Acting is in the blood of True Blood' cast member Carrie Preston

By RICK BENTLEY - McClatchy Newspapers

When journeyman actor Carrie Preston was hired for the cast of the HBO vampire series "True Blood," she knew her role was to provide the comic relief.

You can see what Preston did with the role of Arlene during the first season of "True Blood," which came out on DVD Tuesday. (And when the second season of the show starts June 14 on cable channel.)

Pay particular attention to the first-season finale, where Preston's role goes way beyond being a comic relief.

A huge chunk of the first season of "True Blood" - when it was not dealing with vampire lust, shape-shifting and bar fights - dealt with a murder mystery. It is Preston's character who ends up being a key figure in that storyline, which resulted an uncharacteristic heavy emotional moment.

"It was a very emotional episode. But, it was really great to be given that task and responsibility. I was responsible for the gravitas of the situation," Preston says during a telephone interview.

Read on