Men's Woman Kisses and Tells

The National Organization for Women (NOW) may want to dispatch one of its crusaders to the set of the WB's new "Sex and the City for gents" comedy Men, Women & Dogs. In the show's debut episode — airing Sunday at 8:30 pm/ET — surfer dude Eric (Niklaus Lange) french-kisses his loyal pooch Betsy, and before catching his breath, plants a sloppy one on his girlfriend Michelle (Heather Stephens). And if female viewers find that revolting, Stephens says the reality was far more eww-inducing.

"[Niklaus] had sardine oil and chicken-flavored baby food all over his mouth to make sure that the dog would lick him," the actress groans to TV Guide Online. "So, the dog licks him, he jumps into bed, pulls me in and I get a humongous mouthful of chicken and sardine-flavored baby food. It was pretty gross."

Given that Men, Women & Dogs is a one-camera sitcom, the director easily could have completed the sequence in two separate takes — thus allowing Lange to scope out some Listerine between busses. But Stephens was given no such reprieve. "There was no cut between them," sighs the relative newcomer, who played a librarian-turned-dominatrix in last summer's comedy flop Tomcats. "Maybe they wanted to torture me because I am the only girl on the show."

Truthfully, Stephens rather likes being the lone female in a cast that also includes MTV personality Bill Bellamy. "I'm like the 'guy's girl' anyway," she says. "I have more guy friends than I do girl friends, generally." Plus, the actress grins, "I get the make-up and hair room all to myself!"