If you are like me, then your favorite part of GCB is the loveable Miss Annie Potts. But what you didn’t know is that her character is loosely based on her mom and an actress she worked with on a little show called Designing Women. When the Dallas native was asked if Gigi is like her mom, she said, “No. No. She’s sort of an amalgam. Actually, she’s kind of based on my mother, who Bobby (Harling) knew, actually. And I mean, she’s an amalgam. She’s actually when on, when I was on my feet with her, I actually found that there was a lot of my beloved Dixie Carter in her.” GCB creator Robert Harling added that he has known Annie since she was high school and he has spent a lot of time with her family including Annie’s mom Dot. So when he writing Gigi for the show, he said, “Well, I think in creating a character, you sort of I don’t know how every writer works, but I take little bits and pieces of what needs to be what needs to be put together. The character was actually written before we’d cast anybody or in the pilot, writing the pilot, Gigi existed in my own head as a person. And then when we were lucky enough because Annie and I have always wanted to work together and we’ve never done it. And when it was lucky enough to come to be, of course, in the shaping of the character, a lot of the voices come back, the things you hear, the tiny moments. And we’ve discussed this quite a bit, and Annie’s been very generous about it and…” She chimed in with “Well, thank God my mother just died a year ago, so now we can take all the stories and use them.” Now even though the fiery red head joked about her mom, when I asked what her mother would think of the role, she said “I’m so sorry she passed away and had not lived to see this because it would be her proudest moment to see me dressed like a lady, talking like one most of the time.” I am sure her mother is watching from heaven above and beaming with pride. Someone else is watching from above is her Designing Women co-star Dixie Carter, and she shared a little tidbit about her friend. She said, “My dear friend Dixie was very Conservative, and of course she played a very Liberal character. Sometimes she would be like “OMG, I can’t believe I have to say this. Of course, I am very famously Liberal and now I am playing a Conservative so it’s a turnabout for me.” So now that you know more about how Annie Potts’ character came about, doesn’t it make you love even more. So watch her tonight play homage to her mother and Dixie Carter on the season finale of GCB at 10p on ABC. And let’s pray the network gives their delightful show a second season. What else do they have that is just as good?
