Chip: Yeah. Lets see how far we get.

Michelle: Okay. How did you first hear about Whose Line?

Chip: I first heard about Whose Line when I was doing the Buddy Holly story in the West End, and a friend of mine had done the show once, done the show a couple of times, and he told me they were holding auditions over there, so I went and got an audition through my agent and started over there.

Michelle: Do you have any great memories of those early shows?

Chip: Oh yeah. I have a lot of them... You know what? Actually, you see all the great memories, because there's not that much that crazy or great that goes on off stage. Oddly, it's mostly the mistakes and little funny things that happen like, nothing I feel great about, but (laughing) like when I poked Ryan in the eye. Like, I'll never forget that, because I was new and nervous.

Michelle: You know it's funny because the person that asked me ask you this question said like when he poked Ryan in the eye (laughing).

Chip: I totally remember that (laughing). I felt so bad.

Michelle: Yeah, I could tell

Chip: Exactly, but um he was fine.

Chip: Another time um ... we were there and we had to stop, because there was a flood. Like in the middle right between scenes or something, and we picked it up. I was doing a scene with Tony or something and there was a flood, so it's mostly the things that go wrong that you remember. Those are the good times.

Michelle: Describe briefly Ryan Stiles

Chip: Oh my God. Hilarious is the first word that comes to mind. So strong at this that it's unbelievable to me.

Michelle: He's awesome

Chip: Yeah. Just yeah. It's like, it's like breathing to him.

Michelle: How about Colin?

Chip: Colin just... Colin is...You see me. Colin makes me smile even just thinking about Colin. He's the nicest guy and so ... just naturally funny. That dead pan. That dry wit. He slips under a lot of people's radar, I think. I've talked to a lot of people that watch a couple of shows and are not big fans but then keep watching, and then he ultimately becomes like their favorite. And nobody breaks everybody else up on the show more than he does, I don't think. He kills everybody.

Michelle: How about Greg?

Chip: Greg I love. That's the thing if anything I regret is not getting to do stuff with him. I used to get to do stuff with him. Um Greg is... Oh this is hard because you don't want to start sounding the same. And this is true, I like them all. I mean I love them all, and I mean I don't know if you ever see, but I'm in the back laughing harder than anybody. Greg is so ... quick, smart, funny. That quick, smart, funny. I like doing stuff with him because that referential stuff...where and also the stuff, I saw what he did with Clive, and I would steal that from time to time because...when I say steal, I'll do it too (joking), but it comes naturally and he just had... The things he worked up, the way they went at it was so funny. And now he does it with Drew too because everyone's into it more. Nothing gets by him too. Like, if you let something go loose, he'll nail you on it in such a funny way.

Michelle: How about Tony Slattery?

Chip: God, Tony...

Michelle: A name from the past (laughing)

Chip: Oh absolutely... A force of nature, I thought. Being little Chip new on the show, working with Tony was just kind of like overwhelming and ah just cuz he's so funny and just like I said attacks the stage. Of course all the stuff we couldn't get on ABC now is hilarious too, but I think that's not all of him either. He was just ... you could see also that he was right on the edge of what he was going to say always. Nothing was really planned. He was right there and I love that perhaps most of all when you can see the eyes working. That's what we get that maybe not everyone gets is we're right up on somebody. So he would attack it. Very funny again.

Michelle: And how about Brad?

Chip: I don't like Brad. No, only kidding. That's an absolute joke! (talking loudly into the tape recorder) I love Brad. Brad and I...In fact, I always wonder I thought it would be pretty funny that people don't know that Brad and I have done shows together just the two of us.

Michelle: Oh really?

Chip: Yeah. Um ... we went to San Jose for an industrial thing for like a cooperate event. We've done like two of those, and we get a long great. We actually work on stuff together too. Brad I... I think we. I love the fact that we get a long so well, because it's like maybe not quite the expectation, and I think once again he's hilarious.

