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STAftLOG Movie Magic presents RCH #363

REAPER JCK GALACTICA TOM HOLTKAMP'S COMICS & STORIES RMINI^' rHS SARAH COIMNO S7.99 U.S. & CANADA Tomorrow's V today "09128"43033' COMfA/G Send orders to: ORDER INFO STARLOG GROUP, INC. or order online: 7.99 1 560 Broadway SPOCK figure $1< X Suite 900, 9th Floor MnAi.starlog.com/store , NY 10036 ANDORIAN figure $1"7.99 X subtotal Name + shipping & handling-* Address + 8.25% NYS Sales Tax*** 'OS, TOTAL

"•SHIPPING INFO U.S.: S5.00 1st item, S2.00 ea. additional. INTL; S11.00 City- state Zip. USD 1st item, $4.00 USD ea. additional. * * 'SALES TAX Applicable to NY State residents only. Daytime Phone*:. PAYMENT INFO Email*: CARD # NOTE: Phone number & email will only be used if there is an issue with VISA MASTER 08 processing your order. No salesman will call. EXP CARD ROMULA/i/ NUMBER 363 • MARCH 2008 • THE UNIVERSE

DARK-RED DETECTIVE Vampire private eye Aiex O'Loughiin THE PREDATOR BROTHERS sleutlis in Moonlight Greg & Colin Strause direct the attack YVONNE STRAHOVSKI REPORTS She debriefs re: being undercover with IN SEARCH OF THE LOCH NESS MONSTER Scribe Robert Nelson Jacobs NEW AMSTERDAM DAYS rides The Water Horse This cop seems like he has been around forever TASTE THE BLOOD OF SWEENEY TODD cuts up with a Demon Barber IS THIS JOURNEYMAN'S END? Kevin ivicKidd knows not what the INSIDE THE SPIDERWICK CHRONICLES future hoids Creators Tony DiTerllzzi & Holly Black speak out 30 SF-TV SECRETS REVEALED! MAGICKS FOR SALE The Time Tunnei rearranged history weekly They shop at Mr. Magorium's wonder Emporium

34 THE NEW SARAH CONNOR 76 CAPTAIN PICARD, DR. DOLITTLE & ME 30O's Lena Headey takes up the battle Samantha Eggar talks of Treks & troubles

38 THIS YEAR'S 82 ON THE CASUALTY LIST 's Summer Clau is the latest model Rick Gonzalez keeps getting hurt on Reaper

43 TOM HOLTKAMP'S COMICS & STORIES 87 DEATH FLIGHT OF THE VIPER PILOT Here's what STARLOG wanted to see—again Jennifer Halley isn't sure she'll survive Caiactica

Art: Tom Holtkamp/Originally Published in STARLOG #260, 1999 4 STARLOG/A)ore/i 2008 www.sfarlog.eom BECAUSE WE'RE TIRED OF WAITING FOR PARAMOUNT, WE HERE ATSTARL06 HAVE OECIDEP TO BRING you (AT V£Ry LITTLE EXPENSE)...

VJf RE HAI you failep to take stc 'EtA IT5(7\PrAfNSULU/.'f SAVEPi INTO ACCOUNT MY LOVE &mmQ£ AND KNOWLER&E OF BOTANY!

lMP05SIBC.E;you CANT HAVE ESCAPED THE BOR6IA PLANTS/

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HARP TIME 6eTTIN6 UP, CAPTAIN ? MOTHER PAV OF WELL, IT I COOLOA BEEN STOCK WE'RE APPROACHIN6 ANOTHER ,/ CATAL06IN6 GASEOUS COULP BE GASEOUS ANOMALY. PLANETARY WORSE... ^Jt S ANO/WALieS.

OF comse. paramount coulp probably come up with something even better IF they put their MINPS to it. so keep those letters C0MIN6 m, KIPS/

For more of TOM HOLTKAMP'S COMICS & STORIES, see page 43 STARLOG/Alflfc/i 2008 5 President ing info. Highly recommended. It's $250, THOMAS DeFEO but actually worth it! Publisher NORMAN JACOBS WHERE TO BE...... January 13 p.m.) & 14 (9 p.m.)??? In Assistant Publisher OGLm (8 RITA EISENSTEIN front of the TV for the two-part launch of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles Executive Art Director W.R. MOHALLEY QUOTE OF THE MONTH on Fox. Watch it if you want to live. "Why would we go out for pie, when you Editor DAVID MCDONNELL just brought us one?" THE LAST FAREWELLS —Lily (Swoosie Kurtz), Pushing The science fiction universe sadly salutes Art Director Daisies these fantastic talents who died recently. HEINER FEIL Bernard L. Kowalski (October) The Managing Editor STUPID DECISION TV director who helmed episodes of The ALLAN DART OF THE MONTH Wild Wild West, , Whiz Kids, Mission: Impossible, , Contributing Editors And the winner is. ..NBC! It seems kinda , ANTHONY TIMPONE short-sighted of the network to more or Banacek, The Untouchables and many oth- CINCOLD MICHAEL at the Roger Gorman TOM WEAVER less cancel : Origins before produc- ers. His career began IAN SPELLING tion could really begin on it. movie factory, directing (at age 28) Night of JOE NAZZARO the Blood Beast and Attack of the Giant WILL MURRAY FIVE OF OUR HEROES Leeches. Then there was SSSSSSS. (FAN- STARLOC CROUP, include Sir Arthur C. Clarke, the GORIA #41) A CREATIVE CROUP Company They greatest living SF writer in this universe. Ira Levin (November) The author of the JOSEPH V. AVALLONE, CEO And, we're proud to note, he's a STARLOG bestselling novels Rosemary's Baby, The Executive Assistants: Dee Erwine, Lizzie reader, too. Boysfrom Brazil and The Stepford Wives and Benbow, Meghan D'Anton. to The the hit play Deathtrap all eventually (and Technical Support: Steve Vallianos, Jesse The late Rod Serling, your guide — Thornton. Twilight Zone. successfully) filmed. Correspondents: (LA) Pat Jankiewicz, Dick Smith, makeup master. Patron saint Reg Park (November) Hercules in the Miller, Marc Shapiro, Bill Warren, Dan Yakir; (NYC) Dan Dickholtz, Mike McAvennie, Mau- to generations of makeup folks. Haunted World. (Chicago) Kim reen McTlgue, Keith Olexa; Frank Frazetta, the protean artist who Verity Lambert (November) The first Howard Johnson; (Phoenix) Bill Florence; life to countless heroic fantasies. producer of Doctor Who—and a pioneering (D.C.) Rhonda Krafchin; (Orlando) Bill Wilson; gave (Canada) Mark Phillips; (Booklog) Penny Kevin McCarthy, the man who fought British TV female producer (at the BBC in Kenny Jean-Marc & Randy Lofficler, Michael in real life, too. 1963!). After Who, she produced (for the Wolff; (Toons) Alain "borto." chaperon, Mike the Pod People. Courageous Fisher Tom Holtkamp, Bob Muieady; (Pho- BBC, London Weekend Television and her tos) Donn Nottage, Lisa Orris, Albert L. CONTRIBUTORS own Cinema Verity) such projects as The Ortega. BY OUR Rumpole the Thanks to: Bateman, Holly Black, Call him Tome Lucas!: Congratulations to Quatermass Conclusion, of Michael Broidy Tim Burton, Tra-MI Callahan, Video Watchdog publisher-editor (and Bailey, Reilly: Ace of Spies, The Naked Civil Nlkolaj coster-Waldau, Ana Maria Da velga, Creek. She also served Thomas Dekken Tony DiTerlizzi, samantha FANGORIA contributor) Tim Lucas, whose Servant and Jonathan Eggar Jamie French, Frank Garcia, Phoebe magnum opus Mario Bava: All the Colors of as executive producer of the movies Morons Classner Summer Clau, Suzanne Comez, to Outer Space, A Cry in the Dark and Nicole Gonzales, Rick Gonzalez, Erica Gray the Dark, everything you ever needed from Howard Green, Jennifer Halley Susan Hamp- know about Italy's premier horror-fantasy John Cleese's Clockwise. (STARLOG #319) shire, Donald Harron, Lena Headey zach director (but were afraid to ask), has Monty Westmore (November) One Helm, Dustin Hoffman, Robert Nelson fdm Jacobs, Shane KIdd, Lana Kim, David Man- arrived with a crash (literally). Begun 32 member of Hollywood's fabled makeup son, Mick Mayhew, Jim McKay Kevin McKIdd, years ago, it's a 12-pound, 1,128-page, maestro family dynasty—and brother to our Claire McNultv, Thomas Moore, Chris Neel- pal. makeup guru Michael. ley Alex O'Loughlin, Joanne Park, Andrew I. glossy-paper/ Porter Natalie Portman, Kathleen Prutting, hardcover/cloth- Monty's extensive credits over a half-centu- Rhodes Reason, Zuleikha Robinson, Laura MA.RIO BA bound/dust-jack- ry (as artist or supervisor) include Jurassic Salvato, Conor Sellers, Gillian Smith, Jerry ALL THE COLORS OF THE DARK Sohl, Ellis St. Joseph, Larry Stewart, Yvonne eted milestone in Park, Hook, What Ever Happened to Baby strahovskl, Colin & Greg Strause, Jeff walker genre publishing, Jane?, Strait-Jacket, Star Trek: First Con- Arthur Weiss, Karl Williams, Judy Yam. Cover Images: Sweeney Todd: Peter Moun- featuring quotes tact, Star Trek: Insurrection, The Shawshank tain/©2007 DreamWorks LLC & Warner Bros. from more than Redemption, : The Man of Entertainment. All Rights Reserved; Moon- the Grinch light; Joel David warren/©2007 Warner Bros. 100 Bava col- Bronze, Alien Nation and How TV. All Rights Reserved; Terminator: Jill leagues, 1,000- Stole Christmas. He was the first winner of creenberg/©2007 Fox Broadcasting Westmore Lifetime Achievement Company plus illustrations the George For Advertising Information: (most in color) Award (a makeup honor named after his (212) 342-8122; FAX (646) 723-2273 and a Martin grandfather, the family patriarch). Ad Director: Rita Elsenstein west Coast Ads: Robyn Faust, 2111 255th Scorsese intro- Bruce Gordon (November) The Disney Street, Lomita, CA 90717 (nimJi^licntyMARTIH SCORSESE fwefoJdfcyRICCARDO FREDA duction. Check Imagineer, production designer and show (424) 558-1523 Cel (310) 710-8146 producer who worked on numerous Disney FAX (310) 373-8760 Here's a new (and hefty) out www.bava international Licensing Rep: Robert J. volume for your STARLOG book.com for park projects (including revitalizing Tomor- Abramson & Associates, inc., 720 Post Road, details and order rowland). He also wrote several books on Scarsdale, NY 10583 Contributors Library!

INC., a CREATIVE CROUP STARLOG (ISSN 0191-4626 Canadian GST number: R-124704826) Is published monthly except for February & September by STARLOG GROUP, INC. This Is company 1560 Broadway Suite 900, 9th Fir, New York, NY 10036. STARLOG and The Science Fiction universe are registered trademarks of STARLOG GROUP part or in whole—includ- issue Number 353 iviarch 2008. Entire contents are copyright ©2008 by STARLOG group INC. All rights reserved. Reprint or reproduction in accepts no ing the reprinting or posting of articles and graphics on any Internet website—without the publishers' written permission is strictly forbidden. STARLOG they'll consid- responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other materials, but if submittals are accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope, be constraints, freelancer phone calls will not be accepted. STAR- ered and if necessary returned. Please do not call the editorial office re: this material. Due to time STARLOG, LOC does' not publish fiction. Fiction submissions are not accepted and are discarded without reply products advertised are not necessarily endorsed by mailing offices. Subscription and views expressed in editorial copy are not necessarily those of STARLOG. periodicals postage paid at New York, NY and additional directly STARLOG, Cre- rates- $56 97 one year (12 issues) delivered in U.S. only Canadian and foreign subscriptions $66.97 in U.S. funds only New subscriptions send to Dept., RO. 430, ative Group 1560 Broadway Suite 900, 9th Fir, New York, NY 10036. Notification of change of address or renewals send to STARLOC Subscription Box IL 61054-0430. Printed in U.S.A. l«lt Morris IL 61054-0430. POSTMASTER: Send Change of address to starlog subscription Dept., RO. Box 430, Mt. Morris,

6 STARL0G/A(ofc/i200S www.starlog.com —

$49.95). This art-inten- media flights in the provocative f-BAV LISTING: FOR. SAuE : Boomeraug sive volume explores the vs. Hollywood: How Fiendish Producers, 6MAPED LIKE A B/ecT.' A\AlJV crPH ER. BAT-RELATED life and times of the Devious ITEMS AT BAT-TASTIC Directors & Warring Writers friendly neighborhood Grounded an American Icon (Chicago PRICES.' CALL FOR. comics wall-crawler cre- Review Press, MORE IMFO, ASK tpb, $16.95, out next month). ated by (who From radio shows and FOR "R-MAUr* movies, cartoon shorts provides the introduc- and serials to multiple TV shows, it's a won- tion) and Steve Ditko. der that Superman ever survived his encoun- Saffel, by the way, began ters with some of the folks who made them. his career as Marvel's PR This volume includes new interviews. The guy, then edited Marvel foreword's by comics scribe Mark Millar. Age (recruiting Assistant Editor Lia Pelosi from FANTASY CALENDAR STARLOG to help) and Release dates are extremely subject to eventually became a book change and may shift without notice. editor at Del Rey. January: Cloverfield (1/18), Fanboys The Science of (1/18). (BenBella, tpb, $17.95), February: Jumper (2/15), The Spiderwick out this month, dissects Chronicles (2/15).

the various scientific March: 10,000 B.C. (3/7), Horton Hears a aspects of the Frank Her- Who (3/14), Wanted (3/28). bert SF saga. It's edited May: (5/2), Speed Racer (5/9), The by Kevin R. Grazer, the Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian Disneyland's wonders. For STARLOG, he science advisor for SCI FI's Battlestar (5/16), Indiana Jones and the Kingdom ofthe conceived and wrote the popular (and amaz- Galactica and Eureka. BenBella also has Crystal Skull (5/22), Starship Dave (5/30). ingly complex) /"The The Psychology of Superheroes (tpb, $17.95, June: Kung Fu Panda (6/6), The Happening Other Marty McFly" articles published in out March), edited by clinical psychologist (6/13), The Incredible Hulk (6/13), Wall*e #108, #154 & #170. A nice guy. Robin S. Rosenberg. It delves into various (6/27). mind-boggling matters (like would Super- July: Hancock {111), Journey 3-D (7/11),

BOOKS OF NOTE man still be such a nice guy if raised, not in Hellboy 2 1), The Dark Knight (7/18), X- old Marvel pal, Our Steve Saffel, has a Kansas, but in New York—ouch!). Files 2 (7/25). great new (and heavy) coffee table book Speaking of the Big Boy Scout, Jake August: The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon out Spider-Man: The Icon (Titan, he. Rossen chronicles the Man of Steel's multi- Emperor (8/1). www.megacoiivention.com

QON'

SPECIAL GUEST . Dylan Neal* Kyle Schmid* Jennifer Rhodes

Adnan June lockhart • Erin Gray • Jacic O'Halloran PaSdflr C:aitlln Glass • • Noel Neill from NBC's-Heroes" Robin Curtls •

Matthew Atherton • Cynthia Martinez • Jarrett Crippen

Knsty Swanson t/fark Sheppard 91m. Morgan Stieppard Peter Mayhew Dylan Neal

Buify the ]fainpiiE Skyer B'mic Woman, Finft/ Star Trek W SUr Wm Biood TJes IQingon Cmrmmkr" ...KEEP AN EYE ON OUR WEBSITE FOR MORE GUESTS TO BE ANNOUNCEDI ^inWJS aO^rUfjJs Uam^ijrj Brought to you by: IbiM Stt« THCBIBGESTEWNTOFirSKINDIN WlSOUTHEaSTEBN UNITED SnnS! FOR EXHIBITOR OR TICKET INFORMATION: £Af4/[email protected] or call.- 727-796-5725 SEQUELS/PREQUELS will helm the project, as now scripted by Craig Money) Wright. Sorry, Jay Garrick last! There's another X-Files movie! {Dirty Sexy At and Barry Allen (and you, too, Gordon), but Really \ Although some may feel that the wait has been so long that fans have ceased to this movie Flash looks to be Wally West. film's ring apparently care, production has begun on a second film Meanwhile, the now to Jordan {not Allan Scott, John (to be released July 25, 2008). The script's by goes Hal Stewart or Guy Gardner) to be Green Lantern creator Chris Carter and longtime X-hand mwm adaptation. Frank Spotnitz. David Duchovny and GiUian By DAVID MCDONNELL in the Warner Bros, co-script with Marc Anderson star in this «o«-mythology, stand- will direct as well as Green. alone story. Guggenheim and Michael Donald De Bruce {Nowhere Man) Greenwood will be producing. And the second? It's an expanded Line is producing. plays Captain Christopher Pike in J.J. Abrams' Star feature version of Burton's beloved 1984 short Max Headroom's Matt Frewer down- in Trek. The late Jeffrey Hunter played the char- "Frankenweenie." And this Frankenweenie on-his-luck evil mastermind Moloch the acter in Classic Trek's, original pilot ("The will be in stop-motion . Watchmen movie. Cage") with Sean Kenney subbing for him as Bruce Willis will star in the movie version the severely wounded Pike in scenes for the THE REMAKE CAME of the SF comic The Surrogates. reworked "The Menagerie" two-parter. Jennifer Connelly has nabbed the Patricia There are no deals for a director or cast yet, Winona Ryder will play Amanda, Spock's Neal role (Helen Benson) in the Day the but writer James {Zodiac) VanderbiU is signed Mom. Ben Cross is his father, the regal Sarek. Earth Stood Still remake. It started shooting to do a Spider-Man 4 screenplay. House's Jennifer Morrison is on board as last month in . young Carol Marcus. And Clifton Collins Jr. is Hellboy's Guillermo del Toro will write, CHARACTER CASTINGS Ayel, Nero's cohort. direct and produce a movie version of the The marvelous Jim Broadbent will play In the Underworld Universe, it's also pre- semi-obscure 1968-9 TV series The Champi- Potions Professor Horace Slughorn in quel time. Makeup FX master Patrick ons. They were a trio of humans who gained Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Also Tatopoulous will direct Underworld 3: The mysterious powers and fought evil. United new to the cast is Helen {The Queen) McCrory Rise of the Lycans from a script by fellow Artists will release it. as Narcissa Malfoy (mother to Draco and sis- Underworld vet Danny McBride. Bill Nighy, Alfred Molina and Hope Davis are starring ter of Bellatrix Lestrange). Michael Sheen and Rhona Mitra star. in that reimagining of The Lodger. James Purefoy will be Solomon Kane in Rome's Ray Stevenson is the new anti-hero Sir Anthony Hopkins will be father to The the long-brewing film version about Robert E. in Punisher: War Zane (now shooting, literal- WolfMan in the remake. Howard's Puritan adventurer.

ly). Lexi Alexander is directing a cast that Sky Captain's Giovanni Ribisi will deal includes The X-Files' Doug Hutchinson, COMICS SCENE with CG effects again—as part of Jim Bujfy's and Wayne (Jurassic Park) That didn't last long. Shawn (A Night at the 's Avatar. Knight. Museum) Levy is out as director of The

Vivendi Games is creating what amounts to Flash. Instead, David {Fred Claus) Dobkin GENRE TV 5 as a video game (due out on its Eliza Dushku is returning to SF TV—and Sierra label this fall). The story's by Dan CODE NAME: she's bringing with her. After Aykroyd & Harold Ramis (the duo who creat- CLOVERFiELD the two met for what was only to be an adviso- ed the concept and scripted both movies). And ry dinner, Whedon ended up creating a new Well, after months of also being known the featured voices (so far) include Bill Mur- series on the spot for his Bujfy star: . as "the untitled J.J. Abrams monster ray, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts, William And (without a pilot), the Fox network imme- movie," Cloverfield apparently is its title diately ordered seven episodes, so Whedon Atherton, Aykroyd and Ramis. after all. The top-secret project, produced by STARLOG reader Abrams, and veteran collaborator Tim Minear are back UPDATES features creatures from theTippett in business with Fox (despite Firefly). The Gerard Butler has escaped from the Studio and premieres January 18. If w series seems to be a mix of The Matrix, Escape from New York remake. The told you any more about it, we'd have t Alias, Mission: Impossible and Total kill you. Or let the really big tourists filmmakers are now trying to apprehend Recall. Dushku will play a "doll" named attacking NYC in this film do it for us. a new Snake. Echo, a superspy programmed with new Justin Bruening (of the TV soap personalities for different assignments. opera ) has picked up After every mission. Echo and her fellow the keys to the car. He's the new Knight dolls have their minds wiped, the better Rider—and (in a tantalizing bit of con- to begin anew next time. tinuity) the son of Michael Knight (the original show's David Hasselhoff) in FANTASY WORLDS this NBC TV movie/pilot. And yes, Peter Jackson and director Neill Hasselhoff may be in the cast, too. The Blomkamp were going to team on

female lead is Deanna {The Young and the Halo movie adaptation, but that did the Restless) Russo. not work out (due to studio budgetary Even though Tim Burton didn't concerns). Instead, they're doing an orig- know his next project (on page 66 this inal SF movie, District 9. Jackson pro- issue), he has, at presstime, settled on duces, Blomkamp directs. Weta will do his next two pictures. They'll both be 3- the FX for this Sony release shooting in D for Disney. Harking back to South Africa. Disney's earliest shorts (the Alice next directs The Imagi-

Comedies of the 1920s), the first will be narium of Doctor Parnassus, a modern a live-action/animation combo version fantasy that seems a bit like The Circus of of Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland. Doctor Lao. Gilliam and longtime col- The script's by Linda (Disney's Beauty laborator Charles McKeown scripted. and the Beast) Wolverton. Richard Christopher Plummer, Verne Troyer and Zanuck, Joe Roth and Jennifer Todd are Tom Waits star.

8 STARLOG/iUflfc/iW WRITERS' STRIKE time. Or not. REAPER The Writers Guild of America strike—still Airs Tuesdays on the CW. Last new ongoing at presstime—will impact JERICHO episode bows 1/8, but the CW promises almost all of these genre series. Some are Being resurrected by CBS as a mid-season the show will return later in the season. Rick going on early production hiatuses due to replacement (seven episodes). May re- Gonzalez stops by to talk on page 82. lack of complete scripts, thus seriously cur- turn as early as this month or February. tailing the number of new episodes. Expect THE SIMPSONS more . JOURNEYMAN Airs Sundays on Fox. It actually has plen- Airs Mondays on NBC. In danger of can- ty of new episodes in stock (about 10) to cellation. Kevin McKidd considers his weather the strike delays. Renewed for a fourth (and final) 22- time-lost odyssey on page 26. episode season by SCI FI. Scheduled to debut in April, but production is on hiatus KYLE XY Airs Thursdays on the CW. 1/10: Alaina now due to the writers' strike. Showrunner Second half (10 episodes) of its second Huffman guests as Black Canary. (and executive producer) Ronald D. Moore season premieres 1/14 on ABC Family is making his directorial debut on an episode Channel. Already renewed for a third season. ATLANTIS he scripted. Jennifer Halley reports in on Renewed for a fifth 20-episode season. page 87. LOST ^FourthI season shows air Fridays on SCI New season may debut in February on FI. BIONIC WOMAN ABC. Only eight episodes have been Airs Wednesdays on NBC. Ratings are produced thus far. Already renewed for two TERMINATOR: THE SARAH declining. In danger of cancellation. At more seasons. CONNOR CHRONICLES presstime, production is on hiatus due to the This spin-off series has been renamed, writers' strike. MEDIUM adding Terminator to its title. It pre- Returns at mid-season on NBC. Nine mieres 1/13 (Sunday, 8 p.m.), then moves

CHUCK episodes have been produced. the next day to its regular time slot, airing Airs on NBC. Renewed for the rest of the Mondays, 9 p.m. on Fox. This issue, Lena season (nine more episodes). Yvonne MOONLIGHT Headey (the new Sarah Connor) and Strahovski debriefs on page 18. Airs Fridays on CBS. Ratings are good. (the new Terminator named CBS ordered four more scripts. Alex Cameron) talk—on page 34 and 38 respec- DESTINATION TRUTH O'Loughlin chats on page 14. tively. Investigative series renewed for a second, six-episode TORCHWOOD season by SCI FI. The British series debuts on DVD this month. EUREKA Renewed by SCI FI for a third, 13-episode season, scheduled to bow this sum- SUBSCRIBER SERVICES Missing copies? Moving? Renewals? FLASH GORDON Receiving duplicates? Subscription questions? Write to: Airs Fridays on SCI FI. At STARLOG presstime, SCI FI hadn't Subscriber Services, RO. Box 430 yet announced its renewal. Mt. Morris, IL 61054-0430 Inquiries to editorial offices only delay matters. GHOST HUNTERS Renewed for another sea- NEW SUBSCRIBERS: son on SCI FI. The net- See subscription ad in this issue. Do send to above address. work has also ordered a spin- NOT money Attach Mailing Label Here off show. Ghost Hunters International, that will focus on a new investigative team's NAME paranormal searches set in . Scheduled to possibly premiere on NEW AMSTERDAM ADDRESS SCI FI as early as this month. lew series about an immortal detective is

I scheduled to debut 2/22 on Fox, airing HEROES Fridays, 9 p.m. Fox cut the episode order Airs Mondays on NBC. Ratings have from 13 shows to the seven already pro- CITY been declining. Heroes: Origins, the duced. STARLOG visits the set on page 22. planned spin-off series, has been axed before STATE ZIP.... production actually began for various rea- PUSHING DAISIES sons (writers' strike, fading ratings for orig- Airs Wednesdays on ABC. Renewed for inal show). It may be resurrected at another the rest of the season.

Dte: Airdates shift without notice. Airtimes are EST. Series are only listed for which STARLOG has new info. www.starlog.coni TV ON DVD various historical figures along the way. Bonus Mere we have on the one hand NASA pay- features this time include an interactive game ing the greatest honor; recently and timeline, plus "Historical Lecture: War and sending a lightsaber used in Return of the Jedi Revolution." Sorry, the dog ate my homework into space aboard the shuttle Discovery. (again). Chewbacca and Jedi Knights gave it a send- For a bit of TV history, there's Image Enter- off, and attended the launch. tainment's two-disc Tales of Tomorrow: Collec- The other hand... Well, that would be 20th tion Three ($24.99), 14 more "live" (give or take Century Fox (distributor of the Star Wars 50-something years) episodes of the SF anthol- films!) turning the space saga storyline over to ogy series from the medium's infancy. Guest the tender mercies of MacFarlane and the stars include Bruce {King Kong) Cabot, Joanne mm Rod Steiger, Burgess Meredith, gang, who spoofed it in their Woodward, ~" hour-long sixth-season opener "Blue Har- Leslie Nielsen, James Dean and horror legend vest." (The episode title derives from the code name used when Boris Karloff. What, no Bela Lugosi? Nope, but don't sing the lensing Return of the Jedi, but you knew that.) blues: He's well-represented in Infinity's Suspense: The Lost On January 15, "Blue Harvest" blasts off from Fox Home Episodes: Collection Two, more long-thought-lost segments of that Entertainment ($22.98) with Peter as Han Solo, Lois as Princess pioneering series. This set includes Bela's 1949 "A Cask of Amon- Leia, Chris as Luke Skywalker, Brian as Chewbacca, Quagmire as tillado," the Edgar Allan Poe tale updated to WWII Italy and fea- C-3P0, Cleveland as R2-D2 and Stewie finally embracing his dark turing Our Favorite Hungarian (as the fascist "General Fortunato") side (and soiling his diapers) as and, in a small supporting role, every- Darth Vader. The DVD features body's Favorite Martian, Ray Walston. four minutes of never-seen Our Favorite Humanoid Mass of Plant footage, an uncensored track, Life battles and evil threats in interviews with MacFarlane and : Complete First Season Lucas and more. For the true (Shout! Factory, $39.99). The four-disc set diehards willing to drop $34.99, includes 22 episodes, plus new interviews there's also a Special Edition with STARLOG favorite Dick Durock that includes collectible packag- (who played the comics hero) and Swamp ing, trading cards, a brochure, Thing co-creator Len Wein. 3-D glasses and a T-shirt. Also For nostalgically-inclined cartoon fans, featured (in both editions) will The All-New Super Friends Hour: Season be an advance peek at the series' One: Volume One (Warner Home Video, next Star Wars spoof, now tenta- $26.98) is a collection of superhero ad- tively titled "Something, Some- ventures featuring Wonder Woman, Super- thing, Something Dark Side." man, Aquaman, & Robin and May the Farce be with you! (But "guest shots" from Green Lantern, Hawk- you knew that!) man & Hawkgirl, Flash and Atom—plus Galactica 1980 (Universal, Black Vulcan and, of course, the legendary $29.98), the short-lived spin-off Apache Chief Who??? of the original Battlestar Ga- Speaking of Who... or should that be lactica comes to DVD as a two- Whom?. ..the Torchwood Three sets out to disc, 10-episode collection. The safeguard Great Britain from all things ter- original crew finds our world rifying and extraterrestrial in the Doctor and, with the Cylons closing in, Who spin-off series Torchwood. The seven helps Earth create the technolo- disc Complete First Season comes into our gy necessary for battle. From homes courtesy of BBC Warner on January the newer incarnation comes Battlestar Galactica: Razor, the 22. Sooner if you have a Tardis. Later if you ain't got the $79.98. two-hour special just seen on SCI FI in November which takes The lines between good and evil are blurred and loyalties are place (of course) "on the eve of a devastating Cylon attack." Also in challenged when the survivors of the crash become with attack mode are Universal publicists, hawking this $26.98 release the lives of Others in Lost: The Complete Third Season (Buena as an "Unrated Extended Edition"(?!) with "exclusive footage and Vista Home Entertainment, $59.99), seven discs and 23 more more action!" episodes, plus supplemental materials like secrets from the Others Did you leave space on your DVD shelf to the right of SeaQue- world and (according to the press release) "unprecedented access

st DSV: Season One when you bought it back in...ummm...2005? to the Ixist writers' room." If it's anything like the STARLOG writ- That's good, because coming in alongside the New Year is Season ers' room, watch out for all the teetering stacks! But you knew that! Two (Universal, $59.98), more futuristic oceanic adventure with Roy Scheider and the rest of the glug-glug gang. Remember to

leave room to the right of that for 2011 , but maybe the next set will WHEN ANIMALS ATTACK be here sooner than you think! For those who prefer less of a wait Giant crocs wreak more havoc in Ixike Placid 2, a semi-remake between their Season One-Season Two purchases, how's this: of, calling itself a sequel to, the Betty White-starring 1999 orig- Weird Science: The Complete Seasons One & Two, an 88-episode inal, with Cloris Leachman now appearing as her just-as-nuts sis- set from A&E Video, all in one swell foop ($44.95). ter, and unleashing four more 30-foot prehistoric beasties on That trio of celestial saviors (Roma Downey, Delia Reese, John unsuspecting lakefront visitors like John {The Dukes of Hazzard) Dye) dispatched from Heaven to inspire people facing crossroads Schneider—perhaps not the country's sharpest sheriff, since he in their lives are back in Touched By an : The Fourth Season: says he considers the gory events of the original flick nothing more Volume Two (Paramount, $42.99). Also from Paramount comes the than unsubstantiated rumor! Fox Home Entertainment is calling -starring Sabrina, the Teenage Witch: The Third this $26.98 release a "Special Unrated 'Gnawed Up' Version," and Season ($38.99) and The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Vol- amidst the added-value material are the featurettes "Sex, Guns and ume Two ($117.99), the latter a nine-disc set of episodes from the Croc-n-Roll" and "Surviving a Crocodile Attack." Did you (like action-adventure series following Indy's around-the-world exploits Sheriff Schneider) miss the David E. Kelley-scripted original? Opt as a boy and young man, learning life lessons and encountering for the Lake Placid Two-Pack ($32.98).

