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SWEET DAVID JAMES

HANGIN' WITH THE 'JAG STAR

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By Alan Carter

''I was watching some courtroom show,'' says actor David James Elliott, ''and this guy came in playing a judge, and he was shirtless. In his chambers! It was sooo exploitative.''

These days, Elliott, 35, is doing a little exploiting of his own -- starring in NBC's JAG as a military attorney who's been aerobicized to within an inch of his briefs. ''I stay in shape,'' admits the 6'4'' Toronto native, ''but the show is about something.'' What it's about is naval crime solving -- but the series is giving Elliott a chance to exercise a few navel maneuvers, too. Take that promotional JAG poster, for instance: It shows the actor, biceps bulging, in a glistening black wet suit, stepping out of a frothy surf. ''The poster does say, 'Sleep with this man!' '' Elliott admits, laughing.''But it could have been worse -- I could have been in a Speedo.''

So far the beefcake is selling like hotcakes: With JAG doing well in the ratings, Elliott is holding his own against CBS' venerable Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman. And it isn't his first big splash on the tube: Last season, he locked horns with Seinfeld's Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) as Carl, the anti-abortion moving guy; tormented country star Dottie West (Michele Lee) as her alcoholic second husband in the CBS biopic Big Dreams & Broken Hearts; and, most prominently, played a bed-hopping jock intent on scoring with Alison on Melrose Place. ''That show is a cartoon, with one-dimensional characters,'' Elliott says. ''But it was such a blast. I got to be like Snidely Whiplash.'' Fox execs liked what they saw, offering the classically trained Elliott a development deal. ''But Jag came along, and I'm a risk taker,'' he says. ''I've never made choices based on money -- I always trust my gut.''

When Elliott's not at work-''and it seems to take, like, 200 hours a week''-he unwinds by reading (including JAG primers such as Peter Arnett's Live From the Battlefield, and The Naval Officers' Guide), playing golf, and hanging out at his L.A. home with his wife, actress Nanci Chambers, and their 2-year-old daughter. ''I've always been fairly reserved and laid-back,'' he explains. ''What do you expect? I'm Canadian!''

But now he's in Hollywood. And being touted as the next Tom Selleck. Does that mean he's going to turn up soon on a beach in Hawaii, stripped down e la Magnum? ''Why not? Whatever it takes to make the show work,'' Elliott says. Skin diving, anyone?