ISAACS

Never in my life had I been thrown off my feet and clearly embarrassed in a fight.

Growing up in Cranston, I was in a few scrapes — nothing serious, just your typical adolescent neighborhood rough stuff, but no one ever threw me a good distance. That’s until I became an Irish mobster.

Living a life connected with organized crime can be painful, and I realized that first-hand on the hottest day of summer in August 2005. With temperatures soaring upwards of 100 degrees, I found myself standing in the middle of a dusty softball field in the heart of Olneyville, face-to-face with another mobster.

He was a little taller than me, maybe 6 feet, and certainly a lot stronger. He didn’t like it too much when I put my hands on him, so he picked me up and threw me a good 10 feet before I slammed into the ground in a heap of dirt and sweat.

“Hey, you OK, man?” he quickly asked. “That was great. You know we do have to make it look real.”

That scenario occurred six more times until we finally mastered my butt-whipping to the director’s liking. See, I’m not really an Irish mobster, I was only playing one on TV — as an extra on the Showtime series Brotherhood, which was filmed exclusively in Rhode Island that year.

The drama is about two Providence brothers on opposite sides of the law, living and working in the fictional Irish neighborhood called The Hill. The first season of the show was such a success the network ordered another season, and production is set to begin soon in Providence.

In fact, there’s an open casting call from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Atrium, 1 Capitol Hill, Providence (across from the State House). All you have to do is show up and bring a recent picture of yourself.

I was in two episodes as a background extra in the first season and it was an interesting experience, one that I would definitely consider again. The days are long. There’s a lot of standing around. The pay stinks for non-union actors. But at least everyone can see me getting kicked around on DVD for eternity.

An acquaintance who works on the history reenactment cast as part of LDI Casting called and asked if I would be interested in working as an extra on that August day. The casting company wanted Irish-looking males with athletic ability. I fit both categories.

In high school and college I took a few acting classes and was even in a few productions, so I knew I could handle work as an extra. How hard could it be?

I was told not to shave because they wanted us to look scruffy. The only problem was, in order for me to cast a 5 o’clock shadow I would need at least two weeks. I was also told to bring my baseball glove for a softball scene in which a bench-clearing brawl erupts — and I get pummeled by the mobster.

Ah, life as an extra.

WE ARRIVED on set at 8 a.m., and it was hot. When filming finally got under way, the director explained the scene and mapped out how the brawl would go down. My job was to protect the character Michael Caffee, the lead Irish mobster played by actor Jason Isaacs. We were both players on the softball team “Mulligans.”The director yelled “action” and I ran into place, figuring we were acting. Well, that’s when I learned this stuff is real: I was handed my beating — seven times over. They shot the brawl from all different angles, and had to stop briefly because Isaacs was injured during one of the melees.

Everyone on the set, from the director to his assistants, the main actors and all the extras, was great. While we were standing around and waiting, we were able to hang out and chat with Isaacs, who turned out to be a great guy.

The English actor has been in many successful movies, including The Patriot and the Harry Potter films, usually playing a sinister role. He turned out to be just a normal guy. Isaacs told us he was living in Barrington and his wife was ready to give birth.

Being a sports writer, I’ve been fortunate to experience some cool things. I’ve met some great people and witnessed professional athletes doing some great things, and sometimes some not-so-great things, for fans. But Isaacs blew me away with an act of kindness.

During our conversation another extra told Isaacs that his daughter loved the Harry Potter movies and couldn’t believe that her dad was working with Lucius Malfoy, Isaacs’ character. Isaacs asked the man to call his daughter on the cell phone, and when the girl answered spoke with her as the Malfoy character.After filming finished on the fight scene, everyone broke for dinner, which was catered by a local restaurant. The next order of business was a postgame bar scene. I knew I could definitely handle that, but the crew was done with me and sent me home at 6 p.m. Before leaving, I was asked if I would be interested in returning for another episode.

A few weeks later I received an e-mail asking me to come back. This time the filming was at the Stadium Theatre in Woonsocket. We needed to be on set at 8 a.m. and we finished at 3:30 a.m. That’s right, almost 20 hours. I needed to be at Yankee Stadium at 9 that morning, so when I asked an assistant to the director, somewhere around 1 a.m., what happens if I have to leave?

“You don’t get paid,” he told me.

I stayed. When my check came in the mail it was for a whopping $110.

In the next couple of months, before Brotherhood finally aired, I told friends and family about getting beat up on camera. When my first episode aired, you had to pause it just to find me at the bottom of the pile. It wasn’t exactly a close-up shot.

In the second episode, which was a fundraiser for the theater, I got some decent on-camera face time without any bumps and bruises.Looking back, I’m glad I accepted the invitation.

I’ll tell you this, though. If I ever run into that actor who tossed me around, he better keep his head up because in real life I could take him.

jmcdonal@projo.com