10 Smm/March2008 www.starlog.com ,

1 Underdog Ultimate Collection ($27.95), which not only includes the exploits of the peerless pup with the gift for The SCI FI Channel strikes (out) rhyme, but also the Go Go Gophers, Tennessee Tuxedo and again with Mammoth (Union Sta- others. tion/Starz, $14.98), an intentionally More cartoon animals make the home video scene in ridiculous actioner in which a well- Warner Home Video's extras-laden Looney Tunes Golden preserved Pliocene-era mammoth, Collection: Volume Five, available by itself ($64.98) or as kept in a block of ice in a natural his- part of the $324.98 Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Vol- tory museum in (where else?) umes One-Five. The 30-cartoon Looney Tunes Spotlight Col- Louisiana, is freed when a plummeting lection is also up to Volume Five (Warner, $26.98); hits the building, UFO and comes to is offering a Chuck Jones Collection ($14.98); life courtesy of the twin miracles of and the Walt Disney Treasures series resumes with Disney- "possession" by the space visitor and land: Secrets, Stories & Magic (self-explanatory, $32.99) low-level CGI. Vincent {The Invisible and the same-priced The Chronological Donald: Volume Man) Ventresca as the museum's nerdy Three (1947-1950)—which includes some cartoons in their curator is our hero, with as original widescreen format—and, from the silent era, The his UFO-logist dad seen in support. Adventures of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. Delving into What's older than prehistoric crocs archives not quite as dusty, Walt Disney Video's marvelous Pixar and mammoths? Dragons, as described in age-old myths. ..as seen Short Films Collection: Volume One is $29.99. It includes "Bound- in ancient art and sculpture. ..as represented by six goofballs in one in," "Geri's Game," "lack-Jack," "Luxo Jr." and others. long costume every Chinese New Year.. .and most recently seen raising hell in LA in the South Korean-U.S. Dragon Wars, new on DVD (and Blu-ray Hi-Def and UMD) from Sony Pictures Home DVDS IN BRIEF Entertainment ($28.95). The featurettes "5,000 Years in the Mak- The Last Sentinel (Echo Bridge Home Entertainment, $26.99): ing" and "Storyboard-to-Screen," a conceptual art gallery and col- An "electronically enhanced" soldier (Don Wilson) and a rebel lectible foil packaging (for those who collect foil) sweeten the deal. beauty (Battlestar Calactica's ) take part in a resis- Dragon, shmaggon! Can your hearts stand a shocking seven- tance movement in a future where drone police have become civi- movie onslaught by the King of Monsters? If so, seek out Classic lization's oppressors. Includes a "Making of and commentary. Media's box set The Godzilla Collection, with more than 20 hours Paprika (Sony, $26.96 DVD; $38.96 Blu-ray; PSP $26.96): Japanese anime-heml A machine which enables a person to enter Pixar's terrific "Boundin" is one another's dreams is stolen by a "dream terrorist." Can scientist of the shorts bounding onto DVp^ Chiba (codename Paprika) retrieve the apparatus and save the world from madness? Includes four behind-the-scenes featurettes. The Myth (Sony, $24.96): sets out to uncover a

missing Chinese tomb and royal treasure, and en route is plagued by a series of bizarre dreams. Sony tacks on a few treasures of their own: a "Making of," deleted scenes, Chan's first-ever full-length commentary and two music videos. Resident Evil: Extinction (Sony, $28.95): The third installment of the video game-based series follows genetically enhanced war- rior Milla Jovovich and her fellow survivors in new battles against flesh-eating zombies, killer crows ad nausecmi as they attempt to save Earth from a fatal virus. Includes deleted scenes, commentary and "Making of featurettes; also available on Blu-ray and UMD. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (Walt Disney Video, of content and bonus features starting with the original Gojira, plus $34.99): Has anyone heard of this movie? A two-disc Collector's the Americanized Raymond Burr-starring version, as well as Edition of the rollicking Johnny Depp-starrer. Bloopers, audio Godzilla Raids Again, Mothra vs. Godzilla, Ghidorah, the Three- commentary, featurettes (and lots more) are amongst the swag on Headed Monster, Terror of Mechagodzilla and more ($79.95). the DVD and also the same-priced Blu-ray.

Much smaller—but sometimes just as scary—cats have a back- Soylent Green (Warner): Out again! And Soylent Green. ..is peo- ground of macabre mythology, movie-wise most memorably in ple\ There! We just saved you $14.98! You're welcome. producer Val Lewton's 1942 classic Cat People. That fright flick, and nine other Lewtons, comprise the new edition of The Val Lew- ton Horror Collection (Warner, $59.92), re-released because of the addition of the new Martin Scorsese-produced and -narrated docu- mentary Val Lewton: Mem in the Shadows to the boxed set. Cat People shares a disc with its follow-up The Curse of the Cat Peo- ple, I Walked With a Zombie is paired with The Body Snatcher, Isle of the Dead with Bedlam, The Ghost Ship with The Leopard Man (another caV.) and The Seventh Victim with WHV's previously pro- duced doc Shadows in the Dark: The Val Lewton Legacy. Fortu- nately for owners of the previous set, the Scorsese doc will also be available as a single disc for $19.97. Can anyone save us from this menacing menagerie? Therrrre's no need to fear. Underdog is here from Walt Disney Video

($29.99). A live-action adaptation of the '60s cartoon series, it fea- tures the classic characters Polly Purebread, Simon Barsinister, Riff Raff and, of course, Underdog himself, formerly a beagle named Shoeshine until a lab mishap gave him superpowers and the power of speech. No sale? Then stick with the old animated show, available most affordably if you get Classic Media's three-disc

'imm/mmch2008 1 1 —

through the auspices of minor incidents. He A Companion to Wolves by Sarah Mon- tial of all its ideas isn't tapped. Hungry could a small cast of characters who are ette & Elizabeth Bear (Tor, he, 304 pp, very well become a tasty favorite of mother- creates allowing large amounts of plot to $24.95) daughter book clubs. capable of like Though the nominal plot of A Compan- —Penny Kenny flow through them. Reading this work is tsunami hit from the vantage ion to Wolves concerns a war between watching a office: intimacy dressed in and humans, the true heart of the tale is the The Morcai Battalion by Diana Palmer point of a small complex web of relationships that develops (Luna, he, 320 pp, $24.95) cataclysm. Or perhaps it's the other way as hero Isolfr telepathically bonds with the Humans and Centaurians must work togeth- around. wolf Viradechtis, becoming part of the all- er after the Rojok declare war on the galaxy. —Michael Wolff male and -wolf society of the wolf hall—and But a spy within their ranks and deep cultural alienating his father in the process. differences might end their alliance before it Nova Swing by M. John Harrison (Bantam,

Sex is an important part has truly begun. tpb, 272 pp, $16) Somewhere, somehow, Dashiell Hammett of this story—and it's sex Who knew Roman- a head-on collision with the Strugatsky between men—but it's nei- ce's Grand Dame could had novel. Vic ther voyeuristic nor filler. do SF? Palmer's The Brothers, and the result was this Flipping genteel fantasy Morcai Battalion—a "re- Serotonin is a burned-out citizen who lives in conventions on their heads, freshing" of a book pub- the city of Saudade. He offers his services as a the authors use the raw sex lished in 1980 under her guide to the Event Site: a place alien to human scenes—rather than those Susan Kyle pen name science and comprehension. A special police of combat—to illustrate offers space battles, unit works to intercept stumbling out of Isolfr's stuttering growth clones, cat-like aliens, the Site, and they have their eye on Vic. But a into a leader. prison gulags, psychic mysterious woman appears wanting access and, A Companion to Wolves abilities and the slightest as the genre usually goes, her influence over- isn't a book for everyone, hint of romance. The steps that of the cops. in it is compelling. action is nonstop, the cul- Harrison's prose is pure noir caught the Lbut —Penny Kenny tural background intrigu- glare of a nuclear explosion. It's the sort of ing and the male thing that others have tried before, but Harrison — The Dragons of Babel by What lemjtb.i willynn ijf to characters fascinating. makes it work and bends it to his personal for your honor anil for (he Uwc of your m>lf/ Michael Swanwick (Tor, Unfortunately, main vision. All the elements are here, and SARAH MONETTE he, 320 pp, $25.95) heroine Madeline has to the reader can almost hear the whining saxo- and ELIZABETH BEAR Tlie Dragons of Babel is be stupid for much of the phones as we follow Serotonin and the other a smart, stark steampunk plot to work. Overall, characters through their paces. This is an enter-

fantasy. It's gritty and magical and, in sensibili- however. The Morcai Battalion is an engaging taining first visit to an old school.

ty, is similar to Neil Caiman's Neverwhere and opening volume for this trilogy. —Michael Wolff MirrorMask. —Penny Kenny

Its "hero" Will is forced to leave his Faerie Dragon Harper by Anne McCaffrey & village after serving as a reluctant lieutenant for Axis by Robert Charles Wilson (Tor, he, Todd McCaffrey (Del Rey, he, 320 pp, a war-dragon. And while Will ultimately slays 304 pp, $25.95) $25.95)

the dragon, he can never escape the taint it Wilson's earlier novel. Spin, read as if the A mysterious plague is sweeping across leaves in his mind. As his destiny leads him word "sequel" had specifically been invent- Pern, decimadng the Holds' young-adult

toward the cacophony that is the Tower of ed for it, and here he picks up the promise. population. Unless a cure is found, the Drag- Babel, a colorful cast of characters that includes Humans are colonizing onriders will be next, leaving

con artists and a high-born Elven Lady gives the distant planet that the planet vulnerable to the shape to his future. Original and dashing. The was set up for them by next Threadfall. Dragons of Babel is a breath of fresh air the mysterious Hypo- We've seen this all through the fantasy section. theticals and is connect- before. The plague plot is a —Penny Kenny ed via the enormous follow-up/reworking of Arch. But smaller sto- Dragonsblood, while the Hungry by Alethea Eason (Eos, tpb, 208 ries puiictuate this larg- time travel and its paradoxes pp, $16.89) er one. Lisa Adams and have become standard Pern Eleven-year-old Deborah is good at Turk Findley are inves- accoutrements. But what math, music and sports, has a cute boy friend tigating the disappear- keeps Dragon Harper from

who celebrates 3 1 days of Halloween and is ance of Lisa's father on being simply a collection of plagued by an annoying brace-faced rival. the new world. Their Pern's greatest hits are the

Normal, right? Except Deborah is also a can- cooperation comes characters. The McCaffreys nibalistic alien and part of an Invasion Earth about as the planet is excel at creafing ordinary

mission. But when her parents tell her she'll being bombarded by heroes whom you can relate have to eat her best human friend, Deborah Hypothetical Nan to and root for. While the rebels. machines. Soon, what people here lack the vivid In the girl-eat-girl world of tweens, Hun- was once a minor mys- personalities of the charac-

gry is bound to strike a chord. Eason tery blossoms into a ters in earlier Pern novels, employs a light touch as she tackles issues of planetary-sized one. readers will still get caught up in their enter- individuality, status and family relationships Wilson has a great talent for taking cos- training travails.

in a comic SF setting. Though the full poten- mic-level storylines and letting them unfold —Penny Kenny

12 STARLOG/Alflfc/i 200« Murder at Yard. But the F@niJ06 late is best known for his early portrayal of that avenging coiffeur, Sweeney Todd: The column showcases web- This Demon Barber of Fleet Street. sites for SF, fantasy, comics todslaughter.125mb.com & anirnation creators and their creations. Websites are listed for ROBERT J. SAWYER PAGE free entirely at STARLOG's dis- Sawyer is one of only seven cretion. Site operators may nom- writers in history to win all three inate their sites for inclusion by of the world's top science fiction sending relevant info via e-mail awards for best novel of the only to year: the Hugo, the Nebula and allan.dart @ starloggroup.com the John W. Campbell Memorial Award. If you want to know TIM BURTON WEBSITE more about the SF scribe, After the one-two twisted punch Flashfoward to of Charlie and the Chocolate www.sfwriter.com Factory and Corpse Bride, the unconventional Burton brings THORNE SMITH WEBSITE his maverick moviemaking to a Smith's stories are full of wit, new genre: the musical! The satire, whimsy and sexual innu- director teams up with Johnny endo, his most famous being Depp once again in Sweeney Topper (made into a movie with Todd: The Demon Barber of Gary Grant and Constance Fleet Street. Swing your razor Bennett) and "The Passionate high at Witch" (filmed as / Married a www.timburtoncollective.com Witch with Fredric March and Veronica Lake). Discover more THE SPIDERWICK of his hidden treasures at CHRONICLES BOOK SITE STEPHEN SONDHEIM SITE THE SPIDERWICK members.tripod.com/ Holly Black and Tony One of the greatest and best- CHRONICLES MOVIE SITE ~JCHOMA/THORNE.html DiTerlizzi's beloved children's known artists in American musi- Nick Nolte, Freddie Highmore,

• book series tells the story of cal theater, Sondheim is the Sarah Bolger, David Strathairn, PETER DAVID WEB PAGE three youngsters—Mallory, composer and/or lyricist of A Mary-Louise Parker, Martin This screenwriter-author enjoys Jared & Simon Grace—who go Funny Thing Happened on the Short, and Joan The Knight Life, has penned in pursuit of Arthur Way to the Forum, West Side Plowright are just some of the multiple Star Trek and Babylon 5 Spiderwick's Field Guide, and Story, Gypsy, A Little Night bringing the Spiderwick novels and contributed to the

encounter , and Music and Follies. Now, his characters to life on the big universe. Next up is magical adventure along the Demon Barber of Fleet Street, screen. Learn more about direc- a novelization of the Iron Mem way. Sweeney Todd, is slashing his tor Mark {Mean Girls) Waters' movie. Find out what else he has www.spiderwick.com way onto the silver screen. film at in store at www.sondheim.com www.spiderwickchronicles www.peterdavid.net KEVIN McKIDD SITE .com Fresh from the swirling (and TERMINATOR: VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM incredibly bloody) politics of THE SARAH CONNOR TOD SLAUGHTER SITE OF THE SEA SITE ancient Rome, the Australian CHRONICLES SITE The Titan of Terror. The Master Fans are ecstatic that they can actor has quantum-leaped to Sarah Connor (Lena Headey) of Melodrama. Slaughter was finally Sea Irwin Allen's fantas- modern . There, he and her savior son John (Thomas "the most lovable multi-murder- tic Voyage on DVD. Relive the keeps jumping around, in and Dekker) try to take back the er on the British stage," and star adventures of the nuclear sub- about recent times as Journey- future in this new TV series set of such low-budget flicks as marine, the SSRN Seaview, at man. Learn of the man and his after the events of T2. Judgment Murder in the Old Red Barn, this web page. You can get to the odysseys at Day is near at The Crimes of Stephen Hawke, Bottom of things at www.kevinmcliiddonline.com www.takebackthefuture.com The Face at the Window and www.iann.net/voyage

CONVENTIONS Questions about cons? Send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to the con's address. Do NOT con- Safely Harbor, PL 34695 tact STARLOG. Note: Listed guests may }u)i appear and cons may be cancelled without notice. FEBRUARY wvvw.niegaconvention.com Conventioneers: Send info (with phone number and e-mail address) no later than three months prior FANCORIA'S WEEKEND OF Guests: Adrian Pasdar, , Peter to the event to STARLOG Con Calendar, 1560 Broadway, 9lh Fir, Suite 900, NY, NY 10036 or HORRORS Mayhew, June Lockiiart, Robin Curtis, Noel e-mail [email protected] This is a free service. STARLOG makes no guarantees, due to February 22-24 Neill, space limitations, that your con will be listed. Erin Gray, Gil Gerard, Michael Golden, Wyndham Chicago O'Hare etc, Rosemont, IL Creation Guests: Robert Rodriguez, Jared Padalecki, VULKON JANUARY See earlier address Tom Savini, Donnie Dunnagan, Kane Hodder, March 14-16 FANCORIA'S Guests: Tom Savini, Adrienne Barbeau, Tony WEEKEND OF Tony Tiinpone Sheriiton North Hou.ston Timpone, HORRORS etc. Houston, TX January 18-20 OFFICIAL XENA CON Vulkon Entertainment Renaissance Austin Hotel January 25-27 MARCH P.O. Box 551437 Austin, TX Burhank Airport Marriott MECACON Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33355-1437 Creation Burbank, CA March 7-9 www.vulkon.com 1010 North Central, Suite 400 Creation Orange County Convention Center Guests: Avery Brooks, Anthony Montgomery Glendale, CA9I202 See earlier address Orlando, FL (818)409-0960 Guests: . Renee O'Connor, Ted MegaCon www.creationent.com Raimi, etc. P.O. Box 1097

wvyrw.starlog.com STARLOG/iMorc/i 13 It's Moonlight tme when Alex O'Loughlin patrols the shadows as LA's latest vampire detective.

Like many vampire sagas (bool

14 Smm/March 2008 v^rww.sfarlog.com writing every time. The more material you ^ read, the more quickly good stuff jumps off u the page at you. The Moonlight pilot had a £ great script that was well-constructed and | balanced. The concept was really cool, and § the characters were already fully developed. ^ I understood Mick St. John, his motivations g

and where he comes from morally and spir- d> itually. When you have an understanding of 1

a character as quickly as I did, you know .g you can get down to the important work 1 sooner rather than later." « The actor was gratified to find that sub- " sequent episodes maintained the same g integrity. "I feel the show is getting better £ and better," he declares. "The difficult thing = about the pilot was establishing our myth- o ology and our rules. There was a good deal a of exposition for the audience to digest I before we could move into the storyline. I ^ think we did that pretty successfully in 44 | ° minutes, but the nice thing about moving away from the pilot was that we could start to focus on specifics." Night Patrols O'Loughlin says he and his alter-ego share a common understanding of irony, which is "a big foothold for me into the character. Mick has a dark sense of humor, too, which I really like. But beyond that, he and I are quite different. Mick is tougher

than I am, and probably a little smarter, too. I'm just a guy who's lucky enough to do what he enjoys for a living.

"I think I'm more gregarious than he is. Mick is much more alienated from the world

than I am. I have lots of friends and loved

ones that I spend time with. Even though he's a humanist, Mick doesn't necessarily

like people. I know that sounds like a con-

tradiction, but the fact is, Mick is a loner,

and I, myself, am not." Chuckling,

O'Loughlin adds, "It helps that I can go out

much more in the daylight than he can. I can go to the beach—and it won't kill me!" Imbuing characters with inner conflict is key to making them interesting, O'Loughlin maintains, and the outwardly cool, internal-

ly tortured Mick is a perfect example. "He's enormously conflicted. He's a monster who

is terrified of the monster within himself,"

O'Loughlin reflects. "Mick is a relentless

vampire who is, at the same time, a human-

ist. He hates what he is. Mick is in a perpet- ual state of highly controlled denial about his vampire nature. He became a private investigator to rid society of predators like himself. Mick feels that each predator he gets rid of gets him closer to his former humanity, but unfortunately, that's not nec- essarily the case. Even though he appears controlled and graceful most of the time, he's in utter turmoil."

A big part of the problem for Mick is that he's in love with a mortal woman, reporter Beth Turner (Sophia Myles)—a love that, while not unrequited, is fraught with com- plications. Mick has been watching over Beth ever since he saved her from a dire mishap when she was a little girl. Now,

Smm/Mttrch2008 1 5 —

tastic chemistry on screen, and we're great friends outside of work, too," he proclaims. "She's amazingly talented, smart and, of

course, beautiful. Sophia is an avid profes- sional who brings so much to the character of Beth. It's truly a pleasure to work with her. She doesn't mess around. Sophia is always prepared. "The chemistry between the two of us is an absolutely key element to the show's suc- cess. Sometimes you put two people on screen together, and there's nothing much going on. But sometimes people pair really

well together, and I think that's the case with

us. Again, it's complicated, because Mick has gone from a paternal role with Beth to a

Till Death Do Us Part. Coraline (Shannyn Sossamon) took her vows a little too literally, turning Mick Into a bloodsucker on their wedding night. she's an adult—and his peer which changes the nature of his feelings for her. Unfortunately, the last woman Mick loved, Coraline (Shannyn Sossamon), turned him into a vampire on their wedding night. So Mick is a little Beth discovers Mick's true nature in leery of getting too close to Beth. just the second episode, "Out of the Past." He's afraid she'll get hurt Later, to save his unlife, she lets even at hands. if maybe his And him feed on her. he does manage to resist turning her into a vampire like himself, sexual, romantic role. And there's another the passage of time will ultimate- layer of conflict for him—and for Beth even- ly tear them apart. What's more, tually—if she ever finds out the true nature Beth already has a boy friend. of his presence in her life." Josh (Jordan Belfi). Interestingly, O'Loughlin says the vam- Moonlight surprised many pire Josef (Jason Dohring) is "my favorite viewers, and O'Loughlin himself, character on the show. I really enjoy Jason as by having Beth learn that Mick is an actor, and as a person, too. He brings to a vampire in just the second Moonlight a touch of and a dif- episode, "Out of the Past." "That ferent feel. There's a little shift of gears was a shock to me, initially," every time he's on that helps me push O'Loughlin admits. "No one told through from one episode to the next. I love me that was coming. I read the how Josef is so unashamedly hedonistic. He script, and I was like, 'Wow, you has been around for so long and done so guys have made some pretty big much. Josef has been to so many different decisions in the writing depart- countries, he has fed on countiess people and ment!' I would say that episode is slept with countless women, and he just probably my favorite to date, doesn't have anything left to prove. I think along with the fourth one, 'Fever.' he's hilarious. The climax of 'Out of the Past,' "Josef has a strange set of morals—well, where Beth learns Mick's secret, he doesn't really have any morals at all. Call As O'Loughlin notes, Mick may seem in was enormous for me. It was real- it a strange set of beliefs for getting through control, but the self-hating private investigator is life. he's getting through life just fine. ly exciting how she finds him, and in constant turmoil. And he has no choice but to show her Even though he conflicts with Mick almost what he really is. Soon, she'll want to participate in his adven- all the time, they're still best buddies. In fact, "We're on episode nine right now, and tures. The revelation definitely complicates they're important allies for one another. I've realized that Mick's revelation in num- things." Neither one could ever dream of not having ber two has shortened the process for us to the other in his life, because they're essen- get to important plot issues, which are com- Night Shoots tially each other's only true friend." ing your way soon. Beth's discovery of Many feel that Moonlight's strength, at Despite the great time O'Loughlin is Mick's true nature also raises the stakes in a least in the early episodes, lies in the sizzling having making Moonlight, working as the way. Yeah, the cat's out of the bag, but now on-screen chemistry between Mick and lead in a TV series isn't without its hard- there's new drama and new conflict for Beth. O'Loughlin acknowledges the point, ships. Asked what has been especially chal- Mick. Beth knows this much; now, she and says working with Myles is as effortless lenging so far, he pauses a moment, and

wants to know more. Where does it stop? as it is enjoyable. "Sophia and I have a fan- when the answer comes, it's hardly surpris-

16 mm/March 2008 and all the rest of it, but the hours are pretty enormous. This past weekend, for example, I got home at about 8;45 a.m. on Saturday, then had to be back on the set at 5:45 a.m. Monday. I spent most of that free time catch-

ing up on sleep. It's crazy. I find myself sleeping in a corner of the studio from time to time, just to catch 20 minutes here and there." By comparison, working with Moon- light's special FX is no big deal. "The vam- pire eyes are contact lenses, and the vampire teeth are molds made to impressions of my own mouth," O'Loughlin explains. "The teeth snap in and out pretty easily, and

they're extremely realistic. I do go through them, though. Occasionally, I get pretty

heavily into character, and I'll bite down on them, or I'll get punched in the mouth or fall on my face and break them. "It takes me about an hour to get into full vamp mode," O'Loughlin continues. "When we do the morphing on-screen, that's a process which involves greenscreen and

slates both with and without me, and I have Why does it seem like all vampires are to keep the same position. It's pretty stan- brooders? Is it all that time on their dard procedure for the show to morph me Mick better be careful about exposing his hands? The melancholy IVIick St. John Is from normal to vamp, but it's time-consum- chest so often. Someone just might stick yet another case aga/nsf eternal life. a stake in him to see if he's done. ing. As the actor, I have to remain patient and let everyone fuss about and role in the critically acclaimed Australian do their job frantically around mini-series The Incredible Journey of Mary me, while I stay in character and Bryant, a biopic about one of the first suc-

in the moment. But I'll tell you, cessful escapees from the Australian penal

mate, once I put those teeth and colony in the late 1700s. While not SF, the eyes in, it's like I'm wearing a project—which also starred Romola Garai, mask. It completely shifts me Sam Neill and Jack Davenport—left an away from who I am. Mick St. indelible mark on O'Loughlin, who earned a John as a normal guy, before he Best Lead Actor nomination from the vamps, is one character, but Mick Australian Film Institute. St. John in full vamp is another "That was a wonderful learning experi- beast altogether!" ence," he remarks. "It was a tough shoot, mate: four months on the water, with chil- Night Moves dren, in the Australian sun, in convict boats, O'Loughlin has only been and wearing convict clothes. We pulled out acting in film and TV since 2004, all the stops. It was wonderful being part of

but Moonlight isn't his first turn something that actually happened. I tried to in a genre project. In 2005, he co- do a huge amount of research on my charac-

starred in Man-Thing, a poorly ter. Will Bryant, but 1 hardly got anywhere

received movie adaptation of the with it, because there's very little informa- Marvel comic. "[Director] Brett tion about him out there. My main concern Leonard is a friend of mine," was that I was representing someone who

O'Loughlin states. "He's a very was a real person, and I wanted to bring a passionate filmmaker who makes voice and a heart and a brain to him. Not too a certain kind of movie for a cer- many people in America have seen that tain kind of audience. He takes a show." film that you really need x As O'Loughlin prepares to return to the

amount of money to make, and Moonlight set, the subject of his flawless

he makes it for half or a quarter American accent on the show comes up. Coraline's betrayal Is one reason why Mick has romance Issues. Here's another: Some women look of that. "I've always been fascinated with accents, like Coraline to him. "The bottom line is: There are ever since I was a kid," he attests. "I grew up certain things you need to have with American television, and I've lived in ing. "The hours," he replies. "The workload money for, like good music and good pro- LA for a number of years now, so it isn't that

and the pressure are quite challenging. I've duction values. Man-Thing was one of those hard. But I constantly work on it." come to the conclusion that I will never films that needed to be bigger. It probably So what's going to keep viewers tuning work harder than this as an actor—unless needed a [big-name] star as well. Having in to Moonlight each week? "The show has I'm doing a war film for Oliver Stone some- said that, we also didn't have the greatest lots of integrity," Alex O'Loughlin sums up. where in the Vietnamese jungle, it's boot script. It was about a swamp creature, and "The approach we're taking is that it's a camp and he's making me sleep in the trees we didn't have enough money to do it right. human show that just happens to be full of and not allowing me to eat at all. But I don't worry about it. That was my first vampires. I care about these characters, and

"I think this is about as hard as it gets. sort of 'big' feature." the more people tune in and stick around, the You know, we do have trailers and great food That same year, O'Loughlin landed a more they'll care, too." www.starlog.com mm/March 2008 1 7 —

Soon after she was cast as CIA agent When she's on the on the NBC TV series job, CIA Agent Sarah Walker (Yvonne Chuck, Yvonne Strahovski asked Josh Strahovski) dresses Schwartz why he gave her the part. After all, and plays the part she was an unknown Australian actress with with a no-nonsense, credits her not a likely no U.S. to name, and all-business attitude. candidate for a primetime show. Schwartz who co-created Chuck with Chris Fedak Photo: Chris Haston didn't have to think long before giving his answer.

