Actress Sokoloff can now 'Practice' being an adult
By: Knight-Ridder
Edited By: StarHeart
PASADENA, Calif. - She's no lawyer, but the newest member of ABC's "The Practice" raises more objections in her own firm than Johnnie Cochran. She just turned 18 last month. (True fact, your honor.)
Diminutive Marla Sokoloff has made her mark on David Kelley's drama this season. As sarcastic receptionist Lucy Hatcher, she manages to irritate and offend everyone at Donnell, Young, Dole & Frutt, thanks to a terminal case of foot-in-mouths. The result is flashes of comic relief in what co-executive producer, Jeffrey Kramer calls "that war that goes on daily" in Bobby Donnell's (Dylan McDermott) lair of ultra-aggressive criminal defense lawyers.
"When my agent called, Lucy was supposed to be 21 to 25," says Sokoloff in an interview during the TV critics' press tour. "I thought it was absurd to audition, because obviously I was 17. I didn't think I was ready for the part. It was kind of a joke to me." It was no joke to Kelley & Co. "She just captivated us from the very beginning," he says. What was designed as a seven-episode run blossomed into a full season and a spot in the opening credits. Not bad for a kid with a curfew. "It blows my mind every single day. It's amazing," says Sokoloff. "I'm so grateful. I just love every surprise David throws at me. The show is so serious. Lucy brings on the comedy. She really feels she's holding the whole firm together."
The firm is holding together quite well, thank you. In its third season, "The Practice" has found a strong home at 9 p.m. Sundays on KAMC-TV Channel 28 (Cox Cable Channel 8). Ranked 42d among more than 200 series, it's averaging 11.9 million viewers. Officially, Sokoloff began acting at age 7. She remembers toddling around the house as a 4-year-old, "singing into a pump dispenser of toothpaste. I call it: "Colgate karaoke" Six years ago, Sokoloff and her mom, Cindi, moved from Marla's native San Francisco to L.A. Marla quickly landed recurring roles on ABC's "Full House" (Gia) and later Fox's "Party of Five" (Jody.)
As for hitting the books, Sokoloff has a tutor on the set and attends a private school on her days off. After graduating high school, she plans to take some courses at a nearby junior college. Then it's off to a four-year higher learning institution. Kelley likens Sokoloff's impact to that of Diana Muldaur, who played the late, great Rosalind Shays on Kelley's "L.A. Law." Like Shays, Sokoloff receives passionate mail from viewers, who are divided in their liking and loathing of her character. "She has made a terrific impact," says Kramer, 48. "She elicits a different response from everyone in the firm."
Kelli Williams, whose Lindsay Dole, a partner in the firm, has come close to committing assault and battery on young Lucy, says, "She's so great and quirky and fun. I love the antagonism between the characters." Off camera, Sokoloff has become the cast pet. "We all adore her," Kramer says. Adds Williams, "Everyone feels protective of her. It's nice not to be the youngest one on the set anymore."
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