'Buffy's' Gellar identifies with the outsider role

HOLLYWOOD -- Sarah Michelle Gellar has a secret weapon:
She could talk vampires to death.

In nonstop fashion, the ebullient 22-year-old star of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the WB network's most popular series, discusses topics ranging from the Columbine tragedy to her own insecurities. And for a bonus you get a vivid travelogue. After listening to a WB public relations executive provide a rambling, lengthy tribute about how she's the network's reigning star, Gellar sprinted to the microphone, yelling: "Stop, stop stop. I'm sorry, I just couldn't listen to talk about myself anymore." Settling into a huge armchair (appropriately colored blood-red), Gellar eagerly jumped into a give-and-take. Regarding Columbine, Gellar agreed with The WB's decision to postpone the second half of Buffy's two-part season finale because the episode dealt with high school violence. "I'm not a programming executive," she said. "I don't have to worry about all these issues. Still, I think the network's decision was the right one. It's a touchy subject. But I do believe there is a tendency to look for a scapegoat in situations like this. While Columbine was an unbelievable tragedy, I believe the focus has to go past the media. While we do have responsibilities in the entertainment business, it's not our responsibility to teach children right from wrong. That's for the parents. And the parents of those teens who shot the student should have known what was going on. I don't understand that. But God forbid if anything (another act of violence) had happened if our show had aired. We couldn't have lived with ourselves." Geller said she understands, to some degree, how being an "outsider" can influence high school behavior. A product of New York private schools, Gellar spent her freshman year at the noted Fame school in Manhattan, which caters to performers. "I hated it. It was a very big school. I never adjusted. Never made friends," she said. "I had a few absences from auditions. They threatened to fail me. I had straight A's. Here's a school that talks about a love for the arts but then threatens you. I don't understand that. "Although my situation was different from that of public-school kids, I still felt like an outsider." Gellar transferred to Professional Children's High School, where she felt more at home. "It also was a school of the arts -- students with a lot of different talents. No two were the same. If someone didn't like you, you weren't ostracized. You just found your own friends," she said. "It was an amazing learning experience." Gellar, not initially noticing the bottled water in a bucket beside her, said she was thirsty. When the bottled water was pointed out, she grinned. "Gee, that's nice. The first time I was here I was offered only a glass of tap water," she said. Her first time was three years ago ("I felt like a nobody") when The WB unveiled the series, based on a film about a somewhat wistful high school student who battles vampires. "There was one photographer outside the interview room when we (cast members and producers) walked in. I think he thought it was a day for ABC stars. The guy just had the wrong day. "We got up there and basically sat there. Nobody really had questions for us. We felt horrible. "So if the network would have asked me three years ago if I'd be here now, I would have said, 'You guys are smoking something."' After the much-discussed season finale (a giant reptile nearly destroyed Sunnyvale High School on graduation day before Buffy came to the rescue), the series moves into uncharted waters in the fall. Buffy will go to college. Is there a college in Sunnyvale. "Of course, UC Sunnyvale. Very convenient," Gellar said. But she doesn't have a clue to what kind of vampires or villains she'll battle or what story lines will develop. Producer Joss Weadon "keeps everything very secret," she said. Gellar does know she'll be without co-star David Boreanaz, who moves on to star in Angel, his own vampire-battling series that will follow Buffy on the Tuesday-night schedule. "I'll miss him. David is a major support system. He remains a pal," she said. Gellar spent a week in June in the Dominican Republic as a volunteer with Habitat for Humanity, helping build homes for indigent residents. Her specialty? "I made a very good windowsill until someone stepped on it and I had redo it because it wasn't dry. "I learned how to lay floor and mix cement. I've never had callouses on my hands before. I guess I've never done an honest day's labor in my life. "Then I flew around this country being a bridesmaid in a bunch of weddings.

"There you have it -- How I Spent My Summer Vacation, by Sarah Michelle Gellar."