TOBEY MAGUIRE: Swinging into Action!
Interview by Lynn Barker
Everybody said it, “How can a low-key, intense guy like Tobey Maguire play superhero Spiderman?” I mean Pleasantville and The Ice Storm were both very interesting films but…Spiderman? Remember, Peter Parker is a brilliant, moody high school nerd first, superhero second. Tobey’s got the Parker character down pat and he buffed up great so he looks pretty fit in that tight Spidey suit. When we chatted with him in Los Angeles, the soft-spoken young actor was far from shy with plenty to say about his character, director and co-star Kirsten Dunst. We learned that he cooks, has an unusual diet (he’s been scraping the cheese off his pizza) and, at a party, he people-watches first, then joins the action.
Q: When you were cast, everyone was saying “why on earth would they cast the guy from The Ciderhouse Rules to be this character?”. What made you want to do it?
Tobey: I’m excited to be a part of an event movie. I was interested in working with Sam (Raimi). He’s very encouraging as far as me contributing my ideas and being a creative partner in the process of making a film. Though he’s my guide and he’s overseeing the whole thing, I’m pretty much in charge of my character’s journey. Spiderman is really interesting with complicated relationships and a tough journey.
Q: What makes him different from other comic book characters?
Tobey: He’s an identifiable ‘every kid’ who is a very genuine person, doesn’t know how to be dishonest per-se, just has got to be himself. He wants to share himself with the girl but he can’t find an angle because that’s not him. There’s 40 years of history laid out for us.
Q: Are you an outsider like Peter Parker?
Tobey: I don’t know. Sometimes when I come into a new situation, it’s a little tough to get acclimated and make new friends. A lot of times I’ll sit back and observe and not be like smiling or laughing and people will come over and say ‘oh, come on. Lighten up’. I’m fine just sitting here watching. If I wanted to go be social I would. I don’t have any fear of that. I don’t feel like I’m a shy person at all.
Q: What was the daily process on the set like for you?
Tobey: It requires a lot of focus and concentration when you’re looking at “X’s” around a sound stage. It’s a different way to act. You try to communicate through body language what is happening with the character. Something Sam (Raimi) and I talked about a lot was to try to keep the audience with the character even though you can’t see his expression. As far as the action stuff, for the most part that was fun. Sometimes it would get a little monotonous because it takes so long to shoot little tiny portions of the film.
Q: Did you read comics growing up?
Tobey: I didn’t read comics, didn’t watch them on television. I was aware of the characters, probably ran around and pretended I was them. I did see the Superman movies and enjoyed them.
Q: How much of the stunts did you do? Was it scary?
Tobey: Not scary, sometimes fun. I did a lot of hanging around as Spiderman. They were shooting me up, dropping me down, doing flips and wires and all kinds of stuff. There’s a lot of stuff beyond my abilities. The stuntmen did those things. Some is computer-generated.
Q: We’ve heard that you got out of a sick bed to do your first screen test with Kirsten Dunst.
Tobey: Yeah. I was reluctant to go because I had strep throat and my doctor suggested that I didn’t go to Europe. I called Sam and he said, ‘look, I’m going and my kids are going to miss me this weekend and that’s my sacrifice and we’ve got to make a great picture and pack your bags’. It was good with Kirsten right away. She was very thoughtful and left me a sweet note, ‘Thank you for coming out here. I understand that you’re under the weather’. I was charmed before meeting her. Then she’s a great actress. She’s fearless and isn’t self-conscious and is present as an actress so I had a great time working with her and it happened immediately in the audition.
Q: Was it frustrating when the media started the rumors about you two?
Tobey: I don’t really care. I have a great rapport with Kirsten. I think the relationship (on screen) kind of takes on a life of its own. I find her to be really courageous so everything she does is with abandon. She has a great mix of comedy and seriousness, keeping it real. (Mary Jane) walks this line of a girl who gets caught up in the cool crowd and wanting to be something she’s not. But then feeling a strange draw towards Peter and what Peter represents. Her growth in the film is the realigning of her priorities. I think it’s a realistic depiction of a fairly typical situation for young people and I think it will be a good character for kids in general and, more specifically, girls to learn from or relate to.
Q: Spiderman has to make a lot of sacrifices. Even his relationship with love Mary Jane. What is behind that for him?
Tobey: He doesn’t want to put Mary Jane in danger and he also doesn’t want to be in an intimate relationship where he’s got to deceive her. He doesn’t feel like he can tell her his identify. It’s saying to her, ‘listen, I love you. I care about you and I’m here to protect you to be your friend and that’s all I can give you’. I don’t know if I’d be able to do that personally.
Q: We got Kirsten’s take on this but what’s with that upside down kiss? Did you almost suffocate?
Tobey: (smiling) I snuck some pleasure out of it but it was tough. I was hanging upside down. It was raining. Water was pouring up my nose. She’d lift up (the mask) and it would be pressed against my nose and she’d be kissing my mouth so there’s just no air anywhere. It was tough and holding myself in a specific position was no fun but hey, it’s fine.
Q: You physically had to really muscle up for the film. Had you ever done anything like that?
Tobey: I’d already been in pretty good shape then I had to get in shape for the screen test. When I was training specifically for the film, I worked out six days a week for five months, anywhere from an hour and a half to four hours a day; gymnastics, martial arts, yoga, weight lifting, high end cardio, cycling, running, a specific diet. It was time consuming more so than hard. It was like training as a athlete getting ready for a season.
Q: You don’t eat any meat?
Tobey: I’m a lacto-ovo-vegetarian. I eat dairy and things with egg products. When my friend eats pizza, he takes the cheese off of it. He only orders cheese pizza and he takes the cheese off of it. I always go, ‘why don’t you just get some bread?’ The other day I didn’t feel like eating the cheese so I scraped it off and after, I looked at the mound of cheese on this plate and I was like wow. He goes ‘yeah and that would have been in your gut’. I haven’t been able to eat cheese since then. Just a little parmesan. Sometimes I make some pasta or salads or make some strange tofu stuff.
Q: You’ve signed up for two more Spidey films?
Tobey: We’ve got Sam for the second one so I feel I’m two thirds of the way there. At some point he hadn’t committed yet and I explained to him that I knew where he lived and he was going to have to do the second one. We don’t have a script yet but we have the same team of people.


