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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Actress Fits In Well To Alien Role On ‘3rd Rock’

Frazier Moore Associated Press

If you were an alien creature who came to Earth to investigate its beings and if, to blend in better, you assumed human form, then you could do a lot worse than Kristen Johnston’s.

Not that Johnston herself blends in so great among the earthling population, come to think of it. She’s 6 feet tall with legs that stretch for days, feline eyes and a laugh that sets you free. Sorry, she’s quite the standout.

But more important for “3rd Rock from the Sun,” the out-of-this-world-silly NBC sitcom that airs at 8 p.m. tonight, Johnston also is stand-out funny.

She’s funny taking a punch, funny getting thrown downstairs, even funny enjoying a first sneeze: “Oh,” she gasps, looking downright post-orgasmic, “I want another one!”

On “3rd Rock” (created by the husband-and-wife team of Bonnie and Terry Turner), Johnston joins Joseph-Gordon Levitt, French Stewart and the distinguished actor John Lithgow as a four-member investigative team sent from a far galaxy to learn about human civilization.

There is much to explore here on earth, ranging from the mysteries of Jell-O to the blessings of cable TV to our heroes’ own physicality, which keeps them constantly on the toes they never had before.

But it is Johnston’s character, a courageous military hero back home, who is given a particularly challenging assignment: to learn about female humans by being one.

“We say Sally is a man in a woman’s body, but that’s not technically correct,” says Johnston. “Actually, she is a very masculine, asexual alien inside a woman’s body.”

And, as Johnston is quick to note, not totally unhappy to be there.

Sally Solomon is, if you will, a full-bodied role, by turns goofy, coquettish and combative, tickling America’s funny bone while tweaking its libido.

Johnston reports that women love Sally’s stand-her-ground nature. And while something about Sally makes some men uncomfortable, “judging from the letters I get from prisoners,” Johnston says, rolling her eyes, “it excites them, too.”