"Don't listen to [Lynne Thigpen]. She's lying" about her geography skills, [Greg Lee] said in a later conversation. The campy playfulness and mutual respect help make the show work, Thigpen playing the gruff boss and Lee the eager beaver.

Don't expect Lee to say that, in character or not. As host of ESPN's "Max Out," he recognizes that messing with Thigpen would be a very extreme sport. "At the first press conference, they said, `Greg, you need to act like you're afraid of her.' I said, `I am afraid of her. It's not acting, it's real.' "

PHOTO; PHOTO-COLOR; Lynne Thigpen is "The Chief" on Carmen Sandiego."; Lynne Thigpen and Greg Lee (foreground) with members of the a capella group Rockapella.; WHERE IN THE WORLD IS CARMEN SANDIEGO?