It's pretty embarassing when you ask a big star like David Duchovny about his new television show and can't even pronounce the title: "Californication."
"Calif... Cal...Californiacation," I say lamely.
He isn't letting me off the hook: "Yeah, you can say it."
Finally, I do manage it: "Californication."

the 12 episode Showtime series, which airs on Monday nights, debuted in August and has already been renewed for a second season. Duchovny is Hank Moody, a troubled novelist whose move to Los Angeles and problems with his job complicate the relationships with his ex-girlfriend and daughter.
It marks Duchovny's first series since "X-Files" finished its long run on FOX five years ago. The two shows could not be more different: "I think it's a very emotional, very funny show and sometimes very dark and edgy and sexy. It's got everything," he says of "Californication." "On cable you can do a lot more than you can do on network, it's a different approach."
Moody is a departure from FBI Agent Mulder who he played for eight seasons as well as in a feature film. In the first episode of "Californication," Duchovny's character has oral sex performed on him by a nun in a dream sequence. This led to some protests over that and other explicit scenes.
"The character is very different [from Mulder] but I don't get naked that much. But the first couple of episodes there was some nudity."
To get us hooked?
Duchovny: "That was the idea. Not my idea."

Duchovny and I spoke at the Outfest Legacy Awards Thursday night where he and Marlee Matlin ("The L Word") teamed up to present Showtime head Robert Greenblatt with an award. Before making his remarks, Greenblatt decided to show a clip from "The Larry Sanders Show" where Duchovny seems to be coming on to Larry. That spot and a memorable appearance on "Sex and the City" as Carrie Bradshaw's high school boyfriend were both quite memorable.
"I think that I choose my guest spots wisely so maybe that has something to do with it," he says. "It would have been nice to have an ongoing thing [with Carrie] but the show was just ending at that point."
So what about reprising the role in the upcoming "Sex" movie now shooting in New York?
"I think there's a lot of other guys ahead of me..."
It's just as well. Duchovny has plenty of other things keeping him busy professionally: "'Things we Lost in the Fire' is coming out in a couple of weeks with Halle Berry and Benecio del Toro and then I'll go do the "X-Files" movie in December, we'll start shooting then."