Television
DVD Spotlight: Gotta Have Faith--One-on-One with Faith Ford
By Michael Montroy |
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 The first season of ABC’s “Hope & Faith” is finally available on DVD (Lionsgate, MSRP: $39.98) so that fans can relieve the series’ pleasant memories.
“It was a very special series,” said Faith Ford, who played Hope Shanowski on the show from its 2003 beginning until its run came to an end in 2006. “The show was a wonderful experience because I worked with some great people, and I’m still in touch with the entire cast. It was more than a show--it was a family.”
Ford remained particularly close to her costar, Kelly Ripa, who played Hope’s sister, Faith Fairfield, on the series.
“I’m always looking for an excuse to leave California and visit her in New York,” Ford said.
She has also remained close to the other actors on the show, including Ted McGinley (who played Charley Shanowski), Macey Cruthird (Hayley Shanowski), Paulie Litt (Justin Shanowski) and Megan Fox (Sydney Shanowski).
“In fact, Ted just lives a few minutes from me and we’re constantly doing things together,” Ford said. “He’s always calling me up to include me in family things.”
Besides their lasting friendship, the actors were recently brought back together for the long-awaited “Hope & Faith” DVD release in order to offer their own select commentary and respective insight from the first season. Along with the cast, the 4-disc DVD set includes commentary from select crew members, a hilarious blooper reel and the 25 episodes from the hit show’s first season.
 On “Hope & Faith” Ford plays Hope, a down-to-earth wife and mother of three who lives life quietly in an Ohio suburb until her celebrity sister, Faith (Ripa), comes barging into town. Faith single-handedly stirs up drama with the family, just as her former soap opera character did on TV. With two opposites living under the same roof, the series proved that you can take the diva off the daytime drama, but you can’t take the drama out of the diva. Along with the DVD release, “Hope & Faith” now runs in syndication on the WE channel.
Over her impressive career, Ford has received 11 nominations, including five Emmy nominations and two Golden Globes nominations for her role in “Murphy Brown.”
“In ‘Murphy Brown,’ I was the supporting character who was in a couple of scenes but delivered the punch lines that got the laughs,” Ford stated. “Everything changed for me in ‘Hope & Faith’ because I was now the main character who set up everything but rarely got the laugh--Kelly delivered the laugh lines. Occasionally the writers would give me the laugh, but they would still give me the set up to the line. It was at that point that I told them I could deliver the laugh with delivering the line--I could do it with the appropriate look. I loved doing that, and my experience over the years has given me that timing.”
Ford was born in Alexandria, Louisiana, which is considered the heart of the state and is the hub of activity for Central Louisiana. Alexandria enjoys the warmth and community of small-town life with all the benefits of big-city living. It has been said that the city is a little bit North Louisiana hospitality with a dash of South Louisiana good times. Ford has maintained all of those qualities throughout her career, from working in commercials and doing modeling in New York to modeling in Los Angeles where she was cast in “thirtysomething” prior to her role as Corky Sherwood on “Murphy Brown,” which lasted for 10 seasons.
 “It was my upbringing,” mentioned Ford. “I had a strong family upbringing which has played an important role in my life and career. It was an important element regarding the bonding that took place on ‘Hope & Faith.’ We made it our home. It was the middle-class upbringing. It provided me with the value of simple needs. I find pleasure and joy in a plain turkey sandwich on whole wheat. Nothing fancy. It was all of these simple things that helped bond this cast together.”
“In fact,” Ford continued, “the only negative thing about the entire experience surrounding ‘Hope & Faith’ happened in the very beginning, and I wouldn’t even really call it negative. After all, so much good came out of the series. But, I auditioned for the role in Los Angeles and was cast. It wasn’t until I was signing the contract that I was told that the series would be shot in New York and I would have to shift my life back to New York. I didn’t like the surprise, but now they don’t do that. They let you know up front where the show will be located. After I got to New York, everything about the show fell into place. It was great. The days were perfect. We would start around 10:30 in the morning, have an hour lunch and then be home at 6. It was only the final two days of each week that saw the 10 to 12 hours on the set.”
The result was a chemistry that showed each week during the series’ run.
“It came to an end due to reality TV,” remembered Ford. “Reality TV was really coming into its own and was much cheaper to produce. ‘Hope & Faith’ was still young and when they switched nights on the show, we realized we were going to end before we should have.”
 The show was pulled from the ABC lineup all too soon in May 2006 after viewers didn’t follow its move from Fridays to Tuesdays. Ford didn’t let the end of the series stop her, though. She is constantly involved in something.
“I am very proud of ‘Mind. Body. Balance.’ on MSN,” Ford stated of her latest venture. “It receives nearly two-million downloads per episode. I’m very proud of that fact.”
She can be very proud of that and the other projects she’s currently working on, including a Lifetime move about sororities in which she plays “a nice bitch and you discover there are other choices in life. I’m always looking for roles that will allow me to expand upon my career. However, I don’t what to accept something that will undo everything I’ve spent my life working for, but I want a lot of irons in the fire.”
And, above all, it’s a life that still includes those simple things with her husband, her dogs, cooking and gardening.
“My grandfather was a farmer and my mom continued the tradition,” Ford concluded. “I guess I’ve kept that part of the family going. I’ve got 50 rose bushes and fruit trees. Things that you grow become heirlooms when you pass them to someone else. It’s very important and special.”
Faith Ford is one special lady, and hopefully she’ll find a new generation of admirers when people discover “Hope & Faith” on DVD.
“Hope & Faith” is now available on DVD.
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