By Christina Radish

Jorge Pallo plays Guidance Counselor Marc Molina on ABC Family’s hugely popular The Secret Life of the American Teenager. As a series regular in this sexy coming-of-age drama set in today’s complex world, Pallo’s character attempts to guide these troubled teens through their so-called secret lives.

Born and raised in New York, Pallo made his stage debut in grammar school, before going on to star in high school productions. He was accepted to NYU’s theatre program due to an outstanding essay and performance audition, but it wasn’t until his junior year in Summer Stock that Pallo really connected with what would be his future career. Upon being urged to move to Los Angeles to further his career, Pallo worked on such television shows as 24, The Unit, The Shield and NYPD Blue, as well as in such movies as Lions for Lambs, War of the Worlds and Minority Report.

Pallo spoke to MediaBlvd Magazine about his love for his craft and how much he enjoys working on The Secret Life of the American Teenager.

MediaBlvd Magazine> How did you become interested in acting?

Jorge Pallo> My sister was in a dance company and my mother took me to go see one of her recitals once, when I was about 7 years old, and that was my first introduction to a stage. My mother asked me if that was something I would like to try to do, and I was like, “Sure!” So, the next thing I knew, I was in tap-dancing, ballet and jazz lessons, and all that. I got to do The Nutcracker and the recitals, like my sister did. I did a lot of that, up until I was about 12 or 13, and then I got a little bit more interested in playing baseball, and a little bit more interested in girls. But, throughout, my mom always used to take my sister and I to Broadway shows. It was like a special treat, especially for our birthdays or Christmas. I remember seeing Sugar Babies, with Mickey Rourke. We would see things like I’m Not Rappaport, A Chorus Line and 42^nd Street, and that just got me addicted to the stage. And then, I started watching a lot of movies and television. By the time I got into high school, I did a couple school plays and a couple musicals. And, when I was trying to decide where I was going to go to college and what I was going to do with the rest of my life, there was only one other thing I could possibly imagine, but it didn’t seem like that was the direction that was being put forth. I always dreamt about being a veterinarian, but I also knew I wanted to go to NYU, so I ended up auditioning. Thankfully, I got in, and that’s where it really all started for me. I’ve always been a performer. After going to all those Broadway plays, my sister and I would put on shows for our family, during the holidays. I remember one Easter, we did a comedy with the Easter bunny, trying to run away from the hunters. I made ears out of my mom’s stockings and some tissue paper, and a tail out of cotton balls. It’s just something that’s always been a part of me.

MediaBlvd> Did someone encourage you to be an actor?

Jorge> When I got into college, I had a really great mentor, by the name of Bob Moss. From high school through college, I was more interested in hanging out and partying. For my first couple years of college, I was the only person that didn’t live in the city and had to commute, so I got to school late a lot. I talked back and I was a bit of a punk. My teachers were on the edge of being ready to kick me out of school, but they always brought me back, for whatever reason. In my junior year, I came to discover that my mentor, Bob Moss, who was the head of the Playwrights Horizons program at NYU, invited me to his Summer Stock program, called The Hanger, up in Ithaca. That was where it really started for me. For three months, all I did was eat, breathe, drink and sleep acting. I did four shows at a smaller theater, and another show on the main stage theater, that was A Few Good Men, by Aaron Sorkin, which Bob Moss directed. The character I played was Santiago, who is the PFC that gets killed. In the play, he’s got three scenes. He’s got two big monologues, and then he has a scene where he gets pulled out of bed. When I did the two monologues, it was just me and an audience of 450 people, and you’re saying to yourself, “Oh, my God!” That was the biggest thing I’d ever done, at that point. But, at the opening night party, Bob took me around proudly and was introducing me to people, saying, “You see this kid, right here? A couple years ago, he was the biggest asshole in the world, but we kept George around because we knew he had talent.” From there on in, for my senior year, I was probably the most model student that you’ve ever met. I showed up to school on time, and I would memorize all of my lines. That was my turn-around, right there. After that, I kicked around New York for a little bit, after graduation. I did a little tour with this Latin sketch comedy group, called Vaso de Leche, which was a funny bunch of people. And, I had a manager in New York that said, “Hey, why don’t you come out to L.A. for pilot season?,” and I did, and I’ve been here, ever since.

