As Barney, a friend with endless, sometimes outrageous opinions and a foolproof way to meet women, Neil Patrick Harris has been "suiting up" and earning rave reviews in the CBS comedy How I Met Your Mother. Since his first small screen success as the title character in Doogie Howser, M.D., he has added film and theatre to his resume.
Mr. Harris had starring roles in three consecutive Broadway productions: Proof, Cabaret, and most recently in Assassins. On film, Mr. Harris earned a Golden Globe nomination for his work opposite Whoopi Goldberg in Clara's Heart and on television he headlined CBS's top-rated telefilm of the year The Christmas Blessing. The multi-talented Harris also enjoys a busy schedule in the world of voice-over, lending his pipes to the likes of The Simpsons, and as Peter Parker and Spiderman in the top-rated MTV series. He is playing on behalf of Food on Foot, which provides meals, clothing, and assistance to the poor and homeless of Los Angeles.
Why do you think you will win?
I love me some game shows. [Laughs] So, I don't know if I'll have the knowledge that my competitors have, but I'm just excited to be playing this game. I watch it on TV all the time.
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What does winning the game mean to you?
It was exciting! I--I'm such a fan of magic and juggling and ventriloquism and stuff, and the Final question was a ventriloquist question, which made me incredibly relaxed and happy. And, uh, and I got it right. I was--my biggest fear was getting, like, a Double Jeopardy!, betting it all, and, and scr--not knowing an easy one, which I almost did, and then, or, or being closed to Final Jeopardy!, so... I conquered my fears. Just barely. But, it was fun.
What do you think of your competition?
They were great! Bebe was really hilarious, and, and Jamie, Denton, he's a tough competitor. He was really like--after the practice round, he was really like, "All right, it's on. Bring it on." So he was--I wanted to beat him more than Bebe.
What was the factor that allowed you to win today?
I think the buzzer was on my side. I'm a bit of a game show nerd, and I loved, when I was younger, playing You Don't Know Jack on the computer, which was another buzz-in game. There's a lot of quick! buzzing-in. I have a--my friend has a game night that we go to once a month, and play, and so I know a lot of games, so... it's all about the buzzer. I would say 80% of the questions everyone knew. But it's just a matter of when you buzz in. And--and even after the fact, I don't know what--it is--the magic answer.
How would your character perform on the show?
I think Barney would be stoked that NPH won just so that he could get some chicks. But that's Barney.
Could you tell us about your charity?
My charity's an organization called Food on Foot. It's a local L.A., uh, organization that is really run by one man, and he feeds, clothes, and provides shelter for homeless locally around Hollywood and L.A. Every Sunday they serve food to all these people, and if they continue to go over a certain number of times then they get to work there. If they do that for a certain number of consecutive weeks then they'[ll provide housing for them, metro cards, meal--meals--and apparently $5,000 takes one person off the street and puts 'em up in a--with an actual job and a new life, so winning is great. Now, 10 people can get off the streets of L.A. |
