“This is the deal: Every great TV romance in success plays out over a really long period of time,” said Tim Daly when asked by the TV Addict on a recent one-on-one if there is any hope at all for the coupling that was so clearly telegraphed at the start of the series. “If Pete and Addison had been in some kind of relationship in the first or even the second season, it may have foreshortened something so delicious to let unfold as the series continues. I still think there is room for that spark between Pete and Addison to combust, but how and when that comes to be is a subject for debate.”
In spite of the show finding its footing placing babies in peril week-in-and-week-out, Daly, who got his start with 172 episodes of the hit NBC sitcom WINGS enjoys the lighthearted moments at Oceanside Wellness the best. “I really enjoy when we get a chance to do something funny, particularly the funny camaraderie between the guys,” explained Daly. “Obviously we’ve got a lot of sick babies on this show, I mean my God we’re doing our best to reduce the population on the planet by scaring woman all over the world from having babies! That said, I do try to find humour whenever I can.”
Okay, so perhaps not entirely his idea, but Daly is quick to point out that the relationship between Pete and Violet that resulted in an unexpected baby did stem from his fantastic working relationship with co-star Amy Brenneman. Elaborated Daly, “Violet and Pete was not something that was planned from the beginning. It was something that happened because [Amy] Brenneman and I worked well together and the writers thought, ‘Hmmm… this is interesting, let’s explore that.’ That being said, the character of Pete has given Violet a tremendous amount of leeway to go through her emotional difficulties and I don’t know how far he’ll continue to bend.”
Tim Daly’s career could have taken a very different career path had it not been for the untimely end to the 1988 Writer’s Strike. “I was actually cast is Steven Soderbergh’s first film Sex, Lies and Videotape. But when the Writer’s Strike ended, I couldn’t get out of my obligation to a pilot [David Chase’s first show],” said the actor. “Long story short, at the time my agent was like, ‘Steven Soderbergh, some guy with a stupid little movie that may never see the light of day!’ Until a few months later when it won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival and I was heartbroken! Who knows what my career path might have been.”
Did you know that entertainment is the second largest export in our country? Tim Daly certainly does, and as part of the Creative Coalition has taken it upon himself to make sure you too know about the importance of arts in North America. “We view Arts as some kind of luxury item, some extra thing that’s not really necessary and that couldn’t be further from the truth,” explained Daly, a passionate advocate for the arts. “We’re approaching a one-third high school drop out rate in the United States and kids that study a rigorous curriculum in the arts are three times more likely to graduate from high school. Art is part of our lives, anywhere you look, be it your pants, your wall, the floor, all of it has been designed by artists. It’s my mission to get people to start people talking about the arts in the same way they start talking about manufacturing automobiles or growing crops. 
Photo Credit: ABC/Andrew Eccles
PRIVATE PRACTICE airs on Thursdays at 10PM on ABC (A Channel in Canada)