The Semi-Official David Duchovny FAQ Sheet
As both the Internet and "The X-Files" grows in popularity, so
does the number of people interested in the show's stars. Since
the David Duchovny Estrogen Brigade has members who make public
their affiliation, we receive a great many questions about David Duchovny. While this is enormously flattering, it is also very time-consuming. Always eager to Serve David, we would like to
offer the following list of Frequently Asked Questions about
David, in the interest of public service and in cutting down on
our mail traffic. This list will be updated regularly and will
be posted monthly.
The following information is based on published interviews (references available on request), personal communications, and library research. Any corrections should be sent to the contact address; please provide your reference. We appreciate all new
input.
1. Who is David Duchovny?
David Duchovny is the uncommonly gifted actor who plays Agent Fox Mulder on Fox Network's "The X- Files" on Friday nights.
2. How does he pronounce his name?
DAY-vid. Oh, you mean his *last* name? Most interviewers and announcers on TV have pronounced it "doo-KUV-nee". It is a
Slavic word meaning "spiritual". He says he doesn't care how his
name is pronounced so long as people get the meaning right.
3. Where does he come from?
David was born in New York City on August 7, 1960. His father is Amram "Ron" Ducovny (yes, they spell their last names
differently), a former publicist for the American Jewish
Committee. Ron Ducovny has written an Off-Broadway play, "The
Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald", which ran in 1967 in New York. He is also the author of several books: "The Wisdom of Spiro T. Agnew"
and "David Ben-Gurion In His Own Words". His Scottish-born
mother Margaret, a homemaker for many years, taught third grade
in Manhattan. His sister Laurie lives in New York and his
brother Daniel lives in Los Angeles.
4. What is his educational background?
He was educated at a prestigious private school in Manhattan (Collegiate Prep.), and then went to Princeton University where
he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree. He holds a Master of Arts in English Literature degree from Yale University, and was working
on his Ph.D. when he left Yale to pursue acting. He has been a teaching assistant, and his Ph.D. dissertation (never finished)
was entitled "Magic and Technology in Contemporary Poetry and
Prose". (He still thinks it is a good subject for research.)
5. Vital statistics?
6' 1" tall, brown hair, hazel eyes. Mole on right cheek. The
rest is sheer poetry.
6. Is he married?
David has never been married, but he has a long-standing
relationship with actress Perrey ("Homefront") Reeves in Los
Angeles. [A note of interest: Perrey Reeves will be featured as "Kirsten" in the 2nd season X-Files episode entitled "3",
scheduled to air 11/04/94 in the US.]
7. What are his hobbies/interests?
David went to Princeton on a basketball scholarship and later switched to baseball, where he played on the college team. He
has appeared in MTV's "Rock n' Jock" charity baseball game (he singled to right field and was batted in by David Justice) and in
a recent basketball game for them. He played basketball for the camera in "Red Shoe Diaries". He keeps in shape with jogging and power workouts, and has been known to play raquetball with Chris Carter. His famous swimsuit appearance in "The X-Files" episode "Duane Barry" seems to indicate that he is a fair to good
swimmer.
David appears to enjoy acting for the legitimate theatre as well
as film and TV. He has described stage acting as "an hour and
forty five minutes of pure bliss". He enjoys writing and has expressed regret for leaving LA, as he misses the live poetry readings he used to participate in. He says he still writes
poetry, he just doesn't read it in public any more. He
admires the playwright/actor Sam Shepard. He has been quoted as saying that his favorite musician is Keith Richards.
8. Pets?
A dog, Blue, the daughter of the dog featured in last season's episode, "Ice". She's a foot-licker. (We have information that
he may also own a cat but we can't seem to get a confirmation on that.)
9. Does David believe in UFOs?
He has publicly stated several times that he does not believe in
UFOs or beastwomen from New Jersey. He does not dismiss the possibility of extraterrestrial life, but would like more
proof... He claims (perhaps facetiously?) that he may once have
seen a UFO while jogging on the beach.
10. How did he get into acting?
He was studying to be a film and theater critic in New York, and commuting from Yale. He began taking acting lessons from The
Actor's Studio and was cast in a few roles. He wound up in a Lowenbrau commercial, was tapped
for Henry Jaglom's "New Year's Day", and never looked back. He
moved to
Hollywood in 1987, and apparently had a dry spell for about a
year and a
half. During that time, he jokes, his girlfriend paid the rent
and he
"leeched" off his friends while writing for magazines and working
for a
caterer. (No true actor gets through life without being a waiter
at least
once...) His work in movies drew him to the attention of highly placed
executives at Twentieth Century Fox, who recommended him to Chris Carter.