MediaBlvd> How did you originally get involved with The Secret Life of the American Teenager?

Jorge> Through the regular audition process. They already had somebody else on hold for the role, but they wanted to see more people. It was a grueling process for me. They brought me in and they loved me. Then they brought me in for the callback and they loved me again. And then, I went in for the test and they loved me again. They were like, “Okay, we’re going to let go of the other guy and hold onto you, but we still want to see more people.” I was like, “Oh, no! Come on, already!” But finally, after about a week and a half or two weeks of them looking for and auditioning other people, I got a call, while I was helping my friend move a heavy TV, and I almost dropped the TV on my friend’s foot.

MediaBlvd> What was it about this role that interested you in the project? Was there something specific that you felt you could relate to?

Jorge> Yeah, definitely. I’ve been an acting coach, out here in L.A., for about four and a half or five years, and I’ve worked with a lot of young people, some of whom are out there working today and some that are very close friends of mine. I remember reading the script for the pilot and thinking that it seemed like a conversation that I’ve had with students of mine. How many times have I told a student to get the hell out of my chair? So, I relate in the sense of having this strong, authoritative, teacher role. But, at the same time, Marc  has a very nurturing and loving role to play. He has to guide these young people across the bumps that they encounter along the road.

MediaBlvd> Is there anything that you’ve particularly enjoyed doing this season?

Jorge> Oh, yeah! My character got married to his girlfriend who, apparently, is a little bit kooky. There is also a kid on the way for them.

MediaBlvd> Even though viewers don’t get to learn much about Marc Molina’s home life, did you develop your own backstory for him?

Jorge> Yeah. The great thing about working with someone like Brenda Hampton is that she gave me a lot to work with, in the first place. Viewers have learned that Marc was a cop, at one point in his life. When I first booked the role, the original name of the character was Mark Green. Brenda Hampton had called me up, at one point, and said, “I don’t think Mark Green is going to work for you, ethnically,” and I said, “I don’t think so, either.” So, she so generously asked me if there were any other names in my family that I would like to try out. I got a slew of names from my mom and a slew of names from my dad, and the one name that really worked out was Marcelino Molina, which is my great grandfather, on my father’s side. That makes my father very proud. And, Brenda said, “That’s great ‘cause we can still call you Marc.” That is part of what I drew upon for his backstory. A name like Marcelino is pretty old school, and I have this feeling about Marc that he’s pretty old school, in that sense. He’s a good guy, and all he wants to do is help people, but part of his helping people usually gets him in trouble.

MediaBlvd> What’s it been like to work with this ensemble of young actors?

Jorge> They’re great, and they’re all high-energy. I’ve hung out with them, from time to time. We’re a pretty good bunch. On Thursday nights, we’ll go over to Francia Raisa’s (who plays Adrian) to watch Grey’s Anatomy. Allen Evangelista (who plays Henry) and I hang out pretty regularly. We actually threw a joint birthday party together, and Greg Finley (who plays Jack) came in and partied with us. And, Greg, Allen and I spent New Year’s together.

MediaBlvd> What’s been the most difficult aspect of doing this series, and what’s been the most enjoyable?

Jorge> There hasn’t really been anything difficult, except for maybe the audition process. This crew is fantastic. It’s a lot of the same crew from 7^th Heaven, so they’ve got everything working like clockwork. I shot a scene for the season finale, where my call time was at 6:30 am and I was out the door by 8 am. This is the sweetest job in Hollywood.

MediaBlvd> Could you ever have imagined the amount of attention this show would be getting, when you started working on it?

