21 Jump Street - Article 2 - Fox Stars Lend A Hand

The event was scheduled to kick off at 11 a.m. late October Sat. morning, and excited crowds had already been gathering for several hours. All the TV fans - teenaged and otherwise - were patiently waiting for thier once-in-a-lifetime chance to meet much of the hot talent from Fox's 21 Jump Street, Booker, Married With Children, and the new Outsiders. Stars from all of these shows would be on hand to raise money for the City Of Hope's Children's Hospital.

SPLICE mag. arived on the scene with notepads and cameras in hand, and it was apparent from the enthusiastic reception we received from performers an network executives alike that our October cover story on Richard Grieco had been a hit!

First on the day's agenda, the group of weary but still spirited celebrities (they had just flown in on-location from Canada) posed for photographers. We managed to intercept two of the handsome young stars from The Outsiders, and sought their views about the highly touted Francis Ford Coppola production.

An enthusiastic Robert Rusler, who plays Tim Shepard on the show, told us, "Portraying Tim is really great because I can show a lot of versatility, and that's why I relate to him so well. He's really bad, lonely full of irony, always in trouble, but he still loves life." Obviously thrilled about the series and its potential, the actor, whose intense and brooding presence reminds one of a modern day James Dean, predicted, "We're gonna rip! We'll say and do things no other television shows do."

As doors opened to the public and the first bunch of frenzied fans exchange kisses, handshakes, and hugs with the stars seated behind the long autograph table, we moved to the sidelines to receive reaction from Richard Grieco's lovely girlfriend, Kimber Sissons.

"Oh, you're from SPLICE" she said excitedly as we identified ourselves. "Richard and I just got hold of the issue and we thought the interview and photos were great!" Kimber also told us that, "[Richard and I] are very grounded people. He's really been so busy that it's been hard for him to sit back and absorb it all. He just works 20 hours a day and then he comes home to L.A. every weekend and we sort of hide and keep a low profile. We usually don't exploit ourselves very much except for benefits like this, which is really for a good cause."

Our chat was suddenly interrupted, when a friend presented Kimber with a Booker doll. We noticed the appearance of stunning Holly Robinson, her manager mom, and unannounced guest fiance, Brian Robbins. "I've just finished my first album," Holly - who can be heard every Monday night on the Fox channel singing the 21 Jump Street theme - told us. "It's got a little of everything on it, from rap to ballands to dance. I'm really very vocally oriented, so I tried to feature that aspect prominently.

Later Dustin Nguyen extracted himself from his adoring fans long enough to explain where he's like to take his IOKI portrayal in the months ahead. "I think my role is developing now. It's getting a little more dramatic," he told us. "We've done a few shows already which demonstrate a really dark tone to my character, and that presents a big acting challenge.

We later caught up with much in-demand Christina Applegate, whose rather wild Kelly Bundy role on Married... With Children seems nothing at all like her sweet and sincere off-screen personality. The exciting actress explained why this even t is so important. "In this business, people stay just a little too much within themselves," she said. "They remain inside of their own worlds, and I'm really tired of the kind of ego trips I see. I want to try and make a difference in my own way, and give something back to my fans, too."

As the final flood of wide-eyed visitors reluctantly left, we caught with incredibly popular Richard Grieco, who was kind enough to take several mins. to answer a few last questions. How did he enjoiy his new starring role, we asked him (as his entourage fended off the last bunch of very determined paparazzi, to provide SPLICE with some exclusive celebrity interview time). "Having your own show gives you a chance to let your character grow more, and I think he's developing into a more likeable and caring person that he was on Jump Street." And what about his own plans during the series' next hiatus? "I'm doing a film in April called "If Looks Could Kill" , and it'll hopefully be one of the biggest and most successful action films of the summer of `91 when it's released," Richard told us.

All in all, over $10, 000 in contributions had been raised during the short four hour event, and all the money would go to aid cancer research and patient treatment. So the charity function was not only a roaring success, but an emotional and exhilarating experience for fans, celebrities, and organizers alike!

More photos of the event can be found at the 21 Jump Street Photo Gallery 4. Just click on the side menu link on the 21 Jump Street Photo Gallery Index to access.