
In Istanbul, where we were shooting for Auggie's flashback
episode [3] of
Covert Affairs, I saw a blind man walking, quickly, in the
middle of
hundreds of people with his beat-up, bent cane just kind of held
out in
front of him and he was one of the happiest-looking people I saw
on that
trip.
M.D. I've also read about your rehabilitation training at CNIB
[8] in
preparation for your role. This especially interests me
because, for many
years, I was a university professor who taught the adapted
"skills of
blindness" course at Salus University [9]. What was the most
difficult
skill
for you to learn? Is there any daily living activity
(blindness-related)
that you still want - or need - to master?
C.G. Street crossing was the most difficult. I know that
anyone who's gone
through that training knows what I'm talking about. Until
you've stood,
sightless, on the corner of a major intersection, trying to
listen for the
traffic pattern and planning your veer so you don't walk into
oncoming
traffic, then walk not knowing, for sure, how far you have to
go, nor, if
the corner isn't very tactile, knowing for sure when you've made
it all -
well, you know what I mean.
That was tough, and I wouldn't go out and try it alone. And let
me say
this,
I haven't "master"ed ANY of the blindness-related living
activities [10]!
This is, very much, a work in progress.
M.D. Speaking of mobility, will Auggie ever get a guide dog? As
you know,
a
dog can definitely be a "babe magnet," so to speak!
C.G. I've wondered the same thing. The answer is, I don't
know. But, you
know what they say about dogs and kids in film. (In case you
don't know
what
they say, they say dogs and kids will always steal the scene, so
don't
work
with them!)
M.D. What are some of the more humorous things that have
happened to you
(on
or off the Covert Affairs set) related to your role as a blind
person?
C.G. Early on, in Season One, we had to re-shoot a scene
because I
realized
halfway through that if Joan (senior DPD officer Joan Campbell,
portrayed
by
Kari Matchett) wasn't leading me, and she hadn't been, there's
no way I'd
be
able to turn the corner, during the "walk and talk," exactly at
the same
time she turned. To make my point, on one take I just kept
walking
straight - out of the shot!
Also, I added a moment, in the pilot, where Annie takes off
without me,
forgetting that I'm blind because we'd just met. Real, and
funny.
M.D. I imagine that an actor's defining role, such as your
portrayal of
Auggie Anderson, has particular meaning for the actor. What
will you take
away from this role that will remain with you?
C.G. I didn't anticipate the very real positive impact that
this fictional
man has had, and will continue to have. I'm so proud of how
we've been
able
to reflect, with Auggie, the capability and humanity of not just
the blind
community, but the disabled veteran community as well.
I'm very active in social media and have received hundreds of
messages of
support and thanks from veterans and their families. Some of
those words
will stay with me forever.
M.D. Do you have any words for our readers who (along with
their family
members and friends) are dealing with vision loss every day?
C.G. You stand up and move forward when others would lie down
and give
up. I
don't know the strength you have. I can promise you that I do
everything
in
my power to honor you, and yours, with my work on Covert
Affairs.
M.D. And finally, on US Veterans' Day, is there anything you'd
like to say
to our veterans who have lost their sight due to combat
injuries?
C.G. I hope that we make you proud. I hope that, by portraying
a disabled
veteran as a strong, smart, capable, even sexy (!) member of his
fictional
community, we're honoring the very real roles you play in your
very real
homes, neighborhoods and careers. You are our heroes.
We thank Christopher Gorham for his support of VisionAware [1]
and urge
you
to watch Covert Affairs, which began Season Three
(congratulations!) on
November 1, 2011. You can also watch full episodes online at
the Covert
Affairs web site [2]. All photos courtesy of USA Network.
Where you can find Christopher Gorham online:
Sherri Brun
flmom2006 at gmail.com
Character is the side of yourself you choose to show the world.
Integrity is what you do, what you say and how you act when you
think no
one
is paying attention.
NFBF Newsline® chair
www.nfbnewsline.org
E-mail: newsline at nfbflorida.org
Secretary FDCP INC
www.fdcp.org
Vice-president National Federation of the Blind of Florida
Greater Orlando
Chapter
http://nfbfgoc.org
Chair Orange County Disability Advisory Board
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