"He said it was because I could be really sweet, and then switch into a lethal agent, which was necessary for the role," says Strahovski. "Also, being athletic and looking convincing holding a gun didn't hurt." Indeed, the 25-year-old native who recently opted for a more accessible, eas- ily pronounceable surname than her original

By DAN YAKIR

&UTIIA Watching over Chuck \s a full- job for Yvonne Straho

Strzechowski—excels in fleshing out the duality of her role. And in so doing, she deserves credit for helping make Chuck the

artistic and popular success that it is.

"Sarah is really good at what she does," explains Strahovski. "As a CIA agent whose role is to protect Chuck [] and the government secrets he has in his head, she can deal with dangerous situations and handle them very well. And Sarah can certainly take

care of herself. But it's an uphill struggle for

her when it comes to normal daily situations,

just being a normal human being. This is a dif- ferent kind of assignment for her, because she must protect Chuck and pretend to be his girl friend in order to provide both of them a cover. At the same time, Sarah gets to see

a part of Chuck's life that she doesn't have: his family and friends."

She meets his sister, Ellie (Sarah Lan- caster), who cares about Chuck's job opportunities no less than his prospective

love life; EUie's amiable boy friend, Captain Awesome (Ryan McPartlin), whose extra- curricular achievements match his ability to have a cozy home life; and Morgan (Josh Gomez), Chuck's loyal friend, whose heart is in the right place, even when his fanboy

behavior is consistently immature.

18 SmiOG/March2008 "Chuck's family and friends show her that there are people who are compassionate and innocent," explains Strahovski. "Most of the

time, all she sees is the negative side of peo-

ple." That's because Sarah is in a business rife with intrigue, back-stabbing and diabolical plots. "She sees Chuck's innocence and vul-

nerability and is attracted to it, because she doesn't have that in her own life." And yet her cover as a hot-dog maker—at a fast-food joint that requires her to wear a Swiss Maid uniform, complete with apron and pigtails—is oddly appropriate: Behind her hard-boiled exterior, Sarah has a vulnerable core that strives to be heard. But yearning for

normalcy takes a backseat to a life of danger, duty and, yes, excitement. "There's a tragic element to Sarah,

because she can't have a normal life," says

Getting "mean" with each other before the cameras roll helps both Strahovski and Chuck co-star (as Agent Casey) get into character.

mi

But sometimes her assignment of safeguarding Chuck (Zachary Levi) gives Sarah the chance to have some fun, like dressing up as Princess Leia for Halloween.

Working undercover means toiling at a fast-food joint—and wearing a Swiss Maid outfit and pigtails. Duty \ before dignity!

STARL0G//Morc/i2008 1 9 —

Strahovski. "She can't ever trust anyone com- pletely, and that comes into play when she falls in love. Sarah might have to leave the country or simply disappear overnight. That's part of the dangerous life that she leads. And yet she's human and has a heart. Everyone needs to feel love and have family and friends, yet she's forbidden to do that. "At the same time, she enjoys her job even if she has to learn to enjoy some parts of it, such as having to teach Chuck the ropes. It isn't an easy task to instruct him about her world, because Chuck is so clumsy and inno- ooting gu is a nice perl<, cent and doesn't know what to do much of the but Strahovsl

Beauty and the geek. Some people don't see why Sarah would find Chuck attractive, but Strahovski understands the nerdy guy's appeal.

she'll have her eyes opened a bit more to a world that she craves, but which she can't have most of the time." Getting Physical Although the traditions of serial TV may require Chuck's protagonists to become romantically involved, the show's creators are taking their time before nurturing such seeds. "Sarah and Chuck are obviously attracted to each other from the start," offers Strahovski. "I don't know what's going to happen—whether they will get together—but it would make for For kicks (and punches), Strahovski Is taking kung-fu training. She especially iikes the an interesting dynamic if they became a real legwork, noting, "High kicks look good on camera." couple."

20 STARLOG/Mflfc/i 2008 ,

What Chuck may see in Sarah goes with- cess, and together they attract all kinds of peo- neer. I grew up around that, and I do enjoy SF out saying: a beautiful blonde who isn't bash- ple to watch it." movies and television. What appeals to me

ful and has a bag of tricks it up her sleeve. But Chuck's appeal also has to do with the ami- [about the genre] is that it's about exploring takes greater a leap of the imagination to able mood and jovial spirit among the talent your imagination and how far you can go with explain what Sarah sees in Chuck. After all, on the set, which seeps onto the small screen. things, imagining what life could be like if the she had a relationship with Chuck's ex-pal, the "We have a really good relationship," remarks world were different or circumstances late, rogue agent CIA Bryce Larkin (Matthew Strahovski, "We have loads of fun, and are changed or aliens came for a visit..." Bomer), whose mastery of treachery matched always joking around and making fun of each Her other movie credits include a small his dashing good looks. If anything, you other. With Adam, because we have a compet- part in Gone, The Plex ("an Australian roman- would speculate that Sarah would be more itive on-screen relationship, we tend to play it tic comedy I did last year, where I play one of inclined to see romantic potential in the likes up off-camera as well. Before a scene, we'll the workers at a multiplex") and The Canyon. of the similarly dashing (though infinitely less make fun of each other and tell each other to "I shot The Canyon right after the Chuck conniving) Captain Awesome. shut up. We do have conversations where pilot," says Strahovski. "It's about young new- "Even though Sarah was in love with we're nice—but we're also mean like we lyweds who go to the Grand Canyon for their Bryce, it was hard for her to fully trust him, would be in front of the camera! honeymoon with a guide, and end up getting because in he was the same line of work," says "With Zach, it's pretty crazy, because he's lost. It's a dramatic thriller with tragic ele- Strahovksi. "When you join the CIA, you sign pretty crazy on the set. I guess we all feed off ments. We filmed at beautiful desert locations your life over to the government—serving the of that. It's so much fun hanging out with the in , and the Grand Canyon." country comes first. But also, some women cast: We sing and dance, chase each other The pleasure Strahovski finds in her cho- like good-looking guys, and other girls fall for around and flirt. We're like children on the set, sen metier harks back to her childhood, when nerdy It ones. comes down to personal taste." especially when we shoot past 1 a.m." fun and games helped pave the way to a full- Personal taste factors into Strahovski's When the cameras are rolling, however, fledged career. "When I was young, I was such attraction to her role, which she approaches Strahovski doesn't face a similar comic chal- a showoff," she remembers. "I used to make with the experience from her years of drama lenge. "I have a serious role," she states. "The my best friend do home videos with me. We school Down Under. "I learned a whole bunch comedy comes from Chuck and the Nerd would set up the camera and shoot all kinds of of things, and I've come up with my own way Herders, the Buy More characters and Chuck's things—mock commercials we had written, of reading the script and preparing the part," family. My side of the deal is to bring in the pretend shows, fake documentaries—and play she explains. "And then there's the physical show's more serious, action elements. But I all the different characters. We did crazy element that my role entails—the fight scenes, did have a comic moment with one of the Nerd things, really funny stuff. My family and

and the choreography that requires. I have a Herders, who tries to see if he has a chance friends loved it when we showed them the

strong dance background. I danced from age with Sarah.. .and it doesn't go down very well." final product." five till 18, and that helps a lot. Doing a fight Encouraged by their feedback, Strahovski

routine is like doing a dance routine. Mental Training took drama courses at school. "I also did it as "Also, I recently started kung-fu training to It's only fitting that her major credit is a an extracurricular activity with an ensemble," make it look even better!" she adds. "I just fantasy series, not only because the actress is she says. "We performed musicals and other

love the physical stuff, stunts and fight scenes. an SF fan who likes "ALIEN movies and things, and right after high school, I got into I was more of a tomboy growing up. I never Jurassic Park," but also because it's part of her drama school and then started working profes-

liked makeup or painting my nails. I loved upbringing. "My parents both have scientific sionally in for three years before I

camping, hiking and rock climbing. So the backgrounds," she notes. "My Mom is a lab came here. This is my fourth year in the indus-

physicality of this role is very attractive to me. technician, and my Dad is an electronic engi- try.

I get to use all of the skills I acquired growing "In October 2006, 1 came here for a couple

up. of weeks to get a manager, but then I had to go

"In the early episodes, I didn't contribute back home, where I was working on a series as much to the fight choreography. We have a called Sea Patrol. My managers in the U.S. stunt and fight coordinator who create the rou- were submitting me for all these parts, and so

tines. But in an episode we shot recently, I I would go to a studio in Sydney, make audi- requested certain things for the fight sequence. tion tapes and send them as files over the

The more fights that I do, the more I realize Internet. Last February, I came back [to the what I can do, and what I'm good at. I like to States] for the pilot season, and a few days

do kicks, because I'm flexible, and high kicks afterward, I got a phone call saying that they look good on camera. I loved Kill Bill. I had watched the tape I made for Chuck and

remember watching that and thinking how wanted me to come in. By the end of the week,

much fun it would be to perform those fight I had the job. It was pretty crazy.

scenes. And now, I get to do it!" "I came [to the States] thinking I would Strahovski cites "Chuck vs. the Wookiee" stay for three months—I had a return ticket for as her favorite episode so far. In it, a rival that date—to get some experience and see how

agent named Carina (Mini Anden) requests things were. I intended to come back a year Sarah and Casey's (Adam Baldwin) help in later and maybe get lucky and land a job. But

stealing a diamond from a vicious drug lord. to have it all happen in a week was unbeliev- However, the two are reluctant to help, able. And now, nine months later, to have a because they've had negative experiences with lead role in a TV series, as well as a lead role Carina before. Once they agree—and with in an American film under my belt, is just Chuck in tow—Carina proves yet again that great." trust is a luxury secret agents can ill afford. Now a LA resident, Yvonne Strahovski The episode includes a sizzling confrontation feels that the industry has embraced her. between the two women, both of whom dis- "People here seem to like Australians. And

play that they're as adept at kicking as they are essaying a badass CIA girl, I get to do things I at punching. Chuck has been a pleasant surprise for could never imagine doing in my own life. Just "It had lots of action and laughter in it, but NBC, and having a blonde and badass to have the opportunity to play a whole bunch also lots of heart," says Strahovksi. "Those beauty lil

feels more like a scene from The plays the lead, John Amsterdam, a man odd way, we're approaching this as realisti- Birds than anything else. The cast blessed and cursed with immortality 400- cally as we can. Obviously, we're talking and crew of the freshman Fox series plus years ago after he saved the life of a about a world that's imaginative, because New Amsterdam are gathered at St. Native American girl. These days, he's a this man is immortal, but we're trying to ItMark's Church on 10th Street and cop, partnered with Eva Marquez (The Lone explore what it would really feel like to be Second Avenue in . Gunmen'^, Zuleikha Robinson), and dealing 400 years old, and to carry the burden and Series star Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, with the realization that he may have finally the pleasures of knowing that you're immor- dozens of extras (many of them met the woman—Dr. Sara Dillane (Alexie tal. So we're investigating that with as much attired as homeless people) and 20- Gilmore)—whose love could render him depth as we can muster." something grips, assistant directors and the mortal. That realization hits him hard, very like wait patiently for a camera turnaround hard: Amsterdam recently suffered what Life Experiences to be completed so that the next shot can appeared to be a fatal heart attack, the signal Back on set, after shooting a scene in roll. that true love may indeed be blossoming. which Amsterdam and Marquez emerge Several of them chat on their cell phones "I would say that New Amsterdam is a from a car after pulling up to a homeless or poke at their PDAs or talk amongst them- romantic procedural," explains writer-execu- shelter, Coster-Waldau takes a few moments selves. Others grab a newspaper or a maga- tive producer-showrunner David Manson, to talk. Manson's description of the actor as zine and settle onto bench- whose previous credits a combination of Denis Leary and Aaron include the TV series Eckhart with a Danish accent is spot on, and es, the church steps or the "We're trying to ground. And a decent-size Saved, Thief and John Coster-Waldau—best known in the States seems contingent slips into the explore what Doe. "It's about a New for roles in Firewall and Wimbledon— "camera village"—an York City homicide cop to be enjoying himself in , improvised and covered it would rea/ly feel who is, in fact, immortal, pigeons and all. "I been here once before, for four space with directors' chairs like to be and he'll stay immortal had and monitors, where the until he finds the one days, when I was 19," he reveals. "So this is director, script supervisor 400 years old. woman he is meant to be a slight difference. New York City is fantas- photograph- with. John Amsterdam is a tic. It's a character on the show. I love histo- and director of and to carry the er sit and eyeball the light- man for whom the past is ry and just being able to go into the history it's overwhelming what ing, framing, etc. burden and very present. He has lived of New York City— Unfortunately, the cam- 400 years in the New has happened here in less than 400 years. In

era village is positioned the pleasures World, most of it in New that time, it has become the financial capital directly next to a tree filled of knowing that York City, and he has an of the world, and the cultural capital—of the with pigeons, easily 100 of extraordinary amount of world, anyway. It's simply mind- them perched on every you're immortal. knowledge and experience blowing. And did you know that in 1637, available branch. And when that he brings to bear on another Dane, Jonas Brung, arrived and set- a real homeless woman nearby rattles a the procedurals that he's involved with and tled north of Manhattan, in a place that was brown bag loaded with bread, the birds the murder cases that he helps to solve. later known as the Bronx? I was so happy

shriek with excitement and like a blur flock "One of the things that makes this unique when I read that. I was like, 'Yes ! There is a to the woman and the free meal. Back and is that everywhere John looks in New York connection.' forth they go, from the tree to the woman City, he's familiar not only with what's there Much like his boss, Coster-Waldau does and back again, crapping mercilessly on right now, but what was there as many as not necessarily consider New Amsterdam an everyone and everything below. Laughing 400 years ago. He's incredibly mindful of SF series. On the other hand, the notion of and/or cursing, people disperse as the dive- the city's archaeology, and he has memories immortality is alien to him. "In that way, to bombing buggers unleash their fury. Yes, and experiences that denote these different me, it is science fiction," he acknowledges. plenty of Alfred Hitchcock and Birds jokes locations, characters and skill sets. We also "I don't believe in immortality in any way, follow. And Coster-Waldau, who has dodged go back to the past and see the many, many shape or form. I think John is a man. I beneath a lighting screen, joins in the amuse- different lives that John has lived, and how worked with a director many years ago in the ment. they might impinge upon the present, either theater, and he said something that I'm "That's just crazy," he says. An assistant narratively or emotionally. Each week, a going to quote. He told me, 'You may get

director puts it differently: "That was ridicu- murder case is unlocked or partially more life experience, but you don't get any lous." One of the extras suffered a direct hit. unlocked by some experience that John had wiser on what it means to be a human being.' "Only in New York," she mutters, as a pro- in the past, some skill that he might have "If you fall in love, it happens, and you duction assistant helpfully wipes her off. picked up, some profession at which he can't control it. You can't control your feel-

Finally, after the birds flit away and calm worked. ings. Your emotional life is still your emo- descends on the set, another A.D. says, ''New Amsterdam isn't a fantasy show," tional life, no matter how long you've been "Let's shoot a show." Manson hastens to add. "I'm not really a around. So, yes, John has lots of life experi- That show, "Keep the Change," is New fantasist. I don't think of myself in those ence, but I'm not sure he's that good at being Amsterdam's fourth episode. Coster-Waldau terms. I'm not a fantasy aficionado. So, in an with people and that whole social aspect.

By IAN SPELLING ETERNAL AFFAIRS The New Amsterdam cast & crew don't want TV immortality—they just want their show on the air.

22 STARLOG/Afofc/i 2008 www.sfarlog.com STARLOG/yMore/iW 23 —

New Amsterdam showcases NYC's scenery—both above and below ground. The city itself is another character, impatiently awaiting the show's February 22 premiere.

Dr. Sara Dillane (Alexie Gilmore) may hold John's fate in her hands, because her love could actually make Amsterdam mortal.

John isn't well-trained in that, despite being ferent from some of the other pilots I had on losing people. My character—and we alive for so long." read. I didn't audition for too many. I decid- discussed this going into the show—cares Robinson signed on for New Amsterdam ed I was going to be selective, and I simply very passionately about people and things, after the demise of the acclaimed HBO fell in love with this one. I thought it was but I also have incredible commitment series Rome, in which she played Gaia. To very interesting. Also, character-wise, I've issues. That's my problem. So I have similar STARLOG readers, though, she's perhaps always tended to act in period stuff, so it's issues, but in different ways. And we'll meet more familiar for her role as Yves Adele pretty exciting to be playing someone very my family. They're all cops. I can't wait to Harlow, friend to The Lone Gunmen. modern and current. see how they develop the dynamics of John "That was my first job, and very exciting "I come into John's life as his new detec- and my family." for me," she says. "I lived tive partner, and he's quite

in Vancouver, and I love different from anyone I've Immortal Memories that city so much. I was He has lost so ever known or met," Back by the church, director Jim McKay lucky, because the cast was Robinson adds. "It takes us confers with several members of the crew, fantastic, and [executive many people- a little while to get on the then steps away to discuss the episode at producers] Chris Carter children, friends same page, and even when I hand. McKay has helmed such shows as The and Frank Spotnitz were think we're on the same Wire, Big Love and the New York-based Law wonderful to work with and lovers—along page, we're actually not, & Order: Criminal Intent. "The main theme and very good to me. And I the way. He has because John is off in his of this episode is sobriety, and the confes- enjoyed my campy charac- own world and doing his sional aspect of the process of becoming ter. She was loads of fun to outlived all own thing. I have to prove sober," he says. "In the pilot, we found out play. But some of the die- myself to him—that I'm a that John is sober, and there was even a shot hard X-Files fans didn't of them." good detective, and that he of him at an AA meeting. This episode goes take to her, and they were can trust me. John has all back to the 1960s, to a time when he fell off

like, 'She's always screwing them up.' But it these issues with relationships and life and the wagon and entered the program. was a good experience." death, because he has lost so many people "When I read the script, I thought it was As for this experience, "I was drawn to children, friends and lovers—along the way. really cool, because it had a specific theme the romantic aspects of New Amsterdam, He has outlived all of them. to it. The story wasn't simply another crime because I'm a sucker for anything like that," "And now, he's having a hard time con- plot, but it also smartly weaves in the crime, the actress says as she sits in her trailer dur- necting because, after a certain point, it which deals with confession, drinking and

ing a lunch break. "And it was definitely dif- messes with John, in so many ways, to keep falling off the wagon as well. So, by working

24 mm/March 2008

i —

After enjoying her time as Yves Adele Hariow on The Lone Gunmen, Robinson was glad to join a genre series with more romantic elements.

Stephen Henderson plays Omar, a jazz club owner who is Amsterdam's best friend and knows his eternal secret.

off his experience in the program, John basi- locations, and we have to shoot a litde dif- would debut in fall 2007, Fox bumped it to

cally solves the case. It's a very well-written ferently, a little tighter maybe, but it makes mid-season. Then, after initially requesting episode. The flashbacks are extremely inter- what we film that much more unique." 13 episodes (the pilot and 12 more), the net- esting, and they give you some nice back- Hopefully, what's being shot will be work reduced the order to seven and put the

ground about John." unique enough. New Amsterdam, for all its show on hiatus, an unusual move given that

Speaking of background. New York City promise, seems a bit jinxed. Acclaimed film- it had yet to debut.

is nearly as much of a character as Amster- maker Lasse Hallstrom directed the pilot, New Amsterdam is now scheduled to pre-

dam. McKay points out that it was a "man- but he left the project soon after, and much miere February 22. It'll air Fridays, 9 p.m. date" to use the Big Apple as much and as of the pilot was rewritten and then reshot. the same time slot as another series about an frequently as possible. And most of the inte- And after announcing that New Amsterdam eternal detective romancing a human woman rior shots are done at a studio a few miles in a big city (CBS' Moonlight). While most of the interiors are filmed in away in Long Island City. "Within the limi- "This is one of those [glass] half-full, Long Island City, the New Amsterdam tations of time and space and permission, half-empty conversations," David Manson team tries to fit in as much NYC location etc., we're trying to profile New York as a shooting as possible. says. "Clearly, when it first happened, I city," McKay explains. "And we're using it thought to myself, 'They've lost confidence to mix in the idea of John's past and today's in us. Is the perception going to be that very real present within the architecture of there's something wrong with the show?' At what we're shooting. the end of the day, when you've studied the "For instance, we're filming at St. Mark's fall season, and you know that there are 30-

Church, which is old and has a sense of his- plus shows premiering within two weeks, all

tory, but in the present, we're using it as a competing for shelf space, and when you brand-new homeless shelter. It isn't trickery, know that Fox hasn't had the easiest time

but rather a way to play the past against the launching shows in the fall, and when you present, which is one of the show's themes. I know that the shows that have done well for love shooting here, but I have to say it's hard them have either been launched or moved to find a spot where there isn't a Chase somewhere to take advantage of their Manhattan bank, Dunkin' Donuts, Gap or an strength at mid-season—not only with Old Navy somewhere within the visual land- American Idol, but also 24—I think we need scape. So that has become part of the chal- to see it as a net gain. So, we'll wait and see lenge. We need to look harder to find unique what happens." www.starlog.com Smm/Mttrch2008 25 read a bunch of pilots this year," says

Kevin McKidd, "and I was attracted to I Journeyman because of the mixture of science fiction with the emotional, grown-up attitude of the show." McKidd plays Dan Vasser, a San Francisco investigative journalist who unwillingly begins traveling in time within his own life-

line, always returning to his own era. Dan

soon learns that this time jaunting is for a rea- son—he must change something to alter the future, which is his present.

"Dan is an interesting character," the actor remarks. "He isn't a cartoon-like heroic fig-

ure. Dan is just a guy trying to get on with his

life, and this extraordinary thing happens to him. He's trying to assimilate this 'affliction' into being married and being a father, trying to juggle these things and multi-task on an existential level. "I thought that was an interesting idea for a science fiction show: to not have the whiz-

bang focusing on the time machine. It focuses

on someone who is trapped in an SF scenario,

as it were, and attempting to keep a normal

life while going through this. That's an inter- esting and fertile area for a science fiction series to explore. And, hopefully, people

watching Journeyman get that it's an adult science fiction show."

Past Crusades

Although you can't tell it from either NBC's Journeyman or Rome—the lavish HBO series in which he played Roman citizen Lucius Vorenus—McKidd is Scottish. He was born in Elgin, Scotland in 1973, growing up

Kevin McKidd ponders the pab., i^.dsent & future of his teievised time travels. By BILL WARREN

I iDMn c l\l N L ^VMAN'L with his plumber father and secretary mother. When his Dad took him to see E.T., the die was cast. Back then, he wanted to drive up to his home and offer him the job of Elliott in a sequel, but more realistically, McKidd knew he wanted to be an actor—and he developed a hfe-long fondness for SF movies and television.

To time-travel through his own life is a journey all its own. McKidd joined the Mo- ray Youth Theatre, and in college at

Edinburgh, he first tried an engineering course, but soon moved on to Queen Margaret College to study acting. He was cast in his first professional role (the lead in

the play The Silver Darlings) while still in university. His first movie was as the vicious thug Malky Johnson in Small Faces (1996), a

26 Smm/Mmch2008 —

title unfamiliar to most Americans. But his He was also in the Cole Porter biopic De- whiskey distilleries in Scofland, alongside second film role was as the good-natured fit- Lovely, and had a good role as one of Gilbert Michelle Monaghan and Patrick Dempsey. ness bulT Tommy in the smash hit Train- & Sullivan's main singers in Topsy-Turvy. The Besides Rome, STARLOG readers proba- spotting (also 1996). latter was directed by Mike Leigh, who never bly know him best as the tough, no-nonsense While that movie launched the careers of uses a script, just an outline, with the actors leader of the Dog Soldiers, in which an army his co-stars Ewan McGregor and Robert improvising their parts. McKidd surprised squad on maneuvers in the Scottish Highlands

Carlyle, it did little for McKidd. "That was a Leigh by the depth of research he did for his runs into a group of werewolves. The actor has great movie, but I didn't work for 18 months role of Durward Lely. The actor visited Lely's high praise for Dog Soldiers director Neil home and, to his surprise, found an unpub- Marshall. "He's a friend of mine," McKidd lished autobiography of the actor-singer who notes. "I saw Neil quite recentiy, and had din- was the star (as Nanki-Poo) of that premier ner with him. He just finished his next movie Mikado production which the film chronicled. [Doomsday], which he's testing out here [in

Additionally, McKidd was used to singing ]. I think Neil will be Britain's he has been in the rock band MEMIL on and Spielberg before long. He has an eye for pop- END off for years. ular cinema, and he's going to break out of the after that," he says. "I was working on a build- When he was on stage with Diana Rigg in horror genre pretty soon—even though that's ing site, shoveling rubble, wondering what the play Britannicus, he met a young his first love. When Neil was at film school, all happened. Then I got a gig, and the wheels woman—and within two weeks knew she he wanted to make was horror movies, but started to move again. It's such a random busi- would be his wife. When the play moved on to Neil is inevitably going to break out of that.

ness at times; you can't take anything for New York, McKidd and the young woman His spectrum will broaden. Neil is a lovely

granted." went along with it. He proposed to her in man, and I wish him all the luck." When the wheels moved, they moved Manhattan, and now they have two children Perhaps readers caught McKidd as the McKidd a long distance, and he demonstrated under 10, a boy and a girl. McKidd loves being green-clad, ginger-whiskered his versatility at every stop along the way. He a father, and soon after moving to LA, like any Jericho O' Grady in the telemovie The Magical worked in Scottish movies, British films, tele- good Southern California Dad, he took his Legend of the , which co-starred vision and on stage, in a wide variety of roles. kids to Disneyland—in the rain. Colm Meaney and . On the He appeared in Hideous Kinlcy, The Acid McKidd has an American accent in big screen, McKidd's other notable projects House, played Count Vronsky in the 2000 Journeyman. He was required to speak with a include his turn as the vicious Kolnas in BBC-TV production of Anna Karenina, Brifish accent in Rome—even though he was Hcmnibal Rising, and 's Crusades worked with (whom he greatly essaying a Roman soldier—so he was pleased epic Kingdom of Heaven, in which he played admires) in Max and co-starred in 16 Years of to return to his Scottish inflection for the an English sergeant. Alcohol, Gunpowder, Treason & Plot and the upcoming Made of Honor. In that film, "The role in Kingdom of Heaven was very TV production of The Virgin Queen. McKidd plays the wealthy owner of half the small, but if Ridley Scott asks you to be in a

www.5tarlog.com ^ mmMmch2Q08 27 Photo: Mitch Hasseth movie, you do it," McKidd explains. "I was other's company for extended periods. Then, truly honored to work with someone like shortly after that, they offered Journeyman to

Ridley, and I would love to work with him me, and I accepted pretty quickly." again. He's a real visionary, and you see that Journeyman is the sort of SF that McKidd as soon as you're on the set, because Ridley is particularly enjoys. In interviews, he has noted running around doing set dressing, has each that he's drawn to character-intensive genre shot in his head and is adjusting things like films like Donnie Darko and Jacob's Ladder. teapots on shelves. But Ridley doesn't suffer "Dan is a journalist, and he has that investiga- fools gladly, so you better show up on the day tive, seat-of-the-pants training, and he uses with all your shit together and deliver If you those instincts rather well," says McKidd. "He do that, you're his best friend; if you don't, arrives in different time periods and learns to you're in trouble'' quickly adapt, probably more quickly than a normal guy could. But Dan makes mistakes, Present Journeys and he screws up sometimes. He'll think he's Most audiences recognize McKidd from on one mission, but actually fate—or whatev-

Rome, which ran for two years on HBO and is er it is that's controlling this—has other ideas. now available on DVD. The series focused on So the mission turns out to be something dif- Lucius Vorenus (McKidd) and his tough, glad- ferent, and Dan finds this out as he learns, iator-to-be pal Titus Pullo (Ray Stevenson). makes mistakes and realizes what he's meant Rome was well-received in the U.S., but was to do. so expensive that the cable channel passed on "I like that. Most TV shows focus on the a third season. However, it made McKidd a hero being almost omnipotent—of being able known quantity, and when the pilot season for to see all and have all the answers. I appreci- the 2007-08 broadcast year kicked into gear, ate that Dan isn 't like that, but he strives to be. he was surprised to find producers actually He's an emotional guy who is sensitive about fighting for his services. As if his life isn't "I didn't even know what pilot season complicated was," McKidd admits. "I come from a tradi- enough, Dan tion of European cinema and British televi- must deal with sion, which doesn't have pilot seasons as such. his brother I never really came out here to work until this Jack's past year. Suddenly, the phone was ringing off the relationship with hook, and agents were saying, 'People really his wife Katie. want to meet you.' "Rome was fantastic, and such an amazing experience. I've been very lucky the last few years—I've worked on quality projects with great people. With Journeyman, 1 was told, '[Executive producers] Kevin Falls and Alex Coincidentally, Graves want to meet with you.' We had coffee "Game Three"

at the Chateau Marmont, and I loved their was Journeyman's script. I read other scripts, but there was some- episode thing about Journeyman that just [clicked with three. In that me]. And [the three of us] realized that we're show, Dan like-minded people with similar sensibilities travels back to about the way a show should he run. Because 1989 when the when you're on a show, you would rather be San Francisco with people you want to see and hang around earthquake with. We recognized that we could bear each took place. his wife's past relationship with his brother,

which is complicated. And Dan retains feel-

ings for Livia. She was his first love, really, and suddenly she's essentially back from the

dead. Dan is trying to do the right thing by his

family, but it's sometimes hard for him. Kevin has done a good job of creating a three-dimen- sional guy. Hopefully, audiences empathize with Dan. He has done wrongs in his past, but he's trying to do right now."

Dan is a recovering gambling addict, which pops up in episodes from time to time. "His past took a bad turn, and he hit rock bot- tom," McKidd elaborates. "Dan has bounced

back from that, which is a universal feeling.

Journeyman is about the chance meetings in this world that can throw your life into a spin.

That's another thing 1 love about the show: It deals with the theme of the random nature of

life, but how there's also some strange kind of

pattern to it."

