MODERN CLASSIC

Ferguson garnered five Emmy nominations for his portrayal of Mitchell Pritchett on ABC's Modem Family.

HOW JESSE AND MITCH ARE ALIKE—OR NOT

"He's basically a version of me. When I auditioned, I just sort of came in as myself and offered that as a version of Mitchell. He's probably more intelligent than I am. He's a lawyer. I didn't even take college."

RELATIONSHIP HOW-TOS

"I think [Mitch] is a really caring father," says Ferguson. "I hope to be as good as he is." He also learned a lot from working with his TV spouse, Eric Stonestreet (Cameron). "It was a very col-laborative process that had to be a lot of give and take," he recalls. "I think those tools helped me in my real relationship when that came around."

FAMILY DYNAMICS

"The hardest part about ending the show was not seeing these people who really became my second family." But the cast remains close. Ed O'Neill, patriarch of the Pritchett family, accidentally called Ferguson recently. "It was like my dad checking in. He butt-dialed me and I answered, because that's what a son would do." His TV sister, Julie Bowen, touches base often to see how he's doing with baby Beckett.

UNIVERSAL APPEAL

Ferguson loved that Mitch and Cam resonated with gay and straight viewers alike. "I loved when straight couples would come up to us and a husband would say, 'My wife is such a Mitch and I'm such a Cam.' They really related to these two people."

WILL THERE BE A SPINOFF FOR MITCH AND CAM?

"It would have to feel really special and different than Modem Family," Ferguson says. "Eric and I are certainly open to the idea, but we're letting the writers figure out if that's exciting to them. If they feel there's more to tell, then I'm willing to listen."