If you know the real history of Los Angeles, last night’s season finale of “Mob City” wasn’t a surprise to you. Just researching it for my interview with Neal McDonough, I found out that his character, William Parker, ultimately became chief of police and went after all the L.A. mob guys. I even found out that Parker made a strong publicity effort on behalf of the city of Los Angeles.
We spoke with McDonough about the TNT drama’s season finale, and the buzz on the Captain America spinoff TV series “Agent Carter.”
CraveOnline: You don’t get to wear one of those cool 1940s suits. You’re in the police uniform.
Neal McDonough: I would have it no other way. Well, I get to wear some of the suits as episodes go on, but I like being in my police uniform. It’s awesome. Walking around in that is fantastic.
Has the police uniform changed over the decades since then?
Oh my gosh, yes. They changed so much because the weight of the uniform itself and how hot it gets wearing that uniform is pretty amazing. Though nowadays, it may be hard being part of the LAPD and carrying so many things. They’re the greatest police force in the world and to wear what they wear now with the kevlar and the vest and this and that, my gosh, I don’t know how they do it. Luckily for Parker, he just has his revolver, but he doesn’t have all the other stuff, so it’s a lot easier walking around as Parker.
I’m sure he wishes Kevlar had been invented.
Oh yeah, absolutely. When you took a bullet back then, you took a bullet back then. It was a very different time, wasn’t it?
I looked up the real Parker. In “Mob City” is he positioning for chief of police already?
It’s not so much he’s positioning for chief as he’s being positioned. The thing about Parker, doing so much research and talking to so many of his friends, he was such a great guy who just wanted to get Los Angeles to be the greatest city on earth. He wanted the police force to make sure that that could happen. So to get rid of such corruption on the force wasn’t so much that he wanted to be the chief, it’s just that he kept going up the ranks because he had no choice.
No one wanted Parker to be chief of police. Not one guy in the whole police force wanted him to be chief of police because that would have meant an end to payoffs and the end of bending corners, the end of a lot of things. He straightened out the force and it’s pretty awesome to play that kind of character who’s such a God fearing straight shooter who also happened to turn into a really problem alcoholic because of all the pressures that entails.
Does that happen by the end of the first season?
By the end of the first season he’s basically put on a silver platter to change the force. When the mayor says, “I want you on my team. I want you to be chief of police.” He says, “Great, I’ll be the chief of police, but I’m not going to kiss your ass.” He says, “That’s why I want you to be chief of police.” Pretty awesome guy.
Will the drinking start next season?
The drinking starts, episode five, or was it four, you see me getting sauced in my office because of what I did to Bugsy and everything backfires on me, I’m taking full responsibility for it. I’m like, “Well, that’s it. My time as an officer is over” and I just sit in my office drinking and then that’s when the mayor comes in and says, “Ah, what you did was the dumbest thing anyone could ever do on a police force. Congratulations, I want you to be the chief.”
Then it’s like oh gosh, like the end of The Candidate when Robert Redford wins the candidacy and then he thinks, “Okay, now what do we do?” With Parker, it’s, “Oh boy, now what? Okay, I’m going to really change this and do it the way I want to do it and I have free reign to do it. There’s going to be a lot of people getting pissed off at me. Here we go. Let me just have a drink first before I get that.”
I look forward to when we really get into the darkness, not really the darkness, but the burdens and the heaviness of Parker, when they finally cast Gates. When he became chief, Gates was his personal driver. He had to literally pour him into his Plymouth and drop him off at his home every night, absolutely smashed, in tears sometimes.
Is “Mob City” going to get into Parker’s public relations efforts?
Not right now. Later, yes, but not right now.
Have you had talks with Frank Darabont about what “Mob City” season two might be?
Yeah, we talked briefly about it, but Frank never puts the cart in front of the horse. It’s like let’s kick ass on season one, and then we kind of have ideas. With Parker, it’s easier to know what’s going to go on for the next few seasons, because it’s in the books. Everybody knows what happens. The other characters are a little more difficult for Frank. That’s using his imagination.
Was it a blessing to play a character based on a real person?
Yeah, I like that. There’s no biography written about Parker so everything is hearsay or black and white facts. So I never really talk so much about the gray area. I’m talking to his old friends and that’s really where I’m getting it. It’s fun to talk to some people who just absolutely hated Parker, and other people who just thought he was the greatest thing ever. So to play such a polarizing figure is going to be a lot of fun too.
A lot of Frank’s regulars got a call that he had a part for them. How did it work for you? Did you go in and audition?
Yeah, I went in. For Frank Darabont to take the guy who was the sickest character on television as Quarles and make him the ultimate good guy, and also to take Ed Burns who is the ultimate good guy and make him Bugsy Siegel, who does that? Seriously. I don’t know any other network that would do that, and they did it. Bravo to TNT for casting not just on the nose cast. They mixed it up. They made it fresh and new. It’s really awesome for us to be part of this team.
Have you gotten to do many period pieces in your career?
Yeah, “Band of Brothers” obviously, Flags of Our Fathers, “Tin Man.”
“Tin Man” is a completely other world.
“Tin Man” is awesome. I loved playing Wyatt Cain. That was fun. I’d love to play another western character like Wyatt Cain. I kind of am, 1940s western. His name is William Parker. I’m basically the cowboy of the show. Interesting, I haven’t thought of it that way.
Will you be involved in the “Agent Carter” TV show that Marvel is planning?
It’s funny, last week I knew nothing about it. I didn’t go to Comic-Con. I had a fifth kid. I’m so not hip in the world of information unless it’s literally “Sesame Street” or “Teletubbies.” So we went to the Thor premiere and we saw Lou D’Esposito and Kevin Feige and they’re like, “Wow, isn’t it awesome? Isn’t it great news? Everyone loves ‘Agent Carter.’” I’m like, “What are you talking about? What do you mean?” “It was huge at Comic-Con and we want to make a show out of it.” “What?” “Come to the office” because I hadn’t seen it. So I’m going into the office to look at it the first time.
Weren’t you in it?
Yeah, but I’ve never seen it. I never watch my stuff. I never really get around to it. So I can’t wait to look at it. If it becomes a series, anything that Marvel does, I’m in. I love Kevin and Stephen and all those guys. They do one at a time and make it right. Now that “S.H.I.E.L.D.” is such a huge numbers hit, why not do “S.H.I.E.L.D. 1940.” I’m in.
They announced four other shows for Netflix.
That’s right. They haven’t made any announcement yet for “Carter” I don’t think. So hey, whatever.
You’d have two ‘40s shows on the air at the same time.
Fine by me. I love the ‘40s. I’ll always be wearing cool clothes. Dum Dum, I adored playing Dum Dum. He’s just a fun, barrel chested [guy]. I’d have to gain 20 more pounds and have that mustache back on again. My wife hated the mustache, but it’d be so much fun. He’s just a good guy ass kicker that everyone loves to watch on screen.