McKidd is also thankful that Dan's jour- ——

Although continually crunching—Dan keeps going back McKidd has to the same 10 minutes. So there's a great deal appeared in of imaginative play with the timeline." British TV series and films, as Future well as starred Odysseys Viewers are only beginning in HBO's Rome, to learn what is the actor had no going on with Dan's former love Livia (Moon clue what "pilot Bloodgood), whom he—and everyone else season" was in thinks died in a plane crash. But when Dan the U.S. skips back in time, he often encounters a very-

much-alive Livia. "We find out that she's liv- ing somewhere," reveals McKidd. "In the same way that Dan lives in 2007, Livia has a timeline in a different decade. She has her own life and her own stuff going on, the usual com- Livia is Dan's mitments—not leaving the kettle on, or the ex-fiancee. She cookies in the oven, that sort of thing." was presumed As for the production side of the equation, dead after a McKidd extols, "The entire cast feels so lucky plane crash, but to be working with a team who are such gen- Dan encounters tlemen, very talented and have such a breadth her in the past, of experience and knowledge. They where she have a true gift for drama, interesting reveals that she drama, on a travels through show that isn't cookie-cutter. We strive, every time, too. day, to not go down the obvious route. I'm Kevin Falls doesn't think McKidd Is honored to be working for these just a Journeyman actor. The series people." co-creator is positive that McKidd Is on McKidd is also happy to be his way to becoming a star. working with Gretchen Egolf, who plays Dan's wife, Katie. "She's an actor."

fantastic, and she brings amazing Succeed or fail. Journeyman has moved sensitivity to that role," he lauds. McKidd to a new position in his career. "I take

"It's tough to play a time traveler's what comes at face value. I focus on the wife, but Gretchen finds the fun, moment—this is what I'm doing «ow," he humanity and truthful emotional comments. "I don't make choices with [star- aspects in Katie. And Katie has dom] in mind. More people will see me in the become quite sang froid about show, and hopefully that gets me more work.

[Dan's disappearances]. She real- The tough thing about being an actor is that no izes that there's nothing either of matter how much experience you have and

them can do about it. They're at the how many people have watched you, you still mercy of fate. What are they going have to go into that room and audition and get to do: drive themselves crazy, or the part. I don't think that ever changes—but I try to ride things out? Between the hope it gets better. two of them, it becomes something "Actors sometimes become too precious

almost akin to trench humor." about the things we choose, and kind of stall Of the shows aired so far, one our own careers, because we're thinking too of McKidd's favorites is episode much like a chess game, trying to work out 10

nine, in which Dan goes back only moves ahead. That's fair enough, but I like to

a few years, but has to avoid get up each day and act. I enjoy being on a set,

encountering himself in the past doing my job, learning and getting better. I even though the person he has to love spending time in front of a camera and help is himself. "That episode is playing a character. That has always been my fantastic, a bookend of a two- work ethic." parter where a predator shoots Dan Beyond Journeyman, the Internet has been in the chest during the teaser. Dan hammered with rumors about McKidd landing travels to the past, injured and the lead in the upcoming Thar movie. "That's dying, while the predatory charac- kind of on the boil," he admits. "They've now neys into the past don't always follow the ter keeps Katie hostage in the house. It's a said that they want to go with someone

same format: He isn't always out to prevent a really dark, interesting episode." younger. But I like the script, and I would be

death—accidental or otherwise. Journeyman The Writers Guild of America strike had interested in doing it. I think there's another is far from predictable. "There are times when just begun as this interview took place—and role they're considering me for, but that's def- Dan will go into the past for three hours, and the future of Journeyman, already rocked by initely in the mix." then he comes back to the present and only 15 fading ratings, seems a bit shaky. It's in real Unfortunately, McKidd has to rush back to minutes have passed," says McKidd. "There's danger of cancellation at any time (perhaps the set—in fact, the cell phone he's talking on an elasticity to time that we play with on our even before this article sees print). "The writ- cuts off when he enters the soundstage. But the show. The writers know what is controlling ers' strike is tough, because nobody knows actor will be back. As Kevin Falls told STAR-

this thing, and Elliot Langley [a mysterious what the future holds for anybody right now," LOG, whether Journeyman is a hit or not,

scientist] seems to know, but Dan certainly says McKidd. "But the network realizes that Kevin McKidd is sure to become a star. And

doesn't. But whatever it is, we play with time Journeyman is a quality and intelligent show. I after a chat with the intelligent, thoughtful

in a much more dynamic way than traditional haven't heard anything about [it being can- actor and watching him on the show, it's hard

theories. There's an episode where time is celled], but I hope it carries on. Sadly, I'm just to disagree. wvvw.starlog.com STARLOG/MoffA 2008 29 was stunning—it played more like a feature film than a TV show," recalls for- Itmer ABC Network President Thomas Moore about Irwin Allen's Time Tunnel

pilot, in which two scientists (James Darren, Robert Colbert) use a time machine to plunge back to the Titanic in April 1912, hours before the ocean liner's tragic sinking. As TV's most expensive pilot of 1966, much of the budget of "Rendezvous With Yesterday" went intoxreating the dazzling Time Tunnel complex, secretly housed under the Arizona desert. ABC's President from 1963-68, Moore was a longtime SF fan. After screening the pilot with fellow execu- tives, he recalls, "We had a great deal of excitement about putting the series on the schedule." At the time, ABC was a struggling, third- place network trying to compete by offering unique, innovative programming. "TV Westerns were dying, and SF was the perfect genre with which to attract viewers," says Moore. "Irwin Allen was a brilliant, take- charge producer, and he hired the best people to work for him. He loved special effects, and those costs were Time Tunnel's, biggest detri-

ment. It's remarkable what he accomplished with limited technology and modest budgets." Tony Newman (Darren) and Doug Phillips (Colbert) tumbled into a new era every week, including 1519 Mexico, the French Revolution (1793) and WWI Italy (1915).

trvp back Taking a ,nTime,*>s TV weekly Sev caricatures Newman Tony

tfertCoibert).

episode #25- "The Death Merchant.

Revealed at »astl s \nwin AHen made SF classic history. And too rearranged it, PHILLIPS BV^AARK

30 STARL0G/Alorc/)2008 —

Critics always harped that the trating when Irwin's friends pair ended up in historic time like Red Buttons, Edward G. periods, but since the Tunnel's Robinson or Groucho Marx computer was directing the visited the set and were gen- time travelers' journeys, it made uinely excited by what we sense that its research database were doing, but they wouldn't was tapping into history's hot even consider doing guest spots. Meanwhile, the Tunnel's appearances. I had a difficult lab team (Lee Meriwether, Whit time even getting journeyman Bissell and John Zaremba) actors to do shows. aided the travelers with infor- "Fred Gwynne was very mation while trying in vain to offended when we approached retrieve them. him to do Lost in Space. He Allen developed a reputa- took it as an insult. Many tion as a penny pincher, but actors felt Irwin's shows Moore strongly refutes that particulariy Lost in Space and characterization. "Irwin loved Land of the Giants—were to spend money, and he would beneath them and could hurt have spent more had Fox not their careers. At Irwin's complained to us about Irwin's bequest, Richard Basehart did poor management of budgets," he says. "The role. "It has definitely become a cult show." a cameo on Lost in Space ["The Derelict"], but studio was afraid he was going to bankrupt Other notable guest stars included Tom Basehart was adamant that nobody find out. them!" Skerritt, John Saxon, Carroll O'Connor, We had Cyd Charisse signed up to do Land of As a result, Allen increasingly relied on Richard Jaeckel and , who the Giants ["Doomsday"], but at the last money-saving techniques, such as using stock devoted a page of her autobiography to mem- minute she got cold feet. Francine York footage from films like Destination Moon and ories of the show. There were also appearances replaced her." Prince Valiant. Even Time Tunnel's, cliffhang- by veterans such as Michael Rennie, Victor Stewart had his own actor favorites. "Guys er endings were devised to cut costs, replayed Jory, Jim Davis and Gary Merrill. like John Crawford and Malachi Throne were as the next show's opening. Dennis Hopper had a prominent role in the terrific," he says. "They weren't household Moore felt the series had "an excellent pilot as the conniving Titanic passenger names, but they were wonderful actors. They opportunity" for success. Scheduled Fridays at William Tabor, who tries to sneak aboard a brought a real energy to their performances. 8 p.m., with The Green Hornet as its lead-in, lifeboat dressed as a woman. Doug rips off When we cast the Krakatoa episode, Irwin's the series' early ratings were encour- Tabor's shawl, exposing him. first choice as the scientist was Walter aging. A nationwide poll of high Pidgeon. Walter was interested, but was way school students ranked it as their out of our price range. We also tried for third favorite new show, behind Star SOORtlf Donald Pleasence and Edward Mulhare. We Trek and That Girl. But it never had almost got Joseph Gotten, another of Irwin's the respect of literary SF fans. friends. We ended up signing Torin Thatcher, When the pilot was screened at someone we could afford, and he did a fine Tricon-World Con in Cleveland, job. We had lots of wonderful actors on Time , days before its network Tunnel, because they love to play people from debut, the late SF novelist Jerry history. The show wasn't always perceived as Sohl recalled that the reaction was SF, and that mixed. "The fans had very high

standards for televised science fic- tion," he said. "When they saw thousands of soldiers running up and down the Time Tunnel corri- dors with sirens blaring, the fans hooted and booed. Those scenes were over-the-top spectacle rather than SF." Andrew I. Porter, the assis- r^at die people tant editor of Fantasy & Science Fiction magazine (and later a Hugo winner for his semi-prozine Algol in 1974), was a 20-year-old Tricon attendee in Hopper's role was cut 1966. "The one thing I remember from Time out due to running time issues, but his delet- Tunnel was that hilarious bit when they're try- ed scenes are included in the Time Tunnel ing to convince the Titanic captain to turn DVD extras. And Dan O'Herlihy was origi- around or slow down or something by holding nally cast as Merlin the Magician in a later up a copy of the newspaper that says, "Titanic episode, but quit two days into filming due

sinks.' Yeah, that oughta do it. Star Trek made to artistic differences. Christopher Gary a much bigger impression on fans than Time replaced him.

Tunnel did." The Time Tunnel casting fell primarily to Larry Stewart, who later directed episodes of Revising History The Bionic Woman and . "Irwin also got the Susan Hampshire was "thrilled to be a part loved big-name movie stars, and he wanted „ \ivii*h Ypsterdav" of Time Tunnel'' She played Althea Hall, the them on his TV shows," Stewart says. "I had schoolteacher aboard the Titanic. The British to explain to him that feature film actors

actress still receives mail from fans about her require feature film salaries. It was very frus- www.starlog.com Smm/March 2008 31 helped, because that genre Some actors didn't want to guest on the show, but playing Ulysses suffered from a real stigma John Doucette (middle) had no problem in the Siege of Troy-set "Revenge of the Gods." at the time. And unlike Lost in Space and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, we didn't have to convince them to act with monsters!" Donald Harron—who appeared on shows such as The Invaders and The Outer Limits—starred as the titular hero in "The Revenge of Robin Hood." "It was refreshing to play a charac- ter who smiled" he says. "1 had been cast in grim roles, because I have a naturally worried-looking face. But as Ellis St. Joseph penned two Time Tunnels. He's especially proud of "The Day the Sky Robin Hood, I didn't have to Fell In," in which Tony confronts not only frown. My strongest memo- himself as a kid (Sheldon Golomb), but ry was going to lunch on his Dad's 1941 death at Pearl Harbor. Sunset Boulevard and 1 had this big, bloody gash on my forehead. It was personally selected his guest stars," Reason Tony's father was stationed at Pearl Harbor, fake, but it looked very realistic. People were offers. "He was a gentleman, and he took great and was reported missing after the attack. pointing and staring at me. I was tutored in the pride in the shows he produced." "I stayed as close to recorded history as swordfighting scenes by a man [Paul Stader] Reason returned to play Joshua—the possible," says St. Joseph, who watched the who had served as Errol Flynn's stand-in for Israelite leader in 1200 B.C.—in writer Ellis episode again in 1995. "Seeing it years later, it all of those swashbuckling movies. James St. Joseph's "Walls of Jericho." "Rhodes was was the perfect production. Like all of Time

Darren was one of the wittiest people I've ever magnificent in his all-too-brief scenes," St. TunnePs episodes, it was beautifully produced met. It's too bad he didn't get a chance to play Joseph lauded in 1995. "He gave a superb per- and photographed. I'm very proud of it." more comedy." formance that helped the episode immeasur- A production memo emphasized that In "The Alamo," Tony and Doug desper- ably." Tony's father must have a "believable, ordi- ately try to convince Colonel William Travis Reason is gratified at the writer's praise. "I nary quality." Gene Hackman was considered (Rhodes Reason) to evacuate the wounded appreciate hearing that," he says. "It was for the role, but when Linden Chiles was cast, from the besieged fortress in 1836 daunting to play a Bibhcal character of such he knew it was special. "I'm not a T'V fan," he before 6,000 Mexican soldiers kill Travis and magnitude. I'm glad I was able to pull it off says. "I don't even own a TV set. But this was his 186 men. "My wife Jeri and I visited San effectively. I've received many fan letters as a a fine script and an unusual story. James and I Antonio last year, and seeing the real-life result of those two roles. Time Tunnel was a worked together to make the scenes where the Alamo was quite an experience," says Reason. very popular series and great fun to do." son cradles his dying father as real as possi- "I wanted to find the exact location where ble." Tony weeps over his mortally injured

Colonel Travis had been killed in battle. I Recalling History father, who now realizes that this is his son located it at the northeast corner, and said to An early episode written by St. Joseph, from the future. When director William Hale my wife, in a rather loud voice, 'This is where "The Day the Sky Fell In," received the most ran behind schedule, Allen took over. "Irwin

I was killed.' That brought a few stares from acclaim. Tony and Doug materialize at wasn't a good director," says Chiles. "We were people! Perhaps they thought I had gone , 1941, a day before the devastating happy when Billy returned." around the bend." attack on the U.S. Navy by Japanese planes. Memos on the first draft of the script Reason says Time Tunnel had several fac- Creator Irwin Allen had a reputation as a penny pincher, but a tremendous amount of tors in its favor. "Going back in time and Time and money were spent building the Tunnel complex. depicting historical events accurately was both educational and entertaining," he remarks.

"That juxtaposition of history and how il might be changed by people from the future was interesting to watch. Colonel Travis being brought into the future and witnessing his own demise on the Tunnel's screen was such an occurrence." Safety procedures ensured that Reason wasn't burned, blinded or deafened by the Tunnel's pyrotechnics. "Before the scene

began, I had to stand in the Tunnel with my eyes closed and my hands covering my ears," he explains. "After the Tunnel's explosions went off behind me, with the giant arc lights

flashing, I walked through the smoke, into the

Tunnel's laboratory, where I expressed Travis' bewilderment of being in the future." In addition to enjoying working with

Darren and Colbert ("Robert and I were golf-

ing buddies long before the series, and we still keep in touch"), he praises Allen. "Irwin was very hands-on during the whole series, and he

32 STARLOG/Morc/i» Jeez, Tony and Doug sure had a knack for showing inconsistencies and unbe- group in the advertising community at the up just in time for an important historical event. In lievable situations. Since time. The show's ratings began promisingly, "Massacre," the Project Tic-Toe duo find themselves in the we're dealing with 1986, and it was well-received critically. But it did Battle of the Little Bighorn. what will the policeman's not deliver the general, national audience

futuristic car look like? numbers necessary for it to continue." A per- Such a vehicle ineans a sistent myth is that Moore left ABC in 1967, mockup that will require and that resulted in Time Tunnel's cancella- additional budget require- tion. Moore denies this, and confirins he ments." remained with the network until 1968. Briskin suggested In a roundtable discussion of SF TV with dropping an elaborate Rod Serling and a year matte painting that would later, Allen blamed Time Tunnel's demise on depict the aliens' vast con- "an unfortunate time slot." Allen had already

trol complex. "The dia- commissioned his writers and artists to create logue also needs a com- 20 storyUnes and illustrations for Season Two. plete going over, starting Some of these had already been rejected dur-

with page one," Briskin ing the first year, such as Charles Bennett's urged. "This corny, small- "Murder-Go-Round." In that story, Tony and town dialogue will get us Doug join up with British Intelligence in nothing but laughs." WWII London to thwart terrorist bombings by Changes were made, and the Nazis. "Town of Terror" was Also considered was Leonard Stadd's story reflect intense scrutiny by story editor Arthur Time Tunner& last episode, airing in April of an overpopulated future, in which Tony and Weiss. "There's a lack of excitement in this 1967. The show was over. Doug find the old Time Tunnel housed in a story," he observed. "The Time Tunnel scien- subterranean museum. A memo from Weiss tists do nothing but react to stock footage of Restoring History for another story, "Prehistoric Future," raved, Japanese planes! And the Tunnel itself plays The series' 30 episodes have played "This could be one of our best shows ever!"

no important role in the story." around the world for more than 40 years, but Tony and Doug befriend a sensitive cave girl

Weiss vetoed a fancifully ludicrous idea of its premature cancellation was disappointing in a land of fierce tribal waixiors and volca-

having a Japanese Zero fly into the Tunnel and to fans. Although Time Tunnel was ABC's noes. It ends with them finding (pre-Planet of crash-land. Instead, Weiss noted to Allen, highest-rated show on Friday nights for that the Apes) the apocalyptic ruins of New York

"Why not have the Tunnel send back photos of year (outranking Green Hornet and 12 City and realizing that this is the far-future.

the impending attack to the Commander at O'clock High), its audience declined. Its sea- Allen's 1967-68 storylines also included visits Pearl Harbor? Or have the Tunnel bring back a sonal average ended with a 15.0 rating, just with King Tut, Richard the Lionhearted, Attila top military leader from 1941 and prove to shy of the 16.0 baseline then needed for the Hun, Christopher Columbus, a trip to him that the Japanese will strike the islands?" renewal. Nevertheless, the network OKed a Atlantis, a futuristic "Holocaust Under the To enliven Time Tmiiel's ratings midway second year (1967-68) to play Wednesdays at Sea" and script titles such as "Battle of the

through its run, production associate Hal 7:30 p.m. That renewal was rescinded at the Galaxies," "Missile from Centauri VI" and Graham devised "The New Concept," a writ- last minute in favor of a new series. The "Plunge to the End of Time." ers' guideline to create more alien and futuris- Legend of Custer. For the rest of his life, Allen remained fas- tic storylines. In "Chase Through Time," "Time Timnel was very successful in reach- cinated by time travel, and he produced the plays a traitorous technician ing the six- to 18-year-olds," notes Moore. highly rated TV movie Time Travelers (1976), named Nimon, who kills a scientist (Hal "That audience was the most marketable where Sam Groom and Tom Hallick played Torey), plants a nuclear bomb in the Tunnel scientists who travel back to Chicago, 1871 to

complex and then escapes to 1 ,000,000 A.D. solve a medical mystery. Another Allen effort. Weiss liked Carey Wilber's script but was con- Time Project (1982), could be considered "the cerned by Graham's proposed changes. "This godson of Time Tunnel." Lt. Col. Casey story is fine as it is," Weiss stated. "It's more 11 theTIIVIE Redman and Dr Lucas Royce use a time cap- 'far out' than any Time Tunnel ever written. It's sule called Kronos to travel one million years futuristic, it has a heavy and ends in a prehis- iPI TUNNEL into the future to learn how humanity solved toric era with dinosaurs. It already conforms to the energy crisis. They meet Omega, the mas- our New Concept formula." ter of the time stream. They also travel back to Weiss also objected to making Nimon a 1896, a trip that gives Redman the creeps.

space invader. "Turning Nimon into an alien is "We're walking into a world of ghosts!" he a mistake. To do so will require major revi- bristies. sions to this character, and the resultant story A memo from Allen notes, "We want to changes will jeopardize preparations for film- evoke the spirit of Time Tunnel, yet must ing. The secondary character of Vokar acknowledge the sophistication of today's

[Nimon's silver-skinned ally] is already the audiences." This included something Tony and equivalent of an alien." Weiss won his argu- Doug never had—a time traveler Prime ment, and "Chase Through Time" ends with Directive: "Under no condition may you ever the human Nimon meeting a horrific fate at the tamper with the past." Time Project ended on stingers of giant prehistoric bees. the storyboard stage after a similar show on Another alien adventure, "Town of Terror," NBC, Voyagers!, failed during the 1982-83 Two scientists «-^^' had the time travelers join with a coura- ^ up are hurled helpless' season. to battle in geous young woman (Heather Young) into the lost world of ti In 1989, Allen (who died 1991) admitted blue-skinned invaders in New England, 1978. that Time Tumiel was his favorite series. Writer

Originally, the script was set in 1986, and Tony and Doug were transported to the Ellis St. Joseph perhaps summed it up best associate producer Jerry Briskin grimaced, comics scene in this four-color Gold Key when he said, "I will be forever grateful to "Where do I begin? There's a lack of charac- publication. Their exploits always Irwin for allowing me to write for such a won- terization, many script holes, numerous story delighted fans. derfully imaginative and unusual TV series."-^ vww/.starlog.com SWm/March 2008 33 The unknown future rolls toward us. I times and protect her son from any danger. 'Behind every good man is a fantastic face it for the first time with a sense Robbed of a normal family existence, it's not woman' —I believe there's truth in that. Sarah of hope, because if a machine, a surprising that mother and son find their rela- is just a great character. She's an interesting,

Terminator, can learn the value of human life, tionship strained. What's more, Sarah must layered, strong woman. And that's always maybe we can, too." allow Cameron, a "good" Terminator, into appeahng." That narration by Sarah Connor (Linda their lives—the better to assure that John ful- Hamilton)—set to an image of asphalt rolling fills his destiny as leader of tomorrow's Mother of Tomorrow by in a car's headlights—brought Terminator Resistance. Cameron sends all three of them The Sarah Connor Chronicles—which

2: Judgment Day to a close in 1 99 1 . Sarah had forward in time to the year 2007, hoping to get also stars Thomas (Heroes) Dekker as John reason to think positively: The Terminator the upper hand on . Connor, Summer (Firefly) Glau as Cameron threat seemed to have been terminated once That's a lot for anyone to endure, even the (see page 38) and Richard T. Jones as FBI and for ail. However, the future has turned out tough-as-nails Sarah Connor. "There's a sur- agent James Ellison—takes all of its cues from to be less hopeful than Sarah expected. Fox's face to Sarah which sort of belies what is real- the second film, while steering clear of any new mid-season show Terminator: The Sarah ly going on beneath," offers 300's Lena connection to Terminator 3: Rise of the Connor Chronicles—which opens with a sim- Headey, who takes over the role in the TV Machines (2003). After all, time is fluid in the ilar shot of striped pavement rolling by—picks show. "I think she could possibly go crazy. Terminator Universe, and the events of T3 up the story four years after the events of T2. She's just barely hanging on to her sanity. seem to belong to an alternate (and thus ignor- The show premieres January 13 (Sunday, 8 Sarah is an ordinary woman in extraordinary able) timeline. p.m.) and then shifts to its regular time slot circumstances, through which she develops Headey hasn't even seen the third film. In (Mondays, 9 p.m.) January 14. into a very complex human being. fact, she only saw T2 "all the way through"

The killing machines are back, so Sarah "Women are good at holding a thousand after the series started lensing. "I watched it and her son, John, are constantly on the move, things together. They have a strength that goes with Thomas about four weeks ago," she

fearful of another attack. Sarah is consumed deeper than most men. Women can deal on reports. "But I knew the Terminator premise

by the need to remain hyper-vigilant at all many, many levels. You know the saying. [before that], and it's sort of current with

BijHBE iflQllJ By BILL FLORENCE

34 mmMmh2008 www.starlog.com —

where we are now as far as technological

developments go. The notion of man vs.

machine is quite relevant. I understand it on

an emotional level. The second movie is the most informative one [for our series]." She calls the trio of Sarah, John and Cameron a "dysfunctional family," "Sarah loves her son above and beyond [the norm] for many different reasons," Headey remarks. "John is the key to the survival of mankind, so there's an added pressure. Meanwhile, Sarah

is learning to trust Cameron, who is sort of her adopted daughter. Cameron has to be in the family, and although Sarah isn't happy about that, they learn to live with each other." If Terminator fans are to embrace the new show, they will have to get over the recasting

of Sarah and John. Headey says she is work- ing hard to make the TV Sarah her own while not ignoring Hamilton's performance. "There

are some viewers who are never going to let

me in as Sarah Connor, and I can't do much to

change that," she reflects. "I'm still giving Sarah the strength that the original character had. "Since we're doing an hour every week, there are going to be developments and differ- ences for her [compared to the movies' Sarah]. People may say, 'That's not Sarah Connor!' But that's because I'm doing 22 hours of this, not just two. To hold the audi- ence's interest and develop the characters and make things interesting, Sarah must go places that the films never went. But Linda Hamilton's portrayal—particularly in the sec- ond movie does influence my take on the character. Sarah has been pushed to her limits as a female and as a human being." The complexity of the role, and the physicality of the show in general, were two elements that attracted Headey, 34,

to The Sarah Connor Chronicles. "The . pilot script [by Josh Friedman] was great, and we continue to get new scripts and ideas that are intriguing,"

she declares. "I love all the physical

stuff I get to do on this series. Plus,

Sarah is pretty intense. If she were a

real person, I would have to get her drunk or something to get her to lighten up. She has a lot on her plate." One of the challenges she faces

in playing Sarah is to avoid being "too dramatic," Headey says. "You know, screaming and crying and other emotional extremities are interesting, but for now, for this

first season, I want to keep a lid on Sarah. I'm trying to let her be inter- esting in a subtle way. We're just finding out where we [the charac-

Pushed t;o t;he limits, Lent faces a TV tomorrow filled with ters] all fit and who we are. We need to have dire and grim, as any story about killer robots somewhere to go with them, so we want to and the end of humanity is bound to be. keep a few surprises in store." There's nary a smile or joke in sight. However, Headey pauses a moment, reflecting on the Headey insists that lighter moments are com- challenges in acting, and then ventures that ing. "Again, you need somewhere to go. There she isn't quite comfortable with the notion that needs to be humor in this show, but we don't acting includes challenges. "It's a strange want to make it lighter right now," she muses. word, 'challenging,' because it's not challeng- "Actually, there are humorous moments in the

it on what you ing—it's a great job," she replies. "If there's early episodes, but depends anything challenging about it, it's focusing think is funny. and concentrating when you're tired. 1 guess "On the set, when we're filming, we're you could say that playing Sarah is challeng- like, 'This is really funny,' but perhaps the ing in a fabulous way, because I get to work audience won't see it that way. For example, [in the out all these things—like how to make it bril- we throw Cameron through a window liant, hopefully. I feel really blessed to have second episode "Gnothi Seauton"]. There's a

this job." look between John and Sarah when they do it, The series' early episodes are intensely and Sarah's like, 'Screw you and your friend.'

Headey based her character on the tough, intense and militant Sarah seen in Terminator 2: Judgment Day.

Photo: R. ForemanJ

"She's just barely holding onto her sanity" is how Headey describes Sarah. The brooding mother has the burden of what may come tomorrow resting on her shoulders.

Photo: Patrick Ecclestine

Her greatest responsibility is protecting her son John, the future leader of the Resistance—and eventual savior of mankind.

36 STARL0G/A)ofc/i2m "It's finished, and I'm about to go see it for the first time," Headey remarks. "The Broken was

a tough shoot, but I'm hoping it will be some- thing quite original." Offering some final thoughts on why she expects Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles to be a hit with viewers, Lena Headey observes, "We're bringing an action-

suspense drama to TV that is unique and has an intriguing plot. The scripts are so exciting, and hopefully we'll transfer that excitement to the screen. The series has this huge sense of

the unknown going on, which is pretty cool.

Even if I had nothing to do with the show, I

would watch it and probably get hooked!" Some of her genre experiences haven't been that great. However, Headey had an "awesome" time on Zacl< Snyder's 300.

Those little moments may not be outright Headey is reticent to discuss upcoming hilarious, but I don't believe we should be episodes except to say that, "There are lots of doing hilarious right now." interesting guest stars, and some unexpected new and old appearances. And we have some Woman of Yesterday amazing action," she attests. "Our action As grim as things are on screen, life on the sequences are of feature-film quality, and Sarah Connor Chronicles set seems to be just that's exciting. It's like we're shooting a movie the opposite. "The mood is very relaxed," every eight days. Plus, I'm getting some great

Headey notes. "We all get on wonderfully. I opportunities to develop Sarah. I love the

love Thomas and Summer. Thomas is like episode we just shot, 'Heavy Metal.' It's so someone I've known for my entire life, and crazy! We did lots of location stuff for that

possibly previous existences, too. We have a one, and it's very action-packed." great bond, which just happened naturally. Before The Sarah Connor Chronicles, He's an amazing man, a ball of energy. Headey co-starred in the movie adaptation of "And Summer is an extraordinary being. 300, the Frank Miller-Lynn Varley graphic I've never met anyone like her. She has been novel. "That was awesome," she says of her given this role where she's playing a robot, time making the film. Headey was also in and yet you fall in love with her. She's quite director Terry Gilliam's The Brothers Grimm something, Miss Glau. I'm incredibly fond (2005), but her remarks about that experience and protective of the two of them. The materi- are altogether different. "It was grim'" she al is so serious, but we screw around [when the says tersely. Any reason why? Headey's lacon-

cameras aren't rolling]. We're all very silly ic reply: "Because Terry Gilliam is a shit!" and camp. We usually rehearse in a musical Another 2005 genre film that featured the

style, and then we bring it back down." actress was The Cave, about bloodthirsty crea- Considering her own part in the behind- tures terrorizing divers in an underwater cave. the-scenes hijinks, Headey quips, "I'm hilari- "Thank God there wasn't a sequel," Headey ously funny. I don't think Sarah is particularly mutters. humorous, though. Her humor comes out by In 2008, movie audiences can see Headey accident. If you ever asked her to stand up and in The Broken, writer-director Sean Ellis' psy- Pull up a seat and see the Chronicles make a joke, it would probably be awful. But chological thriller about a who woman unfold. "Even if I had nothing to do with I'm a comic genius." encounters herself on a busy London street. the show, I would watch it!" Headey says. www.starlog.com STARLOG/Alort/i 37 : "What model are you? Are you new? You seem.. .different." Cameron: "I am."

he Terminator was once synony- mous with the physical brawn and square-jawed visage of Arnold Schwarzenegger. Now, the latest model in Terminators can be seen in the new Fox series Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles as played by Summer Glau, who couldn't be more different from the former bodybuilding champion. Pretty, petite and younger in appearance than her 26 years, Glau is an unusual choice to succeed Schwarzenegger as an unstoppable machine from the future

whose only purpose is to protect John Connor (). Glau herself admits that,

initially, she wasn't sure she was right for the part of the Terminator dubbed Cameron.