11. What's David *really* like?
Charming, funny, and very smart. Although he grants few interviews and is
rather cagey when he does, his associates describe him as "hilarious",
"smart", and "a regular guy". One fellow actor described him as "humourous, witty, friendly, supportive, generous and very, very normal".
David seems to be very surprised, not only by the success of "The X-Files"
but by his own personal popularity (does the man not own a mirror?). Chris
Carter, executive producer and creator of "The X-Files", has called him
"frighteningly smart". Gillian Anderson has described him as "hysterically funny" and says he consults often with the show's writers,
going over the scripts with the minute care of a former English teacher.
One of the show's top writers, Glen Morgan, also describes him as very
intelligent and notes that much of Fox Mulder's humor is either ad-libbed
by David or part of an in-joke between him and the writers. Other actors
who have worked with him describe him as humble, professional, and
hard-working. He also has a good memory and remembers names and faces
well. In person he is soft-spoken and polite, if reserved.
By his own account David grew up as a "tight-assed", repressed student in
a family struggling with divorce. He says he is grateful that acting
freed him from a rather strait-laced emotional life. He appears to be
something of a homebody: in almost every extended interview, he has
complained about missing his home, his friends, and Perrey while he is in
Vancouver. (And for a boy from New York City, he really gripes about the
Canadian climate a lot!)
12. What is David's address/phone number/e-mail address?
Sorry, we can't give that out. ;-> However, you can write him at:
David Duchovny
c/o The X-Files Production Office
Building 10
110-555 Brooks Bank Avenue
North Vancouver, BC
V7J 3S5
Canada
e-mail can go to him care of Fox Broadcasting at foxnet@delphi.com.
Put "The X-Files" in the subject line to route it correctly.
13. What other work besides "X-Files" has he done?
Working Girl (1988) [Tess's Birthday Party Friend] New Year's Day (1989)
"Twin Peaks" (1990) [DEA Agent Dennis/Denise Bryson]
[Ep. 13 - 15 2nd season.]
Bad Influence (1990)
Julia Has Two Lovers (1991) [Daniel]
Denial (1991) [John] (aka Loon)
Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead (1991) [Bruce] Rapture, The (1991) [Randy]
Beethoven (1992) [Brad]
Baby Snatcher (1992) (TV) [David]
Ruby (1992) [Officer Tippit]
Chaplin (1992) [Rollie Totheroh]
Red Shoe Diaries (1992 - ) (TV) [Jake]
Venice/Venice (1992) [Dylan] (This has never been released to video.)
Kalifornia (1993) [Brian Kessler]
"X-Files, The" (1993 - ) (TV) [Fox Mulder]
He also has appeared in two US television commercials, one for Lowenbrau
Beer (1987), and one for AT&T (1993).
14. Where can I read more about David Duchovny?
Here is a partial bibliography of published David Duchovny interviews or
articles containing information about him:
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Santa Cruz Sentinel - March 15 1994 (Santa Cruz, CA)
By Lynn Elber with/for the Associated Press.
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People magazine, June (?) 1994 issue
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Coffee, Tea, and David Duchovny: An Afternoon Chat with the
Star of "The X-Files"
by Rhonda Krafchin (The Prydonian Renegade, June 94)
(Note: The Prydonian Renegade is a publication of the Princeton Dr. Who
Fan Club)
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San Diego Union-Tribune, Friday, August 12, 1994 'X-Files' actor is a (Super) Natural
By Eirik Knutzen
Copley News Service
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Los Angeles Times (LT) - FRIDAY October 28, 1994
A Surreal 'X-Files' Captures Earthlings! Poltergeists, Space Aliens and
Mutants Feed Show's Hold on Younger Audience
By: DANIEL HOWARD CERONE; TIMES STAFF WRITER ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
The David Duchovny FAQ is also available via anonymous FTP and gopher/http from chaos.bsu.edu in /pub/text/faq/dd.faq.gz.
Contact: Kellie Matthews-Simmons, matthewk@ucsu.colorado.edu
Sarah Stegall, sfsfs@fail.com
--
Kellie Matthews-Simmons//matthewk@ucsu.colorado.edu Member: SFLA&EBS, PSEB, DDEB, X-phile "ego eum in calido puncto egi"
"Would you, could you, with a Fox?"