On Screen

May 9 - 15, 2020—3 The Greeneville Sun, Greeneville, TN The Greeneville Sun, Greeneville, TN May 9 - 15, 2020 — 3 2 x 3.5" ad a) greene cnty farmers b) swango's 2 x 4" ad williams electric 2 x 1.5" ad ymca 2 x 1.5" ad doughty stevens 2 x 1.5" ad midway const. By George Dickie Dominick Birdsey is a man with a mountain of baggage. As played by Mark Ruffalo ("The Normal Heart," "Foxcatcher") in the HBO limited series "I Know This Much Is True," a six-episode drama premiering Sunday, May 10, he's a house painter in rural Connecticut circa 1990 who is cop - ing with his own psychic wounds as he cares for an identical twin brother with paranoid schizophrenia. And that malady rears itself in the se- ries' opening frames, when Thomas (also Ruffalo) hacks off his hand to the horror of onlookers in a public library in what in his mind is a sacrifice to stop the Gulf War. He's soon sent to an asylum, where his brother fights to get him freed. Dominick isn't all that well, either. He's buckling under the weight of PTSD, the result of looking after Thomas, a childhood with an abusive stepfather, memories of losing his infant daughter to SIDS and subsequent divorce from Dessa (Kathryn Hahn, "Transparent") and mak - ing sure his dying mother (Melissa Leo, "Frozen River") has proper hospice care. As Dominick contends with an asylum social worker (Rosie O'Donnell) to gain his brother's release, a psychologist (Archie Panjabi, "The Good Wife") picks up on his considerable emotional pain and real - izes she may have two patients instead of one. For the dual roles, Ruffalo undertook unusual demands. First, he shot all his scenes as the svelte, goateed Dominick, then took five weeks off to gain 30 pounds to play the doughy, clean-shaven Thomas. It was also during this time that the 52-year-old actor researched mental illness and imagined himself as someone with Thomas' condition. "When we were talking about how we would do it," Ruffalo explained to a re- cent gathering of journalists in Pasadena, Calif., "we didn't want it to be like I run and put a wig on, and then run and do the same scene on the same day. So, yeah, we took five weeks off to really separate these two guys. "And Thomas was on a lot of medica- tion," he continues. "He needs medica- tions. These mood stabilizers and anti- psychotics cause people to put on weight. And, yeah ... their life experiences after their teens are so extremely different. But it was important for us to really, really have these guys be two different people." And each came with its own distinct challenges, Ruffalo says, but Thomas' were especially daunting. "Actually putting on the weight for Thomas was really challenging," he says. "I didn't expect it to be. I thought I was going to be having a fun time doing that. And when you're force-feeding yourself, some of the romance of food sort of leaves. "I mean, listen, there's an element of mental illness in this project," he contin - ues. "And you want to be as honest as you can to that, especially today. And it means a lot to me to be honest with that, which means going into that world and getting to know it and getting comfortable with it. And that's challenging. "And so, that aspect of it was challeng - ing more so than Dominick. I was really afraid to play it to be honest with you. I think it's really an important issue and I want to tell it as honestly as possible. And so the responsibility that was on the ac- tual playing it was really apparent to me." Celebrity Scoop Celebrity Scoop HBO's 'I Know This Much Is True' a tale of mental illness, family and forgiveness Cover Story Cover Story By Jay Bobbin Sara Haines has been candid about her challenges as a work- ing mother of three, but that couldn't prepare her for the state of parenthood now. Back on ABC's "The View" as a recurring guest co-host while her own weekday program "Strahan & Sara & Keke" is on hiatus, the perennially cheerful- on-air Haines will be among many moms spending this Mother's Day (Sunday, May 10) still adjusting to being stay-at- home teachers to their offspring due to the coronavirus pan- demic (along with her attorney husband, Max Shifrin). "I think people who have to home-school kids 6 and older have the harder responsibility," Haines reasons. "My kids are more preschool-age, but there's a guilt there. Most days, Max and I feel like we're keeping them alive, which is the base- level goal. But I don't know Checking in with Sara Haines how much they thrive, and that's a conversation we have almost every day. "We don't have a separate office, and quarters are tight," Haines adds, "and we have young kids going through their own moods from their lives being turned upside-down ... and often, we haven't been our best selves. We have to check each other, and we try to pick the battles that move the ball forward for the family." Still, Haines allows, "Any communication issues you have with your kids are probably things you've shown in your other important relationships. I'm not the best communicator when I'm angry, and my tools aren't as strong when I'm tired, but so many wise nuggets fall down on you every day about what matters and what you can do without. This has been a beautiful time to make sure the focus is right." Birthdate: Sept. 18, 1977 Birthplace: Newton, Iowa Current residence: New York Marital status: Married; has three children Other television credits in- clude: "Good Morning Ameri- ca," "Today" On her approach to discuss- ing timely issues on televi- sion: "I really take pride in, with no matter what's being presented, stepping back and wanting to let cooler minds prevail. I think, 'Let's take a pause. What do I want to know?' I hope I represent the everyman/ev- erywoman. 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