Do-it Yourself
Acupressure
by Allison Howard
Cholesterol
Q I just went to the doctor for a check up
and my cholesterol came back at 190. I was surprised because I’ve always been pretty healthy and I don’t eat any eggs at all. Any ideas or points you can recommend?

A A cholesterol reading above 200 indi-
cates an increased potential for developing heart disease and other problems. It would definitely be wise to make some diet and exercise modifications now. Prevention is powerful medicine.
We used to think that eggs were the big evil in the battle against cholesterol. Now we’re realizing that the worst offenders are hydrogenated fats. During the process of hydrogenation we have changed food molecules at a biochemical level by adding on an extra hydrogen ion. Our body no longer sees this as food and will discard the excess as refuse or cholesterol that eventually ends up as plaque along the sides of our arteries. As this plaque builds up, there’s less and less room for the blood to flow. This can eventually lead to problems like heart attack and stroke and even impotence. (Just some extra motivation to clean up your lifestyle.) Actually eggs and butter are much less cholesterol forming than margarine or crackers with partially hydrogenated oils. Always check labels to avoid hydrogenated fats.
Fats found naturally in nature are healthy. Eating cholesterol and fat is actually an important way to feed our bodies. The fats in our diet nourish skin, nails and hair, lubricate our intestines and protect nerve fibers. Cholesterol is essential for brain function, makes important hormones and maintains a healthy immune system.
There is a point that I often find helpful for those with high cholesterol. Yinlingquan (spleen 9) can be massaged daily to support the body. Find the tender point located on the medial or inner side of the leg that is just below the knee. Press into the point gently but firmly at least once daily. So eat up and enjoy your eggs, but just be sure to avoid heavily processed and hydrogenated foods.
–Allison Howard, L.Ac. is a licensed acupuncturist & herbalist practicing on Riverside Dr. in No. Hollywood. 818-508-0885 or email allipuncture@msn.com.

Dear Diary:

Dear Diary,
I think for many girls, the ideal relationship would be to date a guy with a car, a job, an apartment, and most of all, be out of high school so they have more time to be together. I constantly see 14 year old girls talking about their 24 year old boyfriends, jailbait! Who are these mystery guys who think it’s cool to date someone going through puberty?
Where do they find each other, and what do the parents think when she’s three months pregnant? Maybe this is the reason for dropouts. Because the root of the problem is these perverted criminals that play games with these somewhat innocent children! Or maybe it’s the fact that these girls developed faster, they look to older guys to give them the pleasure they need. Some of these girls are 14 going on twenty and some guys have no idea they just started high school.
But don’t think I’m against a few year differences… and as a matter of fact, I happen to prefer a year or two difference. I like it better. I might have to think twice about dating someone in my grade, boys are so immature at 15. Not only are they completely inexperienced when it comes to dating on the weekends, their parents are just getting comfortable with them going out with a girl alone, oh God! I know you think I’m crazy, I’m only 15 myself, but I don’t want to date little boys, I’m too mature for that! I’m way too young to date guys that have the right to drink!
But I do find it odd when seniors have random obsessions for freshmen. Sure there may be special situations, but when you are always looking for the new group of girls that just entered your school, you have a problem buddy! But hey, when you first start high school, if there’s a senior that’s taking an interest in you, you can’t help being flattered and for the most part, interested. Wait till you figure out he’s just a big loser and wanted to find someone who hasn’t figured him out yet.
Sometimes you just can’t help feeling sorry for these poor boys, but not too sorry! This dating game is the new thing, everyone’s playing it. Believe me, its impossible to win! I’ve tried! It never ends up working out. Sounds like fun doesn’t it, Dearest Diary? - Sincerely, Sam
Samantha Malone is a local high school student.


LACC Students Go to Market
This spring, the students of Marketing 11 and Marketing 13 from Los Angeles City College (LACC) have the opportunity to get real world experience. Over the next 15 weeks, these students will create a marketing agency, and will be responsible for researching, developing, implementing, and evaluating a promotional campaign for their client, SOPP Chevrolet in Bell, CA and the Chevrolet Division of General Motors, USA. This unique partnership is part of the industry-educational program sponsored General Motors, known as the General Motors Marketing Internship (GMMI).
The students from the INTERNational advertising student agency are enthusiastic about this opportunity. Today’s college students face a lack of experience when entering the job market, making them less marketable. GMMI programs have bridged this gap between industry and education through this internship program.
Once the students’ agency is organized and the target market is selected, the students will design and implement a campaign to increase awareness of Chevrolet products and SOPP Chevrolet. After presenting their promotion plan to SOPP, their client, students will execute their campaign and measure its impact. The project will culminate with a formal presentation by the students.
The students at LACC will also be eligible to compete for the GMMI Scholastic Achievement Award, a national $3,000 award given to a top 4-year university and top 2-year community college participating in the program. To date, GMMI has participated with over 250 campuses nationwide bringing many business students to a real world work opportunity. – VR