WITH AN EYE ON . . . : Charlie Dell’s ‘Shade’ of being Southern: The nice word is eccentric

It’s a cliche, but it’s true: Charlie Dell, who plays idiot savant Nub Oliver on CBS’ “Evening Shade,” is a classically trained Shakespearean actor.

Nub, a middle-aged newspaper delivery boy, whizzes around in a wagon named Chariots of Fire on which the American flag proudly waves.

But Nub and Dell are not the total opposites one might think.

Offstage, Dell, who has a drama degree from the University of North Texas, is an articulate man with an all-American childhood. He was born in Texas and for a time lived on his grandparents’ small dairy farm in Missouri.

“You most often hear that Nub is the town weirdo or moron,” Dell says. “I describe him this way: an eccentric.”

Nub’s a metaphor for a small town, he says, like the little Arkansas hamlet of Evening Shade, where the show is set. Nub’s simplicity makes him someone people can relate to, Dell adds.

“He was so defined,” Dell says. “I just put him on like you would clothes. Being from the South and around simple farm people, I knew all the characters (executive producer) Linda Bloodworth-Thomason was writing about. When I heard about the role, I said, ‘I’m perfect for that.’ ”

“Charlie’s as sweet and dependable as Nub is, and a great actor too,” says co-executive producer Victor Fresco, who adds that Dell’s steadfastness offers a “calming presence” on the set of a show whose star, Burt Reynolds, has attracted considerable public attention for his high-profile divorce from Loni Anderson this season.

Dell got a bit of his own publicity last Fourth of July when he married actress Jennifer Williams in the actual town of Evening Shade, Ark. While they worried that it might smack of a publicity stunt, they found the location convenient for both families and the town extremely accommodating. Dell realized during the planning of his wedding that the town’s actual residents exemplified the qualities given to “Evening Shade” characters--caring and a will to bend over backward for friends.

After nine years doing small theater across the country, Dell’s small, but memorable, roles in “Jason of Star Command,” “Dukes of Hazzard,” “Trapper John, M.D.” led to what he considers his lucky break: exposure on national commercial campaigns as a Prudential angel and as one of Dr. Pepper’s original “Peppers.”

In 1971, he got his first film role in the obscure “Encounter With the Unknown,” where he says he played, convincingly enough, “the town idiot.” The film is an important footnote on the actor’s resume, because the producer, Harry Thomason, remembered him when he and his wife cast “Evening Shade” some 20 years later. It’s an experience Dell calls a “dream come true.”

The season finale of “Evening Shade,” featuring a story line involving Nub and guest star Tony Bennett, airs Monday at 9 p.m. on CBS.