Arm-wrestling champ goes over the top on Glee

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This article was published 10/11/2010 (5816 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

FRESNO, Calif. — Years of throwing the shot put and professional arm wrestling left California State University, Fresno grad Dot-Marie Jones with a bum right shoulder. It got so bad, Jones was scheduled to have surgery in January to place a metal cap on her humerus.

She cancelled the hospital visit when her hand started to itch.

“Every time my palm itches I book a job,” Jones says. “It was driving me nuts, so I knew I needed to postpone the surgery.”

Two days later, she was cast in an episode of the cable series HawthoRNe, which turned into a five-episode arch. While shooting the series, Jones got a call from her agent: Ryan Murphy, the man behind Glee, wanted to know if she would be available in mid-July.

Murphy, who previously cast Jones in Nip/Tuck and the TV pilot Pretty Handsome, wanted Jones for a recurring role on his Fox series Glee. She was cast as Coach Shannon Beiste, who takes over McKinley High’s football team when Coach Ken Tanaka (Patrick Gallagher) has a nervous breakdown.

“They guaranteed me I would be in five of the first 13 episodes and I’ve already been in six of the nine shows shot for this year.”

This week, she has a big storyline with Clovis East High School grad Chris Colfer.

“I had heard Chris was from Clovis,” Jones says. “When I told him I went to Fresno State, he was excited.”

Jones transferred to Fresno State in 1984 after spending two years at Modesto Jr. College. She’d only been out of high school a year when she entered — and won — her first arm-wrestling competition. The six-foot-four Jones went on to be a 15-time World and six-time National arm-wrestling champion.

Jones went to work at the Fresno County Juvenile Hall after graduating from college. She got involved in acting after meeting Shirley Eson, who played Sky on American Gladiators, and auditioned for the 1992 competition series Knights and Warriors.

Soon, Jones was facing down competitors as Lady Battleaxe. That led to roles on Married With Children, Roseanne, Birds of Prey, Lizzie McGuire and other TV shows.

As for Glee, there was never a question of whether Jones could handle the acting part. The big question was her musical skills.

“I can sing,” Jones says with a laugh. “I’m no Mariah Carey, but I can carry a tune.”

She’s been told Coach Beiste will have to belt out a number sometime this season. If given the choice, Jones would sing something by Heart, her favourite band — even though she’d be nervous about doing the tunes justice.

Singing or not, Jones considers the Glee role one of the best she’s ever had.

“I was so happy to get a character with so much depth. She’s tough on the outside but has this huge emotional heart. It’s really a fantastic role,” Jones says. “I think what happens with this character is going to surprise a lot of people.

“I know I’m the luckiest person in this town because there are 5,000 behind me waiting to get a role like this and behind them are 5,000 more.”

— McClatchy Newspapers