'Breaking Away' mom dishes about her experiences making the film

Barbara Barrie is known to TV audiences as Brooke Shields' grandmother on the NBC sitcom "Suddenly Susan." But she is also familiar to Bloomington residents as Evelyn Stohler, the sympathetic mother of an aspiring Little 500 bicycle race champion in the 1979 film "Breaking Away." Barrie received an Oscar nomination for her performance in the movie, which was penned by IU alumnus Steve Tesich and was shot on-location in Bloomington. In 1980, she reprised her film role in the short-lived ABC series that was based on the movie and earned an Emmy nomination.\nIn addition to "Breaking Away" and "Suddenly Susan," Barrie, 70, has acted in many other films, TV projects and plays. She portrayed Goldie Hawn's mother in the 1980 film "Private Benjamin" and was named best actress at the Cannes Film Festival in 1964 for "One Potato, Two Potato." Barrie also garnered a Drama Desk Award and an Obie Award for "The Killdeer" and a Tony nomination for "Company" and recently completed a stint in the New York City production of "The Vagina Monologues." \nShe is also a colon cancer survivor, and spends much of her time trying to raise public awareness about the disease. Barrie chronicled her struggle with colon cancer in her memoir "Second Act: Life after Colostomy and Other Adventures." \nRecently, she took time out from her schedule to speak with the IDS Weekend about her experiences on the sets of "Breaking Away" and "Suddenly Susan," as well as her memories of Bloomington.\nQ: What attracted you to the role of Evelyn Stohler?\nA: It was a terrific role, and I loved the script. It was just a wonderful part, and Steve offered it to me as I met him; I didn't audition for him. I said, "Are you sure," and he said, "You're the one."\nQ: Did you visit any local businesses or restaurants during filming?\nA: No. We went home to sleep at the hotel right after we finished working. We worked a lot, but Paul Dooley (who played her on-screen husband) and I went to a couple of flea markets in neighboring towns.\nQ: How did the cast get along?\nA: We got along great. We all liked each other a lot. \nQ: Do you still keep in touch with the rest of the cast?\nA: Well, Paul Dooley and I keep in touch, and Dennis Christopher (who played her son) and I have seen each other over the years. Also, Hart Bochner (who played an IU student) and my children became friends. \nQ: Why do you think "Breaking Away" was so successful?\nA: It was very well-directed and very well-cast, and I think the story of a kid surmounting his obstacles is always a great story. It was an excellent film.\nQ: Why do you think the "Breaking Away" TV series did not do as well as the film?\nA: It was politics. The big honchos at ABC all changed in the middle of the first season. It was the tradition for the new people, unless shows were out-and-out hits, to end everything and start over. We were doing quite well, and then suddenly, one day we were just shut down. That's what we figured, anyway. \nQ: What did you think of Bloomington while you were filming "Breaking Away"?\nA: I loved it because I went to the University of Texas, which was very much like Bloomington. The campus and the ambience in both places were really very similar.\nQ: Do you have a favorite memory from behind the scenes of the movie?\nA: I remember Dennis Quaid staying in his hotel room and cooking and eating health food with his then-girlfriend. He was very much into health food at the time. \nQ: Did you have the opportunity to tour the IU campus and interact with students during filming?\nA: Not really, but there were a lot of extras in that film, so even now someone will come up to me and say, "I was in the store" or, "I was in the stadium."\nQ: Are there any similarities between you and the character you played?\nA: I also have a son who I'm very close to and I adore him, but otherwise not really. \nQ: What was it like to work with Brooke Shields on "Suddenly Susan"?\nA: It was terrific. Brooke is a very accessible girl and she's very smart. She was really the leader of the pack. The star of the show has to be a leader, and she definitely was a leader.