

Eddie McClintock and Saul Rubinek are a two-man laugh riot the minute you get them on the phone together.

When quizzed who was the prankster on “Warehouse 13,” Syfy’s hit summer series, Rubinek was quick to point a finger at McClintock. However, the man who brings Artie to life each week wouldn’t shed light on McClintock’s more notorious pranks.

We all like each other which is a relief since weve signed a long-term contract because, God, it could have been hell,” Rubinek told reporters in a recent conference call with news outlets including Airlock Alpha. “But we all really like each other. Weve become a family and as a result we joke around a lot — and some of what we do to joke around ends up on the screen every week.

McClintock added that due to the long hours filming the show, We definitely try and keep it light and keep things from getting too tense on set. Just because the … show, it can be tense because youre under a lot of pressure to get things done.

Between the pranks, jokes and good-natured ribbing, some of it must come across on screen.

Weve heard a lot of comments coming from the fans is: Do you guys have as much fun on the set, as it looks like youre having? Were really glad that that comes across,” Rubinek said. “We certainly have a good time, and the shows that I like on television, you get that feeling from the people doing it.

Thus, if you think the cast of Warehouse 13 is having a little too much fun in some of those hilarious scenes that make it into the show each week, you are probably right.

As to what to expect from the upcoming Christmas special and the third season, without spoiling too much, Rubinek did share once again that “Taxi” star Judd Hirsch will make an appearance as Arties dad and that there may be a blossoming romance between Artie and Dr. Vanessa Calder, portrayed by “Bionic Woman” Lindsay Wagner.

The Christmas episode will not resolve the Season 2 cliffhanger with Myka (Joanne Kelly) leaving the warehouse. Instead, that will be addressed in Season 3.

It is going to be resolved in a way that is intriguing, surprising and mystifying, Rubinek said

Another nice tid-bit that was revealed was that Syfy deliberately sought to lure in the female audience when it created Warehouse 13.

I think that that was part of the tactic by Syfy last year when they did the re-brand –they realized that its always better to broaden your demographic as a network,” McClintock said. “They wanted to let people know that the Syfy channel was girl-friendly.

And because of that, “Warehouse 13” has attracted more female viewers than any other show in the cable channel’s 17-year history, he said.

“They did a great job in illustrating that this particular show is not just for guys and not just for Syfy fans,” McClintock said. “They’ve set the stage for their shows that are now starting — that the Syfy channel is not [just] about aliens and space.

If the ratings are any indication, Syfy has been paying attention. They wanted that coveted and elusive female demographic because science-fiction is not just a boys’ club anymore — its a girls’ club, too.

Warehouse 13 returns with its Christmas episode in December and then returns next summer for its third season on Syfy.

Story was edited 10/14/2010 to correct a portion of the story that inaccurately stated that Myka’s actions at the end of Season 2 would be resolved for the Christmas episode. Instead, it will be resolved in Season 3, according to Syfy.