Sarah Connor (Lena Headey), John Connor (Thomas Dekker) and Cameron (Summer Glau) star in Fox's Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. PBBliMlll^K By BILL FLORENCEm "When I first got the sides to

audition for the series, I was very reluctant," reveals Glau, who's enjoying a rare day off

from the set. "I felt that I did

not fit the profile of the kind

of person I would choose for a girl Terminator—you know, sort of a 'Wonder ; ' Woman' type. I thought,

'I'm going to look silly, and

they're going to laugh at

me.' That was before I found out that Josh Fried-

man had written it.

"Once I got to the audi-

tion [and saw him there], I

wished I had prepared some- thing brilliant to show him,

because I respect him so much. David Nutter, who directed our pilot and first episode, was there, too. After working with them and talking about what sort of a Termi-

nator they wanted Cameron to be, I fell in

love with the part. From that point on, I real-

ly wanted to do it." With a sheepish laugh, Glau confesses that she hadn't actually seen any of the Terminator films when she was cast as Cameron. "None of them," she discloses. "My

Dad said, 'I cannot beUeve my daughter hasn't seen the Terminator movies, and now she's playing a Terminator!' So he went out and got

all three of them for me. I knew the basic story of the films, though. Everyone knows what a

Terminator is, even if they haven't seen the movies. "I had an idea of how Arnold Schwarzen- egger played the role. I thought of this super-

human man who is so imposing, bigger than

life, strong and tough. But when I watched

him in Terminator 2, I was amazed by how touching his performance was, and by how

much I cared about his Terminator. When he

sacrificed himself at the end, it broke my heart! That's what I thought was great about

his performance, and that's what I want to try

to do with mine. It's fun to do all the stunts, it's great to be tough and beat people up and

use guns, but what I loved most about Arnold's performance were his moments with

John. He was trying to relate to him. I found that compelling." the most advanced is her ability to mimic The tug-of-war human emotion, which is the most interesting between being a

Machine Parts thing about this character. Playing a robot is machine and finding her humanity is Glau's Terminator builds on the same fun, but playing a robot that can mimic emo- the source of premise, in that Cameron seems to have a tions is truly exciting." Cameron's nascent ability to empathize, particularly Still, Cameron's emotions real or imitat- — endless struggle. when interacting with John Connor and his ed—are rarely glimpsed in the first few mother, Sarah (Lena Headey, see page 34). episodes, and even when they do emerge, the "She's still a mystery to me right now," Glau character's machine nature is never far from reflects. "Cameron is a machine, but there's viewers' minds. That is what makes playing a something about her, a vulnerability and an Terminator challenging for Glau. "In the short openness, that is close to being human. I time that I've been an actress, I've played wouldn't be surprised if, in the future, she emotional, wounded, vulnerable characters," became almost human, in a way. I'm delight- she points out, referring especially to her work ed with the character's growth. When I met as the psychologically fractured River in Joss with Josh to discuss the role, he talked about Whedon's SF-Western Firefly and the schizo- how Cameron is the most advanced phrenic Tess in .

Terminator model so far. And what makes her "So to play someone like Cameron is www.starlog.com She's sexy, a daunting for me. I'm not used to it. I have to

cyborg and an approacii it differently. I want people to be assassin. No able to relate to her and feel something for wonder John her, even though she can't feel anything her- is having a self. The writers do such a great job, and Josh hard time is such a great leader and coach, that it's deciding what best to devel- he feels about working well. I'm just doing my his gorgeous op Cameron to her fullest. She's definitely guardian. absorbing [new experiences] every week, with every new script we get. Cameron is like a child learning at a rapid pace." Cameron passes herself off as a high school classmate of John's in order to stick close by him and protect him from attacks by other Terminators. Acting the part of peers, John and Cameron enjoy a compUcated rela-

tionship. "We all talk and laugh about whether they might develop feelings for each other," Glau relates. "I don't know if they will. It's up

in the air right now. I do know that Cameron hves only to protect John, and even though she can't truly love him, the way she treats

him and speaks to him is as close to love as a

robot can get. I think that element of their relationship will continue to grow. I've been

asked by fans, 'What is the one thing that you

want Cameron to do?' My answer is, 'I want

her to fall in love.' That would be the most challenging, exciting possibility to me. "The relationships between all three char- acters—Sarah, John and Cameron—are strained at the moment," the actress adds. "They're feeling each other out, and trying to understand one another. Right now, they're like a dysfunctional family. But there's also a

sense of belonging to each other, which I hope will continue to grow." Most likely, the series will explore such

relationship dynamics in greater depth as it moves away from the one-note, life-and-death situations of the first few installments. "The

third episode is actually much lighter [than the

first two]," Glau declares. "Obviously, we

have an action-oriented story, so it's going to be dark and dire at times, but I've been amazed at how our writers have been able to balance the action with drama and humor. "We keep the action going strong, but

you'll be surprised by the humor. I know that as actors, when we're sitting on set reading the new scripts, those lighter moments are the ones we look for and talk about: 'Did you read

Glau speal

This new Terminator model looks like a model. Cameron is by far the most sophisticated killing machine to date.

40 mm/March 2008 that hysterical moment that we get to rely on Joel [Kramer], our stunt And a River runs through it. The mystery behind the do in Scene Six?' We're getting the coordinator, who also worked on Academy and the government's experiments on River chance to hghten things up." were finally resolved in Serenity. Terminator 2: Judgment Day. He's brilliant, and I love working with

Human Roles him as much as I can." Things are already light behind On the subject of Serenity the scenes, according to all three cast (beloved by many STARLOG read- members in separate interviews for ers), Glau—who won a Saturn STARLOG. "We're having so much Award as Best Supporting Actress fun!" Glau declares. "I've only had for her role and discussed the film one other experience like this, where in issue #340—asserts that it was I've had so much fun with the people successful despite its poor box I work with. That was Firefly. And office performance. "After Firefly I've never been part of such a small was cancelled, all of us [in the cast cast before. There are really only and crew] were dying to have some four of us in the main cast [including kind of closure," she states.

Richard T. Jones as FBI agent James "Serenity provided that. I don't Ellison], so if we didn't get along, it know if we have complete closure, would make the long working days though, because we were so in love even longer—excruciatingly long. with that story, each other and Joss.

Thomas, Lena and I constantly I don't think it's ever really a

laugh. Those two are both really closed book. But it was important funny. I'm not very funny, but they to everybody to close out Firefly in

are, and they make me laugh all day a way we were all comfortable long. We're supportive of each other, with." too. It's a blessing to work with peo- Later, Glau had "a great time" ple I get along with and care about. playing Tess Doemer in several We're together five days a week, and episodes of TIte 4400. "I love that

I actually dream about them on the cast," she says. "They're fun, tal-

weekends. I miss them when I'm not ented and down-to-earth. I enjoyed

working. We're very bonded." my character, too. I was happy with A ballet dancer in her youth, the way Tess progressed. As a guest

Glau particularly enjoys the many star, it's nice when the writers take opportunities she's getting to time to develop your character." demonstrate Cameron's physical Now, though, she's solely

strength and durability: from exchanging physical work. But Cameron's fighting style is focused on The Sarah Connor Chronicles.

blows with other Terminators to getting completely different from River's [in "We have all of the iconic elements that the

thrown out of windows or through walls. She Serenity]. I went from playing a girl who is Terminator films are known for: big action, a is quick to point out, however, that the physi- human, small and helpless looking, to playing compelling story and an overall exciting ride,"

cal demands of her current role are quite a girl who is stronger than any human. There Summer Glau remarks. "The great thing about

unlike those required of her in the 2005 Firefly are no martial arts for Cameron. She doesn't doing it as a TV series is that we have more big-screen adventure. Serenity, in which fine- know finesse. Working with the stunt team is time for quiet moments, funny moments and ly-tuned martial arts moves were the order of kind of the same, though. You have to know character development that you can't always

the day. how to make the hits look real. In that respect, do in a film. I think there's something for

"My favorite thing about playing Cameron my past experiences have helped to a certain everyone to relate to. Viewers can live with

is all the action," she notes. "I love doing the extent on Sarah Connor Chronicles. Mostly, I these characters every week."

In The 4400, Jordan Collier (Billy Campbell) seeks out Tess (Glau) and enlists her in his plan to steal some Promicin.

After essaying wounded, vulnerable women like River, Glau embraced the opportunity to play a more assertive character. www.sta rlog .com STARLOG/MoffA 2008 41 .

ALL-NEW STAR TREK ADVENTURES

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You can fax: 646-723-2273 or e-mail: dee.erwineigstarloggroup.com www.starlog.com SMm/March 2008 43 STARLOG Signature Section, Will the rea/Tom Holtkamp please put itzer.) Jack Davis, for my money, the best car- ThisTom Holtkamp's Comics & Stories, down that martini? toonist in the world. Mad's master of the celebrates one of the magazine's car- brush, brilliant at both satire and advertising. I toonists. Why? We were sifting can't draw a doodle without seeing his influ- through his accumulated contribu- ence in it somewhere. Mort Drucker, Mod's tions archived (since 1995) on photo CD and best caricaturist. He has the ability to just draw (then since 2000) as digital computer fdes a person doing nothing but standing there, and Jones, what car- when the idea came: Wouldn 't it be neat to col- it makes you laugh. Chuck the lect a sampling ofHoltkamp 's varied works all toonist hasn't been influenced by Warner in one place? So, this is that place. Bros, classics? He managed to give those ani- As a fan artist, he illustrated STARLOG mated characters more personality than most contributor Jean Airey's legendary fanzine human actors; he made them real. story, "The Doctor and the Enterprise" (which and Doug Wildey, what would comics and brought guess Who into first contact with Kirk, Saturday mornings in the 1960s have been Spock and McCoy). Now, he's a professional without them? Toth's Herculoids and Space commercial artist in Ohio. Ghost designs have great appeal to SF fans, and I'll never understand why Scooby-Doo is By DAVID MCDONNELL considered Hanna-Barbera's golden fire hydrant while you can't find Wildey's with MapQuest nowadays. Wally Wood, another Mad, EC and great.

Whether it was one of his hilarious Mad satires or an EC Ray Bradbury adaptation, you never forget Wood's unique style.. .and his women weren't too shabby either. STARLOG: You've managed to carve out a career as a commercial artist and cartoonist even though you live in Ohio. How?

tENES WE'VE ALWAYS WANTED f eefromALI EN ouuAW Apn isr Here are some quotes STARLOG readers have always wanted to see.

STARLOG: Judging from that self-portrait STARLOG: How did you begin?

you sent us (above), I have one question: Who HOLTKAMP: I really wanted to be a TV are you? And what have you done with the anchorman, but didn't meet the minimum hair real Tom Holtkamp? requirements. Fortunately, I had art to fall

TOM HOLTKAMP: Well, I admit it's not back on. After a year working at a small studio

accurate, I always have a brandy before turn- and another year creating artwork for plastic

ing in, not a martini. I'm shopping around my bags, I was ready to pull out the few hairs I new series Toonboy After Dark right now. had left—a 9-to-5 job didn't seem to be work- ^ ,FEWMORE OF THOSE ing out for me. Luckily, I met illustrator ^GRATUITOUS RlPLEV STRIPTeASES Jared Lee, who was very big in advertis- This 1999 look at ALIEN was a prototype ing and publishing. Looking at his stu- for Scenes STARLOG Always Wanted to dio, I realized what you could accom- See (which began five years later). plish working freelance, so I started drawing greeting cards, magazine illus- HOLTKAMP: Actually, you can work from

trations, anything I could find to keep any place now if you have a fax machine and me away from a real job. are online. I've never met 90 percent of my STARLOG: Name the artists who have clients face to face, which I'm sure pleases ^ influenced you. In alphabetical order. them no end, but I do miss the old days of lug- HOLTKAMP: Neal Adams, whose ging around a portfolio and shaking hands. style made characters like Batman and Personal meetings help people remember you Green seem absolutely real. Tex and your work. Plus, it's impossible to bribe Avery, the funny Walt Disney. His stuff an art director with donuts over the Internet. was always memorable. Jim Borgman, STARLOG: You inked Mike Peters' Mother Cincinnati's editorial cartoonist, and Goose & Grimm newspaper strip for several

hands down the best in the country. I'll years. What was it like working for Mike? never forget working up the courage to HOLTKAMP: It was a lot of fun. Mike is go down and meet him back in art quite different from most I've met school. Not the unreachable demi-god because he's very extroverted, whereas most

atop a 10-foot desk that I expected, but a of us are happy to draw off in a nice quiet cor- regular Joe, feet on desk, flipping ner somewhere. His mother, Charlotte Peters, through a pile of Mad magazines—my had a variety show in St. Louis for many years, kind of guy! (I think he is unapproach- and he spent his younger days around a show- able these days, after winning a Pul- biz atmosphere. That really shows in his per-

44 STARL0G//Morc/i200« www.starlog.com —

Illustrating SF titans Jules Verne and H.G.Wells, he produced this sonality—he has that larg- beige-shaded rough—colored ly, and Alain. ..he's my er-than-life quality about differently in the final art. Obi-Wan. him, and boundless energy. STARLOG: What's the When he's in a room, you most fun about doing your definitely know it. I don't monthly Scenes STAR- know if all strips reflect LOG Always Wanted to their creators, but Mike is See cartoon feature? very much like Grimmy HOLTKAMP: The huge the dog, its wild, smiling, monthly check, yuk, yuk! tail-wagging star. I remem- But really, being a big SF

ber in the early 1990s fan, it's just great fun for working on the Saturday me drawing people and

morning scenes from films I really based on the strip and love and care about. I'm pleading with Mike to often sitting here drawing voice Grimmy. He would a golf ball or a tube of

have been perfect. dancing toothpaste, so I

STARLOG: When did get that littie break where I

you begin contributing to get to do something I know STARLOG? And why? will be fun. If I'm drawing Here's his homage to the HOLTKAMP: I think the Speck and getting paid for STARLOG #1 cover as a possible first thing I submitted to issue #400 concept. it... Well, life really gets no you was a gag cartoon better.

spoofing what I considered Star Trek: The Next STARLOG: And finally... if you could be any Generation's rather noticeable lack of action. It kind of a tree, what kind of tree would you be, was a "Captain Picard Actionless Figure" com- and what would be your dream project? plete with tea & crumpets [published in STAR- HOLTKAMP: This sounds like a Barbara LOG #189, 1993]. You first gave me story Walters question, except she would have said

illustrations to do for Lee Goldberg's seaQuest "twee." I think a bigleaf magnolia, because it piece [#229], and away we went. My Mom, beats the hell out of a shortleaf pine. My

bless her heart, gave me my first STARLOG dream project is easy: I would hke to direct a for Christmas back in 1976, issue #3, with that Star Trek movie that actually looks like the great cover of Star Trek caricatures drawn by Trek I grew up with—where the foreheads Mod's Jack Rickard. A magazine featuring my were all smooth and the skirts were all mini favorite show of all time drawn by an artist where everything had that "Brought to you in who worked for my favorite magazine? Wow! living color" look I've missed ever since Star

It was love at first sight. STARLOG took its Trek: The Motion Picture premiered. I know place of honor on my shelf right next to you'll say I'm not a director, but that never

Famous Monsters of Filmland and my Robby stopped . I just wanna be J.J. the Robot model, so there was no way I wasn't Abrams!

going to submit something when I started free- lancing. An Index to the films lampooned in Tom Holtkamp imagined an Alien Voices STARLOG: Over the years, you've illustrated Holtkamp's Scenes STARLOG Always audiobook taping with stories for us (like 's memoir in Wanted to See feature. Note: Scenes does not and Leonard (Captain Nemo) Nimoy some #233; John de Lancie's Alien Voices essay, appear in STARLOG #33 1 & #345. And the Best 20,000 Leagues Under ttie Sea. 12 Scenes (*asterisked) are republished this issue #240), created SF dictionaries (Trekonyms, on pages 46-47. STARLOG #265 & #266: Three #260; Yodanyms, #274) and done gag cartoons. Which kind of artistic endeavor do you prefer? prototypes of the feature, all re: ALIEN. #328: HOLTKAMP: That's a tough one because In this Toon Jam offering, IHoltl

ping through it while you acciden- Chocolate Factory*. #339: Mysterious Island. #340: The Fog #341: tally bump the guy next to you and (1980). Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets*. #342: King Kong* nonchalanfly lean over and flash it (1933). #343: King Kong (1976). #344: in front of his face. Colossus: The Forbin Project. #346: The Omen* STARLOG: Describe your fellow (1976). #347: Superman: The Movie and X-Men STARLOG Cartoonists of the Apo- (a full-page strip). #348: Pirates of the calypse Mike Fisher, Bob Mul- — Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl. #349: eady and Alain Chaperon (a.k.a. Snakes on a Plane. #350: The Shadow*. #351: "Big Bad Bubba" & "bortQ.")— Forbidden Planet*. #352: Casino Royale* using only adjectives. (1967). my. Battlefield Earth*. mA: TRON. HOLTKAMP: Mike: Tremend- #355: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II. #356:

ously technically talented.. .and tall. Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope. #357: Bob: Friendly, fabulously fun- Shrek. #358: Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956). #359: Blade Runner. #360: The ny.. .and filthy. Alain: Delightfully Abominable Dr. Phibes. #361: Fantastic Four: digitally dazzling... Dig? I haven't Rise of the Silver Surfer. #362: The 7th Voyage of had contact with Mike, but Bob and Sinbad. I have been bowling for dollars late- WT TO 3t AgJEifST mW?.t^ AMP gMPSP UP 'iWmManhlOOa 45 IF ONLY VV£ MADE 'EM DEPT.

All Art: Tom Holtkamp/Prevlously Published In STARLOG (2004-7). See the Scenes List on Page 45 LESLIE NIELSEN LETS HIS NATURAL COMEDIC SIDE SHOW THROU^.

THE (ACTUALLY) FDNNY ONES! THE ONES WHERE THE PLOT MAKES SENSE! THE ONES WITHOOJnTHE KK^N SINK!

cmom^ 3tfcm THe MAIM ?mo?.t.

IF ONLY WE MADE 'EM DEPT. IF ONLY WE MADE 'EM DEPT. %tmi$m^o/^ uw^Vi? m'f^ fa S^dmMBATTLEFIELD EARTH THE fun / /if TAP-DANCIN<3 SEQUENCE! HAKEY PIMPS our HE'S ReUATEP TO 5AMAMTHA STePHCMS, MICH (A)o«f.i> our &zm 3tauf>t He cm opta rwt tAO\Jit otttTH cooi zzrzo cmoo^ nms. IF ONLY Wt MADE 'EM DEPT.

IF ONLY WE MADE 'EM DEPT. %t&mfTACLoe my? wjntct to

MOKE FAMILY TIME BETWEEN FATHER ANP SON, THERE'S NOTHINQ QUITE LIKE MALE BONDIN<9.

WITHOUT -mK, m wiuu oowh oini

IF ONLY WE MADE 'EM DEPT.

WHY MOVIE AUDIENCES DID NOT SEE HIM...

A ryp'icAi' AMtJzxcAti 6RAPe ^choou ahv the M/ARTi/\M5 iMMe^j/iret-y pie c>f mumps, CMICKtU PC?X, STREP THECAX PEKMATITIS, MEAStE5, PIMKEVE AMP JOdX ITd^l.

IF WE ONLY MADE 'EM DEIT.

Htx W6'E6 PEerry sArrsFiet?. wr mow th/(t we thimk ABOUT IX THE MOVIE

A HAPPy EMPIM6, WHERe i

STARLOG/MoffA 200fi 47 Its NOMPQSSIBLE! STEVEN SPIEL&ERO cm realize his original vision USIN6 TODM*'S STATE-OF-THE-ART CGI ENHANCED EFFECTS. NOW WE'LL SET TO SEE THE AAANV CHARACTERS HE COULDN'T INCLUPE BACK IN THE PRE INDUSTRIAL IPSOS (SEE IF VOU CAN SPOT THE TRIBUTE TO HIS SOOP FRIENP GEORGE LUCAS).

tHlSTiME,EXCANT PHONE HOME BECAUSE HE MAS BEEN Xn FACT. EX DECIDES NOT TO (SO BACK HOME AT ALL/ PRDZEN INTO IMMOBILITV WONDERING WHICH L0N6 HAVIN6 BECOME REACQUAINTEP ONCE AGAIN WITH DISTANCE SERVICE WOULD SAVE HIM THE AAOST MONEV. LITTLE DREW AND HER CHARMING. NEW FRIENP5 .'

48 STARLOG/Alorc/i 2008 www.starlog.com /^IVEN THE FACT THAT EVERYTHING TOPAY IS A SECJUEL OR A REMAKE, WE HERE AT STARL06 WOULD LIKE TO ^SU66e.iT THAT HOLLYWOOP FRESHEN TH»Ni55 UP BY COMBIMINS THE TWO TOdETHER. WE NOW PRESENTj APERFECTEyAMPLEWITHTHETHRILUIN6... *Y /X V*

Smm/March2008 49 50 STARL0G/Morf/i200« Explore 30 Years of

All back Issues include numerous articles & interviews. Only a few are listed for each entry. Order now while copies last!

#2 Gene Roddenberry. Leagues Under the #61 Tre/c// 2. Walter Koenig. #89 Jane Badler. Helen TV. Sharon Stone. $50. Coates. John Colicos. R #167 Pertwee. Creature Space: 1999 EPG (i.e. Sea. Chekov's 2. $W. Sean Young, RWarrior. $15. Slater. Patrick Troughton. Rabbit. 87. $10. from Black Lagoon. $10. Episode Guide). Logan's Jim Cameron. Irish #114 Nimoy Guy Williams. Run. War of the Worlds. #32 Sound FX LP Buck #62 Ricardo Montalban. McCalla. Kyle MacLachlan. Robert Hays. Gareth #139 . #168 15th Ann. Terminator Flash Gordon. $50. Rogers & Trek designs. Koenig 2. James Doohan. Starman. $10. Thomas. $150. Gareth Thomas. Landau. 2. Lost in Space. Michael Chekov's 3. $10. Ken Tobey Dr. W/70, $10. Coates 2. Nigel Kneale. Moorcock. $10. #3 Space: 1999 EPG. #90 Scheider. Karen Allen. #116Majel Barrett. Robin "Doc" Smith. Phantom of Nictiefle Nichols. George #33 Voyage EPG. Ellison #63 Spielberg. Nimoy. Ironside. Dean Stockwell. Curtis. Whitney. Paul the Opera. $10. #169 Schwarzenegger. Takei. DeForest Kelley. $35. reviews ST:TMP. $10. Russell. . Joe Morton, $200. Darrow. Nichols. Ray Roald Dahl. . Bill James Horner, $25. Russell. $75. #140 Bill Murray. Kneale 2, & Ted 2. Dr. Who.$10. #4 Outer Limils EPG. SF in #34 Tom Baker. Irv #91 Dune. Michael Wheaton, . Eric 3-D. . $50. Kershner. Buck Rogers. #65 Arthur C. Clarke. Crichton. Koenig. #117 Nation, Lenard. Adam Stoltz. B&B. $10. #170 Cameron. Keanu Martian Chronicles. $15. Hamill. f. I FX. Tim Terminator. V. $10. West. Oz. RoboCop. $10. Reeves, Robert Patrick. Dr. #5 3-D films. Space: 1999 & Hildebrandt. $10. #141 Diana Muldaur.Jared Who. BTTF. Time Tunnel UFO EPGs. Don Dixon. #35 Billy Dee Williams. #92 Carpenter. Tom Selleck. #118 Shatner. Rod Taylor. Martin. Amanda Pays. writers. Trek IV. $10. David Gerrold. $15. Voyage FX. $10. #66 Dark Crystal. Frank Gilliam. Barbarella. $10. Jeff Morrow. Michael Giiliam. Kneale 3. $10. Herbert. Frank Marshall. Keating. D,C. Fontana. #171 Brent Spiner. Gilliam. #6 Fantastic Journey. #36 4th Ann. Nichols. Gary Kurtz, $10. #93 Donner. Lithgow. John George RR Martin. $15. #143 Perlman. Kelley. Fred Saberhagen. T2. Robert Heinlein re: Prowse. Yvette Mimieux. Hurt Robert Englund. Robert Picardo. Tracy Tunnel wnters 2. $50. Destination Moon. Glen Larson. $10. #67 TRON. 'The Man Who Simon Jones. Dr. Who. Jedi #119 Doc Savage. Takei. Torm6. Indylll. Batman. SF Animated Trek. $25. Killed Spock." $10. FX 5. Monty Python. $10. Kenwin Matthews. $10. costuming. $50. #172 Koenig. Brian Aldiss. #37 . Shari Lewis. B7. B&B. $10. #7 Star Wars. Rocketship Terry Dicks. $10. #68 007. Harve Bennett. #94 Doohan. Sayles, #121 Chris Reeve. Mel #144 13th Ann, Richard X-M. Robby the Robot. .$10. William Katt. John Barry. Brooks, Dante. Lithgow. Chaves. . #173 Kelley. Frakes. Bakula, Space: 1999 Eagle #38 CE3K. Buck Rogers . V Jedi FX Weller. Henriksen. Karen Kim Basinger. Shatner. Alien Nation EPG. $10. blueprints. $35. Kelley. EPG. $10. #69 Anthony Daniels. 6. $10. Allen. Joe Sargent, $10. R Rabbit FX. Indy III. Tom Mankiewicz, $10. Batman. $10. #174 Stewart. Nimoy. Takei. #8 tHarlan Ellison. Star #39 Buck Rogers. Tom #95 Grace Jones. Matthew #122 007 Film Salute, Lambert. GC Johnson. $10. Wars. The Fly. Space Corbett. Erin Gray. #70 Man from U.N.C.L.E. Broderick. Butrick. Hauer. Martin Short Duncan #145 Tim Burton. John Shuttle. $25. Fred Freiberger. $10. Debbie Harry. Chris Lee, Mad Max III. Cocoon. $10. Regehr. Paul Verhoeven. Rhys-Davies. William #175 Roddenberry Salute. . $10. Lost Boys. $100. Gibson. Shatner 2, Dalton. Shatner, Dorn, Nichols. $10. #10 . #40 Hamill. Gerard, #96 9th Ann. Peter Gushing. Moranis. Cobb. RR FX 2. Isaac Asimov. George Pal. Roddenberry. Jane #71 Carrie Fisher. Judson Jonathan Harris. Moore. #123 Nancy Allen. Dolph Stuart Gordon. $10, #176 Anthony Hopkins. . $20. Seymour. Freiberger 2. Scott, Dan O'Bannon. $10. John Cleese. Jedi FX 7. Lundgren.Tim Dalton, Doohan. Kim Cattrall. Emp/re FX. $10. Tina Turner. $10. RoboCop. ST:TNG. $100. #146 Matt Frewer. Andre Wheaton. Jon Lovitz. $10. #11 CE3K. PrisonerEPG. #72 7th Ann. Roger Moore. Norton. Doohan. Takei. Rick Baker. Superman. $20. #41 Sam J. Jones. Bradbury. Hamill. Shatner, #97 . River #124 Burt Ward. Kevin Abyss. RR FX 3. $10. #177 Nick Meyer. John Carpenter. $10, June Lockhart. $10. Phoenix. Ron Howard. Chris McCarthy. Gary Lockwood. Carpenter. Wim Wenders. #12 Roddenberry. Steven Walken. Donner. BTTF. $10. Courteney Cox. $15. #147 Danny Elfman. Nimoy. . $10, Spielberg. Doug Trumbull. #42 Robert Conrad. Mark #73 Cliff Robertson. Robert Chris Barnes. Koenig. Dick Smith. $10. Lenard. Dr. Who. $10. Vaughn. Roy Scheider. #98 MJ Fox. George Miller. #125 Bruce Dern. Gerry Norton 2. flfl FX 4, $15. #178 Batman Returns. Jason Robards. Hamill 2. Dante. Jennifer Beals, $10. Anderson. Carpenter. Young Indy $10. #13 David Prowse. Pal. #43 Altered States FX. Maud Adams. $10. Cameron. $10. #148 Tony Jay. Julie Logan's Run EPG. $10. David Cronenberg. #99 Anthony Daniels. Ian Newmar. Chaves, Biehn, #1 79 Tim Thomerson. Hulk EPG. $10. #74 Molly Ringwald. Holm. Zemeckis. "Cubby" #126 Marina Sirtis. Hays. Warner, flf? FX 5. 57 EPG Robert Colbert. B&B. #14 Project UFO. Jim Michael Ironside, Malcolm Broccoli. Mad Max. $10. Schwarzenegger. Macnee. 2.S125. ALIEN. $10. Danforth. Saturday Night #44 Altered States. McDowell. Lorenzo Semple. Michael Praed. B&B. $25. LiveTrek.SAO. Bob Balaban.$10. WarGames. $10. #100 Lucas. Nimoy. Irwin #149 Yvonne Craig. Robert #180 16th Ann. Tim Burton. Allen. Carpenter. Ellison. #127 Lucas. Harryhausen. Lansing. RR FX 6. $10. Mariette Hartley. Henriksen. #15 Twilight Zone. This #45 Thom Christopher. #75 Nancy Allen, John Gushing. Roddenberry. Davison. Kathleen Kennedy. James Darren. $10. Island Earth. Galactica. Peter Hyams. Escape from Lithgow. George Lazenby, Harryhausen. Nichols. $10. Gates McFadden. $50. #152 Leslie Stevens, Gareth . $10. NY. Sf comics. $10. McQuarrie. Sempie 2. $10. Hunt B&B. "Real Indy." $10. #181 Asimov Tribute. #101 Ellison. Ridley Scott, #128 John de Lancie. Ron Deanna Lund. Stuart #16 Phil Kaufman. Fantastic #46 Harry Hamlin. #76 Crabbe. Sybil Danning. . Roddy McDowall. Perlman. James Earl Jones. #153 Bradbury, Edward Gordon, Voyage writers. Voyage. Invaders EPG. $10. Superman II. Greatest Something Wicked FX. $1 0. Macnee. Takei. $10. William Campbell, Weller. Albert. Lee Meriwether. Lundgren. $10, American Hero. $10. Darrow. Koenig. Prowse, Scott Bakula. 653. $10. #17 Roddenberry, Ralph #77 Phil Kaufman. Chuck #102 Spielberg. Mel Blanc, Bradbury. $50, #182 Lloyd Bridges. McQuarrie. Spielberg. Joe #47 Takei. Sarah Douglas. Yeager.Tom Baker. Michael Douglas. lAllen 2. #154 Ron Koslow. Sally Van Damme. Roland Haldeman. $10. Doug Adams. Outland. $10. Trumbull. Scatman Alley. Doug Adams. Peter #129 William Windom.Wil Kellerman. T. Recall. $10. Emmerich, Voyage Crothers. $10. Davison. Gilliam. $10, Wheaton. Robert Shayne. writers 2. 65. $10. #18 Dirk Benedict. Richard #48 5lh Ann. Bill Mumy. Michael Cavanaugh. #155 Phil Farmer. Paul Hatch, Joe Dante. $10. Ford, George Lucas. #78 Ferrigno. Meyer, #103 . Hauer. Starman. RoboCop. $75, Winfield. Colm Meaney. #183 Danny DeVito. Pfeiffer. Carpenter. $10. Trumbull 2. Lance Rob Bottin. Elmer Ironside. Flatliners. BTTF 3. Walken. Tim Powers. Young #19 Roger Gorman. Gil Henriksen. Clarke. Bernstein. John Dykstra. #130 Tim Burton. Denise Nancy Allen. $10. Indy. Voyage writers 3. $10. Gerard. Star Wars. $10. #49 Kurt Russell. Lucas 2. Scotl Glenn. $10. Ben BurtL$10, Crosby. . Takei. 007 FX. $15. Pertwee. Munro. B&B. $10. #156 14th Ann, Nielsen. #184 Blade Runner. Scott. #20 Pam Dawber. . #80 Billy Dee Williams. #104 Peter Mayhew. Schwarzenegger. Gale. . Stephen BucA- Ropers. $10. #50 Lucas 3. Spielberg. Anthony Ainley. Jedi FX. Stephen Collins. Bradbury. #131 . Dorn. Dante. Farmer 2, Donaldson. $10. . Lawrence Lasf Starfighter $10, Ken Johnson. Outer Limits. Hays. Geena Davis. Larson Starman EPG. $10. #21 MarkHamWl Lost in Kasdan. Ray Walston. $1 00. Louis Gossett Jr. $10, 2. Colin Wilson. e

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intensely dark and damp on the set of ALIENS vs. the fence. He goes down. Others emerge to take their place. No It'sPredator: Requiem. A crane-nionnted sprinkler stands one is going to have it easy tonight, poised to pour tank water down on the outdoor set—a "Basically, it starts as multiple stories," Greg explains dur- hospital roof helipad built at ground level in the Green ing a break. "And as the movie progresses, the stories begin to Timber Reforestation Centre near Surrey, British overlap. It becomes about a team of survivors who have to Columbia. choose how they get through this. There are three main char- Directors Colin and Greg Strause are conferring on the acters: , Kelly and Sheriff Morales, played by Steve scene about to be shot. It has already been a long night for the Pasquale, Reiko Aylesworth and John Ortiz. They're the surviving cast, who are huddling in a soaked and shivering heroes whom the story follows around. There's also Ariel

knot at the foot of a chainlink-fence-screened ramp. If they can Gade, who's Reiko's daughter, and Johnny Lew is, w ho plays reach that white medevac chopper, they live. If they don't, it's Steve's younger brother. Then there are the other people who

death and dismemberment by Alien. assemble. Whether they make it or not..."

