Eric Dane, seen here leaving STK restaurant (where he dined with his actress wife Rebecca Gayheart) in Hollywood on Monday, recently talked about his Grey's Anatomy character, Mark Sloan, and his nickname "McSteamy."

"I believe the name became very popular because Patrick Dempsey's character, Derek Shepherd - McDreamy - was already so popular, and I was a counterpart to him so it automatically sort of arose in the atmosphere," he said.

Eric Dane: McSteamy to the extreme-y. Sorry, that was lame.

"I don't mind it, in fact it has changed my life. I haven't seen the downside to this nickname yet. McSteamy has been good to me so far."

It's been good to Grey's Anatomy fans to, we dare to say.

Steve Marsi is the Managing Editor of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Google+ or email him here.