Michelle: It's funny you mention that because that's one thing I like most about the show is that you guys do seem to have a genuine affection for each other. The camaraderie between you guys. I really like to see that.

Chip: I think you have to. It's just...I don't know. Honest to God, I'm not just saying this, I love watching Greg and Brad's shows more than mine. If I'm on I don't really watch, but oh Brad's on. I like to see all the different ways everybody interacts.

Michelle: You did four shows in 1992 and one in 1994 and then you left. Where did you go and what made you come back?

Chip: I um... Actually, I'm looking off into the distance. I'm trying to think. No, that's how I think.

Michelle: Okay (laughing)

Chip: Um (laughing) actually I probably... I was doing some of the things you might find on any resume of mine. Just you know basic jobs like that. I mean a whole lot of stuff happened right around there after getting married and coming back here, but I would bet that... I mean most of it is that they didn't ask me back. Yeah. I mean I was just not in it for a while. I think I had a couple of bad shows. I felt like they were bad shows. I think they probably did too, and they had so many to choose from when they were over there, and you know, when I was doing that show back then I hadn't really done improv.

Michelle: Oh, really?

Chip: No. I'd never performed in front of a group at all. So I came back here after that and had loved doing it so much. I mean I had studied at the Groundlings but there's a whole difference between studying and doing shows in front of audiences, and so I went after that, and I kept studying at the Groundlings, and then I performed live here on Melrose at the Groundlings for those years in between and had a ball doing it, and it's much more lay low, and I heard it was coming here, and I auditioned and got back in and they said oh maybe he's matured a little bit I guess.

Michelle I think so

Chip: Oh thanks.

Michelle: Actually, I've been to probably most of your tapings from this last season because Sundays are pretty much the only day I can go, and I have just enjoyed them so much.

Chip: Ohhh, thanks

Michelle: Are you more comfortable with the American audience than you were with the UK audience?

Chip: Ah probably, but I think that says more about me than them. I'm just more comfortable in general. I love Brits, and I love British humor ... and that was always a nice hook that Greg played up real well is the British American thing. Like it's not an elevator, it's a lift (in a British accent) and also it's a little different over there in what you can get away with, but I like it here more I think. Not only is it just that I've changed, but I just...I enjoy it more.

Michelle: where are you from?

Chip: I'm originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, but I grew up right outside of DC and Alexandria. Kind of near there. Right outside of DC.

Michelle: How long have you been married?

Chip: I have been married ahhh ... it'll be ten years coming up in...in Nov it'll be ten years.

Michelle: That's awesome

Chip: Yeah, yeah. And actually we've been together even before then. We've been together ... gosh I've been with her since 1986, so we've been together 14 years.

Michelle: Where did you go to school?

Chip: I went to school at the College of William and Mary in Williamsberg, Virginia

Michelle: How was it portraying Buddy Holly?

Chip: It was an absolute blast because this was before I was really an actor, a full fledged actor. In college I was in a band, a rock band, and um so I got to use what I was good at, which was being a rock and roll singer, and I knew how to sing like Buddy Holly to support what I was learning which was the acting in front of an audience every night in the West End. It just couldn't have been better. It was amazing. I performed for the Queen, for the President at the White House, and I got married that year and met Paul McCartney. It was just this insane two and a half year journey that I would never give back.

Michelle: What are some of your influences?

Chip: God that's a rough one. I don't know. I guess early on, like so many kids my age back then, I was crazy about Steve Martin.

Michelle: He's so funny

Chip: Oh yeah. Still am. Robin Williams. Ah... I don't know and then there's acting influences as well. That's really hard. That's really really hard to say, because I knew what I loved. I'm trying to think what movies did I came out of.... I remember little things like coming out of Rocky and just being kind of amazed that a movie could make you completely feel differently. Like come out on top of the world. That's what kind of hooked me on wanting to become an actor.

Michelle: How tall are you?