They start up. Rain-slick black creatures begin popping Aylesworth is this installment's inevitable Ripley stand-in, out from the shadows. Someone yells, "Aliens!" Gunfire splits Kelly O'Brien. "We call her the inverse Ripley," explains the night. One Alien, crawling up the ramp after them, takes Colin. "Ripley is the mother who had to become the soldier, the full brunt of bullets and goes tumbling tailbone over era- Kelly is almost the exact opposite. Her arc in the movie is the nium backward. Another is trying to squeeze through a hole in soldier w ho has to learn to become a mother. She starts kind of www.starlog.com -- -| STARLOG/Mor:/) 2003 53 i iiiwiiiiiiliiiiiifiii rwn .:r r-ii i r.-_Ji. . n i 'i i r- Who will rain supreme In the battle between these voracious creatures? Requiem Is the second matchup of ALIENS vs. Predator. This time, brothers Colin and Greg Strause are at the helm.

hard and distant from her family. When the shit hits the fan, Kelly's "They were part of AVP 2 before we were hired," Colin chuckles. "That relationship with her daughter needs to strengthen. Otherwise, they was a coincidence. We haven't tried to draw any parallels between our- aren 't going to make it out." selves. The only thing is just knowing how we interact as brothers, we

To hear the Brothers tell it, the casting of Gade as 10-year-old Molly always make sure that the characters we're developing have very real was inevitable. "Invasion was one of the reasons," says Greg. "And I and sensible personalities and actions." saw her in Dark Water." "There are a couple of scenes in the sewer where some of the dia- "It's funny," laughs Colin. "I hadn't seen Dark Water, but I said, logue is very 'us' —how we talk to each other," 'God, we gotta get that girl from Invasion.' Because I loved that show. Greg notes. And Greg said, 'No, forget about that girl. We gotta get the girl from Although the Brothers Strause have long

Dark Water.' It was the same person!" been involved in big-budget FX spectaculars "She's like a miniature adult," Greg praises. "Her depth and under- like Terminator 3 and Fantastic Four: Rise oj standing of the scenes are quite surprising. Working with her, she's a the Silver Surfer through their visual FX com- little lady." pany, Hy*drau"lx, this is their first major genre

"There's also an innocence to her," adds Colin, "which makes it project as directors. They pitched for the first I even scarier in a situation. She has an awesome scream, too. It will AVP, which ultimately went to Paul W.S. blow your eardrums out. She's a loaded weapon." Anderson. "There wasn't any script," Colin recalls. ELEGY FOR ALIENS "We pitched a $150 million idea based on the Requiem isn't the traditional last-human-standing death stalk. "It's comics, which was too rich for what everybody J a different thing," reveals Colin. "In the ALIEN movies, everyone got was looking to do. Alien homeworld stuff. whittled but Ripley. But in this, there's more of a team. Who's going to Forty minutes with no dialogue in English." make it? There isn't one person who's going to make it alone. So they "I called it Dances With Wolves in Outer must work together." Space'' laughs Greg. "I think we've matured as "There are twists," agrees Greg. "We've tried to make sure that you filmmakers since then." can't pick who will make it and who won't. Many people get taken out Two-thirds of the way through production. in this film." Requiem is going well. "We're pretty thrilled

"We're also trying to keep it realistic," continues Colin. "Sometimes with everything," Colin offers. "It's a huge doing the right thing gets people killed [in the movie]. We've tried to undertaking. We're a modest-size feature film. stay away from anything cheesy or cliche with the action. We don't This isn't anything close to the size of the behe- have the one guy who gets up with the gun and singlehandedly kills 20 moths we've worked on as visual effects artists.

Aliens. Other than Kelly, who does have a military background, these It's really astounding how much work goes into

are normal people. But she isn't Special Forces. She's a heUcopter pilot it." who knows how to shoot a rifle. These are average people trying to play "We had less than four months to prep," against nasty things." inserts Greg. "Some of the animatronics just Don't look for any personal significance in the Holland brothers, showed up this week. That was the trickiest Dallas and Ricky. They aren't surrogates for the Brothers Strause. thing."

54 STARLOG/Morc/>MS Look for changes in the opposing crea- tures. "Some people were afraid that we would simply rehash the same old creatures from the last movie," muses Greg. "In the end, that probably became the biggest line-item in the budget—redoing all of those things." "There are advancements in the anima- tronics," Colin says. "We have controls over the lips and mouth that they've never had before." That process started with the Predator. "He's a complete redesign, an all-new Predator," Colin offers. "But we went back heavily to the original Predator He won't look anything like the ones in the last AVP. The Predator used to have teeth inside the mouth. We've gone in a completely new direction

with all the bodywork. He isn't short and squat and covered in armor. He's light, lean and scarred-up." "This guy has been fighting for probably a thousand years," Greg elaborates. "We went more tribal. He's covered in more trophies and

bones, and all the tattooing on the body is very Kelly O'Brien (Reiko Aylesworth) has her hands full in the small Colorado town as she much like the original Predator." fends off bloodthirsty Aliens and \No\1—Requiem's ruthless Predator. And yet different, too.

"This is the first time we've seen a «o«-hunting Predator," Cohn "Part of the idea behind that," Colin continues, "is that the Aliens notes. "He isn't here to hunt—hunting for sport, we should say. That's try to conceal themselves in the spaceship. Their long, smooth surfaces why we call him the Wolf He's like in Pulp Fiction. He blend in, like in ALIENS. The rigid head helps them camouflage into has a different set of tools. This Predator isn't necessarily all about their environment. These are warrior Aliens. They aren't drones. So

fighting fair. Because he isn't here for trophies. They've done that so they have a different mentality. They're on a different mission as well.

many times with the Predators. It's nice seeing a Predator in a different, We did the same thing with the Facehuggers. We changed the more dire situation, and how his mentality and tactics change." Facehuggers slightiy, and made them more menacing and darker. The

color palette for all the creatures is darker. Our Aliens are black and sil- PRAYER FOR A PREDATOR ver, whereas the others were a much brighter blue." The Aliens have been tweaked to evoke an earlier vision. "Our head "People are going to be surprised at how different the Predator

design is a throwback to James Cameron," asserts Greg. "The new looks," Greg predicts. "Although we love the guys at ADI [Tom

Alien head is based on the warrior design from ALIENS. But the detail Woodruff and Alec Gillis], we had to gently suggest that we weren't level that they're now able to achieve is definitely a step up." fans of the Predators in the last movie—even though it was their work. We had to state our preferences for the new Alien head, too." The Brothers Strause—who actually pitched for the While the Brothers looked to ALIENS for design inspiration, don't first yll'P—aren't making a PG-13 movie. They're bringing the expect to see the Alien Queen. "There is no Queen," Greg insists. series back to its "gritty horror film" roots. "We've seen enough of the Queen," says Colin. "Not to say there isn't a surrogate. But that's something we can't really go into." Possibly, he's hinting about the Alien-Predator hybrid seen at the end of AVP. But, again, the Brothers won't go there. "Even in Ripley's films, a single warrior was turning people into eggs," Greg says. "So there's no one single way these things reproduce. They find any way to survive. And they don't need a Queen. ALIEN proved that. ALIENS showed what happens when they form a hive. Even ALIEN: Re- surrection had a whole different way for the Queen to reproduce—giv- ing birth instead of laying eggs. That is what's so amazing about them being Xenomorphs: They adapt according to the situation in order to guarantee the survival of the species." "That's always the trick," explains Colin. "You want to honor the originals, but not simply reproduce them." "Nothing [in our film] breaks any established rules or canon," Greg adds. Requiem will probably be rated R. "What has been exciting for us

is [bringing the series] back to a gritty horror film," notes Colin. "Over the last few movies—especially on the Alien side—it got away from those horror roots." That meant going back to basics. "Not to mention some good old- fashioned debrainings and other interesting stuff!" Greg promises. "We

should do a body count. I think we're going to best the original. There are 25 AUens, and we ordered a few extra hundred gallons of blood."

"To me, this is a continuation of the Predator franchise," Colin

opines. "Even though the last one was set on Earth, it could have been on some distant planet. Because, at the end of the day, what would have happened if they had gotten out of that temple? A couple of penguins

get attacked? The stakes weren't that high. Whereas in this, because it www.starlog.com SMm/Mmch 2008 5 5 is in America, the risk of planetary infestation is extraordinarily high." that's all blacked out. Literally, there are only six people in the entire Obviously, the Aliens are the main threat in Requiem—and a huge world who have read the screenplay. We personally black out pages and audience attraction. "The Aliens are mysterious," observes Greg. pages to keep the cool things as secret as long as we possibly can." "They've done a good job of not explaining too much where the Aliens Beyond that, the Brothers Strause are as fight-lipped as a come from. That's why, even 30 years later, they're still effective movie Facehugger "We've put a great deal of thought into the movie's conti- monsters. If you show too much of the creatures—which has been a big nuity," says Colin. "That sets the film up for sequels. We don't answer rule of ours because of the last movie—you demystify them. They all the continuity questions, but we fix some really big ones. And at the aren't scary. The longer you see an Alien in frame—no matter how hor- end, we're set up to explain the gaps between this franchise and the oth- rific, no matter what it's doing—you become completely numb to it. ers. It's complicated, because the ending is kinda twisted. There's def- "We've been careful to pace the movie out. That's why most of the initely an aspect of heroism. But there's also a viciousness. It's depress- film takes place at night; that's why the lights are out; that's why it's ing. It's all over the place. It's not a feel-good ending." raining; that's why it's indoors. There's just a ton of atmosphere. We're "This is a fairly mean-spirited movie," Greg says. "But there are

trying to hide these creatures and blend them into their environment, so things to root for and people to cheer for, which is what you need in a

that when they do reveal themselves, it's truly horrific." film."

"Enough of the heroes survive that you won't want to slit your REQUIEM FOR A DREAM wrists at the end," Colin promises. For these two brothers from Illinois, Requiem is a dream come true. Just don't ask them to play favorites among monsters and movies. "I don't really have one," reflects Greg. "I wouldn't want to say that one

is cooler than the other. It's funny. When Colin and I used to go into movie pitches, people would ask us what kind of films we liked. We would always answer that Predator is the best mission movie." "Then ALIENS," says Colin.

"And ALIENS is the best action-horror film we've ever seen," adds Greg. "We've probably seen those movies 50 to 60 times," Colin seconds. "Easy." "Yeah," Greg continues. "I love them both. The tribal aspects of the

Predator and its technology are awesome, and the sheer killing effi-

ciency of the Alien is, in my mind, rivaled by few movie monsters." So, are the Brothers up for AVP 31 "We're having lots of fun," Greg notes, without really answering the question. "Oh, yeah!" Colin exclaims. "I would absolutely do another one. In our minds, AVP 3 would bridge this and the original ALIEN. There are some things that we're doing for continuity particularly at the — "All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up." Don't expect movie's end—that are pretty cool possibilities for the next one. We many revealing shots in Requiem.The Strauses want to restore were joking that the crew shirts for this film should be a script page the Aliens' mystery and menace by not showing too much of them.

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Fans of Dick Kng-Smith's stories will wonder about that, of course. Nor should he. the Deep, Jacobs realized he needed to swirl gaze in wonderment when The Water His work on such fantastical fare as Disney's some dark and troubhng waters into the sweet Horse makes its big splash in theaters this Dinosaur and DreamWorks' Flushed Away— sea-serpent story.

Christmas, though they're also apt to wonder: to say nothing of his Oscar-nominated script "The book is lovely, but it's a small chil-

Why all the changes between the book and for Chocolat—proves he has what it takes to dren's book," notes Jacobs of King-Smith's film? turn magical prose into cinematic imagery. tale of a child who finds, then attempts to Screenwriter Robert Nelson Jacobs doesn't When adapting The Water Horse: Legend of raise, a mythical Water Horse in early-20th- century Scotland. "There were many things about the book that and intrigued me.

I loved the setting and characters [King-

Smith] created, but I realized that expansion was needed in order to open the story and

make it into a feature film. So changes were made." Magical Monsters The most critical change involved The Water Horse's protagonist: The book featured

Kirstie, a little girl, while the film centers on Kirstie's brother, Angus. The necessity of that alteration became apparent to the screenwriter once Jacobs introduced his most relevant plot shift. "We changed the time from 1930 [to later]," he says. "It's now set during WWII,

and is about a boy who loses his father in the war." Since his father's farewell, the lonely.

The Egg and I. The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep begins when young Angus MacMorrow (Alex Etel) discovers this crustaceous shell on the Scottish shore. withdrawn Angus (Alex Etel) keeps to him-

self, counting the days until his dad's return. It seems that nothing can distract Angus from his melancholy, but then the boy makes a discov- ery on the shores of the not-yet-infamous Loch Ness lake. He unearths a large and unusual rock covered in shells, which he then hides in his father's workshop—away from the over- cautious eyes of his doting but dour mother, Anne (Emily Watson).

Later, Angus discovers the rock is actually

a giant egg, and its contents are soon friskily scampering around the workshop. Befriending the strange Water Horse hatchling, Angus

names it Crusoe (after Daniel Defoe's solitary

shipwrecked soul), and promises to keep it safe. But Angus also has to keep Crusoe a secret, because if his mother—or worse, the recently installed Captain Hamilton (David Morrissey) and his men—were to find out, For the film, screenwriter Robert Neison Jacobs shifted the focus of Dicl< King-Smith's Angus and Crusoe would surely be separated. story from Kirstie (Priyanl

myth of the Water Horse, and the more mod- soulful manner about him. His eyes hold the her son's eccentricities plaguing her, it's no

ern myth of the ." camera, and those are the kind of things you wonder the woman is solemn and always on It isn't novehy that unites Angus and pray for when you write a movie. That's the defensive. "There are many sources of Crusoe, though; the boy and the beast share an opposition in the story," Jacobs says. "There emotional bond, rooted in their mutual loneli- are soldiers who are doing their job, unaware ness. This further showed Jacobs how ideal at first [that they're harming Crusoe], though Angus was for the central character. "I made eventually they do start pursuing the creature. the children a little older," he explains, "and Then there's the mother, Anne. She loves her wrote the script as a rite-of-passage story son, cares about him and wants to protect him, about a boy whose father has gone missing in but she's a force of opposition, although the war, a boy who's forlorn and alienated and unwittingly. Anne doesn't know that her son needs a friend. has made friends with this wonderful creature. "Angus' state of mind is expressed through She's simply trying to keep her son out of flashbacks with his father—in the workshop, trouble. Anne is an obstacle for her son, and in the tide pool. His Dad is going off to war, only at the end does she realize the gift of the and he tells Angus, 'You're the man of the Water Horse. And it's a double gift. She not house now.' So this boy, who is alone and scared, forms a friendship with this creature that teaches him, in indirect ways, what he "I loved the notion of needs to know in order to move on. Crusoe teaches Angus lessons about friendship and bringing tliese two letting go, as well as about reconnecting with and finding the joy in life." togel If that occurs through exasperating es- capades, then Crusoe teaches joy in spades! An irrepressible scamp of a creature, Crusoe gets himself into fixes that include repeatedly invading the main house, several near-escapes from the kitchen's curmudgeonly bulldog (aptly named Churchill) and the utter upturn- ing, at one point, of a formal dinner. Angus enlists allies to help cover up for his messy Puff the IVIagic Dragon? Nessie: First, his sister, Kirstie (Priyanka Xi), Mixing the Water l-lorse then Lewis Mowbray (Ben Chaplin), a recent- mythos with the Loch Ness ly hired handyman of mysterious character, iegend, Jacobs came up with his own talce on Scottish sea serpent lore. Part of Captain Hamilton's interest in Mowbray revolves, naturally, around Anne. "There's that implied subtextual love triangle between Mowbray, Hamilton and Anne,"

Jacobs says. "We don't play it too hard,

because this is a family film, but you see that jealously in Hamilton. Mowbray also becomes a friend and confidante to the children. He, Angus and Kirstie become this group, like they belong to a secret club. He's the only adult whom Angus can trust."

Mowbray is the one who relates the Water Horse myth to Angus. "Much of the mytholo- gy was invented," Jacobs admits. "I did some As a tiny critter, Crusoe is quite a handful for Angus to keep secret. But things really reading about the Water Horse, but many of escalate as the Water Horse grows bigger. the myths were invented for the movie. I want- only discovers that Crusoe is real, but she also ering combat—or its horrors. "I wanted to use ed the spirit of the old legends, but we needed understands what this creature has done for the war to create a specific emotional circum- to make it more relevant. The idea that there's her son." stance in order to establish an emotional reso- only one Water Horse in the world, for exam-

Fantasy has its healing qualities. "One of nance for Angus," he says. "There's this scene, ple, was ours. It's a sad notion, but it helps the conventions of this genre is that children a iitfle moment, that 1 like, where Angus asks Angus—who misses his father—connect with see magic that adults don't," Jacobs attests. Lewis if he shot down the German plane [that Crusoe. In a way, he becomes a father to this "The moment where Anne finally sees the injured him]. Lewis doesn't want to answer creature. And the story of the Water Horse and creature is preceded by what is probably her the question, and responds, 'If I did, I would the traveler isn't actually a myth, but there are darkest moment. The story is, after all, set dur- not want to about it.' That remark gives certainly stories like it [notably one of a scor- ing WWII, and this family has suffered a loss. Angus an adult perspective to war. That it isn't pion and a frog]."

In that dark moment, where Anne says that a game, and it isn't something to boast about." The traveler story tells the tale of a Water there is no magic in the world—that there's Although he doesn't appear in the book, Horse who agrees to take a weary traveler only war and guns and men going off to fight, Mowbray is incredibly vital to the film. Beside across a lake. However, the ending remains never to return—we had to give the war its due. being a wounded soldier, handyman and paci- ambiguous. Either the Water Horse delivers its But we also wanted to convey that there's still fist, "He's kind of an outsider," Jacobs relates. charge safely to the other bank, or it plunges magic, there's still redemption. We wanted to "In a way, he's like a figure from an American down deep into the lake, drowning the hapless assert that there's a reason to go on living and Western. Mowbray comes into town, and you rider. Jacobs can't recall if it's one or the look for new sources of joy. Obviously, it's a don't know if he's a good guy or a bad guy. other—a fact that's cleverly mirrored in the metaphor. You put those two moments togeth- Captain Hamilton wants to find out if he's a script. "Mowbray tells the story to Angus, or er: the tirade—which Emily wonderfully friend or foe." most of it," he grins. "I thought it might be acted—and then when she sees the Water Horse and her jaw drops. It's amazing." Magical Mythos Anne's outburst is certainly liable to strike a chord with mothers who see the film today. But The Water Horse wasn't written to be politically relevant. "I started working on this in 1999, and the world was different then," Jacobs says. "There's conflict in the world now, and war is much more on our minds, so I think parts of the film do have that resonance. Unfortunately, war stories are universal because wars happen all the time." Jacobs certainly doesn't shirk from consid- Beany & Cecil? Even the Loch Ness IVIonster started small. Before the beast took

to the lake that made it a legend, Crusoe's home was a little-bitty bathtub.

One of the rewards of making the movie today, notes Jacobs, is that the available digital technology could create a truly believable Water Horse. Take the moment when Angus gets angr)' at Lewis for releasing Crusoe into the Loch. The

tone of that had to be just right; it had to be correctly modulated."

A crucial addition to the tale is Brian {X2) Cox as the older Angus. His role as the story- teller enhances the film's mythical nature, as well as adds a poignant footnote on Crusoe and the Water Horse legend. "Brian's charac- ter frames the story," Jacobs says. "He was added fairly late; even the idea of Angus nar- rating was added fairly late." Jacobs grew up in 's Pocono

Mountains, and is a Yale graduate. His big break came in 1997 with the comedy Out to Sea. The writer then cut his teeth on the fan- tastical, helping pen Disney's saurian CGI spectacle Dinosaur (2000) and DreamWorks' Jacobs is delighted with Etel's performance, as well as the rest of the cast, which includes David Morrissey, Emily Watson and Ben Chaplin. Flushed Away (2006). "Flushed Away was lots of fun, but I wasn't as involved in that funny if Mowbray didn't remember the end- Chronicles ofNarnia went to great lengths to one," he says. "Animation is somewhat differ- ing, so lie can't say for sure what the Water breathe life into Crusoe. And they succeeded. ent than live-action films, in that the studios

Horse did to the traveler. So it's funny, but it From the Water Horse's nuanced expressions go through a number of writers. But I had a also creates some tension when Angus choos- to its realistic water interactions, audiences great time." es to ride Crusoe." might never guess that the Water Horse is less Between those two projects came Jacobs' And ride him Angus does—not long after a creature of myth than one of computers. sweetest success to date, Chocolat (2000). the last of Crusoe's stunning growth spurts. "The visual effects guys in "I'm drawn to stories with some kind of mag- Throughout the first half of the film, Crusoe did an amazing job of creating the sense that ical element to them," he comments. "And packs on some serious pounds. Before long, there's actually a creature on the screen," within that magical context, I like the charac- the only place the creature can swim in priva- Jacobs says. "If the movie had been made ters to behave as real and true and plausible as cy and peace is in the Loch itself Sending when I first worked on the script, seven or possible. All the rules of human behavior and

Crusoe to the Loch represents one of the times eight years ago, the Water Horse wouldn't understanding and growth still have to be in when Angus must come to terms with loss, look as good as it does now. The technology place. It can't be a world where anything can saying farewell and the reality that Crusoe has has grown so fast. When I first saw a cut of the happen. Chocolat is about a town where peo- become kind of scary. film, the thing that amazed me the most was ple need to grow. They have to move past the "We wanted to explore that part of the idea, how real Crusoe seemed. There's a perfor- things that are holding them down. In [The too," Jacobs says. "Crusoe is cute and lovely at mance—there's emotion in the eyes and rec- Water Horse], the magic is a metaphor for the first, but then it turns into this large creature. I ognizable behavior in the movements. And the ways in which we have to grow and embrace thought there needed to be a moment where moments in the bath, where Crusoe does flips life. That's part of the metaphor in Chocolat, you weren't sure if it's a monster. That creates in the water, are fabulous. I was pleased as a too. You don't have to feel so burdened by tension. Crusoe turns out to be nice, but there writer." your traditions or the rules. You can cut lose are still moments of wildness and uncertainty. All the CGI in the world can't save a bad sometimes.

Those scenes of Angus riding Crusoe's back, story, but Jacobs isn't concerned about that. "We all love stories about magic," Robert for example. They're signature moments in the Writing the script was a blast for him, but it Nelson Jacobs concludes. "We need magic. movie, and kids will be exhilarated by them." wasn't all Water-Horsing around. "I knew that And the key to writing a story about magic is certain scenes were going to be fun—like the to figure out the metaphor: How does this Magical Metaphors comic chases with Crusoe and the dog," he apply to our lives? What lessons do the char-

Angus and Crusoe's antics wouldn't be notes. "The harder scenes were the emotional acters learn? For Angus, it's about reconnect- half as interesting were it not for the folks at ones—like the flashbacks with the Dad, or ing with real life. The magic of the Water

Weta. The studio that produced many things when Anne asks Lewis about his war experi- Horse is that it allows this boy to take the first virtual for The Lord of the Rings and The ences—because you want to make them real. step toward adulthood."

"I thought there needed to be a

moment where pu weren't sure if

STARLOG/Mflfc/)OT 61

^ ^ ^ By IAN SPELLING

fisaisirig liis razor iiigh,Tim Burton takes a stall at a mysioal with Sweeney Todds The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.

horror movie fan, and I liked the idea of Director Tim Burton the music and the horror and the melo- called upon drama all mixed together. It struck me as Depp, one very strong. of his favorite STARLO(;: And cinematic? actors, to BURTON: It struck nie as cinematic essay Sweeney when I saw it on stage. And then it was Todd, one of interesting, because when I spoke to his favorite Stephen, he said that he had written it like characters. a movie score, almost like an homage to Bernard Herrmann. It does come across

that way. I was a student at the time. I wasn't yet a director in the cinema, per se.

But it did strike me as very cinematic

from the moment I saw it. STARl-Of!: The show is pretty long, and the movie, for commercial purposes, had to be shorter. What was altered for time? BURTON: The first script I read had more dialogue and less music, but the thing about the show that always stood

out to me is, if you listen to the original soundtrack, you get the whole idea of the story without needing that much dia- JUfftf^ifn Burton was, is and forever will I can't remember the logue. So we tried to go back to that, he a STARLOG favorite. Over the year, but I think it was around 1979. 1 had where there's dialogue, but we treat it

years, he has treated fans to films never been to Europe, so I went to almost like a silent movie with music in it, as diverse, daring and inventive as London. I wasn't really a theatergoer, but where the music tells the story. Beetlejuice, Batman, Edward I had heard about Sweeney Todd and went How involved was Sondheim

Scissorhands, Ed Wood and Mars At- to see it. And I just loved it. In fad, I think in the changes? tacks!, as well as Sleepy Hollow, Planet of I went three nights in a row. I'm a huge BliKlOiN: The script has gone through the Apes, Big Fish, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Nightmare Before Christmas and Corpse Bride. His latest picture, a big-screen adapta- tion of the Broadway musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,

doesn 't exactly fit the STARLOG mold, but certainly many STARLOG readers will be among the first in line to check out how Burton has realized Stephen Sondheini's beloved yet blood-soaked classic. And besides, with a cast of genre favorites—including Johnny Depp as the razor-wielding barber, Sweeney Todd, Helena Bonhani Carter as his pie-making partner in crime, Mrs. Lovett, and Alan Rickman as the judge whose selfish actions stoke Todd's thirst for vengeance—how

could we possibly ignore Sweeney Todd I'' So SJARLOG catches up with Burton—at a Manhattan sound editing studio just two blocks from our offices, as he puts the final touches on his first all-out movie musical— for the following wide-ranging conversa- tion.

