Alan Rosenberg speaks out for CBS drama 'The Guardian'

LOS ANGELES -- Alan Rosenberg has played many lawyers in his career, but he believes his role as legal aid-crusader Alvin Masterson on the CBS drama "The Guardian" is the best one yet.

For starters, he finally has a first name with more than three letters. There's been "Eli, Stu, Ira, Sam, Max ..." Rosenberg ticks off the clipped names with a grin. "This is a bit of a stretch; Alvin has got five letters."

Eli Levinson was a divorce attorney in both "Civil Wars" and "L.A. Law." More recently, Stu Brickman was on call for legal issues on "Chicago Hope."

Then there was Ira Woodbine, the ex-husband of Cybill Shepherd's character on "Cybill," which became "the worst job of my life," said Rosenberg, when the actress took over the reins of the struggling sitcom.

Rosenberg now plays Masterson, who runs the office where troubled attorney Nick Fallin (Simon Baker) must perform community service on "The Guardian." The drama, which airs Tuesday nights, is in its second season.

"I enjoy the opportunities this show takes to reveal the issues of the day," the 52-year-old actor says. "I get a chance to say things that are sort of like my own politics, my own ideas, my own feelings. That's important, especially in these tumultuous times."

"Alvin is a sort of refugee from the '60s with high ideals," Rosenberg said. "At least he used to have very high ideals but I think somewhere along the line he became a little complacent, until Fallin came into his life and started shaking him up a bit. He's opted for a life where he can do some good rather than make a lot of money, and he's comfortable with that."

Rosenberg also is comfortable with holding on to the ideals that made him very active in the antiwar movement when he was in college during the Vietnam era. "It's time for that kind of activism again and it's fun to play a character of like mind," he said.

He believes actors should speak out on issues that concern them.

"I'm looking for more opportunities to speak out, actually," he says. "I think in times like these, we are all obligated to talk about what we believe."

Series creator David Hollander said he hired Rosenberg because he wanted someone who had a distinctly liberal feeling about him.

"It's not just who Alan is in life, but also how he comes off on-screen. I also wanted someone I could build a history for," Hollander said.

When Rosenberg isn't on what Hollander affectionately refers to as "his liberal tirades ... his big rants," the actor talks with equal passion about his wife actress Marg Helgenberger, his son's basketball games and his own golf shots.