Chip: 6'1

Michelle: That's what I thought, but I wasn't sure.

Michelle: What do you think of Broadway? Would you consider going back?

Chip: I think that ahh... I almost did. I almost did Aida, but I don't know. I think I need to train a little more. It requires just a little bit more than what we're doing and what I'm studying.

(Brad and Shawna walk by as they are leaving)

Shawna (talking to Chip): Hey. Bye

Chip (talking to Shawna) Take care

Brad (talking to Michelle): Hello! Did you see the show?

Michelle: (talking to Brad): Yes I did. It was fabulous.

Brad (talking to Michelle): It was fun wasn't it?

Michelle (talking to Brad): Yes. It was the best one I've seen so far

(Everyone starts talking, and I can't make out what everyone is saying. Brad and Shawna leave.)

Chip: A couple of more?

Michelle: I have a lot, but like I said whenever you're tired just tell me.

Chip: I actually have friends waiting. Lets do ahhh five more.

Michelle: Okay.

Chip: Is that cool?

Michelle: Yes. I totally appreciate your time.

Michelle: I've gotta pick five. Any future plans for a website?

Chip: Umm not yet not, no. Maybe someday. Certainly if I ever get any degree of fame at all maybe I'd put something together, but it wouldn't be much of a website right now. Certainly not as clever as Brad's whole department of monkey's thing. I've got nothing like that up my sleeve.

Michelle: What's your favorite stage musical?

Chip: After Buddy? Umm maybe the first one I saw which, and that's probably why, was Evita. And I don't know why. I just loved that.

Michelle: Did you grow up knowing you wanted to be in show business?

Chip: I think so, yeah.

Michelle: All right

Chip: My parents knew too. I was the real class show off. Kind of the class clown.

Michelle: Do you really direct your church choir, and has attendance gone up since the Whose Line appearances?

Chip: I don't direct it. It's less of a choir more just, I play guitar and sing. There's a couple of us. It's not fully robed singing like that. I don't direct it. I'm in it most Sunday's, and no (laughing) attendance has not gone up because of me being there, no.

Michelle: What's your favorite Whose Line game and why?

Chip: I like scenes from a hat a lot. I don't know why. I like the quickness of it... There's a lot of different ones. I like...I like props. I like that bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, first thing in your head, first thing in your head, so I like those.

Michelle: Is there one contestant that you particularly enjoyed playing with?

Chip: There's really not, no. There's just not. I'll give you one more because that was a shitty answer.

Michelle: What was it like being cast in shows like Star Trek and Lois and Clark. You were a villain in that one (laughing).

Chip: Yeah, yeah. A lot of those shows were fun because they're kind of iconic. A show like Star Trek you can say you've been on it. I mean, I did a Cheers and that was just so strange walking through that door. It was like wow. You know it's like being on Mash or All in the Family or something, so it was great for that and also just for the experience you got. Yeah they were all a lot of fun. The makeup too on those was fun.

Michelle: One last question?

Chip: Shoot

Michelle: The other Whose Line cast members have animal mascots. I don't know how it got started, but they do. Like Brad is a monkey, and Ryan is a giraffe for obvious reasons. Nobody knows what to pick for you. If you could pick one what would it be? (I think I caught him off guard with that one)

Chip: Give me some time on that, all right? I'm not going to Improv that. That's too momentous. Let me think on that.

Michelle: all right (laughing)

Chip: Brad's is a monkey. I knew that. What's another one?

Michelle: Like, Ryan's a giraffe.

Chip: That's a good one (laughing)

Michelle: Umm, Greg's an ocelot. Umm, Wayne's a panther. Oh, Colin's a dinosaur.

Chip: I knew that. He's a raptor.

Michelle His dino impression, yeah. That's all I can think of

Chip: Okay.... I'll try to think on that. I'll get back to you, okay? We'll meet again.

Michelle: Okay. Thank you.

Chip: Thank you very much. Take care.