BY MARY JANE FARMER

HERALD DEMOCRAT

VAN ALSTYNE -- Tuesday night will find Caleb Lane's Van Alstyne family glued to a television set. Lane, who was born when his family lived in Van Alstyne, is appearing on the new ABC series, "The Forgotten."

Lane is the grandson of Sonny and Calinda Lane, Van Alstyne long-timers, who are "Mimi and PaPaw" to their grandchildren, and the nephew and cousin to David and Laurie Ortel and their children, Carly and Laney. His two younger brothers have not followed in his footsteps but have chosen careers of their own.

Lane lived in Van Alstyne during his toddler years; then his family moved to Aubrey, where he graduated from Aubrey High School. It was during those high school years, he said, that he developed his interest in modeling. His mother, Beverly Diane Lane, worked and encouraged him all along, and his dad, Robbie Lane, was one "super cool dad," he said.

"It (modeling) was my idea initially," said Lane. "I heard a recording on the radio about a search for talent. I was probably 15 or 16 years old at the time. My dad took me to Sherman and the preliminary first round. It was kind of a rip-off."

But he was hooked on the idea of modeling as a career. "My mom was always there to push me, when I starting doubting or getting lazy about the whole thing," he said.

After graduation, Lane told his grandmother Mimi that he had a portfolio made and he thought it would be good. About a week later, an agency called him to New York, she said.

He ended up moving to New York. Unfortunately, it was after his mother passed away.

Since then Lane has been modeling around the world. It wasn't long before he found himself on the Milan runway. He has modeled for Guess, Calvin Klein, Armani, Kenneth Cole, Levis, and American Eagle, and has appeared in Vogue, In Style, W, FHM, GQ, and other high-fashion magazines. He has traveled to Mexico, Spain, France, Italy, and many other nations.

One photo shoot required him to appear in black toenail polish and have his ears pierced. He wiped off the polish and let the piercings grow back, he said. If that's required again, he's willing, but again he'll go back to just being himself when it's over.

He spoke with awe in his voice about one particular shoot that resulted in Lane's being on the cover of a major magazine. The photographer was David LaChappelle, who he called the best concept photographer around.

It's the trips back home, he said, that keep him grounded.

"I try to get home at least twice a year and spend time there," Lane said. "I can go out into the world, and be able to come home and just recharge and be around people who know me, where there's no pressure to be anything special."

It is family who continues to give him the confidence to go out into the world, "like they gave me in the first place."

His return trips aren't just to his dad's house. He always makes time to go to Van Alstyne and spend time with Mimi and Papaw. Once, Calinda said, he surprised her with a visit, and it was during a time when she was down in the back. Lane, and the friend traveling with him, went to the grocery store and purchased a variety of fish, cooked it all up, and served it, pampering her and Papaw with incredibly good and healthy food and by sharing his laughter and tales with them.

That friend who has stuck with him over the years is Daniel Gonzales, a jui jusu instructor. Both Gonzales and Lane were inducted into the Brazilian Jiu Jusu Hall of Fame earlier this year.

Lane talked about the jump from modeling to acting. The character Lane is portraying on "The Forgotten" is named Daniel Harris. Without giving away the storyline, he said the character is the boyfriend of the girl who was killed months earlier and the only one who has kept up a search to determine what happened. It's a part of his recovery process. But, more he couldn't elaborate on.

The segment was shot at the Warner studio in Los Angeles on a variety of sets within the building. It took about three weeks to wrap up the segment, prep, shooting, and post, he said, but his portion was completed in about two days. He will be watching the show for the first time with his family Tuesday night.

Acting is part of the training for models, at least in the New York circuit. One of the acting coaches said about five years ago, Lane remembered, that he seemed to be a natural and that he needed to be acting full time.

"She gave me the confidence to go forward," he said . "It's a natural progression for models to go into the acting world.

About getting the television part, Lane said he flew to Burbank for the audition, and got the role because "the stars were aligned ... it was the right part at the right time."

He has done some independent theater roles, but this is the first television role with its bigger audience and notable actors, and his "representation" believes it's a good starting point for him.

Lane said it will be a bit nerve racking, watching this show with his family and friends there, and at that Calinda spoke into the phone, which was on speaker mode during the interview, and said, "Remember, you will have your Mimi there."

Modeling and acting can go both ways, as far as industry friends go. "My first agent told me, 'When you start to believe your own hype, you are in trouble.' I've always been pretty aware, even in the beginning, that most people are really driven and serious. Just super cool dudes."

Lane is a world traveler, working with top names in fashion, print, and photography, but he believes he has remained grounded. "Sooner or later, you still have to wake up in the morning and do the next daily thing," he said. "It's still a job, I'm still a person.

"It (modeling and acting) is whatever you make it. There are people who go down that shady road, but there's also a lot of really good, talented people who get there with morals intact," Lane said. Those are the ones in his core group.

"If we keep it in the family, everybody will support each other," he said. "Success runs in circles and we try to keep it tight and supportive as possible. I was really lucky to run into a lot of these people along the way.

Occasionally, Lane has found himself now giving help to new people. "I try to be honest and straight-forward," he said. "I don't want to inflate their concepts or deflate them either."

Acting, compared with modeling, has more long-term career potential. "It's more of a craft, a skill." It's a craft he takes seriously, Calinda said.

Sonny said that at his grandson, Caleb, played soccer at 5 years old, and baseball and football in high school. He has a black belt in Jiu Jitsu. He taught himself to read at 5 years old, before schools taught reading in kindergarten. Sonny added that Caleb loved to ride horses, until he fell off one.

It should be quite a family homecoming Tuesday night. The Lanes and Ortels will be at Caleb's dad's house in the Aubrey area.

"My family is a pillar of love, really good source of love and hope. They are always there. I think a lot of why my brothers and I are what we are is credited to them."

Tuesday night's segment of "The Forgotten" follows "Dancing With The Stars" on ABC television channels.