'' STAPf O- What compelled you to There will be blood. ..and bodies. As Burton discerningly notes, how many directors get "attend the tale of Sweeney Todd"? the chance to helm an R-rated movie musical? wviAv.5tarlog.com STARLOG/Alorf/i 2008 63 i

liked a character as much as Sweeney Todd. Can you elaborate on that? BURTON: I've worked with Johnny many times, obviously, and I've enjoyed this one

more than most. I don't know, maybe

because he nails it in the sense that he does not say much; he does not do much. He just

sits there and is brooding and internalized

and dark. Unfortunately, I relate to that. STARLOG: Depp was actually supposed to do a movie called Shantaram, but that got postponed. If he had made Shantaram, would you have waited for him so he could do Sweeney Todd, or would you have found another actor for the part?

BURTON: I think I would have waited for

him, because doing it with Johnny was one

of the reasons I wanted to make Sweeney

Todd. I was actually involved with the pro-

ject 10 years ago, and it never materialized.

I believe that things happen for a reason. At that time, Johnny probably would have been

loo young for it, but now Sweeney Todd just

many incarnations. From what I gather from [screenwriter] John Logan, he had more

music in, less music in, more dialogue in... They went through lots of changes. But

Stephen was pretty open to it, because we ended up putting more music back into the

script than when I originally read it. I had

heard that Stephen signed off on that [first] script. My goal was to put more music back Instead of in. And I wanted to keep the film true to the finding the

spirit of Sondheim's show. That's why I particulars of

made the movie. I didn't want to change a making a musical bunch of stuff. I wanted to do Sweeney Todd confining, because I love the play. So even though Burton and things got taken out or moved around, I his actors always felt confident, as best I could, that I actually felt had the spirit of the show in mind. set free by the STARLOG: You've been quoted as saying songs and that it has been a long time since you've on-set music.

64 Smm/March 2008 —

seemed right for everyone. It was a chal- weird is that before I knew

lenge for me, and I think it was a challenge either of them, I did a drawing

for Johnny, too. It was new territory. And it of Sweeney Todd and Mrs. just seemed right. Lovett, and right before casting

STARLOG: Judging from the footage I looked at it, and I went, "It's we've seen, Depp appears to be channeling Johnny and Helena!" Really. Peter Lorre in Mad Love, Humphrey Bogart So that was a fateful moment in The Return of Doctor X and Christopher for me. Lee in any number of Hammer films. Does And then Alan is simply that sound about right? amazing. He's one of those

BURTON: Over the years, Johnny and I actors where you go, "Oh, he's ." have talked about these kinds of actors and in Die Hard and he's in. . You

these kinds of characters, and it's a style of forget all the movies he has acting that you don't see often nowadays. been in because he's so great. Depp and Burton had a hit with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Peter Lorre, Boris Karloff, Christopher Lee That's the sign of a fantastic For more Burton interviews, see past STARLOGs (#130, #145, #164, #180, #200, #234, and Vincent Price could project something actor. They become these char- #291, #320, #338) and FANGORIAs (#138, #188). without saying anything. It's almost like acters. And there's nobody bet- silent-movie acting. That has always ap- ter at playing twisted perversity. I've never STARLOG: Except for maybe Sweeney's pealed to Johnny and me, and this character said this to Alan, and he might take offense daughter Johanna and Anthony, everyone in

was perfect for that. With Sweeney and also at it, but he has a certain Vincent Price qual- the story is ultimately a nasty piece of work.

Mrs. Lovett, I could imagine them in a wax ity. Especially in something like this, which How tricky was it to get around that in terms museum. And that was my standard of visu- is a melodrama. Alan is able to convey of giving the audience something, someone al representation for them. If I saw those two things without actually having to say or do to care about? BURTON: Yeah, but they all have their rea-

sons, and that's what I love about them. There's a reason why Sweeney Todd is the

way he is, and you get that. That's the thing

that drew me to this project. Like I said,

they're people I understand and like in a weird way. And that is what gives Sweeney

Todd its drama, sadness, beauty and humor.

It's a simple revenge melodrama, but there's

a reason why everyone is the way they are. STARLOG: Music has factored heavily in every one of your movies, but this is your first bona fide, straightforward musical. What were the inherent challenges in that the lipsynching, the actors needing to sing as well as act, etc.?

BURTON: Well, it was an interesting expe-

rience. To be honest, I really enjoyed that

part of it. In fact, I would probably consider

playing music on the set even if it wasn't a

musical, because it galvanizes everybody. It's like when people made silent movies and

had piano players on the set. People just move differently [to music]. So what could have been a limiting experience turned out to

be quite liberating. I talked with Johnny about this, and he agreed that instead of

being confining, it was great. He moved in a way that he wouldn't have otherwise, and he did things that he wouldn't have done other-

wise. So it was loads of fun. STARLOG: Which song did you most enjoy shooting?

BURTON: I don't know. I appreciate all of them in their own way. I like where Sweeney characters in a wax museum, I would say, them. And that is what this piece required. goes nuts in "Epiphany," because that's the "That is perfect." STARLOG: Dante Ferretti was your pro- most cathartic [song for] me. But I enjoyed

STARLOG: What made Carter and duction designer on Sweeney. How did you doing them all. Rickman right for their respective roles? enjoy collaborating with him? STARLOG: What happened with Chris- BURTON: Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett are a BURTON: Dante worked with Federico topher Lee's role? He was in the movie, and weird couple, and that's another thing I love Fellini. He's a true artist. My background is now he's not. about the story. They represent, to me, the in design, so I admire certain people. And BURTON: That was extremely painful, perfect relationship. They're completely he's one guy I admire. I would walk by his because I love him, but there was this whole screwed up, completely nuts and they room, and he would be doing a big drawing thing about having the ballad ["The Ballad deserve to be with each other. And they of a set. That's like, "Yeah, it isn't a busi- of Sweeney Todd," which opens the stage needed to be the perfect double image. ness. It's a movie. And there's art in movies." show] and all the characters sing it. Chris did

Johnny has that silent-movie quality I was That's just pleasurable to be reminded of and really great work in it, and there were a talking about, and Helena has it, too. What is to be around. bunch of fabulous actors involved. But it www.starlog.com STARL0G/A)flrc/i2(?0« 65 —

Burning with rage, bloodily seelcing became apparent to me that the device of vigilante justice, having people sing this ballad worked amaz- Sweeney Todd finds ingly on stage, but it just didn't work in the himself on the movie. I wanted to see the story told for the razor's edge of first time and not be told what is going to losing his mind happen. So that was quite painful, because and his soul.

Chris is an idol of mine. It was hard. But the bottom line is it had nothing to do with those people. I had never done a musical before, and there were things I didn't know until I

started getting into it. STARLOG: How actually is the film com- ing together?

BURTON: I feel great about it. I love it. I have no idea what anybody else is going to

is use clips of his movies to illustrate his work." In fact, these people who have the rights to the movies, this would only benefit them. But we're in this era of, "Oh, you want that?

Well, this clip is going to cost this amount,

and that clip is going to cost that amount..." There's absolutely nobody who can afford

the amount of money that would take. So it's

unfortunate, and I wish those people would just realize, "I get this. If we have the rights

to this film, it only benefits us. It's like free

publicity." But so far, that hasn't happened. STARLOG: You're listed as a producer on an animated-SF-fantasy-adventure film enti- It tool< years for the Sondheim musical to get filmed. But Burton's second attempt tled 9. What's the basic premise of that, and actually came together quickly. how involved are you with the project?

think of it, but for me, I had the opportunity that—and what has held this up for many, BURTON: I responded to this guy Shane to make an R-rated musical. And that does many years—is that the cost of getting the Acker, who did a short all by himself that not happen every day. So I'm extremely ex- clips to those Vincent Price movies is so had an interesting vibe to it. It wasn't the

cited. astronomical, it's forcing the movie not to be usual talking animals or insects kind of

STARLOG: Sweeney Todd, Sleepy Hollow made. I want to say to everybody, "This is a thing. It felt different, and it's nice to see and Corpse Bride add up to a Gothic horror documentary. This isn't something to make somebody trying something unusual in the trilogy of sorts. Have you done enough of lots of money. It's about a guy who gave the animated vein. It's Shane's thing, and I think

that for now, or would you return to it again last moments of his life to talk to me, and he he has something going with it. if the right project came along? was this amazing person, and all I want to do STARLOG: And our last question is;

BURTON: I love it. It's all project to pro- What's the one film that ject, but I enjoyed Sweeney Todd more than I slipped under the radar?

have lots of things lately. I had so much fun Which of your movies do you

making this, and I feel good about it. So feel, for whatever reason, was we'll see. overlooked? STARLOG: Let's talk about some other BURTON: I've had movies projects. What's the latest on Ripley's that made lots of money that Believe It or Not!l Is that action film hap- are deemed unsuccessful, but pening? the opposite is true, too. Ed BURTON: I'm working on Sweeney Todd, Wood is one of my favorites,

and that's about it. This happened quick, I and people come up to me and

did it quick and it has been great. I'm not say that, too—and yet it was a one who plans too far in advance, because I complete disaster and bomb. It don't know how I'm going to feel in a week was like an Ed Wood movie, or a month or a year. but really true. Mars Attacks!

STARLOG: The writers' strike could be was a disaster here, but it was

over by the time this article appears, or it quite successful in Europe. But

may still be going on. If it's the latter, might that just shows you that suc- you finally be able to get your forever-in- cess and failure can be many the-works Vincent Price documentary fin- Teaming with Jim Lemley andTimur (Night Watch) different things. It's never

ished? Bekmambetov, Burton is producing 9, an animated black and white, and for me, BURTON: What really pisses me off about fantasy directed by Shane Acker. that's probably very good!

66 STARLOG/A)flrc/i 2005 www.starlog.cotn STARLOG Subscriptions

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Tony DiTerlizzi & Holly Black offer up semi-grim tales in The Spiderwick Chronicles. Spiderwick is the the enormous world- With cause of the troubles. He wide success of Hobbits, recorded all sorts of fanciful Harry Potter and Asian creatures and their secrets the Lion in books, films and toys, in his Field Guide. the public has demonstrated a wel- come new taste for smart fantasy. Now that these fantasy worlds are tions. "People ignored them, not enjoying such a strong resurgence, because they were peaceful or Hollywood is hungry for intelli- good, but because they were afraid gent genre material in hopes of the fairies were going to snatch up filling their box office wardrobes. their children and blight their

The latest is The Spiderwick crops. So with Spiderwick, I was Chronicles, its film adaptation due really excited that kids would have out February 15. that idea of fairies —especially The series follows three sib- when I think of boys who say, 'Oh, lings who move with their that isn't for me.' There's a great divorced, overwhelmed mother deal of fairy folklore that both into the Spiderwick Estate in New boys and girls would enjoy."

England. Twin brothers Jared and "For me, visually, it was about Simon Grace and sister Mallory keeping that true spirit of fairies soon discover that the mansion and folklore alive," says DiTer- and its surrounding lands are liter- lizzi. "De-sequining and de-spark- ally infested with fairies, dwarves, ling it, making it a little grittier and , trolls and other crea- going back to the things that I tures. Illustrator Tony DiTerlizzi loved as a kid. I grew up reading and author Holly Black couldn't Grimm's fairy tales. I loved be happier about their immensely Dungeons & Dragons, J.R.R. Tol- popular Spiderwick Chronicles kien, Arthur Rackham and Brian reaching the big screen. Froud. I think in children's books "We saw a version of the in particular, things are starting to movie yesterday, and it was just get saccharinized. My big inten- incredible," enthuses Black. "To tion was, 'Let's show them what see all the creatures come to life this stuff is really supposed to look was amazing enough, but it was also fabu- wasn't as daunting as it sounds." like.' I wanted to show what a actual- lous to watch the characters move around The five-volume series from Simon & ly looks like! and talk to each other. I really like it, espe- Schuster includes The Field Guide, The "Fairy tales and folklore exist in all cul- cially seeing Jared [played by Freddie Seeing Stone, Lucinda's Secret, The Iron- tures," he continues. "They exist all over the Highmore]. He's an angry kid... I'm not sup- wood Tree and The Wrath of Mulgarath world, and there's a long history of people posed to talk about any part, but there's a (small he, $9.95 each). Arthur Spiderwick's interacting with fairies. The people who scene where he seems very... I don't know Field Guide to the Fantastical World Around don't interact with them don't have special what I'm allowed to say. But that part really You (large he, $24) chronicles the supernat- hit me in a [powerful] way. ural creatures they meet (as well as some When Jared Grace "Jared is my favorite character, which they don't). A second series. Beyond The discovers Arthur Spiderwick's may be why I was so excited to see him on Spiderwick Chronicles, began in the fall with actual Field Guide, the story transforms from family drama screen. We did five books that tell the story The 's Song (and focuses on another into fantasy adventure. of Simon, Jared and Mallory. Then there's family).

7776 Field Guide, so you, too, can get into as "If you put all the [first series] books much trouble as they do. The movie is a together, it's about 500 or 600 pages," summary of all five books, but the books are DiTerlizzi points out. "The idea was, when very short. So, putting all five in one film we launched the books, that they were for younger readers. Clearly, series like Lemony Snicket and Harry Potter were doing really, really well at the time we began to work on Spiderwick. But we didn't want this to be for

those kids. We actually wanted it to be for a younger audience, something a seven-, eight- or nine-year-old could read, but wasn't dumbed down or simplified. The Spiderwick

Chronicles still has an edge, and the illustra- tions are reminiscent of real fairy tales. The movie looks good, and they've stayed true to

the books' spirit, which was what I always told [director] Mark Waters he should do." The Seeing stone Don't expect stereotypical Tinkerbell- Artist DiTerlizzi & type fairies on screen; these are more writer Holly Black conceived of the Chronicles complex than Peter Pan's sweet little side- as a fantasy series for an kick. "The thing about the folklore regarding audience younger than fairies is that they aren't just girls with Harry Potter readers. wings—they're quite dangerous," Black cau-

STARLOG/zMorc/i 2008 69 —

In Luanda's Secret, the Grace kids visit their Great-Aunt and learn more about Arthur Spiderwicli and the fairie world.

The Seeing Stone Is When Mallory is the second entry in the five-book kidnapped in The Ironwood Tree, series, which screenwriters Karey Jared and Simon venture Into Kirkpatrick, David Berenbaum the dwarven mines to rescue her. and John Sayles condensed But this sequence isn't into one movie. in the movie. The Ironwood Tree "I grew up in South Florida," DiTerlizzi powers or come from faraway lands notes. "lust a small house, a simple life, and the Magic: The Gathering trading card they're regular people. Our fairies aren't then I moved to New York City with hopes games. I was doing that during the period

Tinkerbells. And there are also goblins and and dreams to be an illustrator. I worked for where fantasy worlds were big. But I felt trolls and little sprites [in the film]. In the years on Dungeons & Dragons. I like creat- like fairy tales were different, and I won- trailer, it isn't Tinkerbell chasing these kids; ing worlds for people. 1 also got to work on dered how I could bring that to life. Fantasy it's goblins and trolls!" has always been around; it just ebbs The thoughtful Black and witty and flows. DiTerlizzi have an easy banter, occa- "It would be silly not to say that a sionally finishing each other's sen- phenomenon like Harry Potter didn't tences. "We know each other help Spiderwick get off the ground. It extremely well," she comments. "For got publishers to at least say, 'Oh, example, he mentions Star Wars all what's this you have here with trolls the time. When I send him manu- and goblins?' Harry Potter made peo- script pages, he immediately explains ple excited about reading books his criticisms in Star Wars terms!" again. That's fantastic. Usually that

Nodding vigorously, DiTerlizzi kind of enthusiasm is reserved for a agrees with a grin. "That's true, that's movie, so it's awesome! And it was true. If I don't like something, I'll during that period when the seeds of " say, 'This is like the prequels!' Spiderwick started coming into DiTerlizzi's favorite Spiderwick focus." character "will always be Hogsqueal. Lord of the Rings has also shaped He's this precocious little many modem fantasy novels and art- who is really smarmy and funny, the work. "Most of the fantasy stuff, visu- Lando Calrissian who betrays them ally, is very derivative of Tolkien," and turns out good at the end," he DiTerlizzi notes. "When you think of jokes. a goblin, you immediately think of a

"The funny thing that no one has Tolkien-esque goblin. Again, I felt really called us on is that Hogsqueal that the stuff in fairy tales wasn't like has this weird vernacular, where he that. 'How can I make that as cool as calls the kids these funny little names the things I'm seeing in video games? that are actually antiquated curse As cool as the stuff I'm seeing in " words. Hogsqueal has been around a movies?' really, really long time, and so he uses funny words. The kids are hke, 'Ha, ha, ha.' And we're like, 'Hmm, Thimbletack (voiced " hmm, hmm.' (In the movie, by Martin Short in the film) Is Hogsqueal is voiced by Knocked only about the size of a pencil. Up's Seth Rogen.) But beware when this tiny becomes a bitter ! 70 STARLOG//More/i 2008 —

Black also cites Tolkien's influence, "But run around after them. But still, at the core,

we're coming at it from such a different there's this little boy dealing with the fact

place. I remember reading Tolkien when I that his Dad has left and is not coming was in the eighth grade, so that's already in back." there. Everything that you create is in dia- And the pain of that divorce is felt

logue with everything else. It's always going through all five books. "People often think

to be, and it's just exciting. And there are lots of fantasy as being escapist, but I believe-

of interesting new voices being added to it. that fantasy's great strength is that it can Look at something Uke Pan's Labyrinth— speak about things that are very real—and, the fact that a movie like that can now be in fact, often very painful—in different made is so wonderful. And again, to see the ways," Black offers. "By taking you outside dark side of fairies is thrilling. the normal ways of talking about those

"So much rich fantasy is coming out, and things, and being metaphorical—that's what doing Spiderwick, I told Tony, 'The beautiful we're coming at it from such different the best fantasy should do." thing is, I believe any kids reading this who places. What people love moves in cycles. How will they react when their characters go into their backyard to look for fairy evi- " Right now, fantasy is hot. It's something that are made into action figures? "Honestly, I dence will find it, like I did!' they're really excited about and interested in. have no idea," Black admits. However, She found clues that fairies had been in

When we were kids, there was lots of fanta- DiTerlizzi takes a different stance. "Oh. it her yard? "Oh, yeah! Because there's always

sy. I wonder if, now that we're older and will be awesome! I stuff that looks like evidence: squirrel having children, we're getting the kinds of hope kids love them,^ nests that are built too well, knotholes in movies to watch with our kids that we had because I loved toys trees with little acorn cups that are care- grins. when we were kids, and that we miss?" when I was a kid. To fully arranged..." Holly Black . The Spiderwick movie also keeps the see the characters as "When you're looking for stuff, you'll books' sad backstory. "What is great—and action figures, and to find it. I grew up in the wilds of New what we worked so hard to get into the sto- be a part of that for Jersey, but I've never looked for the Jersey ries—is that real human problems are going our kids, will be Devil. Just fairies! I've been out to the on, and they were able to capture that in the great." Pine Barrens a couple of times, and it film," says DiTerlizzi. "You have this family Black wants to- was pretty scary. Although I didn't see that's going through a bitter divorce, and day's kids to experi- the Jersey Devil, I was still a little these kids are having problems with that. ence fantasy the way scared!" They don't have any other place to turn, so she did as a child. "I they move into this old house that's owned remember going out Hogsqueal proves by the mother's side of the family. That's into my backyard to look unsurprisingly treacherous where they find the Field Guide. OK, then for fairies!" she declares. and unexpectedly helpful—to siblings. the fantasy starts, and the fairies and goblins "When we started Jared and his www.starlog.com STARLOG/zMorc/i 200« 71

—

much every movie Zach on Stranger Than Fiction. We had a rapport work, or there's a lack of emotional depth, PrettyHelm loved growing up and every with one another. He was excited to work and we knew that wouldn't work. Or the par- favorite toy he played with as a with Natalie, and I was able to sort of coax ents are crazy. You have to [cast the parents

kid influenced Mr. Magorium's him into it. as much as the kid], because you're dealing

Wonder Emporium, the big-screen "Jason and Zach came later," Helm adds. with them, and you know that the child is children's fantasy he wrote and directed. The "We struggled to figure out who should play indicative of their parents and, in some film, which stars Natalie Portman, Dustin Henry, and exactly who could embody him. cases, that's how you communicate with the Hoffman, and Zach Mills, [Producer] Richard Gladstein actually sug- child. So we got really lucky with Zach. His

represents Helm's maiden voyage as a direc- gested Jason when we were at dinner. I think parents are fantastic. Zach is a great kid. tor after receiving kudos for his break- we just repeated He's very much like that character, and as through script, Stranger Than Fiction. soon as he walked into the room, he had the

Portman plays Molly Mahoney, the part. But it was a process to find him." bright but tentative manager at the name 'Jason Bate- Mr. Magorium's Wonder 0^ man' for about two minutes, like, Young in Spirit Emporium, the magical 'Jason Bateman! Jason Bateman!' So we Portman, meanwhile, adored the toy shop owned XVv asked Jason, and he said yes. Magorium script and her character, the self- by the charm- t ^ \J*' "And as for Zach.. .that was probably the doubting, one-time piano prodigy. That

ing 243-year-old most difficult. We looked at more than 1 ,000 coupled with the fact that she had met Helm V cXv^ Mr. Magorium (Hoff- kids. It's hard casting children for parts like socially before she met him professionally man). After he announces this because you have kids who are too pre- prompted her to gamble on working with a i C'iX^ that he's soon to die and is handing cocious or coy, and we knew that wouldn't first-timer. the store over to Molly, all the playthings in stock and the shop itself lose their luster, their light, their color—and they do so both literally and figuratively. Only by tapping the magic within can Molly, uptight new accountant Henry (Bateman) and Eric (Mills), the store's youngest employee, a sweet but friendless nine-year-old, revive this wonderful Wonder Emporium. "Movies..." Helm says, rattling off influ- ences. "Mary Poppins, which we obviously pay homage to, and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. I've probably seen Duck Soup, the Marx Brothers movie, more than any other film. There's a little bit of Groucho Marx going on with Dustin. The dinosaur scene

with Henry is very similar to the Harpo- Groucho scene from that. As far as toys are concerned, my favorites are in the film. The Slinky was one of my favorite toys growing

up. I lived in the attic, so there were stairs.

That was rather useful. It sounds very Dickensian, doesn't it? So there's a big mix of stuff. When I watch the movie now, I see Molly (Natalie Portman) discovers that there are many splendid and astonishing bits of Harold and Maude, which I loved things to behold at Mr. Magorium's (Dustin Hoffman) Wonder Emporium. when I was growing up. I see The Little

Prince. I see Curious George. I see so much

stuff in there, probably more than I could ever describe." Helm received a gift of his own when

making Mr. Magorium 's Wonder Emporium:

its all-star cast, with Hoffman, Portman and Bateman complemented by the 11 -year-old

Mills. "I don't mean to brag, but it was rela- tively easy," Helm says of snagging his

actors. "I got very lucky. Natalie came first. When Mandate Pictures asked me if I want-

ed to direct it, I said that I would, but I only

wanted Natalie for that part. I knew Natalie

a little bit socially, and I hold Natalie in very high regard as far as actors of my generation.

So I said, 'It has to be Natalie,' and they had no problem with that.

"I approached Natalie boldly: I sent her

the script, gift-wrapped it and I sent CDs, toys to bribe her and a letter [to Germany, where Portman was shooting V for

Vendetta]. I realized that I had to stand out. When she said yes, I knew that we were in a Parents looking for the hot loy of the Christmas season should have checked good spot. And I knew Dusfin from working out this fire-breathing stuffed animal. Eric (Zach Mills) seems Impressed.

www.starlog.com mmMttrch2Q08 73 nity to play the character who, as he puts it, "really kind of tethers this eccentric world to reality a bit." In that sense, Henry resembled his role as Michael Bluth on Arrested Development. "If you don't have someone

who's sort of your eyes... I represent the audience coming into the toystore and say- ing, 'No, toystores aren't magical, and peo- ple don't live to be 250 years old.'

"I enjoyed watching this. And I enjoyed watching my character's progression,

because it's the most relatable to me. And I just liked being a part of this nice message in the movie—this message of trying to keep yourself from getting a hard, crusty shell until as late as possible. I suppose people need to keep themselves open to things that

might be a little less cut-and-dried. Zach

could probably fill you in on other existen-

tial themes he has going through this that I didn't even notice, but there's plenty of brain candy in the movie for the highbrows." stories about magic often have adult characters who simply refuse to Young at Heart believe. In this movie, Henry (Jason Bateman) has his eyes opened to the wonders Hoffman, on the other hand, plays a role of this special toystore. markedly different from anything he has

"I knew he was someone who could com- Bateman has been crazy-busy since the ever done before. Magorium is as far as municate really well," the actress explains. demise of his acclaimed series Arrested could be from Benjamin Braddock, Ratso "Zach is great to tallc to and really, really Development, but he welcomed the opportu- Rizzo, Ted Kramer, Raymond Babbit and smart. His script is incredible, and I was a huge fan of Stranger Than Fiction. Zach studied acting in college, so he actually has more training than I do. So in terms of giv- ing acting advice, that was extremely help- ful. He was great. Zach was really commu- nicative, and he said some helpful things. His notes were always right on, and always interesting. Zach was completely open. "It's hard for a writer to see anyone mess with their words, but if someone was like, 'You know, this doesn't feel quite right. Can I say this?', Zach would give us that free- dom—although 99 percent of what's in the movie is written by him because he's a phe- nomenal writer. But he just had a great open- ness. And it's fun to go from working with Milos Forman, the Wachowski Brothers and Wes Anderson to Zach—to being with someone new for the first time. And direc- tors don't really see how other directors work. That's something that is always inter- esting. They're each sort of self-invented, and when you see someone who is as inven- tive as Zach, you just know that he's going to be special." Portman giggles when asked if another appealing element of Magorium was that, unlike in Vfor Vendetta and Goya 's Ghosts, she wouldn't be tortured. "Interesting ques- tion," she smiles. "It really wasn't that. I'm just trying to do stuff that's different all the time. Yeah, I had the unfortunate position of having that in Goya and then in V as well, but I've also had a few... I guess I've only had [the short film] Hotel Chevalier since

Goya. I just want to do stuff that's challeng- ing in different ways, and this script was like a no-brainer when I read it. I was like, T have to do this.' I immediately called Zach and was like, 'I'm in. Whatever. You tell me " when.'

74 STARL0G/A)orf/i200fi even Mumbles and Captain Hook. "I've

always felt that v/hether I like it or not I'm... What's the word?... I'm subjected to being a non-grown-up my whole life," the 70-year- old Oscar winner says. "I've never been able

to grow up. I look forward to it at some

point. This character is an adult, but he's not a grown-up. Grown-up kind of means you pretend. Grown-ups pretend to be other peo-

ple, you know? He's what a kid is, I guess. Or that's the idea.

"A kid is there to believe. A kid believes as long as you let them believe, and once you start to kick that out of the kid, you kind of.. I think a kid looks at an adult for hope, and if you don't give them hope, just in essence, then they feel hopeless around you. And that's what the movie is about. At least in my experience, kids make a decision about peo- ple very quickly when they meet them. Are you safe? Do they trust you? I've always

been very close to kids. I yearn to find that more and more in my life." Zach Helm(ed) his first fiim with Mr. Magorium. The newbie director was These days, Hoffman also enjoys acting influenced by everytfiing from Mary Poppins to Duck Soup. alongside the next generation of Hollywood

stars. He shared the screen with Johnny when his young co-star is described as mar- didn't heed the advice. It's one of my flaws. Depp in Finding Neverland, Will Ferrell in riage-destroying material. "I met Natalie And they talked, and they met a few times.

Stranger Than Fiction and now he has done years ago," he begins, launching into a But that was the first time I met Natalie. I've

the same with Portman. Hoffman cracks up charmingly Hoffman-ian tale. "She's about seen her a few more times, but this is the first

26, and I have a son who is time I've worked with her.

26. The first break I got in "Natalie is very, very bright. She would One could draw acting was in what we call come in every morning to makeup, and she comparisons class-Z summer stock, would be doing the New Yoric Times cross- between Willy which meant there were no word puzzle. Yes, she can do Monday and Wonka and his more than 1 00 seats. It was Tuesday rather rapidly, but when you see her chocolate factory in Fishkill, New York. It doing Wednesday, Thursday and and Mr. Magorium was years and years and his Wonder ago, Friday... [the puzzles get more complicated Emporium. The and it was the first time I by the weekday]. And that's what she does latter is a tad older, got on stage. And I got to while she's getting her stuff on." though. He's 243! play Peter in The Diary of Hoffman believes that "Natalie belongs

Anne Frank; he was Anne's in that league, on that short list of actors boy friend. who, in a way, try their best not to be

"So when they did it on seduced by stardom. I went to see Goya's

Broadway [a revival de- Ghosts. It's a flawed film. I think everything

cades later, with Portman is flawed. But there's stuff in there that's

as Anne Frank], I wanted to magnificent. It's visually wonderful. There

see it. I took my wife, we are scenes with Javier Bardem, who is

saw Natalie in it and we maybe the great actor of the moment, of our went backstage and met time. And in the scenes between him and

her. It was kind of an image Natalie, I saw her show a depth I hadn't seen

I won't forget, because in her work before. I called her up, and I there she was in her room said, 'Holy cow!'

with her mother, who was "But it was kind of painful for her, peeking out and deciding because the film didn't really open or any-

whether she even wanted to thing, and she had put in all that work. But

let my wife and . I in, she thanked me. And that was after we had

because she had Natalie sit- worked together. Natalie runs away from it.

ting down. Natalie had just I said, 'What are you going to do?' She said, finished a performance, 'I'm taking off for a year. I'm going to

and she had her sitting China. I'm going to do this. I want to go

down doing her high school back to Israel.' She demands to have a life, I finals. But she did let us in. guess. She tries her best...

