FACES TO WATCH 2009 TELEVISION

John Doman

THIS BAD GUY’S REALLY MR. NICE GUY

John Doman has found good fortune playing bad buys.

With his understated menace, piercing eyes and a smiley sneer, he won raves for his portrayal of the manipulative deputy Chicago Police Commissioner William Rawls on HBO’s “The Wire.” And he says he still inspires shudders from parents who remember him as the creepy child molester in Clint Eastwood’s “Mystic River.”

Doman now is adding another villain to his resume as high-powered energy honcho Walter Kendrick, whose unscrupulous traits put him on a collision course with ambitious attorney Patty Hewes (Glenn Close) in FX’s “Damages.”

“I’m definitely not a nice guy on this show,” Doman said with a chuckle during a break on the New York set of the drama, whose second-season premiere is Jan. 7. “I like doing bad guys, though sometimes I would like to play some lighter characters.”

Several months ago, he had a chance to cross over to the lighter side when he was offered a nonsinging role as a military man in “South Pacific” on Broadway. But around the same time the role on “Damages” -- a show his wife loves -- came up and he decided once again to explore his dark side.

Doman, who didn’t start his acting career until 1991, attributes his convincing portrayals of tough, dishonorable characters to his time as a U.S. Marine and more than two decades in the advertising industry.

“When I was on ‘The Wire,’ I had a lot of cops come up to me and say, ‘I worked for a . . . just like you.’ Doing those kinds of jobs certainly helped.”

But associates and colleagues of Doman say the actor is actually the opposite of many of his characters -- personable and friendly.

“Damages” co-creator and executive producer Todd A. Kessler, who was a fan of “The Wire,” said of Doman, “His physical makeup is the key to John making these bad guys believable. But he’s really a nice guy and a terrific collaborator.”

-- Greg Braxton--

Whitney Port

HER ‘CITY’S’ NOW N.Y.C., NOT L.A.

Whitney Port, a supporting character on “The Hills,” has a reality spinoff of a reality spinoff. A graduate of Crossroads School (just like “Hills” costar Spencer Pratt), she has, like Rhoda Morgenstern before her, been moved to New York City. Designer Diane von Furstenberg has lent her name as Whitney’s employer and the show is called “The City.” The first two episodes air Monday on MTV.

“On ‘The Hills,’ we had a joke that no one has sex and no one gets hurt really,” said Kelly Cutrone, the New York fashion publicist who hired Whitney when she first came to New York. On that show, Whitney didn’t share much of her personal life because her boyfriend refused to be filmed.

Now he’s (allegedly!) gone and, from what we can tell, troublesome boys are swarming young Whitney. For instance, why is her on-camera boyfriend, Australian rocker Jay Lyon, eerily identical to one Brent Tuhtan -- who (allegedly!) dates, or dated, model Miranda Kerr?

Well, this is New York City, where people get really hurt every day, where the quest for fame is a full-contact sport.

“Who do you trust? Who are your friends? She had a safety net in Los Angeles,” said “Hills” and “City” creator Adam Divello. “Now there’s no family -- there’s no one.”

Lotsa luck, Whitney!

-- Choire Sicha