CREATOR CHAT

Paul Ruditis

Popular crime drama Bones, starring David Boreanaz and Emily Deschanel has been a phenomenal success and TV Guide calls it 'the coolest crime drama on air'. Now author Paul Ruditis chats to Titan about Bones: The Official Companion, discussing his experience with researching the book and his thoughts about the show.

I think the show has a little bit of everything for everyone. It's part drama, part comedy, part mystery, part romance... part any number of things. It changes from scene to scene, which keeps the audience interested and entertained. Add in the 'will they or won't they' element between Booth and Brennan, and you have even more of a draw to bring people back. At least, that's why I've always liked it.

That Kathy Reichs puts her name on the show is effectively her seal of approval. There are so few people in the world who do what she does that it's an important element that sets Bones apart from the other forensics shows on TV. I think that the writers have a lot of respect for her and it comes through in the episodes they create. She's also actively involved in the show as a producer, so her influence stretches beyond her name. Along with the other expert consultants, the entire production is diligent in seeing that the forensics and the law enforcement work are as accurate as can be, while still meeting the dramatic needs of the stories.

I have such a hard time picking favorites because the show works on so many different levels that I enjoy. Sometimes it's the comic elements that draw me to an episode, and other times it's the mystery. I love the first season because that's when we were introduced to the world and these characters. Everything was new and it was interesting to see how these people would react in this world. By the second season, we knew so much more about them that it became even more entertaining to watch them live out their lives. As for favorite episodes, I have to go with the one that seems to be everyone's favorite: 'The Man in the Fallout Shelter' (the Christmas episode from season one). It is such a great character driven episode that really focuses on every member of the team.

Very quickly. Seriously. I started working on the book only a few weeks before the second season wrapped and the production was about to go on summer break, and so I needed to start scheduling interviews before everyone scattered to the wind on vacation. I was already a fan of the series and had been watching since the premiere, but I immediately began a deep immersion of the show and re-watched every episode that had aired to that point - in under one week - so that I could ask informed questions. In a perfect world, with these kinds of books, I would prefer to write out all the episode synopses before I do the interviews so I can ask even more specific questions. So far, that hasn't happened on any project I've worked on, but I can dream. I also picked up some of Kathy Reichs' books. Even though the show is not based directly on those books, I knew it would be helpful to study them - especially since I'd be speaking with Ms. Reichs. Thankfully, I'm a quick reader. Once I finished the interviews, I began transcribing them while I went back and watched the episodes again, and worked with the scripts, to develop the episode summaries and the rest of the book. Then it was just a matter of merging all the information.

The features on the forensics were especially interesting. Science has never been my strong suit in school or in life, so it was great to learn all about the real world science that is the cornerstone to the show. The writers have such a wonderful way of taking complex matters and distilling them for the audience - and for Booth. Much of that comes from Kathy Reichs and the technical advisor, Donna Cline. Listening to both of these experts talk about what they do for a living - how much they love their work and how important it is - you can't help but be enthralled. The same is true of the special effects team and, really, all the craftspeople that work on the show. Interviewing the production staff is always a highlight on these books because you get to speak with people who really love their jobs. Oftentimes, they're just big kids who have found a way to make a career out of what they would do for fun.

Set visits are always enjoyable. No two sets are run the same and it's always interesting to see how a production is put together. I've been very lucky in that every show I've ever written a book about has welcomed me with open arms - and the Bones set was no different. The hard part about set visits is that you're interviewing people while they're trying to work. Depending on the schedule, you might get to talk to four people in one hour or one person in four hours, so there's often a lot of down time. Of course, in the down time you get to watch the episode being filmed, so it's a nice trade off. That's always the best part about set visits: getting to watch the actors and the crew put together the show. I was there for a couple days during the filming of the episode 'The Glowing Bones in the Old Stone House'. It's a little odd to watch the episode when it airs because I'm trying to enjoy it like any regular viewer, but I can't stop thinking, 'Hey, I'm sitting right behind that wall in that scene.' It's kind of weird to watch a show from the two different perspectives.

Hands down the BEST story in the book has to be how executive producers Hart Hanson and Stephen Nathan handled Standards and Practices (they're 'the censors') concerns on the episode 'The Truth in the Lye'. I recount their tale exactly as it was told to me and it is hysterical. You'll have to read the book to see what I mean.

The resemblance is uncanny. They look exactly like the characters they play. Okay. Seriously. There are probably as many differences as there are similarities. And, please remember, I was only able to observe them for a couple days on the set, it's not like I have any deep insight into their personalities. David Boreanaz takes his work very seriously, like Booth. But he also seems to have that same playful side when they're between scenes and in the downtime. Emily Deschanel fills the same big sister role on the set as Brennan does in the show. Though she's much more laid back than her character and is far more socially aware.

Everyone was great, but interviewing Michaela Conlin (Angela) was a particularly memorable experience. We sat down together and I think I got maybe two sentences out before she said, 'You're from Pennsylvania, aren't you?' My jaw literally dropped. I moved to Los Angeles about a dozen years ago and thought my hometown accent had mostly disappeared, but she placed it immediately. She grew up only about an hour away from me and we spent some time talking about home, the theme park she grew up near, and family stuff. The interview was a lot more like a friendly chat than most of the interviews I've done.

Let me start by saying what I enjoyed the least, and this is true of every episode guide I've ever written, I hate knowing what's going to happen before the episode airs. I hate talking to the actors and the writers and the crew about episodes and scenes that they've filmed that I haven't seen yet. But that's the trade off for getting to write about a show that I love. Meeting all the people who pull it together week in and week out is such a thrill. It really makes me appreciate the show more when I know the people involved. I get to watch it as a fan, but with a deeper understanding of exactly what goes into making it. Hopefully, I can pass along that understanding to the people who read the book. There was a bit of a personal bonus for me on this project. I've been working in Hollywood - or the Hollywood area - for over a decade now in a variety of roles. I started out as a tour guide at Paramount Pictures, and have since visited Disney, Universal, Warner Bros. and the rest of the studio lots on some sort of business or another (or just meeting friends for lunch). FOX was the only studio lot I'd never been on before and the Bones set visit gave me a chance to complete the collection.