A website dedicated to Bruno Campos wouldn't be complete without acknowledging one other quality evident to anyone with a working libido: the man is sexy. As to the why - who knows? "Sex appeal" is such a subjective area; it would be impossible to pin down one definitive reason why - everyone has their own reasons, and rather than open a heated debate on the subject, we'll just leave it at that. The fact that he appears to have remained relatively unimpressed with his own hype as far as that goes, says a lot for his maturity and ability to remain grounded and focused - many other actors have commented on how easily the onset of fame can completely erase your sense of perspective. Add to the recognition factor the constant reminders that people see you as one of the sexiest guys out there, and it would have been awfully easy for him to start believing his own press. Instead, he generally sees the label as a flattering reflection of the quality of his work, and most of the comments you hear about Bruno Campos from other people mention what a "nice guy" he is, how "down to earth" he is. Ultimately ... that is probably one of the "sexiest" qualities of all.

This probably comes from the 1999 "TV Guide's Sexiest TV Stars" issue, but is different than the online version. For one thing, it has a photo that pretty much knocks the wind right out of you. For another, the online version cut out the most interesting - alright, the second most interesting - part of the page, the "Hot Stuff" Q&A, in which he elaborates on ... what might best be described as "a few of his favorite things". We are thinking of re-titling this version, "The Moment When 12 Million Older Women - Not To Mention Susan Sarandon and Michelle Pfeiffer - Gawked at the TV Guide, Gasped, "Your Willingness to Go WHERE?", and Then Went Running Out for Nail Polish." The strange 1999 "Acetone Depletion Incident" can probably be directly traced to this page.

"You won't get any false modesty from Bruno Campos when it comes to his obvious charms. "I've always had an interesting social life," says the Brazilian born actor, who plays Diego, Christina Applegate's Chilean heartthrob-next-door, on NBC's Jesse. The actor was such a knockout as a teen that "stewardesses used to hit on me," he says with a laugh. The only son of an international banking executive, Campos logged plenty of air miles growing up in Rio de Janeiro, Houston, the Middle East and Toronto. Eventually he landed in Chicago, where he studied theater and, wooed women. "Latin sexiness is different than American sexiness, and I was very bold" says Campos, who credits his touch with women to growing up with three sisters. No wonder exec producer David Crane calls the actor "not just some male model, but he's also a really nice guy."

This second brief interview comes from the June 1999 issue of Us Magazine ... this ended up in the "Je ne sais quoi" section for his description of his first date with actress Paula Marshall: if you prefer the self-confident, self-assured, experienced, "sees what he wants and zeroes in on it like a laser beam" approach to courtship, this will probably send you out for that second batch of nail polish. Open the nearest window, if you plan on breathing heavily.

"There was something exciting about being in a school filled with kids from around the world," says Campos of Bahrain. "I met my first real girlfriend there at 13. She was 18." He attended college in the United States, graduating from Northwestern University with a degree in performance arts in 1995. Current digs: a two-bedroom 1926 Spanish-style house in the Hollywood Hills that he shares with his girlfriend of two years, actress Paula Marshall.

"I met her on the set of a sitcom called Chicago Sons. When she asked me out, she said, "Hey, I'm going to a movie and wonder if you want to come - it's not a date or anything." I said, "I don't want to go if it's not a date." So we went. It was a date."

Getting started: I moved to L.A. terrified and broke at 22, but I put on a moth-eaten, six-year-old Hugo Boss suit and walked into Warner Bros. Within two weeks the president of the studio offered me a deal for a year. I landed some guest spots, then moved to NBC. Shortly after that, the Jesse script came around, and it was a go."

Genuine man: "I don't care about the glamour of show business. Going to parties, wearing tuxedos and counting money isn't what gets me off. My ideal evening is going out with my girl and eating in a quiet restaurant."

During a longer interview with a Brazilian journalist in Los Angeles, Bruno was asked a number of interesting questions on the topic of "sex" and "sexiness". If you're used to traveling to Europe (Great Britain excepted) or South America, you'll immediately understand what he means about the differences in freedom of 'natural' sexual expression across different cultures.

Jack Nicholson says that in America you are prohibited from kissing a breast on stage, but you can cut it off with a sword, without any problems. And he's right. In other countries in Europe, South America and the same in Brazil, we are able to express our sexuality in much more natural ways. Here they were colonized by Puritans and have a confused relationship with sex. They're very repressed.

Well behaved for a latin lover. That he is serious and faithful has something to do with me. I'm a Latino, but I don't enjoy this stereotype of the 'latin lover'. I was that sort of boyfriend when I was much younger. I resolved to delete the "macho" from the script. I try to make him a modern "Clark Gable". An American guy with a latin soul.

I find it flattering to be seen as "sexy". This is the way people tell me they like me. If I were a bad actor, nobody would think I was sexy. Right away they'd think, "Oh, he is that nice actor who is awful on stage." I see the adjective "sexy" as proof that as a whole you're enjoyed or that you've made it. It's a professional victory.

Okay, perhaps "je ne sais quois" doesn't really apply for this section (I was going to write "this brief section", but thought better of it) - here are a group of men and women who actually did know exactly what his appeal was (for them, anyway), and posted it on an adult message board dedicated to the discussion of male nudity on television. Unfortunately, the site doesn't archive their messages, which were posted on or about July 31st. As to why they were posted, this was on or about the time that the pilot and second episode of Leap Years aired. The full messages have unfortunately been lost, but the gist of them were located on a search engine - and it sounds like he was quite the topic of discussion on this board after those episodes. Think back to those cartoon characters you used to watch, with their eyes popping out on coiled springs ("booiiinnng!") and their tongues on the floor, and that pretty much sums up the reaction of these impressed and drooling individuals, after the first and second episodes of Leap Years:

(Note: in the "You Just Can't Win" department, someone else posted the opposite opinion on the accent, in her online diary for August 1, 2001, also just after the pilot and first episodes of Leap Years aired: "... And listening to Bruno Campos speak with an American accent is really freaking me out. He's Diego for christs sake. He's not allowed to be Americanized."

Uh .. apparently, she missed everything he'd ever said before, during and after the role of "Diego", as he'd already been 'Americanized' for 27 years. As someone out here in New York observed, "Well sure, he has an accent - he's from Cheeecaawwgo ...!")

In the unlikely event you have no idea what these people are referring to in this section, this particular web site posted photos from the scenes in question - think "pizza delivery", "ping pong", and "Frannie ravishing him on the desk". As might be expected, even without the nudity, you need to prove you're an adult to visit the "Horsey" site.

Back to his original comment on the American "confused relationship with sex" -- you can't help wondering if he would have seen these sorts of reactions were the show airing in South America or Europe where full nudity of either sex is not as unusual or remarkable as it is here. Which is not to say male nudity isn't appreciated by women, wherever you go (oh my yes, indeed it is), especially when you encounter a particularly fine example of it - as in Bruno's case - but the shock or titillation factor isn't anywhere as great. Think of the reaction to a painting, or an exquisite meal, or a particularly heavenly bottle of wine, or a piece of music you particularly love, and that is closer to the female appreciation of male nudity in some other parts of the world and, I assume, the reverse is true as well. Women in Italy have at least one saying, roughly translated as, "One for the Uffizi", meaning that the male form in question is such a work of art it belongs in the world renowned Uffizi Gallery in Florence. Of course, the rough translation doesn't include the appreciative expression and gestures that accompany the comment, so you're missing half the sentence - but you get the idea.