Jorge> Yeah, I actually did. With pilot season, you can book a pilot, and you make your money for doing that pilot and you film it, and then it may never air, or it may air for three episodes and then it gets yanked. We already knew that we had six episodes, from the very beginning, so it was pretty obvious that we had something. And, as the show went on, they were like, “We need another four,” and then, “We need another four.” The writing and the casting just all fit so well. I’m not that surprised at all, especially amongst young people. They relate to this show because it’s not like, “Oh, there’s a 14-year-old in a Manhattan bar, having a martini.” Everybody knows somebody that’s been in these situations. Everybody out there has a cousin, or a friend of a cousin, or a cousin of a friend that was a pregnant teenager.

MediaBlvd> Do you ever have fans of the show mix you up with your character and want you to give them advice?

Jorge> Yeah, sometimes, but that goes along with the role. I’m still very close to my students, form when I was teaching acting. They’re still call me or MySpace me and ask me advice about this or that. Of course, the one thing I get asked about the most is, “How do I make it as an actor? How do you do what you do?” The only thing that I can say to that is, “Just work hard and believe in yourself. If there’s anything else in the world that you think you can do with as much passion and love, then do that. This takes everything -- your heart, your body and your soul.”

MediaBlvd> What was it like to be involved with 24? Is it intimidating to go in and do an episode of a series like that?

Jorge> It was a little bit intimidating. I’ve been in intimidating situations before. I’ve worked with Steven Spielberg, which is pretty intimidating. I’ve watched every single episode of 24, since the first season. I own three of the seasons on DVD. And, I have so much respect for Kiefer Sutherland, as an actor. My scene was actually with Kiefer Sutherland, so I was like, “Oh, crap!” But, he’s such a generous guy, and that crew was just on point. You shed the intimidation and get more into the role, and play the situation that’s happening in front of you. It becomes like riding a bike, after awhile.

MediaBlvd> With all of the TV and film work that you’ve done, has anything been particularly memorable, or has there been one project that you think you’ve learned the most from?

Jorge> I would say War of the Worlds was a huge eye-opener for me. As an actor, it doesn’t matter where you are in your career, there’s a part of you that still wonders, “Am I doing the right thing? Am I doing okay? Am I supposed to be doing this?,” and War of the Worlds really solidified that for me. I was like, “Yes, you are supposed to be doing this. Here you are on a huge budget studio film, being directed by the best director in Hollywood, and pulling on this man’s $20 million arm. As intimidated as I was, I was able to do it. I like to challenge myself, and I was able to do it and it came out well. I don’t have as many doubts anymore. I can do this.” Ever since then, I’ve been working, non-stop. I still challenge myself.

MediaBlvd> If you had your choice, are there types of roles or specific genres that you’d like to work in, that you haven’t gotten the chance to do yet?

Jorge> I would love to do some period stuff. I’d love to get on Broadway, someday, because I still love the theater and the stage. I got to do a Western, not too long ago, for Hallmark Hall of Fame, and that was a lot of fun. I’d love to do another Western. I’d love to do action films. I want to do it all, quite honestly. But, if I had to pick right now, I’d love to do another Western and some Broadway.

MediaBlvd> Why is doing charity work so important to you?

Jorge> Because the universe has been very good to me, and it’s important to be of service and give back. You don’t get something for nothing, in this world. There is something to be said for this feeling that you get, after a kid comes up to you and thanks you for your hard work. The joy that they have or the lessons that they’ve learned from that is inspirational. It feeds my soul. I come from humble beginnings. My father is a shoe repairman and my mother is a nurse. I’m from Corona, Queens, New York, which is not exactly Bel Air. If there are things that I can do, just by talking and inspiring people to lift themselves up, then I love to do it. If it comes down to me working with kids and teaching them the art of filmmaking, that’s a big joy to me. I get to actually share my knowledge and what I love to do. That’s really gratifying.