"But I did a very bad "So that's the first thing that comes to

thing, which was I called mind," Dustin Hoffman remarks. "I mean,

up my son in LA, and I she's a professional. She's fun to work with.

said, T got her.' He has She's lovely. I guess I'm so old I don't think

hated me ever since, but I of her as marriage-destroying. I go right for put him on the phone with the voyeuristic aspect and say, 'Maybe she'll

Natalie," Hoffman adds. marry my son.' I can't be her boy friend or

"He said, 'Dad, don't pimp her lover. I'll be her father-in-law. It's a

for me anymore, please!' I healthy transference!" www.starlog.com STARLOG/yWorrA^M 75 Samantha Eggar celebrates with re^l presence & memories of adventures past ! —

takes, we would talk about London, theater

and all the people we knew in common. It was a great experience working and hanging

out with Patrick. In retrospect, I had no idea that the episode would stand out, because [after his nasty run-in with the Borg in "The Best of Both Worlds"] Jean-Luc was sent to Earth for some R&R.

"I really lucked out, because I didn't have to go through hours of alien makeup

like everybody else on the show. I could be

myself I also didn't have to be on a space- ship set, because we spent the whole episode

in a vineyard [on the Picard estate]. It was a wonderful experience, and I was especially

thrilled to see how I looked in the episode: They made me up like Katharine Hepburn

"Jeremy is nuts, absolutely nuts," she

laughs. "Jeremy is your typical crazy English actor, but a total delight! He lives here [in California] now, and I've seen him since shooting our episode. Jeremy is She calls her Star Trek: The Next Generation husband Jeremy Kemp "your typical crazy adorable. I never worked with Patrick before English actor."

or since, but I must say he was delightful,

too. And I didn't even have to audition for the part." Her favorite scene in the show "was

when the Picard brothers start brawling! I watched them fighting in the mud. That was

fun. It was these two older guys flailing, so neither one of them ever got a punch in, which was great—these two brothers set- tling all their old scores." Marie Picard didn't really belong to the future, Eggar asserts. "There's a timeless-

ness at his brother's vineyard, so I didn't see

it as futuristic. I wasn't aware of how big a following Star Trek has, but I am now! How

lucky was I, to be part of this enormous global experience and a member of the

Captain's family? As his sister-in-law, I

thought, 'This is cool. I'm not just some weird person visiting from another planet.' She was a weird person, but from this plan- et—and I liked being connected to the lead's Malting Dolittle took a year, so most of the aging monkeys and other critters had to be immediate family. replaced. Polynesia the parrot stayed. "They even gave me a trading card, and to get that without being a baseball player is form. The woman who made Round

very flattering! They come in little Numbers mortgaged her house to do it.

envelopes for me to sign. But they're so "Kate and I were having lunch in small, and I have such a long name and big Brentwood one day, and Kate had gone on

writing style, I worry about how I'll get my an audition that she said was terrible, and whole signature on there. Once, I was going her marriage at the time wasn't in great

to the theater in NY, and it was very late and shape. She wasn't really happy. About a I was in a big huixy, and there was a horde of week later, Kate got the role as Captain people waiting for autographs. So because I Janeway and soared to stardom. It was so

was in a rush, I signed them 'Sam Eggar,' wonderful that someone who was emotion-

and they were furious with me and started ally downhill could turn it around and be

tearing up the photos because they said it given this extraordinary job. Kate is such a

wasn't my name! I thought, 'You're lucky to pro, and she nailed it. She is a dedicated, get a signature.' But they wanted the whole hard-working, serious, highly intelligent, long name." amusing and flat-out brilliant friend." Next Generation wasn't her only Star She has no memory of TV guest stints on Trek connection. "I did a movie called Darkroom and Mann & Machine, but Round Numbers with Kate Mulgrew from is another story. "That was

Star Trek: Voyager!' Eggar says. "She fun, because I was Mr Roarke's fantasy!"

became my best girl friend after we met on Eggar giggles. "We got married, and I had to

that. It was a great story, but it didn't turn out have a brain tumor and die immediately. We terribly well or hugely successful. Still, shot those two-hour episodes in Hawaii, and According to Eggar, Doctor Dolittle was what's great about doing these projects are it was so glamorous. Ricardo Montalban ahead of its time. She loved singing and the deep and lasting relationships that you you get someone from that era kissing you. talking to the animals in the famous flop. www.starlog.com STARLOG/Alofc/i» 77 "

and you really know you've been kissed! a baby. Get on a plane and shoot this movie Voicing tlie goddess Hera, Eggar never 'Rrrrriiiicarrdo, kiss me again, my darling!' with Gary Grant!' knew her spouse Zeus was Rip Torn until Disney's animated Hercules. Oh, he kissed me so hard, I felt it in my Doctor Dolittle, one of her biggest films, she saw toes!" had her riding a giant pink snail and talking to the animals as Emma Fairfax, the cheerful Animal Talk assistant to the legendary veterinarian. "I Acting came to her almost accidentally. can't rave enough about Tony Newley and "I was born in Hampstead, which is North of Leslie Bricusse; their music was terrific," London, during the War," Eggar reveals. she grins. " 'If I Gould Talk to the Animals'

"I'm giving away my age, but I feel since and those other great songs? How ahead of today is my birthday, I can celebrate every- their time they were! I'm so in awe that Tony thing! Although I was born in that part of and Leslie wrote about animals and the envi- London, I felt I was a Chelsea girl who lived ronment in 1965, when nobody cared about there. England was magical then. I would anything like that. You listen to the songs see the Beatles at the clubs all the time. I now, and they're still wonderful. went to school south of London, at Surrey "We filmed Doctor Dolittle for a whole and in Kent. I actually never made a decision year in England and St. Lucia; it was a long, to become an actor; it was one of those long shoot. Rex Harrison [Doctor Dolittle] serendipitous things where I was in art and I shared the same birthday ! When I told

him it was my birthday, he said, 'No, it can't

be, because it's my birthday!' I would always

send him a card. Rex was a legend. I got to

sing and dance, which I absolutely loved. It was a fantastic experience.

"The giant snail was great. It was huge, floated on the water and had an engine

inside its shell. You could climb inside, and

the entire cast fit on the snail. It looked like

a giant Rose Bowl parade float. It was gor- geous. Ray Aghayan did all of the costumes.

Of all the animals, I loved the Pushmi- Pullyu! He was a cute litfle thing and absolutely real. We worked with a real live animal called the Pushmi-PuUyu," she says with a wink. Eggar found that the animals turned the set into a zoo. "The big anteater took us out one day!" she chuckles. "Through sheer power, the poor thing busted out of his cage and ran all over the studio! Doctor Dolittle Among Eggar's major film credits are The Collector, Walk, Don't Run and The Molly took so long to shoot that they had to keep Maguires (with Sean Connery, pictured). replacing the animals because they would school for two and a half years and some- body suggested I try drama school. I did, I liked it and here we are!" In the 1960s, Eggar gained fame in such films as The Collector, Doctor Dolittle and The Molly Maguires (1970). She acted oppo- site stars like Terence Stamp, Sean Gonnery, John Hurt and Gary Grant (in the romantic comedy Walk, Don't Run). Was it every English girl's dream to work with Gary

Grant? "All I can say is I was pretty lucky, wasn't I? That was his very last film. Gary was amazing. He had just married Dyan Gannon, and we shot most of that in Tokyo. The scene where I'm running down the street clutching my stomach was shot 20 days after I gave birth! The Japanese ladies bound my stomach with bandages. I felt like a slave on that. I didn't want to take my son, because he was so little. But I was under contract, and couldn't get out of it. The pro- "It was a wonderful experience, ' Eggar says of her Trek. And Patricia Stewart was ducer said, 'We don't care that you just had "delightful." 78 Smm/March2008 " —

and multiple locations. We went from one side of the world to the other. "I loved singing and dancing, although Marni Nixon [who dubbed singing voices of actresses in such films as West Side Story

and fAy Fair Lady} filled in. I did three cho- ruses of my own singing—you can certainly tell the bits that aren't me, because they don't sound anything like me! She had this

American accent, and I kept saying to her, 'Hello, I'm English—a little more Julie Andrews, Marni!' In 1977, she starred in Welcome to Blood City, a strange SF cult flick where people find themselves enslaved in a Wild West town where you can only change your status by killing others. "That was an interesting movie," Eggar opines. "I spent the whole film on a magnificent horse in this great

cowboy gear. I just loved it. I wore a black, tight-fitting top with a big red cross, because that's how they killed people in those days they would aim for the cross over your heart.

Jack Palance was in it, too. Before he came on to the film, they told me, 'Don't you dare grow. Gub-gub the pig was replaced several call him "Pal-Zance"—it's "PaZ-ance," and times, as were most of the others. The only rhymes with balance! Say it 100 times,

animal to make it all the way through was because he'll get angry if you pronounce it Chip the dog. He was a pound dog, so they wrong.' Jack was a poet and a very interest- couldn't replace him, and Polynesia the par- ing man. He did poetry and one-armed push- rot stayed. All of the seals and chimps had to ups!" STARLOG readers recall Eggar as Jean- be replaced. It was also funny, because the Eggar worked with another famous Luc Picard's sister-in-law Marie in Star animals would occasionally go to the bath- movie cowboy, Yul Brynner, in 197rs The Trek: The Next Generation's "Family." room during a scene." Light at the Edge oftlie World, an adaptation Sadly, Doctor Dolittle was a giant bomb of a Jules Verne tale. "You don't have sion in Disney's animated Hercules. "I loved

at the time of its release, helping bankrupt enough tape for me to talk about Yul playing Hera. Who wouldn't want to be a 20th Century Fox. "You're absolutely right," Brynner," she laughs. "It's very fond, but goddess and the mother of Hercules? It was she declares. A string of films (including goodbye to that subject!" a wonderful experience. On those things, Star!, Che!, Hello Dolly! and Doctor In 1979, Eggar played mother to The you never work with anyone else; you're all Dolittle) didn't meet the studio's box-office Brood, director David {Scanners) alone in the sound booth. Until I saw the

expectations. "They all failed horribly, but Cronenberg's excellent cult horror film. film, I had no idea I was married to Rip every Easter, Doctor Dolittle plays on TV. More recently, she was Kristy Swanson's Tom! I'm happy I did Hercules, because my

Because of its enviromental awareness and mother in The Phantom. "Alan Ladd Jr., my grandchildren love it. It was fun doing the treatment of animals. Doctor Dolittle has producer from The Walking Stick, gave me movie, and I enjoyed reprising Hera on the

come into its own and finally makes sense to that job. Short, sweet and nice. Not Alan, the TV show."

everybody! Richard Fleischer directed it, movie," she deadpans. As for the future, "It's open," Samantha and he was terrific. He had so much to cope As the voice of Hera, Mother of the Gods Eggar says happily. "I have no idea what's

with, working with all the animals, huge sets of Mount Olympus, she made a big impres- next!" "j^

Some f ilmgoers may know Eggar best from her voyage with Doctor Dolittle As mother to feisty Diana Palmer (Kristy Swanson), (Rex Harrison, who shared the same birthday). Eggar Is only briefly seen in The Phantom. www.starlog.com Smm/March2008 79 ALIEN NINE BAHLE ARENA TOSHiNDEN BATTLE SKIPPER: The Movie BIG WARS CYBERNETICS GUARDIAN

OARKSIDE BLUES DETONATOR ORGUN DOMINION TANK POLICE FENCER of MINERVA Vol. 1 GENOCYBER; The Collection

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The WORLD of NARUE DNA' Original Japanese version 9" DVD COLLECTION DVD COLLECTION "Alien Nine" ©2001Hitoshi Tomizawa, Aliita SliotenrAlien Committee. All ottier products are trademart(s of ttieir respective owners. Alt rigtits reserved- (4 DVD Set) (S DVD Set) Pity poor Rick Gonzalez. His Reaper these kind of characters, so I jumped at the show. But it's pretty cool. It's fun." character, Ben, simply cannot get opportunity." In fact, he has gotten so used to it, the CG through an episode of the Tuesday night A veteran of feature films like Biker Boyz demons he sees for the first time on TV don't CW series without being smacked, thrown, and In the Valley of Elah, the NY-born and amaze him any more. "The special effects kicked or otherwise pummeled by assorted -raised Gonzalez has been acting for guys are on-set on those days to shoot it, and tormented souls out of the fiery pit of Hell. "I a solid decade, having debuted in the 1998 TV they give us an idea of what we're supposed to think it's because the writers have a horrible movie Thicker Than Blood. A novice when it be seeing and what it kinda looks like,"

sense of humor when it comes to me," comes to genre productions, he did appear in Gonzalez explains. "So we have an image in Gonzalez chuckles. one episode of Bujfy the Vampire Slayer our head of what's to be expected. When I see It comes with the territory. Ben has fallen ("Help") and had a brief turn as Tom Cruise's the final product, personally speaking, I'm not in with sketchy companions. There's Bert neighbor in War of the Worlds. as surprised." "Sock" Wysocki (Tyler Labine), who makes "I'm having a great time playing Ben, and He has neither a favorite episode nor John Belushi's Animal House character look I'm really happy something like this came demonic antagonist. "Every week, they're get- like Princeton material. And then there's Sam along," he offers. "Every night Reaper comes ting better and bettei|" Gonzalez asserts. "The

Oliver (Bret Harrison), who's a bit of a slack- on, I watch it. I get extremely anxious to check i er. Plus, Sam's parents sold his soul to the it out, simply because I want to see the end Devil () before he was ever born. The product. We work eight days on each episode, trio are buddies, but this isn't the Three and I grow very excited to see what we've Amigos. Loyalty forces Ben to join Sam and done. Especially with the special effects." Bert in Ghostbusters-slyle forays to recapture Although he's new to bluescreen work,

Hell's lost fugitives. Gonzalez doesn't find it especially challeng-

"I auditioned for it," Gonzalez says of his ing. "It's so smoothly created for us, it doesn't still-no-last-name role. "It was good, old-fash- get in the way," he professes. "At least for me,

ioned 'Get in there and win 'em over.' I really it doesn't. And I'm almost always getting hurt

liked the role. I rarely get a chance to play during any of the special effects parts of the

«««« When wert «

Searc MURRAY BY WILL

Rick Gonzalez doesn't just: act on Reaper, he watches it, too. "Every week, they're getting better and better," he says.

82 Smm/March2i Photo: Jack Rowand Stories are now integrated better, and the char- acters are more developed. And you're start- ing to care more for each character. There's a better understanding of the show as we progress. It's becoming stronger and stronger.

"I kinda like it when women are the escaped souls," he does admit. "They do something great with the characters. I love their energy. We've had a couple of females who have done some great stuff with the souls. I like it when that happens." In every episode, Sam and his soul-search- ing team are presented with a bizarre new ves- sel for recapturing that week's felonious fan- tasy fugitive. They've ranged from a Dirt Devil hand vacuum to a caged bird Ben in- jokingly names Winston. Gonzalez's favorite? "Oh, man! The

Christmas sweater. I thought that was pretty freaking silly. That was great. I love that kind of stuff."

Severe Bruises

The actor is on firmer ground talking about his character. Ben is someone he has

The Three Amigos. Ben (Gonzalez) and his buddies Sam (Bret Harrison) and Sock (Tyler Labine) find themselves in new trouble and hellish peril weekly.

So why is Ben helping out Sam? Well, Sam doesn't really have a choice about fighting demons. The Devil

literally makes him do it. —

been trying to capture since the well-received that classic film. "Yeah, of course," Gonzalez formidable Wise. "But I see him all the time

pilot. "I've been trying to find a thread in acknowledges. "I think the more absurd things on the set," he offers. "Ray is such a sweet and

between Sam and Sock, who is so full of ener- are, the better they feel. Sometimes they're fantastic actor. I love what he does with the gy and strong," Gonzalez explains. "Sam is the very uncomfortable. But they get through it." Devil. And I appreciate that they let him find straight man. So how does Ben fit in? How Does he see any comparisons between Ben his moments at the end of every episode, does their friendship evolve? And why do they and one of the original Ghostbusters? "Well, where he shows the Devil's human side. What

care about each other so much? he might be Winston [Ernie Hudson]," a great guy! I would love for the writers to

"Ben is the practical one of the group. Gonzalez chuckles. "He's the practical one of come up with a scene where the guys [Ben and

Also, he carries the same shades of colors as the group, which is why it's funny that Ben is Sock] finally meet up with the Devil. That

they do. At times, Ben can be a little bit like the one always getting hurt. I think that's would be interesting."

Sock. But he can also be a little bit like Sam. great. I love it." Right now. Reaper's future is completely

At the same time, he's more calculated than Gonzalez naturally looks forward to more up in the air. Ratings haven't been great, aver-

the two of them. Ben is a little smarter than Ben-centric Reaper scripts to come, because aging below what Veronica Mars (the previous them, in terms of book smarts. When they're he feels that there's more character to discov- time-slot holder) scored last season. But reviews have been solid, and the show n " has buzz. The CW originally ordered M PLAYING THE SCAREDY-CftT Of THE GfiOU ' 13 episodes, and (as of this interview)

the production is working on Episode 11. Beyond that lies Limbo, thanks to the Hollywood writers' strike. "We're in the middle of the strike," Gonzalez ruminates. "The writers picked the perfect time—right in the middle of the season. Whereas in 1988, [the strike took place] at the season's end.

I'm hoping that this is quickly

resolved, because it's putting lots of

people out of work. This is people's

livelihood. Honesfly, I have no idea, man. We're going to shoot 13, and then we're going on hiatus." And beyond Reaperl "I don't know," muses the 28-year-old Hispanic American, who also dabbles in the rap music scene. "That's not for

me to decide. I go with the flow.

Whatever sparks my interest, I jump

on it. I don't really have a preference.

I always tell people I just want to stay

employed. I would love to be working

20 years from now. I would love to produce and have more good scripts

come my way so I could knock 'em Stuck on 13 shows, Reaper's fate may depend on the writers' strike. As for Gonzalez, he's eager to return to work and discover new things about his character. out of the park. That's pretty much it. I'm a simple man."

dealing with religion, he has lots of expertise er. "Many people have told me, 'I would love However, if Reaper continues, Gonzalez

in that. They look to Ben for answers and help to see more of Ben. I want to get to know Ben believes, "There are so many places we can in certain areas. 'Ben, can you help us find this better.' So I'm hoping for that," he comments. explore. Lots of people bring up Bujfy and

person online?' 'Yes, of course.' He's that kind "I would like to see Ben take more control. how one-dimensional it was in the beginning,

of guy. So Ben is finding his niche." What is great about [the part] is that I'm play- but then the writing became so good because One recent show focused on Ben, and ing the scaredy-cat of the group. But I would they were able to explore the ramifications of filled in some of his backstory. "Episode Nine love to see Ben evolve and develop some who Buffy was. And the good-vs.-evil idea.

is pretty much my episode," Gonzalez says. courage. I would like to know more of where And the realism of it. At the same time, there's

"You get to see Ben's character a little more Ben comes from, what he's about and the rela- a dramatic aspect to Reaper. Sam has true

who he is, and where he came from. Ben tionships he has with his friends." feelings, and there are real repercussions. If comes from a very religious family. He lives we get the chance, we can examine that. There with his Mom and Dad, who is a pastor. Ben Flesh Wounds are so many questions and places to explore. also has a weird relationship with his grand- Speaking of friends, Gonzalez is enjoying And the show is in a really good place." mother. He doesn't feel like he has her bless- playing opposite his fellow cast members, A good place about a very bad place, that

ing. In that episode, you see how estranged "Bret is awesome," he praises. "What I love is. Gonzalez credits two elements that have led they are. There's love there, obviously, about Bret is that he's thorough. He's very to Reaper being so well-received by audiences between Ben and his grandmother, but you see communicative with the writers. Bret really and critics alike. "Ultimately, it's the writing her disappointment, and the friction between works hard in making sure that the script and the on-set chemistry; we're connecting the them. However, that leads to lots of comedy. makes sense to him, and for his character. He dots there. That's why the media is enjoying Ultimately, she gets involved in helping us truly wants to understand the ins and outs of the show. It's a smart and funny comedy. And

three and capturing the soul for that episode. the story; that way, it makes sense to the audi- we're having a good time doing it."

It's hilarious." ence. Tyler is great, and he has amazing ener- Rick Gonzalez hopes to be playing Ben far Reaper, in its entirety, is pretty funny. And gy on the set. Everyone loves to be around beyond that unlucky number 13. "We're on to the show does evoke Ghostbusters—especial- him. He's so funny and refreshing. We all get something. Reaper is a cool show, and I hope ly when the spirit-seeking trio climb into along well." people check it out. And it's only getting bet- ridiculous castoff utilities clearly inspired by So far, Gonzalez has yet to work with the ter. People should definitely stay tuned!" ^

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Foreign order, send US funds only. If you don't want to cut out coupon, we will accept written orders. Please allow 4 to 6 weeks for delivery of first issue. THE HOME FOR HORRi OK THE INreilROIlNr has gone from the frying pan into the careful!' Through her, I think I've become and has appeared on such series as Stargate Shefire, promoted from technician to Viper tougher. We share the same kind of loyalty, SG-1 ("The Tomb"), Intelligence, The Chris

pilot. Now, with Cylons gunning for but unlike Seelix, I don't fly off the handle Isaak Show and Tru Calling. She's one of

her, you have to ask: Is this any way to treat and attack people. I really like that about her, several Canadian performers on Galactica a lady? though—drop what you have in your hand who began with a bit part and nurtured it into "I said, 'Oh, no! Now it's going to be and go grill somebody!" a strong, identifiable role. Now, as a Viper " much easier to kill me,' laughs Jennifer pilot, Seelix is unleashing her aggressions Halley, who plays the solemn Seelix on Strapping in on those crafty metal monsters, the Cylons, Battlestar Galactica. "Being a Viper pilot The Vancouver-born actress began work- as the fleet tries to find planet Earth. means you can die anytime." ing as an international model as a teenager. "When Seelix was part of the ground But Halley is excited by her new flight

status and is ready to kick Cylon butt when Galactica returns on SCI FI in April. Her character began as an unnamed ground crew person in the first season. "We were filming Jennifer Halley a scene on Kobol, where our Raptor had

crash-landed, and I was tending to some- body's wounds," she recalls. "Director hecks her Michael Rymer came over and asked, 'What

is your character's name?' I said, 'I don't have one.' light status

"Since neither I nor another technician had character names, Rymer yelled out ran- domly, 'Hey, what are the names of these ir Battlestar guys?' Aaron Douglas [Chief Tyrol] yelled back, 'Tarn and Seelix.' So when we shot the scene, somebody called me Seelix, and I had alactica's my name." Not that Douglas' ad-lib of Seelix was her first choice. "I wanted to say,

'Wait a minute! I don't want Seelix. It sounds too much like Felix—no way!' " she chuckles. During those early days, Seelix slogged

By MARK PHILLIPS

through the CyIon-infested forests of Kobol, was saved from gunfire by Cally (Nicki Clyne) and reluctantly used her medical training to euthanize a mortally wounded Socinus (Alonso Oyarzun). "I didn't even have a first name until Season Three," she says. "It's Diana. I looked up that name and discovered she's a Roman goddess of the Hunt. She's known for her prowess and athleticism. That helped me define who Seelix was." At first glance, Diana Seelix seems drawn from disturbing, malevolent shadows. Her silent gaze and no-nonsense demeanor send people scrambling for cover. But

wrapped inside that mysterious persona is a vulnerable, secretive soul. Asked if Seelix has beaten up anybody lately, the actress gives an all-knowing chuckle. "She has given the gears to lots of people above her, that's for sure," Halley remarks.

"Seelix is now much more vocal when she doesn't agree with the decisions being made.

Sometimes even I'm like, 'Whoa, girl, be www.starlog.com Battlestar Galactica's Diana Seelix (Jennifer Halley) has climbed the ranks from ground crew technician to Viper pilot.

to discover that some of her fellow humans had betrayed her race to the Cylons was real- ly hurtful to her. That's part of how she jus- tified killing the traitors. These experiences have made Seelix tougher and more of a loner."

Seelix is still evolving and pondering her bleak existence on the Galactica. "This sea- son has gotten to the point where every attack plan seems crazy and against the

odds," Halley states. "Seelix is resisting the Commanders by speaking out, and her hope

of ever finding a home is disappearing.

Death for everyone is a very real possibility. For Seelix, that's scary, unsettling and lone-

ly. I wonder what that must do to her psyche, 'Being a Viper pilot: means but she keeps on fighting." you can die afintime." Watching Out In the esteemed presence of Edward crew," Halley comments, "I would see actors that Tarn [Warren Christie] died and I had James Olmos (Adama) and Mary McDon- doing second-unit Viper stuff, and I would been shot in the leg, I thought, 'Man, that nell (Roslin), Halley and the other Galactica say, 'You're a Viper pilot, that's so cool.' But sucks! I know I'm going to die sooner or actors are inspired to stay at the top of their the looks on their faces was more like, 'Oh later.' When I read that I lived, I was so excit- game. "When we found out that Seelix was

God!' They would tell me, 'No, don't even ed. But it's a constant fear: Will I survive?" part of the resistance group in Season Three, " wish to be doing this.' Seelix has also delivered her share of it was a great opportunity to play some won-

She soon found out why. "The first time death. During Season Three, Seelix is derful scenes," Halley says. "But I didn't

I got into a Viper, I thought I was going to revealed to be part of The Circle, a secret want to screw things up. When you're with pass out," Halley recalls. "You're strapped group that punishes humans who colluded such amazing actors, you want to be ready " into a very confined place, with a helmet on, with Cylons during life on New Caprica. and not let anybody down. The cast is so tal- and wearing a rubber suit that makes you 'Collaborators' was an important show for ented, and the writers and directors are sweat like crazy. When we finished my first Seelix," Halley observes. "We saw her loyal- incredible. There are so many interesting scenes, I thought, 'I really need to calm ty to the Galactica crew and her strong sense and profound things this series is trying to down here. This is clearly an irrational fear. of justice." explore. Just a few episodes ago, we were Everybody goes through this. It isn't like That included pushing a screaming trai- talking about racism with the writers. To

I'm going to die in here.' I studied some tor out of an airlock and into space. "Seelix have the chance to even talk about what relaxation techniques, and when I went back struggled with the ugly part of that kind of racism really is, and then shoot a scene deal- into the Viper this season, I employed those justice," she says. "When we filmed those ing with prejudice—that's the kind of mate- techniques and learned to enjoy and master Kobol scenes early on, I had broken my leg rial you dream of as an actor. those scenes." months earlier, and I was still in pain, run- "If Eddie or Mary are working that day,

And when things get rough, Douglas ning through the mud and rain. I used those I'll come in early or stay late to watch them, lightens the mood. "Aaron is the absolute emotions to show Seelix's struggle for sur- and that's an acting class right there," she worst about trying to crack people up," she vival. Her loyalty to her shipmates was lauds. "They're great. They're also very nice says. "In between 'Cut' and 'Action,' the strengthened by that terrible experience. So and approachable. Mary has been acting for actors are trying to stay focused, but he Without Seelix is Galactica pilot knows I'm especially susceptible. For exam- question, loyai to the crew, but the ardent and dutiful can sometimes tal

"Or I'll be at a hockey game, and they'll play what used to be one of my favorite songs, and I'll just scream, 'Argghhh!' But

Aaron is fun to work with, and he's so tal- ented. I miss working with the actors who play the ground crew, though. Things are now much more serious. Playing a Viper pilot, you never know whether your charac- ter is going to make it or not."

It all comes down to survival, both on and off the screen. "Season Two picked up where Season One had left off, and we all looked through the scripts madly to see which of us lived," Halley says. "When I saw

88 STARL0G/A1orc/iM8 Death far everyane is a very real possibility. 99

and said, 'I just want you to know, I consid- too, as a production or office person, so I Checking out er this a scene between us.' laughed. over to her said, 'Yes, I do. this glamour And he walked and the closest I've the I have shot, it's no That was gotten to upper Where do you work?' Well, must surprise that echelons of GalacticaV scared the shit out of her. She backed off and the Canadian Halley has had a few memorable fan said, 'Oh, wow... I can't beheve you're talk-

actress began encounters. "At my gym, I was waiting at the ing to me.' She turned and ran off into a ele-

as an front desk, and one of the trainers joked to vator and disappeared. I just stood there, international someone in front of me, 'Oh, frak off!' He like, 'What just happened here?' It was the model. then looked over at me with a smile, like, T strangest thing. Then it hit me—she was a know what you do.' I don't tell people I'm fan. She had wanted to give me a compli- on the show, so that was funny." ment, which was so cool. But, gee, I'm real-

The memory of another fan experience ly sorry I scared her!" leaves Halley perplexed. "I was coming out When Season Four ends, Battlestar of a store, and a woman said, 'Hey, you work Galactica will permanently close shop, and on Battlestar GalacticaV " Halley remem- the actors will go their separate ways. What bers. assumed she worked on the show would Halley like to see happen with Seelix in the meantime? "She has been on that ship a long time, and she hasn't had any action," Halley notes of Seelix's solitary lifestyle. "I don't mean that she should find a partner and settle down, because that does not often make for great television.

"But it would be nice if Seelix 30 years, and yet she's still discovering had a romantic distraction and things and is curious. ..it's beautiful. I would explored her loneliness," Jennifer love to have a scene with her." Halley observes. "You never know And Halley has also made Olmos smile. what's going to happen to your

"We did an episode last year where the Chief character. I don't even think the and Cally are trapped in an airlock ["A Day writers know, which makes it unpre- in the Life"], and they're running out of air," dictable and exciting. Most impor-

Halley says. "I'm in a little control room, tantly, I just want her to survive. and Adama walks in. Eddie and I didn't get Halley hung out at V-Con, a Vancouver SF But, hey, if Seelix has to die, then I to exchange any dialogue, he just stood by convention, with Ga/acf/ca colleagues Luciana hope it's an honorable death and she me, and between takes I looked over at him Carro (Kat) and Leah Cairns (Racetrack). goes out with a real bang!" wvt^.starlog.com STARLOG/AfflffA^OOS 89 LOG

All Art: Mike Fisher

IRON MAH'S MOST- USED 6AP6ET

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