[when Vancouver became home-base for major American TV series] Actors were working all over the place. And if you were a black actor it was amazing. It was almost reverse prejudice. 'We need three more black guys!'. To be a young black guy, this was the place. You'd see people arriving every day from Seattle.

When you start off in movies, you play like 'angry fat guy, 'third fat guy', 'fat guy at bus stop', 'angry fat guy at party', 'overweight man on train'. Then you build yourself up. I started getting these doctor roles on 'The X-Files' and stuff. I was very lucky. Being a character actor is a wonderful thing. Nobody goes through your garbage. It's terrific.

[on suffering an onstage 'tiny stroke'] They asked me, 'Where are you? And I said 'Baltimore' because that's where the play ['Hairspray'] takes place [And on leaving hospital after only one night] I think my mascara was scaring the nurses.